When we got home, the first thing we did after getting the children situated, was call Linda's dad. As I said before, Robert already knew I was asking her since I had called him first to ask his permission, old fashioned style. I didn't need to have done that; he believed Linda was more than capable of making her own decisions regarding her life. But considering our age difference, I felt it was a sign of not just respect, but also, hopefully, a sign of maturity beyond my age. Linda was so excited when she called him, he knew it was the right thing for us, and that our love for each other was immense, and he also could tell how much I had come to adore his grandchildren. I had more than his approval; I had his respect. He was coming up at the end of the summer to take us all to Lake George for a family vacation, along with his new girlfriend, Sherry, something we were all looking forward to,
When we returned to work on Monday, Linda made a big deal about showing off her ring to the friends we had on the staff at camp. Some of them would be on the potential guest list when we settled on a date and a list size. Sue, the camp director, had been married back in April, and Linda and I were invited, so Sue and her husband, Jake, would be at the top of the list of camp friends. After that, well, a lot would depend on what size wedding we settled on.
During the next couple of days, even the youngest of the staff congratulated us, even some of the older campers, who were mostly from my groups, so I knew them all by name. Linda and I were a pretty popular couple and besides, that job was as casual an atmosphere as you can imagine. Everyone was on a first name basis, unlike working in a school, where most of the supervisors worked full time as teachers. Being responsible for children, for their safety as well as their fun during the summer was hard work, but it was also meant to be fun for the staff at all levels. It wasn't exactly a high-paying job, so it needed to have other positives to keep experienced staff coming back year after year.
During that week, we also called our various friends and gave them the good news. Most took it well and were very happy for us. But a couple were less than thrilled, thinking we were off our rockers to be planning a marriage to someone so much younger/older. My friend Chris was very happy; he and his girlfriend Marie had met Linda a few times when they were home from college, and we all got along very well. Linda's friends Rona and Gina were also pleased; Gina had hosted that New Year's Eve party that was a lot of fun, and Rona...well, I think I knew why Rona was so happy. I think she still wanted to have that threesome, though no mention of it had been made in over 6 months. But predictably, her friend Laura gave Linda a hard time. He's too young, he's immature, he'll eventually go out screwing around, he really wants your money, etc. There was a way to deal with her. Linda just cut her out of her life. "I don't need anyone who's just going to shit all over our relationship in my life. I don't want the stress or the grief. I love her, I have for almost fifteen years, but she's going to think the worst of you, Baby, and I think the world of you. She thinks I should try to make things work with Dave again! Fuck that" she said with a frown.
"Umm you're not supposed to 'Fuck that. You're supposed to 'fuck this!" I said as I grabbed her arm and placed her hand over my cock and balls, and Linda laughed heartily.
"I'm pretty sure I remember what to fuck, Baby. Only this. I think right after we put the kids to bed tonight." We chuckled as we shared short kisses.
"Just three hours to go!" I said with glee, like a child eagerly awaiting his birthday present. "I'm going to give you a great ride tonight!"
"Down, boy. The little ones are in the next room. Patience for now. We'll have our fun later." She offered her warm lips as a temporary 'fix', I accepted it but by the time we got to bed that night, we were both all fired up.
The situation with Dave came to a head in early August. It was an unsatisfactory situation for all involved; the kids weren't getting enough time with their father, Linda and I had almost no time to ourselves because we couldn't leave Sandy and Michael with their father unsupervised, and Dave was simmering, bordering on furious, each time he came to see them but couldn't leave with them. At least he was sober when he came over every other weekend. We had no idea what he was doing the rest of the time, with his various Girlfriends of the Month.
Then August 6th, we got a call from the police (for some reason, Linda was still his emergency contact), letting us know Dave was in the hospital and was under arrest for suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and cocaine. He'd been driving from a bar when he hit a couple of parked cars. He was the only one hurt and even that was not serious, thankfully. But while he was being evaluated at the hospital, he was cuffed to the gurney and a police officer was there, ready to bring him in when the doctor released him.
Linda was appropriately concerned (he was the father of her children, after all), but then she was as angry as I had ever seen her. Even with her children nearby, she was cursing furiously, barely out of their earshot. I took her into the bedroom and she told me what happened. I was shocked, though maybe I shouldn't have been. We knew he had a serious problem since that day I refused to let him take the kids with him. But this was another level of bad. It vindicated Linda's decision to take him to court about the custody situation, but it sure as hell didn't make her feel better.
I held her a minute before I asked "Honey, why did the hospital call you? You haven't been married for over three years."
"Because he has no one else, so he never changed his contact information! I don't know if he forgot to change it to his brother Eddie, or if they are on the 'outs' for a change. They're not exactly close, and sometimes it's better than others. But I'm going to call him. This is NOT my problem anymore."
"Honey, unfortunately, it kind of IS your problem. Sandy and Michael heard you on the phone. They know something is going on with their father. We have to talk to them. Well, you do, but I'll sit with you and help. They need to know there's a problem, a serious one. Go call Eddie, and I'll take care of feeding the kids. Then we'll sit down with them."
