Also

She sobbed softly for a minute and then drank again.

"I think I was raped that night. I had behaved for the entire time I was there, until that night you were the only man I ever had. I loved you so much then, I still do." She broke down at that point.

I held her hand. Slowly she calmed down and was able to finally speak again. "My life was empty without you. I found out you had moved on and married; that you had 2 wonderful children. I tried to forget about you, I never could."

After another sip she continued. "I met a man who was going through the same thing. We dated for a while and got married. Tim, I never got over you! The marriage was wrong, for both Bob and I. He and I moved to town here about 4 years ago; shortly after that he ran into the real love of his life, divorced me and married her."

"That would be Bob Smith?"

"You know him."

"He took my first wife from me." I replied. "They still live near me now."

"Bob was even worse as a husband than John was. I hope he treats Sally a lot better than he did me. I only found out her name when I read the school paperwork for Maria."

After a short silence she said "Bob blamed me for not giving him a child, we argued for the last 4 months we were together. I said we should both get tested to see what the problem was. He refused."

I saw she had run out of steam. We sat there for a few minutes.

Finally I spoke. "When I saw you pregnant that evening, everything I ever believed to be good and true was torn to shreds. I believed we would be a love for the ages; one of the pure true loves that could never be broken. I hated what you had done to us, but in my heart I still loved you more than myself. I was lost for about a half year; I stopped doing anything and barely finished college, finally I moved to a new town, here. I went back into construction work. I came home tired every night; I started to sleep well at night. I have done well here. Did you know I was the site foreman for the school you teach in?"

Her eyes opened wide at that last statement.

"I would like to say I got over you; there are some things about me that have changed. Some of those changes are not good. I was almost over many of those things when Sally left me for Bob. Now the main reason for me to live is those 2 precious children you saw me with. Without them I can not predict what I would have become. Now, they are my world, just like you were for years."

"Tim, can we see each other again? I know I have hurt you terribly and regret it every day."

"Missy, I need time to think this over. You have had time to think about what you want; this is all new for me. Also, I do not think it is wise if I date you while Maria is in your class. It could cause people to say untrue things about both of us."

We parted that evening with the promise that we would talk at a later time.

I came home to find the children in their own beds and Sally waiting for me in the kitchen.

"I thought you might be a little later than you planned. I knew about Missy; but did not know how to tell you. I am sorry for all I put you through with the divorce and all. Maybe you can get back with her. I knew for the entire time we were together you had never gotten over her. It is tough when you have to share your bed with another woman's ghost."

We talked for hours, before I finally fell asleep on the sofa. She locked the door on the way out.

The last day of kindergarten they held a graduation ceremony. I sat in the back row. I was amazed when they explained how much the children had learned in a year. Maria insisted on being allowed to leave a card for Mrs. Smith, telling her what a great teacher she had been. She also insisted that Mrs. Smith be invited to the party we had scheduled the next Saturday. I told her if she could write it, she could invite her.

The party was almost over and there was no sign or her beloved Mrs. Smith. Maria was sure she would come, she was heart broken. There was a slight knock on the door, the only one who heard it was the dog. Sammie ran to the door and sat and wagged her tail. Then she barked. I heard that and went to investigate. As I approached the door I heard another light rapping. I opened the door and Sammie sprang out to greet Mrs. Smith.

Maria came over to welcome her to the party. They disappeared to make the rounds and introduce her to all the other guests.

The last of the guests were about gone when I saw Mrs. Smith sitting in the corner talking to Maria. I was on the deck outside that window and listened to them talking. Maria was hearing the story about Mighty Mike and my rescue of the fair damsel in distress. I came back inside from saying goodbye to the other guests and saw Patrick asleep on the other end of the sofa. I gently suggested that it was time for bed.

Maria begged me to allow her to hear the end of the story. I replied "OK, but don't take it too far." I looked at Missy as I said that.

She smiled and nodded to affirm.

I picked up Patrick and took him up to bed. As I descended the stairs the story ended. Maria whispered something to her teacher.

She responded "Only if your Daddy says it is OK."

Maria ran to me and begged "Can Mrs. Smith help tuck me in tonight?"

"If you run up and get ready super fast, the answer is yes. Do not skip anything."

She was back in record time; grabbing both of our hands and telling us she was ready for bed.

As Maria lay down she looked me in the face and said "I always knew you were a hero!"

I kissed her on the cheek; Mrs. Smith kissed the back of her hand.

At the bottom of the stairs Missy turned to me and said "Do we have time to talk tonight?

"I don't see why not."

"First, your daughter is a wonderful child. I loved having her in my class for the last year. I will miss her next year."

I smiled at her remarks. "I try to do the very best with both of them. I wanted 2 more but since the divorce it does not look good on that front."

"Have you thought about our last conversation?" She asked.

"Not much, just almost all the time."

She smiled. "You do not know how glad I am that you are back in my life; even if a little bit, I felt so empty for so many years after you walked out of it years ago. I completely understand why you did. If we can be friends it would make me happy. I dare not ask for any more after what I put you through."

"I would like to try being friends again. Something has been missing in my life too. I think that it is my best friend ever."

We hugged for a moment then I directed her to the kitchen table.

"Did you know that Mighty Mike was here this evening?"

She gasped.

"He was the nice gentleman who was pushing the older man in a wheel chair?"

"He is huge."

"Mike works with me; I taught him everything he knows. He now has his own crew and is doing well for himself."

We talked about old times, our families, our jobs and even our hopes for the future. We did not dare to talk about being together. There was still too much baggage in the way.

As she got ready to leave I walked her to the door. She turned to face me. I reached out and held her hand and said "It is good to have my best friend back in my life."

I got a light kiss on the cheek, before she went out the door.

After she drove off I turned out the lights and went to bed.

The next morning when we returned from church we found Missy sitting on the steps petting the dog. "I left my purse here last night." She explained.

Maria immediately asked if she could stay for lunch "...since she is already here."

I invited her explaining we usually had soup and sandwiches after church on Sundays.

She was delighted to accept. I sent Maria to find her an apron when she offered to assist; she was in her Sunday best. Maria came back with 3 aprons and proceeded to instruct us as to what we would fix for lunch. Patrick went to his room and played.

Sally called just after we finished eating and asked what time the children would come over. Sunday afternoon is one of her times with them. Maria took the call. She asked if they could spend the night since there was no school the next day. Sally insisted on speaking to me.

I told her it would be OK; she could drop them off at daycare in the morning. This made Sally very happy. The children both loved her and like to live the good life at their mother's house from time to time. We live a much simpler life at home.

Missy helped clean up the dishes and we decided to go out for the day. We spent a lovely summer day in the park. By the end of the day we were walking arm in arm and beginning to feel a lot more comfortable around each other. For supper we went to a diner I liked; the food was good, plentiful and not expensive at all.

As we parted she kissed me on the cheek and invited us all to her house for dinner the next Friday evening. I told her I thought it would be nice.

This time we exchanged telephone numbers and I got her address too.

The week went along fine until Thursday evening when Sally called and asked to have the children for the evening and next day. I reluctantly agreed to allow it. Then called Missy and told her the bad news. She insisted that I come over anyway.

I was beginning to smell a setup by a certain 6 year old little girl. When I tucked her in that evening I asked about it. I could see she wanted to deny any parts of it. I looked at her sternly and said I wanted an answer.

Maria burst out "She loves you so much and I love her too. She is such a nice lady. Please, Daddy, try to love her too."

I told Maria "...that love can not be forced. There was a lot of hurt over the years because of how we broke up; it may take a while to get over it. We may not get over it enough to be more than friends. We need to take the time to learn to trust each other again."

Maria begged me "Please try, you have been so much happier since she came into your life again."

"I need time sweetheart; I just need time." I kissed her on the cheek and turned out the lights. When I turned at the doorway and looked she was asleep.

"Time sweetheart, I just need time."

She muttered "Thank you, Daddy. I love you." She cuddled up to Sammie and was out.

The next evening at Missy's place I explained about Maria's conspiracy.

Missy said "I like her even more now."

The next Sunday Missy started to attend church with us. It became a ritual to go back for soup and sandwiches; then the children would go over to their mother's for the night.

We spent time together for the next year and got closer than ever. The next year Patrick was due to be in kindergarten. Missy managed to get the first grade teacher to take kindergarten for a year and then switch back at the end of the year. She did not want anyone to call favorites because of our relationship. The school board accepted the decision.

It was my turn to host Thanksgiving that year. Missy, Maria and I went all out on the dinner. Patrick made wonderful decorations for the walls and table. Everyone went home even more stuffed than the turkey had been.

After putting the children to bed I called Missy into the living room. I hugged her and thanked her for all the help with dinner and clean up. I then reached into my pocket and pulled out a small bag.

I looked down into her eyes and asked her to marry me. She threw he arms around my shoulders and sobbed for the longest time. When she could answer she looked into my eyes and just shook her head Yes. I pulled the diamond ring out of the bag.

I asked "Do you remember this?"

She saw the rings we had chosen so many years ago. She broke down again. After a while she asked "How long have you had this?"

"I bought them my junior year in college. After I showed you the house that evening I was going to propose and make it official. I have all 3 pieces of the set. We may need to get them resized."

I tried the ring on her finger, it fit perfectly. My wedding ring was going to be another issue.

Missy spent the night in our guestroom. When Maria came in to wake me in the morning, I sent her to look in the guestroom and wake our company up.

The shrieking woke Patrick up. He came stumbling into the hall from his bedroom only to be run over by Maria as she ran back to speak to me.

We were married on the first day of spring, it happened to fall on a Saturday. It was a small wedding, only half of the town showed up. The children from school sang a lullaby for us. Mighty Mike was the best man; Missy wanted Maria to be her maid of honor. In lieu of presents we requested donations to the charity of their choosing. My boss insisted on giving us a 2 story addition to the house. We added a family room and 3 bedrooms. He also insisted on covering the cost of the reception.

2 days before the wedding Missy and I sat down with the children to decide what to call her. The meeting lasted 2 minutes. As Maria explained it she had a Mommy since she was born; now she was going to have another Mommy Also. Missy became Also that night

As Maria explained it would make life easy as she could say "I love you Also. Or can we go to the store with you Also."

Missy got pregnant in September. She was able to keep teaching until March when the twin boys became too much for her to handle and still teach. We named them Tim junior and Mike.

I remember the conversation with Bob one evening; Missy said "I told you it was not me." Bob never did have any children

The next year Mighty Mike finally married, I was his best man. At the reception he stood after the other toasting was done and called for one more.

He said "I need to call for one more toast. This toast is to honor the man I consider my best friend in the world. He taught me honesty, humility, how to do my job correctly, how to be a gentleman and most importantly how to be a gracious person. He taught me to be gracious in winning and loosing. He taught me what family and friends are all about. Without his guiding hand I would not be the man I am today, and I certainly would never have met and married this lovely lady, the love of my life. Thank you Tim."

I was floored at his eloquence and the kind things he had to say.

Missy was expecting another child at the wedding; she stuck out so far that we had a rough time dancing. While Mike was off on his honeymoon I got the call one afternoon to go to the hospital. We had a little girl; we named her Katherine in honor of both of our mothers.

We never had any more after her; the lord knows we tried though.

Bob died the next year; he went in for open heart surgery and never came back out. His home was mortgaged to the hilt to cover his longing for toys. He loved his arcade games and remote control cars, planes and ships. He had to have the latest and best car.

Sally had not worked since she married Bob. She was finding it difficult to get back into the workforce. Missy insisted that she come to live with us. She is nanny, housekeeper and all around good friend. There are now 2 Mommies in the house; the children call them First and Also.

We sold off most of Bob's toys; Sally has all the money, I never asked how much.

I became partner in the construction company. Then when the boss decided to retire he sold me his share for a dollar and a paycheck until he and his wife die. That is the least I can do for a man who gave me so much.

Life was good for many years. Mike and his wife Crystal have 3 children; he is now operations manager at the company. His wife works in the emergency room at the hospital. My 2 oldest are in college, the 3 youngest are all in school too.

The company is doing great.

Missy and Sally are great friends and Sally is happy to be part of the family.

Then there was the traffic accident. Missy was returning from school and was hit broadside by a tractor trailer, on the passenger side of the car. Mostly she was shaken pretty badly. The car was pushed in so far that it almost touched her in the drivers seat. The force of the impact popped her door open, the seatbelt and airbags did their jobs.

You know how doctors are; they order tests to be sure about everything. Every test came back fine, but they did not want to release her. They were concerned about a previous skull fracture being a problem. The 4 ribs that had been broken some time in the past were not that big of a concern.

I was dumbfounded. I called her parents, they were sure this was her first accident. Missy just told me it happened a long time ago in college and dropped it. They held her for 3 days. The last night Crystal visited her on her lunch time, they got to talking and Missy told how she came to miscarry her first child. Crystal promised she would not tell me the details. She never promised to not tell Mike.

When Missy was released she spent 2 weeks at home. When she returned to work the school was decorated with banners welcoming her back. She had an assistant for the rest of the school year.

At work Mike was staying away from me more and more. He looked like the weight of the world was on his shoulders. One Friday he stopped for a burger for lunch, the girl swore he ordered it with extra mustard. He went wild; he yelled and screamed, demanded his money back, demanded the manager step outside so they could talk. The policeman who was having lunch at the time had called for backup as soon as he started yelling. 3 more officers came flying into the place and ordered him to drop to the floor, he just glared at them. Finally he dropped to the floor; they cuffed him and arrested him and took him off to jail. Some patrons swore he was smiling as they carted him out.

He refused to use his one call until late Sunday evening. He called me to say he would not be in until at least Wednesday; he told me where he was and then hung up. I swore I heard him laughing.

I called crystal and told her, she just laughed and said I thought that was where he was. She thanked me and hung up.

Monday afternoon Mike pled guilty to disturbing the peace, paid his $300 fine and walked out of court a free man. The only excuse he offered the judge was "...he was having a bad day."

Tuesday evening just after supper there was a knock on the door. A detective showed his badge and asked for Missy. The detective asked if she knew a man by the name of John Tower. Missy recoiled slightly and then said she had many years ago. The detective looked at me and said "You are about 5 foot 10; we are looking for someone almost 7 feet tall with a shaved head."

He went on to explain someone had assaulted this fellow John. They caught him after dark, duct taped him to a tree, nailed his hands, scrotum and foreskin to the tree. He also had a badly cracked skull and 4 broken ribs. The reason they came to see us was because the word Missy was cut into his forehead and a letter was stapled to his right ear explaining that this was in retribution for what he did to his wife Missy years ago.

They asked if I knew anyone who might fit the description. I answered honestly "My best friend Mike, he is about 6 foot 8, but the last I saw he had a full head of hair and a beard."

The next day Mike was back at work, hair and beard intact. He was all smiles and the weight of the world was no longer on his shoulders. He brought me a coffee and a honey wheat doughnut, my favorite. Mike stayed in the office all morning until the mail came; then he bolted out the door saying something about an appointment.

On the top of the mail was a large brown envelope addressed to me. It was marked personal and confidential. The first thing I saw was a smaller envelope addressed to Missy. Then I saw a series of photographs showing the destruction of a man. They showed the results of a beating, then he was duct taped to a tree, his hands were nailed and then his genitals were nailed to the tree. I saw a close up of the carving in his forehead and the note stapled to his ear. The last page just said "Tell Missy things are almost even now."