ring I'd put on her finger the night before. She suddenly stopped, and turned to look at me, saying 'It wasn't a dream last night, was it?'
I smiled back, and said 'No, not for either one of us.'
She suddenly sat up – letting the covers fall down and making her breasts jiggle in a most interesting way – and hugged me fiercely before telling me 'I love you!'
I hugged her back, and told her that I loved her, too – but that we needed to get ready to go to the FBI office. At that, she pulled away from me a bit, and said, 'I was hoping that part of it was just a nightmare', wistfully.
I kissed her, and told her 'It won't be long, and you'll think it was, though', in an effort to comfort her, before gesturing toward the coffee. She nodded, and I got up to make us both a cup.
After we'd both had a few sips, I told Lucy 'Last night, Agent Gallery asked me a favor.'
'What's that?'
'He asked me if I'd bring the girls with us this morning.'
Lucy looked at me sharply, and asked 'What for?'
'A couple of reasons. First, they just want to make sure the girls understand what all this is about. Second, they want me to go with them when they hit TechnoDynamics, and having all of you at the office just makes their job a little easier. Last, at my request, they're going to give you and the girls some brief lessons on self defense, and an introduction to guns.'
Grudgingly, Lucy admitted that it was probably a good idea, adding 'I'm not too sure about the guns part, but if you think it's a good idea, then I'll give it a try.'
I assured her that I did think it was a good idea – 'If for nothing else than to make sure they understand what a gun can really do'.
When we'd finished our coffee, Lucy headed for the bathroom while I went in to get the girls out of bed. I found them wrapped in each other's arms, their legs intertwined. They were so lovely, I went back to knock on the bathroom door, telling Lucy there was something she'd want to see. A minute later, she came out, and I took her over to look at the girls – and she immediately fell in love with them, all over again. I got an idea, and dug out the digital camera I'd bought; when Lucy asked, I told her that it didn't use film, so there wasn't any problem with anyone but us seeing the photos. She nodded her agreement, and I got several images, from different angles, of Robyn and Sandra laying there.
I put the camera away as Lucy headed back for her bathroom, then went and sat on the edge of the bed. I reached out, and began caressing their upper arms in turn, first one, then the other, until they finally opened their eyes. When they saw me, both of their faces lit up, and they quickly threw off the covers to give me a good morning hug. I told them that all of us were going to the FBI office that morning, and both of them brightened at the idea. As I watched their cute backsides head for the bathroom, I called down to the front desk, and simply asked for the duty agent; a couple seconds later, a female voice answered 'Agent Jones. What can I do for you, Mr.
Andrews?'
'You can start by calling me Dan. Mister makes it sound like I'm even older than I feel, some days.'
She laughed, and said 'Okay, Dan. Agent Gallery told me you were pretty relaxed about all this, I should have listened to him. What's up?'
'We'll be wanting some breakfast this morning before we head in to the office. I was thinking the caf here in the hotel would be good, unless you think it's too small, or too crowded.'
'No, sir, it'll be just fine. The morning rush is over, and it's pretty empty now.'
'Great. We'll be heading down in, oh, twenty minutes, thirty at the outside.'
'That'll be fine, sir. We'll be ready. Thanks.'
'No problem.'
With that, I hung up the phone, and decided that the girls wouldn't mind sharing the bathroom with me while I shaved. After retrieving my vest and pistol from Lucy's room, I went into the bathroom to shave and brush. Since the girls were in the shower, giggling, I doubt they even noticed I was there.
After I'd dressed, I stuck my head in the bathroom to see Robyn and Sandra toweling each other off, with a little groping tossed in. I let them know that we'd be having breakfast in the hotel caf in about fifteen minutes; both protested it wasn't enough time, then made a face at me when I answered 'Fine. Go hungry, then!' – knowing full well that neither would pass up food after all the activity of last night.
Back in Lucy's room, I found her putting the finishing touches on her makeup. I told her where and when we'd be having breakfast, she smiled and said that was fine, with her – it gave her time for another cup of coffee. I smiled back, and poured each of us a cup as I told her about watching Sandra and Robyn heading for the bathroom, and how I'd found them after making arrangements for breakfast. She laughed when I told her about telling them to be ready, or go hungry – she knew better than I did that neither of them would willingly skip a meal. How they ate so much, and still stayed so slender, was a mystery to both of us.
Lucy and I were just finishing our coffee when the youngsters swarmed into the room. At my suggestion, all three had selected comfortable blouses and pants; even covered up that way, they were all a treat to see.
By then, enough time had passed that I knew it was okay to head off to get something to eat – Robyn and Sandra weren't the only ones feeling hungry that morning. They waited patiently as I opened the door a bit and checked the hallway before opening it all the way. We made our way to the elevator, and stopped only once on the way down to pick up an older gentleman. At the main floor, I spotted a couple of FBI agents, and the troop of us made our way to the caf. I let Lucy and the girls find us a booth while I waited near the door for Agent Jones to let me know which one she was. I wasn't disappointed when a few seconds later, an apparent businesswoman got up to walk toward me. At 5'6' and maybe 120 pounds, dark red hair and nicely curved, I doubted anyone would take her for a gun-toting FBI agent.
She looked every bit the attractive business exec – other than the all-but-issue purse she was toting that held her pistol in a convenient inside pocket. I saw several guys watching her, but she didn't seem to notice them, for some reason.
When she got close, I stuck my hand out, and said 'Good morning, Agent Jones.'
She looked surprised, but took my hand and shook it before asking 'How did you know it was me?'
'Educated guess. I figured the only one of your crew to approach me would be the agent in charge. You sure didn't sound like a guy on the phone, and that purse is all but a giveaway that you're carrying. Too bad that none of the fashion houses make purses that are designed for carrying a weapon.'
She grinned at me wryly and said 'Believe me, Dan, I wish they would, and am afraid they will – it would be nice to have some more choices, but I'm afraid I'd spend too much of my salary on them if they did!'
Both of us laughed at that before she told me 'Agent Gallery said you were good; I'll have to apologize for doubting him about that, too.'
She followed that a moment later by saying 'Dan, I'm sorry to ask, but Clara was very clear about it: are you wearing your vest?'
I grinned at her, and said – in my best little-boy tone – 'YES, mother!' – and getting a grin in return before I told her 'I'm also carrying my little purchase from last night.'
She smiled at me, and said 'Good. My people have already heard how you did, and seen the results. They're impressed, and they don't impress easy. Hell,*I'M* impressed – I only wished I could shoot that good. We're going to have to get you out on our combat range some day – I'll bet you could give our course record a pretty good run.'
I thanked her, and then it was down to business as I told her 'As Agent Gallery requested, Lucy and the girls will be staying at the office while I'm out. Lucy knows why, and I'll be telling the girls over breakfast. You can see I managed to convince them to dress for the occasion. If there's anything else I need to tell them, this would be a good time to let me know.'
'No, that's it. I'm sure our office people will appreciate them being dressed appropriately. Is there anything I can do for you?'
'Yeah, there is. Last night, I was told that Mike could smooth out the trigger on this thing for me – it's feeling a little gritty. If he can, I'd like to clean the action on it a bit, too – it's a little mushy when it trips. He might like a little warning before I get there, I'm thinking.'
She nodded, and said, 'I'm sure he would. I'll make sure he gets a heads up. Anything else?'
'Nope. After breakfast, we'll be heading straight for your office.'
