Chapter 21: Getting Settled at the Ranch

It was a much bigger house than I had expected. I'm not sure of how many square feet, but it was well over two thousand. Outside, near the pool, was a storage shed, currently locked. I had no idea how big the property was, but I could find that out from the Cummings at my leisure. The more I saw of our living quarters, the more I was happy with my decision.

I thought about going for a swim, but decided I might postpone that for now. Harlan would be back for dinner and I was sure he'd want to talk. I hadn't seen any sign of Rose, so I assumed she was with Harlan. Margaret had let it be known that Rose lived in the main house with them.

I could hear the kids frolicking in the pool. I doubted they had packed away all their things that quickly. Time enough for that later. They'd been cooped up in our SUV for almost a week and they needed the exercise and some time to have some fun. I thought about sunburn, but it was late afternoon and I would warn them in a few minutes. All of us were fair-skinned from our Nordic heritage, so it was something to be wary of.

I walked out the front door and looked down on the main house. I could see the corral and a large barn off to one side, hidden from the front of the house. There was no sign of any horses, but I wondered if they would be in the barn and out of the hot sun. There was a large water tank by the corral but it appeared to be empty.

The land surrounding the ranch was flat with the exception of the hillock that our house was astride. To the west I could see what appeared to be a large orchard. Perhaps that was the almond grove that was part of the Cummings holdings. I was sure I could see a highway running north and south and realized it was the road we had come in on. There was a steady flow of traffic on it since it was the connector between Davis and Woodland.

I wandered around the property, getting used to the idea that this would be our home for the foreseeable future. We had the summer for the kids to get organized for school, but I would be working as soon as the coach arrived from Chicago. I wasn't sure when it was due. In the meantime, I had some learning to do with Harlan and Rose as to my duties.

It was hot, but it didn't feel humid. That was a relief. I was told it could get over a hundred degrees in mid-summer in the central valley. That would take some getting used to. However, the houses and vehicles were all air conditioned, which kept things sane. I wondered about being out in the farms during this heat.

I had just finished putting my clothes and things away when there was a knock on the door. I opened it to find Harlan and Rose.

"Come in. Good to see you again," I said in welcome.

"Good to see you too, Doug," Harlan boomed. Rose nodded and hobbled into the house on her crutches. At least she had a slight smile on her face.

"Getting settled?" he asked.

"Yes. We'll be all set once our stuff arrives from Louisville. Otherwise, we have everything we need right now."

"Margaret tells me you had a good trip with no problems."

"Yes ... tiring but interesting. I think the kids were grateful that it was over, though. They're in the pool right now. They couldn't wait."

"I'm not surprised. I'm sure they'll have a bunch of their friends up here soon enough."

I noticed that Harlan was dressed in what I thought of as "western style." He had a tan cowboy hat, boots, a fancy shirt with a string tie. That seemed odd for a meeting with state officials. He had taken the hat off and was heading for the back of the house and the patio, wanting to meet my children, I supposed. Rose hung back.

"I'm glad you made it safely," she said quietly, surprising me.

"Yes, Debbie and Bill shared some of the driving and that helped a lot. Did you just come from Sacramento?"

"Yes. Margaret called me and let me know you were here. Harlan doesn't carry a cell phone, so I'm his switchboard operator," she grinned. I was relieved that she was beginning to loosen up.

I was curious. "Who were you meeting with, if I may ask."

"Mr. Faron Temple, President of the State Board of Food and Agriculture. Agriculture is the life blood of California, despite what the tourism people think. Mr. Temple is the second most powerful person in the department, after the Secretary."

"Oh ... that's impressive. Harlan must be an important man, then."

"He is," she smiled, "but he's also a big contributor to the party. That gets him some access and at least a hearing on important issues."

"What are the important issues?"

"Water, taxes, research and co-ops, pretty much in that order."

Rose was opening up for the first time since I'd met her. It was a relief, since I was worried that we might have some problems getting along.

"You're right in there on everything, aren't you," I said as an observation. "That must be very rewarding for you."

"It is. Harlan is a very smart, successful man and he's taught me a lot. He'll teach you too if you are interested."

"I am. I did notice how he was dressed. Kind of 'western' style. Is that usual?"

This time she laughed. "Yes. Harlan will be the first to tell you that he's a farmer. A very rich and successful farmer, but still ... just a farmer. That outfit is a reminder to the people he deals with about his origins. He once told me that if he wanted to turn off the people in the DFA, he'd dress like the rest of the lobbyists do with a Brooks Brothers suit, a pair of Gucci loafers, and a Rolex."

"Just a good old dirt farmer trying to make a living for himself and his family, huh?" I kidded.

"Exactly. You'd be surprised how often that works. As I said, he's a very smart man."

I walked with Rose as we headed for the patio. I could see Harlan had introduced himself to my offspring. He wasn't shy, but then, neither were my children.

Sandy saw Rose and came out of the pool to say hello.

"Hi, I'm Sandra, but my friends call me Sandy," she said without a pause.

"Nice to meet you, Sandy. I'm Rose. I'm Mr. Cummings's personal assistant.

"What does a personal assistant do?" my daughter asked.

"I do all kinds of things that help him look after his business. I take notes at meetings like we were in this afternoon. I keep records of expenses when we travel. I remind him of his appointments. I keep the records for each of the ranches that he owns. I have lots to do."

"Yeah ... you sure do. Do you like it?"

"Yes, I do," Rose smiled. "It's a great job and Mr. Cummings is a very nice man."

"I know. I already like him," Sandy smiled.

"I'm not surprised," Rose said with a return smile.

Debbie and Bill were standing on the pool apron, talking to Harlan. I could see they were paying close attention to him but I couldn't hear the conversation. I could see a big smile on Debbie's face as well as Harlan's. Whatever the three of them were talking about was apparently good news. At length, Harlan strolled back to Rose and me while Deb and Bill jumped back into the pool, followed by Sandy.

"That's one fine family you have, Doug," Harlan smiled. "You must be real proud of them."

"I am. They've helped keep me sane during some tough times."

"Well, I'm going to go wash up for dinner. Why don't you and your youngsters come down about six o'clock. We'll probably burn something on the barbeque," he chuckled.

"That's great, thank you. Just one thing. Can I ask you not to serve me too much food. I have to break up my meals due to a stomach problem."

"Sure. You just let Margaret know what works for you. It won't be a problem at all."

I noticed that Rose was paying careful attention. I also noticed she stayed behind when Harlan left to go back to his home.

"I don't mean to be nosey, but can you tell be about your diet ... or special needs?" she asked politely.

"Sure. I had an accident some years ago and it damaged my stomach and large intestine. I have to eat smaller portions more often to make sure everything gets digested."

"Oh. I guess I can relate to that. I had an accident too, but the results were a lot different."

I thought about asking her the circumstances of her accident, then decided not to. Perhaps in the future.

"This is a lovely home," I said, looking around. "I'm really pleased that we'll be staying here."

"Do you cook, Doug?" she asked.

"Well, if you can call barbeque, scrambled eggs and macaroni and cheese cooking, then I guess I can claim minimum qualifications."

"Let me guess, Debbie gets to do the regular meals," she grinned.

"To be honest, she and Christie Wilson, our nanny, did almost all the meals. I was on the road quite a bit, so both of them carried that load."

"Will Debbie be able to handle that while we're away?"

"I've been wondering the same thing. She's still in high school and I don't want her overloaded with responsibilities. I'm thinking I might look for a housekeeper."