The Surprising Road Home

"Ok. And if you see me ignoring either of you, let me know. I'm in new territory too. I'm forty-six and I've never lived with a woman as long as I've lived with you." I took a breath. "And now I'm bringing in another woman? I'm nuts!"

"We can do this." She leaned back over to me and we kissed. I knew we would revisit this topic many times. I knew Pat would be in the conversation too. I had no idea what the next few weeks would be like.

We fell asleep wrapped in each other's arms.

Someone knocking on the metal door of the RV woke both of us. I said, "Yes!" and the door opened. Marie climbed in and saw us in bed, naked and wrapped in each other's arms. She blushed, but didn't look away.

"Pat will be her in about fifteen minutes. She called us. Seems Scott is sending her to the grocery to get more beer. That trip alone would take her two hours. She wanted to know if you were still here. I said yes and she asked me to not let you go until she talks to you."

Kate said, "I think she's already decided to go."

Marie nodded. I did too. As Kate started to get up Marie said, "I'm making breakfast. Get dressed and come into the house, Ok?"

"Ok." We both answered.

We dressed and went to the house. Through the window, I watched Pat park her truck inside the barn and walk to the back door of the house. She was dressed in faded jeans and a western shirt that I believed used to belong to Scott. Her boots were scuffed and worn. When I had watched her get out of the truck at the picnic she walked like a prisoner. Between the barn and the house her posture was better and she looked at the house, not the ground.

She came in and greeted Marie. Marie had her sit and put a plate of pancakes, eggs and bacon in front of her. Bob poured her a cup of coffee. She took three bites. As soon as she swallowed the third bite she asked, "Can I have a serious talk with you?"

I nodded. Kate said, "Please do."

"I realized yesterday that I'm dead. When Scott and I were in the Air Force we were alive. No. We were more alive than we are now. Scott had something he was looking forward to. He talked for years about having a farm and growing food. Now, he has the farm and its more work than he imagined. He has nothing to look forward to. He drinks and I hide. When I don't hide he punishes me for his life not working."

Marie said, "You winced when I touched you yesterday."

Pat stood and unbuttoned the shirt she was wearing. She took it off, leaving her breasts covered by a plain white bra that was old and falling apart. Her chest was covered with bruises in various stages of healing. She turned and her back was as bad. "My ass and legs look a lot like my chest." She took a breath, "He even blames me for the bruises! He says I bruise too easy."

Kate got up and pulled her shirt off. The bruises were fading. No longer black and blue they were green, yellow and the bandages were much smaller than when we met.

Kate said, "Nick didn't do this. My relationship at home was with a man who reminds me of Scott. He drinks. There are happy drunks, quiet sad drunks and mean drunks. Jack is a mean, nasty, angry drunk. A little over a week ago he kicked me hard enough to break a couple ribs, tore up my chest and broke my finger. Nick helped me get away before Jack could get drunk again and kill me."

Pat sat back in her chair and cried. Sobbed. Bob and I left the room. Kate and Marie held Pat and each other. Bob and I went out to the barn. I happened to glance into the back of Pat's truck. A worn suitcase was the only thing back there.

I picked it up and took it to the RV. I put it in the closet. Bob and I walked back to the house. We didn't hurry. The three women were still hugging when we came back into the kitchen.

I said, "I have an idea. Don't decide before I finish, just hear me out, Ok?"

Pat, Kate and Marie looked up at me.

"How about if Kate and I take you with us? We can pretty well guarantee Scott won't follow us. He won't beat you again. You will heal and you will get a fresh start somewhere. We'll help get you started."

Pat said, "My suitcase is in the back of the truck. I'm not going back to Scott. I don't have much money, just me and suitcase and the old truck."

Bob said, "Leave the truck here. Scott can walk over and get it any time he wants. Meanwhile, the three of you can go somewhere else."

"Are you sure?" Pat asked.

Kate still held her. "We're sure. You have to agree to certain things, however."

"What things?" Pat asked and I wanted to know.

"You have to agree not to complain about not having enough room. You have to share in all the duties, like cooking, cleaning, laundry and the like. And, you have to agree to get some new clothes!"

"I agree!" Pat said. It was the first smile I'd ever seen on her.

I said, "By the way, we put your suitcase in the RV already. Hug Bob and Marie and let's get going."

"Let me use the bathroom before we go." Pat rushed off to the bathroom.

Kate smiled and said, "She doesn't know there's one in the RV."

Bob handed me an envelope. "We took up a collection. Take this to help all three of you. Get Pat some clothes and all of you a fresh start."

I thanked Bob and Marie and Marie said, "When you are settled, wherever and however that works out, I'd like a letter letting us know you're OK."

Kate said, "We have your address. You'll get the letters."

Pat came out. We walked to the RV and said our good-byes. We drove out their long driveway and at the highway I asked, "Right or left, Pat?"

She looked both ways, thought for half a second and said, "Right." Scott and their farm were to the left. I turned the wheel and we headed west. Nine hours later we were nearing Cheyenne, Wyoming. Most of those eight hours the two women talked and I listened. They fed me snacks, asked me to stop for lunch and they worked out some details about how the three of us could live together in the RV for a few days.

As we approached Cheyenne I saw a big shopping center. I pulled in and parked. I counted out eight hundred dollars in cash and gave it to Kate. I said, "Take Pat inside. Shoes, clothes and underwear. Nice stuff. Three full outfits with extra underwear. When you come back the things she has on now will be left in a trash can inside."

"Where will you be?"

"The RV needs service. I saw a place back a couple miles. I'll be back in three hours. If I'm not back, call my cell."

They happily went shopping. I turned the RV and went back the three miles to the place I'd seen. Two hours later one of their staff was helping me transfer all our things from my RV into a slightly bigger RV. I'd traded up. Since July I'd been living in a class "C" Winnie. We were now in a class "A" Winnie. The trade had cost me six thousand dollars, but I considered the benefits worth the money.

I was parked where I had been parked when I let them out. I had fifteen minutes lea way. I watched the doors of the mall and when they stepped outside they looked around, saw the RV that wasn't the one they expected and Kate pulled out her cell phone. I honked the horn.

She looked up, then looked back at the cell phone. I honked again. She looked up again. The lights went on. She said something to Pat and they walked towards the new RV. I opened the side door and stepped outside.

"Welcome home, ladies." I said. "Wow! Pat, nice clothes! You look great!"

"Did you really get a new RV?" Kate asked.

"Go inside. Look around. See if it's our stuff inside." They went inside. Bigger closets, a bigger, nicer bathroom, a couch that made into a bed, a bedroom with a door, a slightly bigger kitchen and all our stuff already put away. I drove while they explored. It was almost dark when I parked us in a nice campground. I got us plugged in, connected and hooked up. Kate and Pat worked together in the kitchen and got dinner made. They made chicken, pasta and mixed veggies. It was great.

It was almost ten when dinner was done, cleaned up and we sat down to just relax.

Pat asked, "So, where do I sleep?"

Kate said, "I've been sleeping with Nick. Unless I'm wrong, the couch makes into a bed and the dining room makes into a bed. You can have your choice."

"Ok. I'll try the couch tonight. Maybe the dining room tomorrow night."

They found some bedding and made the couch into a bed, together. I watched. Pat opened her suitcase and pulled out a nightgown. Like everything she owned it was threadbare and old. I went into the bedroom and got a t-shirt. I handed it to Pat and said, "I may be totally off here, but I think this would be better than that."

She put the nightgown back in the suitcase and said, "I'll be right back." She opened the side door and took the suitcase outside. When she came back it wasn't with her. She smiled and said, "That stuff belonged to Pat Marshall. I'm not her any more. I don't want to wear her things." She took the t-shirt from me and said, "Thanks."

Kate said, "I've been thinking. If Nick uses the bathroom first, we can share it and get done quickly." I nodded and went into the bathroom. I took care of showering, shaving and my other pre-bed rituals. When I was ready to exit I realized I was naked. Ok in front of Kate, but not for Pat. I wrapped in my towel and opened the door.

As I went into the bedroom I noticed Pat pull her shirt up over her head and off. Very nice view even with the bruises. A few seconds later I closed the door, but not quickly enough. If either lady was looking she would have seen my growing hard on.

I almost laughed. It was a wooden door, but so thin and hollow that what it stopped was sight, not sounds.

They did what they did and included rebandaging Kate. When the door opened, I was in bed. I had one bedside lamp on. The rest of the RV was dark. Kate was nude. She smiled and crawled onto the bed and under the covers with me.

When she was settled she whispered, "Thank you for taking such good care of us."

"You're welcome. Thank you for taking care of me, too."

We didn't join. I didn't expect that we would.

We awoke to the smells of breakfast. We got up and pulled jeans on before opening the door. I was shocked! Pat was standing in the kitchen, cooking, barefoot from the ground up! She was smiling and making a huge omelet, toast and coffee. I was glad my jeans sort of hid that I was hard, again. I asked, "You always make breakfast nude?"

"No, never. But I saw that both of you went to bed nude last night and I thought about it. Why wear clothes in bed, in the dark? So, I undressed. When I got up I felt so free, so good, I decided not to get dressed. Is that Ok?"

"It's Ok with me? Kate, Ok with you?"

"I have to be honest. I'm worried that she looks better than me. I'm worried you'll toss me out."

My arm went around her shoulder and I said, "No one is being tossed out. She doesn't look better or worse than you. Just different. She has all the right parts, in all the right places and so do you."

"Ok, but that's how I feel."

"I understand. Can we have breakfast?"

Plates, cups and food made it to the table. We sat and ate. The food was good and the view was wonderful. Pat talked about how it felt not to be "walking on egg shells." She wondered aloud about how Scott was handling being left.

I handed her my cell phone. "Call Marie. She'll know. We'll limit calls to cell only and no more than one short call a week. They are traceable."

She dialed. I finished my eggs and did our dishes and the frying pan. When she hung up she had tear tracks on her face.

"Scott walked over to the Logan's to get the truck. He was sad. Marie said he said he knew when I drove away I wasn't coming back. He thought I'd take the truck. He was grateful that I left it for him. She said he had a long talk with Mr. Logan and then drove home. They got the feeling he understood why I left and wasn't going to fight it."

"I'm thinking that if that's true, you shouldn't file for a divorce. You have benefits right now. Medical is a big deal. We can check with a base when we get close and see what the policy is for spousal dependents." I said.

"Good idea. I hadn't thought about it. He wouldn't let me go to the base hospital at Offutt. I think he was afraid of what they'd do if they saw the bruises."

I went up front and sat in the driver's seat. "You ladies ready to roll?"

"No, not yet." Pat said. "I need to get dressed first."

Kate said, "Wear the blue outfit. I think Nick will really like it."

I smiled. The feelings Kate had about Pat were switching from fear and jealousy to acceptance and sisterly. I figured they'd switch back soon enough. The fantasies of her whole life were not just going to disappear in a day.

Kate sat shotgun. When Pat was dressed she came up front and she sat in the seat right behind shotgun. I said we'd call that seat pistol. They agreed to switch every time we stopped.

An hour down the road I asked, "Could one of you tune the radio and find a trucker's station? They'll give us weather and road conditions."

Pat knelt between the seats up front and played with the radio. She found a trucker's station just in time for their weather report.

"The chance for rain increases to eighty percent later this afternoon in the Laramie area. Snow expected this evening along I-80 between Cheyenne and Salt Lake. Low tonight in Laramie thirty degrees. Salt Lake City will get down to twenty-eight. High tomorrow in Laramie, fifty. Salt Lake City, fifty-one."

We stopped in Laramie long enough for both women to buy warm coats, gloves and hats. Kate and Pat also got hiking boots and good socks.

About an hour west of Laramie the snow started. A few flakes blowing lightly across the road and a darkening sky were what I saw, at first. Fifty miles farther and I had our lights on and the heater running. We listened attentively to the weather reports every fifteen minutes. By the time we got to Rock Springs I was ready to stop. We found a campground and both ladies helped us get plugged in and hooked up. We pulled the drapes and got ready for a night inside.

Kate checked our food supply and found a ham that we didn't buy. The Logan's had stashed it in our freezer. We decided to cook it the next day, and have leftover ham sandwiches and ham and cheese omelets for a couple extra days. For dinner that night, they teamed up and made a stew.

At nine that night I turned on the radio again and found we would be staying right there for at least a day and a half. Then, if the weather guy was right, the road west would be open.

"When we left Cheyenne, why did we head here?" Pat asked.

"My sister invited me for Thanksgiving Dinner. I guess I've sort of been headed towards her house since we left St. Louis."

"Your sister?" Kate asked.

"Yes. She and her husband live near Portland. I seem to drop in every couple of years and around the middle of summer she invited me for this Thanksgiving."

"When was the last time you brought a woman home with you?" Pat asked.

"Never. It would have needed to be a very serious relationship for me to bring her home."

They looked at each other, then at me. Kate spoke. What she said was a question and inside her words I heard years of other questions.

"Where will we go while you visit your sister?"

I paused. My mind went three or four different directions to answer her question and some of the questions hidden in her question.

"I want to give you a complete answer. One that will answer what you asked and answer what I heard behind your question. I also want to answer the questions growing in Pat. It's starting to be late. The wind is blowing and the snow is falling. The answer may take a while. Should we postpone the answer until the morning, get a good night's sleep and sit together in the morning?"

They exchanged glances again and Pat said, "No! I couldn't even close my eyes much less sleep with this unanswered. I will stay awake." Kate nodded.

I nodded. "Ok. When the sheriff approached me about you Kate some of my first thoughts were about how to help you find a place and start a new life. I considered how far we might go before we even started looking. The personal aspect of my thoughts were that I hoped you could cook. I cleaned the inside of the RV and started making room for you, separate from me, even in that tiny space." I took a breath.

"Before we had been together four hours I had helped you to the bathroom, seen your bandages and your breasts. We started a very intimate relationship almost immediately. When you asked if I would hold you as we slept, I didn't immediately go to sleep. I said there were implications. I thought about what your brother said to me just before he left. He said he was trusting me with the life of his only sister."

"I didn't know her said that." Kate said. A tear slid down her cheek.

"You were right there in bed with me, snuggled against me and I was impacted by the trust being given to me. Your brother trusted me with your life. You trusted me with your life. Before I went to sleep I realized that to live up to that trust I had to love you."

"I love you, too." Kate whispered.

"In my mind we were still in the first days of our honeymoon when Pat showed up at a picnic. I watched Pat and I watched you. I could feel what was going on, see what was happening, to both of you. When Scott took Pat home I wanted to scream and stop them from leaving!"

"Why?" Pat asked.

"I saw that you are sisters. A common background, a common history. How could I open to Kate and not open to Pat? I couldn't. I got Marie and Bob to help me get you back to their farm. I wanted to offer you a way out. They only way out I saw that I was a part of was to include you in our us."

"In our us?" Kate asked.

"I don't know how else to say it. When I decided to love you it stopped being you and me living in an RV. It became us. We opened the door and moved Pat into our us." I looked at both women, sitting side by side on the bed. Both had tear tracks down their cheeks and I noticed they were holding hands.

"Kate, I love you. If we get somewhere and you decide to start a new life without me, I will not stop. I will not stop you from going and I will not stop loving you. Let me be clear. I don't want you to go." My hand reached out and joined with their holding hands.

"Pat, I love you. If we get somewhere and you decide to start a new life without me, I will not stop. I will not stop you from going and I will not stop loving you. Let me be clear. I don't want you to go." I held still for a few moments and then said, "In my heart, mind, soul we are an us. I commit my life to your lives. That said, if my sister wants me there for Thanksgiving she will need to set three places for us. Every year."

Kate moved from the bed to my lap without letting go of Pat or my hand. We kissed and she said, "My head says this can't be real. You're a man who's been everywhere. Until we met I'd never been out of South Carolina! I've loved three men in my whole life. My Dad, my brother and Jack. You aren't like any of them. I've known you less than two weeks. My head says go slow. My heart says shut up and love you."

Pat moved to join Kate in my lap. "Shut up! Everything you say is true and we'd both be stupid to pass this up. He loves us. What's the worst thing that could come from loving Nick? It only lasts a year? It will be the best year of my life. He already cares more about me than anyone else ever has. I care more about you and about him than about anyone I've ever known except my Mom." She kissed me. When the kiss ended she kissed Kate.

The kisses continued and became more. I was aware I was in way over my head. Pat was right. Being us felt better than anything I had ever felt before. I suppressed the questions about how we could make it work.

Suppression lasted less than a minute. We had kissed each other a few times when Pat asked, "Is there room in the bed for all of us?"