House on Fire
Chapter 68 – Fri. Dec. 16
Jessie kept me up late and got me up early. In between we napped in bed and soaked in the tub, massaged by jets and bubbles. By lunchtime I was relaxed, sated, and famished.
Dad was late for lunch. The girls went to the bathroom, leaving Dave and I alone.
Dave nudged my elbow and smirked. “You look a little tired.”
“I’m not the one with bags under my eyes, dude.” I had to grin. “As for me, I haven’t slept that well in years.”
“They say you sleep better when you exercise.” He nodded towards the women’s room. “What do you want to bet they’re comparing notes?”
“Who knows? Seriously, though? I need to build up my stamina. Any suggestions?”
“Are we talking duration of activity or physical fitness?”
“Fitness; I married an athlete. My muscles are really sore.”
“Pretty wild, huh?”
“Let’s just say, um, vigorous.”
“Try some push-ups, sit-ups, and long-distance running. Squat thrusts are good, too, I hear.”
“Is that an exercise or a euphemism?”
“Both, I guess.”
“Last night was only my second time,” I admitted.
He smiled, blushing a little. “Yeah, same here.” He was going to go on, but instead, said, “Here comes your Dad.”
“Okay, change the subject. I’m sure he doesn’t want to hear any of this.”
“Uh, no, probably not. Hi, Mike.”
“Hi, guys.” He clasped his hand on my shoulder and smiled. “I got messed up with the change in time zones. I was here at eleven and had to come back. Where are the ladies?”
“Gossiping in the girls’ room,” Dave said.
“Hmmm.” Then to the waitress, “Coffee, please.”
We studied our menus in silence. Eventually the girls returned, both blushing.
“Hi, Daddy.” Jessie kissed him on the cheek and sat down next to me. She reached for my hand under the table.
We ordered lunch and Dad filled us in on his preparations.
“It’s high skiing season in Steamboat Springs, and the hotels are booked up. But I found three apartments that we can rent. It’s a brand new complex, and they’re all in the same building. According to the office, they have nice views of the mountains. Does that sound okay?” We all indicated our approval.
“Thanks, Dad.”
“They have a company that’ll come in and furnish them for us, right down to spoons and pillowcases, but they probably won’t be ready until late next week. I told them we’d take a six-month lease. After that we… well, we’ll reassess our needs.” Jessie squeezed my hand tight and glanced at me.
“Mike,” Dave started, “Don’t worry, I’ll get a job and…”
“No you won’t. You’ll attend classes with the other three, and earn your diploma.”
“But…”
“No buts. I don’t know how long you’ll want to stay out there, but while you’re with me, all four of you will continue your education. Understood?” We nodded.
“Wait a minute. You’re renting us an apartment?” Beth asked.
Dad sighed. “Yeah. It’s not an ideal solution, but in your dad’s words, what’s the harm at this point? We’ll be spending a lot of time together, and I think we’ll all appreciate a measure of privacy. Remember though, Beth, I’m responsible for you for the time being, and I’m putting a lot of trust in you two. Don’t make me regret it.”
“Thanks, Mike. You won’t.”
“Oh, Mike,” Beth said, “I called the Escanaba police this morning and told them that my mom was mistaken. They took my statement, and told me that they’d put it in the file, then they talked to Dave.”
“He said they didn’t have any reason to take any action at this point.”
“Good. I’m relieved to hear that. Did you let your folks know, Dave?”
“Yeah, I talked to them this morning, too. They’re glad I’m with you. I had to tell them about your wedding and stuff, though. I hope that’s okay.”
Dad shrugged and looked at me.
“Yeah,” I said. “I guess it’s not a secret now. How’d they take it?”
“They were kind of confused. I think they’re more worried about me right now.”
Dad nodded. “That’s good.”
“So what’s the plan, Mike?” Beth wanted to know.
“I’ve made reservations outside Omaha for tomorrow night. That’s about nine hours road time Saturday, and about ten to Steamboat Springs on Sunday. Grace and the Judge are putting us up at the ranch until all the apartments are ready.”
“That’s great, Daddy. It’ll be good to see them.”
“Jessie, I transferred money from your college fund to the credit union account this morning. I want you girls to go out this afternoon and get yourselves a couple days of clothes. Something comfortable for travelling. Get something for the guys, too.”
“You want us to go shopping?” Beth asked.
“That’s what I said. Beth, you’ll have to drive. Boys, I want you to find the local AAA office and get us a TripTik for our route, and then get the best set of walkie-talkies you can find, just in case we get separated in traffic. That’ll help us coordinate rest and fuel stops, too. Dave, I designate you as an approved adult, so Cory, you can drive as long as he’s with you. Oh, get some extra batteries, too.”
“You be careful with my Jeep, okay?” Dave told Beth. “Don’t ride the clutch.”
“Nag, nag, nag,” she teased.
“The rest of the day is your own. I’ll be here for dinner at seven, local time, but I’ll understand if you young folks want to order in. If we don’t meet up tonight, let’s be here at seven tomorrow morning, okay?”
“What are you going to do, Dad?”
“I’m going back to my room and take a nap.”
“You never take naps.”
“It’s a new habit I’m starting.”
After lunch we stopped back at the hotel office. The clerk described how to get to AAA, and suggested a local sporting goods store for the radios. On the way to the store, I found out that Dave brought his guitar, and we decided that we’d jam once we got back.
“I’m thinking of asking Beth to marry me. What do you think?”
“Seriously? That’s a big step.”
“I know. But I want to do the right thing by her, ya know?”
“You can do the right thing just by being there for her.”
“Look, Cory, it’s bad enough that I knocked her up. I want to be an honorable man, at least.”
“For what it’s worth, I think you guys have enough to deal with for now.”
“So you think we should wait? Look who’s talking.”
“Our circumstances are a little different.”
“That’s putting it mildly.”
“How are you going to support yourselves?”
“I’m still working on that. Maybe her dad can get me a job on a rig. I hear it’s good money.”
“And leave her alone with the baby? Don’t you want to be there?”
“Not really. Babies…”
“Are hard work?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
We got back about three, but figured the girls might be a while, so Dave went to get his guitar, and I invited Dad down to listen.
“Not now, thanks.”
“Are you okay?”
“Just a headache.”
I felt a chill in my blood. “Can I get you something?”
“No, I have a prescription from my doctor. The pain pills help a lot, but make me kind of dopey. I’m hoping you kids are up to driving tomorrow.”
“No problem, Dad. Just let us know if there’s anything you need, okay?”
“Yeah, alright.”
It was good to play music again. Dave really liked Olie and I let him play my little guitar the whole time. His was a big dreadnaught that I had to stretch to reach around. The girls came
in about five-thirty.
Jessie screamed “Oh my God! That was a blast!”
“You guys had a good time shopping?”
“It was a girl’s fantasy. A mall and a credit card!”
“Show us what you got.” I wasn’t really interested, but could tell that Jessie was having fun. They took turns pulling more and more clothes out of the bags.
“How much did you guys spend?”
“We have no idea,” Jess giggled. “Wait, look what we got for you guys – you’ll look so cute in this…”
“Did you hear that, Cory? You and I are going to be cute.”
“Great.”
“Jessie,” Beth hissed, “What about the…”
“No way.”
“Go on…”
“Really? I guess….”
Beth giggled. “Okay, Babe, this show will have to continue in private.” She almost doubled over laughing as she scooped up her treasures. “Come on, we have to go. Get the door for me.”
Dave and I raised our eyebrows at each other. Jess and I could still hear Beth laughing after the door closed.
“Wait right here,” Jessie ordered, and ran into the bathroom with a small, black shopping bag.