2. Josh
Leaving the house with a smile on my face was the best way to start a day. Especially when the smile was because of my beautiful sexy wife.
Despite my sexual bliss and satisfaction, I was still concerned about Claudia. Her refusal to acknowledge the demons that plagued her from our loss last year was really starting to worry me.
If I didn’t know my wife as well as I did, I would suggest she talk to a professional regarding her fears about falling pregnant again. However, I was not a stupid man, even bringing up the idea that she talks to a doctor would see my balls yanked off my body and shoved down my throat. No thank you. That kind of thing I left up to the other Blessing sisters and their mother.
Jumping in my Ford Ranger, I drove the eighty metres to my mechanic shop. It was a running joke between Claudia and I, that every morning I used my car to get to work rather than walk the four minutes across the street. She thought it was hilarious that I did it and I only did it because she found it so funny. I liked it when my wife laughed, simple as that.
Parking the Ranger behind the building and walked through the back entrance just as my wife walked in the front after walking across the street seconds after I left.
“Morning dear,” Claudia drawled, then burst out into a fit of laughter. “You are such a dag.” She spluttered, shaking her head then lifted it for a kiss.
“Good morning wife,” I replied doing as she wanted and dropped a quick kiss on her lips, tasting the familiar scent of her and me.
“Okay, we have a busy today, lots of services on ride-on mowers plus two tractors and one-off site service.” Claudia reported in her most authoritative voice, making both Troy and I chuckle. With a swipe of her arm at me and my employee she continued with her boss routine. “Now you men, go work!” she ordered, giving me a wink as she passed me on the way to her office without another word.
“Good lord man, how do you survive being married to a Blessing woman?” Troy asked me with a shake of his head.
Picking up the job sheet for the day, I started towards the line of mowers waiting to be serviced. “Mate, let me tell ya, it’s not for everybody.” I said with a happy grin. “Most of the time I believe I deserve a medal.” I added in a louder voice as I walked past the office. My wife reacting to my comment exactly as I expected.
“Yeah, a medal for picking the perfect woman,” she replied sarcastically.
She is so easy to rile up.
The thought passing through my mind as Claudia kept coming up with reasons as to why she was perfect for me.
Tuning her out I went about starting my work. I was already very aware of the reasons my wife was perfect for me. Her constant reminders were fun but not necessary.
“Hey Jury, how goes it?” I asked as Jamison Jury, the soon-to-be new full-time cop for Blessings and my future brother-in-law stepped out of his car.
“All good mate, just thought I would drop by and see if you have room in your garage for a new project I’m thinking of buying.”
Wiping the grease from my hands, then running the rag over the steering wheel of the last mower. It only took me all of four hours to get the council mowers serviced, an easy job but fiddly as fuck for someone like me with big hands. Not that I wasn’t glad for the contract to service and fix all the council machinery, I was, but sometimes I wished I had an apprentice I could unload these jobs on from time to time.
In all honesty I was considering teaching a mechanical apprenticeship but finding a teenager in Blessings not only interested in mechanics but who wanted to stick around in our small town long enough to finish a four-year commitment was a little on the difficult side.
Most of the high school kids who lived here couldn’t wait to get to Gracefield or beyond to escape small town living.
Leading Jamison into the office area, I went straight to the fridge and pulled out myself a beer. Holding it up to Jury, I silently asked if he wanted one too.
“Sounds good Josh thanks.” Jamison agreed readily, reaching back in I grabbed another bottle of my favourite draught and handed him the chilled bottle.
“So,” I said, stopping to open my beer and taking a gulp of the foamy brew. “What is the project?”
Smiling at me Jamison looked like a kid who just received the best Christmas present ever. “Josh you won’t believe this, I found a 1972 XY Falcon Ute, no rust in the body but it has a few dents in most of the panels and it’s missing the original bonnet, but other than that it’s mostly body and paint work.”
“Holy shit!” I gushed impressed at Jury’s news. “That is one hell of a find mate. Have you brought it yet?”
Shaking his head Jury took another slug of his beer before answering. “I put down a decent deposit and a written agreement the guy won’t do anything until he hears back from me by the end of today. But I think I’m gonna go for it. Any chance I can get your help with the motor work?”
“Fucking oath mate! That’s one of my favourite muscle cars, a XY genuine ute. God damn that was a lucky find. What colour is it?”
“Factory orange, I’m going to keep it that colour, it needs a complete paint redo so your help with finding the right paint will be needed as well as your mechanical skills. I’m decent with body work, so I can help there. Just basically need to know if you have room for it here.”
Nodding enthusiastically, I agreed straight up.
“No worries, mate. There is an empty bay in the back with a hoist and I have the paint booth out there too. By all means bring it here and we can work on it after hours and on weekends.” I couldn’t help feeling excited to see what kind of shape the car was in, a find like Jury was describing was bloody rare.
“Thanks Josh, I appreciate that. Gisele’s shed is not big enough for a full rebuild and I don’t want to fill up Jock’s already full to the brim sheds.”
“Jock has so many projects on the go, the man doesn’t have time for any of them with Georgina finding painting jobs for him every other day.”
Laughing Jury nodding in agreement. “I’m asking man to man here Josh, does it get any easier having Georgina as a mother-in-law?” he asked, the question so funny I nearly spat out my beer. The poor bugger, he was only just over a month in the family and already he was looking for ways to deal with the matriarch of the Blessing fold.
“Jury, the short answer to that question is … no mate,” I laughed, “Falling for a Blessing woman means having to accept that they come in a package deal. You take on one you take the lot of them.” I told him, not that he didn’t already know that. But if he was looking for an easy way to deal with Georgina he was shit out of luck.
“Like I said to you before, Claudia will always be known by her maiden name, no matter that she took my last name when we were married, she is and always will be a Blessing. Hell, even I refer to her with that name.” I explained with a rueful shake of my head.
Narrowing his eyes at me, Jury shook his head, “Gisele is taking my name when we get married, she’s mine now and she will be more mine with my last name. Miracle too,” he said adamantly the poor sap really believed what he was saying would happen. Little did he know.
Laughing in his face at the absurd notion he was going to convince Gisele to lose the Blessing surname, I gave Jury a comforting pat on his shoulder. “Whatever helps you sleep at night mate.” Obviously, he was yet to inform Gisele about his intentions, but I hoped I was present when he did. Hearing him tell Gisele she belonged to him will be fun to see go down.
Jury looked slightly deflated at my reaction. Feeling sorry for him, I decided to change the subject.
“How is the transfer coming, when will you officially be our copper?”
Looking relieved to talking about his work instead of his woman’s possible name change issue, Jury perked up. “Good so far, there is still some red tape to navigate but my resignation at the MPU is officially in and accepted. I’m required to keep heading it until my replacement is appointed. The work on the new office begins next week and the bigger news is with my appointment here, it has been decided to have a full-time paramedic added to the town.”
“Holy shit no way!” I said both surprised and glad to hear that the town was getting more helpful amenities. Having a law official was a good thing but for Blessings to get a medic was truly welcome news. Admittedly I couldn’t help feeling resentful that we didn’t have a paramedic here last year when Claudia first started feeling the pains that lead to our miscarriage. I considered the loss of our baby equally as Claudia and always referred to it as our loss not just hers. I knew Claudia carried the burden of the miscarriage like it was her fault.
That was bullshit. Nothing she did caused the pregnancy to miscarry but try and get my wife to believe that.
Stubborn woman.
“It’s happening,” Jury affirmed. “I made a good case for the need and the powers to be agreed. With the distance between Blessings and the nearest major hospital, I used a few different examples of the need, and it has been decided. Blessings gets a full-time paramedic and ambulance. A full-time clinic is also on the agenda but that involves getting a doctor to actually want to come here and set up a practice. I talked to Jock about putting out feelers for any expressions of interest and to see if there is a building he owns that is not occupied and decent to set up as a medical clinic.”
Thinking of the vacant buildings here in town, I already had three in mind that would make a clinic. “Jesus mate, you come into town and already you’re bringing Blessings into the twenty-first century.” I joked, yet I meant it as a compliment. Jury’s acceptance of small-town living was impressive for a born and bred city guy.
“I like the way of life here in Blessings, I just don’t think the residents have to be stifled in the dark ages just because of geography.”
And I agreed with Jury. He really had the town’s best interest when he made these decisions.
“Well keep me posted when Jock chooses a place. I’ll be more than happy to help with any structure work to make it a working building for a medical clinic.”
“Will do,” Jury assured me. “Now about this Ford.”
We went back to coming up for a plan for when to go collect his new toy and when to find time to work on it. It was a good distraction from worrying about my stubborn, beautiful wife and waiting for her to tell me my guys had hit their target.