Can I Talk To You?

Can I Talk To You For A Minute?

This is so fucked up.

......................................................

I once made a promise to a woman, someone I cared deeply about. It was the hardest promise I ever made, but I kept the secret locked inside me for years. I'd only told one person, my wife, and she kept my confidence.

Now, the woman was gone, and I wondered if the promise still bound me.

All this flashed through my head as she came in and sat quietly, her eyes down and her hands trembling. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

I didn't want to meet her, and I didn't need the painful memories it dredged up. Her mother was the one, the true love of my life, the one I never got over losing. And now her daughter was before me, wanting a conversation that was eighteen years in the making.

"Are you my father?"

I sighed, looking down at the picture in my drawer. It was me and her mother from years ago, when we were still friends. "I think I might be, honey."

............................................................................................

Twenty-five years ago, I was an earnest 22-year-old trying to make my way through life. I'd grown up dirt poor, the child of a single mother who had never met my father. Mom had two more children, both girls, by different fathers, and we learned early that you didn't get much when Welfare determined your budget. I started working when I was twelve, determined to break the cycle of poverty for me and my sisters, even if I didn't understand it then. I never hung out after school, played sports, or dated until I got out of high school.

I denied myself sometimes, but my sisters lacked for nothing. They didn't get frivolous things a lot, but they got new clothes, food, shoes, Christmas presents, and had their birthdays celebrated. One became a cheerleader, and the other became a nerd, but she was a pretty sharp nerd and extremely attractive in her own right. They both got scholarships, the oldest for cheerleading, of all things, and I'd see her from time to time on television when the football team was featured.

Despite all that, she had a good brain, with a GPA of 3.7, and she didn't take puffball classes. She graduated summa cum laude and got a grant to pursue her Master's in Physical Therapy.

Three years later, my little sister graduated and was heavily recruited by almost every tech company worldwide. She decided to go with a little startup company that gave her an ownership option and soon was worth quite a bit on paper. It was quite a surprise to me when she made sure I got 5%, a thank you for helping her through school.

Two years after that, she called me: "Matt, listen to me. Sell your shares. Something is coming, something bad, and the company is going to be worthless in about a month. I can't say more, but get rid of it while you can."

She sold hers at the same time I did, and I was shocked beyond words when the check came in. $280,000, and that was after fees and taxes. That meant she netted a little over a million. Ninety days later, the company didn't exist, and she and a partner bought what was left and restarted it under a different business model.

Connie went on to become a business magnate worth almost a billion in thirty years, and Celeste became a licensed physical therapist with a thriving business concentrating on the rehabilitation of sports injuries. Most of her clients were big-name athletes, and she did quite well.

I eventually got my own business, and from a humble beginning, I managed to do pretty well.

......................................................................................................

I was an assistant foreman in a factory at the time this tale started, doing all right considering my beginnings. No one knew about the windfall from my sister, and I wasn't about to tell.

I had a girlfriend, and she didn't know it, but she was about to be a former girlfriend. She was big, blond, and outspoken, but the sex was breaking the bed level almost every time, so I decided to ride the train until it hit the station. She knew I had a good job, a nice little two-bedroom starter home, and decided I was her ticket out. She held a series of dead end jobs while we were together, never lasting more than a few months, and she was thinking being a stay at home wife was an excellent career choice. I was already planning an exit strategy when the incident happened.

We ran with a loose group of friends, some married, but most just coupled, and we'd get together every two weeks or so to party. They could get pretty wild depending on who attended, so I always kept an eye out, especially when they were at my house. That night, we were at Mike's house, a rented singlewide trailer. Mike was a competitive guy, five eight, stocky, and blond where most were darkhaired. Most of us were taller, which bothered him. I was the tallest in the bunch, 6'3", and he hated standing beside me. His wife was a little doll, a dark-haired beauty about 5'3", slightly built, but what she had looked good on her small frame.

There was an instant attraction between us and we would often sit and watch our friends get stoned and stupid, talking about everything. I often wondered how he managed to end up with Rhonda. Mike started noticing, and he picked up few fights with her, about me. I found out by accident and jumped him the next time we were together. "Stop giving your wife shit about me! All we've ever done is talk. Maybe you should get your face out of a beer can long enough to have a conversation with her. It might surprise you."

He went on a rant about staying away from his wife, or he'd fuck me up. He had a reputation as a scrapper and tried to intimidate everyone. Few of them bought it. My crowd was pretty rough, and I knew of at least two who would mop the floor with him if he pushed it. And if he would have listened, they would have told him to be careful about pissing me off.

Mike was always chasing get-rich schemes, one of the many reasons they lived in a trailer. Rhonda had a good job working for her stepfather and would eventually inherit his used car dealership. The man had a good reputation, and he was known to sometimes just loan a car to someone struggling for as much as two months if they were broke and hurting. It gave him a loyal customer base. Mike was a factory worker, and he told people he was a foreman, but I knew a few managers there, and they laughed when I told them what he'd said.

"He's a drone, brother, and barely hangs on to his job because of attendance issues."

I never brought it up in conversation and would just grin while he told someone else how he singlehandedly kept the place going. Then he found out about my promotion, and his attitude got worse. If it hadn't been for Rhonda I would have stopped hanging with him completely.

..............................................................................................................

Then came the night. Five couples were going to meet at their house and possibly go out to a club. Mike was grinning, talking about all the fun we would have, and handed me a drink. I had one more and decided to stop because I was driving. I noticed the looks Mike and my girlfriend were giving each other and wondered what it was about. Then I got sleepy.

I fought it for a while before I passed out.

I woke up later in bed with my girlfriend spooned against me. I had my hand on a breast and was stroking her ass. Even still half asleep, I thought it odd how small her breasts felt. Charlotte had a 38D chest and was a handful. But she was moaning and pushing back against me, so I stopped thinking about it and slid right into her. It felt better than usual, and she sighed as she thrust back. It took a little while to get off in that position, but it was worth it.

When we were done we passed out again. Two hours later, I woke up to find her on top, sliding up and down and moaning. I just grabbed her hips and started helping. When we were done this time, we were a sweaty, sticky mess. An hour later I had her on her knees, sliding in from behind while she moaned. Just before I got off, I realized it wasn't my girlfriend. It was Rhonda!

I sincerely tried to stop, but she kept pushing back, telling me how good it felt, so I just let it happen. When we were done this time, I gave her a few minutes before waking her up.

"Rhonda! Rhonda!"

She popped an eye open, looked at me, and screamed! I tried to comfort her, but she scrambled off the bed with the sheet wrapped around her. That left me naked, and when she saw me, she screamed again. She ran into the bathroom and locked the door. Thirty minutes later, I heard the shower start.

Rhonda came out wrapped in a towel. "You need to shower before they get back. I think I know what happened."

After the shower, she made coffee, and we sat at the table staring into space. "We were drugged."

She looked up from her cup, startled. "What?"

"We were drugged. I was in good shape when I got here and only had two drinks before I passed out. That would never have happened with just two drinks."

Rhonda was nodding. "I only had one. I remember thinking how nice of your girlfriend it was that she made it for me. We were set up."

"Do you think it was a practical joke?" Mike was notorious for those.

"Probably, but to what end?"

I had my suspicions. Mike and Charlotte had been too friendly lately. I kept that to myself. "I have no idea. What do we do now? You know, if we had our faculties, this would never have happened. It was just natural, and while I regret what happened, I have to say you're a very good lover."

She smiled in spite of herself. "Mike should have been a little more careful. I'm sure if he knew how big you were he would have picked someone else. What happened happened, and while it was very nice it can never, ever, happen again. Do you understand?"

I nodded, thinking that if they ever split up, I'd be on her so fast her head would spin. She had a good mind, was attractive, and had next-level love-making skills.

"What do we do now?"

She sighed. "We wait for them to come back. I don't know if we'll survive this."

"I can tell you, Charlotte and I are done. I believe she was in on it."

"She says you're getting married."

"Oddly enough, I don't remember ever asking her that particular question. She had been hinting, but to be honest, I don't love her, and right now, I don't particularly like her."

We sat and talked for two hours before they returned through the door. They looked at us and dissolved into laughter. Mike told Rhonda he now had pictures of her naked with another man, and it would be bad if she ever tried to divorce him. Then he turned to crow at me.

I hit him so hard he went all the way across their tiny living room, over their kitchen table, and slammed into the cabinets, out cold. Rhonda gave a little cry and knelt beside him. "You tell him when he wakes up every time I see him, I'm going to kick his ass. I don't care if it's at a club, a house, a store, or church. Every time. You tell him that."

I looked over at a wide-eyed Charlotte. "I'm leaving. If you want a ride, get in my truck, but I'm telling you now, the first time you open your mouth, you're walking."

She got in with me and I knew they had been in my truck. She probably drove it wherever they went. It stank of beer and used pussy. I just looked at her, and she turned her head. She drew in breath to speak twice, and I slowed down. She got the point. I pulled into her apartment driveway. "Get out."

I didn't say it loudly, but she scrambled out. "I'll call you when you c..."

I was already pulling away.

The next day, after the drug residue was out of my head, I packed up whatever I knew was hers, and after she went to work Monday, I took it over, leaving it in the living room with my apartment key on top. I wondered if she got the message.

Obviously, she didn't, pounding on my door that afternoon. I was not in the mood and decided the best thing to do was get it over quickly. I yanked it open so hard she almost fell in, stepping out and shutting the door behind us. When she started to speak, I raised my hand. "Listen, Bitch, the best thing you could do is stay the hell away from me. Think I'd stay with you after that shit? Fuck no, I wouldn't. I'd question every drink, every scrap of food; even if you gave me a candy bar, I'd check it out. Nobody who loves anybody does shit like that. We could have had a bad reaction and died, and you'd have been off fucking Mike and never known. I ought to charge you to get the smell of cheap cunt out of my truck. This is the last time you'll see me if you're lucky. Now get the fuck away from me!"

"It was just a joke!"

"Oh, my bad. HaHa. NOW get the fuck away from me."

She tried to tell anyone who would listen it was just a practical joke that got out of hand. I didn't say anything out of respect for Rhonda, but the story got out. People thought Mike was an idiot, but now they have proof. He was making threats to anyone who would listen that he was going to kick my ass the first time he saw me, so I baited him.

I showed up at the little diner where he liked to have lunch and sat waiting. I was eating a cheeseburger when he came in. He had his pack with him, which must have given him courage because he made a beeline towards me. I took another bite, sad because I wouldn't get to finish. It was a damn good burger.

"I'm gonna kick your ass!"

He took a swing, and I just shifted weight and let it sail by me. Then I proceeded to kick his ass. Three punches and a kick later, he was down. I looked at the waitress. "I apologize for the disturbance, ma'am, but he was clearly the aggressor. I'll leave now unless you want me to stay to make a statement to the police."

I figured she'd be horrified, but she was grinning. "We don't like to call the cops. I assure you nothing more is going to happen except for his friends dragging his sorry butt out the door. He better like sandwiches from home because he's never eating here again."

She even gave me another cheeseburger to eat later. I'd be back.

................................................................

That story made the rounds, but I didn't hear much about it. It seems the other couples weren't in on the scheme to drug us but made no effort to stop them. I refused to have anything to do with them after that.

I had gone to a lawyer when my sister told me to sell, and he advised me how to invest it, saying it would be a pretty good nest egg in another forty years. He was a business lawyer who wanted nothing to do with the court system except filing business papers and acting as an occasional expert witness. He called one day, wanting to know if I would stop by.

Aaron got right to the point. "Have you ever considered owning your own business?"

"Who hasn't? Until now, I've never had investment money, and I'm smart enough to leave it alone instead of taking a chance on something I know nothing about and blowing it."

"Pretty mature thinking for someone your age, but listen. I may have something you're interested in."

He had my attention. "Know much about convenience stores?"

"I get my gas there."

"Yes, and while at it, do you get a drink, maybe a snack or a twelve-pack? I'm sure you have. You do it knowing you could get a better price at a regular market, but what you're paying for is convenience. Thus, the name. Most are decently profitable, and some are very. It's the old mantra: location, location, location. What I have is a store that's going to close soon. The owner got into a little jam because of a gambling problem, and he hasn't paid sales tax or his mortgage in four months. The state's after him, the bank is after him, and now he's been charged with selling alcohol to minors. Four times in two days. It was his way of generating extra money. The word got out to the kids, parents, and cops. They yanked his alcohol permits, and his suppliers have cut him off for nonpayment. Things look bad for him."

"How do you know all this?"

"Because my brother does his books. He thought it might be a good investment, but I don't feel like fooling with it. You give me a tank of gas and a six-pack once in a while as a bonus over my legal fees, and I'll set you up. Wanna go over the numbers?"

I did, and three weeks later, I started the paperwork. I bought the building outright for less than half of its value, went through the course required by the state before I was allowed to sell alcohol, paid for the license and all the other licenses I needed, got the place restocked, and was ready for business. It all cost about 200,000, and I had no loans to pay off.

The former owner was pretty pissed, but I was the only offer he had, and he was desperate. It barely kept him out of jail and he was starting completely over at 51. Maybe he learned something but I had my doubts.

The only drawback I could see was that it was just outside a terrible area of town. The place had been robbed three times in the last fifteen months. That was information I didn't have when I made the deal. I decided early on not to hire kids, unless they were working with an adult, and tried to hire veterans if I could. I told them all the same thing.

"This place is wired to the gills, so if something goes south, it's all recorded. It's only money; if we have customers or if you're in danger, just let it go. I'm hiring you because you have combat experience and should know how to stay calm in a tense situation. The cashier's station has bulletproof glass under steel bars, so if you make it there, you're safe."

"Can I carry my weapon?"

"I'd prefer if you do it be concealed. If it comes to your life, don't hesitate. I'll back you 100%."

In all the time I've operated the store, there has only been one attempt. The guy came in at the end of the shift when Roger was alone, pulled a pistol, and demanded the money. He was in his booth, and he laughed. There was a little slot to slide cash through if needed, and he tried to get the pistol through. Roger waited until he had as much of his hand as he could inside, then smashed down with a hammer we kept in a toolbox for odds and ends. He broke three fingers and smashed his thumb underneath the pistol the guy had. He dropped it and ran screaming out of the store. The cops were there in ten minutes, saw the tape, and grinned. The officer in charge palmed his walkie. "All units, be on the lookout for Rashad Benson, aka Shawshank. He's wanted for questioning about an attempted armed robbery."

He told Roger before he left the man was out on bail for felony assault and battery, so when they caught him, it would be revoked, and that he wouldn't have to worry about the man for six to eight years.

I had been reading trade publications that came in the mail, and one story got me thinking. It was about a guy who became a multimillionaire by opening supermarkets in high-risk areas. I knew enough to understand a food desert and got hold of my suppliers. They came in and pulled one aisle out, replacing the candy bars with canned goods, especially soups, put in a pasta and rice section along with other odds and ends. Then I installed a new cooler, mainly for fruit, bananas, apples, grapes, strawberries, along with some lettuces, cabbages, and salad kits. My prices were between a bodega and a full-service grocery, and the impact was almost immediate. The fact that the place was often crowded helped discourage robbers, which was a nice bonus. I hired a kid just out of high school to stock and help run a register when it got crowded.

'Fig' Thorton came in one day. I knew him slightly, and I once bought a vehicle from him. He was also Rhonda's stepfather. No one knew where the name "Fig" came from, and he never said. It was a slow day, so we talked for a minute. Just as he was about to leave, he stopped. "Oh, I just thought about this. This town has a Small Business Alliance, and we meet every third Thursday. It wouldn't hurt you to join. There's a lot of good information from the speakers we bring in, and it lets you network with other business owners. The meeting is next week at the steakhouse. Come if you can."

I went and soon became a member. We networked, and if someone needed something, they sent the word out to those who could help. One guy wanted a good business lawyer, and I recommended mine. Aaron called me later and thanked me for the business, then laughed and said it didn't let me off the hook. I kept his favorite brand, Sam Addams, and always made sure there was a twelve-pack in reserve in case he stopped by.

It was my second meeting when it went off the rails. I had forgotten that Rhonda ran his office and was surprised to see her there. She was still married to Mike, and we didn't run in the same circles. On top of that, I probably worked sixty to seventy hours a week getting my business up and running.

I automatically walked over, smiling, happy to see her. She didn't look happy. In fact, she looked panicked. Then again, we did have sex three times the last time we saw each other, and she was married to someone else. I stopped in front of her. "Hi, Rhonda. I saw you and thought I'd speak to you for just a second. You look uncomfortable with me being here, so I'll leave now."

I turned and her hand latched down on mine. "I'm sorry, Matt. It just dredged a lot of stuff up to see you. Will you sit with me?"

Probably wants a buffer against the wolves, went through my mind as I sat. Then I really looked at her. "How far along?"

"Seven and a half months." She knew I was doing the math and once again put her hand on me.

"Don't. I'll save you the trouble. There's a good chance she's yours. I wasn't on any form of protection, and Mike used rubbers most of the time."

"What do you want to do about it?"

"Nothing. What we had was just a vague, fuzzy set of snapshots during the night. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't my fault. But I'm married, and I'm staying with Mike."

"You love him that much?"

She said yes, but her eyes said no. I let it slide. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"You can promise me on the life of this unborn child that you will never tell anyone what happened that night, and you stay away from us and the child. It was a mistake that we didn't make but it happened. If it's any consolation to you, Mike's having a hard time with what he'd done. I think he apologizes three or four times a day."

Then she giggled. "You knocking him cold and then kicking his ass has helped him. He's a lot more humble now. Still, he hates you with a passion beyond words. Keep an eye on him if you ever find yourself around him."

"I don't think he's that stupid but I'll keep an eye out."

After that, we chatted, but it was hard for me to concentrate. She absolutely glowed in her pregnancy. I finally got around to asking where her stepfather was. He'd married her mother when she was six and was the only father she had ever had. And if you wanted to face two pissed-off people, try calling her his stepdaughter.

"He took Mom on a three-week cruise for their twenty-second anniversary. They were supposed to go on the tenth, but Mom was sick."

I remembered. Her mother had a bout with cancer and was one of the lucky ones. She beat it, but at the time she was going through treatment and could barely hold her head up. I was happy for them and told her so. "I hope they have a good time. Maybe they'll bring back a little brother or sister."

She gave a sad sigh. "That went out the window when she got sick the first time. They had to do a hysterectomy, and the cancer still came back ten years later. My father should be considered for sainthood for how he stood by her. And me. He took the time to cuddle a scared preteen girl and promise her her momma would be just fine. I looked into his eyes and never for a second doubted him. It's how I managed to stay calm during that time."

I was in deep thought, wondering if I would ever have a chance to stand tall for a daughter. She suddenly grabbed her stomach and grimaced. Then she smiled. "She's moving around, wanting to come out. Here."

Before I could stop her, she grabbed my hand and held it to her. It wasn't long before I felt her move. It was the only time I got to touch my daughter. Tears welled up, and I stood. "I'm not feeling very well all of a sudden. I'll be leaving now, Rhonda. It was good to see you."

I brooded for weeks. Then I tried to reach out and got shut down completely.

.................................................................

My lawyer called me with another opportunity, and I buried myself in work. I didn't date for almost two years. I pled my responsibilities as an excuse, but I had no urge to be with a woman.

Four years later, I had five stores, all doing very well. I'd had six, but I couldn't turn the corner on one and closed it, making a nice profit from a developer just wanting the lot. It hurt me to fail but as they say, you can't win them all. One day, I was working a shift at one of my stores three hours from home when a woman pulled into the lot. She helped a little girl out of her car seat and they came in. "Hi. I need gas, but my baby needs to go and I didn't want to tie up the pumps. Do you have a restroom?"

Rhonda looked up and straight into my eyes. Then glanced down at the child. She looked just like my baby sister at that age. Same auburn hair, the same deep brown eyes, and even the nose was the same. I pointed to the bathrooms. The child was chattering when she came out.

"Hello, Rhonda."

"Hi Matt. What are you doing way out here?"

"I own this store."

She smiled for the first time. "Daddy told me you were becoming a business magnate. I'm happy for you."

The girl was squirming. "I'm thirsty, Mommy."

Shit! She even sounded like my little sister. I asked the baby what she'd like, and she pointed at my slushy machine, and I got her a small watermelon. I hated that flavor. Rhonda fussed when I told her it was on the house and told the little girl to thank me. "Thank you, Mr..."

"Matt"

She giggled. "That's my name! Well, Mattie anyway."

I glanced sharply at Rhonda, and she blushed. "It's actually Matilda, but my dad shortened it."

She snatched the child up and put her in the car, pulling up to the pumps. I took a chance and walked outside. "Mattie? You named her after me?"

She had a steely look on her face I'd never seen before. "Yes. It was my form of revenge. Mike hates it, but there's nothing he can do about it. He knows she's yours but it hurts his pride too much to admit it."

"You don't sound much like a loving couple."

"That's none of your business."

"No." I pointed to the car. "But that is. Jesus Rhonda, how can you be so cold? Leave him. Even if we don't end up together, leave him. Be happy."

"My happiness is none of your concern. Goodbye, Matt. Don't try to contact me again." I watched until she was out of sight wondering what her life was like that would make her so cold. For the first time in my business career, I closed early, calling my manager and telling him I had a family emergency but to not worry about it. We'd make money tomorrow.

...........................................................

It hit me so hard that I moved across the state. By now, I had nine stores, so I stayed busy. Right before I left, I came by the car lot when I knew Rhonda would be at lunch. Fig took me into his office, and I saw the array of pictures he had of Matilda from babyhood until the present. We had become pretty good friends, and I knew he could be trusted.

"Fig, I'm moving. I don't know if I'm coming back, and you may not see me for a while. I thought about this, and it fell between you and my lawyer, and to be honest, he'd want too many details."

He let me talk, wondering where it was going. "I got a girl pregnant a while back. Before you say anything, I would have done the right thing but she was married. If it matters, we didn't deliberately cheat. Her husband thought it would be funny and drugged us, dumping us in a bed naked and leaving us. We were stoned and naked, and nature took its course. When we got sober enough to realize what had happened it was too late.

The thing is, she's still with her husband and wants nothing to do with me. I've decided to honor her wishes. I'm telling you all this because I need you to do something for me. I want to pay child support. I know she won't take it, so set up an account, and I'll have the money deposited every month. She might need it someday. Maybe she can use it for college funds. I helped create this life and want to contribute to it even if she doesn't know."

He sat and stared out the window. Then he stirred. "You gonna tell me who it is?"

"I swore to her I'd never tell anyone. I have a letter in a safe deposit box, and a letter from my lawyer to give you the key if I pass. It will explain everything."

"You don't have to do this. Whoever she is made it plain she wanted no contact with you."

"That's exactly what I intend to honor. No one will know about this account but you and me, and her, in the case of my death. Please Fig."

He looked at the pictures of Mattie and at me, a slow understanding in his eyes. "All right. I'll do it--for you and for the child."

It was a known fact that Fig hated touching people, but he hugged me as I got up to leave. "If it means anything to you, I think the woman made a mistake. Take care, son."

.................................................................

He set the account up with the money I left with him. It amounted to child support from when she was born until now, adjusted as my finances grew. My lawyer thought I was an idiot, but it wasn't his money.

Three years later, I saw an announcement on Rhonda's Mom's Facebook page. It was a full spread about Mattie winning a dance competition, complete with photos of her in various costumes and holding her trophy. She had my build, tall and slender, and my eyes crinkled as she smiled for the camera.

I'd made a mistake and looked at it on my phone as I left one of my stores. There was a pond beside the road I was traveling, with a spot to park cars and a picnic table. I pulled over and just sat under a tree, wiping my eyes and thinking. I don't know how long I was there until someone knocked on my window.

I jumped, so lost in my thoughts it startled me. There was a young girl and her mother standing there.

I rolled down the window. "You all right, mister?"

"Yeah. I had to stop and think for a minute."

The woman smiled. "You've been here two hours. We thought we better check on you."

"Thank you for your concern. I'll be on my way now."

"Best get out and stretch your legs, maybe get a drink before you go."

"Yeah! Mommy made lemonade!"

I looked them over as I got out. She was a tall blond dressed in cutoff jeans and a tee. She wasn't fat, but she was healthy. My mother always called girls like her big boned. Her hair was very curly and it surprised me. I thought all blonds were straight haired. Her daughter was a carbon copy right down to the way they were dressed. I noticed a pickup parked on the other side of the trees, and fishing rods propped up against the table.

"I'm obviously trespassing. I'll be leaving now."

"You're okay. You're not bothering anybody. I've never seen such a sad expression on anyone's face as I did on yours when we walked up. Want to talk about it?"

"Yes. Terribly. But I made promises so I won't."

She smiled, little lines appearing around her eyes. The woman obviously was outdoors a lot. "A man of honor. How unusual. Come on, sit and enjoy the lemonade. You'll never taste the like again."

She was right, grinning when she saw the expression on my face. "I have to ask, what's in this?"

She looked at her daughter. "Should we tell him the secret recipe?"

The child smiled. "It's made with lemons, lemon balm, and lime basil. That's what the green specks floating around in it is. I found it by accident and we love it!"

"So do I. Thank you very much for sharing it. Now, it looks like you've got some fishing to do and I'm holding you back. I'd like to give you something in gratitude.

I pulled out a pad and wrote a note. "Redeemable at any QwikCheck, two drinks and two snacks of their choosing. Good for eternity. Matt Davidson."

I gave it to the little girl. "Hold on to that. Use it as often as you like. You've managed to make a pretty bleak afternoon bearable. Catch a big one!"

For the first time in a good while I felt happy.

A few months passed, and I was at the same store, doing a quarterly review. I'd put a mini grocery in this store because it was so far away from anything. I sold more bread and milk than I did beer. There was another smaller building on the lot and I met a local farmer who had been a butcher by trade before he changed careers, and he wanted to open a butcher shop. It would take some work but it gave him an outlet for the pork and chickens he raised. He also knew other farmers who raised cattle. All their product was pasture-raised without shots or extra hormones, so it could be pretty pricey. I brought that up and he grinned.

"I'm not stupid enough to price my way into failure, and there's a good niche for businesses like this. Think of the extra trade it will bring in."

He was right. His first few months were pretty slow until I started carrying his sausage and beef hot dogs in all my stores. Then the parking lot started staying full, especially on the weekends. He had to hire extra help for heavy days. One of the people he hired was the woman I'd met at the pond. My manager grinned at me one day. "The kid is going to eat you out of business."

"What are you talking about?"

"Chloe's little girl. She's in and out of here three or more times a week. You need to write them a new note, and you can barely make out what the old one says. Too many slushies spilled on it is my guess, or the mustard from one of Jimmy's hot dogs. Putting those rotisseries in and featuring them was a goldmine. Now that he's making brats and sausages it'll only get bigger."

I walked over to the shop. The little girl was sitting at a small table and playing with a doll. Her mother was behind the counter waiting on customers. The little girl looked up and her eyes got wide. I grinned at her mother. "I hear I need to have your free pass laminated."

The little girl squealed and jumped so I had no choice but to catch her. She scrambled into my arms and grinned at her mother. "See, Mommy? I told you he'd come back."

Her Mom grinned when I spoke. "I had to. I heard we had a mouse problem. It seems one little mouse had been gobbling up all the profits."

"The little mouse would if I'd let her. I limit her to three times a week, and if she gets cavities from all those slushies, I'm sending you the bill."

"I'll pay it. Can't have a pretty little mouse with bad teeth, now can we."

The child's name was Sarah, and she seemed quite comfortable in my arms. "It's good to see you, Chloe. Ben told me your name. I always thought of you as the Blond Goddess Of Happiness, with a little fairy to help you spread cheer."

She blushed. I never saw that coming. "Mommy! He said I'm a fairy!"

"He doesn't know you honey, and doesn't know that looking like a fairy is the best disguise a goblin can have."

"MOMMY!"

I laughed long and hard as she sputtered before assuring her I knew the truth. She preened until I told her I knew she was a goblin all along. Chloe laughed as I tried to put her down. "I have to go back to work. It was very good to see you again."

"I'm going with him, Mommy. I'm on break!"

She rode across the lot in my arms. I sat her on the stool, and she told me it was lunchtime and she wanted a hot dog. Then she instructed me on exactly what she wanted on it, then had me get her a lemon-lime slushy. When I was done she grinned. "Now you have to fix Mommy's. She always eats two, with everything but catsup. She hates catsup. And she drinks water when she doesn't bring lemonade."

"Maybe I'll hold you hostage until she makes us a jug." She had just walked in and heard me.

"You ever read the Ransom Of Red Chief? I'll hold out until I get that fancy truck you're driving."

I sat with them in one of the three booths we had. Half a dozen picnic tables under a few shade trees, new since I'd been there last, were filled with customers eating hot dogs and sausages. I was making a fortune.

During lunch, I found out she and Jimmy were siblings and ran the farm their father had left to them. She specialized in chickens while Jimmy ran the hog business. She'd recently added two hundred layers to their operation, and the free-range eggs were sold as soon as they hit the coolers.

As they left, they asked when I would be back again, promising me a home-cooked meal if I gave them notice.

.............................................................................

I gave them a firm date, and when I showed up, they gave me a tour of the farm. I always figured hogs were nasty creatures and Jimmy grinned. "Given their choices, hogs are very clean animals. There's a reason you see them lying around in mud. They sunburn and the mud protects them. That's one of the reasons I raise a breed that has red hair and dark skin. Plus I have two barns they can retreat to in the heat of the day. My pigs live a very happy life right up to the end."

Surprisingly, the chickens smelled worse. "It's their waste. It's a very good fertilizer after it's aged. What you smell is their manure decomposing. It emits a lot of methane and ammonia and will burn up everything you put it on if you try to use it fresh."

We walked over and looked at some truly massive cows. "They're not ours. We lease this pasture and that small barn to a friend. There are usually only a few cows in here at a time. It's the breeding pen. When the cow is in heat, they bring the bull they want to breed with and let nature take its course. You should watch it sometime."

"As fascinating as it might be to watch bovines fornicate, I think I'll pass."

They laughed. Sarah talked a mile a minute the whole time. only stopping to eat. Jimmy had his girlfriend with us and by the way they made eyes at each other I figured it would be just a matter of time until she wasn't his girlfriend anymore.

After an excellent meal, we sat in rockers on the big front porch. The ceiling fans were mounted, and they kept the air circulating, which helped keep the bugs away. Sarah had put herself between me and Chloe, and in thirty minutes, she was out, her feet draped across me while her head was in Chloe's lap.

"She's a nice kid. You must be proud. If you don't mind asking, where's Mr. Chloe?"

She tousled Sarah's hair, lost in thought. "There never was a Mr. Chloe. Sarah's not mine biologically. She was my cousin's child. I babysat one night when she was three so her parents could have a night out. No one is really sure what happened; it appeared to be a single-car accident. They managed to go over a guard rail and dropped sixty feet into a creek. There was no alcohol or drugs in their system and the coroner ruled it death by misadventure, whatever that means.

The result was we had a little girl for whom we needed care. She had no other close relatives except for a grandmother on her father's side, and she was in assisted living. Jimmy and I talked it over and decided to raise her. She can barely remember her parents, and it took her about six months before she started calling me Mommy. She's been my little bundle of joy ever since."

"Wow. I bet that was a bit of an adjustment."

"It was. The first fatality was my social life. I used to be pretty active socially but now I had a child to care for so I cut back. On top of that, I went from a hot single to a woman with baggage. Anybody who wanted to get serious with me had to understand I was part of a package deal, and it scared a lot of guys off. You have children?"

She was sharp enough to hear the catch in my voice. "No."

"There's a story in there somewhere. Maybe someday you'll be comfortable enough to tell me."

I looked into her eyes and grinned. "I hope there's a time that I'm willing to tell you all my secrets. I have an idea on how to do that. Go out with me."

She flushed and was about to say no when she grinned. "Why not? I expect to be wined and dined, with suitable adult activities afterward. Are you free next Saturday?"

"I am now. Seven?"

"It's a date."

She gave me a sweet little kiss that felt great. Sarah woke up and demanded a goodbye kiss, and I walked away happier than I had in a long time.

........................................................

I was up to fourteen stores by then and while I plowed most of the profits back into the stores I had, I was always on the lookout for more. I didn't live like a monk, but I didn't need a lot, and traveling as much as I did made me maintain a minimalist lifestyle. It was easy to get dates, but it was hard to establish a relationship.

Chloe changed all that. I looked around, found a nice apartment nearby, and made it a point to be home as much as possible. Every spare minute I had seemed spent on the farm or out with my girls. Sarah started insisting we take her with us about every third date. We saw Pixar movies, went to zoos, and just generally did family stuff when we could. I still remember the first time I got a compliment on my family. The lady grinned and said I had two beautiful ladies and I must be very proud, although Sarah looked a lot more like Chloe. Before I could I could answer Chloe thanked her, telling her you couldn't tell by looking, but I was definitely in the mix.

We dated for five months before we got intimate. We'd gotten close a couple of times, but something always interrupted us. Chloe decided it was time to seal the deal, and she met me on Friday with a small case. "Throw a few things together and let's go. We have reservations at Elkville Lodge for two days. We're going to relax, I'm going to be pampered at the spa, and we're going to take long romantic walks that end at our bed. Understand the plan, honey?"

I did. The first time with someone is always special, but with Chloe it was epic. As I said, she was a big girl and farm-strong. And if you don't know the difference between farm strong and gym strong it's hard to describe. Her breasts were high, firm, and more than a handful. I was surprised at the amount of hair she had and she giggled. "I haven't had a reason to trim in a long time. You're going to need to help me tomorrow, or I'll look foolish in the little bikini brought. Think you can handle that?"

I assured her I would do my very best, and include a lick test for smoothness. She kind of got a glazed look in her eyes before she pushed me onto the bed and jumped astride me. "I'm usually not this aggressive, but it's been a really long time. Hold on!"

She rode me, twisting and grinding alternately when she wasn't rising up and down, going until I was almost out before slamming down. Her first orgasm washed over her, and she shrieked. Her second was a bit more subdued but seemed stronger. I couldn't hold out, so I warned her, and it made her go faster. I felt like I put buckets inside her. She grinned and kept going. I never fully deflated, and five minutes later, I managed to throw her off, grinning at her shocked face. "My turn to go for a ride."

Soon enough her legs were on my shoulders as she moaned and gave me encouragement. It seemed she was a very vocal lover, and the more intense it got, the words got racier. Soon she was begging me to 'pound her pussy', and 'fuck the hell out of her'. I did all right until she looked me in the eyes and told me to breed her. I lost it.

Afterward, we lay beside each other, and as I lazily traced her body's contours, trying to commit every nuance to memory, I looked into her eyes. "Mine."

She instantly knew that I wasn't talking about a particular body part and gave me a sweet smile. "Mine," she said, as she stroked my face.

Six months later, a very mature-looking, for an eight-year-old, Sarah crawled between us on the porch swing. "When are you going to marry, Mommy?"

Chloe jumped but I kept a tight grip on her. "As soon as she says she will. You can give it to her now."

Yes, it was an ambush. Jimmy, Carla, and Sarah were in on it. She grinned and pulled the box out of her jumper. "Daddy said to give you this so we can be a real family. Please say yes, Mommy."

It wasn't until afterward that she realized she'd called me Daddy. Sarah and I had discussed it in as much detail as an eight-year-old was capable of and had decided it was a fine idea.

I gently moved Sarah and knelt before Chloe. I opened the box and I'm happy to say I got the best I could afford and could afford something really nice. Her eyes went wide as I officially asked her to marry me. Then the tears started, but not before she squeaked out a "Yes".

....................................................

There was no way she would ever leave the farm, so I told her to pick out a nice spot to build a house on. "What kind do you want?"

"One with you and Sarah in it. The rest doesn't matter to me. And honey, we can afford something nice, so don't scrimp, all right?"

My lawyer wanted a prenupt and nealy had a heart attack when I told him I didn't need one. I did insist that papers be drawn up stating I had no right to any part of the farm. It had been in her family since the mid-1800s, and needed to stay that way. Carla signed the same thing when she and Jimmy got married.

The last thing I did before we married was take her for a weekend and explain the whole Rhonda/Matilda situation. Her eyes went wide, but when I told her about the bank account, she approved it. Then she hugged me tightly.

"I see how you are with Sarah. I can't imagine the pain you have when you see your real daughter."

"I would remind you that Sarah is my real daughter. Part of the deal is adoption papers, so she can carry our name. I want the world to recognize that she belongs to me. Well, us, but you know what I mean. Besides, when she has a little brother, sister, or both, the names must match. Understand?"

She started crying, so I held her. When she calmed down, I told her I had only seen Matilda once, and after that, I stayed away.

Domestic life suited me. I still had to travel, and I added about two or three more stores a year until I woke up one day and realized I owned 23 stores, five commercial properties, and a few well-producing investments. I started hating the travel more and more, so I hired two regional managers and opened an office. If an opportunity came up, I tried to schedule it so Chloe could go, and if she couldn't, I'd go alone, but I didn't like it.

Chloe and Jimmy had come to me about the farm beside them, sixty-eight acres of grazing and timber, and I bought it for Chloe as a tenth-anniversary present. By then, I was 39, and she was 33, still a fine-looking woman despite bearing two children, a boy now seven, and a girl who was nine. I think she was pregnant on our honeymoon but it didn't matter.

I had a good life and hardly thought of my old one anymore.

.......................................................

Then it came back to visit me. Fig got hold of me. He had my number and called, asking me to stop by. I saw him from time to time, I still had three stores in his town, and we'd catch dinner occasionally. I showed up the next day and, for the first time, noticed how old he looked. He seemed really tired. I met him at his office and couldn't help but notice the pictures of Mattie, now almost a grown woman. She was very pretty.

"Son, I got some news. Rhonda passed away three weeks ago. Cancer and they didn't catch it until it was too late. I don't think she was ever happy after you left. I tried several times to get her to leave Mike, he was an asshole to both her and her daughter, but she refused. We'll never know the dynamic about that relationship.

Mike asked me when I planned on retiring after the funeral so he could take over. He was really pissed when I told him it would never happen. 'I'll shut the place down first. You're not entitled to anything I have. When the time comes, If Mattie wants it, she can have it, as long as she knows you can't come anywhere near it.

That was the last discussion I ever had with him. Rhonda had a pretty good insurance policy, and he nearly had a heart attack when he found out Mattie was the beneficiary and I was the administrator until she came of age. I hear he's having a lot of trouble making the mortgage now. I'll step in if it comes close to default. They only owed a couple more years on it, and Rhonda made the lion's share of the payment every month.

I'm telling you all this because he's become a jerk to Mattie. She's living with us right now, until she graduates. She wants to go to college, and Rhonda provided for her, but she hasn't decided yet."

Then he dropped the bomb. "She wants to see you."

................................................................................

Well then. I had to think about that. "I have to talk to my wife, and maybe to my kids, especially the oldest. I don't want to have her drop by and say, 'Oh, by the way, this is your sister.'"

"I understand. But it will do you both good. She doesn't want anything I've provided; she just wants answers, answers Rhonda refused to give her."

"I'll tell her what I can."

Now, she was sitting in front of me. She still had her slender build, but her brown hair now had highlights worked in. She also had some of the saddest eyes I'd ever seen.

She sat and listened as I told her the whole story. She cried a couple of times, and I didn't know what to do. She was the flesh of my flesh, no matter how she came to be, so I got up and hugged her. Then the tears started. Fig had told her about the secret child support account. There was enough in it to pay for most of her college if she wanted.

She told me Mike had never really loved her, and she could tell. They ended up tolerating each other until her mother died. "He's a bitter man. Mom never had any kids with him, I don't know why. He never made any money other than his salary, and if it weren't for Mom, we would have had very little. He also resented that quite a bit.

Now he's getting old and will end up alone. I couldn't stand to be around him right now. When I marry and have kids, he won't be the one I'm introducing as a grandfather. I'm not really sure what I want here. I just needed to meet you and listen to how I came to be. I know you have a family, but can we stay in touch?"

"I do have a family. It means you have a brother, two sisters, and a stepmother. Would you like to meet them sometime?"

The tears came again, and I smiled, calling my assistant. "Send her in."

Sarah came bursting in, almost quivering with excitement. "Mattie, I'd like to introduce you to Sarah, your sister."

Mattie stood, not quite sure what to do, and Sarah swept her up in a bone-crushing hug. Then they cried. I stepped out of the office to give them some space before I came back with Sarah's favorite beverage, a lemon-line slushy. I'd had the assistant grab it for us. One of my stores was four doors down from the office. I had one for Mattie as well, wondering if she'd want it.

When I came back, they were giggling. "Daddy, we're going to the farm for a visit. Is that all right?"

I looked at the two. Sarah was tall, blond, thick like her mother, and with the same muscles. She was going to go into vet school this fall. Mattie was several inches shorter and probably weighed half what Sarah did. But they had arms around each other, and I suddenly felt very good about the future.

..................................................................

Four years later, I was at a college commencement, the first of four I would attend as a parent.

Mattie walked across the stage, and I was thrilled at the sound of her name being called. She had changed it to mine as soon as she turned legal age. She was a finance major, and it looked like she would be taking over the business when I retired.

Sarah had gotten her degree a couple of hours before. She was still determined to be a vet, so she wasn't done with schooling. Mattie had won a spot at Wharton and would go there in the fall to finish her education.

They had shared an apartment while going to school and were notorious for showing up at one of our stores with laminated cards, grabbing a few dogs and a drink, and grinning when the clerk read the note. I'd expanded it, adding gas for their cars when they needed it. They routinely sent the amounts to corporate and we paid them, just to keep the books balanced.

Fig and his new wife were there. He had retired the year before and sold his business for a nice profit. Chloe had adopted them as grandparents to our brood and they seemed to really enjoy it. Fig and my son had a '67 Barracuda in an old gas station I'd picked up and were restoring it. This was their third project. Mattie got the '66 Mustang convertible, and Sarah wanted the Studebaker Avanti, so it became hers. The Barracuda was going to be J. J.'s, and his little sister was about to get her license, so they were looking. They'd found a '74 Javelin, and if she liked it, it would be hers. If not, they'd keep looking. Brenda was the baby of the family, and everyone had a hard time saying no to her. She was entirely too interested in boys to suit me, but she had a good role model in her mother and older sisters, so I didn't worry much.

J. J. was already talking about automotive engineering as a major, and I had a thought that the garage would become his business. Brenda was heavily into art, and she had painted a sign they hung on the garage's wall. It was a fig tree, a nod to the man she considered her grandfather, and they had her paint a logo over it: "Fig and Grandson, Automotive Restoration."

I'd sometimes look at Mattie and wonder what went through Rhonda's head. If she had left Mike, I would have snatched her up in a heartbeat, but looking back, I think she may have been a little unbalanced, and we may not have lasted. I wondered if she ever saw a doctor.

No, I hit the jackpot with Chloe. And the only regret I ever had was missing Mattie's childhood.

Mike ended up a broken and bitter man. He always thought everyone was against him when the truth of the matter was most people just didn't give a damn about him or his life.

He almost lost the house, and Fig stepped in and made the last nine payments. He told Mike it was so Mattie would have a house when he passed. He remarried three years later, and when they split up in less than two years, he had to sell the home as part of the settlement. Fig was pissed, but then again, between both of us, Mattie could have any house she wanted, so he put it behind him.

Mike took the money and pissed it away chasing get rich quick schemes. The last we heard, he was living in a rented single in a not-so-nice neighborhood, so he would end his life in the same circumstances he started in. I wondered who would go to his funeral when he passed. I doubted he'd fill the church.

I'm sure he hated me until the day he died. I was everything he wasn't: successful, with a large and loving family, and well-liked. He sent a drunken rant to our corporate Facebook page when it posted pictures of me with my family during a company picnic, describing me as the founder and owner, with his wife, three daughters, and son.

In it, he calls everyone liars because he is Mattie's legitimate father. I was going to let it go, but Matilda saw it, got DNA tests done without knowing it, and posted the results. It proved beyond any doubt she was my daughter. It unexpectedly made Sarah sad, reminding me she wasn't my biological daughter. I straightened that out pretty fast.

"You're every bit the daughter the other two are, and more importantly, I consider you my firstborn. I've had you since you were eight, and I never truly met Mattie until she was ready for college. I love her, but I never sat up with her when she was sick, took her to games and recitals, helped her celebrate her victories and console her in her losses, kissed her boo-boos, or held her when some boy broke her heart. Chloe is the only mother you've ever had. Look me in the face and tell me you could have done better. You couldn't, and you'll always be the first daughter in her eyes. Celebrate the parents you have, baby. There was no luck of the draw with you; you get what you get, so make the best of it. You were chosen. Understand? Chosen. That alone makes you special. I love all my other kids with a passion beyond words, but you'll be my first child until the day I pass."

By the time I was done, she was soaking my shirt with tears. Chloe had been behind her in case she was needed, and recorded my little speech. Word got out about it, and when a charity dedicated to getting children into homes heard it, they played it on national television during their fundraiser. The MC, a famous actor and adoptee, had tears leaking down his cheeks as he spoke afterward. "And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why you should adopt a child. Give them the chance this girl had, to be raised and loved unconditionally despite what some squiggles on a paper signified. Just like her parents, you'll never regret it. If you ever get the chance, choose."

All those thoughts disappeared from my head when Chloe squeezed my hand. Fig and Maggie were on grandparent patrol for the weekend, and we were returning to where we first spent the night together. I made sure we got the same room. We were older now, and the flames may have been banked a little, but they still burned hot.