Chapter 20: We Take a Trip to Kansas.

After Junior went home, Kay went back to school and I went back to work. Things were going smoothly again for both of us. When I asked later in the week Kay told me Todd was no longer bothering her, apparently he was scared off by Junior. Kay was happy again and was concentrating on her studies while I concentrated on my business.

There was a down side to this though; Kay hadn't gotten in bed with me again. As much as she tempted me, and I restrained myself from doing anything, I still missed having her alongside me during the night and when I woke up in the morning. I liked having her there but I didn't like the reasons that had, so far, brought her to my bed.

Towards the end of the week I had a call from the resort in Colorado that I had helped out during the summer. They were in a slow time, getting ready for the ski season and wanted me to come out with a proposal for their computer systems. I spent a few hours on the phone with them, gathering information on what they were specifically looking for and the extent of my services they wanted. I made arrangements to travel out to them and make a presentation in person Tuesday of the next week. I would be gone from Tuesday morning until Friday afternoon. I let Kay know of the travel plans and that she would have the house. She accepted it and neither she nor I saw any problem.

One of the benefits of owning my own company was the flexibility to take off early or skip a day when I wanted to. One of the downsides though was having to work late or on weekends when it had to be done. I worked up my presentation over the weekend using a basic plan I kept on file and modifying it for the resort's specific application. It really didn't take too long and I still had time for a day sail on Sunday. I asked and Kay was enthusiastic about sailing with me.

We were up early and headed for the marina after stopping for a fast food breakfast. Kay had been out with me a few times now and I was teaching her how to handle the boat. Steering isn't hard but, when the sails are up, it's not exactly the same as on a power boat. You have to pay attention to the wind and make adjustments to keep the sails filled. We were clear of the harbor and beyond the channel's entrance markers sailing on a North Westerly course. Kay had the helm and I was sitting back enjoying myself but keeping an eye on things.

"Kay, how are things going on campus and in class?"

"Class is good, I've a project I'm working on and want to hand in before we take the long weekend for Thanksgiving. I don't see a problem though, I've got my research done and I've outlined it in my head. I just have to sit down and put it all together."

"I take it you're working alone, or is this a group type project?"

"This one I'm on my own and I want to get it done before Thanksgiving so I can move on to the group project we've got to finish before the semester break. There are four of us working together for that one and we all share the grade. I've got two partners I think are good but the third one I worry about. I don't know if he'll carry his share of the load. The grade on that project will count for one third of the semester grade all by itself."

"Have you met as a group yet? Where are you holding your meetings?"

"We've met once to feel each other out. We met at the campus library but as big as it is we still couldn't get an area to ourselves. All the study rooms were taken and are booked out for weeks."

"If you'd like you can meet in the house, I really wouldn't mind. I'll even give you an internet connection you can all use. I'll just set up a Wi-Fi router that's isolated and won't interfere with my work system."

"I'd appreciate that, Rob; I just didn't want to ask."

"There's nothing to it, really. When we get home remind me and I'll make sure it's done by tomorrow. It'll be separate from the connection I've already given you because you're on my main system."

"Thanks, I'll let the guys know, I'm sure they'll appreciate it."

"Have you seen or heard from Todd at all?"

"No, thank goodness. He seems to have dropped off the campus which is fine with me."

"If you haven't already, I think it would be a good idea to let your advisor know, to keep him in the loop. I'd include Todd's meeting with you and your brother. It's better to have it all in the file if something ever comes up."

"Yeah, I've got to do that."

"On a different issue, are you planning on going home for Thanksgiving? You told your folks you might."

"I really want to, but my money is tight with putting aside all I can for a car. Losing the Monday lunch shift at the restaurant has hurt me more than I thought it would."

"You know that I get a discount when I fly. Would you like me to get the tickets for you?"

"I can't ask you to do that."

"You're not asking, I'm offering. I figure it will keep me in the good graces of your family."

"What are you going to do for Thanksgiving?"

"Not much, I usually go to the homeless shelter and help out on the holidays with cooking and serving meals. It keeps me busy, I'm doing something for the community and I'm not alone."

"Would you like to come home with me? I know Daddy would like to see you again and you'd get to meet Mom and Tommy. I'm sure he'll be home that weekend."

"I wouldn't want to intrude on your family or the limited time you'll have with them."

"You won't be an intrusion; you'll be a welcomed guest. If I tell my folks I left you here alone on a holiday like Thanksgiving, they'd skin me alive for not bringing you home with me. Please come with me. There'll be things going on in the community all that weekend. I want to show you my home town and introduce you to some of the people I grew up with. It'll help you to understand why I left there I think and why I won't go back, not to live."

"If you're sure I won't be a bother to anyone, I really would like to meet the rest of your family. Are you going to tell them you're coming and bringing me along or are you going to surprise them?"

"Oh, I'll tell them you're coming home with me. I don't dare surprise Mom with a guest, especially a male guest. You're from the big city and she'll want to clean the house up special for you, not that it wouldn't already be clean. I told you she keeps it spotless."

"I need to know when you're going to be done with school that week so I can make reservations."

"My last class is Tuesday. I'll be available to go after that. When will we come back?"

"If you're done Tuesday we can go that evening or Wednesday and be back Sunday. Will we need a car? If we do, I can reserve one at the same time as I make the flight arrangements."

"We shouldn't need a car. Someone will come get us at the airport and we have enough vehicles at home if I want to take you anywhere. What about the cats? We'll be gone five days."

"I'll think about that. I don't like to leave them alone that long but maybe this once I'll do it, we'll have to leave out extra food and water for them. As soon as I have the flight times I'll let you know."

"Thanks for this, Rob. You don't have to do it and I know that."

"I need a break and a five day weekend will be good. You just make sure you have your project done and turned it."

"I'll get it done while you're gone this week."

After the sail we headed home. Kay had what she needed for work with her and had changed on the boat after we moored. I dropped her at the restaurant and went home myself. I went into my office and dug out a spare Wi-Fi router. After making the connections I tested it out then wrote a note for Kay with the router's name and passcode.

I was sitting in my chair half dozing while I listened to some music when Kay came in. We talked a little over a pot of tea and I learned more about her home town. She may never live there again but it was evident she wasn't sorry she grew up in it. It was after one when we called it a night and went to bed.

There really wasn't anything remarkable about Monday other than I made the travel arrangements for Thanksgiving. Kay was in a particularly good mood, practically walking on air. I asked her about it and she told me she was just happy to be going home for the holiday. It made me feel good to do something that made her smile.

I left early Tuesday morning for Colorado. My presentation was ready but I needed to go through their main equipment room before I met with them about my proposal. I was met at the airport and taken to a hotel within their chain but different from the one when I had been here in August. After dropping my bags at the front desk, it was on to the offices to meet with their I.T. guys and to do the equipment check. Their CTO took me to dinner but I paid for it. We talked and he assured me that unless there was something wildly radical about my proposal, it was in the bag. He told me he had been talking with his counterpart at the airline I did work for and had nothing but glowing praise from him. I had to remember to send a thank you gift to the airline's guy for the referral and support.

In the morning I met with some of their executives to present the proposal. They were more interested in interviewing me than looking at the proposal but that was not out of the ordinary. I knew they would be reviewing the proposal in house and I would have to meet with them again the next morning to get the approval. Once the approval was given, I would sit with their purchasing agent to both work out and sign the contract putting me on retainer and for the approval to make the initial purchase of equipment to bring them up to my standards. I also had to set up continuous communications between their systems and my office so I could monitor their system remotely.

Kay was already at work Friday when I got home. She had left me a thank you note for both setting up the Wi-Fi router for her study group and for the trip home I was giving her.

Saturday morning found me in the kitchen with a pot of coffee when Kay came in, once again in her tee-shirt and panties. She came over to me and surprised me with a kiss on the cheek. "What was that for?"

"That was for being a great guy. Mom was happy to hear I would be home for Thanksgiving but she was thrilled when I told her I was bringing you with me. Daddy and Junior have told her what all you've done for me, including the full story of how we met. She was wondering if she was going to have to fly out here to meet you and thank you for saving me. That's when I told her you were coming home with me. I bet you get her good linens on the bed, the extra special ones she keeps set aside to only use for special people or special occasions."

"That's not necessary."

"HA! You try telling that to her, she won't listen to that from me. As far as she's concerned you're a Saint and you walk on water."

"I really didn't do that much. If you think about it, the only altruistic thing I did here was pull you onto my boat. Everything else has benefit for me as well as for you so I don't deserve all this praise and thanks."

"I think you're wrong, at least you are from my point of view. You've been open and honest with me from the very beginning. You've talked with me about the real world, about things someone close to me should have but never did. I have a lot of self-confidence about my schooling and what I want to do. I don't have that self-confidence about personal, physical relationships. I thought there was something wrong with me and was resigned to live with it."

"I didn't do anything special there. All I did was talk with you."

"That may be, but no one else took the time to talk with me the way you did. I still haven't had a successful physical relationship but I no longer think one is impossible for me."

"It will happen, Kay, it will happen."

"I don't doubt it. You've done more than that though. You've been supportive of me without taking over from me. Hell, both my father and my brother came out here to take over my life but didn't, at least in part, because of you and what you said to them. You gave me the support I needed to resist them and their plans for me, at least with my father. With my brother you helped me keep him from getting into some real trouble."

"All I did there was agree with you. You're the one who argued your case."

"Yeah but I was only able to do that because of your support. In any case it doesn't matter what you think about what you've done. What matters here is what my mother and the rest of my family thinks. Now what are you doing today?"

"I have to work some, the resort signed the contract and I have them as a client now. I have to put them in my system and open some files so they're monitored like everyone else. Once I've scanned their system, I'll need to review the scan logs and see if there is anything I need them to do right away. If so, I will need to call their I.T. section Monday. Other than that, I have to review all the logs for while I was gone and get caught up with my existing clients. My remote checks, from my laptop, didn't show any problems but I need to review the logs here. I figure all of that will take me most of the day. What about you?"

"I took care of most of the routine housework yesterday but I still have to do laundry and vacuum before I go to work tonight. Any free time I have left I'm going to use to do some clean up on my individual project so I can hand it in early. By the way, I spoke with my project group and as long as you're okay with it, we are going to meet here starting right after the holiday weekend."

"It works for me. If you want to have the music playing while you guys are working, all I ask is you take my office out of the circuit and keep the volume down. When we get back you can clear the dining room table and put the brown Naugahyde cover on it to set it up for your group. I don't have any parties or anything else coming up that I'll need the table for the rest of the year."

"Good idea. I was thinking of using the table but didn't remember the cover for it."

We each went our way and I spent the day in the office. I only left it briefly so she could vacuum. Sunday she worked on her project sitting out by the pool and I finished up what I had to do for the resort's system then did the yard work that had to be done.

There really wasn't that much time before we were on our way to the airport to go to Kansas. Kay was up and bubbly, clearly she missed her family and was looking forward to seeing them again. I could understand, I'm twenty plus years her senior and I miss my folks. Whenever I go to see them, I act the way Kay was acting too.

The flight was not as smooth as it could be. We were pushed around by high level winds but we made it to Kansas in one piece. Junior was waiting for us in baggage claim and gave Kay a big hug before shaking hands with me.

"It's good to see you sis. Has that guy given you any more problems?"

"After seeing you with me, he's disappeared into the woodwork. I haven't seen him or heard anything from him. I'm glad you came out to help me, Junior. It appears to have done the trick. Mom didn't come out to the airport with you?"

"Nope, she's home cleaning the house for the umpteenth time. I thought she was going to skin me yesterday when I forgot to take my boots off in the mud room before going into the kitchen for lunch. She's cleaning house for you, Rob. I mean she keeps the house clean all the time but this is special, it doesn't get the same treatment when we come home from somewhere."

"I'm not special."

"You are to her."

We went out to the parking lot. I had my bag and he had Kay's. It was a big crew cab pickup that we got in and we talked while we rode to their home. I could see what looked, to my uneducated eye, to be miles and miles of fields all with what looked to be the same crop of young plants. When I asked about it, I got an education about winter wheat, what it is, when it's planted, when they'd harvest it and how good it was, among other things. The way he talked, Junior was making good use of his education, but how would I know? It sounded like he knew what he was talking about and Kay never interrupted him. He was still rambling on an hour and a half later when we were riding up their driveway. I swear it had to be a mile from the road to their front door. I wasn't used to spaces this big and the remoteness made an impression on me. Farmers really had to be self-sufficient; there was no one around for them to turn to if they needed help.

It was a big house and well maintained from what I could see. We drove around the back with a couple of dogs pacing alongside of us and went in through the mud room to the kitchen. As we stepped into the kitchen I could see a handsome woman, about my age but well maintained, clearly Kay's mother, working at the stove. Things smelled good. If I didn't know any better I would have thought the woman was Kay's older sister. She greeted Kay with a big hug and promptly lit into Junior about not bringing me in through the front door. After a moment she ran down then turned towards me.

She reached out to shake my hand using both of her's. "Mr. Lister, I'm so glad to meet you. I owe you a debt of thanks for taking care of my Kaitlyn and I don't know how to repay you."