Chapter 12: November - Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving morning was a bustle of activity. Tory and Trent arrived later on Wednesday night than planned; no one expected the five-car pile-up on the highway headed north. So, now, Mitch, Trent and Tory were moving around the kitchen trying to make sure everything was defrosted, prepared, and cleaned up so the kitchen offered the most room possible for Tory's family and a couple additional guests.

Just as Tory sat down for a ten-minute break, the doorbell rang. Mitch came down the hallway just as Tory answered the door.

"Happy Turkey, Mom!" Jayson greeted, and immediately scooped his mother up in a hug.

"Happy Turkey, Jayson! Now, put me down!"

"Happy Thanksgiving, Jayson!" Mitch chuckled as he watched Jayson spin his mother around.

"Happy Thanksgiving, Commander! I hope you don't mind, but I asked Cami to come along. She has to work tomorrow so won't be able to go see her family until Saturday."

"Not at all," Mitch replied. "The more the merrier! We have plenty of food!"

Mitch collected coats while Tory ushered the young couple into the living room so she could shut the door. Just as she started walking toward the living room, the doorbell rang again.

"Happy Thanksgiving, Tory!" greeted Chuck Warren as soon as she opened the door.

"Happy Thanksgiving, Chuck! Come on in out of the cold!"

"Let me introduce my wife, Denise. Denise, this is Tory Markus, Mitch's lady."

"It's nice to meet you, Tory; although, I'm not sure why the men waited so long! I've been hearing good things about you. I'm glad Mitch finally found someone who could handle him."

"I heard that, Denise!" Mitch called from down the hall. "Happy Thanksgiving, love." Mitch gave Denise a kiss on her cheek as he took her coat.

"What? No kiss for me?" Chuck teased while taking off his coat. Without missing a beat, Tory went over and gave Chuck a kiss on the cheek, and then all four began laughing.

Tory brought Denise inside to introduce her to the rest of the group while Chuck helped Mitch with the coats. Out of the corner of her eye, Tory thought she saw Chuck give Mitch a folder but dismissed it as being Navy business.

After introductions, Tory was in the kitchen getting the last-minute things done before the food could be served when Denise walked in behind her.

"It smells great! Need any help?"

"No, thanks, Denise; I've got this under control."

"Do you mind if we talk for a few minutes, then, and get to know each other better?"

"Not at all."

"Well," Denise began while pulling up a chair, "I'm probably talking out of turn, but my husband was just a bit nervous about coming over here today."

"Why?"

"I think he's concerned that you or Mitch might have blamed him for some involvement in Janet's scheme this summer."

"Involvement? Chuck? Why would we think that?"

"I guess he feels that when he took you for coffee that day..."

"He kept me away from Mitch so Janet could do her worst? I guess I could see where it might seem that way, but I never thought about it like that. Was he involved?"

"Not at all! When he found out what trouble Janet had caused, he was livid! After helping Mitch out that morning, he stormed over to Frank's and laid into him, from what I understand! Of course, Frank didn't know what Chuck was talking about until he pulled Janet into the mix." Denise paused for a moment remembering that day. "I would have loved to have been a fly on that wall!" she admitted.

"Me, too! Frank introduced himself to me last month and said that he grounded Janet for what she did!"

"I heard that, too! Boy, was she put in her place! I know she tried to get some of the wives to drive her over here, so she could 'apologize' to Mitch. But, none of them bought it! Frank's kept her on a short leash ever since."

"What did Chuck do after he came back from Frank's?"

"At first, he was quite agitated. I couldn't get him to calm down or stop talking; he spilled everything. Then, as he calmed down and listened to what he was saying, he started to feel bad. He saw where he might have inadvertently helped Janet in her revenge. And, make no mistake, that's what it was. Janet was out for blood, not for Mitch."

"Well, I can't speak for Mitch, but Chuck's involvement never crossed my mind; especially since he came over quickly to help Mitch out!"

"You don't need to let Chuck know I said anything, but I'm glad we talked, Tory. I didn't want to have to start a friendship with a wall built between us."

"I agree, Denise. Thanks for telling me!"

Once the food was ready, everyone crowded in the kitchen to eat. Mitch noticed that Tory didn't say or eat much during dinner. When everyone left the kitchen for the comfort of the living room, Tory stayed behind to clean up. Mitch took the opportunity to sneak up behind her and give her a hug.

"How are you doing, baby?" he growled in her ear.

"You scared me!"

"How about I kiss it and make it better?" Mitch proceeded to place quick, playful kisses along her ear and neck.

"Mitch, stop! We have guests! And, I want to clean some of this stuff up before we have dessert!" Tory wasn't struggling too hard to loosen from his embrace.

"I'll stop and help you clean up on one condition."

"Name it — within reason."

"You need to answer one question; truthfully and completely."

"I think I can do that." Mitch spun Tory around in his arms and looked in her eyes.

"Is everything okay? You didn't eat a lot at dinner and you were awfully quiet at the table."

"I was quiet? How could you notice? Everyone was talking at once it seemed!"

"I noticed. And, you haven't answered my question, yet. Is everything okay?"

"Yes." Tory reassured him with a kiss. "Everything is fine; more than fine. I was just watching Trent with Jayson and Jayson with Cami. They're growing up; they've GROWN UP! So many changes are happening so fast, it seems."

"Come here, baby." Mitch held Tory close to him for a few quiet moments. "What would you say if I told you that there was a possibility of a few more changes in your future?"

"Really? What's going on, Mitch?"

"There is a possibility that we might be able to see more of each other; more often. Would you want that?"

"Of course I would! Are you retiring?"

"Not necessarily. Look," Mitch let out a sigh before continuing, "I've put in for a transfer closer to you; and, want to know what you would think about us living closer together."

"I definitely wouldn't mind you closer, but that's not my decision, is it? What would you be doing?"

"I want to check on a few things before I tell you, but you love me, right?"

"Of course, I do."

"Do you trust me?"

"Do you need to ask?"

"Do you think you'd be able to stand seeing me almost every night for dinner?"

"I'd like to try. What about sleeping together?" Tory snuggled a little closer to Mitch's body.

"I could work on that one."

"Are you going to tell me what this is all about, or just leave me wondering?"

"Let me think about that one." Mitch leaned down and captured Tory's lips in a heated kiss.

He refused to say anything more, despite Tory's prodding. The couple cleaned up the kitchen then returned to their guests and enjoyed the afternoon. A little later, Tory found herself in the kitchen putting out the desserts, but it was Chuck who came in this time.

"Tory, can I talk with you for a moment?"

"Sure, Chuck; what's up?" Tory was concerned when she saw the look on Chuck's face. She poured a cup of coffee for herself and Chuck before sitting at the table with him. "Is something going on with Jayson?"

"No, nothing like that." Chuck paused, staring intently at the hot cup before him. "I just feel I need to apologize. What happened with Janet this summer is still hanging over my head. The more I've been thinking about it, the more I've been struggling with it. I need to tell you that I didn't know that Janet was going to stop by here that day."

"I never thought you did! What made you think that?"

"Denise and I have been talking about that incident off and on since it happened. Actually, I've been talking and Denise has been listening. Maybe if I hadn't pulled you away for coffee, Janet wouldn't have had the opening she needed. But, when I ran into you, I just thought that I had the opportunity to get better acquainted with my best friend's woman."

"It's okay, Chuck. I enjoyed our chat over coffee and I hope we can do it again sometime. But, it sounds like Janet was bent on revenge; if she missed that chance, she would have been looking for another until she found it. Mitch and I haven't really talked about it since we got back together, but I doubt he blames you for anything that happened. And, I surely don't ... You've been carrying this around all this time?"

"I couldn't bring it up with everything else that's been going on. You've had enough to deal with."

"Well," Tory continued, "there's no need to bring this up again, either. It's over and we're all fine!" Tory convinced Chuck of her sincerity by giving him a warm hug, which he gratefully returned.

Later on that night, when they were in bed, Tory cuddled closer to Mitch. "Chuck and I had a conversation tonight."

"Oh? What about?"

"Did you know that he blames himself for what Janet pulled this summer?"

"That would explain why he's been a little distant since then. But, why does he think that?"

"As I was finishing my errands that day, we ran into each other and stopped to have coffee and chat. He was asking how you were doing and such; just normal stuff. It was nice, actually; made me feel like I had a friend here, too. But, the more Chuck thought about it afterward, I guess, the more he felt guilty because it would imply his involvement. From what Denise told me, he was pretty angry with what Janet had done."

"I never thought about it. I know that Chuck is still friends with Frank, so he sees Janet from time to time. But, after what happened, I would never have thought Chuck was involved in Janet's scheme. Should I talk with him?"

"No, I think I've assured him that we don't blame him. He just needed to let one of us know."

"For absolution or something?"

"Maybe. Speaking of absolution - are you going to tell me about this mystery, yet? Does it have something to do with that folder Chuck gave you today?"

"What folder?"

"I don't understand what's so mysterious. It seemed like you wanted me to help you make the decision about the transfer, but you won't give me any facts. I guess you'll tell me when you're ready, right?"

Mitch nodded as Tory began moving away from his body. His arms immediately captured her and held her close to him. "You've had so many changes happening to you lately, I think I need to remind you of something that's not going to change... " Mitch lifted Tory's face to his and brought his mouth closer to hers. When his lips were inches away, he brought out his tongue and sensually began to lick Tory's lips.

"Oh?" Tory moaned. "Remind me of what?"

Mitch captured Tory's mouth with his own and they began to kiss passionately. His hands loosened just a bit around Tory's back so they could travel to her hips and encourage her to grind her sex against his.

Mitch moaned as he pulled away from the kiss. "This. I want you. I need you. I love you so much and the only way that will change is by growing stronger."