They were happy about having the extra hour the next morning before they made the call into Rocky Mountain Time. That provided time for extra coffee to clear Chris’ fuzzy brain of the remnant hormones from their night of energetic passion.
The Dean had no problems with the proposal, stating it offered Chris the opportunity to apply his graduate school learning. Dr. Lawry was struggling with the whole concept of ‘online courses’, and he was reluctant to oversee an internship occurring 800 miles away. After getting assurances from his star pupil and encouragement from his Dean, he agreed to give Trey, Bob, and Sam a chance to ally his concerns via Microsoft Teams videoconference, which was immediately scheduled at 1pm RMT.
Chris wasn’t in the videoconference, but Trey had him on speakerphone so he could hear Dr. Lawry’s concerns, and text his response, if necessary; it wasn’t.
Trey gave an overview of the new position, created specifically for Chris; Bob was precise regarding his duties at the worksite, and Sam went into detail on his central office responsibilities as a trainee. Given that the new position was several levels above Chris’ ‘assistant project manager’ responsibilities at the Boulder site, and with Trey sweetening the pot with the offer of a ride on the company plane to conduct his observation of Chris at work, Dr. Lawry capitulated.
It was done!
Chris waited until the VC ended, and then profusely thanked his three bosses. Trey chuckled and replied, “Keep that in mind when we work your butt off, young man! This ain’t some bird’s nest on the ground we’re offering — it’s gonna be a test of your intellect and your stamina to do the two jobs, make A’s in your classes, keep up with things around that monstrosity of an estate you’re reviving, and take care of your young, energetic fiancée, who we know is listening in. Hi, Jo!”
“Hi, Trey, Sam, Bob! Thanks for thinking about me, but remember that I’ll be here to help Chris manage and balance everything!
“You can’t possibly imagine how happy your decision makes us! Monstrosity or not, I can’t envision anyplace I’d rather be sheltered during this pandemic, and you’ve made it possible! I already loved you guys, but I love you even more now!”
The hardcore executives hemmed and hawed about it being best for everyone, fawned over her by saying they knew how much help she’d be, and she preened orally at their responses. Jo might be young and from a deprived background, but she knew the effect a pretty girl has on men, and she knew the studies that confirmed it.
Chris ended the call with another heartfelt thank you, and they embraced joyfully. “We’ve got to do something special for Roberto and Lupe! Maybe feed them and their kids, or buy them something special! Without his pointing out what should have been obvious, we would be in Boulder right now crammed in that little apartment worrying about this house, our garden, and flowerbeds, and you’d be trapped there all day while I worked! Berto may not have my degrees, but he’s got way more common sense!”
“Call him as soon as he’s off work!” Jo proposed. “We owe him so much, but we can begin with a simple thank you, and ask him what we can do to show our appreciation.
“In the meantime, you and I need to go upstairs and have our own private celebration. Later we can update your family and Kate. I know they’re going to be so happy for us!”
There was a trial of clothing up the stairs, all the way to the third floor, where they engaged in a very enthusiastic celebration.
****
Roberto laughed and said Chris couldn’t see the forest for the trees.
He and Lupe wanted nothing more than some of the fresh tomatoes and vegetables from the garden, but agreed to a hamburger and hot dog supper for the family when things settled down. He ended the call by he was looking forward to working with Chris again, and he’d see him tomorrow.
Jo and Diane had opened Zoom accounts because they would be needed for school, so they Zoomed the Alexanders, who were thrilled with the change of plans. They had a very pleasant conversation going until Mom opened a new can of worms. “Are you aware that churches are going online and many places are prohibiting gatherings of more than 50? I hope the president is right and it goes away as soon as it gets hot! If it doesn’t, what are we going to do about your wedding?”
Chris looked puzzled: “I don’t remember setting a date, so why do you ask, Mom?”
She looked puzzled herself, and then blushed. “I…we were hoping for a July wedding. Trey is going to give you some time off after you finish your classes, and so we thought…”
“Mom! Are you trying to take over my life, AGAIN? Jo and I are supposed to set a date, and THEN you start planning.”
She looked abashed, but only for a moment. “Son, women know it takes a long time to put a wedding together! It’s actually already too late, but we’ve done some pre-planning, so…”
“And now those plans are not going to work, are they? This thing isn’t going away because it gets hot — it’s been spreading as rapidly during summer in the southern hemisphere as hit has here!
“As Berto pointed out, it’s time to rethink things — the old ways won’t work during a pandemic, and this one is only getting worse.
“Besides, you guys, Diane and Dale, Donna and guest, Kate and her family, and my bosses and their families aren’t nearly 50 people. ‘You pre-planners’ might try putting together a VERY ABBREVIATED guest list that includes only the closest relatives and friends, and see what that number looks like. There’s a good chance we might have to just get married in our backyard now, and let you host a huge reception in Nashville when everyone is vaccinated and the pandemic is behind us.
“After all, the choice is kind of getting down to something like that, or waiting until the pandemic is done, which is possibly years away. I haven’t talked to Jo about it, but with us doing our courses from home, there’s nothing to keep us from getting married now, taking a honeymoon whenever we can, and you hosting a reception when it’s allowed.”
Jo, Diane, Donna, and Dan were all smiling, and everyone was watching Debora, who was all but apocalyptic regarding the possibility of a small wedding! Before she could recover and begin her response, Dan interrupted. “He’s right, Debora. These times require sacrifices, and they require rethinking what we want and do within the framework of what can be done in these peculiar circumstances.
“Were already having to do it with our business, with our dining choices, grocery shopping, and in every other part of our lives. The colleges and schools are all closed, churches are being told not to hold services so the virus won’t spread among members, only ‘essential’ businesses can open; I seriously doubt you are going to get absolution to have a 400 person wedding.”
Debora sighed mightily, looked directly at the camera, and said, “Can you give me a little time to wrap my head around this? Maybe Jo and I can talk on the phone a few times over the next few days and help me rethink it.