Chapter 26
Leonard spent the next three months getting things organized at his new company, training his new guys and attending to meetings with Larry. He was thankful that Larry agreed for him to take a two-month leave with Penny so that they could visit their parents and let them know that they are doing okay. Leonard agreed that after they come back to the island, Larry would take a holiday with his wife and two kids which will leave Leonard running the company by himself.
Penny spent her time getting Buster's papers ready so he could travel with them to the States. She went to a nearby veterinary clinic to have the dog vaccinated and have his rabies shots. She also went to the local government office to process her dog's travel papers even getting Buster his own 'passport' so he could be easily identified and tracked. She then went to a nearby pet shop to get a dog carrier suitable for air travel.
"Look at your dog carrier Buster, isn't it nice!?" she said letting the dog get familiar with the crate. The dog wagged it's tail and barked at her. "Don't worry sweetie, when we arrive in Nebraska, you can run around the farm all you want alright!?" she said, the dog acknowledging her with a bark.
During the weekend, Penny and Leonard took the dog with them when they went around the island in the basket that Leonard attached to their motorcycle. Penny was glad that Leonard always took the time off so they could spend quality time together. When she thought about it, they have been on a sort of 'honeymoon' since she moved in with him about a year ago but this time was different since they are already married.
The day of their flight arrived as Sammy dropped them off at the airport.
"You two take care alright?" said Sammy as they unload their luggage onto a baggage cart.
Leonard shook his hand. "Thanks for dropping us off Sammy." he said.
"Hey it's not a problem and don't worry about the house, I'll check up on it from time to time." he said.
Penny gave Sammy a hug. "Thank you Sammy. We'll bring something back for you alright?" she said.
"You're welcome guys! And give your folks a hug from me okay!?" he said as he got back into the car. "Bye guys, have a safe trip." he said waving goodbye to them.
The couple went inside the airport to get their luggage and Buster checked-in. The dog was a little agitated when they had him go thru quarantine procedures but Penny assured him it's going to be alright. They went through security check and made their way to the boarding gate.
"How are you feeling?" asked Penny.
"I don't know. It's been almost two years since I left the States and now I'm going back with a wife and a dog." he said smiling at her.
"Not a bad way to spend a sabbatical isn't it?" she smiled at him.
Leonard leaned over and kissed her cheek. "Not one bit." he said. They heard the boarding call for their flight and made their way into the aircraft along with the other passengers.
They arrived at the airport in Nebraska as Wyatt was waiting for them at the exit. Penny saw her father and waved at him, yelling his name.
"Daddy!" said Penny hugging her father.
"Hi slugger! I'm glad you made it safe." he said.
Penny turned to her husband. "Daddy I want you to meet my husband Leonard!" she said.
Wyatt shook Leonard's hand. "Hi son! Nice to finally meet you!" said Wyatt.
"Hi sir. It's nice to finally meet you!" said Leonard.
"You must be tired from your trip? Let's go home so you guys can rest." said Wyatt as they loaded their luggage onto his truck. Penny cuddled the dog in her lap, excited to be reunited with her mommy.
They arrived at the house where Penny's mom Susan was waiting. She hugged her daughter tight as they walked up the porch.
"Ugh sweetie! Nice to see you again!" said Susan hugging her daughter.
"Nice to be back mom. This is my husband Leonard, honey this is my mom Susan." said Penny.
Susan hugged Leonard. "Nice to finally meet you Leonard!" said Susan.
"Nice to meet you too!" Leonard said as they went inside the house to get settled in.
"and this little guy is Buster!" said Penny as the dog barked and wagged it's tail. She put the dog down and it immediately ran around the house, curious with it's new surroundings. Penny ran after him to make sure he doesn't knock over a vase or something. They ate the dinner that Susan prepared and decided to retire in Penny's bedroom to rest for the night with Buster sleeping on the foot of the bed.
It was around seven in the morning when Penny woke up. She opened her eyes and saw Leonard was still asleep. Leonard stirred a little when Penny slid her hand around his body to hug him. Leonard turned to face his wife.
"Good morning pretty lady." he said softly.
"Good morning stud." she said putting her face on his neck.
"What time is it?" he asked.
Penny looked at her nightstand. "It's already seven." she said giving him a kiss.
"Honey….do you wanna?" he teased her.
"But we haven't brushed out teeth yet." she said.
Leonard pulled her close. "I don't care." he said as he moved on top of his wife and began undressing her.
Penny smiled and giggled. "We have to be quiet….the dog is here and my parents might hear us." she whispered.
"Don't worry." he said smiling at her as they quietly made love.
They went down into the kitchen after an hour of having fun. Susan was there washing some dishes.
"Good morning mom." Penny said as she poured coffee for her and Leonard.
"Good morning you two. Had an early breakfast I presume?" Susan said teasing them.
Penny nearly spit out her coffee. "Mom!?" she said visibly embarrassed as Leonard drank his coffee
"Relax Penny, it's not like you're a teenager anymore right? And you're married now." said Penny's mother as she left the couple in the kitchen.
Penny sat on the chair. "Oh my god I'm so embarrassed!" she said burying her face on her arms.
"Relax honey." said Leonard squeezing her shoulders. "We had fun right?" he asked her.
Penny sighed. "Yeah, it was great." she said as she started to prepare and eat breakfast. Penny made sure to feed Buster as he ran to them. After breakfast, they spent the rest of the morning unpacking and getting settled in Penny's room.
Wyatt came back into the house by lunch time as Penny and Susan were done cooking while Leonard was cuddling the dog. Wyatt took a couple of beers from the fridge and gave one to Leonard.
"Thank you." said Leonard as he drank his beer.
"So Leonard, Penny tells me you're quite the handyman?" he asked his son-in-law.
"Yes sir. I've had a lot of free time to learn when I was alone on the island." said Leonard.
"Please call me Wyatt. Maybe you could help me out with the tractor? It's working fine but I've been hearing these noises for the past week." said Penny's father.
"Yeah sure, I'd be happy to." he said as Penny smiled at him.
"Dad we're here for our honeymoon, not to work on the farm." Penny said as they prepare the table.
"It's alright honey. We're gonna be here for a couple of months so I might as well fix everything around the house." said Leonard.
"Well now that you mention it, maybe you could take a look at the washing machine too. I can only wash a small load on it now, not unlike before." said Susan.
"Oh my god! I didn't bring Leonard just to fix things around the house!" said Penny.
"Relax honey, it's alright." said Leonard to his wife as they began eating lunch.
For the next couple of days, Leonard went with Wyatt to the barn to check up on the tractor and find out what's wrong with it. They started to check the engine, disassembling the cylinder head and working their way into the block when Penny came carrying a pitcher of lemonade for Leonard and Wyatt.
"Hey guys! I brought some lemonade." she said as Buster walked beside his mommy.
Leonard smiled at her. "Thanks honey." he said as he took a glass from his wife.
"Thanks slugger." said Wyatt. "Listen I gotta go back to the tool shed to get some tools." he said as he gave Penny the empty glass.
"I'll get you a new shirt honey. You're drenched in sweat." said Penny as she wiped Leonard's face with a towel.
"Thanks honey, I think we're getting close to the problem." he said as Penny went back to the house to get a fresh t-shirt for her husband. She came back after a couple of minutes and helped Leonard removed his wet shirt while wiping off his sweat with a towel.
"You better not tire yourself too much, do you hear me?" she whispered, teasing her husband.
"And why is that?" he said smiling at her.
"You know exactly why." she said kissing him as they saw Wyatt approach the barn. Penny went back to the house as the two men continued their work on the tractor. It was past lunchtime when they finished with the problem boiling down to a clogged oil line. They entered the house covered in dirt, grease and sweat.
"Ugh, thank God it's done." said Wyatt.
"Hey you two! Why don't you wash up so we could all eat lunch." said Susan as she prepared the table with Penny.
Penny went with Leonard to the bathroom in their bedroom to help him wash up and get changed.
"Hey my eyes are up here." said Leonard when he noticed Penny eyeing him from head to toe.
"I can't help it honey. You're just so…sexy!" said Penny, biting her lower lip.
"Don't worry, we'll find a way later." he said smiling at her. Leonard finished cleaning up and went down to the kitchen with Penny to have lunch.
After lunch, Leonard and Wyatt retired to the living room to have a couple of beers while Susan and Penny cleaned up in the kitchen. Penny joined her husband in the living room, sitting beside him on the couch.
"So is the tractor okay now?" asked Penny.
"Yeah. It was just a clogged oil line after all." said Leonard.
"So you took apart the engine head and the problem was just an oil line?" said Penny.
"Yeah, but at least we found the problem." said Wyatt. "I wouldn't have been able to fix it if it wasn't for your husband here." he said.
"Well I guess I married someone useful after all." Penny said teasing Leonard as Susan joined them in the living room.
"Wyatt, grab your keys, we're going to the market." said Penny's mother.
"What are we buying?" asked Wyatt.
"I want to invite our relatives for lunch tomorrow. You know, have a small celebration for Penny and Leonard's wedding." said Susan.
"Oh alright. I guess I better buy a lot of beer then." he said.
"Do you want us to come with you mom?" asked Penny.
"No it's alright honey. Leonard needs to rest." Susan said.
"What about me? I need some rest too?" Wyatt protested.
"Come on, Leonard did most of the work on that tractor of yours." Susan said as Wyatt stood, grabbing his keys from the side table. Once Penny's parents were out of the house, Penny immediately pulled Leonard into the bedroom.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Come on." Penny said playfully.
"But I haven't even showered yet!" said Leonard.
"I don't care! We don't have a lot of time and we can be as loud as we want!" said Penny as she slammed the bedroom door and started to undress her husband.
They laid on the bed, exhausted and naked.
"Do you think the neighbors heard us?" asked Leonard.
"I don't care…" said Penny as she rests on her husband's shoulder.
"You really can't take your hands off me huh?" he said smiling at her.
"Hmmmm." she said hugging him tight. "When I saw you all greased up and sweaty, I just couldn't think of anything else." she said.
Leonard laughed. "I guess I should go to the next farm down the road and see if they have a tractor that needs fixing." he said. Penny kissed him and started to feel him again. "Hmm...I guess we're doing round two huh?" he said smiling at her. Penny nodded and pinned him down.
They got off the bed after a couple of hours and went straight to the bathroom to take a shower. They got dressed just in time as Wyatt and Susan came back from the market. Leonard and Penny went out to help them unload the stuff from Wyatt's truck.
"Mom are we inviting the whole town for lunch tomorrow?" asked Penny.
"No. It's just lunch with your aunts and cousins." Susan said as they carried the groceries inside the house.
"Just give this one to your mother Penny." said Wyatt. "And besides, it may be a good idea for Leonard to meet your cousins." he said.
"It's gonna be fine honey, it's not like we're doing anything tomorrow right?" said Leonard.
Penny sighed. "Fine. But I'm telling you, some of my cousins are pretty out there so don't come running to me if they drive you crazy or something." said Penny.
Wyatt turned to Leonard. "I think you'll be fine Leonard, you're already married to her." said Wyatt as he tapped Leonard on his shoulder. Leonard laughed at Wyatt's comment.
"Amen to that!" Susan said laughing with Leonard and Wyatt while Penny glared at them for making fun of her.