Love Always Wins Pt. 04 Ch. 14-18

I jumped to my feet with a totally unintelligible exclamation on my lips! "Omigod! Mr. Menzel, I'm so sorry! She scared me and I forgot I was holding the glass! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"Arrgh!" I arched my back to try and get away from the cold, wet fabric that was so suddenly plastered onto my back and, in the process, realized that my clothes were wet to well below my butt! "Holy FU... Omigod! Jeez! I don't know if it's that cold or if you just managed to hit my surprise button dead on!"

My antics were wild enough that Gwendolyn was able to muster a little color and a sad little smile. "Well, Stefan, thank goodness at least YOU don't seem to be a ghost!" She took a very deep breath and asked, "Stefan, are you the Mr. Menzel that I think lost someone very important to them this past August? And does the name Gwynn mean anything to you?"

I froze and stared at Gwendolyn for a few seconds until all the pieces came slamming together with a horrible crash of neurons! "How in the fucking world?" I collapsed to my knees in tears! "Terri, Terri! Terri! Why oh why did you have to leave me?" was all that I could wail!

"Oh! Mary, Mother of God, Stefan! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you!"

Gwendolyn was on her knees hugging me when Juanita's voice interrupted the tableau. "Excuse me, but what the fuck just happened? Oops! Uh, pardon my language, but what exactly IS going on here?"

It took me a few seconds to respond, but I finally brought my head up and looked at Gwendolyn. I gave her a little peck on the nose and said, "Thank you! And now I think that we owe the lady at least one and maybe two explanations. What do you think?"

Gwendolyn blew out a long breath and finally replied, "I am so sorry!" She gave me a little kiss on the lips and continued, "I think that you are probably right."

I was a little shaky getting to my feet, but I was able to bring Gwendolyn up with me. "Juanita, why don't you and Gwendolyn have a seat on the couch and we'll see about bringing you up to speed on the craziness that we at least think we understand."

"Uh, no, you two take the couch. I've got to be able to answer the phone. Let me bring my swivel chair out here so I can be close to the counter and still get what you have to say."

We spent about an hour in the office comparing notes and answering Juanita's questions before the conversation ran down and we were able to return to our original purpose for needing to see Juanita. "Juanita, Gwendolyn had her plumbing system blow out yesterday and we will probably have to make a bit more of a mess before I can find where the break in the line is. May we borrow a mop and a bucket from you? Neither one of us has any sort of tools for managing any kind of a liquid mess larger than about a cup of water."

Juanita had to quip before she really replied, "Aha, so that's why you wear clothes, eh? Except for the fact that it seems to make you kind of excited, it does seem to work fairly well." She looked around ostentatiously and continued with a big grin and an innocent look, "I don't see too much that got away from you that I need to clean up now."

"And more seriously, sure, the mop and bucket is not a problem." She giggled a bit nervously, "Just do me a favor and don't tell your ghost to pay a visit to the office here, okay?"

"You got it! And thank you Juanita!"

Back at Gwendolyn's trailer, I took a peek into it and gave her my quick assessment on its status. "Well, it looks like it has pretty well dried out overnight. Let's level it up and see if the heating vents have drained or if I will have to rig something up to pump them out."

In the end, we discovered that what could have been a major project was pretty straightforward although not a slam-dunk. The heating ducts were almost dry. All the books were dry except for one that I suspected was a total loss. We didn't even have to pressure up the water system to see where the leak was; it turned out that a section of flex hose coming out of the hot water heater had failed big time and about as visually obvious as you can imagine. The biggest loss was the food in the refrigerator that had spoiled when the power had gone out.

"Gwendolyn, I have almost called you Gwendy a few times, but I try not to use nicknames unless I have permission. Plus, Gwendy sounds way too little girlish for you. However, now that I know you have a nickname, may I call you Gwynn? That seems to fit you pretty well."

"Oh fuck! Don't EVER call me Gwendy! That's what that sonofabitch, Randy, called me all of the time!

"And just so you don't think that I do nothing but go around biting heads off, you've been a gentleman and you may call me Gwynn."

"Oh my! Point taken and thank you, Gwynn! Boy, am I ever glad that I didn't accidentally step in that particular pile of doodoo!

"So, back to the main issue at hand, why don't you sort through your stuff in the refrigerator and move whatever hasn't spoiled into my refrigerator. I want to fix the plumbing before I turn on all the power to see if we have any electrical shorts to worry about and since your refrigerator is not an old pilot light model, it will not be getting cold until the power is completely on.

"I've got some measurements and I'll head down to the RV supply and repair shop and pick up some PEX and PEX fittings that I need to replace that stupid hose. Does that work for you?"

"Well, it sounds like a plan and it sounds like you know what you're doing, so I say go for it! Just be sure that you save the receipts for me!"

By the time we were done with supper, Gwynn's trailer was again livable with a plumbing system that was a little bit better than what it had started out with. "Omigosh, Stefan, I'm stuffed! Salmon salad and not a bit of grain; I didn't think it could be done!

"How much do you charge for cheffing services, monsieur?"

I laughed, "As long as you aren't looking for gourmet eating, it's pretty simple. In fact, judging from the books we salvaged, it looks to me like you are already on the track. If you want gourmet health food, I'll have to refer you to my sister. She is actually a trained chef and she does sell her services."

"Well then, you must have done all the cooking for your family, right?"

I gave Gwynn a rueful smile. "Nope, I tend to be in too much of a hurry and cut corners. The boys considered my cooking edible, but their Mother had me beat by a country mile except when I was baking bread and pies. It's probably my oldest, Ivan, that is the best chef in the family these days. He takes his time and, I think, has a more discriminating palate than I do."

Our after dinner chat proceeded to wander hither and yon as we explored a plethora of conversational topics in a most enjoyable fashion. The sun was well past the horizon when I caught Gwynn stifling a yawn. "Oho, looks like someone is trying to tell me that she would like to escape from my boring monologue and go to bed.

"Please be advised that I'm usually not enough of a narcissist to be pissed at you if you fail to treat my words as the ineffable jewels of wisdom that I wish they were. If I start boring you or you simply run out of steam, don't be bashful about letting me know that you need to escape from my drone."

"No, I'm afraid that you are only about half right. I am trying to hang in past my bedtime and I am tired. Part of the reason I have been sticking it out is because I am enjoying myself immensely. However, the bigger reason is that I have been having flashbacks to your friend's accident. Frankly, I'm afraid to go to sleep tonight!"

"Hmm, you were okay last night on the dinette, if I'm not mistaken. If it will help, you are entirely welcome to sleep in here again. Do you want to use the sleeping bag again, or would you prefer to use some of your own bedding on the dinette tonight?"

"Oh gosh! I shouldn't... But thank you, I will! The sleeping bag worked fine last night, so I will accept your kind offer, Stefan!"