A/N: It's taken me a while to get this chapter completed as we've happily had all our family together this week (excepting our son-in-law), so there have been lots of wonderful distractions. Hope you enjoy the new little Cutty family being joyfully reunited.
Chapter 43: Reunited
Golden sunrays slowly crept through the window, waking Mitch and Amy early the next morning. They clung to each other, enjoying the warmth of their closeness just as long as they dared, because there was much to do. Soon, they were up and getting ready. Amy started breakfast while Mitch went out to check on the horses. When he re-entered the house, he smelled cinnamon. Mitch was impressed with the job that Amy had done on the oatmeal, and that she'd not only made toast, but that it was cinnamon toast. He highly praised her, encouraging her confidence.
"Mmmm, my dear wife, that smells wonderful! My taste buds are sparked and anxious!"
Amy responded uncertain, "Well, I hope your taste buds are not disappointed."
When Mitch took his first bite of both the oatmeal and the toast, Amy held her breath until he said, "They were right! It's all delicious!" which brought a big grin from Amy, and an appreciative hug. They got the dishes put in the dishwasher and began to carry out their plans for the day.
It was good running into people in town who congratulated them on their marriage. They got their shopping done, got the groceries back home and put them away, and it was time to hook up the trailer and head to Heartland. They both agreed it felt good to be working together.
As they pulled into Heartland, Mitch parked near the barn so they'd be ready to load the horses. The moment Amy walked through the barn door, Spartan sensed her presence and let out a long neigh as he slapped his hoof on the ground a few times, then he began to nicker and snort. Amy began talking to him as she headed to his stall.
"Hey, Spartan, I heard you've been missing me. I've missed you, too, buddy!" and as soon as he felt Amy's touch, and she began to love on him, he whinnied and let out a deep sigh of relief. Mitch handed Amy a bucket of his feed, and when she offered it, he immediately began to eat.
"Hey, old boy, I'm home to stay. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. It's all ok now," she said soothingly as he nuzzled her.
Tim and Jessica heard them and came down from the loft to greet them. Genuine hugs were shared by all. Amy walked back over to Spartan and said, "We need to go tell everyone else hi, but I'll be back for you in just a little while, buddy." And Spartan nickered as if he understood. Amy also took a few moments to greet Shadow who displayed genuine happiness at seeing her again. As Mitch and Amy turned to head toward the house, arm in arm, Tim observed a strong sense of calm and peace descend upon Spartan.
Amy and Mitch entered with, "Is anyone home?" and they heard squeals of excitement from Lisa and Lou, with Jack and Peter suddenly appearing right behind them to excitedly greet the couple with lots of hugs.
"Welcome home you two!" Jack said.
Greetings of "So good to see you guys!" "We missed you!" and "Glad to have you home!" were expressed by all.
When Lisa hugged them, they both thanked her for her touching thoughtfulness, both for their honeymoon night and their return home. She blushed a bit but was very appreciative.
"Come on in and sit down and tell us all about it!" Lou encouraged.
Tim and Jessica had followed them into the house, and when they all sat down, of first importance Mitch expressed, "Amy and I just want to say a big thank you to all of you for your generosity in helping with the funds for our honeymoon! It meant so much and really helped us be able to do a lot while there."
Everyone responded with, "You're welcome," and for the next few minutes, brief stories were told, and pictures and videos were shared. All were especially impressed as they watched the video from Fox and Locke with Mitch and Amy's performance. Each and everyone agreed that they'd had quite the week!
In all the excitement of the honeymoon sharing, and in seeing the photos of Mitch and Amy's week together, it became starkly clear to Peter that he'd never given Lou a real honeymoon. After all, they'd gone directly to Dubai after getting married, and Lou had spent an awful lot of time alone during those first months while he was working long hours. And then, life just took over, and regretfully the divorce happened, then thankfully getting back together….he determined at that moment that he needed to rectify his omission, so a plan began to form in his mind. He would solicit Lisa's help as well.
Lisa asked Mitch and Amy, "So do you have time to stay for lunch? I have sandwiches almost ready."
They agreed they could stay a little bit longer, so the family all pitched in to get lunch on the table, and lots of catching up was done in a short amount of time. Mitch and Amy then excused themselves to go load up the horses. Jack and Tim went out to help them. They also sorted out the tack, gear and saddles that they would transfer over with them.
Meanwhile, Peter pulled Lisa aside when he got the chance away from Lou's earshot and told her his plan. She agreed to help with any connections she had.
Mitch and Amy pulled up to Serenity Stables about thirty minutes later, and Zeke and Charlie were there waiting to help with settling the horses into their new home, having made sure beforehand that their new stalls had clean, fresh hay, food, and water. Maverick, Sapphire, Beau, and Luna all seemed happy to see their new barn-mates. Lots of 'talking' with all the wonderful animals went on, both between people and horses, and horse-to-horse. Mitch and Amy observed the splendid animals feeling most pleased that it looked like they would have a happy horse family in their barn. After hanging out with all of them long enough to be sure they seemed to feel secure, the couple went to the house to freshen up, gather their gifts, and make dinner preparations ahead of time so all they'd need to do is heat it up when they got home with Lyndy. They were looking forward to having some special time this first night together.
They headed back to Heartland to be there in time to greet Lyndy's bus. When they arrived, they went inside to briefly say hi to everyone again and then walked hand-in-hand toward the bus-stop. As the bus drew nearer, Lyndy saw them and could hardly sit still until it came to a stop. She was immediately out of her seat and at the door, waiting for it to open. Katie followed her down the aisle. Once the door opened, Lyndy took the last two steps in one jump and bolted toward her parents! Mitch braced himself to scoop her up as she flew into his waiting arms, and Amy surrounded them both with a hug. Overcome with emotion, numerous kisses and hugs were given and even a tear or two before any of them could speak. Lyndy was the first, "Mama and Daddy, I'm sooo glad your home! I've missed you sooo much!"
"Oh, Sweetheart, we've missed you so much!" Amy eagerly responded.
"And we can't wait to get caught up on what all we've done since being apart!" Mitch added.
Katie observed the happy family and came up to be included in the hugs and greetings. As they headed toward the house together, Lyndy's thoughts began pouring out.
"Gram-Lisa…oh, she said I could call her that…helped show me the day you'd be back, and I've been marking it off on my calendar. And this morning was the last X. It was really fun to make that X!" Lyndy exclaimed grinning with enthusiasm.
Mitch sat her down on the ground, and she took both their hands, and of course, the next words out of her mouth were, "Swing!" which they gladly accommodated.
As they neared the truck, Mitch grabbed the bag of gifts to take in with them. In the meantime, Tim and Jessica had returned to the house, so everyone was there. Lou and Lisa had the rest of Lyndy's things all packed up and sitting by the door for them.
Lyndy burst in the door and proclaimed, "Mama and Daddy are back!"
She said it with such vigor that everyone heard her and softly chuckled as they also observed Mitch and Amy's beaming smiles. The family moved into the living room, and the newlyweds began to distribute gifts to all with explanations of their relation to Belle Meade. Jack, Tim, and Peter all received nice money clips with Bonnie Scotland on them, and Lisa, Lou and Jessica received earrings of the three Triple Crown winners. Lyndy and Katie received small snow-globes with the Belle Meade Mansion inside. They also had money clips for Shane and Quinn, and earrings of Bonnie Scotland for Georgie that they'd mail to them later. They shared a brief history of the mansion with the family, as much as they could recall off the top of their heads.
Plans were made for Mitch to meet with Jack and Tim the next day to talk about the business, and Lou said she could be on-hand to go over the books with Mitch. Since Peter was leaving the next day, and they would need to get Lyndy to school, it was decided to meet over lunch, and Amy would join them. Amy wanted to talk to Lou about revamping the website to reflect Serenity Stables and to get the word out that she was open for business. She also hoped that Lou could begin to show her how to maintain the website, with Mitch's help, so that they could gradually take that over. Knowing it would likely take most of the afternoon to get everything accomplished they hoped to, they decided for Lyndy to be dropped off on the bus at Heartland for one more day. Amy would talk with the school about her new drop-off location at Whispering Meadows starting on Friday.
With plans set in motion, Mitch and Amy let Lyndy know it was time to go home. Lyndy suddenly remembered to remind Lisa about getting the cupcakes and the snickerdoodles for them to take home with them. When Lisa helped her get the sweets from the freezer, she pulled Lisa toward her and whispered in her ear, "I can finally show Mama our secret!"
Lisa was so happy that this day had finally come for her, and she praised her, "You have been very patient, my dear girl!" she whispered back. Mitch overheard their conversation and could see her excitement starting to build knowing she would finally be able to share her secret with her mama.
Amy came into the room, and Lyndy pulled her hand and said, "Come on, Mama. You can help me carry the food to the truck!"
They told everyone goodbye, and Mitch grabbed the rest of Lyndy's things to take to the truck. As they all got settled and Lyndy got buckled in, she suddenly gasped and said, "We forgot the horses!"
"No, Sweetheart," Amy assured her, "Daddy and I came and got them before you got home from school. They are already settled in at Whispering Meadows."
"Oh, whew, that was close!" she said relieved, and Mitch and Amy laughed thinking, 'Where is she getting these expressions?'
"But did you get my saddle that Daddy gave me? And did you get the Miracle Girls saddle?"
"Yes, Honey, we loaded them when we got the horses," Mitch reassured her. "Ok, everybody ready now to head to our new home?"
And Amy and Lyndy both gave an enthusiastic, "Yes!"
Mitch fired up the truck, and they were off on their completely new adventure!
Arriving at Whispering Meadows, Lyndy's first question was, "Can we go see the horses?"
Amy responded, "Tell you what, let's get your things unloaded, the treats into the house, and we'll start dinner heating, and then the three of us can go visit them together. How does that sound?"
"OK," she replied.
Mitch carried Lyndy's things to the bottom of the stairs, and Lyndy helped Amy carry in the treats and put them on the counter. Then Amy started the oven preheating and took the casserole out of the fridge ready to be put in. When Lyndy saw Mitch carrying her belongings, she suddenly remembered the most important thing – to show Amy her surprise! She said, "Mama, will you come upstairs with me?"
Amy knew something awaited her; she just wasn't sure what, but she answered nonchalantly, "Sure, Sweetheart."
They all three headed upstairs, and when they reached the top, Lyndy stood in front of Amy and said, "Wait just a minute. I have a surprise for you. Daddy, please cover Mama's eyes, and Mama, hold my hand and follow me."
Amy cooperated, and Mitch was also filled with anticipation knowing that they were both in for a surprise. Lyndy led them through the door to her room watching her Mama for her reaction, and said, "Ok, Daddy, you can uncover her eyes now."
When Mitch did, Amy was totally in awe of the beautiful room she saw before her. "Lyndy, this is fantastic! Tell me how this happened!" and as Lyndy started to talk about the room and Lisa helping her with it, her eyes landed on the dressing table.* She ran over to it and ran her fingers along the smooth wood.
She saw the words carved under the mirror, 'Remember Who Loves You,' and she looked at Mitch and exclaimed, "Daddy, where did this come from!"
Mitch responded, "All the time I was growing up, my mom had one, and I wanted both you and Mama to have your own dressing tables, too."
"So, Lyndy, you didn't know about the table?" Amy asked. And Lyndy shook her head no. "Well, Daddy surprised me with one as well. We can go see it after I finish touring this beautiful room. I really love the backdrop to your bed! Kinda feels like you are outdoors under the stars. It's perfect!"
Lyndy ran over to hug her mama as she said, "Gram-Lisa and I worked together on it. It was so much fun coming up with the ideas!" Then about that time, she spied the stuffed animals Lisa had left for her. She let go of Amy and went over to them. She picked them up and said, "And these weren't here either! Did you all give me these?"
Mitch said, "I think those may be a gift from Lisa."
"I love them! I'll have to thank her next time I see her!" Lyndy said. "And Daddy, were the letters already on my table?"
Mitch came over to her, squatting down beside her and placing an arm around her, he answered, "No, I carved those on it myself. I want you to always remember that Mama and I love you, that Da-da loved you, but most of all, that God loves you. And I hope as you grow up, especially when things might be hard or confusing, that remembering these words will always help guide you to make wise choices."
At that point, Lyndy wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tight, then she pulled back to look him in the eyes and said, "Thank you for already taking such good care of me and Mama!"
Amy was looking on with tears in her eyes at the precious picture before her of this amazing man loving her daughter as his own, and still honoring Ty in their lives. She felt like the 'luckiest' girl in the world! Though she knew now it was more than luck at work.
Mitch drew back from Lyndy, with eyes glistening as he responded, "Sweetheart, you are so welcome. I feel so privileged that I get to take care of you and your mama. The days that the two of you came back into my life were the very best! I couldn't be more blessed!" and they hugged each other again.
As they broke apart, Lyndy said, "Mama, I also need to show you my closet. Gram-Lisa put my chest of drawers in there to give more room out here, and I have shoe racks, too!" she related excitedly as she led Amy to see. "Daddy, will you bring the rest of my things up so I can put them away? I want to get everything just right."
"I surely can," Mitch said, and he headed down to get them.
When Mitch left, Amy opened her arms to Lyndy, and they hugged each other, and Lyndy said, "Mama, I'm so happy you are home, and that you married Mitch…I mean Daddy," she corrected herself.
"Oh Sweetheart, I am, too! We are two very blessed girls!" and Lyndy smiled as she nodded her head in agreement. "I'll tell you what," Amy said, "you finish putting your things away when Daddy brings them up, and I'll go get the casserole heating in the oven for us."
About that time, Mitch walked in to set Lyndy's things down, and then he and Amy headed downstairs. Lyndy rummaged in her things to find the snow globe and carefully placed it on her new dressing table. Then she stood back to admire it.
In the kitchen, Amy put the casserole in, and she and Mitch started working together on getting everything else ready. Before Lyndy came down, Mitch mentioned to Amy that he wanted to call the next morning to see what the status was on Lyndy's adoption. If it would be complete soon, he said he'd like for them to have an adoption and stone naming ceremony Sunday week. Amy thought that sounded perfect. They broke out in song, harmonizing as they fell into a rhythm working together side-by-side.
Lyndy heard them and came down the stairs carrying her new stuffies, and began to join in the singing. As they got the table set and the food began to be ready, she went over to the table and set each stuffie in its own chair. It was so sweet, but at the same time, it made Mitch and Amy recall their idea about a puppy for Lyndy. Mitch leaned over to Amy and whispered, "Maybe we can go 'puppy shopping' on Saturday before the ceremony?" Amy nodded agreement.
They sat down to the table, and Mitch said, "Let's pray." They both reached for Lyndy's hands, and she obliged, looking quite pleased with this new addition to their mealtime. Mitch led them in prayer…
"Dear God, thank you for bringing us all safely back together and for taking care of us while we were away from each other. Thank you for all our family who helped take care of Lyndy in our absence. And thank you for this food you have provided for us. In Jesus' name. Amen"
And before they unclasped their hands, Lyndy asked, "Daddy, may I pray, too?"
Pleased, Mitch answered, "Of course, Sweetheart," and they bowed their heads again.
"Dear God, thank you for Mama and Daddy getting back home without anything bad happening to them, and please don't let them be away so long again. And thank you for Gram-Lisa helping me with my new room and for my dog and pony she left for me. In Jesus' name. Amen"
Then Mitch kissed both his ladies' hands, though he had squeezed Amy's during the first part of Lyndy's prayer, and they'd looked at each other knowing maybe they had something they needed to explore with her. They started to eat and enjoyed much table conversation in catching up with each other on all the happenings during their days apart. When they finished, Lyndy carried her plate to the sink with no prompting, and they got the kitchen cleaned up and food put away. Suddenly, Lyndy reminded them, "Hey, we forgot cupcakes and cookies!"
"Oh, we can't forget those!" Mitch chimed in delighted. So Amy brought out the milk to pour them all a glass, and they sat around the island feasting on the treats, though they managed to save some to have the next day as well. When Mitch bit into his snickerdoodle, he encouraged Lyndy with his reaction, "Mmmm, these make my tummy happy, Lyndy! You did a great job!"
She responded, "Thank you, Daddy! Gram-Lisa showed me how to make them!"
"Well, I don't mind if you make these anytime you want to!" he responded.
Once done, Amy said, "Lyndy, would you like to see Mama's dressing table that Daddy gave me?"
"Sure!"
So they all headed to the bedroom. When they walked in, Lyndy's eyes grew big, and she declared, "Mama, it's so beautiful!" Then with a little flutter of her eyes and a giggle she added, "Daddy thinks you're an angel!"
At that cute antic, Mitch picked her up and tossed her on the bed, then began tickling her, much to her delight, as he concurred, "Yes, I do! And I actually have two angels!" he added as he tickled her some more, and they all piled on the bed in a tangle of arms and legs and lots of love!
Amy suddenly popped up and said, "Oh, we have something else for you." And she disentangled herself and went over to the closet to pull out the two spangled 'Opry' caps. She carried them back over to the bed as Mitch and Lyndy finished untwining themselves.
Lyndy was delighted, exclaiming, "We can be twins!" and they both donned their caps for the rest of the evening.
"Mama, may I see the pictures you took of your honeymoon."
"Of course! Let's all go to the living room and sit on the couch."
So they moved to the couch with Lyndy sitting between them and Mitch and Amy's arms crossing each other behind her. As they scrolled through the photos on both their phones, Lyndy enjoyed the video of them singing together, but she decided her favorite photos were the ones with the giant guitar and of them napping with the horse.
Since Lyndy had school the next day, and they still needed to visit the horses and get to bed, Mitch and Amy decided addressing Lyndy's concerns about their safety and the length of time they were gone could wait until later.
They walked out to the barn together, and upon entering, the horses all greeted them with gentle whinnies. Lyndy walked over to Harley, placed a nearby step stool close so she could be nearer his level, and reached out to pet him. He nuzzled her as she started talking to him, "Well, Harley, how do you like your new home? Daddy made it bigger just for all of you! And soon, we'll be able to go on that ride with him using the special saddle he gave me. I have to say goodnight for now, because I have school tomorrow, but I'll be back to see you again soon!" and she kissed his nose. Amy helped her down and headed back to the house while Mitch stayed behind to double-check that everything was in order, tell the horses goodnight, and close up the barn.
As the girls got back inside, Amy said, "Lyndy, go ahead and get ready for bed. Don't forget to brush your teeth and your hair. Do you know where the bathroom is upstairs?"
"Yes, Mama, it's right by my room. Will you and Daddy come up to tuck me in?"
"You bet we will! I'll get ready down here and then be up once Daddy gets in."
Lyndy scampered up the stairs to get ready, excited to spend her first night in her new room. Mitch came in and heard Amy in the bathroom. He put the rest of the house to bed and went to find his wife. As he entered the bathroom, he found her brushing her teeth, so he joined her. Once they finished, he made sure to get in a much longed for kiss, as they hadn't gotten many of those in today, then they headed up to tuck Lyndy in.
Coming into her room, they saw her sitting at her new dressing table brushing out her hair. Amy walked over to help her finish. Then she crawled into bed, propped herself up on her pillow, and placed her stuffies on both sides of her. Mitch and Amy sat down on the side of her bed, Amy in front of Mitch. She reached out to hold Lyndy's hand, and Mitch laid his hand on her knee.
"Have you had a good day, Sweetheart?" Amy asked.
"It's been a great day, because you are both home, and we are together…a family!" Lyndy said beaming.
"I forgot to ask. I guess I'm a little out of practice, and it's too late now, but did you have any homework?" Amy asked.
"No, Mama. I got it all done at school. I worked really hard to finish because I didn't want to have anything extra to do tonight except to be with you and Daddy," she revealed.
No doubt about it, this little girl continually endeared herself to those who knew and loved her. Mitch and Amy couldn't be prouder of the kind of person she was growing up to be. They said prayers with her, and Lyndy's prayer was…
Dear God, thank you for our family. Thank you that Harley, Spartan and Shadow are happy in their new home. Thank you for GG, Gram-Lisa and Auntie Lou and all the rest of our big family that helped take care of me while Mama and Daddy were gone on their honeymoon. Thank you for bringing them home safe. And thank you for Gram-Lisa helping me create my brand-new room and for giving us all the good ideas! I will take good care of it, I promise. Goodnight, God. Talk to you in the morning. In Jesus name, Amen.
Mitch and Amy had been touched by her prayer and hugged and kissed her goodnight. As they were leaving the room, Amy turned to say, "Sweetheart, we are right down the stairs if you should need anything, but I hope you have a wonderfully restful sleep in your beautiful new room."
"I will Mama. I really love it!"
Once in their bedroom, Mitch said, "I have an idea for our family time Friday night. When you girls had your night out, Lyndy and I started watching the 'Anne of Green Gables' trilogy. I thought that night that it would be great if we could watch those together. I actually enjoyed it much more than I'd expected. So I thought maybe we could start that during our family night. I don't know if Lyndy will want to watch the first one again with you or go ahead and watch the second one. What do you think?"
"I love that series! I watched it as a young girl, too. I think that's a wonderful idea! And we can let her decide which one."
"I'd also like to explain to her a little more in detail about the Claddagh ring, as I promised her at our wedding ceremony."
"I think that sounds like a perfect family night!" Amy encouraged. "And Mitch, thank you for being such a great dad to Lyndy and leading our family in growing strong together. I love the way you shelter us. I love you so much! Sometimes I still have a hard time believing the amazing turn our lives took together, but I'm so very thankful they did. I know it's only been a short time, but, after all the sadness we both went through, I can't imagine now doing life without you!"
Mitch was a bit overcome with emotion at Amy's declaration, but he answered, "Amy, thank you for accepting my love. I know it hasn't been an easy road. I never dreamed there would be this opportunity to be a part of your family's lives again, to step into the role of Lyndy's dad, to be given the privilege of loving you. You've changed my life forever, and I can't imagine doing it without you either! God has been so good to us! And to hear Lyndy's heart-felt, child-like prayer tonight warmed my heart. I see where I am now, and I can't believe I stayed away from allowing God's love in my life for so long. I'm so grateful He was so patient with me and showered me with His love anyway. I see now that He was drawing me back little-by-little in just the ways I needed."
"Well, and me. There's so much I never knew and am learning, thanks to you and your family. I so appreciate your patience with me!"
"My love, how could I not be patient with you when there's so much that He's forgiven me," and Mitch reached for his Bible to continue their practice of reading together. After they finished and briefly talked about what they'd gotten from the passage, Mitch flipped off the bedside lamp, and they rolled over into each other's arms for peaceful sleep. When Mitch was sure Amy was slumbering deeply, he stealthily disengaged himself from her, went to his desk, and spent about an hour making preparations for tomorrow's meeting.
Before retiring, he went upstairs to check in on Lyndy. She was sleeping peacefully, her angelic face framed in the moonlight's silvery glow from her window. He reached out to softly touch her golden curls and gently kissed her forehead. When he returned to bed, he skillfully spooned himself around Amy, drawing her close, gratefully content in his dream come true!
A/N: * Photo of Lyndy's dressing table will be posted on the following three Facebook groups: Kevin McGarry Fan Page Home of #McGarries and SuspendersUnbuttoned Podcast; Nathan Grant Fanfiction! Home of Sunday Night Serge; and The Heartie Analyzers: All things Kevin McGarry, KEVLA and WCTH.