I didn’t know what to say, so I just stood up, walked up to him, shook his hand and said, “Thank you sir, I’ll do my best for you and the company. That I promise.” I calmly walked out of the office and waited until I was at the street at my old truck. Then I’ll bet they heard my yell two blocks away. Shit, I had been making $14.50 an hour and now I was in this new job and making this kind of money at 28 years old, that was obscene I thought to myself. Wait until Rose hears of this. She was going to be hysterical.
I went back to my old building and told Susanne that I was moving up in the company but to keep it under her hat. I didn’t want the news to get out just yet. I knew there was going to be hard feelings among the men as I was still a young snot according to some of them. On my way home I stopped at the liquor store picking up two bottles of champagne, stopped at the florist’s and picked up a dozen red roses, then to the grocery store and got two nice steaks and went home. I stuck them on the counter wrapped in wax paper after seasoning them then went and set up the briquettes in the barbeque so I just had to lite it. I put two big potatoes in the oven then got all cleaned up. Now I was waiting nervously for Rose to get home.
When she walked through the door, I could tell it had been a rough day. She threw her purse on the couch and her big bag on the table mumbling, “Homework, yuck!”
“Sit down, honey, you look like you had a rough day. Here, let me rub your feet for you.” Rose loves it when I rub her feet. She plopped down on the couch. Her head was laid back and her eyes closed and she said, “Why did I want to teach middle school kids? I swear I need a whip and a chair. I had to send five kids to the office today for behavioral problems, four of them girls. What’s with kids these days.”
Pulling a chair up in front of her I rubbing both feet for a good fifteen minutes before I asked, “Would you like something to drink, my love?” She nodded so I reached into the freezer and got out two champagne flutes then took out a bottle of champagne and when the cork popped, Rose’s eyes flew open to see what I was doing.
I poured her glass, she got this big grin and said, “Michael, you got a job, didn’t you?” I just smiled as I finished filling my glass then pulled her up and to me and softly kissed her then handed her a glass.
“Let’s toast to a new beginning of our life my love, I have a new job that if I can prove myself, will probably make us a lot of money.” We clinked our glasses and she wanted to know all about it as we walked out so I could light the barbecue. During dinner, I explained what happened and how I thought I was going to be fired and how Bill had offered me the job and that a lot of it was probably going to mean a lot of work on my part, including extra hours.
Rose looked at me and said, “Like I don’t spend a lot of extra hours grading papers. I hate these state mandated tests, they don’t really show what these kids know. I’ll be lucky if I get done by breakfast.” After dinner, she made me up an answer sheet of acceptable answers and I helped her so at least we were done by midnight. I was hoping for a little congratulatory sex but she was too worn out and I got a raincheck.
Our second anniversary was coming up and Rose wanted a big party so I had gotten a ton of smoked meats from a local butcher shop and their double smoked beans, and Rose made her potato salad and Linda made her cucumber salad. Mom made several cakes, dad bought a keg of beer, and Ralph brought some bourbon and tequila. The house we were renting had a big back yard and we had one of those above ground pools so everyone was having a blast. Lots of food to eat and lots of booze to drink. We had one hell of a celebration. There was some dancing going on and I was surprised to see my mom and Ralph dancing very close together on a slow song, then I noticed that so were my dad and Linda only they were in a corner in the living room by themselves. I shook my head, it must have been the alcohol, I thought.
About 10:00 the party petered out and almost everyone left, except our parents, Evie and us. Linda and my mother were hammered and I suggested that the guys get them home as they were making more of a mess in the kitchen than they were cleaning up and Rose wasn’t much better. Linda suggested that Evie stay and help us clean up. They had been gone a few minutes and Rose picked up a half full beer can and went to chug it, only someone had been using it as an ashtray and she began puking. I asked if she was alright and she said, to give her a few minutes. She went into the back yard and we heard her puking again. I went out there and brought her in and took her to our bedroom, putting her to bed. Evie and I spent the next two hours cleaning up the mess. I was so tired I just plopped down on the couch and a minute later, Evie sat down next to me with a half a bottle of Tequila and handed me a shot glass. I said, “Sweetheart, I don’t think I really need another drink right now.”
She said, “Come on Michael, have one drink with me then you can go to bed, please?” I shook my head but she poured our glasses full so I took a shot with her. I sat the glass down on the table and before I could get up, she had filled it again. I looked at her and she just said, “Please?” so I clicked glasses with her and we downed our shots. Honestly that’s the last thing I remember until I woke up in bed with my wife the next morning, finding I was completely naked.