Chapter 8

I woke up in the middle of the night still connected to Zena. I gently pulled free of her to make sure we weren't stuck together again in the morning. I could feel the wetness seep from between her cheeks as I withdrew. As soon as I was free of her, she turned over and kissed me, laying her head on my shoulder. I lay on my back with both girls' heads on my shoulders falling back asleep.

We woke early Tuesday morning, showered, ate, and dressed for the workday. The two girls blasted out of the park while I waited to see if I might see Mr. Williams. Just as I was going to get into my truck, he came walking up with his wife. Mrs. Williams was a good looking older woman that gave you a clue of where June got her good looks. Both were nearly jet-black from the sun but it actually made both more beautiful to the eye.

They were grinning at my smiling appraisal as they approached. Mr. Williams said, "I think I'm almost jealous of the way you devour my lovely wife with your eyes."

"You are a lucky man sir to have such a beautiful wife."

Mrs. Williams hugged me and said, "Juney said you were even nicer than you were when you were kids. She said she really enjoyed you at the party the other night."

"Ah Humm," Mr. Williams said, "You were with my daughter at that party Saturday?"

He waited a second then said, "Did you enjoy her?"

Again he waited, then gruffly said, "I suppose you saw her nude and touched her all over her beautiful body." Then he began laughing. "If June said she enjoyed you, then you two did more than chat. I know her and the bunch she screws around with on weekends. That husband of hers is a good man to enjoy his wife enjoying herself. You and your lovely Zena will have to visit with April and me one night. I'm sure we would be able to entertain you, as well."

"Oh my," Mrs. Williams said, still up against me, "I feel a hardon. Perhaps I should take him inside and take care of it."

"Please, Mrs. Williams. We'll talk about all that again another time. I have to get to work, but I'm interested in the survey. Did they get it done and did they give a report?"

"I have the report, but he has to do another to get paid by you. It's exactly as you thought and he marked the lot corners with big orange posts, the way you wanted. Sam showed me the drawings you made up for your additions. They really look good. Are you really going to have a bed and breakfast?"

"I want to. I'll have to hire some of the ladies out here, like Betty who does laundry, to help take care of it. I'm sure there are others that will want some part time work."

Mrs. Williams said, "We know many, many folks from up North that would love to come down and visit. We don't have the space yet and even if we did, I think they would enjoy a bed and breakfast place to come to."

"We're having a town meeting Wednesday, tomorrow night, to approve you selling some lots and for your permit to build your cabins and additions. The whole park is excited about your plan."

"Great, that's good news. We'll be there Wednesday night. I do have to get to work though before I'm late."

I took off, pushing it just a little to make it to the office on time. I ended up actually having time to get a cup of coffee before the magic time to see Bruce. Bruce was chatting with Andrea when I came in. I said good morning to both and asked for messages. Bruce handed me two typed sheets of paper saying, "That ought to keep you busy. Bert said he was sorry he didn't get with you yesterday. He says that he has to beg off dinner tonight because he's still going to be out west. He said he'll call you either today or tomorrow."

I smiled and took my instructions to my office. I noticed that Zena's office was dark so she must have had another early appointment. None of the instructions were difficult and none required much effort. I actually had them all done by ten. I booted up my computer to check my e-mail. Bert had sent two to me and Zena had one. Bert's were just follow-ups on what he had given me, so I answered both e-mails with the results I had pulled from the files and prints.

Zena's e-mail was strange, "Meet me at Bert's for lunch. Tell Bruce you won't be back today."

As eleven thirty came around, I cleaned up my office and visited with Bruce a second to tell him my other boss had me doing something this afternoon. He just nodded.

At Bert's condo I parked and was admitted by the doorman who addressed me as Mr. Parks. It's always strange to have someone older than me addressing me as Mr. Parks. I got into the elevator, going up to the top floor, to Bert's place.

As I was about to knock on the door, Zena opened it, smiling broadly. She hugged me and said, "This is going to be a shock, but just relax."

We went into the main living room to find an older couple. I knew who they were instantly. Zena was sitting on the couch smiling at me although she was next to me clutching my arm at the same time. An exact copy of Zena was sitting there. The only difference was the copy had some smile lines, some age lines that set her apart.

The man was a good looking tanned guy with sparse hair, but enough to make him still feel as if he wasn't balding. His features were square and mannish.

"Tommy, I want you to meet my Mother and Father, Mr. and Mrs. Harper. Mom and Dad, Tom Parks, the man I'm going to marry."

I was as shocked as they were. I didn't know we were getting married.

"I don't see a ring on your finger, Zena." Mrs. Harper said.

"Tom didn't know we were getting married yet, Mother. He just found out. I'm sure we'll get a ring soon."

After shaking hands, Mr. Harper said, "So just what do you do, Tom?"

"I'm an architect. I work with Zena's and Bert's customers to make sure the builders have the correct prints to give the customers what they want."

"Have you worked for Bert very long?"

"A little over three years. This is really my first job out of school. So far the company has been good to me, and this last promotion has made my job very interesting."

Mrs. Harper took over again, "Zena said you have a cabin in a naturist park here. How long have you been a naturist?"

"My aunt introduced me to the lifestyle when I was very young. I loved it and thrived out there. She passed away recently and left her place to me. That's why I'm living out there."

"I'm surprised they allowed a single man in the park."

"They didn't, Mrs. Harper, I could only go out if my sister or Mom went out with me. My sister knew Zena and asked her to talk to me. She knew Zena was a naturist and thought we might get along so that she could come out with me on the weekends."

"So how did you two go from just meeting to going to be married so quickly?" This was from Mr. Harper.

Zena answered, "It was meant to be, Daddy. We were made for each other. As soon as we were out at the park, playing in the pool, sunning on the beach by the lake, canoeing, or just sitting and talking, I knew. Tom and I get along so well, enjoy the same things, like many of the same people, and enjoy just being with each other."

Mrs. Harper got down and dirty, "Zena, what's happened to you being a lesbian. You've professed to be a devout lesbian for years. Now all of a sudden you're thinking of, or at least telling us, you are marrying a man."

"Funny isn't it Mom. A few weeks ago I was still in that same frame of mind. When Tommy and I began talking about going out to his cabin, I was confused because I really did enjoy being around him. The first weekend out there I brought my roommates. You know them; Maggie is as hardcore as you would ever find a real man hater. Betsy was the one with experience with men, but had become totally against them. Joanie was the wishy-washy one that could go either way, but she prefers women and is really attached to the three of us girls."

Zena leaned back on the couch and said, "Tommy helped Maggie through an episode she had concerning how she felt men perceived her. His attitude toward her has completely changed her attitude about herself. She's even lusting after Tommy now.

Betsy is funny. She says there's something about Tommy that makes her want him. She's almost predatory the way she goes after him.

And little Joanie, well, she's in love with Tommy. He treats her so gently as well as he treats her like the lady she really is instead of a little kid. Joanie follows him around like a puppy most of the time.

Mrs. Harper said, "So what does that make you, another Tommy groupie?"

"Nope, it makes we wet. It makes me want to give my virginity to Tommy. It makes me want to hug and kiss him and hold him all night long. He's so gentle and patient. When I told him I was saving my virginity for someone special, all he did was congratulate me for being the person I thought I should be. You tell me you don't want to be around a guy like that."

"I think you're embarrassing, Tom," Mr. Harper said. "He's acting like he'd like to crawl behind the couch, instead of sitting on it."

"Dad, Mom, how about coming out to the cabin with us tonight. Maybe you can talk Tommy into making you some chicken Marsala or some veal scaloppini. He's a wonderful cook."

Zena turned to me and said, "Why don't you call your mom and dad and ask them to come out for dinner too. I want to meet them and I think they should meet my folks. And while you're at it, maybe your sister and her boyfriend can come out. He might resist since he hasn't been out there yet, but you can try."

I called my Mom to ask her about this evening. She laughed, "Your Dad was saying this morning that he wondered when you were going to have us out to your new home. He's dying to meet this girl you've become head over heels with."

"This will kill a dozen birds with one dinner, Mom. I'll fix Marsala, as it's fast and easy for a lot of people. You and Dad just come out anytime. You know the place is unlocked so just make yourself at home. There's beer and soda in the fridge and booze in the cabinet where Aunt Pauline always kept it.

When I got off the phone, I looked at Zena and said, "I'm going to stop and see about getting a larger table. We need one with more than four chairs. More like eight would be better. There's plenty of room for a bigger table.

Zena said she would bring her folks out to the cabin. She told them that they would stay the night with us and she could bring them back to Bert's in the morning or leave them her car and she could ride with me. Mrs. Harper said, "No way, Honey. We're going to enjoy being out at your park. It's still cold and dreary at home, so this will be like our mini-vacation."

I took off thinking that I could get lucky at either Goodwill or a used furniture place also nearby. I was getting ready to leave the condo parking lot, but couldn't move because of a huge moving van was blocking the drive. The movers were trying to stuff a hundred and twenty cubic feet of furniture into a hundred cubic feet of space. An older couple was arguing over what to pitch and what to keep. They both agreed to get rid of their second table and chairs that had a breakfront to go with it. The man was saying, "I'll call a junk hauler and have them cart it off."

"Excuse me, forgive me for eavesdropping, but I couldn't help but overhear you're throwing out a table and chairs. Is it very large, can it seat like eight?"

The woman looked at me as a savior and said, "There are ten chairs with it and it has two leafs. It is really big when expanded. We only keep six with it now, but it is really not nice enough for a formal dinning room. It was made for a big country kitchen."

"Can I see it. I'll buy it if you'll sell it to me. I want it for a kitchen in a cabin I have. I don't have a dining room, but the kitchen and living area is very large and informal, a little rustic."

The man said, "Young man if you want the set, it's yours. We'll have the men here load it in your truck."

The table was really nice. Sort of like a big picnic table with what looked like distressed wood, but smooth to the touch. The chairs were sturdy ladder back chairs with two of them having heavy arms. All had seats that were a rich dark brown leather, with designs embedded in the leather. The set looked like it had been really expensive.

"I only have about two hundred in cash, but I can run to an ATM and get some more. What can I have this for? It will be perfect for my place."

The man looked at his wife and she smiled, "Young man, you just solved a bunch of problems in one quick wave of your hand. Thank you for eavesdropping on our discussion. Jason, have those men put the table and breakfront in his truck. Make sure they wrap it so it doesn't get marked up. Just buy the extra blankets from the movers if you have to."

The mover had to take the legs off the table to get it and all the chairs with the breakfront into my truck. This was the first time I was happy to have bought the crew cab with the long bed. I paid the movers for the blankets and tipped them an extra forty dollars for helping me tie it all down.

The older couple gave me a stack of cookware and a big box of dishes saying they were getting new stuff out in California. The man came over with a box of bottles, "Here, this is the booze we had left. I'm not supposed to drink anymore anyway so you can have these. I've got a box of wine you can have too. The lady gave me another couple of boxes of stuff wrapped in plastic bubble wrap.

"Honey, these are a bunch of odds and ends glasses and dinnerware that I keep meaning to put in a yard sale. If you don't want them, throw them away, but thank you for helping us out.

The man stepped back with hands on his hips and said, "Well, the truck is full and your truck is jammed but you still have room to drive. We're ready to go. Say son, do you want my Florida car? I was going to take the tag off it out at the airport and leave it. If you want it, you can have it. Just go out and get it later."

I must have really looked confused. The lady said, "This was part of our company that we sold. We didn't give them this and kept it to run around here. We're moving back out to LA to be near our kids. We have cars out there and really don't need this one."

The man said, "If you know anything about these condos, you know we're not hurting. I'd like you to have the car if you want."

Zena had come out with her folks to see me talking to the couple. She came over and hugged my arm. The woman said, "Oh you're Bert's little niece aren't you? Is this your young man?"

"Yes Ma'am, I am, and he is. He was supposed to be on his way to find a larger table, but it looks like he found one already."

The man said, "He sure did, we've loaded him up with all kinds of kitchen things too. I'm trying to convince him to take my Florida car for free and he's hesitating."

Zena laughed, "What are you giving away? Tommy doesn't usually pass up opportunities."

The man pointed to a bright orange Jeep Wrangler that didn't look very old. He said, "It has about seventy thousand on it but it still runs good. I think it's going to need brakes and possibly some other work soon. But there's a full top with side curtains folded up in the back. We like the open Jeep a lot but the air's too dirty out in California unless you live on the beach. We couldn't find a decent place to buy on the beach, so we bought another condo till we do. It's not as nice as this one, and it costs three times as much as here. It'll be worth it to be near our kids and grandkids though."

Zena said, "How about I ride with you out to the airport, then I can just bring the car home. Will that work?"

The woman said, "That would be wonderful. You can let us out at the departure entrance and we'll be set."

The man was sending the moving van off and came back. "Okay, let me get the title and make it out to you, Son, I really appreciate all you've done. Say, do you have anything to do with Bert's company?"

Zena said, "I'm the marketing manager and Tom is the final architectural engineer."

"Well, well, here, take my card and call me in about a week. I have some buildings here and out in LA that I want Bert to manage. His company has one of the best names in the business. He's a real professional. I've found him to be a little nutty since I've been his neighbor, but a real professional."

Zena said, "I'll call you in a week to set up an appointment, Sir."

I said to the couple, "I don't know how to thank you for your generosity. The table and the Jeep are wonderful, and the Jeep is just perfect for when I don't want to drive the big truck. I love it and have always wanted one, but I am always being practical about everything."