Thank God for Irish Women Ch. 09

Monday, May 24, 2010

Although I didn't set the alarm, I woke early. The sunlight had just entered our bedroom.

I lay in bed and thought about the day. The stitches needed to come out, the ring sized, and a suitable "everyday" ring purchased. I also needed to call the hospital in Kansas City to arrange payment on behalf of Jodi's mom, Jackie.

After last night's discussion, I had a much better understanding of Emily. Having the large diamond was validation of my love for her. It made her feel more secure. But, flashing it around would cause others to feel the inferiority she had felt when they did things like that to her. She didn't want to hurt her friends like they had unintentionally hurt her.

After doing my morning duties, I left the sleeping Emily and walked to the house. Mom was there, but Dad had left for the day's work.

"Good morning, Mom."

"Hey sweetheart. Where's Emily?"

"Still sleeping. We were up late again."

"Your dad and I often stay up and talk at night. James said you're going to buy a smaller diamond today because of Emily's friends. Is that right?"

"That's right. Emily told me last night how she felt over the years when all her friends were getting electronics and clothes, but she couldn't afford them. She doesn't want to do the same thing to them."

Mom nodded and paused for a moment. "She's amazingly mature. I've not met another teenager whose ego is under control like that."

"As I'm finding every day, there's a lot more to Emily than meets the eye."

"I imagine there is. Every person shows the world what he or she wants the world to see. There's also the person hiding within us that rarely comes out. Emily is a beautiful person. But, her true beauty can rarely be seen because it's internal. That's why time together is critically important."

"We've been together constantly for almost three weeks, but every day seems to bring new revelations."

"I'm sure she's thinking the same thing. How about some breakfast?"

****

Shortly before 8:00, Emily came in. "Good morning!" she said with a big smile.

"Hey lady, you look nice." She had on the white shorts and a dark green silk blouse.

"Thanks. Where's Mom?"

"She's upstairs dressing."

Emily asked, "What's the plan for today?"

I reviewed everything that had come to my mind earlier, and Emily added that she'd like to look for some earrings as a gift for my mom. "She's been a perfect parent to me this past week and I want to show my appreciation with a small gift."

"I'm sure she'd appreciate that."

We were ready to go at 9:00 and I told Mom we'd be back when she saw us. The first stop was to have my stitches removed. There were six people waiting ahead of me so it took an hour to get the five-minute job done. The nurse was pleased with the appearance of the wound and said I could begin washing that area.

The next stop was the jewelry store. When we walked inside, Lisa saw me and came immediately.

"Good morning, Matt."

"Hey Lisa. This is my fiancée Emily Ryan. Emily, this is Lisa Angelino."

"Good morning, Lisa."

"Very nice to meet you, Emily. The ring Matt purchased is gorgeous, the best one I've ever sold. Did you come to have it sized?"

"Yes, we need to have it done today, if possible," I replied.

"Let's go back and get that going."

While they were away, I looked in the engagement ring display case and studied the options. Steve Mitchell, the manager, walked over.

"Hi Matt. Are you just looking?"

"No, believe it or not, Emily doesn't want to wear the diamond I bought except on special occasions. I'm looking for a smaller one for her to wear the rest of the time."

"That happens occasionally. Some women are very sensitive about wearing a showpiece like the one you bought. What size diamond are you looking for?"

"A one carat H or J set in platinum would be fine."

"A solitaire?"

"Yes, but she'll be here in a moment. I want her to choose it."

"Is she with Lisa in the lab?"

"Yes, getting the other one sized."

"Good. Come to my office when she's ready and I'll have them brought out."

When Emily and Lisa returned, I told her about the new ring we wanted. She showed Emily several rings in the case, but none were what she envisioned. Lisa poured coffee for us before we walked to Steve's office.

The diamonds were on his desk and, after introductions, he began showing the best ones first. Emily picked one priced at $6300... a round H, SI1 which was very pretty, just not in the ballpark with the big one. Emily was happy when we made the deal with a 8% discount. Steve said it'd take two hours to do the setting and sizing of the two rings.

Emily said, "Lisa. I'd like to buy a pair of earrings for someone. Could you show me what you have?"

"I can."

"Sweetheart, I'm going to make a phone call. I'll be back in a few minutes." She smiled, knowing I was planning to call the hospital.

I found the phone number using my Yellow Pages app. My call was eventually connected to the accounting department.

"Good morning. My name is Matt Anderson. A friend of mine is entering your hospital today, and I'd like to make arrangements to pay any charges that'd normally be the patient's portion after the insurance settlement."

"Mr. Anderson, we won't know that amount until the treatment is completed and the insurance settles with the hospital."

"I understand. I'd like to give you my phone number and have you put a note in her file saying all patient payment responsibility is to be mine. She has a high deductible policy, and I understand she's responsible for the first $2,500. I want to make sure I'm invoiced for that amount, not her."

"I've never done this. Let me ask my supervisor. Can you hold for a moment?"

I listened to soothing music obviously designed to calm enraged patients discussing their outrageous hospital bills.

In a minute or so, she returned. "Mr. Anderson, sorry to keep you waiting. What we can do is exactly what you suggested. We'll add a note to the insurance information to say that you intend to pay the patient's portion of any charges. The doctors who'll be doing a separate billing and insurance settlement for the services they provide will see that note and should contact you, like we'll do. Who's the patient?"

"Mrs. Jackie Davis."

There was a moment of silence. "I see that she checked in this morning and we have the insurance information. Can you give me your phone number?"

"Sure." I gave it, along with my full name and Dad's mailing address.

"This should work but if something goes wrong, let us know. It may be two months or longer before the total invoice is settled so you may not hear from us for a good while."

"That's fine, thank you very much."

"You're welcome. Thank you for doing this for her. I'm sure she appreciates it."

I returned to join Emily. She had found an elegant pair of two-toned yellow and white gold earrings that were suitable for most any occasion.

We drove around Des Moines to see the city and have an early lunch while the rings were sized. The Ruby Tuesday restaurant in Urbandale, just north of West Des Moines, had a good salad bar for lunch.

We were home mid-afternoon. Mom left a note saying she had gone to the funeral of Mrs. Lewis. It was a very warm day, and we changed into swimwear. I could finally get into the water.

As I began swimming laps, Emily relaxed in a lounge chair. The water was refreshing. She slipped in about five minutes later, and we began swimming side by side. She was an excellent swimmer, and her strong arms and legs propelled her along faster than I could go.

After maybe five laps, we came together in the corner of the deep end and held onto the side of the pool, trying to catch our breaths.

"That's good exercise," Emily said, breathing rapidly.

I gasped, "You're a good swimmer."

"You're not so bad. Just need practice."

"Yeah, I do."

Emily wrapped her free arm around me.

"I love you very much, Matthew. I'm sorry I caused you to spend extra money for a second diamond. I'm being ridiculous, I know."

"No, you're not. The manager told me that over the years several women have done the same thing. They felt the same way as you."

"He did? So I'm not the only one?"

"Not at all."

She gave me that familiar devious grin as I felt her hand down below. I wrapped my free arm around her and cupped a bare cheek revealed by her thong.

"You like to fondle my bottom, don't you?" She smiled.

"I do. It's sexy. You don't mind?"

"Not at all."

"You're an amazing woman, Emily."

"What's amazing about me?"

"Many things. I dated an Italian girl one time named Toni. She came to Tech from Rome and was in architecture. She wasn't near as beautiful as you, but she had style that I'd never experienced. You have even more of it."

"What do you mean by style?"

"It's hard to describe, but you and she have a presence about you that I call style. The clothes you wear, the way you wear them, the air of confidence that sets you apart from other women. Her accent was very sexy in the same way as yours."

"That's interesting. What else did you find sexy about her?"

"Her hands were perfectly manicured, and her feet pedicured all the time. She wore beautiful clothing, scarfs, patterned European hosiery, lovely makeup, but not too much, and she was very outgoing. She flirted with me constantly and was very cute when she did it. Toni was very energetic in bed. You're the same way."

"I don't pay as much attention to makeup and nails as I should. And I have very little in the way of hosiery."

"But your natural beauty doesn't need it."

"Awww, you're sweet. Did I scare you with my admission last night?"

"About feelings of insecurity?"

"Yes. I owed you an explanation, but then I regretted giving it."

"Why?"

"I gave you a glimpse of the most private part of me, and I could see that it bothered you. Even Mom didn't know how I felt about being poor. She worked so hard to provide for me that I would never dare complain. Unfortunately, I dumped it all on you last night."

"Sweetheart, I'm glad you did and it didn't bother me to hear what you were saying. It's very important that I understand your feelings. You're now the center of my life, Emily, and I love you... all of you. We are partners, and we will face any challenge together, I promise."

"Thank you, Matt. I love you."

We dried ourselves as best we could and walked to the guesthouse. Emily went directly to the bathroom. I heard the water running, and she came back totally naked. She did wear a huge smile, however.

She ran and jumped into my arms. As I lifted her by her bottom, she wrapped her legs around the small of my back and locked them. I carried her to bed and gently laid her there as she unwrapped her legs and arms.

"My period is over, sweetheart," she whispered.

"That was quick."

"I know. Sometimes its four days and sometimes five."

She lay quietly, watching me undress. She grinned as I approached and extended her arms to embrace me. Emily's soft lips seduced me. We kissed with open mouths; our tongues danced and darted. She caressed my neck, and back the entire time and I cupped her left breast, gently rolling her nipple.

The next five minutes was wild. We were all over each other as our desires took control.

The orgasm hit Emily hard. She jumped several times, twisted and whimpered trying to get away from me. Her body bucked and bounced as she tried to close her legs. I rolled with her so that she was on top and riding up and down my steel-like rod; I couldn't hold back any longer. The coveted tingling began deep inside me.

Emily's eyes flew open when she felt the spurts hit inside her. That set off another orgasm that caught her by surprise. She cried out. Perspiration trickled down her face. She jumped and twitched, leaned forward and pushed down on my chest while rapidly riding up and down me. It shocked us when she groaned and squirted. We were soaked and so was the bed... but were powerless to stop until her climax eased. Emily collapsed, onto my chest. Her damp hair was matted and fell across my face and neck. I could feel her fluid running down the sides of my hips and off my legs.

As we lay in the afterglow of the powerful orgasms, I cupped her bottom. We panted, and it took many seconds to recover. I rolled her over, withdrew my spent organ and walked to grab towels. She slid off the bed and pulled the sheets off by the time I returned.

Emily was exhausted. She stood beside the bed and stared at me, breathing through her mouth. She swallowed hard and asked, "What did I do? Did I pee on you?"

"No, you squirted."

"I've never done that. It felt as if I were peeing."

"That's what women say it feels like but it's actually fluid from your Skene's gland."

"I've never heard of that. Are you sure it wasn't urine?"

"I'm sure."

"Have you seen that before?"

"About half of my lovers squirted at one time or another. You were extremely excited."

"You're telling me. I was out of control."

We took a quick shower, dressed and carried the sheets and mattress pad to the laundry room. As Emily put them in the washer, we heard Mom's car arrive.

I greeted her as she walked in, "Hey Mom."

"Hi Matt. Did you and Emily have a successful shopping trip?"

Emily walked into the room and heard the question. "Yes, we did," she replied with a broad smile. "Look what he bought me."

Mom's eyes focused on the new engagement ring and smiled. "That's very pretty, Emily... just perfect, in fact. Now, I'm big time jealous since you have two diamonds and I only have one." She smiled and added, "I'm glad he bought it for you."

"I am too. The big diamond is special, and I love it. But, this is one I can show my friends."

Mom replied, "I'm glad you're sensitive to that. It shows a maturity I've never seen in a teenager."

"Thanks Mom." Emily came over and hugged my arm. "You raised a very special son. He makes me a better person every day."

Mom replied, "He's kind of special, but so are you." Emily smiled.

I asked, "How was the funeral?"

"It was a large gathering, maybe 300 people. She was well loved and in our church for more than 40 years. The family appreciated everyone coming. Several of her children told me how good the ham was and how they appreciated it.

"By the way, I received a pleasant call from Jodi this morning to thank me for having them up and arranging the interviews. She's a very sweet young lady."

"Did she say anything about her mom?" I asked.

"She was having tests done when Jodi called. She didn't know when the surgery might be."

Emily asked, "Was Jodi scheduled to work today?"

"Tonight, I think," Mom replied.

"If you'll excuse me, I'll go call her," Emily said. She walked to the guesthouse for her phone.

"When are you planning to drive on to San Francisco?" Mom asked.

"We're talking about leaving tomorrow after breakfast. We'll take our time and get there Friday morning."

"Did the doctor say you could drive?"

"He said I shouldn't for a few days. I feel fine now and stopped taking the medication this morning."

"Emily said she'd have the apartment through September."

"That's right. Patrick's dad had already paid the rent; so he's letting her live there until then. But, I want to find another place we can call our own as soon as possible. The housing prices have dropped substantially in that area so we might look for a house."

"The houses will still be high, but you're right to want to get into one while the market is down. Do you have enough for a down payment?"

"Plenty. Even after the two rings, I have a little over $600,000 in available cash. I can withdraw another $700,000 in September."

"You haven't spent very much."

"As you know, I took out a million over the last four years to pay for school, the apartment, and living expenses in Atlanta. All that was only $350,000. Then, I bought the Explorer with the interest income."

"Well, you're certainly not wasting it. If you're ever short, just let me or your dad know. Half of this farm and everything we have will be yours one day and we'll be glad to give you some early if you want it."

"Thanks but we'll be fine. We'll actually be giving some money away I think."

"Oh, that's nice."

"Emily wants to start a foundation that would provide emergency funding to people that need help. We met a couple in Atlanta named Bob and Judy Thompson who did that with funding from country music stars."

"She told me about them and the Grand Ole Opry experience you had."

"Good. She's planning to visit them to learn about their work and how she might do it in the future."

"Let us know when the foundation is up and going. We'll give her some money to use."

"Thanks, I will. The big challenge is separating those who actually need help from those trying to take advantage of generous people."

"Speaking of that, our church has a small committee that investigates requests for help that come, often from total strangers. It's amazing how many people out there prey on the generosity of churches. They come in with some made-up story about a need and expect that the church will give them money because we're Christians. But, we carefully check their story and let other churches in our area know if we find a problem."

"That's sad, in a way, that you have to do that."

"I heard about one man who came in asking for money to help pay the funeral costs of his mother. He gave the name of his mom, and the committee checked it out. There was a woman by that name who had died a couple of days earlier. The committee rep called the funeral home and found that her funeral was prepaid and that nothing was due. Also, the man wasn't a son of hers."

"He must have picked her name out of the obituaries and began visiting all the churches to rip off money," I replied.

"Right. When he returned to get his money, the police met him and hauled him off. He had the audacity to curse our office staff and yell that they weren't being Christians."

Emily returned and looked relieved. "Talked to Jodi and her Mom will be fine. She said there was a bleeding ulcer, but no stomach perforation. A gastroenterologist used a fiber optic camera to find the problem. He cauterized the leaking blood vessel. They put her on medication and told her not to take aspirin or ibuprofen. I didn't realize it, but those are bad for the lining of your stomach."

I responded, "That's great news. Her mom needs to take it easy."

"She's being released this evening or tomorrow morning."

"Good, maybe we can check again in a couple of days."

Mom asked, "Do you want anything special for dinner?"

"I've always liked your country style steak with fried onions," I replied.

Emily asked, "Is there any of the blueberry pie left?"

"One piece."

Emily and I looked askance at each other before she said, "Okay, we'll split it." We both grinned.

****

The country style steak was tender, and Mom served it with mashed potatoes and broccoli. I think Emily got a larger "half" of the pie piece but I didn't complain. I'd get even later.

Dad reported that the cattle looked good and the affected ones were showing early signs of recovery. The dairy company had not yet approved the milk but expected to do so by Thursday. Until then, it was dumped into one of the large hay fields where the grass would enjoy it.

The evening was a quiet one. Emily and I packed for the trip. I noticed that my headache was almost gone, and I would be able to drive without safety concerns.

We retired early but cuddled in bed and talked about the drive and her friends in San Francisco for more than an hour. Her warm body felt very comfortable when she tucked her back and bottom into me. Her breast more than filled my hand and we fell asleep while I held it.