Friday is Date Night

She showed up with her car packed to the gills.

"Hi Dad. I've decided I'm a beach girl. I've transferred to Coastal, and start in two weeks. I hope that gives me enough time to find a dorm room, or I could save you some bucks and move in here. What should I do?"

She was grinning so wide it almost swallowed her face.

"I'm sure the dorms are very nice," I said, watching her face fall.

"But probably not as nice as here. Which of the spare bedrooms do you want?"

Her smile returned.

"Am I old enough to call my dad an asshole for being mean to me? No? I didn't think so. If it's all the same to you, I'll take the one at the end of the hall, and maybe we can actually have a little privacy."

I grinned for three days, happier than I had been in a while.

Because Rose was a 'local', she soon had friends stopping by often, usually when I was about to cook. Most of these kids were homesick, and a meal they didn't have to eat at school or a restaurant was a treat. She would often have one friend with her in her room, and two more in the spare bedroom. They would laze around while I slaved over a stove for them, giggling, talking about boys, wandering around in bikinis so small I almost didn't see the point of wearing them, and generally having a ball. A few of the closer ones started calling me Beach Dad. I would fuss at them sometimes, but having a houseful of pretty girls versus staring at the walls every weekend, was a trade off I was willing to accept.

Two actually came on to me, and I let them down gently, thinking how I would feel if some creepy middle aged guy was taking advantage of my daughter. Rose found out and talked to them, and soon I was back to being Beach Dad. One actually apologized.

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

Rose came to me for a favor.

"Emily just told me her Mom wants to come down to visit but can't afford it. You know she's on full scholarship, and they really have very little money. Will you help them?"

Emily had become her best friend. She had told me a little about her background.

"Sure. I'll call the motel I used when your Mom and I split up. It's not fancy, but it's clean and close. Think she'd like that?"

"No, Dad, you don't get it. I want her to stay here. She can have the guest bedroom and Emily can bunk with me. That way they don't have to go out for meals. They really are broke, Dad."

She gave me her little girl eyes, and I agreed. Rose and Emily met her at the bus station, she didn't own a car.

I was at work, and when I got home I could hear them chattering in the living room. I stopped in the kitchen for a glass of tea before going to meet her.

Both the kids jumped up and hugged me.

"Mom, This is Beach Dad. Isn't he neat? Beach Dad, Mom."

She stood. Dark hair with a few flecks of gray. Eyes so dark they looked black. She wasn't a beauty, but had a pleasant face. She was probably twenty pounds heavier than she had been in her twenties, but it had settled nicely. She held out her hand.

"I prefer July when I'm in the presence of grownups."

I took her hand, thinking how warm it was.

"Bill, when I have people over old enough to call me that."

We hit it off, right away. We were the same age, almost. She was actually three years older. We had the same taste in music, movies, and food. She insisted on helping with dinner until I told her I was grilling.

"Oh no, there's no way I'm getting between a man and his primal urge to burn meat. If you'll show me around the kitchen, I'll work on the salads."

Soon her, Emily, and Rose were rattling round the kitchen, laughing and teasing. I looked through the patio door and suddenly felt an overwhelming loss. That should have been Charlie, Rose and Mary, instead of the combination in there now. For a second I raged about what I had lost, what she had thrown away. I was over it by the time they came out, and we had a very pleasant evening.

I insisted Rose and Emily take her home. They could get there in six hours, versus the nine and a half it took on the bus. She gave me a tremendous hug when she left.

"Thank you."

"Anytime. You'll always be welcome."

She sighed.

"That's not what I meant, but thank you for that. I was thanking you for showing me there are still a few decent men out there. Emily's dad left when she was six. If they put him in a lineup, she wouldn't be able to pick him out."

We didn't say much more, and soon they were moving into the distance. Tuesday Rose jumped me.

"What do you think of July?"

I wasn't sure what she was getting at, so I answered carefully.

"She seems really nice. Emily is lucky to have her."

She grinned.

"She REALLY liked you. Can we have her down next month?"

"Sure honey, if you give me your word you and Emily don't try to set us up."

Her grin faltered a bit, but she pressed on.

"Promise. I'm going to call Emily."

Soon she was chattering away.

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

I really liked Emily, and tried to think of a way to help her. Our warehouse was specialized to the modular housing industry, and there was a lot of stuff we carried contractors couldn't find in the box stores. I found myself being called a lot on Saturdays, someone begging me to open up long enough to get a part they desperately needed. After six Saturdays in a row, I had had enough.

The next Friday found me in my old town, in the owner's office. I presented my plan to him, trying to anticipate all questions. My presentation must have impressed him, because in three weeks my little warehouse would officially open on Saturdays, from seven until six.

I got Emily and Rose together and stated my proposal.

"Look girls, the powers on high[meaning me, but I didn't tell them that]have decided to do business on Saturdays. Most of my guys like a little overtime, but not every Saturday, so I have to look for some part time help. Ten hours, with an hour for lunch. Ten bucks an hour. I think college kids would work best. Know anybody?"

There was silence for awhile, before Rose spoke.

"Is there a policy against hiring official and unofficial daughters?"

"None that I'm aware of."

"When do we start?"

What time do your classes end during the day?"

"Three."

"Good. Starting Monday, I expect you there at four. That should get you trained on the basics before we open officially. One of us, Jerry, Amy, or me, will be there with you for the first three months, after that, you'll be on your own. Jerry or Amy will open, and I'll close. If you know of some guys interested, I'll probably need two or three down the road, and one right now."

Emily had a semi official boyfriend. He seemed to be a nice guy, and was just as broke as she was. He showed up with the girls, and after two weeks of intensive training, we opened.

It didn't go as smoothly as we would have liked, but they survived and our customers were very happy. After enough time had gone by, we crunched numbers, and found we made more on Saturday than any other day of the week.

Rose and Emily came to me with a presentation they wanted me to consider. We weren't in the retail market, working exclusively with contractors and developers. They wanted us to crack that market, cater to the do it yourself crowd. I talked it over with the home office, and got permission to try it for three months.

We advertised heavily. Retail would be open Saturday only, starting in two weeks. We were nervous, and I made sure to be on hand opening day.

We nearly got buried. Modular housing owners, frustrated about not being able to get specific parts without paying a hefty price to have it ordered special through the box stores, responded in droves. I had to call in another man to handle the load. We still had customers a full hour after we were supposed to close.

We didn't originally offer delivery service on Saturday, but soon it was regular thing. The contractors liked it because they could get an earlier start on the week. I had to add an extra truck, just to keep up.

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

Charlie would come down every three weeks or so. David was set to graduate in a couple of months. She had brought him with her a few times, and they both liked the area. She was sending out resumes locally, and I helped as much as I could, networking customers and friends. She got three interviews before she found a position she liked that paid a decent wage. She was due to start the week he graduated. I found them a nice apartment, paying the deposits and first month's rent, as a gift. They were very happy. He was looking in his field, but hadn't found anything. I gave him a job in the warehouse, being liberal with time off to do interviews.

Thanks to free room and board, July was spending every other weekend with us. We got comfortable with each other. I told her a little about Mary, and she gave me a brief history of her ex. I asked her how she came to be named July.

"My parents had no imagination. I've got two sisters named May and June, and a brother named August. It gets worse. I have a set of first cousins named Thunder, Rainy, and Sunny."

Interesting family.

"How did Emily escape?"

July laughed.

"She didn't. Her middle name is April."

The kids would socialize a little more, because of their jobs they actually had a little money, and they often left us alone at night.

We had been getting more and more relaxed. One night we shared a bottle of wine and watched a romantic movie, sitting together on the couch. Gravity got us, and soon we were against each other. She looked up, I looked down, and before we knew it our lips were locked. Thirty minutes later we were in the bedroom, shedding clothes. The first time was fast and hard. It had apparently been a while for her too. The second time was a little gentler, and lasted a little longer. We didn't get to snuggle in the afterglow, we had just got done when car lights raked across the window. She ran naked from my room. I had to hide her clothes and sneak them back the next day.

I think the girls figured it out judging from their smirks, but they never said anything.

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

Rose and I went to watch David graduate. It was the first time I had seen Mary in almost a year. She was thinner, quieter, with a sad look about her. We were pleasant, but Rose sat between us, just in case.

We met back at our old house for a small celebration. Curious, I wandered through the rooms. I couldn't tell any change at all, even all our photos were still displayed. I picked one up in the den, a snapshot of us standing on a beach, ironically enough. Her hair was longer then, and was whipped about by the wind. I had my arms wrapped around her, and we both smiling happily.

"It's always been one of my favorites. We were so happy back then, weren't we?"

I turned to see a tear trickle down her cheek.

"Yes we were" I said softly, the sadness clear in my voice.

"I know you don't want to hear it, but I'm so sorry I ruined everything. Looking back now, I can't even understand what made me do it. I can definitely tell you I'll regret it until the day I die."

I didn't even think, just took her into my arms for a gentle hug. It broke something loose in her, and she started sobbing. Rose came in, took one look, and gently closed the door, giving us privacy.

"You didn't have to take them away from me, you know."

She said it quietly, as we separated. I had no idea what she was talking about and told her so.

"The girls. They chose to be with you instead of me. Soon you'll all be down there and I'll be completely alone. If this is your idea of revenge, it's working."

I was shocked. I hadn't considered that at all.

"There is no revenge here, Mary. The girls are both adults now, they can make their own choices. I haven't stolen them from you. Rose has always loved the beach, ever since the first time we took her at three. What difference does it make if she's going to college at the beach instead of where she transferred from? I won't deny that I love having her with me, but I didn't have the first clue about her transfer until she showed up at the house. Doesn't she still see you as often? I know she and Charlie come up at least once a month."

I paused, becoming slightly pissed. Everything wasn't always about her.

"As for Charlie, don't you think she exhausted all her options locally before she took the job she has now? It was a good offer, Mary. She's an adult, about to be married. Where she lives is her choice. I won't deny I like having her close, but I'm slightly insulted you think I deliberately tried to take them away from you."

She stood, eyes wide, while I had my little rant.

"I'm sorry" she said, hanging her head. "I know you didn't deliberately take them away. But the fact remains, you'll all be down there and I'll be here, alone."

I almost reminded her that her actions led to this situation, but held her tongue. Anything I could have said she had probably already said to herself. Then I said something in retrospect I should have given more thought to.

"Look, if you get to missing them too much, come down. It won't cost you much, you can stay in my guestroom."

She looked up, hope in her eyes. I cautioned her.

"Don't read anything into this. A room is all I'm offering, understand?"

I could see the disappointment in her eyes, but she thanked me, saying she might take me up on it someday. We went back to the party.

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

July and I were getting along pretty good. She was attractive, articulate, and was up for just about anything. I took her and the girls to the pier one morning, just for fun. Rose didn't care much for it, but Emily and July really enjoyed it, especially when July caught a four pound flounder. Between all of us we caught enough for a nice fish fry that evening. July even helped me clean them.

Rose, Emily, her boyfriend, and another boy were going out. I'm pretty sure he was her boyfriend but didn't ask. I didn't feel like sitting home so July and I went to the pub. We had a pretty good time, relaxing with my friends. Sams' wife Evelyn and July really hit it off, to the point that she asked about our relationship during a trip to the bathroom. She seemed satisfied with the answer, grinning at me the rest of the evening.

We were in bed when the girls came home. She started to get up but I held on to her.

"They know" I said, "and we're all adults here. Now, snuggle down and let's go to sleep."

They grinned at us all morning but said nothing.

I was feeling good for the first time in a long time. There was hope that I wouldn't be alone the rest of my life. I was hinting pretty hard, telling July about local job opportunities and how low the cost of living here was. She seemed interested, even checking out want ads in the Sunday paper.

The owners summoned me back to the home office. I wondered what was going on.

"Bill, you've done a great job. Some of your ideas have been real moneymakers. We'll get straight to the point. We want to open a warehouse in Florida. The market research we've done indicates a real opportunity there. The location is four hours away from where you are now. We want you to go down, get it up and running, hire the staff, help with the training. We want you over both, spending most of your time at home, do maybe one day a week at the new site. There's a good raise in it for you. Think about it for a day or two."

It caught me flatfooted. I had never suspected they thought so highly of me. But, the more I thought about it, the more it appealed to me. I had nothing to hold me down, no commitments to anyone.

I talked to Jerry and Amy when I got back home, telling them about the opportunity.

"Now, the big question. Which one of you wants to manage the new warehouse? Or do you want to stay here. Either way, both of you are going one rung up the ladder."

Jerry surprised me by saying Amy should take it.

"The customers have a better relationship with her. I'm more a behind the scenes kind of guy. As long as she understands I'm the boss when we go out the door for home, I see nothing but good in our future."

Amy blushed and I grinned.

"Done, and Amy, as manager, we can't have any more late nights in the office, all right? People would talk."

She flamed about eight shades of red while Jerry collapsed laughing. I'd gone by the place on Saturday night and noticed lights on. I used my key, disarmed the alarm, and was going around flipping them off. When I went through the back of the warehouse towards the office, I noticed a bra on the floor. Then a shirt, shorts, a pair of boxers, and finally panties hanging on the doorknob. I froze, then heard the unmistakable sounds of passion. I eased back, turning on the lights as I went.

I noticed Jerry's motorcycle as I went out, parked at the side of the building. The office smelled heavily of air freshener Monday morning.

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

It was summer, and the kids were out of college. Emily decided with us so both she and Rose could work more hours, save a little spending money for the next year. I asked how come they weren't doing something for spring break. They just giggled.

"We live at one of the biggest Spring Break destinations on the East Coast. We don't have to go anywhere, it comes to us."

July didn't come down for a month, citing work as an excuse. I offered to come up, but she said she wouldn't have any time to spend with me, so it would be pointless. Didn't like it, but respected her wishes.

I was pretty busy myself. We'd found a good location for the warehouse, and had the vendors come in and help us set it up. I took Emily with me for a week, there were two colleges nearby, a massive labor pool just waiting to be tapped. There were twelve hundred applications for nine part time positions. She worked with the schools, targeting people like herself, who were on a tight budget and could use the work.

I reviewed the first three she recommended, and turned the rest over to her. She ended up doing almost all the hiring, though I did insist on following up on the full time candidate. She was over the moon, her degree was going to be in Human Relations, and this experience would look great on her resume.

We were only three hours from her home, and when I said we should drop by and see her mom on the way back she was all for it. We left a little early, so we could get there in time to take her to dinner.

She was chattering a mile a minute as we drove, happy to see her mom. We decided not to call, and make it a true surprise.

Her house was small, neat, the lawn carefully tended, a couple of neat flowerbeds. Emily laughed.

"She must have someone new doing lawn care. Last time I was home it was overgrown and there were so many weeds you couldn't see the flowers."

We went up the sidewalk, she was going to drop her things off, and we were going to Ambush July as she got off work. She unlocked the kitchen door, walked in, and screamed.

There was a guy sitting at the table, drinking a beer and reading the paper. He was as surprised as she was.

"Who the hell are you?" came out of their mouths at pretty much the same time.

He recovered faster, actually smiled.

"I recognize you. You're Emily. It's nice t finally meet you. I'm Bill, July's fiancee. Who's your friend?"

He seemed like a nice guy. My age, in better shape because he was a construction worker, neat in appearance. I was still processing the fiancee statement when Emily spoke up.

"This is Bill, too. He's my mom's boyfriend?"

"What?"

I finally got control of myself.

"We should go, Emily. This is a family matter I don't need to intrude in."

"NO!" they both yelled at the same time.