Chapter 6: Getting Back Into The Swing Of Things

July 31, 2002, Chicago, Illinois

🎤 Jesse

The phone rang on Wednesday afternoon just as I was about to leave the house to meet up with Kwame, Tim, and Pete from the hockey team. I saw the Caller ID and shook my head as I picked up the new wireless handset my moms had bought while I was in Europe.

"Go for Jesse," I said.

"Jesse, it's Viktoria! You're back!"

"Obviously," I chuckled. "Given you called the house and not my mobile phone!"

"I wasn't sure, and I remember you said answering calls was expensive in Europe. How was your trip?"

"Great. How was your Summer?"

"Boring," Viktoria said. "You know I'm hardly allowed any freedom."

"And I'm the devil incarnate, according to your dad."

"I know," Viktoria replied. "And I'm sorry for getting you into trouble. I'm really sorry you felt you had to change parishes, too."

"That wouldn't have been necessary if you had simply been honest with your dad."

"I couldn't! He'd send me to a monastery! I'm not kidding!"

"In the end, only the truth can set you free," I said.

"You don't have to live with my dad!" she protested. "But forget my dad! I want you to fuck my brains out!"

"Just out of curiosity, how do you expect that to happen?"

"Naked in bed!" she giggled.

I laughed, then said, "Yes, but I meant, given your dad won't let you within a mile of me."

"He works during the day, and so does my mom, so I could go out."

"And if he finds out?" I asked.

"I'm certainly not going to tell him, and I'm sure you won't! Who would know besides us?"

"OK, but what if someone sees us together and tells him?"

"You can pick me up at Lake Ellyn Park. It's behind Glenbard West. It has a private circle drive, and I can sit on a bench along the path until you get there. If I don't get up, it means I see someone I know, and you should come back in ten minutes. You can drop me at the train station when you bring me back."

She actually had thought it out, or at least thought quickly enough to come up with a plan on the spur of the moment. She'd also had an STI test and had started taking birth control pills. She was easily the prettiest girl I knew and had a fantastic body that I'd had a brief chance to explore. The question in my mind was whether she could truly make it just about sex.

"And you realize that we might only be able to be together once, right?" I asked.

"Jesse Block!" she growled. "I told you that I want you to fuck my brains out! No strings. No conditions! But I hope you'll like it enough to want to do it again! I'm sure I will after what we already did!"

"We have to wait until after your period for the birth control pills to be effective."

"It should start tomorrow, so next Thursday would be perfect! Can you pick me up at 8:30am?"

We actually didn't have a practice that day because there wasn't ice time available, so that would work.

"What time would I need to have you home?" I asked.

"If you dropped me at the train station around 4:30pm, that would give me plenty of time."

"OK. If something comes up, call me. And I'll call you if there's a problem."

"Yes! See you a week from tomorrow!"

We said 'goodbye', and I hung up. I still wasn't sure it was a good idea, and I could easily call it off. As I left the house, I considered my motivations. Sure, she was smoking hot, and the making out we'd done had been fun and made me want her and clearly made her want to as well. Was that enough of a reason? I thought so because it had the added benefit of allowing me to stick it to her dad by sticking it to her! Of course, Deacon John would never know, but I would! I put all of that out of my mind and walked quickly to Lee's house.

🎤 Steve

"Steve, I have Father Basil Reznikov on the phone for you," Kimmy said over the intercom.

"Put him through, please."

She did.

"Good afternoon, Father."

"Good afternoon, Stephen. I wonder if you have some time to talk."

I was positive it was about Jesse, and not just because of Jesse changing parishes, but also, I was sure, because of my involvement with the parish. That said, the building project had been completed, and the new financial team was following best practices.

"In person or via telephone?" I asked.

"Could we have lunch?"

"We could. Would Monday work? I'm busy tomorrow, and I know you'd prefer to avoid Fridays so you aren't limited in what you eat."

"Monday at 11:30am at Parthenon?"

"That will work. See you there."

We said 'goodbye', and I hung up, then updated my calendar.

"There you are!" Liz said, coming into the office.

"I've been here all day, including eating my lunch! Kimmy said there was nothing pressing."

"Except her body against yours, right?" Penny asked.

"Penelope," I said sternly. "Enough."

"FOUR!" she exclaimed.

"I'm not even going to ask," Liz said, rolling her eyes.

"A wise choice," I replied. "I spoke with Jacob Goldberg this morning, and everything seems to be going the way we want. Any updates on the criminal cases?"

"They'll both have signed federal plea deals by the end of the month. The Colorado charges are going to be tougher, and they'll be transferred to Colorado custody as soon as they reach their deal with the Feds."

"No federal time?"

"No. Probation, fines, and disgorgement, plus an agreement from the elder Braun not to challenge the revocation of his law license and never to apply for another, not that he'd get one."

"The Feds can make a lifetime state licensing ban stick?" I asked.

"As part of a plea deal? Probably. But as I said, he'll never get a license, anyway. Ohio's revocation is 'permanent' and he's barred from reapplying. His admissions to practice before the Federal courts disappears with the revocation of his Ohio law license."

"Anything else that needs my attention?"

"No. Things were completely calm while you were away."

"I'm glad to hear that! Let's see if we can keep it that way."

[Aurora, Illinois]
🎤 Michael

"How was Spain?" Andi asked when she arrived at the house to play Age of Empires.

"I had a good time. Eduardo and I did a lot of stuff together and with my mom. Matthew and Chelsea basically did their own thing."

"You're home alone, right?"

"Yes. Mom is at work, and Eduardo is in Buenos Aires. Matthew and Chelsea are in the city."

"Cool. So no interruptions!"

"Exactly!"

We went to the basement, and I turned on the two computers, which were connected by a network.

"My dad got four tickets to the Sox game against the Mariners on Sunday the 11th," Andi said as we sat down side-by-side at the computers.

"Eduardo is supposed to be home on the 8th. He'll be in Miami on Monday. I'll make sure Mom knows so she can tell him when she speaks to him."

"Ready to get your butt kicked?"

"Hah!" I retorted.

August 1, 2002, Chicago, Illinois

🎤 Jesse

"Hi!" Angelina exclaimed when she arrived at the house on Thursday morning. "I'm really happy to see you!"

I let her in, and we went to the kitchen, where I had lunch on the table for us.

"How was your vacation?" I asked.

"It was OK. We just visited family in Mexico. My cousins are OK, but I prefer my friends and cousins who are here. How was your trip?"

"I had a great time in Sweden and Russia. I really liked seeing my friends who are officers in the Russian Army."

"Any girls?"

"There are, indeed, girls in Sweden and Russia," I replied.

Angelina laughed, "You know what I meant!"

"I had a good time! You figure it out!"

"That means yes, of course! I'm the only girl you're still seeing here, right? I mean regularly?"

"I'm still going to see CeCe until she leaves for Arizona in two weeks, but otherwise, you know all the other girls have boyfriends, or at least they did when I left. But remember, I'm not interested in being a couple."

"I remember! Changing topics, we were thinking of having a party for the cheer team and wondered if you might want to host a joint one with the hockey team."

"Twenty players and twelve cheerleaders would be unbalanced," I replied.

"So invite the Seniors on the softball team! That would about balance it out."

"That's an idea. When?"

"Labor Day weekend would be perfect, but I think you're going to be away."

"Yes. I'll be visiting my Russian friends in Washington, DC. I also need to check the calendar in the kitchen in the main house to see what days are free."

"Can we go over after lunch and use the sauna and the whirlpool?"

"If you want."

"Yes!"

🎤 Stephie

"You're in a totally better mood," Ashley said. "I'm glad."

"I was being a real bitch, wasn't I?"

"You said it!" Ashley tittered. "What about Nicholas?"

"What about him? When he's ready to kiss my feet and beg me to take him back, I'll think about it!"

"I thought you were done being a bitch?!"

"That doesn't mean I'm happy with him! Birgit seems to have mellowed a bit."

Ashley laughed, "You can put two and two together and come up with four!"

"Kjell?"

"I can't answer that," Ashley said. "You have to ask Birgit."

"But you know, right?"

"Sure, but would you want me telling people who you have sex with?"

"No."

"And since when do you care, anyway? You're the one who totally doesn't want to know about who Dad is banging!"

"You and Birgit are WAY too interested in that topic!"

"I think it's amusing," Ashley replied. "It's Birgit who is annoyed."

"Well, now that she's done it, maybe she'll let it go."

"Actually, she's been a lot better about stuff like that. Dad doesn't even know she had sex."

"Bull!" I protested. "Birgit tells Dad everything!"

"As I said, she's a lot better. She's different, Steph. And that started before she had her cherry popped! Seriously, she's a whole lot easier to get along with."

"You always got along with her," I said. "You get along with everyone."

"Even you!" Ashley teased. "But I had to use supreme effort with you and with Birgit. But give her the benefit of the doubt. I think you'll find she's a whole lot nicer and a lot less smug."

"It would be hard to be more smug, though Jesse is!"

"He's changing, too," Ashley said. "I think we're all growing up and figuring out how to deal with the world."

"Says my sister, who is only ten!"

"I'm Steve Adams' daughter!" Ashley declared. "Just as you are! And we're our moms' daughters, too! Even on our worst days, we're way more grown up than most of the kids in our grades at school."

"Low bar!" I exclaimed. "Very low bar!"

"True! Do you want to go get Slushies?"

"Yes!"

August 2, 2002, Chicago, Illinois

🎤 Steve

"Our mission appears to have been an abject failure," I said when I sat down to eat lunch with Samantha in her office on Friday.

"Which one?" she asked.

"Bethany," I sighed. "She hasn't changed her thinking. She says Sweden is different, and in her mind, that means not applying any of the lessons she's learned while living there. She is, in effect, providing ammunition for the repressive elements in the US and giving intellectual cover to people like Kara's former pastor and my mom. Worse, her publisher is encouraging her to revise Smart Teens; Smart Choices to, in effect, say teens shouldn't have sex, and she's planning to do that."

"What?!" Samantha gasped. "You can't be serious."

"As a heart attack," I replied. "This morning, I ordered four cases of the current edition of the book."

"Did you speak to Tom?"

"Privately, he agrees with me, but he won't do anything to mess up marital harmony. I made it clear that I intend to shun Bethany, and not allow her to interact with any of my kids, and to advise the parents of the cousins to do the same."

"What about the welcome home party planned for the 10th?"

"Canceled," I replied. "I let Tom know this morning. He wasn't happy but said he understood. I'm sure that had Bethany in tears again, but she doesn't appear willing to change her mind, and is dismissing everything she witnessed in Sweden as 'different cultures'."

"Jesus, Steve! Her new thinking would make you and me abusive, even though I was the predator and you were the prey!"

"Exactly. As I said to her, following her thinking to its logical conclusion, only two completely inexperienced and completely ignorant virgins could ever have consensual sex. She accused me of only being concerned about having sex with teenagers and refused to listen to any arguments. I told her I didn't give a flying fuck what she thinks about my sex life, but I would be damned if I'd sit idly by and let her and society fuck up my kids and the cousins!

"The end result of this insane path the country is on is going to be nightmarish, and next up is the 'Junior Anti-Sex League' led by Kent van der Meer and my mom, with Bethany providing them with intellectual cover! I said that she is helping the fools on the religious right destroy sexuality and making it harder to get good sex education, obtain birth control, and have access to abortion. She talks a good game about those things, but in the end, she's thrown in with the repressive prudes because of a warped view of consent that resulted from her conclusion that ANY power disparity is sufficient to deny consent."

"Fucking hell," Samantha said, shaking her head.

"I know, right?"

"You know what? Hang on a sec."

She got up and went to her desk, flipped through her Rolodex, and dialed a number.

"Phil? Samantha Spurgeon. We need to talk in person ... No, right away, as in tomorrow ... It's that serious ... I'll send the jet for you."

She hung up and sat back down.

"Who was that?"

"The publisher," I said. "A guy dad went to college with. Dad refinanced their family publishing business and bailed them out of a financial pickle about fifteen years ago. He owes me."

"You're going to kill the revision?" I asked.

"Either that or exercise Dad's warrants to buy the company outright and fire the publisher."

"You're joking!"

"Do I sound like I'm joking? It's profitable and almost debt-free. I'll put him out on his ass, and put someone else in, then spin it off once I'm satisfied."

"That sounds like what Clayton calls using a howitzer to kill a gnat!"

"Yes, but in this case, it's a necessary warning shot. If I have to self-fund the book forever, I will. And I guarantee you the standard publishing contract allows it to be updated by someone other than Bethany if she doesn't produce something they want to publish."

"She's going to hate me," I said with resignation.

"The publisher will simply say that they've had a change of heart and would like updates that discuss advances in the fight against AIDS, expand the section on gay and lesbian relationships, and also update the language to reflect the decade that has passed. Does anyone use the bases anymore?"

"Not according to the kids! Jesse actually made a comment once that he had engaged in what 'old folks' called 'petting'."

Samantha laughed, "Another word in the book. I think the publisher will see the light; if not, he'll get the boot."

"It pays to have friends who, from my perspective, have unlimited funds."

"I'm telling you, we could be the ultimate power couple! Dad knew what he was talking about, but you were already married to Kara and Jess, and that is never going to change, and I'm not the sharing type."

"I said we were the ultimate power couple without the sex!" I chuckled. "And you said it was just like your mom and dad!"

Samantha laughed, "I did say that. Now that we have that out of the way, I want you to serve another two-year term on the Board of Directors of the Lundgren Foundation. Ben wants you to do it but figured you'd tell him to pound sand. He doesn't think you'll say that to me, and neither do I."

"I should, just to prove you both wrong! But you know I can't say 'no' to you; I never could!"

"Thank you."

August 3, 2002, Chicago, Illinois

🎤 Steve

"When do you start the critical thinking seminars?" Kara asked as she, Suzanne, and I walked Jessica to the hospital on Saturday morning.

"On the 12th," I replied. "Al called yesterday afternoon and let me know they'll be during the 'optional seminar' periods on Thursday afternoons.

"I thought they were mandatory," Suzanne observed.

"They are," Jessica interjected. "but rather than take away time from classroom work, which the First Years sorely need, it'll be twice a month during the time when we usually have optional seminars."

"My only concern," I said, "which I expressed to Al, is the number of students. I'm not sure a hundred students is workable. I suggested to Al that we divide the group into two and run them four times a month. He's supposed to let me know next week. Even fifty is going to be a challenge because it limits participation, but I think I can make it work."

"Is this being graded in any way?" Kara asked.

"Steve isn't a physician, so that limits his input, and the first two years are Pass/Fail, anyway. Nobody fails Practice of Medicine, of which this is part unless they simply don't come to class and don't do the necessary reading. Everything really hinges on anatomy and anatomy lab. Pass that, and you're good to go for Second Year. Flunk, and you retake the entire year or simply drop out. We lose an average of around a dozen students first semester, and overall, about ten percent of enrollees fail to graduate either because they can't pass the MLE part exams or fail their Clerkships or Sub-Internships."

"How do you plan to teach, Steve?" Suzanne asked.