Chapter 2

I took her to my favorite Mexican restaurant in town, a small mom and pop place that could only seat about forty people, at the outside, unless they were serving on the sidewalk, on the outside. If the weather was nice, they could seat maybe sixty. Then she surprised me. Chile verde and a chili relleno. She told me these were her favorites and she could get them in Spain as well. There was nothing but pleasant surprises coming my way.

We talked about where she’d been, and really it was all over. South America, Central America, Europe, and Africa. Not much in Asia, but a couple of trips each to Thailand and Vietnam. She explained that very often, English was the common language for the dealings. She knew enough French, like her boss with English, to get in trouble, but not enough to get out. She giggled at that.

I had to warn her that her travels may be less exciting now, but she said, “Good. I know it sounds strange, but some of the places we would go, I did not really like. Sometimes the parts factories are not in the best parts of town. My French has come in handy both in Vietnam, and in Lagos. I heard people talk badly and was able to get help. Exciting. The bad kind. With you, Robert Danner, the good kind, I hope, even if a little toned down.”

“I’ll see what I can do. May I take you home, my lady?”

“If not careful, you will spoil me too soon, my prince.”

“If this works, then yes, I will.” I got the bill taken care of and took her back to the truck for the trip home.

“Rob, thank you for your love. I do not know what I am trying to say, exactly, but I am happy, although a bit apprehensive of the future. I want very much to make you happy, and I can do that, I think. Your idea of being together all the time is a good one, for me, since I need to know you. All about you. Everything. If you need time, time alone, you will tell me, yes?” I nodded. I started to speak, but she stopped me with a finger to my lips as I handed her up to the seat. “I know what you do. You have what they call a web presence. Even Dimitri knows you make secret radios, and he cannot find his name on the computer keyboard. You will need time alone. Away from the little Russian girl. If I cause a problem, I will go away and let you take care of your business. I do not want to cause a problem.”

“There won’t be a problem, Maria. Believe it or not, I can invent, and dream stuff up, and sell it to them with or without their security clearance. If they want it, they’ll buy it. If you are a Russian spy, you are a terrible one. You haven’t asked me for anything but money yet. Bad spy. Better up your game.” I laughed a bit. I patted her leg, closed the door, and got in behind the wheel. She let me know where Maria was coming from as I pulled out and started for home.

“Rob, I am loyal to my employer, as he was fair with me, paid me well, and treated me with respect. And my church, Rob. I believe in God. And now, I will be loyal to my husband. Soon, I will be loyal to my family and my church. Then maybe my new country. It depends. I will want to become a citizen. Let us see if they want me, as well. I am not loyal to a government that tried and failed to really make it in the capitalist way. They are leaning back to socialism and we know that doesn’t work. I will miss Dimitri and Valentina and I will wish them well. He will be happy for me. She will be upset, mostly because she must look for help. I did help her a bit. I will go back to see them, is that right?”

“Yes, Maria. When we make a plan for us, we’ll go back. Together, so I can steal you from them in the daylight.” I laughed. She smiled.

We drove for about fifteen minutes, made a couple turns, then hit a gravel road and finally got home, tired and full. I doubted we’d do anything tonight but sleep. Maybe shower, but sleep was coming soon. It had been a long day. When she saw the place, she got very untired, very quickly. I stopped on the lane on the way down to the house and opened the windows. “Oh, my! This is a big place, Rob. And out in the country like you said.” It was getting dark, but she could see some of the buildings and fencing out away from the main house. A horse whinnied and got an answer from another. “Horses. Oh, my.”

I pulled into the garage, closed the door behind us then helped her out, getting our bags and talking her through the door into the house.

“Your home is so beautiful, Rob, look at all this wood. So pretty.”

“Maria. Kiss me.” She turned to me and kissed me as I wrapped her up in my arms. “Will you marry me?”

“Oh, yes, Rob. I will marry you.”

“Good, then your home is so beautiful, too, Maria. Welcome home, my dear. Welcome home. Let’s find our room. We’ll do the tour tomorrow. The old man is tired, doll.”

“So is the old woman, Rob. I perked up for a minute when I saw the house and heard your horses, but now, I am tired again and would love to fall asleep in your arms.”

I had to laugh. “Old woman, huh. I’ll bet they ask for your identification when you buy me a bottle of booze in town. YOUNG woman, do you have enough energy for a shower?” She was sitting on the end of the bed. She pushed her shoes off, then her shorts, her pantyhose, then stood and took off the blouse, her bra, and the necklace. Normally a neat and tidy person, she left it all on the floor except the necklace, laying it on the dresser. As she removed the earrings, she smiled at me, knowing she was teasing me. Terribly. I undressed quickly throwing my clothes over a chair, approached her for a hug, then pulled her into the shower area for a quick cleanup. It wound up being another long one, but we got clean and I carried her to my bed, pulled the covers down, laid her down, then caught the lights and climbed in next to her. I remember saying, “Thank you for saying ‘yes’,” and I remember getting a kiss and don’t remember much else.

The tour kept her eyes wide and her smile wider. We took a quick look around the property, first around the house, then on a four-wheeler, showing her farther out, down the road and some trails we used to round up strays and such. She must have a thing for animals. The cats around the barns, the horses, the cattle on the hill, just looking at all of them made her smile. After about an hour, we got back to the house and I showed her more about the insides of our home. The huge chef designed kitchen, the guest rooms, my library, the theater room, the back yard with the pool, and the covered patio area with the hot tub. Yes, she was amazed. After showing her the house and all, we went for a walk out by the corrals.

My place wasn’t all that big, really, with only about six hundred acres. We had a dozen horses, mostly working horses, but we had a couple of very gentle riding horses, and one big stallion that was all mine. I’d raised Red from an infant colt with wobbly knees, feeding him from a bottle after his mother died giving him life. That doesn’t happen often in the animal kingdom, but fate made it so, and now he was like my son, and he treated me like I was his father. He’s just out of what would be his teenage years, so we’re getting along a bit better now. There was a while where he wouldn’t give me the time of day, but now, he’s back to normal and we’re closer than ever. I could call Red, just like the Lone Ranger used to call Silver. A whistle or just calling out for him brought him over, unless he was checking out some new filly visiting the ranch and then he’d finish his business before gracing me with his presence. Yes, maybe he was still in his teenage years.

I was thinking out loud the whole time, Maria laughing as I called Red over and introduced them. “Red, this is the lady of the house now, so pay attention and don’t give her any problems. Understood?” He had the audacity to whinny and dig at the ground with his hoof then run in a circle and come back over. He snorted, shook his bright red mane back and forth a bit, took a carrot chunk from Maria’s open hand, and ate it. She patted his snout and he walked away to be with his girlfriends, done with us. She laughed.

“He is the typical boy, is he not?”

“That he is. Would you like to go into town with me and look around? We need some clothes for you. Outdoor clothes, and I need to let you know I have a thing coming up next week and I need to dress you up for that. It’s a benefit for a friend in the political arena and I’d like to take you. I’d like to say, ‘show you off’, but that makes me sound like a jerk, so I won’t say that.” She giggled again and hugged my chest.

“Rob, I have never been told so many times I was a pretty woman, but if you believe it, and you want to (she made air quotes with her fingers) ‘show me off’, you can do so with my blessing and permission. I have told you we are one. Together. Someday I will go to somewhere with my lady friends and I will show you off. I think you are a very handsome man. I am proud to be with you. Thank you for bringing me home.” She squeezed into the hug, prompting me to pull her into me as well. Red made some noise and ran by us, snorting and shaking his head. My horse is a clown.

We spent the afternoon at the mall, with her leading me through the midrange and high-end stores I took her to, showing me some things she liked and asking me what she should get for our outing. I talked her into buying two gorgeous little dresses, one a bit more formal in blue, long sleeved, almost knee length, and one more of a really nice stylish green cocktail halter mini dress that could pass for formal. Short, but very, very stylish and classy. I loved it and it looked so fantastic on her, I just had to get her to buy it. For me. She laughed. We found shoes and a clutch for each then ran her through the lingerie department to find stockings and pantyhose for each of the dresses. She liked either the darker teak colors or off black shades for her legs. Yet another reason to know we were made for each other.

I made sure she had dress and casual clothing she could wear out for church, dinner, a movie, or whatever else may come up. She wanted fun, so I thought a day at the local amusement park would work. In addition, I planned on a couple of movies, and a few dinners out.

I also planned on a few dinners in, just to see if we could cohabitate in the culinary environment of my kitchen. It was truly an amazing kitchen since when I had the house designed, I had the chef at a local hotel, a friend of a friend, if you will, spend a couple of hours with the architect and the builder designing it. Everything in it was heavy duty, including the refrigerator, freezer, triple top stove, double oven, dishwasher, and even the sinks were industrial, or at least commercial kitchen grade. I love to cook.

The first morning at home with Maria, I woke alone, and upon realizing it, went to the kitchen to find her making an attempt at putting coffee together. I showed her where everything was and let her finish the job. Then, as she looked out the window at the sunrise as it was in its final stages, I put my chin on her shoulder, my arms around her, and held her. I kissed her ear and thanked her for coming home with me and giving me a shot, for giving me a chance at romancing her and making her my own.

“You are more than welcome, Rob. Thank you. You need to call your people today and tell them you brought a little Russian girl home with you. They will probably want to talk to me.”

“That’s true, but what experience do you have with such things?”

“Personally, none, but America is not the only country that keeps track of the people that have secret things. One time, Malena met a man in Spain. Cute guy, too.” Maria giggled. “The KGB and the GRU, both, wanted to know about him because of her job. I am sure that the head of your company having a Russian woman in his bed will bring some curiosity. I will tell them anything they want to know. I will also renounce my Russian citizenship as soon as you put a ring on it. Is that the Beyoncé girl? Put a ring on it?”

I nodded. “You have this all figured out, don’t you?”

“Absolutely not. I still need to figure out how to make you the happiest man in the world. That is my job. That and be your Personal Administrative Assistant? My new title?” I nodded and kissed her cheek.

“Come. Let’s get some riding clothes on and we’ll take Red and Lily out for a ride.”

“Lily?”

“Yeah. She has a spot on her butt that looks like an Easter lily. You need to use your imagination, but it’s there if you want to see it. I didn’t name her. One of my foreman’s daughters did.”

“Oh. OK. Blue jeans, boots and a button up with long sleeves, right?” she asked. I smiled and nodded.

It was a nice ride. We went all the way around the property and just like in the movies, dismounted and spent some time next to a creek in a patch of grass. She’s the one that mentioned the movie thing. It was cute. I had a little blanket on the back of Red’s saddle just for this purpose, generally using it alone, so we used it, just laying there, looking up into the trees, snuggling.

“It is beautiful, Mr. Danner. Your place is really wonderful. Kiss me?” I kissed her. “Tell me you want me to stay, Rob.”

“I do, Maria. I have fallen totally, madly, and deeply in love with you and want you to stay. I know I need to take you home, and I want to wait before you tell Dimitri, but sweetness, I want you here with me for all time. Will your sister be concerned? Will she hate me for taking you away?”

“No. She has her own life. Although, she will probably want to visit. Lots. When she was a little girl, she drew pictures of horses all the time. She is a sweetheart, if you do not make her mad.”

“Your sister is welcome any time and she needs to know that. You are going to be here and if you are close, she can be here, too. Make sure she knows that. If you need help getting her here, let me know. We can go get her or send a ticket. It’d be more fun to just go get her.”

“Really, Rob? That would be so nice. Thank you.”

“Feel like having fun tomorrow? I’d like to take you to a park with rides and all that fun stuff, if you’re interested. You said you didn’t want to sit here and watch the cows grow.” She laughed, pushed me back, and straddled my stomach.

“Yes, your silly girl said that, and will probably always have to live with that. I was teasing. This is fun. Sitting on your stomach. Walking with you is fun. Making coffee with you is fun. Making love with you is fun. Rob, watching you sleep is fun. But I will go with you to the park, so you can have fun, too.”

I laughed at her comment as I wrestled her over on her tummy, across my lap, so I could spank her and once I get her into position, I popped her on the butt. “Kissing you is fun, loving on you is fun, and watching you watching me try to sleep is fun.” I popped her on the butt again. “I think taking you on a rollercoaster would be fun.” I gave her three little taps on her bottom quickly, then leaned down and kissed that bottom. “Holding you and watching the sunrise is fun, too, Maria,” she was settling from the laughter and horseplay a bit, “and I want to do that with you for a long, long time.” She rolled over, held my face and kissed me.

“Good plan, Mr. Danner. Good plan. You know, Rob, my love, having fun with you is fun.” She giggled again. “Come. I will feed you lunch.” We rode back, still looking around and stopping for a minute while I fixed a fence wire that looked like it was coming loose. Red was a perfect gentleman and let her hold his reins while I worked. She patted his snout and thanked him for letting her help. Lily and he got along famously, so it wasn’t a problem having them that close. Another reason to have her on Lily.

Back at the house, she made us some sandwiches, grilling them lightly. I’d had a loaf of bread in the freezer for us to use. I generally do that if I leave the country, so I’ll have something to survive on if I come back late and hungry or something. We decided on the amusement park tomorrow and a trip to the grocery store after, on the way home. I took her to town for dinner, not really wanting anything I had the makings for and not wanting to bother, in any case.

The amusement park was not a familiar thing for her and declared Malena had to be taken to the flags park. They had nothing like this, not this big, anyway, with these kinds of rides, and declared it ... Fun.

“Yes, my prince. It is fun at the park. More fun than watching the cows get fat, but not as much fun as watching you sleep or sitting on your belly! That is still more fun. Thank you for today,” she said as we stopped at the grocery store, and I had her roll through the different departments of interest, filling the cart with whatever she needed or wanted.

A week went by quickly. Hearing back from my lawyers that her temporary residency visa was approved, with us telling the immigration and naturalization people full well that my intention was for me to be both her husband and her employer, just so there wasn’t any question about it later. The FBI sent a couple of agents out from the city, just to talk to her and ask about her background since her sister was assigned to the GRU, the Russian equivalent of the NSA, as a Navy intelligence communications officer. All this together made the visit necessary, they said, but my clearance, although not being pulled, would be scrutinized. Honesty, above board, by all concerned. No problem. I explained to the agents that what I did wasn’t going to stop if I didn’t have a clearance. I may not have access to it after I invented, made, and sold it, but I was a bit beyond needing a security clearance to help my country and our soldiers. I said all that in front of my future wife and was extremely proud of the look on her face. She was proud of the man that loved her.

The next week was a bit slower in passing, but we actually spent time watching a couple of movies, both at home and downtown. Action thrillers, romantic comedies, and even a couple of the more popular animated films. Maria was a minion at heart, she said. She loved them. All of them. She loved the movie Hunt for Red October and said it reminded her of herself, only she didn’t have a submarine. She understood the premise, though, and if she had an earthshattering thing to keep out of the hands of the wrong people, she would do the same thing, but, she said, my ranch would be fine. She didn’t need to go to Wyoming.

I also had her with me at my friend’s fund raiser. He was running for Congress and a bunch of us, all friends from way back, pitched in to help. She was a hit, what with her gorgeous looks, her quick wit, and her version of international intrigue.

We flew her home and together met with Dimitri for dinner. A phone call to him in his office arranged the date, with him saying, “Mr. Robert Danner, you must pay for stealing my girl.”

“How much, Mr. Dimitri Patanoff. She is now worth the world to me.”

“Dinner. You will feed me and my...” he was on speakerphone.

“Companion, Dimi, she is your companion,” Maria advised him.

“Dinner, Mr. Danner. You will feed me and my companion. If she knew better the English, so she could be the new Maria, all would be fine.”

“Dimi, I may know of someone. May I have her call you?” She ripped it off in Russian after saying it in English. “She was a classmate of mine, Rob.” Then she said it in Russian to Dimitri. “I will send her to you.”