Learn to say ‘no’
Healthy Sex Life
No Regrets
Make a Difference
Help Those Close To Me Realize Their Dreams
◊◊◊ Thursday April 14
After baseball practice, Fritz picked me up, and we drove to Hill Advertising. Adrienne had rented one of Mr. Hill’s studios for the photos. I walked in to Greg and Angie getting their pictures taken with Kyle, Mac, and Nate. I hadn’t realized everyone would be here for family portraits. While Greg’s family was being photographed, Grandma Felton was sitting with Grandma Dawson, having coffee. I smiled when Sandy Range walked in with her brother and Pam’s sister.
“Hey, stranger,” I said, giving her a hug.
We chatted until Jackie Chan, the photographer, got our attention.
“I told Mrs. Dawson I would take some family portraits. Mrs. Bell would like to get a group picture with everyone,” she announced.
Pam and her family were on the left. I noticed that they’d included Cal. I spotted Peggy and Little David and waved at her to join us. Jackie deserved a lot of credit for getting a good picture out of the mess that followed. It was like herding cats to get everyone in place.
I then wanted one with all the kids and me. Greg, Angie, Pam, and Peggy joined us. Then it was time for Pam, Coby, and me to have our picture taken.
Jackie had us do several traditional poses, and then she did some that were more fun. She put Coby in a football jersey and put black paint under his eyes. Pam and I received the same treatment.
Then we did some art shots. Pam dressed in a Victoria’s Secret pajama set, and I wore white silk pajama bottoms and no shirt. Coby was naked. I smiled when I thought about fifteen years later, when we could pull out his bare bottom and show his dates. Mr. Hill pulled out a bed for us to lie on. That picture made the cover of People magazine.
Grandma Dawson wanted a picture of Dad, Uncle John, Greg and his kids, and me with Coby. I also added Little David to the group after we did the first few pictures. Peggy wore a big smile on her face, recognizing that I was telling the world that she and Little David were part of my family. I figured that Little David and Coby would grow up together and might as well think of each other as brothers.
Dad came in with Duke, and I had to laugh. I knew a family member had been missing. Duke hadn’t met Coby yet, and he sniffed my son all over. We got a great shot of him with Little David and Coby lying on Duke’s side. When the two little ones were taken off the set, Duke followed Pam and Peggy. He had another baby to look after.
I found Adrienne and Caryn.
“I think the moms are all happy. Jackie did a great job,” I said.
“She wasn’t cheap,” Caryn complained.
Adrienne and I just rolled our eyes. Yes, I could have had Mr. Hill provide a local photographer, and we would have gotten fine pictures. The difference between fine and great might not be much to the untrained eye, but to Adrienne and me, it was worth the expense to have someone of her caliber.
“Have everyone pick out what they want, and I’ll get them printed and framed as gifts,” I said to Caryn.
She gave me a look, but I wanted everyone to be able to remember today. I ended up getting the group shot and the magazine-cover shot for myself. Jackie also made photo albums for everyone with all the best shots. They had a picture of all the little ones as the cover.
◊◊◊ Friday April 15
Tracy ambushed me as I came into school. Apparently, with Pam not being around, she needed someone to harass.
“I’ve set up another blind date for you,” she announced.
That got me a little excited. The last one had been with Melinda Kesh, a Victoria’s Secret model.
“I’m hoping this one was in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. I could really see myself dating Bo Krsmanovic. She’d look good on my arm.”
“Who is Bo … what’s her name?”
“Krsmanovic,” I said and pulled out my tablet.
I figured my phone didn’t have a big-enough screen to do her justice. Tracy wasn’t impressed.
“What happened to Hannah Minacci?” Tracy asked.
“She got engaged to some baseball dork,” I huffed.
Tracy didn’t understand the amount of effort I’d put into stalking Hannah. How could she go after some guy who was older and athletic? I was the younger version and just coming into my sexual prime. Hannah had made a colossal mistake.
“Well, you’ll just have to suffer through a date with Brit Callahan.”
I looked at Tracy warily. Her brothers had made it clear that no one was to date their triplet sister. I’d vowed to keep them happy since they blocked for me.
“What about her brothers?”
“I didn’t know you swung that way.”
“Very funny.”
“But seriously, that’s exactly why you have to take her on a date. They won’t kick your ass, and she wants to date. Once you pry her loose from them, other guys will ask her out,” Tracy reasoned.
I wasn’t so sure of all that.
“You’ll take her to dinner and dancing at the T-Bird,” Tracy continued.
I liked the Thunderbird; they had prime rib on Friday nights. And Brit was a good-looking woman. I say ‘woman’ because she wasn’t built like other girls at Lincoln High. She was six feet tall, and I would guess weighed 160 pounds. The Callahan triplets were of good Norwegian stock. If you’ve ever seen women from there, they’re some of the most beautiful blond-haired blue-eyed women you’ll ever encounter. If Bryan and Brock let their hair grow, you might mistake them for Vikings.
Brit was solidly built, and I think she might have the largest breasts at Lincoln. She wasn’t the least bit fat. I’ve seen her hold her own with her brothers when they got rowdy. While she was no blushing violet, she also was one of the sweetest girls I knew.
I suspected that Tracy was right. The only reason she didn’t date was that her brothers kept a close eye on any guy who looked her way. I’d had them glare at me more than once, and it convinced me to back off.
“I would love to take Brit out,” I finally agreed.
◊◊◊
At lunch, I found Bryan and Brock waiting for me at the entrance to the lunchroom. I was walking with Cassidy, so I wasn’t worried.
“We hear that you plan to take our sister out on a date,” Bryan said.
Cassidy looked at me.
“Why haven’t you asked me out on a date?”
I raised my eyebrows, and she giggled. Did we really have to talk about our promise to her dad?
“We’re going to the T-Bird to eat and then dance,” I explained.
“We don’t think so. You forget, we know what you’re like. You’re not dating our sister,” Brock said.
“Let me throw out a hypothetical or two. The first one is, what do you expect will happen when I cancel my date with her? AND I tell her it was the two of you who talked me out of it?” I asked, and they both flinched, thinking about the repercussions from that.
“The second one I want to throw out there is, is there anyone that you’d consider good enough to date Brit? Finally, is it fair to her not to date while you two have girlfriends?” I asked.
They both scowled at me and then looked at each other.
“Okay, you can take her out, but you better treat her right,” Bryan said.
I just nodded. It seems brothers are harder to get past than fathers. They both smiled and walked away, pleased that they had put the fear of God in me.
“Want me to hurt them?” Cassidy asked.
“Maybe a little.”
“Hang on, boys!” Cassidy called out.
Bryan and Brock saw me grin as Cassidy began to stalk them. The smug smiles left their faces, and they ran for it. Cassidy just smiled and joined me in line for lunch.