Mates May Meet (Completed)

Lorna and Aaron

Lorna and Aaron

Aaron Shaffer placed the notebook and pen in the top drawer. Before he had a chance to close it a knock sounded on the door.

"Come in."

The door opened. Stacie, his secretary, entered holding a stack of file folders. "I've rescheduled all of your standing appointments. Carter has three and Johnson has four. Ms. Oaks refused to reschedule with them. I told her I'd have you call her before you leave the office."

"Fine. But you can put her on the schedule for three with Carter."

"She was adamant she didn't want to see anyone else."

"Unfortunately, she has little choice but I'll make the call. Anything else?"

"Your sister called. She wanted to make sure you were aware of the situation and that you would be there by Thursday."

Aaron wanted to groan. His sister, Ann, was a constant worrier. She was the one of the most loving people ever on Earth. But that genuine loving nature caused her to worry about almost everything. He had assured her twice he would be there. "I'll call her too. Any more? Please, say no."

Stacie smiled. "Not that you'll be disappointed to hear. Your rental will be ready and waiting when you land. I've prepared a bag for you. Clothing, maps, toiletries and a few other things. I've had Calvin put it in your trunk."

"Is it sad that I didn't pack for this little outing?" He rubbed his right eye sleepily. "I just thought I'd buy what I needed when I get there."

"I knew you wouldn't. So, I did it yesterday." Her eyebrows lifted sarcastically as he started to protest. "Don't... Yes, it was my day off but it needed to be done or your sister would never forgive you. Now, your flight lands at six, so get sleep while you can. The drive is over an hour, but just barely, so you should arrive by seven thirty. It depends on airport security."

"Stacie, I've flown before. It's not that difficult."

Stacie nodded. "Sorry. I just had a similar conversation with my youngest son. I'll leave you to it. If you need anything there's a list of local and state numbers in the bag."

"Calvin's flying somewhere?"

She nodded, not looking pleased. "California next week. He's turning eighteen and planning to visit a friend who moved out there last year."

He stood then remembered he still had two phone calls to make. He sat down. "Calvin's a good kid. I'm sure he'll be fine. Remind me to give him something cool for his birthday."

Thirty-three minutes later he finally got off the phone with Ms. Oaks. She hadn't been pleased but finally relented to the schedule change.

By then it was already almost six.  Still he called his sister. The call was short but she seemed pleased with the reassurance.

In all honesty, Aaron felt anxious. He'd felt restless for weeks. When his sister called wanting him to visit he finally jumped on the opportunity.

He had started the business with his two partners three years ago. To keep things running smoothly they agreed to go on vacations and other extended out of office occasions one at a time. That way there was always at least two of them to deal with situations.

In the second year Ann had met her future husband and gotten married a month later. Aaron hadn't been able to attend the wedding. Carter and Johnson had already had vacation plans. He'd only met his brother in law, Kyle, by video chat since then.

In all honesty, he'd spent more time with the business in one week then he'd spent with family in the past three years. But in his defense, running a business, even with partners, wasn't easy. He was thirty years old and didn't want to retire until the age of seventy at the earliest. He would love to be one of those people still working at the age of eighty.