Chapter 11

Matti and Dawn quickly slid into the type of familiarity that had them calling each other nightly to exchange details of their day. Matti was busy arranging for parts, pieces, and equipment for his business, but when he wasn’t doing that he was trying to come up with ways to ‘launder’ the cash he was trying to use to build up his business. In the past he hadn’t wanted to commit himself to a loan for business purposes, but he quickly realized that having a line of credit with his bank would help him to mask the source of some of his money. The interest was tax-deductible, and he could regularly pay off the balance by purchasing money orders for odd amounts, making cash deposits by ATM, and generally by using his new wealth to live on. He knew that for the long-term he would have to come up with a better method, but at least for now he was able to rescue his business from the brink of bankruptcy.

Dawn was also busy early in the week, working on a project with one of their news anchors. It was somehow related to local politics, and was supposed to be presented as a surprise exposé. For that reason she didn’t want to say too much to Matti, as it would possibly betray a confidential source before the source was ready to make their name known. Matti wasn’t very worried about local politics, so he let Dawn know that he was just as happy to be out of that particular loop.

By Wednesday they were both anxious to see each other, not primarily for the benefits part of their relationship, although it did play some part for both of them if truth were told. Dawn invited Matti over for supper, but let him know that her roommate, Yvonne, was away for a few days with her job. Matti, of course, quickly accepted Dawn’s offer.

Dawn had made a delicious pasta with chicken recipe, and they shared a couple of glasses of wine with their meal. When the dishes were in the dishwasher they moved to the living room where they each enjoyed another glass of wine while they talked.

“I really enjoyed the meal, Dawn. You’re definitely a woman of many talents. I especially enjoyed the trifle for dessert. My mother used to make that from time to time.”

Dawn laughed wryly before she said, “I doubt that your mother would’ve made the trifle the way I did. Everything came in either a can, or a cardboard box. I just put them together, that’s all.”

“Don’t sell yourself short, Dawn. The end result is the important part, and I enjoyed every spoonful. Even the best chefs on TV mainly excel at combination and presentation. You covered both of those features very well with the entire meal.”

Later, after watching an old movie, a light comedy on DVD, they finished the last two small glasses of wine from the bottle they had started at dinner. During the movie Dawn had leaned back against Matti’s chest, and he had enveloped her in his arms. They resumed this arrangement after they picked up their glasses.

When there was a lull in their conversation, and the glasses were empty on the coffee table, Dawn asked, “Can you stay the night, Matti? I think I’d really like that.”

“Hmmm ... let me think about that. Okay. I’ll stay.” Matti was laughing at her as she turned to slap him lightly on the arm.

“You almost had me believing you weren’t sure if you should stay. I should’ve known...” She promptly got to her feet, grabbed Matti’s hand, and said, “Come on, before you change your mind.” They were both laughing as they went down the hallway towards Dawn’s bedroom.

Early the next morning, Matti had just finished drying himself after he stepped out of the shower when the bathroom door opened.

“Whoops! Excuse me! I didn’t realize anyone was in here. Oh, you’re Matti, aren’t you?”

Matti was fortunate that the towel was in just the right position to protect his modesty, and to spoil Yvonne’s view. As he repositioned the towel to obtain maximum benefit from its coverage, he answered, “Yes, that’s me. You’re Yvonne, right? You’re Dawn’s roommate. I’m sorry, of course you are. It’s my fault. I should’ve locked the door.”

Yvonne was dressed modestly in flannel pajamas, and was now a bit more comfortable as she said, “I just had to use the bathroom, and I wasn’t expecting you. I heard the shower, and I thought it was Dawn. She’s never had ... company overnight before. I wasn’t expecting a man to be in here.”

Matti tied the towel around his waist and smiled as he said, “No harm, no foul. I’ll let you have the bathroom now. My clothes are in Dawn’s room, so I’ll just go get dressed.” By this time both of them were beginning to see the amusement in the situation, and exchanged grins as Matti left the bathroom and closed the door.

As he closed Dawn’s bedroom door, Matti said, “I guess you may be surprised to learn that your roommate is back from her trip. We just surprised each other in the bathroom.” The two of them had a good chuckle about the situation after Matti explained it to her.

Matti was on no particular schedule, but Dawn had to be at the station by 9 AM. They did have time for breakfast together, though, and chose The Scandinavian Home, a popular Thunder Bay restaurant better known locally as The Scand. It was obvious from their relaxed demeanour, and the casual comfort they had with each other, that the two of them were both happy with the state of their relationship. As they left the restaurant, each of them going their separate ways, their individual states of bliss were evident on their faces.

Matti spent the remainder of the week working on the improvements that he would be making with his company, invigorated by the almost euphoric happiness that he felt. He knew that it was his new relationship with Dawn that was fueling that feeling, but it was carrying over into everything that he got involved with. Even his sister Anna noticed that something was different when she called him Thursday evening.

“So, Matti, what’s up? Last time I talked with you, you were down in the dumps about the business and your personal life. Tonight you’re sounding more like the kid brother I grew up with. So something has changed. What is it?”

Matti had already been thinking about how he would explain his newfound financial windfall, so he replied, “Well, Anna, I was able to talk the bank into giving me a demand loan, and I think I’ve been using it wisely, so far. I was talking to Ernie, and I found out where the biggest needs were with the equipment, and I started addressing them. It’s paying off already, because I checked in with Ernie just this morning, and they’re already gaining on the work they were behind on. By the end of next week they should be right back on schedule, and if things keep up, we may even get into bonus territory by finishing early.”

Anna sounded sincerely happy when she said, “I’m so happy to hear that, favourite brother of mine. I was afraid you were getting in over your head. Are you sure you’re going to be able to handle the new loan? You know dad was always dead-set against going into debt for the company. Anything can happen in that business.”

Matti laughed and assured her, “I could almost hear him saying that when I signed the papers, but I’m very sure I can handle it.” He had been wondering if he should mention Dawn to his sister, and decided that he would. “I ... met someone too, Anna. Her name is Dawn, and, if things keep looking like they’re working out, maybe you’ll have a chance to meet her when you and Bob are here next month.”