Some Things Change Pt. 02

Lara sat up. "Where are you going?"

"I need a turkey sandwich. Don't you go anywhere." When I returned, I had a plate with two sandwiches made from the leftover turkey, and cold drinks under my arm. We feasted in bed, then I flipped Lara onto her stomach and gave her the 'proper stuffing' I promised her.

----

By Mid-December, I was walking on my own again, without a cane, but with a slight limp. The doctor had been right - I'd never be able to re-enlist in the army. Good thing I had a career as a town mayor and auto repairman.

Balancing the two seemed like it should be hard, but really, the duties of the town mayor were fairly light since the town was so small. I worked in the town hall with Betty every Monday and Wednesday, and worked in the garage Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Saturday morning was sometimes spent working in one of the two places if I had work to catch up on, but that was rare.

Sundays were still date days with Lara. Sometimes we brought Zeke along, but sometimes we left him with Nancy or with Prudence. If it was just the two of us, we'd usually end up back at my house for a romp in the bedroom. She had only hesitated to enter that room the first time, but now that we'd christened it, it was officially no longer her father's bedroom in her mind.

I oversaw the town square's Christmas decorations. Things seemed brighter with the whole center of town lit up with colored lights. I also knew that with Christmas around the corner, I needed to find some gifts for my family.

So, I took Lara and Zeke to the nearest mall on Sunday. I told her I needed help picking out gifts for my family, which was true. But I also wanted to get subtle hints at what she wanted. I kept my eye on her as we walked around, seeing what caught her eye in the different stores and kiosks. Of course, her eyes were glued to the glittery stones in the jewelry store.

Lara helped me pick out a couple of books for Mom, some nice sweaters for the twins, and some baby-type things for June and Prudence. For Steve and Frank, I got new wireless headphones. For Pop, I scratched my head for a few minutes. Pop was a simple man who didn't ask for fancy things. Lara convinced me to get him a couple of nice warm flannel shirts, good for farm work in the winter.

Our final stop was to visit the mall's Santa Claus. Zeke had seen him early on and wanted to see him, and how could we say no? Zeke waited patiently in line to sit on the old man's lap. I thought he was a good likeness, with a real-looking beard.

When it was finally Zeke's turn, Lara hoisted him up to Santa's lap. "Well, little boy, what do you want for Christmas this year?" asked Santa with a good, enthusiastic voice.

"I want a daddy, Santa," replied Zeke. It was simple and to the point. Little kids don't have the skill to beat around the bush.

The confused Santa looked up at me. "That's not your daddy?"

Zeke shook his head. "No, that's Charlie. But I want him to be my daddy."

Santa wasn't quite sure what to say to that, but I did see him look at Lara, and down to her bare left hand. Then back to me with a questioning look. I gave him a smile and a wink in return. I could tell he was trying to avoid making a promise to a little kid he couldn't keep, but I confirmed his suspicions. "Well now, I'm sure you know I can't bring people down the chimney, right?" Zeke nodded, and Santa continued. "But I think maybe if you and your mama are both really good, then good things will happen for you. Okay?"

That seemed to satisfy Zeke. "Okay, Santa!"

They took a cute picture together, and then Zeke hopped down and went back to Lara. I took a look back at Santa, who gave me a covert wink before we walked away.

----

That Christmas, we all met as a family again in my big glorious house. And, in front of everyone, I proposed to Lara. It wasn't so much of a shock to anyone, really. Everyone there knew it was coming eventually. Lara didn't actually vocalize a "yes", but her crying and nodding was good enough for me. Zeke gave me a big hug too.

The bigger shock was Lara's gift to me. She handed me a small box, which I opened, finding something wrapped in a lot of tissue paper. When I unfurled it, I found a pregnancy test. Used, with two stripes on it. The whole room, which had been loud with happy chatter, became quiet as individuals saw what I was holding. I looked up at Lara. "Are you serious?"

She nodded, with an apprehensive look on her face. "Are you mad?"

I scooped her up into my arms with a laugh. "Mad? How could I possibly be mad at you?" I kissed her, and told her, "You just gave me the greatest gift any woman can give a man. I just swore I'd love you forever, and Zeke too, and the same goes for our baby."

The nervousness melted away from Lara's face. "I was afraid 'cause we weren't trying, and weren't married."

"Well it does accelerate things, doesn't it?" I put her down on her feet. "If you want, let's get married this spring. I don't think I can wait much longer than that."

Lara grinned and agreed. The whole family congratulated us again. Not long after, I enlisted most of them to help move Lara's possessions into the house. Prudence and Lara started spending a ton of time together, knowing they'd both be due months apart. They often consulted June in pregnancy matters.

----

The day before Valentine's day, I was worried about Lara. Morning sickness had not been kind to her. She insisted it was worse than it had been the first time around with Zeke, though most books said that the second pregnancy is usually easier than the first. I had to explain to the worried little boy why his mama was throwing up so much lately.

She also insisted that she finish her high school coursework to get her diploma, despite her also planning a wedding and being a mom. I worried about the stress of everything together. But June volunteered to help with the schoolwork, and both my mother and Lara's were helping with the wedding planning. Lara appreciated that strong support system that she'd been missing for so many years.

One thing that was positive was our sex life. Apparently, pregnancy made Lara even hornier than normal. And it helped we were finally living together. We made love every night, and sometimes again in the morning if we could get away with it. Maybe in the afternoon during Zeke's nap. The little minx was insatiable; she wanted my cock in her as much as she could get it.

I tried convincing her to quit the diner. Between the garage and my salary as mayor, I was getting paid more than enough to support us. She argued she couldn't, because her mother needed her there. I argued that as she got more pregnant, she shouldn't be on her feet so much. We were both right and we were both stubborn about it. That night, she still demanded sex, and after I hammered her good, I also hammered out a compromise with her. She would stay on at the diner until the spring, then start cutting back her hours. At that time, she'd spend time working the reception desk in the garage. That would keep her off her feet so much.

This plan worked perfectly with Prudence, who had been working at the garage for me. She was in line for another job, also with me. After 50+ years, Betty was ready to retire. She happily trained Prudence to take over. Steve once asked me why Lara wasn't taking over for Betty, but it was Lara's preference. After growing up as the mayor's daughter, she had no desire to get back into those affairs, aside from marrying the new mayor.

But I was still worried about Lara, and worried about becoming a father. Pop had been the best role model one could ask for, but it didn't stop me from being nervous. So I had been reading a book about fatherhood that Frank let me borrow. The night before Valentine's day, I locked up the auto shop and had my face in the book on the short, chilly walk home.

I heard the footsteps behind me and didn't look up. I was in the middle of an interesting section about pregnant women and their cravings. I was right outside the house when I heard the click behind my head. "Don't move, boy," came the eerie, recognizable voice.

I froze and dropped my book. It hit the concrete walkway with a loud thwack, that seemed to almost echo in the otherwise silent air. "Jim, you don't want to do this."

Jim Hammond came around in front of me, keeping his gun trained on my head. A second set of hands, still behind me, forced me to my knees. Then Jim's brother Dale came around to face me as well. "Dale," I said, "Good to see you out of jail."

He sneered at me. "Funny to hear you say that, since you're the one who put me in there."

I shook my head. "I didn't do that, Dale. That was your brother, making you the fall guy for his crime."

Jim kicked me in the stomach. "Shut up!" he yelled. There was no one around on that night. Too cold for people to be out and about. "I'm gonna finish what I started. Right here, right now. You got lucky last time I shot you, but I won't miss this time."

I closed my eyes. This is how it would end. I pissed off the wrong guy. Why? I fell in love with his daughter. I waited for the shot to ring out, for my life to end.

What I heard instead was a miracle. "You pull that trigger, you're a dead man."

Lara! I opened my eyes. Lara was standing on the porch of the house, and had my shotgun trained on her father.

"You wouldn't kill your own daddy, you stupid girl." Jim said it derisively, but not confidently. I could see his assuredness waiver.

"Oh! So now you're my daddy? Now that I've got your life in my hands?"

Jim kept his pistol trained on me, but turned his head to look at her. That was what I was waiting for. As Dale didn't have a gun, I jumped up from my knees and grabbed Jim's arm. I was able to quickly wrestle the pistol from his wrist and get control of it. I pointed it at Dale, who quickly put his hands up.

"Run," I commanded, and Dale did. Fast.

I turned to Jim and Lara. Jim was sweating bullets now, despite the frigid temperature outside. "You put that gun down," he said, much less confidently than he wanted it to be.

Lara didn't speak. She trained the rifle at his head. I saw the look in her eyes. She knew she could end his life in an instant. The man who threw her out, and turned the town against her. The embodiment of evil in her world.

"Lara," I said, trying to stay calm, "it's okay, Lara. He can't hurt you anymore."

She kept the gun pointed at Jim, but she started to cry. "He can. He almost took you away from me."

"He's going to leave now, Lara." I looked at Jim, but kept speaking to her. "He's going to leave town and never, ever return."

Jim was shaking. "Yes, yes, I'll leave. You'll never see me again, I swear."

Lara was starting to shake too. It was scary with that rifle in her hands. "The only way for this to end is with you dead," she stated flatly.

I didn't want that to happen. If Lara shot Jim, she'd go to jail for murder. And moreover, she'd have to live with his death at her hands for the rest of her life. I kept my voice calm and tried again to de-escalate the situation. "Lara, he's not worth it. You need to put the gun down. I need you. And Zeke needs you. And our baby needs you."

The mention of our unborn baby was what won the day. Lara hesitated, but finally put the gun down. "If I ever see your face again," she fiercely growled, "I will kill you."

Jim nodded, still shaking. "You'll never see me again, I promise."

"Go," I told him. He turned around and jogged back to his truck. We never saw him, or Dale, in Gideon ever again.

----

I had carried Lara off to bed that night, as she crashed from the extreme adrenaline rush. I laid her in bed, then went to put the shotgun away. It was indeed loaded. She'd have blown Jim's head clean off if she'd fired from that distance.

The next morning, I awoke before she did. I'd had plans to have a romantic Valentine's day with my fiancée, but last night rattled me and sure as hell shook her. I was feeding Zeke his cereal when Lara came downstairs. I gave her a cup of coffee, as she looked like she needed it from her disheveled state.

Lara didn't talk much, so it was a pretty quiet breakfast, then Zeke went off to play in his room. "I almost killed my father yesterday," Lara finally said aloud.

"Yeah."

"I was going to blow his brains out. My own father, Charlie," Lara said, tears dripping down her cheeks. "What kind of terrible person am I?"

"You're not!" I quickly rushed to hold her. "You're not a terrible person. You had it really, really hard these last few years. And it all came to a head last night. But remember, you didn't pull the trigger. You could have but you showed him mercy."

"I was going to," she admitted. "If he killed you, I would have killed him. And Dale too."

"I know."

"You do?"

I tried to smile. "I know because I know you. You are a fierce, strong woman. You are stubborn when you need to be, and you are protective of the people you love. And I love you for being that woman."

"You love me because I'm stubborn?"

"I'm just as stubborn as you. And we're gonna have fights in this marriage. Big ones," I told her, making her laugh just a bit. "But we're gonna love each other all the more for it. You're gonna tell me when I'm a jackass. I'm gonna tell you when you're a bitch. And then we'll fall even deeper in love with each other."

Now Lara was bawling, and I held her closely to my chest. When she'd calmed a bit, I relaxed my grip on her. "How did you know I'd be outside anyway?"

"I had just put Zeke to bed, and I was just sitting by myself, listening to the silence of the winter outside, when heard a loud noise, like a clap."

That jogged my memory, and I started to chuckle. "What's so funny?" Lara asked me.

"I dropped Frank's fatherhood book. I'm pretty sure it's still outside." I chuckled again. "I guess I owe him a book, it's probably ruined by now."

Lara grabbed me and pulled me close again. "You were studying how to be a good daddy. In a way, that's what saved your life."

----

Lara and I were married on a warm spring Saturday in March. Reverend Clyde Jones was pleased as punch to officiate for us. He had also worked with Betty to put together the paperwork for me to officially adopt Zeke. The little boy, just turned three, was finally getting a daddy.

So much happened that day. Steve stood next to me as my best man, with Greg behind him, and with Zeke standing nearby. He was so cute in his little bowtie, matching the groomsmen. Amanda was Lara's maid of honor. Prudence, now starting to show a baby bump, stood behind her. Lara had insisted the day before the wedding that she was showing too. She wasn't. Everyone told her she wasn't and she wouldn't believe anyone until Prudence told her.

Most of the details of the day disappeared from my brain when Lara came down the aisle. With Jim Hammond long gone, the honor fell to Lara's little brother Lance to walk her down. She was so, so very beautiful in her white dress, wearing the most radiant smile I've ever seen. I kicked myself for not doing this sooner.

----

By May, Lara's bump was showing. We'd gone to the doctor and found out she was having a healthy baby girl. I swore that I'd protect that little girl with my life, my everything. Then Lara and I fought over the baby's name. She was insistent on Hannah. I said I liked the name Gabrielle. Then Lara seduced me that night, fucking me into submission. Hannah it was.

That following Saturday, I told Lara to get dressed up. "Prudence is coming over to watch Zeke. You and I are going out."

"Going out? Looking like this?" she pointed at her belly. It was still small, but she still exaggerated its size.

"Yes. Looking as sexy as that," I told her. "Now go." I got her to put on a dress that still fit nicely, and I put on a nice shirt and tie, and I helped her into the car.

"Where are we going, Charlie?"

"You'll see." It wasn't a long drive. We only went a few blocks and I pulled into the school parking lot.

"Why are we here?"

I took her hand in mine. "Lara, four years ago, you wanted me to take you to the spring dance, and I didn't ask you." I motioned to the school building. "Tonight is the spring dance, and I couldn't miss the opportunity to make up for my mistake. Will you go to the dance with me?"

She grinned, and it made me recall that same grin on her face when she was seventeen. "Well, Chuck Williams, I thought you'd never ask."

----

THE END

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EPILOGUE, FOR THOSE WHO LIKE EPILOGUES - TEN YEARS LATER

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I stepped down today as Mayor of Gideon, and I couldn't be happier. The job was slow at first, so I was able to juggle it with my auto repair shop, but things picked up as I made positive changes to the town. I suppose it's my fault that the job of Mayor became more work because the town became more successful. A few more businesses opened up, and more houses were built.

One of the biggest changes I made was to finally incorporate our school into the district of another city. Kids still attended our school through the third grade, then hopped on a bus for a 40-minute bus ride to the city schools. Then, at tenth grade, students had the option of returning to our town's school for 'Agricultural Career Prep', rather than the usual high school curriculum. Many of our town's kids chose that option, but not all - several were interested in the college prep courses. The town's elders were a little annoyed at me about that, that their children would be leaving for college and possibly never move back, but they got over it eventually. To everyone's surprise, a few city kids chose the agricultural route, and attended the school here in Gideon.

I ran unopposed most of my ten years during re-elections. The only person who ran against me once was Mr. Anderson, the owner of the hardware store, but he was happy to lose.

He ran again when I announced I would not run for re-election. But, to my surprise, he had a fierce competitor: my sister-in-law, Prudence. She'd run the office after Betty retired, and decided to throw her hat in the ring. It was a close election, but Prudence was named the town's first female mayor.

Our family grew quickly. Zeke is now thirteen, Hannah is nine, and our youngest, Samantha, is seven. Steve and Prudence had a boy right before Hannah was born and named him Simon, then another boy named Paul, then another boy named Luke. It was like Prudence was trying for a girl and just couldn't get one. Frank and June had a boy too, Frank Jr., as a little brother to Eliza. All the cousins get together as much as we could arrange it, and they're real close. With eight grandchildren (so far), my parents are both happy as fat cats sleeping in the warm sunshine. Mom spoils them with her cookies, and Pop takes them for rides on the tractor.

Both my twin sisters, now 24, went to college after graduating high school. I think they both intended on getting 2-year degrees and moving back to Gideon, but Jilly met a nice boy named Dylan at school, and decided to stay on campus and get her Bachelor's, partially to stay with him. They got engaged right after graduation, and got an apartment in the city. Jenny likes to combine their names to call them "Jylan".

Joey stayed on at my auto shop after he graduated, as he liked working for me, and he made a good partner. Then he shocked the hell out of me when he started dating my sister Jenny. They're also engaged now. I told him I'll be happy to call him a brother, and he surprised me by asking me to be his best man, which I easily accepted. The twins will both be getting married next summer, on Saturdays one week apart.

Lara eventually took over the diner from her mother. She still works there six days a week, despite my requests for her to work less. But she makes the kids help by bussing tables and other odd jobs, and I agree with it, as I think everyone needs a least a little customer service experience. Lara was a little stressed when a Bruno's Pizza opened up in town, but I was eventually able to convince her that they weren't really competing with the diner.