Chapter 15
GINGER FED THE kids lunch and then called Christy to see if she was okay with her bringing the kids to Adele’s house for a swim. She was feeling the need of some extra eyes to help her with the kids, but actually to calm her nerves. The incident outside the library today still bothered her. Her own home felt small, and the neighborhood wasn’t as nice as Adele’s, so she felt vulnerable. With the workmen and landscapers all around, she thought the sheer numbers of people around would make her feel more protected.
Christy was fine with it, so next she called Adele, who was delighted. “I Monica is bringing Sam over this evening. She has a date with one of the men she met at your father-in-law’s service.”
“Really? That’s nice. I thought the whole team was down with Jake.”
“That’s all she told me sweetie. Someone new perhaps who didn’t get asked to go? Or someone on another Team. But he’s definitely a SEAL.”
“Jake will want to hear all about it. And he’ll check the guy out thoroughly.”
Adele laughed. “Ginger, you are taking this way better than I ever guessed you would. You know, some wives would get downright territorial.”
“Believe me, Adele, I’m learning every day. Every day is a stretch for me. Not at the breaking point yet, and trying to be accepting and flexible. But sometimes I’d like to drop kick Jake for being so irresponsible, and other times I want to drop kick the exes.”
“Well, you come on over here when you can.”
The children were all excited, except Brandon had a problem. He pulled on Ginger’s top and asked her to bend over so he could whisper something.
“I don’t have swimming trunks.”
“Maybe Adele has some. She’s got kids over there all the time. But if not, you can just go in your underwear.”
Brandon fidgeted, biting his lip and staring at his pointed toe trying to dig a hole to China. He crooked his forefinger again, a signal Ginger better lean down again.
“What is it, sweetie?”
“I want commando like Dad does sometimes.”
She was trying to hold it all inside, and finally had to slap her hand across her mouth.
“Then I give you permission to wear those.” She pointed to his shorts.
“What will I wear home, then?”
“You can wear one of my girl’s dresses, or you can wrap your naked body in a towel, my man.”
Brandon looked at her horrified, shocked that she’d said such a thing.
“Why don’t we go to Jasmine’s dresser and see if she has something you can wear that’s plain enough to be worn by a handsome man like yourself.”
“Absolutely no flowers,” he said, pointing to the ceiling with his forefinger.
Ginger asked the girls to watch Maggie for a couple of minutes while she and Brandon went into the girls’ room.
“Yuck!” Brandon said, examining all the pink on the walls and the pictures of Chelsea Fiona taken by a cell phone and then printed out. The dog streaked past them and jumped on Jennifer’s made bed, waiting to watch what they were up to.
“It stinks in here.”
“That would be the perfume Jasmine got for her birthday and Jennifer dropped. Sorry.”
Ginger went to the third drawer in a painted bureau and started sifting through several pairs of long as well as short pants. She found a gray pair of stretchy shorts. “How about this.”
“No. Doesn’t have the thing, you know, there.”
He’d been referring to the zipper or button enclosure like most boys’ pants had.
“Oh that doesn’t matter. You just pull them down if you have to go.”
“No, it will show my thing.”
“Oh.” Ginger noted that her lack of experience with little boys was showing. Inside, she was about ready to bust a gut. But she took his demands very seriously.
At last she found a pair of plain jeans shorts. It also didn’t have an enclosure, but it had stitching to make it look like it had one, and that was acceptable to Brandon.
The problem was solved.
GINGER HELD CHELSEA Fiona under her arm when they walked through Adele’s front door. “I hope you don’t mind. I was worried she’d just yap and yap and I’d get in trouble with the neighbors.”
“Nonsense! I’m the reason you got her. All my fault,” she bent down, took the dog and talked baby talk to him.
The kids ran through the kitchen and out onto the patio and into the water. Ginger had to run to catch up to Maggie, who was going to jump in, but didn’t know how to swim yet. She hoisted the squealing child up in the air. “We have to change your clothes, and take off that diaper, Maggie. And one of us has to go in the water with you, okay?”
Maggie let her considerable lower lip droop and curl down as she watched the other children play. She removed her wet diaper and put on pool diapers and a plastic pair of elastic diaper covers.
“I’m going outside to find the water wings and the other toys,” Adele told her, and headed for the tool shed at the side of the pool under a large tree.
Ginger had her suit on under her cotton dress, but she retrieved her hat and the sunscreen and took Maggie out to the patio. There she smoothed the sun protection all over the jumping girl’s pink chubby body, then slathered it generously all over her own fair skin.
“Whoa you’re using it all up, Ginger. You have enough for the girls and Brandon?”
“Sure I do. I used to tell Jake I could get a sunburn from a flashlight, my skin is so fair.”
Adele took Maggie and the donut ring, applied the water wings and brought Maggie down the pool steps until they were both in the water. Maggie splashed and kicked, trying to propel herself closer to the older kids, but Adele had a hand on the back of the donut ring and Maggie finally gave up.
Ginger called each of the kids over to her patio chair and gave them heavy applications of sunscreen and handed the girls their goggles so they could spy on people under water. She made Brandon do the same, much to his protest.
They were playing a game of picking up colorful plastic rings tossed into the pool. Ginger took one and gave it to Maggie, who tried to throw it several times, managing to toss it only about a foot. Adele floated her closer so she could retrieve it, and then repeated the process.
“Where’s Gerud? Jake told me he was moving in with you.” Ginger came around to the steps and began to enter the pool on the shallow side.
“He has, but he went to LA to visit Rob Peterson.”
“That’s nice. So I guess they’re getting along, then.”
“Very well, from the sounds of it. I owe him a visit as well.”
“I’m glad to see you so happy, Adele. So much has changed since Burt’s death not even a month ago now.”
Maggie held her arms out and Adele floated her over to Ginger. The two of them began to bob in the pool together.
“I think this was more a business meeting. I told you he was going to help Gerud, didn’t I?”
“Yes. I’d say that’s good for both of them.”
“You know, Gerud always tried so hard to win Burt’s affection, but it was always Jake. Jake was his favorite, and he never tried to hide that fact. It used to irritate me. I tried to make it up to him, but a boy doesn’t want to take his mom as a substitute for a father’s love. Fathers and sons are special. Now he has something none of the rest of us has. And it’s not just a financial arrangement. I think Rob actually wants to get it right, to finish his life giving back. I’m so thankful, but we’ll see where it goes.”
“Why do you think Jake was favored?”
“Jake could do anything. He was the star athlete. Handsome. All the girls wanted to meet Gerud so they could be introduced to Jake. It was like he was Jake’s shadow.”
“But Jake loves being with his brother.”
“Oh I know. He’s not the jealous type. Burt liked that too. Gerud couldn’t wait to hear him come home with all his adventures when he was off to the Navy. And the more he got caught up in it, and got on the Teams, then married to you, I think the more Burt thought he’d lost him. His little brother missed him terribly. So Gerud went to work for Burt. Did everything he could. And then they made that one bad investment and it was like the man was broken. That’s when all the arguments started. You saw them.”
“I did. They were very vicious. Cut very close to the bone.”
“No one was safe from those.”
“Hey there you lovely ladies!” Gerud crossed the lawn area and took a chair near the pool’s edge.
“Uncle Gerud, come into the pool with us, please!”
“Please, please please Uncle Gerud,” begged Jennifer, mimicking her older sister.
“In a couple of minutes. Let me talk to grandma and your mom for a bit. Hey Brandon.”
“Hey Gerud,” Brandon returned.
“How did it go?” Adele leaned against the side of the pool and squinted up to her son’s face. Ginger was still bobbing with little Maggie.
“It went fantastic. He’s a genius.” The roll of drawings was secured with a large blue rubber band as he held them up. “He took these, and we identified several things we could do to add terrific value. Maybe even do that expansion dad wanted to do.”
“How?”
“Well, like I said, I’ve never seen anyone so smart when it comes to investing. We came up with several action items I need to complete this week, and fax back to him. And then we’ll go one step at a time. Mom, Rob said he might help me finance the expansion. He says he’s watching me.”
“Sounds like if you play your cards right, Gerud, you two will be partners.”
Gerud fiddled with his palm. “I wish we had more time.”
The sobering thought left the three adults quiet. The giggles and screams of the three older kids drew their attention away from the awkward silence.
“There never is enough time. Before they know it, they’ll be our age. And we’ll be the ones they’ll tell stories about.” Adele wiped a tear from under her eye.
“They’ll be great stories, mom,” said Gerud.
“The best,” said Ginger. “Huh, Maggie?”
The toddler splashed water in her face.