Sophia Pt. 02

I put Vanessa back with Don for the remainder of the lesson. There was no way I was going to let him put his hands on me for the rest of the night, he just might get me all wound up and I definitely needed to change the music. Who does he think he is? Getting all sentimental and sharing something like that with me! While there are other people around! Doesn't the man understand anything about timing? Oh god, why does he have to be so damned NICE!

After the lesson, we did our normal routine. Don went to bed and the rest of us watched a movie. We skied for almost four hours the next day. Sure enough, at first Don seemed to have forgotten everything that he had learned on Saturday, but by the end of the second hour he was back in form.

A few more weekends with him skiing and I could stop worrying about him breaking his leg or neck. So long as we keep him off the black diamond runs.

………………………………....

It was a pretty good weekend. The turkey turned out great. Sometimes something goes a little wrong and the flavor isn't always all there, but this time it seemed just about perfect.

The shocker that Maria and Kathy pulled on me concerning their background check on me certainly hurt, are all women that invasively curious? I would be sure to talk about it with Doctor Huff this Monday evening.

Learning to dance and ski, I have to admit it, was fun. Maria insists that she is going to turn me into a reasonable ballroom dancer in six months. Let me see, holding beautiful women in my arms for six months, especially Maria? I think I could be talked into it!

I had some good news waiting for me at home about that stock I had invested in. From $3.42 a share it had already recovered to $5.60. I knew there was no reasonable explanation for that stock to be so low. I guess some other people finally figured it out, too.

Then I had my therapy session and Doctor Huff spent our entire session on the invasion of my privacy. She agreed with me that the ladies had, indeed, done me wrong, but she then pointed out that they seemed to be truly sorry and she felt they had done it because they were genuinely interested in me. She even hinted that she thought they might be having romantic thoughts about me. I told her no way, those ladies were way out of my league. Doctor Huff also expressed disappointment that all copies of the report had been burned. She said that it might have helped in my therapy if she could have read it. I had to think about that some more, she was probably right.

Then on Wednesday Maria came by like normal and I decided to let her know what was going on with me, as well as try to get her to understand what I was going through.

"Maria, for the last few weeks I've been going to therapy every Monday evening trying to get control of my feelings of anger and rage. Well, I told my therapist this time about the investigation you had done on me." Maria's face went pale. "She helped me to understand some things and I think I really don't have a problem with it now." Maria slowly let out a sigh of relief. "However, she expressed interest in reading the report; she said that it might help my therapy. I know you burned your copies, like I asked you to do, but do you think you could maybe give her a call? She has a few questions for you if you have time, and it might really help me."

"Don, I would be more than pleased to help. I'm really glad you're in therapy, and I have to agree that that damned report might help her work with you to understand what happened to you and help you get over your anger. I'll be happy to give her a call. Don, I don't really know how to tell you this other than to just say it straight out. While we burned all our copies, there are probably a few more still out there."

"The employment agency and those possible employers should still have some copies. I know you don't believe that anyone will hire you, but now that a few companies know the truth regarding your resignation from your former employer it is quite likely that you will be getting some good job offers, especially when the economy improves. I know one of them is really interested in you. Since they still have the report, I can probably get a copy sent to your therapist. Is that okay?"

"That would be fine, Maria. I always understood that there were probably more copies out there. I just didn't think you could get another one so easily and I didn't want to ask you after telling you to burn them all."

"No, again it is my pleasure. I'm just happy you're not mad at me anymore." Maria gave me a big smile that lit up her eyes. I am going to have to take another long and very cold shower tonight!

The next month was busy. Megan, Robin and I were all getting over a cold the first week in December. I hate to spread diseases, so I warned Maria not to come by for our trip to the therapist that night. Did she listen to me? Of course not!

Megan and Robin had both called me Tuesday morning from school, complaining of being sick. All three of us must have been exposed to something on our way home from Maria's house, maybe at the convenience store we stopped at, because I was dragging my ass too. Well, I went and picked them up at school and then took the rest of the day off. I let Barbara know what was happening and she was fine with the kids staying with me. I then called Maria to let her know that Wednesday night was probably off.

When I got home from work Wednesday, feeling like shit, I found Maria already there taking care of Megan and Robin. She had homemade chicken soup on the stove, a load of different over-the-counter cold remedies on the kitchen counter, and she was helping my girls get caught up with their homework. They had fallen behind a little because of getting sick.

Maria really came to our rescue. She even gave baths to Megan and Robin. The two of them had been doing a lot of sweating and were pretty rank and uncomfortable. Maria changed the sheets on their beds and put them in clean pajamas, too. Whatever it was that we had was completely knocking us out. Maria stayed at my apartment again on Thursday to take care of Megan and Robin. Thursday night she headed back to her own condo after she saw how much better Megan and Robin were.

On Friday Maria didn't answer my calls and I began to get worried about her. I figured she might be sick and there would be no one to take care of her. I got off work early, picked up Megan and Robin and drove to Maria's condo after stopping home for supplies. When we showed up at the security desk at her condo with overnight bags and a pot of chicken soup, Megan and Robin frantically explained our concern to the guard. I had never been inside her condo, but Megan and Robin had seen it the weekend they went on their big all day shopping trip with Maria. The security officer tried buzzing and Maria didn't answer. He then checked her parking space and found her car still there.

He reluctantly agreed to go to her condo and, if necessary, let himself in to check on Maria's safety. My daughters didn't give him a chance, they followed right along with him and I followed them carrying the pot of chicken soup. When he knocked on the door Maria still didn't answer. So with Megan pushing him, "She could be dying in there!" he unlocked the door. As soon as he had it open a crack, Robin snaked her way by him and through the door. He yelled out, but she wasn't stopping for anything. That's my girl! Then he found himself standing around, not knowing what to do. Should he chase after Robin or what? I decided to distract him so that Megan could get by. A hot pot of chicken soup pressed to someone's back makes a really good distraction!

We had now succeeded in getting two infiltrators into enemy territory. Everything was proceeding on schedule with operation "is Maria okay". I apologized for the hot pot and waited for agents M and R to report.

Robin came running back. "Daddy, Maria is really sick, just like we were. She didn't want to call and bother anybody and she couldn't get out of bed to answer the security panel."

At the words "Maria is really sick", I was suddenly magically transported through the guard and doorway, and I was fifteen feet inside Maria's condo before I even realized it. I think the guard got sucked in behind me in my wake. Robin ran in front of me to show me the way. I had no problem knowing where to go, all I had to do was just follow the sound of the coughing.

I entered Maria's bedroom, pausing slightly because I was entering uninvited. What the hell, I'm good at groveling.

"Maria, honey, are you okay?" Maria and my girls suddenly looked at me strangely. I wonder why, did I say something funny?

So here I am kneeling at the side of her bed, with oven mitts on and a big pot of chicken soup. I did the only sensible thing I could think of and said, "Are you hungry?"

She looked at me like I was nuts, but she did have a slight smile. "No," she coughed out. I think the guard left at that point.

"What are you doing here?"

Robin replied to her question with a wonderfully simple answer, "You took care of us, now we are going to take care of you. We love you, Maria." I wish I could have said that!

Maria got all big eyed with the girls and she opened up her arms. Megan and Robin fell into her arms for a wonderfully touching hug. A real Hallmark moment, even with all of Maria's coughing. I snuck out to find the kitchen and ditch the soup.

My girls set to, taking care of Maria with all the combined skills of Florence Nightingale and Attila the Hun. I was just the supply clerk. Maria didn't want a bath? It didn't matter. Megan and Robin gave her a bath anyway. Maria didn't want her sheets changed? It didn't matter. Maria didn't want to eat? Megan and Robin just sat by her bed, gave her big puppy dog eyes and said "pleeease." Maria ate soup and crackers. Maria was lucky she gave up early or they would have pulled out the big guns and played choo-choo train with the spoon. Take my word for it, it is hard to eat soup while you're laughing, most of it that doesn't snort out your nose winds up on your chest that way.

…………..……………………….

I spent a terrible yet wonderful two days taking care of Megan, Robin and Don, but on Thursday night I was starting to feel a bit peaked so I headed back to my own condo. I felt like I was probably coming down with their bug and I am such a bitch to take care of that I didn't want them see me like that.

By Friday afternoon I was feeling like pure crap and I was so lonely. Even taking care of Megan and Robin had been fun because I was with them. I was feeling sorry for myself, big time. Oh sure, Don, Megan and Robin had been calling my cell and leaving messages, but I didn't want them to know that I was sick. That would get them feeling guilty and then they would feel compelled to come over and take care of me. I sniffed back some tears; it would be wonderful to have a real family.

The buzzer on my security panel had been going nonstop for that past ten minutes. I don't know who was there, but I was feeling too shitty to get out of bed and answer it. Hold it, is that someone opening my door? I better find enough strength to get out of bed and hit the panic button.

I heard a man's voice yelling, "Hey!" Then I heard "Maria, Maria are you okay? Maria?" That's Robin's voice! She's running into my room!

"Maria, are you okay? We were so worried. You didn't answer your phone! You're sick now, too, aren't you?"

"I'm fine, baby." I took a break to stop coughing. "What are you doing here?" Now Megan is coming in!

"You didn't answer your phone so we got worried and Daddy got off work early. He just knew that you were coming down with the same thing we had, and it was so bad! I'm sorry we got you sick, Maria, especially after you took care of us," Megan answered.

"Robin, go get Daddy, okay?" Robin ran off and Megan went into my bathroom for something.

Don came into the room with a huge pot of chicken soup in his hands, the big dummy. The first time he comes into my bedroom and here I am, a disgusting wreck.

"Maria, honey, are you okay?" Did Don just call me honey? Maybe I'm sicker than I thought. But if he did, and I think he did, I like it a lot. Oh shit, what will he call me when he really finds out about me?

"Are you hungry?" the big dummy asks me. Even sick I have a hard time not laughing.

"NO," I coughed out. "What are you doing here?"

Then Robin said something that melted my heart. "You took care of us, now we are going to take care of you. We love you, Maria."

It got even better; Megan and Don both smiled and nodded their heads in agreement with what Robin said. I held up my arms to my girls and they fell into them, even though I was stinky and coughing. Over their heads I could see Don carrying the pot of soup out of the room. I don't think he was aware that I saw him, but he had an absolutely huge smile on his face and just for a second, before he turned his back, I could see that his eyes were wet.

Well, for the entire weekend they took care of me. They helped me to the bathroom, they bathed me, and they fed me. When I got feeling better they even played Yahtzee with me. This time Don played, too, and I absolutely wiped his ass.

On Sunday I was feeling much better. When I was taking care of my girls at Don's apartment, he gave me a key to it. On Thursday when I tried to return the key, he firmly refused saying that I might need it in the future. So turnabout is fair play. I called the security desk and I got Don a key card to the building and the underground parking area. I, of course, also got him a key to my condo door, just for emergencies. He tried to politely refuse, but I gave him my best pathetic sick person with puppy dog eyes look. He shut up and took the keys.

I made sure that the girls got all their homework done while they were here. We watched one movie Saturday night in my room and on Sunday we watched two, and Don made some blueberry cobbler and he served it with vanilla ice cream. I was getting really tired of chicken soup, and the cobbler was a real treat. I told them to go home Sunday night so they could get ready for school and they refused. Megan and Robin turned on me with wide eyes, fake tearful sniffles complete with crocodile tears and said, "You want us to go? You don't like us anymore, Maria?"

Shit, I knew that they were faking, but it worked, okay I'm a sucker. They were probably going to be able to manipulate me for the rest of my life. "You know I love you. I'm just worried that you don't have your school clothes for tomorrow and it's a long drive from here."

They both perked up right away, the little fakers. "Oh, don't worry about that. Dad already went and picked up our school clothes and his work clothes, and I promised to get up extra early tomorrow so we will have plenty of time," Megan said with a straight face. Yeah, like she can get up extra early. I'll believe THAT when I see it.

The next morning Don's alarm clock woke me. I didn't want to miss the fun so I forced myself to stay awake. First Don took a shower and then he called to my girls, waking Robin up. Of course there was no reply from Megan so he left their room and returned with a coffee mug in his hand. I could just imagine him waving it by Megan's nose and gently encouraging her to wake up. However, that didn't seem to work so he went back to the kitchen. He walked by my room, saw I was awake and, with a big grin on his face, he pointed at a glass full of ice cubes in his other hand. I grinned back at him and nodded my understanding. One minute passed, then two and suddenly there was a screech.

"DADDY, THAT'S FREAKING COLD!"

Good girl! I had been working with her to change her language. I had been afraid that she would pop out with another nasty word.

"Shhh, baby, you don't want to wake Maria, she's been so sick she needs her rest." Why, that sneaky old man, using me to get quiet and prompt cooperation out of Rip van Megan! I would have to remember that and perhaps use similar tactics in the future.

Megan and Robin tiptoed into my room before they left and softly kissed me goodbye on my cheek. I had a really hard time pretending to be asleep. Once they left the room I waved goodbye to Don, who gave me a big grin. He waved his cell phone at me and mouthed the word "later". I nodded my head back in understanding.

After they left I decided to get up and get a bite to eat. I don't know when he had had time to do it, but he had baked some cinnamon rolls thick with icing. I had two with a cup of tea and went back to bed.

That afternoon Don called me and told me firmly that he was going to stop by after his therapy appointment. He said her office was located not too far from my condo and he wanted to make sure that I had a proper dinner after being sick. I tried to refuse, but he pointed out that he now had a key and I had no choice. Darn good thing I gave him those keys!

Don showed up at seven. I had made sure to take a shower that day and I had put on clean pajamas. I found out then that Don must have done all my laundry while I was ill. He even cleaned all my panties and bras! But I was sure that Don was such a practical guy that cleaning my underwear probably had no effect on him. Like Dudley Doright, the poor innocent man! I didn't put on any makeup; I didn't want to appear too recovered. This was the first time that I would be alone with Don and I was more than a little anxious. I had eaten two more cinnamon rolls during the day plus I had made myself a sandwich, but I didn't want Don to know; I was going to milk this for all the TLC I could get.

"Hi, Maria, are you feeling any better?"

"Yes, thank you, Don," I coughed out; I had to kind of force the coughs.

"Did Megan and Robin make it to school on time?"

"Yes, they did. They really wanted to come back here tonight, but they've got to spend at least some time with Barbara or things might get nasty, custody wise. I told them that with my schedule I didn't have time to pick them up, which really is the truth."

I didn't want to think about Barbara. I'm glad that he didn't call her "their mother". I realized that I was getting far too possessive about Megan and Robin, and Don, too. I didn't care, that bitch had royally messed up her family's lives, just to get screwed! I would never reveal my private disdain for the woman, but I seriously doubted if she would ever have the tiniest bit of my respect.

"Maria, after I've been sick there are two comfort foods that seem to be gentle on my stomach. Now I'm willing and happy to make you anything else, but how would you like French toast and nice lean ham or a plain hamburger? Does either of those sound good to you?" He looked so anxious when asking the question, the dear.

"Don, French toast and ham sounds really good to me." Just to lay it on a little thicker, I changed my voice a shred to make it sound more like a little girl and pulled my covers up.

I was doing my best sick Shirley Temple impersonation. "Are you going to be using your homemade sourdough bread? And do you have the special maple syrup that Robin likes so much?" The big lug fell for my act; I was going to have such fun running his life. Oh, SHIT! There I go again!

He replied seriously, "Yes to both and I've got some especially good ham too. You rest right there and I'll bring it in to you."

A half hour later he was back with my dinner on a bed tray. I sat up in bed and set the tray across my legs. I've never owned a bed tray, so that meant that Don had gone out today and especially bought one just for me. Sheesh, he really is a saint! Everything looked delicious and he had made me some hash browns with onion, too.