Chapter 24: A Kiss Is Just A Kiss

November 10, 1994, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

As we sat down, I wondered who had called Tara. The only one I could think of was Samantha, which made sense, because she and I had talked about what was going on in my life during our Sunday ‘father-daughter’ talks. She and Brian were still going strong and I was reasonably sure they’d end up married once Samantha graduated from UofC.

“What’s your major, Liza?” I asked.

“Philosophy. I just started my Sophomore year. You got a degree in computers and started your company right out of school?”

“Yes. Tara’s brother-in-law is Director for the Eastern Region, based here in Pittsburgh. He was one of the first people we hired back in Chicago and I sent him out here to marry Marie.”

“Oh, you did not!” Tara laughed. “He didn’t know she existed until he ran into her in a bar and decided she was a hot college chick he wanted to screw!”

“Now you’re just ruining my view of Mario as a sober, reasoned professional!” I chuckled.

“In a college bar? Seriously? There’s only one reason a young professional guy goes to a place like that!”

“To have a drink, of course,” I countered.

“Right!” Tara laughed.

“Nathan, what do you do?” I asked, to change the subject.

“I’m a fire safety engineer. I work for an architectural firm and do high-rise fire protection design and planning.”

“How did you guys meet?”

He laughed, “Tara saw me in a bar and DEMANDED I buy her a drink. She then dragged me out of the bar ... and well, you know!”

“I did not!” Tara laughed. “We had adjacent seats at a Pens game and he offered to get me a beer.”

“Hmm,” I grinned. “Go behind the net...”

“No!” Tara laughed. “Nate, I warned you about him. He’s the biggest Smart Aleck on the planet, bar none!”

“He’s a Penguins fan, so he can’t be bad!” Nathan said. “It sucks they aren’t playing.”

“Tell me about it,” I groused.

The waiter came to the table and took our drink orders. We all checked the menus and when the waiter brought our drinks, we ordered our meals. The conversation at the table became more conventional and we talked about everything from the Penguins to the O.J. Simpson trial to the Republican sweep of Congress and my business. When we finished dinner, Nathan and Tara excused themselves, leaving Liza and me at the table.

“I’d ask you for a drink, but I don’t think you’ll get away without showing ID.”

“Unlikely. They’ve started really cracking down. There were some high profile raids on campus and they busted several bars for serving underage kids.”

“So, in all seriousness, what did Tara tell you about me?”

“That you are the most interesting man she’s ever met in her entire life, bar none. That if I can find a topic you can’t talk about with some amount of authority, she’d be shocked, that you are in need of a companion for your four trips to Pittsburgh and that I would be a perfect fit.”

“That simple?” I asked.

“That simple.”

“May I ask why?”

“To have fun? To have some very stimulating conversations? To have my toes curl and my eyes roll back in my head?”

I chuckled, “And just what did she say about THAT?”

“That the difference between High School and College boys and a man is like night and day!”

“And that’s something you’re interested in?”

She smiled, opened her purse, and slid a clean STD test report across the table.

“Obviously I had to meet you first and see if I was attracted to you and if I liked you. I do.”

“And this?” I held up my left hand.

“She told me you aren’t cheating.”

“That’s true. I hope Tara told you everything.”

“What do you mean?”

“Come with me and you’ll find out.”

She smiled and nodded.

November 11, 1994, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

“OK, she didn’t tell me that!” Liza said, snuggling close under the blanket in the king-size bed.

“I’m not sure it’s a selling point,” I said squeezing her tightly to me.

“I guess it depends on how you look at it. I liked it. It wasn’t what I expected, but truthfully, I liked it.”

“Then you pass the test,” I said.

“Isn’t it supposed to be the other way around?”

“Sure, but I assumed I had passed the test when you came back to my room with me.”

“You did. So now what?”

“We get out of bed, shower, get dressed, and go have breakfast.”

“So, I’m curious, do I actually get to see you naked? Or does that have to wait for the next trip?”

“I suppose, if you can restrain yourself!” I teased.

“I suppose you’ll have to take the risk and find out!”

We got out of bed and I took off my pyjamas and Liza took off my shirt she was wearing and her panties, and we went to the bathroom to shower. We washed up together, but individually, then dried off and dressed.

“I’m not sure if I should be impressed or offended!” Liza said as I packed my things. “Impressed at your self-control or offended that I couldn’t get a rise out of you!”

“Impressed,” I grinned. “I very much liked what I saw, but this wasn’t about sex. I spend a lot of time in the sauna with women I don’t have sex with and have developed serious self-control. It’s all a matter of mindset.”

“I was beginning to wonder.”

“Liza, when I visit next time, we won’t talk philosophy until 3:30am. I’ll explore every inch of that gorgeous body of yours.”

“Oh God, I hope so! Nobody will believe I spent the night in a hotel room with a married man and nothing happened!”

“And my wives will nod knowingly and laugh.”

“You’re seriously going to tell them?”

“Of course. I’m not cheating. Full disclosure is part of the arrangement.”

“Weird!”

“They don’t call my life Cirque du Steve for nothing!”

“When will you be back?”

“A lot depends on the surprise overseas trip I have to take. I think I’m going to miss all the company Christmas parties. I promise to call and let you know as soon as I know. If it’s not just before Christmas, it’ll be February.”

“I had fun, believe it or not.”

“I believe it,” I said. “And just so you know, I rarely have sex with a girl the first day I meet her. It has happened, but it’s very rare. Ask Tara.”

“She left that little detail out of what she told me!”

“There were nights after we’d first made love that we just cuddled because of circumstances in my life or hers. I’m totally cool with that.”

“She told me you loved to cuddle AFTER making love, not instead of!”

“I’m not a normal guy.”

“No, you’re not. It might sound crazy for me to say this, but from you, after our conversation last night, it sounds perfectly logical and reasonable. You don’t HAVE to have intimacy for sex, nor sex to be intimate, but when BOTH are there? Well, I expect to be blown away!”

“I think that can be arranged! Let’s get some breakfast!” I said.

November 11, 1994, Chicago, Illinois

“Of all the stupid, idiotic, insane things to do right before I was supposed to leave on the trip!” Sam complained from her bed in the orthopedic ward at Cook County hospital.

“How did it happen?” I asked.

“We were skating down the sidewalk in Lincoln Park near my place. A little kid literally walked right in front of me. I managed to avoid creaming him, but my leg hit a fire hydrant and my head hit the sidewalk. The next thing I know, I was in a CFD ambulance on the way here.”

“Concussion?”

“Mild, fortunately. I guess Persian skulls are thicker than German-Irish ones!”

“And the leg?”

“Rods, screws, and plates. And a shedload of morphine, or whatever is in that machine. Plus whatever sedative they’re giving me to let me sleep.”

“Has Jess been to see you?”

“At the end of her shift yesterday and this morning when she came in. She’s the one who called Elyse yesterday. She was going to call you, but I told her to call the office instead. I figured Elyse knew your schedule. She didn’t get you out of a meeting did she?”

“No. I was walking into the office building when she called. I spoke to Louise. They can’t wait for you to be able to walk for the project to be completed.”

“I figured. Are you going?”

“Yes, but not tomorrow. I’ll go after Thanksgiving. A three-week delay is acceptable. A six month delay isn’t.”

“You talked to Doctor Jessica?”

“Yes. She’s no orthopedist, but she read your chart and that was her estimate before you’re walking properly without crutches. She did say they expected full recovery, which is good.”

“They’ll let me work as soon as I feel up to it, but I have to keep traction on the leg. I can work from home if we can get an ISDN hookup with the office.”

“Let me talk to InfoNet and see if they can set that up. I agree that analog modems aren’t fast enough. We’ll have to figure out something with the phones, but I’m sure we can work it out. I was told I could only have five minutes. I guess your boyfriend has been here full-time?”

“He had to go take care of his dog. He’ll be back in about fifteen minutes. He took the day off work. I’m sorry.”

“For what? Letting me go to Australia and Japan?”

“Boss, you can be a real a-hole!” she laughed.

“You can use the real word; I promise not to fire you!”

“Nah, that’s not me.”

“OK. I’m going to leave you in peace. Call if there is anything we can do for you. Day or night, doesn’t matter.”

“Thanks, Steve. I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome. I’ll come see you soon.”

I left the hospital and headed to the office for an hour, before heading home.

November 12, 1994, Chicago, Illinois

“I have to go to Oceania and Asia in December.”

“For how long?” Sensei Jim asked.

“A couple of weeks, I guess. We’re working out the timing. I need to go to Sydney, Singapore, and Tokyo. I was hoping to take a side trip to Oguni for two days when I’m in Japan.”

“I’ll let Robert-san know. Do you know the dates yet?”

“Tentatively I’d arrive the evening of the 15th and leave the morning of the 18th. I want to spend some extra days in Australia. I doubt I’ll get there ever again in my life! I’ll only need one full day in Singapore, so I’m only spending two nights there at most, one if I can swing it.”

“That sounds like a fun, but exhausting trip. I’ll give Robert-san the tentative date. If something changes, just let me know. Our November dinner is the 16th, so I’ll make the December dinner the 21st to accommodate you. Your company party is usually on a Thursday, right?”

“Yes.”

“What does next year look like?”

“The usual visits to our regional offices, plus a family trip to St. Petersburg by way of Stockholm.”

“OK. Just keep me posted so I know when you won’t be here. I’m sure Sensei Hiro will be happy to see you.”

“And I’ll be happy to see him!”

I was also looking forward to seeing Sakurako, and was sure, based on the short letters she sent, that she’d be happy to see me.

“Let’s go take care of our students, shall we?”

“Yes, Sensei!”

I was VERY pleased to see that Birgit was awarded her yellow belt. She’d tested during the week and nobody had told me, so it came as a nice surprise.

“Do you like my new belt?” she asked, striking a pose.

“I do! I’m very proud of you, Pumpkin!”

“Mommy has a black belt!”

“Yes she does!”

“Daddy has gold on his! His is better!”

“Yes it is, you little troublemaker,” Kara laughed.

“He got his in Japan! Mommy got hers here!”

I bent down and picked up our precocious six-year-old.

“Are you trying to cause trouble, young lady?” I grinned.

“Daddy is best!”

“I agree,” Kara laughed. “Did you miss your daddy?”

“Yes! No Daddy cuddles! I missed them!”

“Pumpkin, next month, Daddy has to go to Australia. That’s very far away. Even further than Japan. He’ll be gone a little over two weeks. Not quite as long as when he went to Europe.”

“Why?”

“Because Sam from work hurt her leg and they won’t let her on an airplane!”

“Mommy said that. But not that you had to go away.”

“I told her about it Thursday night,” Jessica said. “I was talking to Elyse and Birgit asked.”

“That’s OK. I can try to call you with the picture phone again.”

“I could see you. That was fun!”

We arrived home and after we all showered and dressed, we went down for lunch. Maureen and Ryanne joined us and once lunch was finished, we went into my study to talk.

“You still want to go in the sauna?” I asked.

“Yes, and we decided it’s OK to not wear bathing suits. If you’re OK with it.”

“I might have a heart attack, but sure,” I chuckled.

Maureen’s green eyes twinkled, “Can’t handle two gorgeous redheads?”

“Oh, I could. But we’re just talking about a sauna, right?”

Ryanne smirked, “What do YOU think?”

“I think you two are dangerous, that’s what I think!”

We left my study and went to the basement. I turned on the sauna, hung up the ‘Privacy Please’ sign as a precaution, and without a word, simply stripped off my clothes. Both girls whistled, but I ignored them, grabbed some towels, and went into the sauna. Two minutes later, the twins came in, totally naked, and a true sight to behold. I nodded appreciatively at the two most beautiful redheads I’d ever seen, with one exception - Kathy Jaeger. Only these two actually had full, bright-red pubic hair, as Kathy Will had sported before the evil man she married had forced her to shave it off!

The two girls struck a pose, then sat on the towels that I’d strategically placed a distance from mine. I took in the lovely vision of freckles, cute, pert breasts, firm butts, and muscular legs I was absolutely sure these two would be some of the best fun I would ever have, but I wasn’t sure it was the best idea. That said, an offer would be VERY difficult to refuse.

I got up a couple of minutes later and ladled water onto the rocks and steam hissed up, beginning to fill the room. I sat back down and closed my eyes and relaxed. I took a few deep breaths and allowed the steam to begin to work its magic. I was very happy the girls stayed quiet and let me enjoy the sauna in silence.

“How often do you use this,” Maureen asked about ten minutes later.

“Not often enough, these days. I’ve been traveling a lot. In the past, it was at least three or four times a week. You’ve never been in a sauna before?”

“No. St. Louis isn’t exactly known for having saunas!”

“Neither is Chicago! A friend of mine had one when I was in High School and I got hooked.”

“Where does he live?” Ryanne asked.

“She!” I laughed. “She lives in Chicago now, but we lived in Milford, Ohio, near Cincinnati, before we moved here. When I bought the house, the basement wasn’t finished, and I had the sauna and whirlpool installed. She and her husband were here a lot, along with other friends.”