Monday morning, I had my three guys begin on one of Gene's oldest tractors. The beast had been sitting for over a year in anticipation of junking it. They stripped it and worked on the motor and chassis. The motor and transmission were completely rebuilt by the mechanic and Abe's crew, and the chroming of the entire thing proceeded. I didn't tell them not to do it, so they did it on their own. By the third day, the body was on and the interior was almost done. We put on new tires and completely rebuilt all of the air systems. The interior now looked like new, including the gauge package the mechanic had chosen. It was hard to believe it was the same truck. Shawna and Hank had painted the truck using Gene's cars and his wins as the theme. It really looked good. I hope it performed as well as it looked.
The mechanic drove it over to Gene's while I followed in the pickup. It was Thursday, and late to be leaving for the races, but he said he had a trailer leaving late because he had to take an additional car up to the races.
One of his crew chiefs would be driving the truck, and he said my new creation better make it; he was on a deadline. I told him to call if there was any problem.
My crew was fidgeting and pacing, waiting to hear from the crew chief that he had made it. Finally, Friday afternoon Gene called to tell me the crew chief had fallen in love with the truck, saying he was going to use it as his personal ride around town. Gene told me that he didn't have the fuel economy numbers yet, but the rebuilding part was definitely cheaper than buying new tractors. "Go get that other piece of junk I have out back so I can clean up the yard. Make this one for the truck team. That group needs a shot in the arm."
We went after the last truck, to find it in about the same shape as the one we had just completed. Sitting in the yard was the trailer they hauled the two race trucks in. I told Gene's shop superintendent what I was going to do, and he let me steal the trailer for a couple of days.
Back at the shop, I had the crew tear into the tractor while I had Hank and Shawna do research, then paint the trailer, keeping in mind that the tractor would be in front of it. This time, the whole trailer was painted in red with the two truck numbers featured on each side. The numbers had pictures of the trucks as background for the numbers. They also listed all the race wins in cloud balloons, with graphics of the tracks where the wins had occurred. The name of the racing team was prominently displayed across the bottom of the trailer so that it was the first thing to be seen.
The tractor crew finished the truck in record time and had everything completed by Tuesday morning. We drove the finished truck and trailer into Gene's yard and spotted it where the trailer had been parked before.
While we were parking, one of Gene's men had seen the trailer come in and had alerted the entire shop. Every one of the employees, including Gene, came out back to see the newly painted trailer and truck. Gene was a little miffed that we had stolen his trailer for some unauthorized work, but was instantly happier when I said the trailer was a bonus for trusting us to create the tractors for him.
He said he would pay us from the fuel savings, as he was averaging almost four miles to the gallon better with these old trucks than his new ones. He asked if we did new trucks too. Of course we did. So Gene said, "Let's convert the three other tractors to your new body. Do one a week until you're done. I'll spread the word. You'll have a hundred orders by this time next week. Think you can handle it?"
The new department was created. They took over the section of the new building between the super lift rebuild shop and the fiberglass shop. We would need more mechanics for the rebuilding and more coachmen to build out the cabs and sleepers. Drew became the natural leader for this group, and he kept modifying the body slightly to gain less wind resistance and more useable space in the sleeper. Jeff was great; he never complained of the constant minor changes. He just modified his molds and kept coming up with ways to make the body stronger.
I now had most of the numbers for Tiny to figure out what we were going to finally charge for a rebuild and body. We needed to separate costs for the two, since some people would not want any mechanical work done. It was going to be more expensive to integrate existing gauges and cab equipment than to replace it with our own design, so that needed to be taken into consideration. The end result was that a body change, using our gauge package, would be right at eight grand, and for the body change, using existing cab equipment, right at ten. If we rebuilt the chassis and dressed it out the way we had been, including paint, it would run nineteen thousand. That was a lot better than the forty-five thousand a new one would cost. Tiny assured me this would make us a great profit.
Gene thought the price was too cheap, but he said he would let me find out in time.
Gene asked if we were going into the truck repair business. I said that the idea had not occurred to me, but it was always possible.
While all this was happening, our visit with Dewey and Sheila was fun, as they blended into our group easily. Merlin and Missy were being wined and dined by Ben and Beth until even Merlin was overwhelmed. Sue and Mercy were spending a little of every day with Mercy's folks, so it gave everyone a chance to be relaxed with each other. Mercy was slowly convincing her parents that she was happy staying with Sue and me. Ben and Beth were a little dizzy over us having a spare babe around the house, but Mercy kept saying she was going to be the perfect nanny.
On a humorous note, every time that Ben or Beth would say something about the three of us living together, Sue didn't make a fuss. Sue would look sternly at either of them and say, "So, you think my relationship is strange, you've never heard of other relationships being a little off the wall?" Their lips would then be zipped.
Merlin had made several contacts locally and had arranged for shows in Tampa and at Disney during the coming year. He was anxious to bring some of his troupe to entertain here.
When Merlin and Missy felt they should return home, Dewey and Sheila said it was also time for them to get back up to the islands. Sue told them she could take off whenever they wanted but Dewey said, "I think my plane is not busy this weekend, so I think we'll fly back Friday if that's good with Merlin and Missy.
We are going to miss having our friends around. Dewey made us promise that we would come up for their wedding that they were now planning for the fall. We promised to fly straight into the little airstrip on the island as soon as they beckoned.
Our last night together, Merlin and Missy were subdued, realizing their little girl had grown up. Ben and Beth were equally subdued; they had enjoyed having crazy Merlin and Missy around the house. We partied, but without a lot to drink. Dewey was only drinking beer with me, and very little liquor anymore. He said he wanted to make sure his body stayed in shape for his young wife. She was a month younger than Dewey.
Dewey's plane came into Tampa International and parked, waiting for the two couples, early Friday morning. There were lots of hugs and kisses, as well as moist eyes.
Then, just like the snap of a finger, they were gone.
Mercy felt she could contribute more to Sue's work than to the S&S shop, so the two of them became daily work partners, as well as evening partners at home.
One evening in early September, Sue was sitting on my lap saying, "I can't button my pants anymore. My stomach is getting too big. I've watched my diet, I've exercised regularly, and have behaved myself with my cravings. I'd kill for a beer, a pickle, and a pint of Ben and Jerry's."
Sue was sitting with her arm around me saying, "Are you going to love me when I'm big with our son?"
"Silly question, little girl. You know there is another change that I'm sure you've noticed. Instead of your chest blowing up even bigger, your breasts have actually lost the hard puffiness that made them look like balloons. They are looking more and more like big boobs. The one constant though is the size of your nipples, although they seem to be turning darker."
"Will you be upset if I don't have big ones anymore?" Sue asked, hefting her breasts in her palms.
"Not in the least," I said kissing and hugging her. "It's you, my love, that I'm in love with, not your tits. I grant you they are fun to play with, and wonderful to lay my head against, but the person with them is who I'm in love with."
All of our friends had been listening to our conversation, and some offered suggestions, like, "Get a room. Take it inside. Are you gonna fool around now?" Sue just said, looking straight at Shawna, "I think that our son is going to have a playmate, or perhaps more than one playmate."
Shawna said, "I hope being pregnant isn't going to screw up productivity."
"What'd you say?" Charlie sat up and asked.
"Well, I'm at least two months, almost three and I've had to watch all those fumes," Shawna said.
Charlie stood up exclaiming, "Is that why you haven't been drinking beer? And I thought that for a while there you just didn't want to go up to the tub. No wonder. My little redheaded biker bitch is going to be a mommy. Wow, that means I'm gonna be a dad."
Shawna was looking at Debbie and Hank, who were both sitting with red faces, and said. Shawna said, "So, when are you getting married, cuz? That kid you're working on needs married parents, and you know what? You two are going to have to get a bigger place. That little trailer is nice and cute, but you're going to need more room."
Hank asked, "How did you know? We haven't told anyone."
Shawna laughed and said, "Look at her puffy smile, and the way her little boobs have suddenly begun to grow. We're going to have some babies around here soon."
Hanna stood up and grabbed Jim's hand, "Come on slacker, let's go make a baby, or at least practice until I can get off the pill for a month or so."
Betty and Joan said that they were going to wait a little longer, as they were having too much fun with their jobs to start a family.
Sue said that both companies were going to have to work out nursery care. She was sure that several of the women had little ones, so she would get started on it right away.
Sue made the observation that she had more room and would have even more when the expansion was built behind her plant. She would need to work on the space planning.
Sue had finished her instrument rating and was itching to take a trip somewhere to use her new knowledge. She asked me if we could take a couple of days and go up to Anchorage to see John, and perhaps stop in to see Dewey and Sheila. I was all for it, looking forward to a couple of days in the air. Mercy asked if we could stop in San Francisco for an evening so she could say hi to her mom and dad.
So just like that, an adventure with my pregnant wife and the proposed nanny was set. Sue asked among our group to see if anyone wanted to come along, but everyone seemed to be content to stay right there in Tampa.
Sue made her flight plan to arrive in Alaska in three reasonably short days. We had the airplane serviced and had the ground people put the rear potty in useable condition for Sue.
We made the first leg to Kansas City and kicked back early at a hotel. The three of us needed some time just to ourselves. The second day ended in Seattle, where we again had a decent dinner and relaxed. I was making sure Sue was drinking plenty of liquids, including milk.
Sue called John again to make sure he was going to be around. He assured us he would meet us at the airport. He asked how he would know our B-200 from the others up there. We told him to look for the S&S logo and the BigGirls.com logo.
Monday afternoon, we landed in Anchorage and taxied up to the operations building. John met us when we let the steps down. He was excited to see us and happy about the coming baby. He was most fascinated by Mercy. He couldn't take his eyes off her. Mercy seemed a little confused over his attention.
We all went out for dinner and ended up at the hotel we had stayed at before. John regaled us with tales of his adventures, and how the money we had helped him make from the gold was still supporting his lifestyle.
When we separated that night, Mercy said that John really excited her. She said that it was too bad he lived so far away from us. Sue winked at me and told me later that she would have a long talk with Mercy.
The next morning, while we were having breakfast, Sue called John and asked him if he wanted to come to Seattle to see Dewey and his new best friend Sheila. John said that there was no way that Dewey was hooked up with a lady, and he wanted to see it for himself. We had found a travel companion for Mercy.
It didn't take long to fly from Anchorage to the San Juan Islands. We landed at Friday Harbor and hitched a ride into town with a guy who was gaga over the plane. He knew Dewey, and had flown him into Seattle a couple of times in the past, so he was happy to taxi us into town.
We went to the restaurant/bar where we had met Dewey the first time. Wouldn't you know, Dewey and Sheila were enjoying the beginning of happy hour with his friends. It was a real reunion for John and Dewey, with John gushing over Sheila and saying that he was amazed that Dewey was so taken with a lady.
As the evening wore on, Dewey suggested we all go back to his boat after supper so we could enjoy just being together. We had a salmon dish with an elegant sauce that was delicious. Back at the boat, Dewey and John exchanged tales of the adventures they'd had with Sue, Mercy, and me until we were all droopy eyed.
Sue and I took the forward berth again, and wonder of wonders, John and Mercy used the never-used middle berth for the night.
"I think we're going to lose our nanny," Sue said, as we snuggled and loved before falling asleep. "It seems as soon as we get one that I want to keep, we find a suitable mate for her. This is not working out the way I thought it would."
"You're all that I'll ever need, Sue," I said, as I cuddled her in our after loving snuggle. "You've found us many nice friends to enjoy, but it always ends up with just you and me. We are together, special, in love, and forever the best of buddies."
Sue whacked me on the shoulder, "I hope I'm more that one of your buddies." She laughed, and pulled my head down to kiss me. Then she told me something that I suspected, "I really enjoy being with a girl. It is different than being with a man, in one way not as fulfilling, and in other ways more. I thought Mercy's heart was totally with us, but I guess not. I almost think Samantha wants a relationship too, but she's too young. I love you so much, Steve, but I want a woman to live with too."
We kissed and loved for a while, then drifted off to sleep.
The next day, when we were ready to head back, either to Anchorage or on to San Francisco, John had been convinced to come and visit with Mercy's folks for a few days. Mercy was excited to bring John home for her parents' inspection, even though he was at least ten years older than she was. Dewey and Sheila warned John about Merlin, but after he blew them off several times, decided to let him experience the man himself.
Mercy came to me to tell me that she had fallen for John. She said she hoped I understood, but knew I did. She said she knew Sue had wanted to keep her around forever, but this was one of those things that just happen. We kissed and hugged, with me letting her know she was free to enjoy her life.
"Steve, I don't know whether this is for real or permanent, but I have to find out. Most times, John's mind doesn't communicate with me. I only receive flashes. He has a lot of uncertainties. You and Sue are, and will always be, my soul mates, but I have to find out about this."
We flew out of Friday Harbor and landed in San Francisco with the minimum of fuel reserves, after holding in the pattern for almost forty-five minutes. Once down, we had the plane checked over and refueled to be ready to fly. We planned to depart either tomorrow or the day after.
Merlin and Missy were wonderful hosts but very antagonistic toward John in the beginning. It took the entire evening before Missy was able to convince Merlin that Mercy was choosing and not being swayed by anyone else. Once he understood, Merlin became more of the traditional father-in-law figure.
Missy got Sue and me off to the side and said, "Mercy will probably be coming back to you soon. I can't tell you when, how, or why, but I feel she will. I hope you will accept her back."
Before we left, we made sure John wanted to stay in San Francisco for a while. Sue and I told Mercy her clothes and belongings would be on their way as soon as we reached home. We had a tearful parting, but it wasn't a forever parting, we were just letting each other go on with their lives.
Sue and I enjoyed flying back to Tampa in two easy hops. We stopped in Henrietta, Oklahoma to visit some of the oil fields I had worked at, and was able to talk to one of the crew foremen that I had worked for so long ago. It was interesting to see, but I was glad I was beyond working in the oil fields.
We landed back at the Aero Park on a Thursday afternoon. After doing our checkout of the plane, we drove home in my truck that we had left at the airport. As soon as we arrived, Glenda was all over Sue; she said she had worried about her flying all over the country while pregnant.
Sue assured her she was in good health and that the baby was doing well, as he was moving around quite a bit. She told Glenda that she needed to worry more about Shawna and Debbie than her.
Sue checked in with her people to find everything running smoothly, and I called Debbie to find that everything was fine, but she said, "The stupid tractor bodies are driving me crazy. We can only produce four a week, but we are receiving orders to the tune of twenty a week. You either have to quit selling them or get a bigger place to produce them."
I talked to Jeff briefly, and he said his group was out-producing what he considered maximum production. Drew backed him up, saying that the people were keeping up the quality, but he said the facilities were near bursting.
Tiny told me to wait until he got in later and he would talk to me about the problem. He said he had a couple of suggestions, one of which was to send Phil off to a desert island somewhere, so he wouldn't be pushing a product they couldn't produce for a while.
The evening began the way it always had. Charlie, Jim, Tiny, Phil, Al, Tom, and now Drew, were all on the patio, toasting another great day with a cold beer. Drew said that he had given Tiny a make up of what would be needed to go into big production of the bodies. "We started off doing something that has all of the buyers anxious to start ordering. You let the original drivers help design the sleeper and now all of the body buyers are helping design their own sleeper. We have some stock groupings that most select from, but each one is custom. That takes a little longer."
Tiny said, "I figured that in on the pricing we worked out originally. I was going to reduce the price, since we were coming in under budget on the bodies and rebuilds, but I've delayed reducing the price to keep orders down a little."
"You need a separate plant," Tiny said, with a matter of fact tone. "There's no room at our place, and Sue has used up her extra land with the new building and increased parking. I've done everything I can to buy space around us, but haven't had any luck. Let me get something and I'll show you an idea."
Tiny went to his car and brought back a plat map of the area just below the storage facility where we had started our company.
"This land is for sale at a reasonable price," Tiny said, as he showed me the section he was talking about. "There's almost two hundred acres that we could use for as many plants as we could build. The problem is zoning. At present, the land is zoned agriculture, and has some kind of single family home zoning if the land is in five acre plots, but there is some kind of waiver for high density housing. You could get Ben to begin working on rezoning the land for commercial and manufacturing. If you were to bring designs that would be appealing to a zoning commission meeting, you might get it done."
"That's a lot of land. A big plant wouldn't take that much room. What would we do with the rest of it?" I asked, thinking of how large an area it was.
Tiny became more expansive. "Until you need it to begin expanding the other shops, you could just make it a very nice park area. I think we could put the tractor body plant in the rear. You will also need the facility to be large enough to have a very large mechanical rebuild shop, because that's one of the desirable qualities of getting one of your bodies. You'll need a paint shop for the other desirable part of a sale."
"Tiny, are you leading me toward a full service truck repair facility that would include a paint shop?"
"I am, and while you're at it, this space here would be for a chrome shop, and this space would be for a group of independent machine shops that would be available to make parts for us on demand. Then there is this space that would be the truck dealership, and right next to it, toward the front of the property, would be the RV dealership."
I couldn't believe he would come up with all of that, but "So you've got almost the entire two hundred acres in businesses, what happened to the park idea."
Tiny answered, "There would be a park like area around the Holiday Inn Express we would have right here, beside the main road."
"What do we want to go into the hotel business for?" I ask dumbly.
"Easy, the people having their trucks or RV's repaired would need a place to stay. We would also have a car rental facility for those that don't have a tow vehicle. I didn't make a restaurant on the property, but we could buy this little ten acres across the street and have one of the franchise restaurants open there.
"Whew, who's going to run all this?" I said, already tired just from thinking of all the people involved just at that location, much less the main location.
"We'll find them, Steve. You have the ability to find quality people. We'll find them. We probably have some managers among our own people right now. We just haven't recognized them yet."
"How can we finance that much land and that much building?" I asked.
"Right now, you could borrow just about any amount you wanted, without even a business plan up front. But with a solid plan like this, you won't have any trouble coming up with the money. Sue may want to invest in it. Ben and Beth have already indicated they would be a part of it, if you let them. What do you say? Let's do it."
I had this strange feeling, so I went inside and called Mercy. It was only three in the afternoon in California when she answered. "Hi Steve," she said before I could even begin. "I'm glad you called me about Tiny's plan. It'll work, but you and Sue will need to negotiate the land deal. An old guy that you both have met before owns it. I think he's the man you bought the land next to your shop from. He'll deal with you, but probably not many others. For some reason, he wants to donate the land to the county for a park. You'll need to find better land for the park so he'll be satisfied. If you can do that, it will remove his major objection to what you want to do."
"How do you know all of this, Mercy?" I couldn't believe her ability to perceive what was happening so far away.
"You and Sue are still special to me, and are in my thoughts and my Mom's thoughts all the time. When you're troubled, we'll know. Call us, we'll help if we can."
We talked for a few minutes and I promised to have Sue call her soon. No mention was made of John, but she seemed to be in a great mood.
Back out on the patio, I poured myself another beer, then said to Tiny, "I'll go talk to the owner of the property tomorrow. We'll work out something and get started. You'd better have an architect start work on some plans, as this will come together pretty fast, if it does at all."
With a smile, Tiny said, "Already got 'em, Steve, I'm ready for you this time."
He sat back and added, "You know that there is still a lot of space to build a very big clothing factory and a very big facility for S&S. You could have your entire operation just down the street if you wanted. Just a thought, not a suggestion, but just a thought."
That evening when the crowd had thinned, I told Sue about the plan in a general sort of way. She thought it had merit and would look at it in the morning. I told her, "I called Mercy about it, because it had just come to me to call her. Mercy said that the guy that we bought the property next door from owns the land. You know, you remember him, Ernie Wainwright." "Oh goody, I really like him, he's a sweet old man" Sue said enthusiastically. "I think that a business park like that would be good. Let's build a restaurant too, so we can have a place close by to get a snack when we want it."
Friday morning, I woke energized, knowing there was a new adventure ready to begin. Did I feel up to it? Damn right I did. I wanted to rush out of bed to start the day, but then, I was snuggled up to my Sue, my beautiful, wonderful, wife.
I kissed her into consciousness until she pulled me down to hug my face into her bosom saying, "I want to sleep some more, Honey, please?"
"I need to get up, but you sleep all you want. Get up when you're rested. Love you."
Sue gave me another kiss and snuggled down into the covers.
I got up and started the coffee, then quietly shaved, showered, and dressed for work. I pulled the chain on the patio light at six. The weather was muggy and hot, even at six, so I turned on the air units to cool the area down.
Glenda and Martin joined me first. We sipped our coffee, just like old times, before the place became a menagerie. Shawna showed up next, giving me a kiss while patting her belly saying, "You know, if that joke I got at home hadn't put this thing in the oven real quick, I was going to get you to sub for him."
Glenda huffed, "Oh Shawna, you talk so crazy sometimes. You know the only father your child could ever have would be Charlie. He's a good man."
"He damned sure is, Glenda, and he's all mine," Shawna smiled, happy to stir Glenda's pot early in the morning.
People began arriving in ones, and twos, or more. Once full of people, including Phil's delivery of breakfast sandwiches and pastries, the morning conferences were started. Everyone had something to contribute as they were all working on different projects.
Drew came to me to ask, "If you get this new location for the truck conversions, I want to head that group, just like now. I can do it and do a good job."
"That is the plan right now, Drew. You'll have to see how much responsibility you'll want, as Tiny has plans for several activities," I said.
"I know I can handle the truck rebuild group along with developing our own fiberglass shop," Drew stated. "Actually, Jeff can develop it, I would want to be able to direct it, as well as the mechanical part. I know we could, and would, develop a shop that trucks could be repaired in as well. I think I can do that too."
"Tiny didn't tell me everything, but I suspect he may want to sell new tractors too," Drew said. "I don't know that much about handling a dealership or how to sell an item like that, but I could learn. Then again, someone experienced in that would be good. You would want them to be quality conscious, just like your other people are."
Tiny asked, "Are you going to talk to the property owner?"
"Sure, Tiny," I said, "Ernie Wainwright loves Sue and her family. Hell, he may even want to invest in us too. We'll see though, as too many investors is not good sometimes."
At the shop, everyone was used to me not being there, and began their day the way they would have had I been out on the floor. Debbie was busy making up work orders for the big welding truck, as Tim was scheduled for a couple of jobs almost everyday.
I looked up Ernie's telephone number and gave him a call. "Ernie, this is Steve Sharp, Beth Phillips son-in-law, you know the guy who married the cute little Phillips girl. I bought your building that had been condemned."
"I remember you well, son," Ernie said. "What can I do for you?"
I answered quickly, "You have some land out near the trailer park that I might be interested in. Could we get together for coffee or lunch and talk about it?"
"Oh yeah," Ernie said, "That's the land I had thought to try to make a deal with the county for a park. If you want, I'd rather you got it. What do you want to do, build your wife a mansion on it?"
"If I can't use it for what I'm thinking, ' Ernie, I'll do just that. Anyway, how about coming out to the house for lunch? I'll make sure we have something special just for you. How about it?"
"Will your wife be there?"
"Sure, Ernie, she may even cook it for us."
"I'll be out there about twelve, twelve-fifteen, okay?"
"Great, bring your good humor and enjoy lunch with us. See you then."
I called home to see if Sue was up. She was, and was eating something that Glenda had made for her. I told her about a lunch date with Ernie and she said, "Oh darn, I need to go to the gym today. I could use a little sun too."
"We'll go to the gym after lunch, and the sun can't shine on you through those clouds anyway. Ask Glenda to whip us up a light lunch. Ernie will be in a good mood and will deal with us for his land."
"I'll dress to keep his mind off business if I can still get into my sexy clothes."
I thought for a second, "You know, Sue, why don't you come out with a line of maternity clothes. You could make them sexy. Men always think pregnant women are sexy, so if you designed them the way you do your other creations, you would have another hit on your hands."
Sue gushed, "I just love you so much. You listen to me complain and then come up with a way for me to make more money or to at least increase the product line I already have. That's a great idea Steve, thanks; I'll get right on it."
When it neared eleven-thirty, I took off for the house. Glenda said she had made French onion soup and some small hot roast beef sandwiches that we could dip in gravy or the soup. Glenda said it was a recipe she had seen and wanted to try.
Ernie showed up and I sat him down with a big glass of iced tea at the big patio table, instead of the long dinner table. He remarked that I had somehow figured out how to cool the area without closing it in. I had to tell him the truth. My contractor had the idea; all I did was add the fans.
Sue and Glenda joined us for lunch. We ate heartily, having tea with the meal. Sue popped up to get us some strong coffee in small cups after the meal. She surprised me when she brought out two long cigars and a cigar clipper for Ernie and me. Sue knew I really didn't smoke, but there must be something to this.
Ernie and I lit up and blew some smoke rings, watching them get blown off the patio by the fans circulating the air. Ernie offered, "Nice, Steve, you know how to live, a lovely lady to fix you a nice lunch, then she brings you a cigar and Cuban coffee to relax. So, what do you really want with the land down there?"
"If it were bigger, it would be better, but I want to have a business park that would have my new truck body plant, along with a mechanical rebuilding facility for the trucks. We might try for a dealership for tractors too. We are thinking that since we would be dealing with all of the mechanical and coach stuff, we might want to get into the RV business. If we did that, then we could probably justify a hotel, and perhaps a restaurant across the street. Sue needs more manufacturing area, so we would probably feature a nice building that would contain additional manufacturing space for her. We have some more ideas, but that's why we could use a little more land."
"I see," Ernie said while puffing his cigar, "do you think you could match what I was going to propose to the county?"
"Depends on how bad you were going to take advantage of the county. You know, I looked at an aerial map this morning, and it looked like there was another piece of property behind yours that is as big as yours, I wonder who owns it?"
Ernie harrumphed, then said, "Don't be coy with me, Stevie Sharp, you know I own that land too. Did you already figure out what I was going to do?"
"Not completely, Sir, but it looked like you figured on near giving away the land to the county for a park, then building a housing development back there that would have the nearby park as a benefit to sell the land easier."
"Got me on the first try," Ernie smiled, while sipping a fresh cup of the strong coffee. I figured the county would give me about twenty-five percent of what the land is worth when it was all said and done, but then I was going to make it up when I built high density housing on the other land."
"How about just selling me all of it, Ernie? Actually, you would be selling it to Sue and me, as I don't think I can cover this by myself."
"Well, what do you know?" Ernie exclaimed. "I'm going to sell something to a Phillips after all. I thought I was going to do it before, but you were able to cover the whole thing through cash flow. I don't know how you did it but you did. Let me figure out what I need to get out of both pieces and I'll get back to you."
Sue came to the table and sat down with us, "Oh come on, Ernie, you know what you need for the land as it stands. You always know what something is worth and what it should sell for. Let's get this agreed on and closed so I can build more factory space for my clothing company. Steve just gave me an idea for a whole new line, and I definitely need the space."
You could see Ernie was conflicted, but he was also staring right at Sue's delicious cleavage.
"How soon you going to have that youngun, Sue?" Ernie asked.
"Two or three months, Ernie, enough time to get going on building a new plant. What do you say, what are you going to give me for a baby present? What kind of deal will you make us?" Sue egged him on.
"You know, that's four hundred twenty acres of fine land. If you do what you're saying, it will provide jobs for a lot of people. I could probably do what I'm thinking on some more land I own down the road, and have your employees as prospective buyers too. Okay, I'll give your Uncle Ben the numbers this afternoon and see if we can get this done quick. You're responsible for the zoning, not me. And if you can't get it zoned, you're gonna have one hell of a big home site for all your kids."
"Do you know who owns the piece of property across the street?"
"Sure do, I'll throw that in if you'll invite me out for a free meal when you get the restaurant built," Ernie said being generous.
"Of course, we will Ernie," Sue said happily. "But anytime you want to drop by for supper, we always have room for one or two more. Bring your lady friend and come out."
"I will, I will come out with my lady soon. You have to watch her though as she will drink too much wine sometimes," Ernie said, getting up from the table.
"We will, Ernie, you just bring her out and we'll take care of both of you," Sue said.
Ernie paused, "I know Sue's got a Mom, so I may just adopt Steve here. I'd think you would be a great son, Steve."
"It would be an honor to have you as a Dad, Ernie. I always could use advice from someone like you. You'll be my honorary dad, okay?"
Ernie nodded his head, with some dampness coming to his eyes as he left the patio, waving at us.
Sue waited for Ernie to drive off before saying, "That was slick. You knew that if we fed him, he would sell you anything you wanted."
"I wasn't as slick as you and Glenda. Where did you come up with the cigars and the Cuban coffee," I asked?
"Glenda said that Martin had some cigars when I told her what we needed. She ran next door to Maria and Jorge's house to borrow some coffee when I said that when my grandfather used to eat and make deals, he would always have Cuban coffee and big cigars. See, we did just like he used to do. Grandma Nina used to always bring him his cigar and coffee, just like I did. You're my man."
"It was the right touch, now I need to go wash my mouth out and change shirts. I'm not used to smelling like smoke."
Sue gave me a hug and kiss, "Get used to it, Honey, you're the big business man around here now."
We went to the gym and worked out for a little over an hour. Sue had a physical trainer work with her on what exercises she could and should do, being pregnant. She needed to keep her activity level up to compensate for the food she wanted to eat.
Back at the shop, I talked to Tiny, saying that it looked like we were going to get the land, but we were getting twice as much, as we were getting the same amount of land in the back of the land he had looked at. "Tiny, let's get an architect to get some drawings going for a zoning commission meeting. It will need to include a restaurant across the street from the Holiday Inn, as Sue wants a restaurant close by for snacks."
"Wow, I hadn't thought of a restaurant. With all the development out here, why not? It will be an instant success. What kind of place were you thinking? Something like a Friday's or Chili's?"
I was thinking more like a Village Inn, IHOP, Denny's, or a Perkins. You know, a family restaurant where you can get a sandwich, or a whole meal, if you want."
"Ruth likes Perkins, and even Denny's for that matter, but we usually only go to Village Inn during the wee hours of the morning. Same with IHOP, even though they sell regular dinners too," Tiny answered.
"Anyway, we need to get everything we can ready for a county zoning commission meeting. Ben will arrange it, but we need to be ready."
"Got it, Boss, wonder what you'll do with that back acreage, now that you can build whatever you want?" Tiny asked.
I smiled and said, "It'll come to me. We may want to run some of these buildings to the back to make the area more appealing. We could leave some park like areas in the middle, behind the hotel, for relaxing. I would think we would want the RV place within easy walking distance, but we could always use golf carts to haul people back and forth between the hotel, RV area, and the tractor area. Who knows, perhaps we can have a golf cart sales area too. You know what, how about a chip and putt course next to the hotel. I'll bet a lot of RV people would like to work on their game. Isn't there a driving range close by that we could incorporate into our package?"
"Give it a rest, Steve. Next thing you know, you'll be building a golf course," moaned Tiny.
Gene called me just before I was getting ready to leave. "I heard you and Sue are both pilots and have a plane. Could you fly my wife up here? She had to stay behind for a friend, but now she doesn't need to be there and wants to come up here. Would you do that for me?"
"So, where are you playing this week?" I asked.
"This isn't a game, this is big business. We're playing as you call it up in Dover, Delaware. Would you do that for me? I'll owe ya."
"Anytime, Gene, you've done a lot for us. Either Sue or I will fly her up. Give me a number to call her and I'll call Sue to see what she wants to do. Does anyone else want to go up? We have room."
"My crew chief's wife and daughter want to come, but you may not have room for all of them."
"Not a problem, we can carry six easy, and seven if necessary, not including the two front seats. You call your wife and let your crew chief call his family. I'll call Sue and get this started."
Actually, I didn't call Sue first. I called the Aero Park and had them check out the plane, make sure it was fueled and had it over at the ops building, then I called Sue.
"Want to fly up to Dover, Delaware to carry Gene's wife, along with his crew chief's wife and daughter?" I asked a surprised Sue.
She answered with, "Are we going to stay up there or come back? I kind of promised Mom Sunday dinner, and Charlie was saying we needed to visit with Hap."
"We'll just do a turnaround. Give you a chance to fly through all of those restricted areas. If you wander off course, fighters will escort you to an airfield, never to be seen again," I joked.
"In that case, smarty pants," Sue joked back. "You can file and be left seat. You can be the one in the federal hoosegow instead of me."
"Well, get ready, look up the flight plan for me and I'll call Gene's wife and have her drive up to the air park. I already called to get the plane ready."
"I'm on it," Sue said hanging up.
I called Gene's wife and gave her directions to the airport. She said she had already called his crew chief's wife who was on her way to her house as we spoke. She said she would meet us in thirty to forty-five minutes.
As soon as I hit home, I called the Aero Park and talked to the attendant/mechanic there. I asked him to pre-flight the plane and fire up the turbines so they were ready when we got there. He said we would be ready.
As Sue and I drove up in the pickup, Gene's wife drove up and parked. I helped them carry their luggage around to the front of the ops building where the plane was sitting, already running at minimum turbine speed. We stowed the luggage, loaded up everyone, and gave them the safety talk.
Sue still wanted me to fly left seat, so I called for clearance and taxied to the end of the active runway. As soon as we hit the end of the runway, we were cleared for takeoff. Our little junior rocket scooted down the runway and was off the ground in less than a minute.
We leveled off at twelve thousand feet, using the flight control people to ensure our location. The GPS helped keep us exactly on course. As we neared the DC area, we were vectored around the sensitive areas and given a heading and frequency for the airport we were going into. We were landing a little more than two hours after takeoff. Gene's wife said our plane was as nice as Gene's jet, and was easily as fast. Sue glowed, knowing that we would hear good things for helping a good customer.
We landed and Sue went off to find a potty. I unloaded the luggage for the ladies and handed them over to one of Gene's people who was waiting for us, then had the plane refueled.
I took a potty break and bought a couple of sandwiches and some water. Sue came back and wanted to fly left seat, so we locked up, called in to update the flight plan, and requested permission to taxi. The controllers were nice and put us right up front, as they knew our plane would not hold them up.
Two hours and fifteen minutes later, we were touching down, back in Tampa. It was probably a pretty expensive trip, but it was worth its weight in gold as far as public relations go. It was getting close to ten when we drove up to the patio.
Holy smokes, the place was rocking. Most of the employees of S&S were there, as well as over a hundred of the employees from Sue's plant. This was the first time that so many of the two businesses were mixed in a party setting.
Tiny was sitting with a drink in his hand, wearing a twenty-dollar smile. "This is the way to have a Friday night, both companies sharing some time at the bosses' house. You better mingle. We told them you were doing a customer a favor and would be back just about now."
Sue and I mingled as best we could. I had a couple of stiff drinks. I'm sure Sue would have wanted one, or four, too but she couldn't. That's okay, I'd make up for it.
What mingling we did, must have been enough. After an hour, the place was mostly empty. Phil was plowed, as were Judy and Ruth. Tiny was still sitting, glowing, having created a good atmosphere for both companies. Shawna and Debbie were both bitching because they couldn't drink anything, but patted their tummies saying, "We got 'em growin' in there."
By midnight the patio was empty, Sue was already in bed, and I was finishing cleaning up. A Chrysler 300 drove up and parked on the grass next to the patio. The surprise was that Beth got out of the car and came into the patio. I had the lights low, but the air and the fans were still on.
Beth gave me a quick hug and asked, "Could you make me a drink? How about making me one of those things you drink, a Beefeaters martini? I need something to loosen up with, or to calm me down, or something.
I made us both a big one, then asked her if she was hungry. When she nodded yes, I went inside to bring back a tray of meat and cheese with some bread. We spent some time making sandwiches and drinking. After finishing her second fat Beefeaters, Beth began, "You've always showed me the utmost of respect. I don't deserve it. You've got Sue to accept Ben and me as her parents. I'm so ashamed, but so happy Sue is the person she is. Ben doesn't think it's a big deal, but I'm afraid it will hurt Sue. Steve, you've always been so good to Sue and me, that I guess I just need your reassurance that's it's okay that I had a baby by my brother."
I began cautiously, "You know Beth, you and Ben loved each other way back then and I know you two love each other today. Sue was the product of that love, whether you wanted her at the time or not. I commend you both for letting her come into this world, and for raising her to be the woman she is today. You both gave her the will and stamina to be the lady and the woman she has become. Beth, Sue is a leader, an achiever, a person who makes those who know her better. I'm a better man for knowing her. I'm a very happy man that I'm her husband. Know that you and Ben have given life to a special person, that is now my happiness. I can't tell you how much I love her."
Beth was weeping a little at that point.
Surprise, Sue came hopping out of the house, and landed in my lap kissing me from the top of my head to my chin. "I love you, I love you, I love you."
When Sue settled down, she said, "You weren't in bed yet, so I came out to see what you were doing and found you out here, flirting with my mom. Then I heard you say all of those nice things. I love you, Steve, I love you so much."
Beth spoke up, "I love him too, Baby. I'm so happy you've found your mate. Mine is a little different, but we're still mated for life. I wish we were living some place else so we could be more open."
Sue cocked her head, "Do it, Mom, you two have more than enough money to live anywhere you want. Let Ben's help take care of the house and go somewhere and enjoy yourselves. Ben can take care of his investments from anywhere. Be mates for a while, be open and happy. Do it while you're young enough, do it while you can."
"Sue, Honey, I always thought you would hate me when you found out Ben was your father. The way you've accepted it has been wonderful. You still love Ben and me the way you always have. I've been ashamed all of my life for loving Ben the way I have, but now you've freed me to be proud to be your mom. Ben's proud of you too, Sue, know he's very proud of you."
Sue got up from my lap and hugged her mom then led her back to my lap to sit on one leg, while Sue sat on the other. "Mom, this guy is the best and has helped me be all the woman I can be. Let him hold you, come inside and stay with us. In the morning, you'll know our love just from lying with us. Come on, Mom, come stay with us."
We got up, and the two went inside, while I shut down the patio and locked up. When I stripped down, I did so in the bathroom, but put on some shorts to wear to bed.
Sue and her Mom had a space between them. When I lay between them, Sue said, "What's with all the clothes. You don't wear clothes to bed," and she pulled them off me and threw them toward the closet.
Sue said, "Hug Mom, so she knows we love her." Then Sue hugged me. I hoped that thing between my legs wouldn't betray the base attraction Beth held for me.
While drifting off to sleep I saw pictures in my mind of Mercy, then of Missy. Missy was saying to me, "I didn't get to sleep with you. Next time it's my turn."
We slept.