Chapter 16

I woke somehow almost under the lady sleeping with me. She was more than halfway on top of me. As soon as I moved, her eyes came open with fear in them at first, then they became loving as we looked at each other. Caroline said, "I had a bad dream. I was trying to protect you, but you kept getting in front of me. I see I acted out the part in my dream."

Giving her a hug, I said, "How about a walk and some breakfast. Today has to be a better day than yesterday. I can finish Mrs. Kelly's car and go do what's necessary on Willy's. You ladies need to hunt up more folks that need help."

Caroline said, "Most of the older folks have enough to keep them and take care of things like car problems. We'll look around, but you've taken care of the ones we know of that need help. We'll also watch for some young folks that may be having problems, as there are a lot of layoffs happening. Not everyone living here works for S&S. I'll bet they wished they did, though."

We walked briskly for a half-hour and ended at the patio, getting some coffee and a breakfast sandwich. Sue sat with Caroline and me. She said, "We talked to that Howard guy, the CEO of the insurance company. Steve and I were not impressed. He kept trying to impress us that he lived in Avila and that he could invite us to his bigwig parties. I'm sure if we wanted to go to any of them, Uncle Ben, Dad, could get us invites. I turn down invitations all the time. Steve and I would rather be right here with our family."

After breakfast, we walked home. Caroline said, "If you will give me a key, I'll make sure your trailer is up to Betty's standards. I don't have anything special to do during the day, so I can snoop through your stuff. I really won't do that but I will make sure the place is spic and span. I think Betty and Prissy cleaned up in there yesterday. There couldn't have been much as you haven't been there"

I gave her my key and said, "Do me a favor. Look through all of my stuff to see if you find any answers. I think we're moving in a direction that we need to know as much about each other as we can. You have my permission to be as snoopy as you can be. You can even have the other ladies help you, but you all have to put everything back where you got it."

"You would let me do that, really?"

"Really, just look to your heart's content. I have absolutely nothing to hide. All my old records are in the boxes in the big closet. That will give you a snapshot of me."

I put on my last clean pair of coveralls and rode over to the warranty desk. There was one cart that needed a wheel bearing. A front wheel bearing shouldn't have failed, but it did. I took parts from the line and replaced the one that failed. I tagged it and put it in solvent to clean it off so I could figure out why it failed.

At nine, I called the parts store and they said the parts for Mrs. Kelly's car were in. I said, "Have your driver drop them off where he went yesterday at Mrs. Kelly's trailer. I don't have enough space in my cart to put the boxes of parts for that job."

It ended up taking me all the way to noon to finish replacing the shaft and housing. I told Mrs. Kelly, take this on a little ride all around the park. Don't go fast, as you still need an alignment. Just make sure it works the way you want. If you like it, go to the mall and have Sears do an alignment. Deposit the check and give Steve the difference between what you paid for the alignment and the amount of the check. Fair enough?"

Mrs. Kelly said, "I like it. That is very fair."

Just before I went into the patio for lunch, my cell phone rang. It was Sarah Perkins. She asked, "Have you heard from your ex lately?"

"No, Ma'am. You said no contact. I haven't even been checking e-mail."

"Come down to my office early Friday morning. Bring donuts. We'll have coffee, then meet your future ex, her attorney, and the judge. We'll have one last session and the judge will say stay or go. He'll say go in a way that you don't have to worry about life. Hopefully, what you asked for will be acceptable to Judy and her attorney. If it isn't, this judge has a reputation of really crucifying an attorney and client when they aren't being fair. I personally think you're being too fair. See you Friday morning, remember, bring donuts."

After lunch, Martin and I went to Willy's trailer to see if we could find the car keys. There wasn't any complaint on his car, it was just that he was seen sitting in it often while it was not running. After we found the keys, I started the car easily then put it into gear. The car drove perfectly and sounded good to go.

I checked at the warranty desk and found a cart that had a defective tire. I swapped tires from the line that were the same make and model, then checked with Kevin and Dennis to see if they needed help. Today was looking like a nap day. I went home and lay down on the bed with my coveralls and shoes off. I woke at four, hearing people in my kitchen.

After putting on some shorts, I went out to the kitchen where Sue, Mercy, and Caroline were sitting. Mercy said, "The doctor next door said you were supposed to come in to get your stitches removed. Would you run over there real quickly so we have you taken care of?"

I groaned, "Oh Mercy, can't I do it tomorrow?"

"You'll forget again. Go, get it done. No more arguing."

Staying in just my shorts and T-shirt, I rode the cart next door. The nurse put me in an exam room and left as the doc walked in. "You'll learn. Those ladies over there will hound you to death if you don't do what they want."

The doc turned to me and asked as if it were an afterthought, "Say, how is the Viagra working out?"

"I haven't taken any you've given me, but I did take a couple that my friend got from her doctor. We've had a good time, along with some good sex."

"That's what they are for. Just make sure you follow the directions and make sure you don't overdo it or take them more than you should. Now, take off your T-shirt and let's get this done."

The nurse came back into the room with a tray of implements. The two of them clipped and pulled until all of the stitches were gone. It tickles when they pull the thread from the skin. I didn't bleed which, was surprising, and there really wasn't any swelling. The nurse put some cream and a bandage on both areas.

The doc said, "If the areas gets red or swollen, come back and see us. Other than that, you are done. Keep your appointments at the VA for your regular checkups. Make sure you tell them again that your aneurysm has been corrected. They might want to take another look at that area in the next few months to make sure another has not developed."

When I went to sign out, the lady at the front desk handed me a prescription for Viagra and Cialis, with a handwritten note from the doctor. The note advised me to try a small quantity of Cialis intitially to see if was better or worse than Viagra. He noted again that I may only need half a pill instead of the maximum dosage.

I liked the fact that I could have sex and understood that I needed to be cautious and not get crazy with it.

Back at my trailer, Caroline was sitting in my big chair, reading a book. She looked up when I came in and said, "Let me see, do you look like Frankenstein now?"

"I have a bandage right now, but I can leave it off when it comes off in the shower."

Caroline said, "Sit, I want to discuss a few things."

"Want a beer? I think I'm ready."

"Sure," Caroline said, "that would taste good."

With each of us sitting with a beer to sip, Caroline said, "Shirley and I had a long conversation this morning. She said that she didn't want to get serious about anyone. She says that she never wants to go through losing someone she was so committed to. She told me that if I really wanted to be an integral part of your life, that she would step aside."

"I had to really think about that, Mark. I've really enjoyed being with you and having fun with you. The intimacy we've shared goes beyond using the pills. We have shared some special moments, especially out in Cheyenne. My past tells me to be wary, and you're probably more wary than I am. This is what I want to do. I want us to continue having fun together and with our friends. You might even share some intimate times with Shirley, but that would only be until we both decide to make us permanent. I would have to think about it after that. I'm fortunate enough to have enough to live on for the rest of my life and probably enough for the two of us. If we add in your Social Security, we would really be in pretty good financial condition."

Caroline took a drink of her beer and smiled, "I've done all the talking. Can you tell me how you feel about all of this?"

"It's funny, Caroline, I've been separated only a couple of weeks. This has really been a busy time, but I have met some great people and joined a group of people that are like a family. In the beginning, I was worried about having enough money for food, but now I somehow know I'll be taken care of. Of course, the crazy lady attorney I have is going to resolve some of that as she's going to help me get back at least half of the money from my business. That will be enough to live decently for a long time. Having a job is good. It gives me something to do and it's neat to help others. Hopefully, now that the bad cases are taken care, I can keep up with whoever has problems as time passes."

"You, Shirley, Betty, Don and Prissy, have become some very special friends. We're over here in a corner of the trailer park and seems to be a neighborhood within a neighborhood. You three ladies have offered me something else. You've offered to be close, to cuddle, to hold each other in our sleep. That has been something I've missed for years. I really like it."

"Then there is you, Shirley, and sex. Isn't it funny that the three of us are all over sixty-five and talking about sex? I thought that part of my life was gone, and all of a sudden, it's back. I love the way we have made love. It was so gentle, so smooth, and so natural. We did fit and I know I enjoyed making love with you very much. It felt like you were enjoying yourself as well."

I took a drink from my beer. "I'm a little mixed up about how to feel about playing with both you and Shirley at the same time. I think I felt a little guilty about it, but most of that was because I was having sex with someone other than my wife. If I consider the two of you together, our playtime was right, it was fun. If I think of how you and I enjoyed each other, I feel like it was really special."

"Do I want more? Damn right, I do. Do I want more with both of you? That's confusing. I've begun having some special feelings for you, Caroline, but I know it's too soon, too early to think about these things. I do want us to continue to be with each other. I want to hold you at night and feel you against me. I think we could do this with Shirley in the mix right now, but if we want an exclusive, then we need to talk about it and also talk to Shirley about it. I'm not divorced yet. That will probably happen Friday. When we're both totally free, we'll talk about it some more, but mostly let's just enjoy each other and our friends together."

Caroline put her beer down and came to sit on my lap. "That was the most I've ever heard a man discuss his life and his relationship with me. I'm with you, Mark. I want you, but I don't need you exclusively. I may want us in a permanent bond, but I still may not demand you stay exclusive. There are so many more older ladies than men, and you may need to take care of them too. I'm nuts about you, Mark, and am still young enough in body to have physical wants with that. Shirley does too, but Betty thinks her body is through with that part of life. I want us to enjoy each other, and I want us to make sure Shirley is as satisfied as we are. We'll let things develop, as they will. I'm with you, let's just enjoy life and let come what will."

The two of us kissed very softly, very slowly, enjoying a special closeness that had been developing. I was very happy to have our relationship the way it was.

We got up and were talking about whether she wanted to go to play pool with me tonight. Caroline said, "Let's invite Shirley. We'll tell all of your pool buddies that you're such a man it takes two of us." We both laughed at that one.

I said, "Let me clean up and we'll go in early so I can get some practice in. If you want to invite Shirley and Betty, go do it. We leave in thirty to forty-five minutes."

When I was showered, shaved again, and dressed, I put my cue case in the Escape and put my cart away. Shirley came out and said, "You won't be mad if I don't go, will you? I want to stay and play some cards with the ladies on the patio. They are getting into some games over there. Even Abe and Martin have joined in. I think Phil may play with us too."

"That's great, Shirley. Do you think you could get a couple plates of the meatloaf for Caroline and me? We should be home about eleven or twelve. I'm always hungry after pool so if we were to find a couple of plates of meatloaf in the fridge, I would be grateful."

Shirley said, "Betty and I will get you two some food. Have a good time."

We went to a different place to play eight ball tonight. This was our home bar called Strokers. It was a big place with more than thirty pool tables and they all were nine footers with good Simonis cloth.

I practiced for an hour before the rest of the team showed up to practice before league started. Two of my teammates on this team were on my Monday night team so they had already met Caroline. The rest of the team greeted her and were trying to get her to play with us. She declined and said she would get me to teach her so she could play too. There are always some extra people, male and female, who come to watch their mates or friends play.

We were ready to begin playing when some guy came up to me and just hit me. He hit me hard enough that I went down in a heap. I remember looking up at him, trying to figure out what was going on, when he kicked me and said, "You child porn pervert. Get the fuck out of here before I just kill you and do society a favor. Don't ever let me see you again."

My teammates and the opposing team were instantly on the man, holding him as he tried to fight them off. The captain of our team kept yelling at the guy, "He was found to be innocent of those charges; it was a set up by his wife's boyfriend. Hold still, quit trying to kick him."

The bar's bouncer came quickly and just about as quickly had the guy on the floor face down. My mouth was bloody and I could hardly breathe. Caroline was next to me, trying to see how bad I was hurt.

A waitress came with a glass of water and said, "We called the cops. A Sheriff's deputy should be here any second. I was sitting up on the floor, holding my side where the man had kicked me, when a Deputy Sheriff came up. The guy who hit me started yelling that he was doing everyone a favor as I was the pervert who had all those kiddie porn pictures and had probably raped lots of kids.

The policeman cuffed the man and said, "You're going to have to start reading the paper or watching the news more than once a week. This is the guy that took a bullet while protecting a judge and room full of people. This is the guy who was framed by his wife's boyfriend. You're under arrest for assault with intent to kill." The Deputy was big enough that he pulled the man to his feet and bent him over the table to search him. The man had a big buck pocket knife in his back pocket, and then the Deputy pulled out a plastic bag with about five joints rolled up in it, plus a bunch of pills.

"Well, well. I suppose the joints are for your personal use, but that many pills? I don't think so. I think you need to go jail real quick." The Deputy looked at me and said, "Want to take down his name and address. You might need some financial assistance to fix your teeth. Looks like you are hurt. Do you need an ambulance?"

The waitress said, "I called the paramedics, they should have been here by now. This guy has a pacemaker, plus you can see where he just had stitches removed from his stomach."

"That's where he was shot," the deputy looked around and said "The man's a hero, not a slime ball like this guy. Is anyone with Mr. Robins?"

Caroline was still with me and said, "I am. I'll stay with him."

Another waitress had brought some wet towels and Caroline and the waitress were trying to clean up my face. I felt my teeth with my tongue and didn't think I had lost or broken any. My side really hurt though. Hopefully the idiot didn't break a rib.

Kenny our team captain was down next to me and said, "Man, I'm sorry I didn't see that guy coming. He sucker punched you before you knew what was happening. Christ, we were all planning on partying with a hero tonight, not helping you off the floor."

The paramedics came and began checking me over. I had to tell them about the pacemaker and then rehash the shooting. After that, they felt around on me and said, "You need to have an x-ray to see about those ribs. Will you get one or should we transport you?"

Caroline said, "I'll take him somewhere. He goes to the VA, so I'm sure they will do it, or we can just go to one of the hospitals."

They helped me off the floor and I was able to stand up with out feeling too groggy. The cop had the idiot sitting in a chair waiting to be taken to jail. The deputy was waiting to see how I was. He said to me, "You'll have to watch out. There are a lot of people that form an opinion and never listen to anything that would change it. Take care of yourself. I've heard how you help people out where you live."

As Caroline began helping me out to the car, my teammates put my cue in its case and gave it to us. I waved and walked out as the entire pool hall watched. A few began clapping and then it became a cheer and chant. "Mark, Mark, Mark, Mark." That made me feel really weird, but good. As we walked to the Escape, Caroline commented, "You have a lot of friends in there. You're very well known and liked. No wonder you like to play pool with them."

Caroline said, "Should I take you out to the VA or one of the University Hospitals? Town and Country is close by but they don't have much of an emergency room. Let's go to Carolwood University Community. They might get you in quick. I know what; I'll call Dr. Collins office. He likes you and he'll get you right in."

Caroline looked in her purse for a card, then used my cell phone to call Dr. Collins' office. He was the doctor next to the trailer park. She left a message with his answering service and a couple of minutes later she answered the cell phone. After giving him the events of the evening, they agreed that I should go to Carolwood and he would meet us there.

The emergency room was large and it needed to be. The place was packed. Everything from a fishing hook in an eyelid to automobile accident victims. The reception nurse took our information and said Dr. Collins had called in and said he would be here any minute. Please have a seat. He will be with you shortly.

The good doctor walked in the door before we could find a seat. He ushered us past the curtained off areas into a more private area, where he had me take my shirt off. He did a physical thing with the stethoscope, checking me out, listening to my lungs, then he inspected my mouth. He said, "Doesn't look like any new broken teeth. Let me help you down to radiation to get you x-rayed. From there, I think you might want to call it a night. You're not going to be a happy camper in the morning. Your whole side is going to be purple for a few days. You might want to put an ice pack on it. That should help."

They did three x-rays, front, back, and side. The doc looked at them on a big computer monitor and came out. "You're lucky. It doesn't even look like you cracked any. You're still going to be sore for a few days. You might feel better if you wrap your chest, but it's not necessary. Just take it easy for a couple of days and if you have trouble breathing or you feel real bad, come next door, and if it's after hours, call me and go to the emergency room. Now, go home and relax." He smiled at Caroline and said, "Take care of him, okay?"

She was grinning when she said, "I will, thank you, Doctor."

He said, "I wondered who you were getting a present for. You made a good choice."

We got home about ten after all of the confusion and bureaucracy. I had to use the health insurance card from my wife's plan, but so what. She caused the problem in the first place. At the trailer, we discovered two plates of food, covered with Saran wrap, in the refrigerator. We heated the plates in the microwave and enjoyed the meatloaf, mashed potatoes, gravy, and green beans as if it was six in the evening. We both had a beer with the meal, then Caroline said, "Let me put you to bed. You probably shouldn't have any bedmates tonight with your sore side. No sense in letting someone keep you awake."

I told her, "You know, I'm going to sleep on the side that isn't hurt or on my back. If you want to stay, I'd love the company. If you'd rather not, I understand."

Caroline hugged me gently and said, "That's the best offer I've had all day. Come on, let's go to bed."

While she was washing, I took my cholesterol pill and followed her into the bathroom to brush my teeth. We were soon lying in bed, her in one of my T-shirts, and me in boxers. We snuggled with her on my good side shoulder. There were some nice kisses, but the excitement had worn us out. We dropped off to sleep.

Caroline was sleeping peacefully on my shoulder when I awoke. I was surprised I woke up so alert. The clock said it was right before six, but we were retired folks. We didn't have to get up if we didn't want to. I wanted to. I eased from bed and used the bathroom. While I was making coffee, Caroline came in and hugged me, wanting some more cuddles. She said, "I know it's time to get up, but we were sleeping so good, especially after last night. How do you feel, Honey, how's your side?"

"It's sore, but I'm doing pretty good. I think we should take a little walk and see how I do."