Ashley was sitting in her car in the parking lot waiting for me. I ignored her and went to the office to check in and get my key. I had dressed in khakis and a white shirt with a suit jacket over it. I carried an overnight satchel. It had been packed and sitting in my bedroom when Jean had put hers in there and I suspected that she had opened it and looked. All that was in it was a clean shirt, underwear and socks along with my shaving equipment.
When I opened the door to my motel room, Ashley was behind me and entered the same time I did. "Kiss me Milo."
I did and then I kissed her again. "Hi sweet, God I'm exhausted. I just entertained two women that were equally beautiful and could hate each other just because of that fact. I want to thank you for the distraction of having Lilly there tonight. I only had to spend less than an hour alone with Jean."
"You invited Lilly to dinner didn't you? Oh God, now I am going to have to worry about her too?"
"Ashley, were you like this with Calvin? Jealous, I mean?"
"Some maybe. But he didn't have a beautiful ex-wife hanging around and a beautiful reporter that thinks the sun rises and sets on your butt."
"You know, you are going to have to learn to trust me. Another thing, look at my situation. I trusted someone I loved and she destroyed that trust. So it is me that should be wary of trusting a woman. Ashley, I'm placing my trust in you and hope that you aren't going to hurt me. Can't you please do the same for me?"
"It is just that I'm so uncertain. When I see you, I tingle all over. I want to rush up and kiss you. I want it to be love, but what if it is just that I feel sexy. The feelings I have for you are as deep as or deeper than those I had when I was near Calvin. I don't want to disappoint you either and I will be crushed if I can't live up to your expectations. Frankly, I'm a little fearful of all of this."
"Don't be. I'm as uncertain as you. Look, I need a shower. Why don't you get into bed and I will join you very soon. We will take it slow. I want to make love to you and I think you want me to. We'll get into bed and see what develops. That will give me a chance to hold your body and just maybe you will give me your heart as well. That is what I'm hoping for."
It was an hour and a half later that we had each other's body to our mutual satisfaction. I dozed for a little while and then I was fully awake. I asked very quietly, "Are you awake, sweet lover?"
Ashley squirmed a little closer to me as we spooned together. "Yes, wide awake."
"Can I tell you all about tonight? There is one new development you don't know about yet."
"What is that?"
"I hired a young man to work as my helper. He will be a senior in high school this coming year. He has his license and wants to buy a car. All that he could find for work was mowing lawns. I saw his work and it was very much up to my standard. I also had two people give him a good recommendation."
"Somehow, I think I'm going to be surprised when you tell me who it is. You've dragged it out so long."
"You are right. His name is Mark Burgess. He is Jean's stepson. The two people that I took recommendations from are Lindsey and Marie. When they said their stepbrother was mean, it was just because he teased them a little. I saw genuine affection going both ways. So I hired him for Friday and Saturday and told him it was just part-time. If it doesn't work out I don't have to use him anymore."
"You always read people just right. I anticipate you will be using him a lot. Are you going to be setting up a business with a name, books and the whole process?"
"I'd like to. I really don't think it will interfere with you and me and our original agreement. The makeover of your house is going to be an eye-opener in the neighborhood. My work will be out in the open and it will generate even more work. What I did on your front yard has brought me work. If I become more established in your community and people see that they can trust me," I paused, "you will see that you can trust me as well."
"You're serious about all of this aren't you?"
"You know it, Ash Baby." She squirmed even closer if that was possible.
"So tell me about what you and Jean talked about."
I told her what I had said to Jean about wanting the girls with me. When I quoted Jean's observation that the girls wouldn't have a woman's influence, I repeated my reply word for word. "All of this ended with my impression that Jean will at least consider my proposal to let them come to stay with me. It could be that she wants to discuss it with James and I feel this would be a plus for me."
"Why is that?"
"I think their house is crowded and he probably will lean toward his own kids, which is only natural. He married a woman and I don't think he thinks too much of the baggage she brought with her. I don't see Lindsey and Marie as baggage, but he might."
Ashley agreed with me that I was right in thinking this. We slept after that, awakening in the morning, hating to think we would soon be apart and yet seeing each other close almost every day. And it was hard in never being sure when we could engineer another night like this. It would happen, we were both sure of that. I held her body in my arms and knew for sure her heart was not very far out of reach. Someday, I was confident it would be nestled next to mine. Again we came together before our stolen tryst ended.
We sat together now as two friends and ate our breakfast, never touching or indicating that there was love for each other in our hearts, hidden from the world around us. Ashley was off to stay with one of her friends that worked in the prosecutor's office with her. Her friend was one of two staff members that helped prepare cases for her.
When I returned home to my apartment the girls ran to me for hugs and I kissed each one as they expressed how much they missed me. I could tell that Jean was upset about something and I was going to be hit with it very soon. Curious, I wanted to get it over with. "Lindsey and Marie, why don't you go play in the gazebo for a few minutes and I will get your Mom packed up and ready."
"Milo, how could you give away more than a million dollars that was rightfully yours? Ashley gave everything to you and the girls said that she wanted you to keep the paintings. What kind of a fool are you?"
"First of all, it isn't any of your business, but I will explain. Those paintings were purchased by her ancestors years and years ago. They were her heritage even though she didn't know about them. I had very little claim to them and if I had kept them and the people here found out about it, I would have no future at all. I balanced that against a pile of money. To tell you the truth I never considered keeping them for one instant."
"Well I would have kept them if she had given them to me. Think what I could have done with all of the money."
"Like what?"
"I don't know, but with that money, I could be somebody."
"Jean you are somebody and I'm somebody too. I'm still somebody with or without that money the paintings would have brought. When I look in the mirror, I see somebody and pretty much like the person I see looking back at me."
"Damn it Milo, you always twist things around so you make sense. Don't you ever do anything that doesn't make sense?" She was thinking about what she said. "I know what you're thinking. If you had any sense you wouldn't have married me."
"Not at all Jean, you gave me a lot in our marriage. I had the love of a beautiful woman for several years and I gloried in that. You gave me two fine children and I'll always be thankful. For awhile I wanted your new marriage to blow up in your face, but I don't feel that way so much anymore because I know the girls would be the ones hurt. If I had begged and pleaded and promised you the world to come back to me, that would have shown poor sense.
"I have thought about this some. As far as you are concerned I think you were like an ice cream cone. The first bite of a cone has the best taste. I had that and I ate it down until it didn't taste so good anymore. Then I let the rest melt away. I still remember that first taste and the kids are the memory that lingers."
"
I don't know if that was a compliment or not. I'd like to think it was, but I never know with you. You are pretty deep and I can't always follow your analogies."
On the way back to the Burgess' house, Jean asked if I had a good time last night. "Okay I guess. I had several things to go over with someone about some things coming up later in the year. Yes, I guess the meeting was satisfactory." Boy if she only knew.