Chapter 14: "How did you and Meredith first meet... ?"

Harold saw Lisa vainly try to cover her modesty. Making a big show of looking only at her eyes, he said;

"Why don't I go to Mark's room and help him hang up his kite while you go put on something that will make you feel more comfortable ... with me here, that is. Meredith ... do you have any thumbtacks or something of that nature?"

"Yeah; there should be some in the 'junk' drawer to the left of the sink." Meredith made no move to step out of the pool or to cover herself.

Harold waved his arm in acknowledgement as he headed inside. Lisa waited until she no longer saw him then ran inside, herself, and rushed to the bathroom and the clothes she had bought. She quickly pulled on a pair of panties and a pair of shorts then hesitated and, as a wave of stubbornness came over her, pulled on a skimpy sleeveless top. She felt relieved to be again 'presentable' but, at the same time, in spite of the 'comfort fit' labels on the clothes she had bought, she was feeling downright uncomfortable.

She had gone back to the living room and was sitting on the couch, thinking, when Mark came roaring out of his room, pretending to be a kite. He had gotten rid of the clothes he had been wearing and he ran outside to get Meredith to come admire his new kite. While Meredith went back to his room with him, Harold joined Lisa in the living room.

"I'm sorry about my outfit just now; I'm not used to being that 'open'."

"That's all right ... I understand completely. Neither am I. When Meredith first contacted me to ask if I would like to meet my son, her lifestyle choices threw me for a loop, you can believe me."

"How did you first meet, if it's not too personal a question?"

"It is, sort of, but I don't mind answering. I assume she told you I was a sperm donor?" When Lisa nodded, he continued. "It was in my first year of university. Some friends and I happened to see an ad in the university rag that the sperm bank was looking for donors. We thought it would be a lark so we went. I never expected to have anything come of it, and, in any case, it was supposed to be totally anonymous."

"You can imagine my surprise when, five years later, I was called to the secretary's desk for a phone call; I had just passed my bar exam some six months previously and I was articling in a small lawyer's office, gathering experience. The woman on the phone wanted to meet me at a restaurant in an hour. I checked with one of the partners and kept the appointment. It was Meredith."

"She started out by showing me a photo of Mark ... he was maybe six months old at the time. I guessed she wanted me to pursue the father for palimony and I started to tell her that it was not my field but she cut me off. 'You don't understand ... you're the father, ' she said. As you can imagine, I got all upset. 'Lady, you have some nerve, ' said I. 'I've never seen you before in my life and I'm willing to go through any test you'd like to prove it. I'd win, hands down'."