Chapter 4

Matt was spending the weekdays with Paul and his family. He made trips back to his rental for the twins to swim in the indoor-outdoor pool. Afternoon movie matinees were also a favorite of the twins especially when each had his own box of pop corn and a soda. Matt took Peg and the twins down to San Antonio to see the Alamo. The twins couldn't appreciate the significance of the Alamo but Peg and Matt did. The highlight of the visit was the ride in the boat along the famous Riverwalk. Evenings were spent at Paul's house reading stories to the twins or playing games with them.

Matt mentioned Helen to Paul and Peg and the circumstances of their meeting. They seemed genuinely happy that he had met someone. In his conversations with Peg, she mentioned that the twins would be starting school that fall and she was seriously considering starting her teaching career. Problem was that while the media talks about the shortage of teachers, finding a teaching position is very difficult. Some of the people she graduated with never could find a teaching position and were forced to go into other fields.

Helen was busy during the school week both during the day and surprisingly during the evenings as well. Board meetings, PTA meetings and student-parent conferences were all duties or meetings she needed to be involved with. Her weekends were her free time and Matt asked her if she wanted to take a ride with him up to Dallas. He wanted to visit the site where JFK was assassinated. She had been there once before but said she would be happy to go for the ride with him. He told her it would be a full day because he wasn't planning on staying overnight. The trip one-way was just under two hundred miles and that should be able to be done in one day albeit a full day.

She was great to look at and nice company for the drive up to Dallas. Along the way Matt mention what he had been doing during the week with the twins. Helen acknowledged the rewarding feeling one gets in watching children grow up. Matt also mentioned the conversation he had with Peg about her wanting to start her teaching career but the anticipated difficulty she perceived in finding a position.

Helen said, "That may not be as much as a problem as she thinks. I am going to be hiring a new teacher when we start in the fall. She is the daughter of a fellow school principal and he asked me if I would hire her as he couldn't have his daughter working for him per our hiring rules. I know he has two retirements coming up and is going to need to find replacements. What is good for the goose is good for the gander. Ask Peg to submit her application to him. I will give him a call and tell him to be on the lookout for the application and I am sure he will offer her a position. He owes me."

Matt expressed his thanks to Helen for this referral. He knew Peg would be happy to hear the news. Helen told him that this school location was only about three miles from where Peg lived.

They stopped for lunch and Matt continued to enjoy Helen's company. She could carry on intelligent conversations and seemed to enjoy being with him as well. She laughed at his jokes and blushed when he flirted with her. The three buttons opened on her white blouse were a pleasing sight he periodically glanced at as he drove.

Visiting the Book Depository and thinking of what had transpired there was a sobering experience. Taking the tour of the building and looking out the window from which the shot was fired gave Matt chills. The distance of the shot fired from a rifle was not far at all. Matt was glad that they came to the Book Depository but also was glad that they were leaving.

The trip back to Austin was fast and uneventful. They stopped and had dinner at a restaurant Helen knew about that was just short of the city limits. The meat was smoked as it seems it all was down here but it was delicious.

Helen invited Matt up to her condo and asked him to stay the night with her. She said, "We could play Scrabble or do something else."

"I like the something else," was Matt's response as he grabbed an overnight bag from the trunk of his car.

Seeing him taking the overnight bag evoked, "You knew I would ask you to stay overnight?"

"I was hoping you would," was his response as he moved to give her a kiss on her lips to which she ardently responded.

Her condo had two bedrooms, one of which seemed to have been converted into an office. It was very neat and nicely furnished. Her taste in furniture is excellent, thought Matt. The view from the condo was of the State Capital which looked like a mini version of the U.S. Capital.

It was a clear night and quite warm for that time of year. Helen flipped a plastic store bag to Matt. He opened it and saw the newly purchased man's swimming trunks that it contained. She said, "Put them on. I think they are the right size. Let's go up to the roof for a swim and maybe use the Jacuzzi. At this time of the evening I doubt anyone will be there."

"So you were expecting that I would be staying overnight?"

"A girl can always hope," was her response with a devilish grin.

They changed into their suits and went up to the pool on the roof. Helen was wearing a robe and Matt had on a tee shirt and a large towel was over his shoulder. She was correct as no one else was there. The lighting on the roof was subdued with most of it coming from the lights inside the pool. When she took off the robe and displayed the bikini she was wearing Matt gave her a wolf whistle. He had seen her in her birthday suit already but seeing her in this abbreviated swim suit was more erotic.