Chapter 33
With four adult men, including Bob Van Slaars, and four teenaged boys working, the rental truck was fully loaded by the time darkness fell on Wednesday night. Amanda and Leeanne spent the time the guys were working sitting on the porch with Barb; at one point, Barb said, "Don't you just love sitting here and watching them work?"
"You bet I do. When I consider all the work I usually do, it's nice to just sit here."
"Ain't that the truth! I raised four kids while Bob was off flying around the world with the Air Force, and even though I wouldn't trade that life for anything, it was a lot of work, and that's with all the modern appliances we have now. A hundred years ago when Bob's great-grandparents were growing up, everything had to be done by hand, and women did most of the work. Can you imagine having to make a dozen loaves of bread every week just to feed your family?"
"No. I'm glad someone invented the supermarket."
The sound of the truck doors closing and locking told them the job was done. The 'menfolk' came over to report their success and be congratulated by the women. After Lee claimed a kiss as a reward for his hard work, Amanda found herself thinking of what it would have been like to be a caveman's wife eons in the past. She giggled.
"What?" Lee asked.
"Tell you later. That was good work, fellas."
Back at the guest house, Lee reminded the boys that 'wheels up' was at 0830 the next morning, because he wanted to get to Little Rock, Arkansas, before they stopped for the night, but early enough in the day that they could all relax by the hotel pool. "It's a trade-off, fellas; if you want your pool time, you have to be out the door on time tomorrow morning."
For their last night in the guest house, Leeanne would be sleeping on a rollaway bed in Lee and Amanda's room so Clay and Jeter could have the second bedroom, which had two twin beds. After a very long and very exciting day, Leeanne had no trouble falling asleep; ten minutes after she turned at 9:30 she was sound asleep. Amanda sat on the double bed across the room and watched her for a few moments before she said, "Isn't it wonderful, after all she's been through, that she's sleeping so peacefully, Lee? You did that, you know."
"No, we did that," he corrected. "Louise put both our names on that guardianship paperwork for a reason, Amanda; she knew damn well that I could never do this without you. What do I know about being a teenaged girl, after all, but you always know what to say and when to say it to help her."
"I hope I always will. And speaking of long days, this preggie momma needs to turn in too."
Snuggled in his arms in the darkness, Amanda sighed in sheer contentment. "What?" he asked softly.
"Just happy, that's all."
"Happy enough to tell me what you were giggling about earlier today?"
"Oh, that. Well, after you all finished loading the truck and came over to tell us it was done, I thought of cavemen. You know, 'Woman, see what me do? Me strong, load truck. You give kiss for loading truck?'"
Lee laughed out loud.
"Hush," she hissed. "You'll wake up Short Stuff."
"Not a chance. Caveman, huh? Well, do I get a kiss for loading the truck?"
"You got one already, remember?"
"I want another one. It was a big truck."
"Stetson, what am I going to do with you?"
"You did it already, remember? That's how we ended up in the obstetrician's office today."
"Oh, yeah."
"Are you truly happy about it, Amanda?"
"Oh, yeah. Now roll over and go to sleep; you're driving to Little Rock tomorrow, you and JB, while I lie back in the Suburban and let Clay do all the work."
She wasn't kidding about letting Clay do all the driving, either; she knew that, gentleman of the old school that he was, he preferred it that way, and they took the trip in such easy stages that he got plenty of breaks. He suggested that the boys take turns riding up front with him, which worked out very well; having them in different seats meant they didn't squabble, and since neither minded sitting with Leeanne, who was in the middle seat while Amanda took the one in the back so she could stretch out and sleep, it worked out very well. Amanda wasn't sure how well Clay was going to do with the boys, but he was remarkably patient with them; it also helped that he had a whole lifetime of stories to tell them, so they didn't get bored and thus argumentative.
The first night they stopped in Little Rock, the second in Nashville and the third in Wytheville, Virginia. On the fourth day, Sunday, they stopped in Charlottesville for lunch and a quick tour of the UVA campus; while they were stopped, Amanda called her mother to tell her they'd be rolling into Arlington about three that afternoon and that they planned to go straight to the new house, since Curt Weller had gotten the keys from the sellers. Clay also made a call, not surprisingly to Francine; Amanda just assumed he was calling to let Francine know he'd be back at the Cleveland Park house for supper, so when they turned onto the block where their new house was located about halfway down, she was surprised to see a great many cars parked near the house.
"That's Billy Melrose's car, and Francine's Mustang…who else is here?"
"Oh, a few people who came to help," Clay said casually. "They were bored on a Sunday afternoon, you know – no football yet and the Orioles are on the road this weekend."
"Uh-huh. Nice try, Clayton, but I don't believe it."
"Are you doubting the word of a senior military officer, Mrs. Stetson?"
"Yep. My gosh, there's Leatherneck's old pickup truck, and there's Frank Duffy."
Clay parked at the curb, since Lee had just swung their rental truck into the other space on the driveway, and the boys and Leeanne jumped out and ran across the lawn toward Dotty and Curt, all talking at once.
"Lee will be here in a minute to help you out," Clay said.
"That's fine, Clay; go over and kiss Francine. After all, you haven't seen her in five whole days," Amanda said with a laugh.