Colleen – chapter 03 – part-08

On a Thursday night Mom called to tell us that she had just returned from her trip and would see us soon. There was a tone in her voice that showed she was tired but definitely relaxed and happy. After thirty-five years of being the kiddy wrangler for 25 eight year olds, Mom had earned the right to relax.

The next morning we were all up and getting ready for the day. At 6:30 AM the doorbell rang. Colleen and I looked at each other, who could possibly be coming to our house this early in the morning? Still in my robe I got up to answer the door. When I opened it, there standing in front of me was my mother.

“Mom, what are you doing here this early?”

“I came to have breakfast with my grandkids.”

By this time all five kids came on a dead run and threw their arms around their grandmother.

Colleen was standing in the doorway to the kitchen and called out, “Kids…come on…let go of your grandmother long enough for her come inside.” Mom came in and sat at the kitchen table to eat breakfast with us. She explained that Mike and Jimmy’s children were in and out of her house all the time but she didn’t get to see our kids nearly as often. Now that she was retired she was going to make up for lost time.

When I got home from the office Mom was still there in the kitchen helping Colleen prepare dinner. After we had eaten dinner, the kids were settling down to do homework when Mom looked at her watch and said, “Oops; getting late, gotta go,” and was out the door. Colleen and I just stared at each other.

“That was weird.”

“I know, what just happened?”

Over the next few weeks Mom began showing up at the house unannounced at odd hours of the day but usually early in the morning. In order for her to get to our house from Santa Teresa in time for breakfast she had to be getting up at 4:00 in the morning.

About that time Mike called me at the office and got straight to the point.

“Jimmy and I were talking and I need to ask you a question. Have you and Colleen noticed anything strange about Mom lately?”

I hesitated before answering. “What do you mean?”

“Well, it’s like she disappears for a while, a couple of days at a time and when we asked her about it she just brushed it off…said she was visiting you guys but when I talked to Colleen she said she hadn’t see Mom all week.”

“I don’t know Mike, Mom has been showing up at all kind of oddball hours; early in the morning or late at night and then rushing off like she has to be somewhere else right away. Colleen and I were going to talk to you and Jimmy about the same thing. Do you think she’s ok?”

Mike paused before he answered.

“I think so, but…it’s just not like her at all.”

The day Harold came back from his vacation, he was in the office early and didn’t come out. After things had settled down for the morning I went in to welcome him back and bring him up to speed on everything that had happened in his absence. When I stepped into his office he was sitting in his chair with his back to his desk staring out the window at the San Grigorio Mountains in the distance. I had to call his name a couple of times to get his attention.

“Harold, welcome back. How was the vacation?”

“It was good. I could get used to not coming into the office.”

“So where did you end up going?”

“Oh…went up into Canada for a little bit…always wanted to see Canada…spent a week with John Gordon…stopped off and saw my nephew in Santa Fe, haven’t seen him in quite a while; he’s got some great kids.”

I started telling Harold all the gritty details of what had been happening in the office but from the expression on his face I wasn’t sure that he had heard a single word I said. Over the next few weeks Harold was still on top of things but he seemed to be distracted most of the time and we all felt that we had to work hard to keep his attention. Mrs. Lopez spoke to me about it late one afternoon.

“Robert, have you noticed anything different about Harold since he got back from his vacation? Do you know what’s going on?”

“Yeah I have noticed and no I don’t know what’s going on. I wish I did. If I didn’t know any better, I say he’s acting like he’s happy. The other day I actually caught him smiling.”

Six weeks after Harold retuned from his vacation, the regularly scheduled annual audit of the San Miguel office occurred.

Once a year, the suits from the New York Headquarters would pay a visit. They would show up early Tuesday morning then spend all day Tuesday and Wednesday going over the annual reports with the local managers. Thursday mornings was spent meeting the rest of the employees individually and in groups. It was a pro forma visit but it did help to create a bond between the field office and headquarters.

This year the visit was different. The folks from headquarters spent all of Tuesday and Wednesday morning in the conference room with Harold alone. They didn’t meet with the rest of the managers until that afternoon and even then it was brief and perfunctory. The Thursday morning session went as usual and then just before lunch the announcement was made.

On Friday, the next day, a meeting of all employees would take place promptly at 11:30 AM at the Sheraton Hotel. Attendance was mandatory for all personnel and failure to attend would result in disciplinary action. When they were asked about what was going on, the suits were tight lipped and didn’t respond.

The next morning everyone was walking on eggshells. The New York people and Harold were not in the building. At 11:15 people started streaming out of the office and headed over to the Sheraton. In the hotel lobby was a sign that said the Willis, Goldman & Reed meeting was in the Sequoia Room.

When I walked into the Sequoia Room I was surprised by several things. The room was set up for a formal banquet with white linen on the tables with gleaming silverware and crystal. But a bigger surprise was Colleen and Mom standing in the back of the room talking to Mrs. Lopez. As soon as she saw me Colleen broke away and came over to me.

“Bobby, what’s going on?”

“I was going to ask you the same thing. What are you doing here?”

“I don’t know. Harold called me this morning and told me to be here. He made it sound like your job was at stake. I haven’t had a chance to ask Mom why she’s here.”

Just then a waiter came by and informed us that it was time to sit down for lunch. There was one long row of tables for managers in San Miguel and the New York visitors. Colleen was told to sit next to me and Mom sat in between me and Harold. Then came the next surprise. John Gordon was sitting on the other side of Harold with Mrs. Lopez and Ray.

The meal was excellent, just as you would expect and every one was having a good time but there was an underlying current of confusion and tension as we all waited for the other shoe to drop. When everyone was almost finished with dessert, the speeches began.

Mercifully they were short.

We were congratulated for our teamwork and it was announced that several people from our office were going to be assigned to visit other field offices to help train personnel in some of the process changes we had developed in San Miguel. We all cheered when it was announced that once again San Miguel had the highest profit margin and had moved from eleventh to ninth place for real dollars generated during the last fiscal year.

Then John Gordon stood up and walked to the podium. Gordon had been appointed CEO of the company several years before and was now living in New York. Everyone immediately fell silent. We knew that we were about to be told what this was all bout.

Gordon looked at the managers table for a moment and then turned to address the rest of the employees.

“I want to add my congratulations for another stellar year by this office. Although it amazes me how you continue do this year after year when someone like Harold Peterson is in charge. Just think what you could accomplish if you had someone who actually knew what they were doing.”

There was an audible gasp from everyone in the room.

“Harold Peterson has been a dead weight on this company since the day he was hired. I’m surprised that he’s lasted as long as he has. We will be making some changes around here and get this place producing like it really should.”

Harold stood up and threw his napkin on to his plate and stormed over to where Gordon was standing.

“Listen you jackass, I’ve taken all the crap I’m going to take from you.”

The veins on the side of Harold’s neck were standing out.

“I haven’t even begun to hand out the crap…and you’re going to go back and sit down just like the sissy you always have been,” Gordon yelled back.

Everyone on the room was paralyzed in shock at what they were witnessing.

“I’ve had to carry you’re ass on my back and fix every screw up you made since the day we met and I’m not going to do it anymore,” Harold thundered.

“The only mistake I ever made was letting you be my roommate in college…and believe me when I say that I’ve regretted it ever since,” Gordon bellowed.

Everyone sat immobilized in fear except for Mom. She was calmly leaning slightly forward with her elbows on the table and her chin resting in her hands. She had a look on her face that suggested that she was slightly amused by this whole episode.

“You know what? You and this company can take this office and shove it up your collective asses.”

Harold pulled something out of his pocket then turned and tossed it in my direction. It landed with a thud on the table in front of me. I looked down to see Harold’s office keys.

“I’ve had it with this chicken shit outfit. O’Conner, it’s your problem now, I’m out of here.”

“That’s right Peterson, you always were a quitter.”

Harold spun around to face Gordon and they stood nose to nose. With a roar the two men lunged at each other. Ray and I both stood up ready pull them apart before they killed each other, and then stopped.

They weren’t wrestling; they were hugging and slapping each other on the back. When they broke apart and turned to face the room they were laughing and had tears in their eyes. Everyone except Mom sat in absolute bewilderment about what they had just witnessed.

After they had caught their breath, John Gordon wiped the tears from his eyes and began to speak, his arm around Harold’s shoulder.

“I apologize for that little charade, but the timing was too good to pass up. I have known Harold Peterson for over forty-five years and I consider it a privilege and an honor to call him my friend. You don’t know what true friendship is until you experience Harold in your life.”

Gordon paused to allow everyone time to relax back in their chairs.

“I came here today to make two announcements.”

Gordon now had everyone’s undivided attention.

“First; I am here to announce that after forty-one years, as of eight o’clock this morning, Harold Peterson has officially retired from Willis, Goldman & Reed…”

There were more gasps and a few soft cries of “oh my God.”

“…and I am extremely jealous. Secondly; I am pleased to introduce the newest vice-president of Willis, Goldman & Reed and the new head of the San Miguel field office…Mr. Robert O’Conner.”

It took a moment for what Gordon had said to sink in and then the applause began. I was too stunned to react. Colleen threw her arms around me and Mom reached over and squeezed my hand. I stood up and waved my hand as a sign of acknowledgment. I opened my mouth to say something but no sound came out so I sat back down.

Harold and Gordon were still standing at the podium, still smiling as people began to settle back once more in their chairs. Gordon rapped his knuckles on the podium to get everyone’s attention and then spoke once more.

“This morning I asked Harold if he wanted to say a few farewell words to all of you. Good manners prevent me from repeating what he said. Mr. O’Conner’s first official act as vice president is to give everyone administrative time off for the remainder of the day in celebration of the changes here in San Miguel and as CEO of this corporation I enthusiastically support that decision. And that ladies and gentleman concludes the annual review of the San Miguel field office.”

I sat in my chair completely stunned. Colleen couldn’t stop hugging me and people were streaming by with congratulations. I turned to talk to Mom but she wasn’t there anymore. I looked around and finally spotted her. A group of people had gathered around Harold, and Mom was standing next to him wearing that contented half smile that the O’Conner women have.

Colleen and I started to make our way over to Harold and Mom, but we were constantly being stopped and congratulated with a handshake or a slap on the back from all the men and a quick peck on the cheek from all the women. Colleen was next to me with her arm around my waist smiling from ear to ear.

By the time we got to the other side of the room the crowd around Harold had thinned and we stopped in front of Harold and Mom. Mom still had that small, amused smile and spoke before we had a chance to.

“Harold was just telling me about this fantasy he has. He thinks that since we’re both retired he’s going to teach me to play golf. I told him that he’s delusional but medication and a good therapist could take care that.”

Colleen laughed, “That’s not a good idea Harold. Dad tried that once and trust me, you wouldn’t be happy with the experience.”

We all laughed and I asked Harold, “Why didn’t you tell anyone you were going to retire?”

“I didn’t want anyone to make a big deal out it.”

Harold gestured out towards the now almost empty banquet room.

“This was bad enough but John insisted on doing it. Sometimes it’s just easier to humor him.”

This was typical Harold Peterson but as he said it his face was beaming.

At that moment John Gordon and a couple the New York folks walked up us.

“Robert, could I speak to you and Colleen for a moment.”

“Of course Mr. Gordon…”

Before I could continue, Gordon laid his hand on my shoulder and interrupted me.

“Robert, if you want to keep your new position, the first thing you have to remember is to never call me Mr. Gordon. My name is John. John, never Jack…I hate that name.”

“Ok…John…I want to thank you for everything you’ve done for me. I will do my best to not disappoint you.”

“I know you won’t; you’ve been trained by the best man there is. What I wanted to tell you is that next month you and Colleen are coming to New York for a week. There is a ton of things that have to be taken care of before this transition can be completed.”

“But why am I coming to New York?” Colleen asked.

“It’s company policy, spouses always travel with our executives.” Gordon’s eyes almost twinkled when he added, “Plus my wife Diane wants to meet you, we’ve heard quite a bit about you.”

This last statement left Colleen and I with more questions than answers.

“Anyway Robert, I’ll just say congratulations once again and be on my way. I promised to have dinner with the Lopez’s and then I fly back to New York late tonight. I’ll see you in two weeks.”

As Gordon walked out of the room it slowly registered that he had said “see you in two weeks,” not next month.

Colleen and I turned around to talk to Mom and Harold but they were gone. There were only a few people in the room besides the hotel staff that was starting to clean up. We went out to the lobby and looked around but couldn’t find either Mom or Harold.

I walked Colleen out to the parking lot to her car. Mom’s car was still parked in the space next to Colleen’s and I saw Harold’s car three spaces down from Mom’s. I turned to look around but Colleen and I were the only people in the parking lot.

“Where could Mom and Harold have gone off to?”

Colleen gave me a quick kiss on the lips and then said as she got into her car, “I don’t know sweetheart but I’m going to go home…” She was smiling as she added, “…and I think it could work out nicely for both of us if you follow me.”

I raced to my car and was behind her by the time she was ready to pull out onto the street. When we got home we made love very slowly in the middle of the afternoon and then had to scramble to get dressed before the kids got home from school. Once everyone was home, we told the kids about my promotion. Everyone was excited and there was a mass of confusion as we discussed where we would go to dinner to celebrate when the doorbell rang.

After opening the door I was surprised to see Mike and Sharon, and Jimmy and Mi Lin.

“Hey guys, come on in. What’s up?”

“We were hoping that you could tell us.”

“What do you mean?”

Mike and Jimmy looked at each other then back at Colleen and I. It was Jimmy who spoke.

“Mom called us last night and told us to be here exactly at 5:30 dressed for dinner or there would be hell to pay.”

Everything about this day was confusing.

We were all standing in the livingroom. Colleen and I had begun to tell the twins about my promotion when the doorbell rang a second time. After everything that had happened today I wasn’t all that surprised to see Mom on our porch, but I had no idea why Harold was standing there with her. I was caught off guard so I didn’t even say hello, just stepped aside and let them walk into the house.

It was one of those awkward moments when no one knows what is going on or what to say. We were all standing in a large circle staring at each other, no one talking. Mom was standing with her hands lightly clasped in front of her with her half smile. Harold stood next to her with his hands in his pockets slowly rocking back and forth on his heels, head down studying something on the floor in front of his shoes, not looking at anyone in the group. The rest of us were looking at each other trying to figure out what was going on.

This was getting weirder by the moment.

Gradually our collective attention drifted to Mom and Harold. Suddenly Sharon and Mi Lin gasped and Colleen exclaimed, “MOM! You didn’t…no…yes…yes you did, didn’t you?”

Mom didn’t answer, she just continued to smile.

Sharon and Mi Lin’s eyes were bugging out and their hands were clapped against their mouths. Colleen’s eyes were large circles and her jaw was hanging down in shock.

The twins and I were totally mystified about what was happening.

“What? What did Mom do?”

Colleen turned to look at the twins and then me before she answered.

“Our mother just had sex.”

The blood was draining from Mike and Jimmy’s faces and I was beginning to get light headed.

Mother just looked at us with her smile for a split second before she spoke.

“That’s correct dear. Harold and I spent the afternoon in a room at the Sheraton.”

I was starting to see spots swimming in front of my eyes. Mom and Harold?

Mike’s lips were moving but no sound was coming out. Jimmy was staring at Mom and Harold but the expression on his face indicated that all of his neural systems were beginning to shut down.

Harold is definitely one of the good guys…but Harold and my Mother? I thought my head was going to explode.

Suddenly the light bulb went on for me.

“Harold, you said that you went to Canada on your vacation. Does that mean you were on the same cruise ship as Mom?”

“Yes Robert, I was on the same ship as your mother.”

It seemed bizarre to see Harold smiling so much.

Then Mom spoke.

“As a matter of fact, Harold and I were in the same cabin.”

Mike was gasping for air when he croaked, “Please tell me there were two beds in the cabin.”

Mom was smiling broadly when she answered.

“No dear, there was only one bed in the cabin.”

Jimmy placed both of his hands on the side of his head and sank down on to the sofa, softly moaning. It was then that I noticed that Mom and Harold were standing very close to each other holding hands. I was struggling to cope with the fact that everything I knew about the natural order of the universe up to this point in my life had suddenly taken a sharp left hand turn.

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