The Short Game 11
Author's Note: On a bit of a roll…
Let me know what you think.
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"Mrs. Ressler," Liz said as she walked toward Ressler and his mom coming into her apartment.
"Lisa, dear," Lisa Ressler smiled at her. "It's been…a while…"
"Uh, yeah," Liz said as her face turned a little pink.
"I'm sorry about your husband," Lisa said, leaning into hug Liz.
"Thanks," Liz said as she hugged her back.
Liz took her coat and hung it on the hook and Ressler hung up his own jacket.
She and Ressler had decided to not give Lisa all the details at once, knowing about marriage, Agnes, and death was about all they wanted to reveal at this time.
"And this," Ressler said as he scooped up the drooling little girl in an exersaucer. "Is Agnes."
Agnes smiled at Ressler the moment she was in his arms and started to pat his face with her drool covered hands. She had a baby mum mum in her one hand, and he faked taking a bite of it and she scowled at him.
"Not going to share today?" He chuckled as he carried her toward his mom.
"Oh my god she's gorgeous," Lisa said as she leaned in and smiled at the child.
Agnes snuggled into Ressler's frame a little more.
"She takes a while to warm up," Ressler and Liz said at once. They both looked at each other and laughed.
"And you kept me from this sweetheart for an entire day while I was here?" Lisa asked as she reached out and tapped Agnes' bare foot. Agnes looked between the woman and her foot curiously.
"How has your stay been?" Liz asked as she gestured for Lisa to come inside and have a seat.
They walked to the couch and sat.
"Donnie took me to a nice Italian restaurant last night for dinner and we watched Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune, I love those," Lisa said with a smile. "He had some work to do, but it was nice to sit together for my shows."
"Today, we also went to those wool and craft shops you like," Ressler noted as he grabbed once of Agnes' toys and plunked her down on the carpet with it.
"Yes, DC, I have discovered, has much better craft supply stores than Detroit," Lisa said.
"I keep telling her she can order online but…" Ressler said.
"I want to look at it," Lisa said. "What can I tell from a picture? A picture doesn't tell me if the wool is good quality or…oh, speaking of which…"
Lisa reached into her large bag and pulled out a small package wrapped in tissue.
"Donnie told me her age and he sent me pictures to I could estimate her size…I hope it fits…" Lisa said as she handed the package to Liz.
"Oh my god, thank you," Liz said wide-eyed. "You didn't have to…"
"What baby doesn't need a nice homemade sweater?" Lisa smiled. "And I know I kept ones that were made for my boys all those years ago. It's nice as a keep-sake once she out grows it."
Liz looked at Ressler who was sitting on a nearby chair and smiling between them and they watched Liz unwrap the package to reveal a delicate moss green sweater with what looked like a leaf pattern knitted into it and a hat underneath that had a cute little knitted leaf poking out of the top of it.
"Oh my god this is gorgeous," Liz gasped as she turned it over in her hands.
"I like to knit based on a theme," Lisa said with a smile. "And with the cooler weather…"
Liz started to cry.
"Oh, my dear, are you…?" Lisa asked her as she placed a hand on Liz's lap.
"This is the nicest…" Liz said as she wiped at her eyes and cried a little harder.
"Sweetie, it's not a lot of work, I do it all of the…" Lisa said.
Ressler leaned down and picked up Agnes and walked toward Liz.
"How about you try it on her," he said as he placed Agnes on her lap. He knew the crying was about more than the sweater; Liz had not experienced a lot of stranger kindness in her life and it was hard for her to process that his mom did this just because.
Liz nodded and wiped at her eyes. Agnes gurgled and looked up at her mom and smiled.
"Hey cutie," Liz said. "How about we try on this beautiful sweater?"
Lisa undid the couple of buttons and helped Liz maneuver it onto the little one. Then Liz picked up the hat and pulled it over her head. It fit perfectly and Agnes looked adorable.
"Oh my god this is gorgeous," Liz said as she held up her little girl to see everything. "Lisa, I don't know what to say…"
"I'm just glad it fit," Lisa smiled. "It's hard to estimate from pictures…but if I can measure her while I'm here I can make her some more."
"Oh, you don't have to," Liz said quickly.
"No, I want to," Lisa smiled at her kindly. "Who doesn't want to make things for a sweet little baby like Agnes?"
Liz nodded and handed Ressler Agnes quickly and walked toward some Kleenex.
"Honey, did I…?" Lisa asked, noting that Liz's level of overwhelm seemed more than hormones.
"She's just been dealing with a lot," Ressler said. "She loves it."
Lisa smiled at him and looked over at Liz blowing her nose. She walked into the kitchen and left him and his mother and Agnes to chat.
He bounced Agnes and was chatting with him mom, trying to give Liz a moment to herself, when he noted her filming him with Agnes.
"Look at mommy," Ressler said as he gestured toward Liz with her phone.
"Hi baby girl!" Liz said as she walked closer. "You like your new outfit? Lisa…would you like a picture with Don and Agnes?"
"Of course," Lisa smiled as she stood and walked toward her son who was holding the baby in her outfit.
Liz took some pictures of the three of them and was happy she got her composure back.
"I just put a lasagna in the oven for dinner," Liz said. "Had I known you were taking her for Italian last night I would have bought…"
"No, I love Italian and could eat it everyday of the week," Lisa smiled. "How can I help?"
"Well, I thought we could take Agnes to the park, it'll be about an hour until it's ready," Liz said. "And now with her new sweater, she'll be toasty."
"I'll get her buggy," Ressler said as he handed Liz Agnes and walked toward her bedroom.
Lisa smiled at the child and Agnes seemed a little less timid now.
"I'm sorry for my…"
"It's okay, I lost a husband too and I was not myself for a long time," Lisa said. "It's hard when you lose someone so special that you love so much."
Liz swallowed hard.
"My son loves you very much," Lisa said meeting her eyes. "I don't know what's happened between you both in the last couple of years, but I like where you are now."
Liz nodded and wiped at her eyes.
"He's…I love him very much," Liz said with watery eyes. "I don't deserve him."
Lisa chuckled.
"I think you do," Lisa said kindly. "My son doesn't open his heart easily, so if he has, you deserve his love."
Liz swallowed hard and nodded.
"And he loves this little one," Lisa said as she shook Agnes' foot. "He lit up the second he saw her."
"He's…" she wanted to say 'a great dad' but she hadn't said that to Ressler yet so it seemed wrong to say it to his mother first. "He's amazing with her."
Lisa nodded and smiled.
Ressler wheeled Agnes' stroller into the room with a couple of baby blankets thrown over the top.
"Uh, I better give her a quick change before we go," Liz said as she carried Agnes toward her room.
"She's a sweetheart isn't she?" Ressler asked his mom as they got on their coats and waited for Liz to re-appear with a freshly changed Agnes.
"She is quite taken with you," Lisa said.
"Yeah, Agnes falls asleep better on…"
"I meant both of them honey," Lisa said as she patted his chest. "They both love you."
Ressler nodded and gave his mother a soft smile. He knew Liz loved him but hadn't really ever heard anyone say Agnes did as well. It was nice to hear.
Liz appeared with Agnes and they were off to the park. While there, they chatted about Liz coming back to work within the next couple of weeks, Agnes' new daycare that she was adjusting to, and Ressler's brother, who was doing better health-wise.
"Ressler, use those long arms of yours," Liz said as she handed him her phone.
He chuckled, they had joked that he was a built in self-stick with his arm length. Liz picked up Agnes and she pulled Lisa in with them. They smiled and took a selfie in front of a gorgeous orange tree that was displaying all of it's fall foliage.
"I'll print it off for you," Liz offered, knowing that Ressler had always described his mom as old school and technologically challenged.
"Thank you dear," Lisa said with a smile. "Can I get one of just the three of you as well?"
They smiled and Ressler reached out his arm again and took one of the three of them. It wasn't the first picture they had taken with Agnes, and it wouldn't be the last, but it was the first time someone had requested one so she could probably put it in a frame in her house.
Liz looked at her phone and the picture of the three of them.
"I think that's definitely frame worthy," Liz said as she turned her phone so they could all see the picture of them. Ressler and Liz were smiling at the camera and Agnes was smiling and drooling at the same time and wearing the beautiful sweater Lisa had made for her. It was a great picture of a family. Her family. Liz swallowed hard.
"It is," Lisa smiled at her.
"I think I will print two," Liz said thoughtfully. "If I'm going back to work, I need this picture on my desk."
Ressler looked at her surprised and leaned in and quickly kissed the side of her head.
To be continued…