Andrea Millhouse Pt. 06

"I figured she was smart the moment she sat down with us in Canada with Hans. You better hang on to that one, Tim" Les replied.

"I plan to, Les. Hans made it to Anchorage OK? I asked.

"Yeah, got in Tuesday night, he's planning to fly back next Friday. Guess he wants to help Owen with one of his projects, an old pick-up truck that Owen's found someplace." Les replied, Owen being Han's grandson.

"Oh that's good. Has Coy done anything with Long Grey Cloud yet?" I asked out of curiosity.

"No idea, Tim, he's kind of an elusive guy sometimes." Les replied.

Weird, is more like it, I thought...

"What's Ricky doing now?" Les asked suddenly.

"Looking at wedding rings" I laughed.

"-Get the hell out of here! You've got to be kidding?" Les asked genuinely astonished.

"Nope, Brenda finally cracked the whip and Ricky's jumping -Mister big tough guy, himself. She's the best thing that ever happened to him and he's smart enough to know it." I said.

"When I watched him splice that frame rail on Don Frank's Western Star, that time, I knew then that Ricky was anything but dumb." Les replied.

"He's a smart guy and Ricky understands very well, how to work metal, build engines and assemble gear boxes, Les. Ricky's biggest challenge is his comprehension of time. He understands yesterday and tomorrow, this year and last year but not much else. If he's out in the yard working on something, you have to go out and tell him that it's time to stop; otherwise he may be out there all night, literally. Brenda worries about him because he actually forgets to eat or sleep sometimes when he's working on something that he feels is important. Ricky lives mainly in the, right here, right now." I explained.

"Lovey alluded to that a few times over the years as I recall, Tim. She said there's nothing wrong with his intellect, just his understanding of minutes and hours, basically." Les recollected.

"Brenda understands him as well as Mom did." I sighed.

"Well be sure to congratulate the couple for me" Les said.

"I will Les, I just wish Mom were here to see it, herself." I replied.

"The first time I met your mom was in nineteen sixty nine when she was still driving the little green Studebaker Lark. Dwight Lutz and I stopped and changed a tire for her on the side of the road someplace. There was a little, tiny, Oriental gal, probably not much more than seven or eight years old, riding with her in the car that day and she really did know how to supervise, cute little shit. As I recall she had missed the bus or something and Lovey was driving her home from school, I think. ...Lovey tried to pay us for changing the tire I remember ...nice lady your mom. Hans mentioned that she had passed, very sorry we lost her, Tim." Les said.

"Thank you, Les; it's been hard, losing her. ...God yeah, the green Studebaker, that was one of the very last ones built. My grandfather helped her buy the Lark, Mom loved that little car - wait a minute, you mean you knew Mom before Aunt Elsie introduced the two of you at Boeing?" I suddenly asked.

"Yeah when Dwight and I changed her tire that day - it really wasn't an introduction but we recognized each other when your Aunt Elsie did introduce us, at the Boeing plant, must have been a year and a half later, I think." Les replied.

"Oh OK, I didn't know that. ...I wish you would have known Rick Sheffield too, Les. You could've cleared up a lot of questions Ricky and I have on the guy." I said

"Wish I could help you, Tim, but I didn't recognize him in the photos, that day when we were at Jake's Corner with Hans." Les replied apologetically.

"Naw its OK, Les, we'll keep at it" I said.

"Well, Tim, I better let you go for now. I'll give you a day or so heads-up whenever I plan to see Randy and we'll get things lined out for the old Ford coup." Les now said.

"OK Les, thanks for calling and we'll look forward to hearing from you." Les and I clicked off.

I set the phone down and then contemplated calling Andrea. Looking up at the clock now, I decided to send her a text instead. It was nine o clock PM and I would guess that she was tired from her day's work in Phoenix and had probably been on the phone a lot all day. Andrea did power point presentations and was present during conference calls during a lot of her time at work and I doubted that she really wanted to gab on the phone at this hour.

I picked up my phone again and texted Les with Ricky's phone number and street address. Next, I texted Andrea with: "Your hair stylist misses you and wants you to know that he's in-love with you, pretty lady! XoXo!" I included an emoticon of two kitty cats cuddling up with hearts circling above them and then pushed - send.

My phone immediately buzzed and upon picking it up again, I saw that Andrea had texted me back with "Please schedule my next hair appointment for Saturday the 7th at 2:00pm when I get off the plane: LOVE U 2 Cowboy XXOO! Bedtime for this girl" There was an emoticon that looked similar to Andrea, another of a beating heart and also a moving silhouette of a cowboy riding a wild bronco.

I smiled at her text and then set the phone down. I got up and made myself a bowl of chili and sat down at the table with a glass of orange juice. Shit ...I'd be sleeping alone for four more nights I thought, as I began eating and looked around my sparse condo. After eating and loading the dishwasher I went to my bedroom and started to undress but then changed my mind. I put my shirt back on again and turning out all the lights, walked out the door and locked the condo behind me. I may be sleeping alone tonight but I was, at least, going to sleep in Andrea's bed I decided.

I walked the fifteen feet to Andrea's condo and let myself in with the key. I immediately felt better as I locked the door behind me and walked in and turned on the living room lights with the scent of flowers and incense greeting me as I did so.

As I entered the living room, I unexpectedly caught myself coming to a halt and starring down at Mom's small antique, pearl white, vanity with its heart shaped mirror and elaborately etched flowers and hearts along the border of glass within the mirror. The vanity was well over one hundred years old and now belonged to Andrea, she and I had saved it from the wrecking crew when Mom's house, along with the entire neighborhood of Stony Brook, had been demolished a little over a year ago.

Lake's photo was now proudly displayed atop the vanity as was Mom's jewelry box. ...Mom, she really was gone now, I thought as I closed my eyes for several seconds as I remembered her sitting at the vanity while critically studying her own reflection whenever she would brush her hair as a young woman. ...I suddenly realized how tired I was and pried myself away from the living room and entered into Andrea's bedroom.

I took off all my clothes and slid into Andrea's bed with its fluffy blankets and pillows. Andrea's scent was present which I was comforted by immediately. I switched out the light and lay my head on her pillow. "My little brother is going to get married now, Mom, where has all the time gone to?..." I asked quietly to the darkness. Breathing deeply of Andrea's soap and perfume scented pillow now I began to silently wonder what the cards held for Andrea and I. Would we tie the knot too, eventually? "Andrea Millhouse ...what have you done to me?" I asked aloud before I fell asleep.

...Stepping out of the shower I dried myself off and wrapped one of Andrea's large fluffy towels around my waist. I then walked into the kitchen whereupon I poured myself a cup of Andrea's exotic coffee which I had started brewing before stepping into the shower. I then sat down at the table with the wonderful tasting brew and opened my phone, Andrea had already texted me a photo that morning, I noticed. The photo was a vintage Kenworth W900 which looked to be in mint condition and sporting a dazzling paint scheme. "Saw this one this morning and thought of you. May come home earlier than expected, things are falling into place here for us. Hans gets in next Friday at 815pm. Please water my plants and check my mail. Love you Cowboy" Andrea had texted.

I texted Andrea back with "Nice KW in the picture Love U miss U, we'll do Get home soon baby" I then included a cartoon of two animated puppies riding bicycles before pushing -send. Next, while sipping my coffee, I looked at the Anchorage weather forecast and saw that it was currently thirty three degrees Fahrenheit with a strong chance of snow - forget about it, I thought as I shook my head in disgust. The Laughlin forecast, in contrast, called for sunny skies and seventy three degrees that day. I was planning on a bicycle ride this morning and was eager to start rolling -after my coffee break, I thought, as I stood up and walked into the kitchen to refill my cup.

In a way it was good to have some solitude away from Andrea, everyone needs a little time alone and Andrea and I were pretty good about giving each other personal space whenever the other needed it. Time spent apart also made the days that we did spend together more cherished. Sitting down at the table again my phone suddenly pinged, once more. The text was from Ricky and was simply the photo of Brenda's new wedding band, in the palm of her hand, and the words "game on" This was Ricky's way of saying he'd proposed, I smiled and seemed to feel my mother's presence come beside me with a warm glow now. The sensation for me was that, Mom was on the other side of the river smiling brightly and dancing with joy, now. Ricky's proposal to Brenda would have been joyous news for her. Mom had loved weddings and she always cried at them. Ricky and Brenda's wedding would have been no exception.

"Awesome, so proud of you brother!" I texted and pushed -send. I then forwarded Ricky's text and photo of the ring to Andrea with my own annotation that read "Ricky proposed to Brenda!" I then pushed -send and smiled. "He grew-up, Mom" I said quietly as I sat at the table...

My phone immediately pinged again with a text from Andrea "OMG! I can't believe it! YAYYY for Ricky and Brenda!!" Smiling, I set the phone down and, taking my coffee cup, got up and walked back to the kitchen and filled a water can from the sink. I then carefully watered Andrea's plants and opened the drapes. It was time to get dressed and go for a bike ride now.

By twelve fifteen that afternoon, I had bicycled a vigorous twenty eight miles in just under two hours and thirty nine minutes. Drenched in sweat now and carrying the recumbent bicycle back up the stairs to my condo, I suddenly felt hungry and decided to jump in the Nissan and go eat something after a quick shower. I was always energized after a good ride but a good brisk ride always left me wanting food, makes sense I thought, an engine needs fuel to move a machine and I was the engine and the bicycle the machine. Stepping into the condo, I rolled the recumbent to its corner and chugged a bottle of Blueberry juice. Finishing that, I hopped into the shower and then dressed in clean clothes and sat in front of the computer and waited for my hair to dry. I wasn't very computer savvy but I did have a PC and e-mail which I rarely ever checked.

My inbox, I soon discovered, was mostly filled with spam and publications from various websites that I had subscribed to over the years. One was called War Birds which was a weekly publication on World War Two aircraft that were still flying or in the process of being restored to fly. I also had several subscriptions to trucking magazines, all of which sent out weekly or bi-weekly news letters that I seldom, if ever, read. Before meeting Andrea I had also subscribed to an on-line dating site and although I had discontinued its service more than a year ago, I was still getting potential matches every week. The internet was a great source of historical information - and disinformation, in some cases, but I really didn't believe my world would end if it all went away tomorrow. Andrea was on the damn internet every day and wanted me to become more interested in it but I just didn't understand all of the hype. Quite frankly I didn't like or trust the internet.

Shaking my head at all of the advertisements for dating sites, miracle libido pills and cruise ship rewards, that seemed to fill up my entire inbox, I quickly scrolled through the remainder of my most recently received e-mails with a disinterested disgust.

...No, when it came to the internet, I just didn't get it, folks.

I was about to sign out when I suddenly noticed a recent e-mail from Brenda near the top of the page. According to the date on the header, Brenda had sent the e-mail two days prior and when I opened it there was nothing more written than "This is the guy I was talking about, Harland Wyckoff" there was also a link and when I clicked on it I went directly to a page entitled "Empowerment Through Positive Thinking!" A photo of a very healthy, grey bearded gentleman in a suit and tie topped the page and directly below it was an article discussing "Harland's views on Enlightenment Through Meditation." ...Jesus Christ, Brenda, of all the people to be suckered by this bullshit, I never would have thought that you'd be one of them, I said aloud as I logged-off and shut-down the PC.

My hair was dry now and I was hungry. I stood up and was reaching for my coat and the Nissan's keys when my phone suddenly rang with the sound of a tranquil harp, indicating that the call was from Andrea. I picked the phone up immediately

"Hey Babe, how's it going down there?" I asked, smiling into the phone.

"We closed on the deal an hour ago. I lucked out and managed to secure a flight to Vegas but I couldn't get a commuter to Laughlin on such short notice. I just talked to Karen and she said we could stay the night with her. Do you want to come get me at the airport in Vegas? - I get in at one AM tonight / this morning, is that too late for you to come to Vegas and pick me up and maybe stay with Karen, over night? Or do you want Karen to get me and have me stay with her until I can get a commuter home?" Andrea asked.

"Oh, honey, NO! I'll come get you and yes we'll spend the night in Karen's guest room and buy her breakfast in the morning. Silly girl, why would you even ask if I'll come and get you, of course I will, I love you. How'd it go down there, with your supermarket people?" I then asked curiously.

"God, you're such a doll, Tim, thank you and don't ask, OK? Andrea replied, she sounded completely worn-out.

"Too many chiefs and not enough Indians, again, honey?" I asked in reference to the supermarket deal.

"Clients from hell, Tim, you really don't want to know" Andrea replied wearily.

"Did they PAY you?" I asked, concerned, with my voice rising slightly.

"Oh yes, fifteen big ones, babe, have the check in my purse and I have no doubt that its good, but I earned every damn cent of it." Andrea said firmly.

"OK, honey, good. Text me the info and I'll be there with bells on when you step off the plane." I replied, looking at the clock.

"OK, gotta run, still a few loose ends for me to tie up on this end. See you soon cowboy. Love you, Tim." Andrea replied hurriedly.

"OK, honey, love you t-" I began, but Andrea had already hung up.

I quickly called Karen and on the third ring, she answered with

"Hey Tim!"

"Hey sweetie, I guess you just spoke with Andrea?" I asked.

"Yes, are you coming to pick her up at the airport tonight or should I go get her?" Karen asked.

"I'll come get her, is it OK if we use your guest room tonight and buy you breakfast tomorrow morning, honey?" I now asked.

"Oh, Tim, Breakfast in the morning sounds wonderful, you're such a sweetheart. Yes come and stay, by all means, Andrea has a key so just come in and make yourselves at home, I'll be here. Blondie and Tuco love Andrea so I don't think you'll get eaten up when you come in but they will make some racket - just to warn you." Karen replied.

"OK, honey, we'll be careful when we come in" I said.

"I would guess that Andrea must have already told you that she pulled it - off, again, the clients sighed a few minutes ago on the property in Phoenix - one, point five, mill.'" Karen said proudly and referring to millions.

"Yes she did, Karen, but she sounds like there must have been some difficulty in finalizing the deal." I said slowly.

"I know, Tim, which just goes to show you what a genuine master she really is and the degree of professionalism your lady has in real-estate." Karen responded.

"Karen, this deal has floundered and then come back to life, more than once and its left Andrea frustrated. What's up with this piece of dirt, anyway?" I now asked.

"I'll start at the beginning for you Tim. In nineteen sixty one, Elias Mueller immigrated to Chicago from Hamburg Germany and started a bakery inside his garage with his wife and three boys as his only help. He baked German bread and pastries which were said to be out of this world. A year later he bought a used panel truck and began delivering his bread and pastries to construction sites, weddings and church gatherings. He soon had nine employees and had to rent a commercial building, he now had six trucks delivering bread and pastries. Elias's neighbor, Theodore Marrs, was a wealthy banker that made Elias a proposition in nineteen sixty seven. If Elias would use every cent to his name, as collateral, then Marrs would finance a full scale grocery store provided Elias oversaw its daily operation personally. A deal was struck and the grocery store became known as M & M Market. Now you know ...the rest of the story. Karen said matter of factly.

"My God, M & M Market is EVERYWHERE; you mean Andrea's been working for this, Elias Mueller, the owner of M & M Market this whole time? How old is he now?" I asked.

"No, not exactly, Tim. In nineteen ninety one NATWOMAR purchased M & M Markets from the Mueller family for an undisclosed sum. NATWOMAR is, by the way, a loose acronym for National Wholesale Markets, they're an East Coast conglomerate and now parent company of many of the old grocery store names that you and I grew up with. They've been slowly purchasing every National chain that they can lay their hands on and retaining the old names, like M & M Market. NATWOMAR's business ethics are completely ruthless and, in my view, unethical as well. Insiders know that NATWOMAR has the philosophy of 'quantity over quality.' Everything with NATWOMAR is about the bottom line, Tim, the human element or quality of products, available to the shopper, is last on their list to be considered. They've also slashed the wages of loyal employees within some of the chains that they've purchased on numerous occasions - life long, loyal, employees, Tim. I, personally, won't even consider a project with them anymore." Karen said flatly.

"There's a NATWOMAR about a mile from here, Karen. Come to think of it, I do remember seeing bumper stickers around town and elsewhere with NATWOMAR - NATNOMOR (not no more) and I just figured that those people were disgruntled nuts, like some people are about everything else in life. No wonder my baby sounded tired, Karen." I said.

"When I talked to Andrea, a few minutes ago, she did quote, NATWOMAR - NATNOMOR, a few times herself. They're cheap and dirty bastards, Tim; I don't shop there if I can help it." Karen said disgustedly.

"I've known for a long time that their stuff was cheap, it really doesn't surprise me that they'd slash salaries of loyal employees, Karen." I said sadly.

"By God, they paid Andrea, Tim, she made damn sure that they weren't going to screw her out of one penny." Karen said defiantly.

"...I guess she made fifteen grand commission on the sale, that's pretty good on a one point five sale, isn't it?" I asked.

"It sure as hell wasn't abundant but it was fair. Then again she was their last resort, Tim, so they HAD to pay her what she's worth or nothing would have ever happened at that location, it would have tanked. Initially the deal was going along perfectly and would have gone off without a hitch. Everyone was on board and happy with it, the land owners, City Council, Zoning Commission, Parks and Rec, etcetera. Then one of NATWOMAR's top exect's flew in, right in the middle of closing, and thought he could throw some weight around and treat everyone like a bunch of hicks - then EVERYONE involved was pissed off, from the seller on down to the City Fire Marshal. The City Council then held an emergency meeting and passed a unanimous vote declaring an over excessive traffic volume and noise level that the new store would thus create - and the deal was OFF!." Karen replied.