Wait. What? Did I just think about spawning a child with my movie-making surfer and not exactly hate the idea? Oh, Jesus. I was in deep. Kids had never entered the equation when I’d been with other men previously. At all. Based on the gleam in Wes’s eyes as he held baby Lynndy, kids were definitely part of his future plans. Hell, if I didn’t watch out, he’d have me married, barefoot, and pregnant before the year was up.
Wes looked up as I was watching him play with the baby. His eyes were the color of the most exquisite emeralds. Yeah, babies made him happy. Shit. I’d give him a kid just to have him look at me with that same love and wanting.
I shook my head and got back in the game. This type of discussion needed to be had after a couple rounds in the bedroom, while we were drunk and after we were feeling all romantic and cheesy.
Finally, after the kids went down for a nap and the eldest took off on his bike, Heidi meandered to her backyard. When she opened the slider, I was stunned stupid. It was like a magical hidden away secret garden complete with little angel statues, a babbling small brook, luscious greenery everywhere and flowers… My God… The flowers were in pots in sections of the yard and by the trees. They were all different colors and varietals. I lost count of how many different areas there were.
“Wow.” Wes blew out a slow breath. “This is incredible.”
Heidi heard every word and beamed as bright as the glint off the ocean at high noon. “Thank you. Let me give you a tour. It’s shaped in an oval so you can walk around it. I know it’s not huge or anything but”—she shrugged—“it’s what we can afford, and I love it.”
Wayne was filming as I walked next to her, asking her about her methods, why she’d chosen the different plants so that the segment wouldn’t be super boring. She lifted up a big basket that held gardening gloves and clippers. There was an extra pair of gloves next to them, which she handed to me, and I promptly put them on. We moved around the circle path and came to a corner that was dense with roses. Every beautiful color you could think of.
“This is amazing, Heidi.” I inhaled the flowers’ mingled scents, breathing the aroma as far into my lungs as possible.
Heidi showed me the ones to cut and where so that we had a couple dozen long-stemmed roses. Then we went to another section and clipped some smaller flowers she said were annuals. One was a vibrant purple she called a “Spirit Merlot Spider Flower.”
“Pretty complex name for such a dainty thing.”
“Looks can be deceiving.”
The baby monitor on her hip squawked, and she stopped, lifted it to her ear, and we both waited. I held my breath. I didn’t know why. It just seemed like the thing to do. When no additional sound came, she clipped the walkie-talkie looking thing back on her hip and continued.
“These are Bells of Ireland.” She clipped four long sections where they stood approximately two feet tall. “See the chartreuse color?”
I nodded.
“It will look awesome with the pink and yellow roses. And smell?” She held the plant close to my nose.
A lovely hint of mint teased my senses. “Smells awesome. Like mint.”
After walking through the entire space, we brought our baskets full of what I thought was a ton of greenery. She set them on the kitchen counter and taught me and the audience how to correctly snip the thorns and where to cut for the longest chance of keeping the blooms alive. She went on about the benefits of treating the water and vases. However, what she did next made me see that this segment was really going to hit home.
From a long drawer she pulled out multi-colored wrap. Then she took the rubber bands she’d removed from her store-bought veggies and wrapped the flowers in the colored paper and rubber bands. Then she took some ribbon and covered the ugly bands.
“What are you going to do with them?” I asked, thinking perhaps I’d get to take some of these beauties home to Ms. Croft. She’d love them!
“Well, every week I take a few bouquets I’ve made to the convalescent hospital down the street. There are several patients there who don’t have much family, and a simple arrangement of flowers could go a long way towards making their week bright.
I’d met a lot of wonderful people this past year, but none quite like Heidi Ryan.
At the end of the day, I turned to Heidi where we stood in front of her home. Her husband had just come home from work. He pulled the woman he very obviously loved into the comfort of his arms and gave her a kiss on the cheek. They nuzzled for the cameras, which was awesome, and then he lovingly asked what was for dinner. To which she replied, “Whatever you’re making!”
Laughing, I turned to the camera where Wayne held it a few steps from me. “Thank you, Heidi Ryan, for opening your home and sharing a look into the daily routine of a stay-at-home-mom I think deserves the title of Super Woman and for walking us through your stunning garden. The work you do in your home with your family and in your community should be commended. We here at the Dr. Hoffman show applaud you. I’m Mia Saunders, and I’ll see you next week on another round of Living Beautiful.
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