Where Azaleas Bloom by Sherryl Woods Read Free Book Online Page B

him that, regretfully, I’d rather
eat dirt than work with him, or words to that effect.”
    “I suspect they were a lot more colorful,” Lynn said.
    “A lot more,” Helen conceded. “But Jimmy Bob, being the man he
is, didn’t take the slightest offense. He still asks from time to time.”
    She gave Lynn a hug. “Hang in there, okay? And call me
immediately the next time there’s a problem. Meantime, I’ll be in touch about
that court date and whatever we find out about Jimmy Bob’s whereabouts.”
    “Have a good evening,” Lynn told her. She waved the check in
the air. “I’m going to relax for the first time in days.”
    At the very least, she was going to be able to sleep
tonight.

4
    F lo Decatur was sitting on the sofa reading
a book to her granddaughter, Sarah Beth, when Helen came in from work looking
beat.
    “Mommy!” Sarah Beth cried joyfully, running to throw her arms
around Helen. “Gramma’s reading my favorite story.”
    “Of course she is,” Helen said. “You have Gramma wound around
your little finger.”
    Sarah Beth’s face puckered up with a frown. “What does that
mean?”
    “It means I love you,” Flo interpreted. “Even more than
chocolate ice cream with hot fudge on top.”
    Her granddaughter’s eyes widened. “More than gooey chocolate
cake like Daddy makes?”
    “Even more than that,” Flo confirmed.
    Sarah Beth turned to her mother. “Can we have ice cream and
cake for dinner?”
    Helen laughed, then gave Flo a feigned frown. “Thanks a lot.
Now peas and carrots won’t cut it.”
    “Peas and carrots never cut it with you, either,” Flo said
realistically, then followed her into the kitchen. “Why don’t you go take a
shower and change into something comfortable, while I put whatever Erik sent
home from Sullivan’s on the table? I’ll see that Sarah Beth’s fed, too. You look
as if you could use a few minutes to relax and unwind.”
    She was surprised when Helen gave her an impulsive hug. “You
have no idea how wonderful that sounds.” Helen gave her pint-size imp of a
daughter a pointed look. “And try to keep Miss Sarah Beth here out of the cake
until after she’s eaten dinner.”
    “I’ve got it covered,” Flo assured her, then winked at Sarah
Beth.
    Flo had come to treasure these regular dinners with her
daughter and granddaughter. Though she was happily settled into her own
apartment now and had an active social life, she missed the time she’d spent in
this house while she’d been recovering from a broken hip. She was capturing so
many new family memories, the kind that had been few and far between when she’d
been struggling to make ends meet as a single mom back when Helen had been Sarah
Beth’s age. She liked to think that she and Helen were actually friends now, and
not just mother and daughter with a contentious relationship.
    She also enjoyed the meals her son-in-law sent home from
Sullivan’s. That restaurant of Dana Sue’s where he was the sous-chef had better
food than anything Flo had ever put on her table at home, and she’d at one time
been considered the best when it came to her church’s potluck suppers.
    Tonight Erik had sent home two fried catfish dinners for her
and Helen, some chicken tenders and mashed potatoes for Sarah Beth, along with
some of that gooey molten chocolate cake that was Sarah Beth’s favorite. Flo’s,
too, for that matter.
    Flo poured a glass of milk for her granddaughter, then made
cocktails for herself and Helen. She sat with Sarah Beth while she ate, then
sent her off to her room to play before bedtime. “But give Mommy some peace and
quiet, okay?”
    “Uh-huh,” Sarah Beth said, then scampered off, dragging a
tattered stuffed tiger with her.
    By then, Helen was back, looking refreshed, though worry was
still etched on her forehead.
    “Bad day?” Flo asked, always interested in the legal cases her
daughter was involved in. They’d realized a while back that Helen’s interest in
law probably went