A Promise Kept Ch. 01

"My, my," I teased her; "We're a little possessive today, aren't we?"

"Not even a little bit," she carelessly laughed, "I just don't trust these bitches up here, that's all."

"Okay, my sweet," I smiled, "If you say so..."

~~~~~~

"Hello, Ms. Martha Hendricks," Kara kindly told the head of the administration department, when we appeared in her office, "This is our newest employee; Professor Michael Walker and I wanted to..."

"I already know who he is, Miss Kara," Martha gently teased her, "Your father called in ahead of you two and I've got his employee packet right here, ready for him to sign all the necessary documents in it. All you need to do now is to take him over to campus security and pick up his I.D. card. And just so you know, they're all ready and waiting for him."

"Thanks Martha," Kara girlishly grinned, "I really appreciate it."

"Oh, one more thing, Professor Walker," Martha said, right before we left her office, making us turn around to look at her, "My daughter, Jillian, is on your Karate team. She's a tough girl, but don't put up with her shit for one second. Besides" and then she impishly laughed, "That's just my ex-husband's, her father's personality coming out of her, and everyone around here knows that I tamed his ass. Seriously, she's a good kid, Mike."

"I haven't met her yet," I graciously smiled, "But knowing that she's your daughter really gives me something nice to look forward to then.

"Oh, Kara, girl, "Martha widely smiled, "He's such a nice man, too; Hmm, you'd better hang on to him, honey, and don't ever let him go."

"I'll die first," Kara grinned, "Bye, sweetie," and then we left Martha's office to the sound of her quietly chuckling behind us as we left...

~~~~~~

I don't know how I knew, but I smelled trouble the moment we walked into the campus security office, and I was correct. As soon as Kara and I appeared at the front desk, this overweight, and snot nosed, red headed asshole began to verbally accost her.

"Hey, Kara, baby," he snidely remarked, "What's going on, sexy? Long time no see."

"Hello, Darren," she nervously replied, clinging tightly to me, "We're here to pick up Professor Michael Walker's Faculty Identification card."

"Don't worry about it, baby," he driveled, making unwanted advances toward her as he tried, unsuccessfully, to hold her hand, "Professor Poindexter can wait. When are you and I going out on that date that I've been inviting you on forever?"

"I've already told you, Darren," she replied, attempting, with no avail, to ward him off; "I don't feel that way about you."

"That's okay," he stupidly grinned, showing off his yellow, crooked teeth, "One date with me and you'll change your tune, sexy Mamma."

That was the last straw as far as I was concerned, and as I stood up, I looked at him, and sarcastically asked him, "Are you deaf, or are you just plain stupid? The lady already tried to politely decline, but you're too much of a dumb ass to understand the word "No" so; I'm going to tell you now to leave her alone from here on out, okay?"

"Oh really," he snarled, "And just who the fuck are you, asshole?"

"I'll tell you exactly who I am," I growled, "I'm her boyfriend, and if you don't leave her alone, I'm going to show you something you've never seen before, and that would be the other end of your more than likely non existent dick, do you understand me, you dumbass."

And like the stupid redneck idiot I originally perceived him to be, he pulled his nightstick and cowardly replied, "How about if I kick your ass instead, bookworm? That way, you'll be laid up in the hospital while I'm out dating your so called girl friend, and showing her what it's like to be with a real man."

"I'm asking you as nicely as I can to drop that nightstick," I calmly warned him, "Otherwise you're going to be wearing it permanently after I shove it up your ass, fat boy."

"And I'm telling you that I studied tactical crowd control for two whole semesters," he laughed, "And because you just threatened me, it's time to pay for your sins, Professor, or not."

The moment he came around from behind his desk with his stick raised in an aggressive posture, it took me mere seconds to take him down with a fast, hard, sweeping kick, caving his right knee in on itself, which ended up with him falling back into the floor of the office, landing on his ass, holding onto his right knee with both hands, screaming like a little girl.

Of course I easily disarmed him, and as I held his own nightstick to his throat, I smiled and said, "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Professor Michael Walker, and while I teach three different levels of history here at the U of H, I'm also the coach of the new Karate team, not to mention that I'm also a former United States Navy SEAL...Now, if you ever so much as come near Professor Matlock again, you're going to end up a whole lot worse off than you currently are. Are we clear on this issue?"

"What in blazes is going on in here?" the apparent Chief Campus Security Officer asked, walking through the front door, having apparently just come back from his lunch break.

Kara and I both apprized him of everything that had taken place, because his subordinate was clearly in no shape to comment; and once we were finished, he simply laughed and told us, "I tried to warn that dumbass that this was bound to happen one of these days. I'm only sorry that I wasn't here to see it. If you'll step over here in front of this camera, Professor, I'll take your picture for you and have your I.D. ready for you in a few minutes.

~~~~~~

"Thank you, officer," I graciously replied, as he handed me my faculty ID, "I'm really sorry about all of this."

"My name is Frank Hobbs, Professor Walker," he graciously replied, "And don't you worry about a thing. As soon as this asshole is released from the hospital and has recovered well enough to walk on his own, he's fired. Besides; he's sitting in the floor, holding his knee because of his own stupidity, and he got exactly what he deserved. Have a good day, you two..."

~~~~~

"You really didn't have to do that, Michael," Kara impishly smiled, "Believe it, or not, I could've handled him."

"Come on, sweetie," I replied, "He was a lot bigger than you, and I wasn't about to let him get anywhere near you."

"I can appreciate that, baby," she grinned, "But you need to understand that I'm not as fragile as you might think."

"Maybe not," I smiled, "But if you're gonna be my girl, then that means that you also come under my protection. Besides, I'm a professional, sweetheart, and fighting for people who couldn't fight for themselves was what I did in the Navy."

"A professional, huh?" she knowingly giggled, "I suppose we'll just have to see about that one of these days then."

"Really," I chuckled. "And what is that supposed to mean, my beauty?"

"Oh, nothing in particular," she again knowingly smiled, "I was just speaking off the top of my head...don't pay any attention to me, baby."

"Oh, and it's baby now, instead of Michael?" I teased, "What's that all about?"

"You belong to me now," she insisted, with a slight fire in those beautiful brown eyes of hers, "And I'll fight anyone that tries to take you away from me. Why? Do you have a problem with that, Mister Michael Walker?"

"Not at all, sweetheart," I grinned, "Oh, and I prefer Professor Walker, and not Mister."

"Oh, shut up," she laughed, smacking me on the ass, "Has anyone ever told you what a smart ass you are?"

"Of course," I teased, "Brittany does it all the time..."

~~~~~~

Chapter Five

We ended up in my office, and for the first time in a very long time, I felt a strong sense of accomplishment overcoming me; so much that I had a smile on my face that even Kara took notice of.

"Feels good, doesn't it?" she grinned, leaning over and quickly kissing my lips, "Having your own office, I mean."

"It really does;" I contentedly smiled, "Never, in a million years, did I think that I would ever find myself in this position; and now that I'm here, I want to make damn sure that my students know the truth about the past, and not some contrived, press-released shit."

"You know what I think, Michael?" she softly asked, sitting her pretty little ass on desk, "I think that your students are going to love you. I don't know how I know this, but they're not only going to love you as a person, they're going to love having you as a teacher."

"I hope so," I smiled, "Because I don't want to let them down...and especially not you, Kara, not ever."

"Oh, Michael," she softly purred, climbing into my lap after I'd sat down in my chair, "I love you with all my heart, and you could never let me down, baby..."

~~~~~~

After I'd filled out al of the necessary paperwork, with Kara's help of course; there was still enough time to get it back to Martha in the administration office so that she'd have ample time to file it in the proper place before the day's end.

~~~~~~

"Thank you, Professor Walker," she kindly smiled, as I handed her the documents she'd given me earlier that day, "I really appreciate you're getting this done so quickly. I usually have to wait until mid-semester before I get it all back."

"You're very welcome, Miss Martha," I respectfully replied, "And I want to you feel free to call me Mike, just all of my friends do."

"Why thank you, sweetie," she grinned, "But I prefer to call you Michael, if that's alright with you. It has such a noble ring to it..."

~~~~~~

A WEEK LATER

The time seemed like it had flown by, and I guess it was because I'd spent every spare moment I'd had with Kara, accepting her offer of helping me get my syllabuses and lesson plans together. I really appreciated her giving me a hand with all of that, otherwise I would've been totally unprepared.

However, because she'd been teaching for much longer than I had, she seemed to be able to whiz right through it almost as if it was second nature to her. She's still the smartest, most incredible, and most beautiful soul I've ever know. But I'm getting a little ahead of myself...sorry about that.

At any rate, the time had come for classes to convene, and I'd still not met the female professor that I was going to be sharing the office with in the athletic building. However, that would take place that afternoon, as the karate team would be meeting four days a week; Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.

Still though, I only had two classes to teach that day, World History 101, and American History 101. One would be taught at nine o'clock that morning, and the other at two o'clock that afternoon. My World History 101 and American History 101 classes was for all of the incoming freshmen, and/or first year students. My other class, Contemporary American History, was a senior, and/or a fourth year course which would be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and then for only a select few students...History Majors.

~~~~~~

That first morning, Monday, I walked out of my office and into the lecture hall. Granted, I was only twenty seven at the time, but with the exception of one person, an adult student who was maybe a year or two older than me; I felt old and out of place amidst the fairness of youth which now surrounded me.

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen," I addressed my students, "Welcome to World History. My name is Professor Mike Walker, and you and I will be taking a stroll through the past together this coming semester. "

After I called the roll and was pleased to find that all fifty-one of my students were present, I asked a young lady who was sitting in the front row, named Leslie Stewart, to pass out the stack of syllabuses that Kara had helped me put together during the previous week.

"Study your syllabuses, ladies and gentlemen, there will be a pop quiz on Wednesday, covering the material listed on the first page," I told them, "In the mean time, we're going to spend a little time getting to know one another this morning."

"What is it?" I asked, a kid who'd raised his hand, "Be sure to tell me your name though."

"My name is Mark Powers, sir," he replied, "And I'd like to ask you a question."

"Okay, Mister Powers," I smiled, "What can I do for?"

"I heard that you were a Navy SEAL, Professor Walker," he replied, "Is that true?"

"That's correct," I replied, amidst whispers that now echoed throughout the lecture hall, "I was a member of SEAL Team Three, Underwater Demolition Team Twenty-Six."

"Yes," I asked, as a young lady raised her hand this time, "What's your name?"

"My name is Amanda Keegan," she politely replied, "And I wanted to know if you've ever seen any combat?"

"Yes, I have," I stated, "Unfortunately that goes with the territory."

I don't know who it was, but I heard someone, a male, flippantly ask, "Have you ever killed anybody, bad ass?"

"If whoever it was that asked that had the balls to stand up and show their self, instead of hiding like a coward, I might answer that question," I firmly said, "Regardless of how stupid a question it was," which was followed by the class's laughter and ridicule of the idiot who'd asked that question.

Suddenly, a rather large young man stood up, and then made his way onto the stage. Coming to a distance of about five feet from me, he stood there with his hands on his hips and loudly bellowed, "I've got the balls to face you any time, old man, what're you gonna do about it?"

"I'm only twenty seven, boy," I quickly snarled, letting him know who was in charge, "And it's been my experience that idiots like you who start confrontations, usually don't have the chops to see it through, or they piss their pants in fear when the first shot is fired; but in answer to your stupid question, yes, I've killed people...several of them, and it's nothing to be proud of, I assure you. You can go sit down and shut up, or get the hell outta my class, NOW! The choice is yours; punk."

Needless to say, when I yelled, he jumped, and then walked to his seat to pick up his belongings. After he'd he made his way to the door, he looked back over his shoulder and said, "This ain't over yet, asshole," and then quickly left, letting the door slam behind him on the way out.

"If any of you know that guy," I calmly told the rest of the class, "Tell him that I said he's more than welcome to meet me in the gym this afternoon at four o'clock, okay?"

"I know who he is, Professor Walker. His name is Tommy Peters and he's a jerk," one girl quickly replied, "And I know that you're also the new Coach of the Karate team. I'll be sure to pass your invitation along to his dumb ass," then as she sat back down smiling, she smiled and softly said, "I can't wait to see you kick his stupid jock ass, Coach, err, I mean, Professor Walker."

"What is your name, young lady," I asked, "And how did you know that I'm one of the coaches of the Karate team?"

"My name is Talia Genaro," she politely replied, "And I knew because I'm a member of the Karate team, sir."

"I'm happy to meet you," I graciously smiled, "Stick around after class, Miss Genaro, I need some information from you," and then I looked back at the rest of the class smiling and told them, "I'll see you all on Wednesday...class is dismissed."

~~~~~~

"What would you like to know, Coach?" Talia Genaro smiled, once the lecture hall had cleared, and she was standing next to me at my podium.

"I need to know about my new assistant Coach," I told her, "What is her name, because I haven't had the opportunity to meet her yet?"

"She told us not to tell you, Coach Walker," Talia knowingly chuckled, "She said that she wanted it to be a surprise."

"Come on, Talia," I laughed, "You can tell me, I won't tell anyone."

"Oh, no you don't," she giggled, being the silly teenager she still was, "I gave her my word that I wouldn't tell you. Why don't you put the shoe on the other foot, Coach? You wouldn't want me to break my word to you, now, would you?"

"No, I guess not," I chuckled, shaking my head in surrender, "Go on ahead and get outta here, young lady; I'll see you this afternoon."

"Bye Coach," she girlishly laughed, "I'll see you at four," and the she left, still laughing as she made her way down the hall...

~~~~~~

My next class, American History 201, went rather well. Of course it was for second year (sophomore) students; and as before, I took the time to get acquainted with my students just as I'd done with my morning class after handing out their syllabuses. It was a lot easier, too, as there were only twenty-eight students in this particular class. Of course I used the same question and answer approach as before. However, I was very relieved when there were no ridiculous questions asked about taking human life.

I was, however, asked about my military career, because it seems that word travels fast on a college campus. But still, I was treated with great respect by this group of students, making me look forward to when this class would convene again on Wednesday. I also discovered that there were four students among that class, all of them female, who also were members of the Karate Team who I also asked to stay after class. I thought that maybe they would tell me the name of my assistant coach.

Their names were Jenny Harris, Emma McNealy, Pamela Delgato, and Laura Bonham. I must say, like Talia Genaro, they, too, were just as pretty as could be, but when I asked them for the new coach's name, I was met with the same silence which Talia had shown, as well as being told the same thing she'd told me. And what I didn't take notice of at the time, were the knowing smiles they shared between themselves.

Still though, I simply dismissed them, telling them that I would be seeing them shortly, but, I began to wonder if there were any male students on the team at all. I hadn't met any of them as of yet and perhaps it was just a coincidence that I hadn't. Little did I know what was about to befall me when I got to my office in the athletics building.

~~~~~~

The moment my afternoon class let out, I made my way to my other office, which was in the athletic building/gym where I would be meeting with the Karate team for the first time. Not only was I excited about meeting them, I was also anticipating meeting my new assistant coach. Speaking of which, I still didn't understand what was going on, not did I understand why Talia, Jenny, Emma, Pam, Taylor, and Laura were all being so secretive who this person was...

~~~~~~

After going into the men's locker room, and changing into my ghee, I made my way into the gym to meet the new team I would be coaching. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that they were not only all Black Belts, but they were also all female. Granted, there were only twelve of them, but I still thought that there would be both girls, and boys.

"I thought this team was going to be Coeducational," I said to them, "Where are the boys?"

"Daddy told you wrong, Michael," said an all too familiar female voice behind me, "They are a coed team, meaning they're all female."

I turned around and was very pleasantly surprised to Kara standing behind me, dressed just like I was, wearing a white ghee top, black ghee pants, and wore a black belt around her lovely waist.

"I'll be damned," I grinned, "So, you're my assistant coach, and that's the reason nobody would tell me who you were, huh?"

"Thanks ladies," Kara smiled to the class, "Did I tell you guys that he's also my boyfriend, too?"

"We don't blame you, Coach Matlock," Jenny Harris giggled, "We think he's hot, too," and then the whole team erupted in to fits of not only girlish laughter, but cheers and whistles of approval."

"Not bad, lady," I laughed, kissing Kara's hand, "Not bad at all so; when did you earn your black belt, Kara...err I mean, Coach Matlock."