A Surprise Lunch Crush

"Remember last month, when the company was awarded 'Best Defense Contractor' of the Year'? Well the newspapers listed all XYZ executives and your name was listed as General Manager and Sr. Vice-President, just not your location. It will not take much for her to figure it out."

Frank and Carol never had kids. Carol had woman issues so she decided to dote on her godchildren, Christina and Dale Jr., and dote she did. Christina was very very pleased to have another female to back her up. I often let Chrissy win, I'm not going against Carol's laser burning stink-eye. Frank and I knew when to shut up and say, "Yes dear."

When it rains, it pours:

Sure as hell, a month after the award, just after Frank and Carol went home, there was a knock on my bungalow door. JR answered the door and ran to me telling me there was a woman at the door asking for me.

Christina (the nosy) had to run to the door and ask, "Who is calling for our daddy?" As Christina gave JR the stink eye for not inquiring.

Anita said, "I am a very old friend of your daddy, and would like to talk to him."

I came out of the kitchen as I was making supper, when I heard an all-too-familiar voice. My thoughts went into the OH-SHIT mode. I thought it took her long enough to find me.

I walked to our front door, where the kids were standing looking mystified, and we all saw the look of shock on Anita's face. I was now sporting some grey in my sidewalls, but carried less weight than when I arrived. I swam twenty-five laps every evening in our pool out back.

Anita spoke, "Hi Dale, I've missed you."

"Yes, it's been near ten years. Oh, my manners. Anita this is my daughter Christina, she is ten going on twenty-five, and this is my son Dale Jr, who is eight. Please come in and have a seat. Can I get you some wine?"

"Yes, thank you." Anita's eyes darted from picture to picture on the mantle, until she saw our beautiful Kerri. Anita swiftly spotted the urn between the pictures and figured out why there was no woman in the house. That gave Anita some calm and pushed a smile to her mug.

Anita said, "Dale you look very good and very fit.

"The kids run me ragged, keeping me in shape."

Christina (now Chrissy) piped up, "We do not. It is all the swimming you do after we go to bed."

I picked up Chrissy and flipped her over my shoulder tickling her for her insolence. Of course, JR wanted some of that action too. I put Christina down and did the same to JR, but I gave him some whisker burns too. We roughhoused often and the kids love it.

Anita had a look of shock and then calm; she could clearly see the love we had between us. I needed a temporary diversion, so I told the kids that Anita might like to see their latest school projects - they tore off to their rooms.

Anita gave me a look and pointed to Kerri. I just mouthed 'cancer' and she gave me a sad but knowing nod. Anita was aware enough not to bring up Kerri or our relationship to the kids. Hell, I wasn't sure what our relationship was anymore.

The kids brought their projects to Anita and began explaining in detail all the items in the model we built. I could see Anita was quite smitten by how bright and articulate the kids were, as well as seeing their understanding of the model's functionality and purpose.

Anita said, "I see future engineers."

My reply, "I can only hope, but the choice will always be theirs to make."

Nosy Chrissy asked me, in Thai, who Anita was? I told her, in Thai, that she was my past wife when I lived in America. Chrissy's eyes got wider, but she said nothing more. Anita had a scowl on her face, as she knew we were talking about her but did not understand Thai. Haha!

I shooed the kids off to their rooms to do homework, as I needed to find out what Anita's game was and where this was going.

"Anita, why are you here?"

She stated, "I want to be with my husband."

Well that just answered my big question, we're still married, damn.

My reply, "I did not know we were still married. I figured you would have divorced me long ago for abandonment."

Anita explained, "I looked into it, but with you paying the mortgage every month caused issues in declaring abandonment and the bank refused to tender any data on your whereabouts. I just continue to live and work hoping for your forgiveness. XYZ did a good job in hiding you, I'm sure you had it all worked out with Frank."

I just smiled ear-to-ear.

"Yes, Frank and Carol have been excellent godparents to my kids." Throwing a wrench at her, not knowing what way she was going to play this. She could not get custody of my kids so that leverage was not within her grasp. I could just call my Stateside lawyer to get the divorce in motion.

I asked Anita, "You still living with Kawalski?" Letting her know, I knew.

Anita said, "Not for many years, since he got mugged and left the hospital for parts unknown."

"Then who is your current squeeze?"

She stated that she had not had one since the mistake of Kawalski, but she looked to the left and at the floor - the 'tell' of a LIE.

I didn't want her here near my family; I could not, would not, ever trust her again. But how do I get her away from us and out of New Zealand?

"I need to finish supper and feed my children. It was nice seeing you, (NOT) have a good vacation, New Zealand is a beautiful country with great people." I hoped she took the hard hint and leave.

She said she would like to say goodbye to the kids, but I cut her off saying it was not necessary as I opened the front door. As she walked past, she put her hand on my cheek and kissed the other cheek softly saying, "I truly miss you and I will always love you, I'm so very sorry." As she left my bungalow, I swiftly, but not too rudely, closed the door - hoping to never open it to her again.

I grabbed my cell phone and called the plant security telling them a Caucasian American woman may attempt to gain access to the plant by the name of Anita Paliden, she is not allowed on the plant property. I called my PA and told her the same and to take no meetings with her or her representative without my prior approval. I told my PA to contact my children's school and warn them that an 'Anita Palidin' is not related to my kids, nor has any right to access my kids. Likely, she would be hunting information about me and my family; I wanted her to get nothing.

Then I called Frank and asked when he needed me in the US? "Anita has found me and is here." Frank told me as soon as possible, but it was at my convenience.

Change happens:

I had been training my second-in-command or XO at this XYZ plant for six years. It was time to hand the plant over to him. He's a damn good mate and his wife was a real charm.

Now the hard part, the family meeting at supper with the kids and nanny.

Wow, that was not bad at all. The kids really wanted to go to America and live near my hometown. Even our live-in nanny wanted to come with us. XYZ had lots to do and not a lot of time to get it all done for a major move.

The next day, I pulled my plant executives and managers into a meeting to break the news. I would be leaving next week to take over as CEO of XYZ. I'd be back as often as I could swing it. I met with every manager and office support person to thank them personally for making my life so much easier as their GM. They held a plant going-away party that half the local town attended. By unanimous vote, I was awarded the key to the city by the mayor. I was proclaimed one of the very best Yanks to ever hit New Zealand and the best boss the plant has ever had. I loved these people, the culture, they were loyal to a fault, honest, hearty-hard-working, witty, and just fun to be with. However, their national government could use some serious adjustments as to how they conducted Covid.

I decided to keep our bungalow, getting a service to care for the grounds. When the kids graduate college, we would decide what we would do with our family bungalow. Every year, I do need to return to conduct an annual company audit so it will get used but we did not want to rent it out subjecting it to possible renter damage. We would have a ready place to live for the two-plus weeks that held special meaning for us. We hoped to feel Kerri's loving ghost with us. We would place Kerri's urn and pictures on our new home mantle, but place copies of the same pictures on this bungalow's mantle.

Off to America:

One of the benefits being the incoming CEO was having the relocation looked after, i.e. household moving, packing, shipping and help finding a new home.

The issue I was concerned about was the culture shock for the kids and the serious climate changes they must adapt to. Wisconsin's westerly winter winds gusting to thirty-plus miles per hour at minus-twenty-five Fahrenheit was serious cutting cold, that would freeze your eyebrows and nose hairs making life hurt. Moving to Milwaukee, Wisconsin from New Zealand was not a little change.

For me, it was grand, as I was coming home to Eastern Wisconsin. The area accents and colloquialisms are very specific and unique that screams I'm home. I could now take my kids to Sheboygan Brat Festival. I could reliably watch the Green Bay Packers (America's real football team), screw the Cowgirls, Vike-lings and da Bears still-suck. I could take my kids to Green Street for liver-n-onions or a perch dinner, and I wanted them to experience a real smelt-fry and red cabbage, yum. I'd be able to take the kids on vacation to Popp's for some real fishing on Caldron and High Falls Reservoirs. Then take JR to Clam Lake, Flambeau-Chequamegon Forests for some serious wilderness camping and grouse hunting. But the place I really wanted my kids to experience was Point Beach State Forest, walking along Molash Creek and Little Sturgeon in Door County, my old teenage haunts.

I cash purchased (via my LLC) a six-bedroom ranch with two hundred feet of shoreline on Lac La Belle Lake; on a ready-to-move-in fifteen-acre hobby-farm. The best thing was that our new home was close to the new XYZ corporate headquarters that moved to Oconomowoc, WI. Which also meant, I was three-plus states away from the old HQ offices and my almost-ex-wife, who still lived in my old house.

This fifteen-acre home was what I'd always wanted, and a bargaining chip with the kids to come to America. The place was big enough to raise miniature goats and alpacas and any other smaller four-legged grazers. I made a deal with Chrissy and JR that I'd let them have grazers, IF, they took care of the animals. I would not allow any I'll-do-it-tomorrows. The animals are seven-days-a-week, morning-and-evening responsibilities, period. In the winter, you would need to muck out their stalls and keep them clean, warm, and fed. Close by was the Clooney-Clovers-4H Group which they joined, and from here we met many local teenage neighbors, who helped my kids set up the grounds for our new four-legged adventures.

Life was getting good until my nanny became homesick for her family back in New Zealand. Skype was not enough. Chrissy was eleven and JR nine; with our nanny being their proxy mother, it opened a hole in our lives that I had to work doubly hard to fill. Life was hard after she left. But leave it to Carol and Frank our ever-doting godparents. They sold out and moved to a nice lake ranch NEXT to us, minus the horses. Somewhere between New Zealand and Wisconsin, Uncle Frank and Auntie Carol became Grandpa Frank and Grandma Carol, which thrilled them no end. Frank grumbled about the cold winters, but Carol shut him down quickly, besides Brookfield Mall was just down I-94, a girl's paradise.

My life was again refocused on work and family until Anita tried to insert herself into our life, again.

I proceeded to nip this one in the bud as quickly as possible, with a formal divorce long overdue. But Anita, being a lawyer, played the stall game like a harp, until it became known that I had left her ten-plus years ago over her adultery (the court was not pleased with Anita). She even tried to take my kids away, claiming I was an unfit parent due to all the traveling I must do as CEO. That got shut down fast as we proved she'd never been with the kids for more than two hours let alone had an overnight with them. DNA proved my kids were not hers biologically, and the kids were on the school's Principal's 'Select Honor Roll list' for those students with GPAs higher than 3.9. Clearly displaying how well adjusted my kids were with my fatherhood. When I was on the road, they stayed with their god-grandparents who happened to live next door to us.

Since I had left for New Zealand over ten years ago, and unbeknownst to me, Frank had a P.I. collecting evidence and observances of Anita's adulteress philandering that had been constant since I left the US. Frank offered to the court an amicus-curiae of Anita's paramours by dates, names, addresses, with dated pictures. The judge gave Anita his stink-eye and declared the divorce final and property divisions per the day I departed, with nothing more to be disposed of as I had just given a quick-deed to Anita for my half of our old house (a magnanimous act that was not required). The children were not involved, since Anita had NO biological or legal connection to them. You could see Anita held out hope and was crestfallen when the gavel struck. (Anita never did see reality except when it benefited her.)

Grandma Carol was outside the courtroom with Chrissy and JR, while Frank was inside sitting next to me. Behind Anita were her parents they looked at me with sullen faces. I had not seen them in over ten years they have aged considerably, but so had I. They were good people, except for making an egotistical narcissistic spoiled princess slut. I went to them, giving them a warm hug, my ex-mother-in-law whispered to me that she was so sorry and so proud of me, then kissed my cheek.

Likely this day would be the last affectionate relations we would ever have. Frank and I walked out of the courtroom with Frank gesturing a thumbs up. Chrissy ran and jumped into my arms kissing my cheeks as JR came running and did a jump hug on both of us knocking us all to the floor - we were all laughing hysterically on the hall floor.

At that moment, my ex-in-laws and ex-wife entered the hall. I told the kids that there were some good people they needed to meet. I introduced my kids to my ex-in-laws, who were bravely holding their tears back, as I was sure they realized these kids should have been their grandchildren. And since Anita was their only child and she was now past forty, like me, it was likely her biological clock's spring had sprung. I did notice my ex-mother-in-law's expression of awe when meeting Chrissy/Christina who was becoming a mirror image of Kerri with beauty, petiteness, and grace. JR had lots of me in him, and was now a head taller with broadening shoulders over his sister who was two years older.

I then asked my family, "Who wants ice cream?" As my two kids jumped up and down trying to get us to hurry out to the street, Chrissy spotted the Baskin-Robbins 31 Flavors from the Court stoop and off we went.

While slurping my banana split, without whipped cream, I pondered memories shortly after Kerri's passing. To help the kids focus any aggression or depression, I entered them into dojos in New Zealand. All of us now had belts in jujitsu and taekwondo and we loved it. Chrissy really liked knocking her bigger, in size, brother to the mat and I let her take me down when she hits me with a well-improvised move. It's odd what triggers good and bad memories, and I wondered about the connection to ice cream... I needed to find a new local dojo for us to get our black belts.

I could see how the self-discipline and concentration had helped their scholastic efforts and in taking care of their pets. I was worried the kids might get bullied due to being mixed-race and smaller-sized, but if a bully incident did happen, I never heard about it. I was confident they could clean up most any mess someone started with them. My kids are naturally friendly but reserved, and willing to help others in need. But they had not hit their teenage years yet, and that is a jungle I wished on no one, especially me. Woe be it to whoever picks on Chrissy as JR would take them out, even though Chrissy was more than capable of defending herself. We still spoke fluent Thai at home or when we needed privacy; Thai was our private intercom language tying us to Kerri, her culture, and honoring her memory.

We'd been in the US for just over a year, and the kids were missing their New Zealand friends. I promised them we would cycle back to New Zealand every few years. I promised Kerri I would take the kids to Thailand to meet her remaining family, so the kids would understand where their mother came from.

Visit our Kiwi friends:

I arranged for our bungalow to be opened, aired out, pool readied, and food larder stocked, readied for our occupation. I arranged our trip to start with a ten-day vacation to Thailand to meet Kerri's relatives, her parents were killed a few years before we met.

Then off to New Zealand for my month of plant audits and a three-day corporate meeting in Singapore. On our return to the US, we would do a week in Japan, one of my most favorite countries besides Thailand. We would fly into LAX to take in the sights of Los Angeles and San Diego. Unfortunately, Uncle Mickey was in the sandbox playing, so no guided tours.

We would do all this over the summer school break. The kids were ecstatic getting on Skype calling their Kiwi friends.

We landed in Bangkok and rented a car and driver to take us to Ubon, where most of Kerri's relatives lived. During the Vietnam War, it was a leased US airbase that offered high-paying jobs and education grants. We were to meet all the relatives at the shabu-shabu restaurant on Chaeramae at 7:00pm. Our Thai was okay between us, but barely usable with the locals. They got great humor at our attempt to talk Thai and often talked back to us in English - it was fun and educational. Chrissy hung onto my or JR's arm, she did not like the local Thai boys, as she looked native but was not.

We met Kerri's aunt and soon the ice was broken. They all knew Kerri had children but not much about me, other than I was a high-ranking American businessman. We were introduced to all the attending relatives when a latecomer came running into the restaurant and up to her aunt doing the introductions and in very good English and Thai.

All of us choked up, as this late-arrival was Kerri's double, a spitting image of Kerri, the same voice, same mannerisms, same body, same, same. Chrissy jumped forward and embraced her and started to cry in seeing her mother's doppelganger. This lady was Kerri's cousin Beam, who was one year younger than Kerri. They had lived next to one another and went to school together. Kerri's aunt told us that Beam was Kerri's closest friend. Often, the family called them 'the twins'. Early in Beam's young life, she was found to have a very high IQ. Beam was moved up a grade in grade school to allow Beam and Kerri to attend the same classes together. They had only parted when they went to different colleges.

Beam became our Thai tour guide, as she had the time off between classes. Dr. Beam S., PhD in Communications, was a professor of web communications at Ratchathani University, Ubon. We were registered at the Arista Hotel, but Beam would have none of that, and moved us into her gated, very luxurious, four-bedroom condo for the week.

Chrissy became Beam's shadow. I did not realize just how much Chrissy missed her mother, then to see her almost-mother again, was very emotional. JR and I were more subdued in our emotions of Beam, I could lose my heart again so very easily. But would that tarnish my love for Kerri?