Yakima Ch. 13-14

Chapter 13 In for a Penny

My grandmother on my father's side used to say "in for a penny, in for a pound" when she was playing cards. It meant she knew she was taking a risk, but you either played to win, or you folded. That's where I was when I stepped off the plane in Yakima on my return. It was a Saturday afternoon and it was no surprise that Ali was accompanied by Jack, Jess and Matt. They were all anxious to greet me and it was nice to have a warm reception. I felt pretty damn good about my family and my girlfriend.

I wrapped her in my arms when we met at the arrivals gate and kissed her with passion. Ali looked a little pensive and I suppose that was because she was waiting to hear my decision about our future. I was bombarded by questions as we stood at the baggage arrival area. I took Ali by the hand as we walked to the car park and I hoped with that and my kiss I signaled my intentions. I was informed we were all heading back to my townhouse. Ali and Jess were going to handle making supper and I could unpack, have a shower and enjoy the rest of the day with my extended family.

We didn't get very far before Jess spilled the beans.

"Dad, Mom put the house up for sale yesterday. She said it was time both you and her moved on. I guess Matt and me are going to be living with you for a while."

Jess didn't sound particularly stressed by this turn of events, but Matt was silent, as was Ali.

"Why don't you all come and live at my house," Jack said, breaking the silence. "Matt could stay in my room with me and Jess could have the other bedroom. Grime could sleep in Mom's room, just like he's supposed to."

What! Where did that come from? There was another momentary silence before all hell broke loose. All hell being uproarious laughter on the part of Ali, Matt and Jess. I looked back at Jack who now wore a bewildered expression, wondering what he'd said, no doubt. I'm sure my face was crimson.

"Busted, Dad," Jess said between laughs. She and Matt were bracketing Jack in the back seat of Ali's Ford.

I had no idea how to respond to Jack's innocent plan, but everyone else had something to say.

"Great idea, Grime," Ali pronounced.

"Yeah ... that would work, Dad," Matt volunteered.

"See, I told you guys it would be okay," Jack said, quickly realizing he had general support for his proposal.

"So you young people decided all this while I was away, right?" I accused, trying not to sound irritated.

"No ... just this morning," Matt said. "At first we tried to figure out how to make it work at your townhouse, but Jack said there was more room at his house. They even have a basement with a big playroom and a bathroom."

"Judging by your reaction, Ms. Bledsoe, can I assume you were involved in this decision?" I suggested.

"Oh yeah," she giggled. "It got dropped on me in the car on the way to the airport. I've had lots of time to think about it. Sounds quite sensible actually."

"Well, before you start making too many plans," I said quietly, "how about you and I discuss this privately."

She looked at me with a sly smile and nodded in the affirmative.

We offloaded everyone at the townhouse. I put my suitcase into the bedroom, but didn't bother to unpack yet. I thought Ali and I should have a talk first.

"Matt, Jess, would you watch Jack for a while?" I requested. "Ali and I need to have a talk. We're going for a walk. We won't be too long."

"You're not too cold, are you?" I asked Ali as we walked toward a nearby park.

"No, I'm fine, especially since I've got you nearby to keep me warm."

"There are some things about me you need to know. Some you might already know or suspect, and others that you might be unaware of, just as I have been in some cases."

"That's a rather confusing thing to say," she said. "What are you trying to tell me?"

"Okay," I sighed, "here goes. First, until now, I've been very compliant. By that I mean, I've usually compromised or conceded to what others wanted, especially Reese. I think this may have led her to believe I was weak. From here on out, I'm not going to just go along with what others want. I'm going to decide what I think is right and I'm going to say so."

"Okay," Ali said with a serious look. "I can understand that."

"Good, because there are other changes I'm going to make. I'm trying very hard to get rid of the anger I'm carrying around with me. I'm angry with Reese for betraying me and our family. I'm also angry with her for trying to take financial advantage of me. If she didn't dream it up, she certainly went along with it. Somehow or other, I've got to put that behind me.

"I'm also angry with the little shit that drove that damn pickup truck and caused me so much pain and grief. What makes me angry isn't that he made a stupid mistake. I'm angry because at no time did he ever say he was sorry. I'm sure his parents and his lawyers are the cause of that. Probably afraid that it would be an admission of liability and God knows, lawyers don't want to hear that from their clients.

"Thirdly, I'm pretty sure Reese has put the house for sale because she now knows for sure that we are never going to be back together again. You'll notice she didn't have the courtesy to let me know what she was going to do. That's been our family home for a lot of years and I'm not sure I won't buy it from her. I haven't had time to think that through. But it's typical of the way things happen around me. They just ... happen! I'm tired of it. I'm going to say something to her about it, regardless if it hurts her feelings or not."

I felt like I'd said what I needed to say, and that left only one thing more I needed to talk to Ali about. At that moment, she was still speechless after my very forceful little rant.

"I'm sure after hearing that," I continued in a less aggressive tone, "that you might have second thoughts about getting involved with me. I can understand that. I've had a lot of pressure on me over the last year and I guess I'm trying to get out from under it. I'm sorry if I sound hard-nosed or mean, but you might as well hear the real me and not the nice, varnished version everyone is so used to."

Ali stopped walking at that point and since she had her arm though mine, I stopped as well and turned to her. She said nothing right away, just looked at me with wide eyes and wrinkled forehead.

"Do you feel better now?" I didn't detect any petulance in her question.

"A little. It's been boiling up inside me for some time. Mary Farnsworth told me I had to let it out, but I'm not sure what you heard today is going to be the end of it."

"Mary is your psychologist, I take it?"

"Yes."

"And what did Mary have to say about me ... or you and me?"

"Well, all she could go by was my description of you and our relationship. She did say she thought that you had a very strong personality and I would have to be willing to confront it now and then."

"And how would you confront it?" she asked, the beginnings of a wry smile forming.

"A good spanking would be a start," I grinned. "Me Tarzan, you Jane."

"You're joking, I hope."

"Not a bit. I don't mean you get a spanking every time we disagree, but now and then, it might be good to remember that we are supposed to be equal partners in this relationship."

"And just what does a 'relationship' mean in this case?" she probed.

I reached in my pocket and pulled out a small blue velvet envelope. "It means that if you think you can stand the sight of me day after day, I'd like you to become my wife, Allison Bledsoe."

I held the ring up for her to see clearly and so that I could see the expression on her face. That expression changed several times until, with a shaking hand, she pushed the third finger of her left hand onto the ring, looked up at me with the beginnings of tears forming, and nodded.

"Yes. Yes. Yes, Grime. Yes." She repeated herself calmly, almost as if she was convincing herself of something.

"I've never had a ring before," she said, alternately looking at it and then at me. "I've never had a real husband before. Jack has never had a father before. But yes, I will marry you and I will make you very, very happy. If I don't, you can spank me," she snorted, tears now trickling down her cheeks.

I wrapped her in my arms. "I love you, Ali Bledsoe. I love you to pieces. You are so right for me. Especially now. You are so alive and exciting to be with. I had two weeks to ask myself if I was sure. I think I knew all along, but with what happened in the past year still fresh in my mind, I didn't think I could afford to have any doubts. I don't, Ali. You're the woman for me. No doubt about it."

"I knew you were the man for me on New Year's Eve, my love. Don't ask me how because I can't explain it, but Mum will tell you what I told her the next day. She was the one who told me to take my time because of what had happened to your first marriage. But she also told me that everything she had heard about you was good. That's all I needed to hear."

"Well, looks like you got your wish," I smiled before kissing her deeply and passionately.

"We're making quite a public display of ourselves," she reminded me as we stood on the sidewalk in front of the park. Cars were passing by and some honked as they did so. I was oblivious to it all. I was too wrapped up in my lovely Ali.

As we walked back to the townhouse, it was Ali who asked the key question.

"Where are we going to live?"

"I think that's a discussion we need to have with the children included," I said. "They'll tell us the truth about what they want. Then we can make a decision knowing how they feel."

She nodded. "Okay. They're going to be gob smacked when I show them the ring, you know."

"I wonder," I mused. "They always seem to be a couple of steps ahead of me."

When we arrived back at the townhouse, we found all three youngsters in the front room waiting for us. Leave it to Jess to spot the ring first.

"You did it!" she squealed. "You're engaged! Yippee!" She jumped up and rushed to us to give first Ali, then me a big hug. Matt wasn't far behind.

"Nice going, Dad. You can really pick 'em," he grinned with first a handshake, then a hug.

Jack looked a little bewildered by the celebration, but wanted to join in. "What's engaged?" he asked, looking first at Ali, then me.

"It means your mom and my dad are going to get married," Jess explained. "Then, we'll all be family. You'll be my little brother and I'll be your sister,"

"You'll be my real dad?" he turned to me.

"Yes, I'll be your real dad," I smiled.

"All right! I finally got a dad." The enthusiasm in his voice told me that he was fine with the future arrangement.

I never felt I had to work at getting Jack to like me. He seemed to accept me almost right away and since he got along with Jess and Matt so readily, it was easy for Ali and me to have him around when my children were present. Jack, or Jackie as Ali and Kim referred to him, had convinced Matt to be his teacher in all things baseball and was a quick and willing student. The more I saw of the young guy, the more I began to think that he was a unique child, much smarter and wiser than his age.

"Is everyone going to live at our house?" Jack asked.

"That's not decided," Ali said. "We want to talk to all of you and see what makes the most sense."

If there was one thing about my daughter, she wasn't the shy, retiring type. She was first to lead the discussion.

"Our house has four bedrooms. This townhouse only has three and Ali's home only has three, but it does have a basement. I think you should sell the townhouse and buy Mom's share of our old house. There'll be plenty of room for us and we'll all still be going to the same schools."

"Well, that's one vote," I said. "Who's next?"

"I'll be going to college next year," Matt said. "That means the extra bedroom isn't that important."

"Aren't you ever planning to come home again?" Jess asked with a disgusted look.

"Yeah ... well ... sure but ... I mean ... I won't be here very much. My summer job might be somewhere else," my son stumbled as he tried to rationalize his comments.

"What do you think, Jack?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I like our house, but I like that big house too."

"Ali?" I asked, turning to her.

"I think we all agree that the townhouse should go," she said, looking around the room. "That leaves my house and the bigger home the three of you have lived in. I'll go along with whatever the group decides. Both homes are very nice and I'm sure we'd be happy in either one of them."

I was trying to figure out if I was the deciding vote or not. That wasn't a solution, however.

"Okay, here's what I propose. We'll write our choice on a piece of paper, put it in an envelope, then we'll count the votes. There are five of us, so we won't have a tie. The majority rules, okay? Is everyone all right with that?"

I saw nods all around the room.

"Okay then, you don't have to write out anything but a number. Number 1 means Ali's home and number 2 means our old home. Got it?"

I saw more nods, including Jack. I kept it simple for him and it seemed to work. He knew what we were doing.

I cut five equal pieces of heavy poster stock into three inch by two inch pieces. I scrounged up five pencils for each of us and then we scattered to cast our votes. It was far from a secret ballot, but I gave everyone the opportunity to make it so. I found an empty used envelope and when everyone said they were ready, I went around the room, averting my eyes as each person put their vote into the envelope. When we were finished, I sat at the kitchen table, looked at the five pieces of paper, and got a surprise.

"The vote is five-to-zero for number 2," I said. "I'm surprised, but very pleased that we all agree."

"I think it was the sensible choice," Ali said.

I looked at young Jack. "You're okay with it, Jack?"

He nodded but didn't say anything. However, he was smiling.

Later on that afternoon as Jess had gone off to Mindy's, Matt was running an errand for Ali at the grocery store, and Ali was involved with preparing the dinner, Jack came over to the sofa where I was sitting, reading a magazine.

"Is it okay if I sit here?" he asked as he moved up right beside me.

"Sure. But I have a question for you. How come you voted for my home and not your home?"

He leaned over and tried to whisper. "Don't tell Mum, but I saw her write her number and I wanted her to be happy, so I wrote the same number."

I wrapped my arm around the little guy and hugged him to me. I didn't dare try and speak. It was one of those moments that when they happen, you don't forget them.

Sunday, the five of us had two visits to make. The first was to Kim Bledsoe's home. She would be the first to be told of our engagement, knowing that she would approve and be happy for both Ali and Jack. The second visit was to my parents. I was pretty sure we would get the same reception there as well.

It was no surprise to find Miles Hoffman at Kim's house when we arrived that morning. They had just finished a late breakfast when we rang the door chime. The look of surprise on Kim's face, followed by the grin on Miles's was our greeting.

"Well, the whole tribe is here," Kim said, looking at my youngsters. "Come in, come in," she welcomed us.

Ali couldn't resist and flashed the engagement ring at her mother in the most obvious way.

"Oh, Allison ... I'm so happy for you," Kim said, tears rapidly forming. She had her daughter in a bear hug and was rocking back in forth in joy.

I turned to Miles as he approached me with his hand extended. "Congratulations, Graham. I know you'll be very happy with Allison as your bride. And I can assume the children feel that way as well?"

"Yes ... it was pretty much universal approval," I grinned. "I'm going to buy Reese's share of our house and we'll be living there. It has the room we need. I may need your help with that."

"Of course. I'm very happy for both of you ... all of you. Young Jack will be very pleased to have a father at last."

I nodded. "Yes. Jack was a big part of this romance. I wanted him to be completely at ease with me. I'm pretty confident that I've accomplished that. But just as important is that I love both his mother and him. They come as a package and I'm delighted with that."

I didn't get a chance to say any more and I was enveloped by a tearful Kim and her hug. "Welcome to our family, Graham. I'm so happy for you and Allison and Jackie. I've waited so long for my daughter to find the right man for her and our grandson. I couldn't be happier with her choice."

"I'm bringing in a couple of additional grandchildren for you, Kim," I kidded. "I hope you don't mind."

"Mind? I get two more young people to spoil. This is a wonderful day, Graham. A wonderful, wonderful day. Thank you. Thank you for making Allison so happy. Thank you for loving Jackie. I don't think I'll ever forget this day," she said, weeping with happiness.

I couldn't manage anything to respond. I was unexpectedly choked up. I had not realized just how important this union was to Kim. I hugged her tightly and I'm sure she could see the glistening that was clouding my vision. She kissed my cheek, squeezed me once more, and stepped back. Her smile was genuine and I felt ten feet tall at that moment. I hadn't realized just how much her acceptance meant to me.

Our reception at my parent's home was just as emotional. I expected that from my mother. That's just the way she was. But Dad was very demonstrative in his acceptance of Ali and Jack. Dad spent some time with Jack and I heard him explain that he would always be welcome at their home. He also told Jack about the cabin on the Yakima River and how they could go up there and do some rafting.

And Jack ... well ... this was all a bit strange to him until I sat with him and explained that he now had two new grandparents to go with his new brother, sister and father. I couldn't bring myself to call Jess and Matt his step-siblings. It sounded too cold and it was as if I was suggesting they weren't really his family. Maybe I underestimated Jack, but as far as I was concerned, from the day I married his mother, he was my son.

~*~

Reese had disappeared over the weekend and I didn't hear from her until Monday.

"Graham, I know you're aware that I've put the house up for sale. Matt and Jess tell me that you are engaged to Ali and that you want to buy my share of the house. I'm happy to do that. How will we decide on the price?"

"I'll get an appraisal from a couple of real estate agents and if we can come to an agreement, I'll arrange to buy your share. It makes the most sense to have enough room for all the children."

"Yes, of course. I should have said something to you beforehand, but I made a decision and didn't think about you wanting the house. I apologize."

"No harm done, Reese. But I am curious. What caused the sudden decision?"

"I've decided to go back to school in the New Year. I intend to enroll at Central Washington in Ellensburg. I'll be taking business management courses. I have a part-time job opportunity near there. The money from Gordon and the sale of the house will see me through. I'll still be able to visit the children on most weekends. It's less than an hour's drive."

"What about your job at Kimble?" I asked.

"I've decided to resign at the end of the year. It will be too hard for me to work for Allison, knowing that she will be married to you. I'm very grateful that she's given me the opportunity, but I just wouldn't be happy in those circumstances."

"Where are you going to live?"

"I'm staying with my parents again for a while, then looking for a roommate I can share with on campus. I should have enough money from the sale of the house to put me through when it's combined with my income."