Chapter 31

Beep, beep, beep, beep.

The phone woke me although I don't remember setting the alarm. My head swam with the thoughts that came up last night about the possibility of Jules being pregnant. The two girls seemed more concerned with whether or not I was getting my ashes hauled while on the road than with Jules being with child. I didn't understand their thinking, but it could be something that Nobuko had taught them. I moved to see how I had to get out of bed and saw that I was on the outside.

I slipped from bed and used the toilet. I was thinking of getting in my workout clothes and leaving the two to sleep, but decided that they wanted to work out as much as I did. I kissed both women and told both how much I loved them as they woke. Katie rolled to me and kissed me before whispering, "I do love you, Brad, and want to be as much of a wife as Jules. I'll catch up, Lover; I'll be with her soon."

I kissed Jules and she turned to tell me, "You told me all the most wonderful things a woman could hear last night. Yes, my love, I will marry you, but only if you'll marry my wife with me."

Wife? Did they already do a same sex marriage thing? Does it affect a man and woman marriage if they did? I was totally 'WTF' over this menagerie of thoughts.

We took the rental car to the office that was in the Carrollwood area after a good breakfast, arriving at seven thirty.

We were just parking when Fred pulled into his parking spot. We watched as car after car parked in slots next to each other as if it was choreographed. We got out of the car and went into the office when the first slug of cars and people finished arriving.

A tall, good-looking African-American woman, who warily looked at us until she settled on me, was behind the lobby counter. The woman ran around the counter and hugged me, then stood me in front of her before wrapping her arms around me again and gave me a kiss that promised just about anything there was in life.

Yolanda said, "You're a sight for my sore eyes, Loverboy. God, I didn't know I could miss a white boy like you so much. I'll always love you for hiring me and never once acting like I was any different than any of the other women who worked here, Brad." She looked at Jules and Katie and asked, "Are these yours or Assistants?"

"They're mine, Yolanda. Both are going to be my wives and mothers to my babies. Wish us luck, Love. You'll get to find out more about us if you meet us at the Hard Rock."

"Leave your ladies with me and go see Fred. Who is this other guy? He looks like a refugee from a Bruce Lee film."

Even Donte laughed at that. I told her, "This man is my bodyguard. He's actually Jules' bodyguard, so he will be watching you. No funny stuff, Yolanda."

I peeked around the doorway to my old office and realized that it was the same size as my office in LA, but with more and different furniture than it previously had. There was a woman at a secretarial desk to the left side of the room, and another desk that I would assume was for the Assistant, as there was a fairly young man sitting there. The woman saw me and wagged her finger at me. "Don't stand there lurking at us, Brad. Come in here and say hi."

I said, "So you abandoned Sales, Lilly. How is Eric going to get along without you?"

The woman smiled real big and told me, "I hired and trained two girls to take my place because there needed to be two back there. I'm learning the rest of the business from the secretarial desk by working with Fred. We've always gotten along, and he's been a straight shooter, so I jumped at the chance when he first said he might want a secretary."

Fred had come from behind his desk and shook my hand before he gave me a man hug that would have people thinking we were queer for each other. "Damn, I didn't think you'd be here until Monday. I can't put on a show now. You always show up early for everything, and I've picked up on that habit. The whole office actually still comes in before eight, and you probably noticed that seven thirty is about the average time."

I told Fred, "I see that Construction finally finished its own building and got rid of that ugly trailer. Good job getting that finished. It looks like a real business now."

Fred pointed at the young man, "That is another Eric. He is just like I was, graduated from USF a couple of years ago, and was working in retail at the mall. My wife met him when she was shopping out there and told me about him and how impressed she was with the man's courtesy and knowledge of his products. She wasn't flirting for a change, so she said that she was impressed. She had gotten a business card from him, so I invited him for an interview. He said he was working in retail because that was the only job he could find and hadn't been able to find a better one, so he was still there. I liked him and he's learning fast so far. He might be like me and get funny because he's getting married next month. I'm sure you remember how nuts I was."

Eric came from behind his desk and we shook hands. Fred looked at his watch and said, "Let's take a tour. It's eight and I'm sure everyone is here. I'm dying to find out how Sales ended the day. We're keeping people in the models until seven now and it's paid off."

We walked back to the big Sales room where the desks were three across and seven deep. The room had been re-arranged a little to have the two secretarial desks facing the room with their backs to the Manager's office. The blinds to the Sales Manager's office big window were raised to the top so that everyone could see him and he could see everyone from his desk.

Eric came from behind his desk and shook my hand before telling Fred, "We did it, Fred; we busted the big one yesterday with twenty sales. Thursday's have always been good for us, but this is our biggest ever. I think the radio ads are working better than ever. I'm glad we busted them up into shorter ads so that we can have our name in front of people more often."

Twenty sales on a weekday was a phenomenal amount for any office. Fred said, "We might break seventy-five this week. The new development is the reason. We're just about sold out in the other two, and this new one is really taking off. The land that was in dispute should be released next week, so we can begin preparing that. This office is rolling. I want to do as much business as possible before school starts. You know how that always slows down sales."

We said hi to the decorators on the way to the Title Office before going up to Finance and Accounting. This office had separate areas for appraisers and a smaller office for two engineers. Fred motioned for me to follow him and Eric as they went to what would be the rear of Finance. There was new door there that was open and three men and two women were in the room. Fred said, "This is my insurance office. That was a great idea you had. It's working out and the people are writing a lot of business."

We went toward the big conference room when we left there, and it was now smaller but included another office. Fred said, "Our pool builder is in that room. The man has six pools in progress. I'll bet you wish that you had done that a long time ago. Orlando has followed me, as have Naples, Jacksonville, and Panama City. Miami is still being the same stick in the mud they always have been, and said they will wait to check our P&Ls before they jump in."

Back down in Fred's office, he asked, "So what's your itinerary while you're here?"

I told him, "My folks are coming down from the Villages to visit with me this weekend, and you and I will drive to Orlando Monday. We'll fly to Naples Tuesday, and possibly get to Miami. If not, we'll get them Wednesday, and then try to do Jacksonville and Panama City either Wednesday or Thursday."

"How are you going to do that? We'll never get flights between cities and then back here at a reasonable hour."

"Ah ha, the big shots have let me use their old airplane. They have a new one and I get to use the old plane since they are having me cover so much territory. We'll hop up to Jacksonville, and then over to Panama City so fast that your head will spin. I'm sure I'll get put back into commuters again, but I'm covering nine offices in the California and the North West plus six in the South Central between now and then. There's no way I could even do from Seattle to San Diego on commuters, much less from New Orleans to Phoenix."

"Wow, that's a ton of territory, Brad. You're still listed as Regional Manager for Florida, and that's six more."

"Well, I'm going to officially make you king when we finish seeing the proof of how well you've taken care of the region, Grasshopper. Do you think you can handle the raise?"

"Oh man, my wife is going to be so excited. We finally decided to buy an inventory home in the new development. You know how that is, so it's almost like a custom but built on an inventory home timetable. This is going to make everything that much easier. We were getting close on our budget and she was thinking of going to work again, but she won't have to now."

"Come up front with me and meet my new family. They're visiting with Yolanda."

If Fred had false teeth, they would have fallen out when he saw the two beauties standing next to Yolanda. I introduced the girls to Fred, the Office Manager, and his secretary, Lilly, who had been the former Sales secretary. Jules and Katie had come out from behind the counter. I held Jules, and said, "This beauty is Jules Kamatsu, and," I pulled Katie forward, "This other beauty is Katie Johnson. The man sitting by the door is Donte Kamatsu, Jules' bodyguard."

Fred was a little choked up and told me, "Wow, you always hung out with some gorgeous babes, but these two are awesome."

Yolanda told him, "I've just heard that our Brad has a whole office full of gorgeous women, and they've shown me their pictures. It's unbelievable. I guess that's California for you."

I told Fred, "Your office is in great shape, and you don't need me hanging over your shoulder, so I'm leaving. If you want to visit, we're going to be at the Hard Rock this weekend and the airplane is parked out at Executive. I'll meet you here early Monday morning, and we'll drive to Orlando. I need to go visit with my mom and dad meanwhile."

Fred pulled me aside to tell me, "Legal never did get your place transferred. Our guy said that Bennington never got with him to sign the correct documents. You still own your condo, and you should probably make arrangements for it to be cleaned or something. Bennington is still in jail, and is being indicted for that druggie's murder. They found a gun in his car that matches the round that killed the guy. His finger and palm prints are all over the dealer's car. That guy is never getting out of jail, so whatever you were paid was a bonus, and you still own your old place. The Feds probably would have confiscated it if he had legally owned it anyway."

"I'll go look at it. I still have a set of keys. Hopefully, they didn't tear it up while searching the place."

We left the office and drove to Carrollwood Village where the condo was. There were sixteen townhouses with eight on each side of the short street. I pulled into the driveway of the one on the end, and used my phone to see if the garage door still worked. It did. Nothing had changed inside the double garage. We went inside that way and found the condo pristine. There was a note on the dining room table, "We heard you moved, Mr. Johnson, but we will still stop by to dust for you. Give me a call to let me know how you want to handle this. Marie, 813-966-0555."

I told the girls, "Marie owns the cleaning service for the office and the models. I used to just give her cash in an envelope once a month for keeping the condo nice. She's a jewel."

I called Marie who immediately answered. "Are you back, Brad?"

"Just visiting, Marie, and thank you for having kept the condo up."

"It was a wreck, Brad. Those Federal people came and searched the place because the guy you let stay there was some kind of drug dealer. I'm sure you didn't know about that. All your personal stuff was gone, and the Feds took everything that belonged to that man. The girls washed the linens and put everything back in order. They've been going by about every week to dust when they are doing houses and condos out that way. Do you want me to continue taking care of the place?"

"Yes, Marie. I should sell it, but I might keep it for a place to escape to every once in a while since it's ready to live in. My mom and dad might want to come up and stay in it. They love to play golf, and my fees are paid up for the year. You can use the place too if you have relatives coming. No sense in a nice place like this not being used."

"Thank you, Brad. You've always treated me more than fair."

"How about I put some cash in an envelope for you along with a tip for the girls? Pick it up when you're out this way. I'll leave it on the table. How about a fourth of what I paid you before to keep the place dusted and for clean up if others come to use it?"

"That'll work. I'll let you know if it isn't enough. I saw your name come up, so you have the same telephone number. Are you enjoying California?"

"There are a lot of very good things about being out there, although I still miss Tampa."

"Okay, Brad, we'll take care of the place until you decide to do something with it."

The two women were being women and looked at the whole place while I had been on the phone. They said, "Wow, those bedrooms are huge and both have a private bathroom and very big cedar-lined walk-in closet that connects to the bathroom like ours at home does. This is a very nice place."

"Yep, it is, but where I live now puts this to shame. Let's lock up and go see if Mom and Dad have arrived. Do you know what time Hideki and Nobuko will get here?"

Jules said, "They said they planned on being here about five," as we left the garage.

I checked the mailbox by the street. There was nothing there. I used my phone to close the garage door and opened the doors for the girls to get in. Donte was in the front seat with me.

My neighbor who had taken me to the airport came out to say hi. He had to tell me about all the various police cars that had been at the house for two days. He told me that one of my housekeepers came the second day and was shaming the detectives for being so messy. She kept telling them she was going to have to wash everything in the house and kitchen because of the way they had treated everything and tracked mud onto the carpet. He said the woman was almost laughable by the way she was scolding the men. I explained that I was now living in Los Angeles and eventually might still sell the condo since the other sale didn't go through.

I called our local legal office and asked for the intern who had come out that day. I asked him about the contracts that had been signed. The man spoke to me in a very soft voice so that he couldn't be overheard. "That guy was involved in a drug deal and was almost instantly arrested. I heard they were going to charge him for murdering the drug dealer, so I didn't file those papers. They were, um, I guess you could say 'accidentally shredded' since there was no reason for them to be filed. I was going to give you a call this week to let you know that you should do something with the place. Let me know if you need me to write up a contract."

There wasn't even a trail that the house had been sold to that guy. I asked the intern, "How much were you guys able to recover from him? He was pretty liquid, and I know that they are trying to get his bank accounts in California and Nevada.

The intern said, "From what I heard, the home office is getting the three million the guy was carrying around in a suitcase, and in addition they are going to be able to get his rather large bank account here in Florida. They expect to recover over twenty million all together. The money you received from the guy should just about cover your aggravation."

I ended the call and got in the car. It was already running to get it cool as the Florida sun will quickly roast you.

On the way to the Hard Rock, Katie asked, "I'm getting hungry. Can we get a salad or something to eat?"

"How about we eat something at the Hard Rock? Mom and Dad may be there, and we can eat with them."

We let the valet park the rental and went to the desk where I asked if Jeff Johnson had checked in yet. The Concierge told me, "Yes, just a few minutes ago. If you're Brad, he said to call him on his cell phone as soon as you asked for him."

Dad answered, "You did it up for us, Brad. This place is great. Your mom is sprawled out on the bed inviting me to join her."

"That's too much information, Dad. We're downstairs, so come down and we can get some lunch. The girls are hungry."

"Oh boy, I get to meet those two I saw the picture of. We'll be right down."

We were standing near the elevator when my mom stepped out, followed by Dad. She was dressed Florida style, wearing a tank top, shorts, and thong shoes. You could tell that she wasn't wearing a bra, as she has big nipples on small breasts, and was displaying some good-sized headlights. Not unusual in Florida. Dad was wearing shorts, a pullover shirt with pockets, and men's sandals. They both looked good with dark tans.

Mom almost ran to me, wrapped her arms around me, and gave me an unmotherly kiss. I was happy to see her too. Dad came up behind her and smacked her bottom, saying, "Now don't go showing the world how you want to fulfill a fantasy."

"Oh you, you always have such a nasty mind." She turned to me and the girls with a red face, and expectantly looked at me. I said, "Mom and Dad, this is Katie Johnson, and this is Jules Kamatsu. Girls, meet my mom, Freddie, and dad, Jeff Johnson."

Mom moved to the girls and gave them both good hugs, and then the two girls did the same to Dad, along with a kiss on the cheek. Dad loved the huge breasts that had been pushed into his chest and pulled his shorts up and shook them a little trying to get his interest from showing. It was Mom who looked at Donte and unbelievably asked, "Who's the Bruce Lee type with you?"

Donte and I looked at each other and busted out laughing, since we had now heard the same bad joke twice. "This is Donte, Jules' bodyguard. Her folks like her to be protected at all times."

Dad looked at me funny and said, "I think you said something about food. Let's go get some."

We went to the Hard Rock Café as they were serving. The place was already fairly full, which meant that the weekend would be full of people gambling, eating, drinking, and dancing. This place was a money machine. I tried to explain how we met and how I now lived in a suite within a huge house in a gated community to Mom and Dad while we ate. I tried to explain the relationship I had with Jules' grandparents and told them they would be able to visit with them at length this weekend as they were arriving this afternoon. Mom was excited and told the girls, "You two are a lot more beautiful in person than the pictures you sent. I'm up for some sun this afternoon if you two want. How about we get some sun down at the pool? Brad's tan could use a touch up, so you should come too, Brad. Your dad says he gets all the sun he needs on the golf course. He might tag along, though, to check out your girls in swimsuits."

We all had Caesar salads with fried chicken added. Everyone but Donte and Jules had a Beefeater to enjoy with it. Katie made the observation, "Now I know how Brad got started with Beefeaters. My dad loves the stuff too. That's how I got started."

Mom said, "I thought the stuff tasted like turpentine when we first got married, but I would have some with lemon or a soda called 'Squirt' that was really good with it. I was soon having more Beefeaters than soda, until I was drinking it straight like Jeff, or with some lemon or olives sometimes."

I told the two, "I do want you to come out to visit me in California. I've asked these two to marry me, and they might want a big wedding. I doubt it, but it could happen. You need to see where I'll be living for the foreseeable future."

Mom said, "I've always wanted to see one of the Hollywood stars' homes. I'll bet yours rivals most of theirs."

Jules said, "My place is immense, and has a huge master suite and twelve suites upstairs. There is only one guest suite downstairs, along with an entire wing for the help, and you won't believe the size of the kitchen. Downstairs also has a sitting room, a very big saloon, or you could call it a family room or gaming room, complete with bar and pool table, as well as a few conversation groupings. There is a large office that we all use, but it's mostly for my investment business and then there is the very beautiful dining room. I really want you to visit. Your son would love for you to come."

Mom said, "Brad has always been the oddball son. He doesn't bring women home to us to show them off or to flaunt in front of the buddies he grew up with. He's never been serious about a woman, or even talked about any of his personal female friends, but he often brags about the women who work for him. I always thought he'd pick one of the women who worked for him, but he's always told us that would be a no-no because he should never become intimate with his employees."

Katie told Mom, "Neither of us are now, nor have we ever been employees, but we do go with him on some of his trips and try to help him. We know what to do and know how to get information for him. Brad is one of those people who want to know everything possible about a decision that he's trying to make. We've made him be a little more receptive to some of his employees' desires to know him better."

Mom told us, "Let's go get some swimwear on and do some tanning. Brad needs to get naked so that we can slurp some lotion on him and get his tan back. Come on, get nearly naked."

Oh man, Mom was in a mood and it's Katie bar the door because she can get crazy when that happens. Poor Dad was saddled with trying to keep her within normal adult parameters.

The girls didn't help as they put one of their skimpier bikinis on, but did add a famous Hard Rock robe to walk out to the pool. We bought some more tanning lotion on the way through the shops, and met Mom and Dad at the pool. Donte came out and sat on the side because he was wearing a pair of slacks and a sport coat.