MORE CHANGES... and problems (Part 132c)

MORE CHANGES... and problems (Part 132c)

I honestly don’t remember my reaction to his words but I probably wouldn’t be far off if I said had a big smile on my face. What I do remember was getting up and motioning for him to follow me as I walked to the back work area. There wasn’t anyone there so I stopped by the top of the stairway to the basement. Bret’s first words were to ask if I’d hired them and I nodded my head affirmatively. That brought an even bigger smile to his face as he made a comment saying that had been quite a show. I couldn’t disagree.

Bret had shown signs of being somewhat of a ”panty man“ in the past and I’d been reluctant to engage him in conversation about it because of my involvement with his wife and panties when she lived at my grandfather’s house. I didn’t think his wife would’ve mentioned it to him and I didn’t want it to become a topic of conversation where I might "slip". So... after I’d noticed he had an interest in panty peeks I’d let him know if I spied one and would point him in the right direction... but that was about it. However, this past one was more than a casual peek. It was pretty big... both in time and in what was visible. Again, I don’t remember my exact words but it was something along the line that I didn’t believe my eyes and I know I was shaking my head as I told him. I also remember telling him that I hoped that it wasn’t a mistake hiring them. Just before we headed back to our desks Bret sort of sheepishly asked if I’d seen anything from the blonde and I just shook my head from side to side.

That Friday was the last day of school and Elle only had a half day. It was the same for our kids but her mother had picked them up at school and had them at her house so Elle made a rare trip down town and stopped in to see me. She’d put off shopping for Summer clothes for the kids because she’d been so busy and thought it would be a good time to see what was out there. I’d opened a charge account with the new department store in town back when I’d helped Laura out with some new clothes but hadn’t used it in a while so told her to go there. They had kids clothes as well as clothes for her but I told her to ”be reasonable“. That brought out a smirky type smile on her face. I honestly hoped she would.

It’d been a week since I’d called my friend Willie, the guy who owned/ran a lingerie company in New Orleans and I hadn’t heard from him. I didn’t want to be a PITA (pain in the ass) so debated with myself on weather to call again. It wasn’t all that important as all I wanted from him was to know if he’d be coming North during the Summer. If he was I wanted to talk with him on the possibility of manufacturing ”dribble panties“ with a plastic crotch as had been suggested by Ginger’s doctor. I still didn’t think it was viable but it was definitely worth asking about. With a slow afternoon I decided to make the call. I got his secretary and I could hardly decipher her Southern accent. I thought she was telling me he was away on a business trip so just left another message.

Having seen Elle earlier in the afternoon she was the last person I thought I’d see in the bank again. When she appeared at the gate she had a somewhat familiar face with her. I knew I’d seen her before but just couldn’t put a name with the face. Elle helped me out by saying something along the lines of ”You remember Karen... from Sunday school... don’t you?“ Then it came back to me and that Jay and I’d built one of our crooked playhouses for her sister when I still lived at the mobile home park. Karen was somewhat embarrassed as Elle brought me up to date on her life. A college senior, she was home for a short while before heading off to Summer school. I’d told Elle about the problems with finding temporary help as a matter of conversation and when she heard Karen was only going to be around for a short time convinced her to come to see me at the bank.

By then it was almost 5pm and it was Bret’s turn to work late. I escorted Karen to the side chair at my desk and asked Elle if she thought her mother would keep the kids for the night. I thought we might celebrate the end of Elle’s teaching year by going out to eat and then, at home, have a nice evening all to ourselves. At first she didn’t think it was a good idea but quickly changed her mind. I had Trish dial up Elle’s mother to see if she could arrange it while I attended to Karen.

The main reason I didn’t recognize her at first was that she’d cut her hair very short. That, and maturity, had changed the way her face looked. In speaking with her it was obvious she wasn’t a teen ager anymore. It had been at least four, if not more, years since I last seen her and she was now ”filled out“ as well.  In asking her about her interest in working she said she’d not given any thought to it until meeting Elle. I gave her a brief run down of what I was looking for and she seemed interested. As we talked I noticed that she had her knees spread apart with her shoes touching. There was nothing for me to see because she wasn’t really facing me but I thought it a bit strange. She finally said she’d think about it and would call on Monday. While talking with her I was really hoping she’d accept the offer because she would provide some needed ”balance“ to the two teens I’d hired.

Elle had convinced her mother to keep the kids. When she told me I thought her to be a little ”giddy“. We weren’t even out the door when I found out why. She ”suggested“ that ”we“ might go look at an outfit she’d seen when shopping for the kids but, with my admonition to ”be reasonable“, she hadn’t bought it. However, she’d learned to play the ”game“ when it came to clothes for her. A little ”wet play“ and a ”promise“ was usually enough for her to get what she wanted. We put the things she already bought into her car and then walked to the store.

It was a knit shorts, slacks and top set. She loved white shorts and pants with colorful tops and what she’d picked out fit that description. I’ll admit that my usual first thought was about the cost but knowing that we’d be alone that night put all kinds of positive thoughts in place... and I said ”OK“. Since we had two vehicles I told her to go on ahead and I’d meet her at the restaurant that the guy who drove my racecar when I was back in high school now owned and ran. In my rush to leave I’d forgotten some things I wanted for the upcoming school board election. It was just 6pm when I walked in the back door. Gina called me over as I walked past her window. I figured I was in for some kind of a jibe but drifted over towards her anyway. She wanted to know if the woman I had walked out with was my wife. When I nodded yes she smiled and gave me a thumbs up... definitely not what I’d expected at all.

To be continued...