Chapter One - The Ultimate Trade - Charles Fornau

Josh here. This is part of my story. The fun part. The parts about school and stupid girlfriends and all that, we can skip. This happened later when things started looking up. It’s the tale of a young man who was mentored by his grandfather and his father, the men who showed him the ways of the world, to include the finer things in life. Good whiskey, the finest of foods, the better mechanical wonders of the world, how to legally manipulate trades and manage the markets, and how to keep the fairer sex from manipulating and managing him. The ‘him’ in question would be me.

My father’s take on it was easy. Respect women to a fault, but don’t give an inch. If you want to golf, golf. If you want to make love, make sure she wants to as well, before the fact. Fine dining, flowers and jewelry for absolutely no reason help, too. Easy as pie.

My grandfather taught me to manage money and investments, watching and knowing when and how to trade. He also taught me how to fly. The latter was the greater gift, but the former made it a bit easier to do so.

Between the two of them, and the love of Nana and Mom, my father’s mother and mine, respectively, I felt pretty well prepared to go off on my own. I was not, however, prepared for how it happened. In an absolute quirk of coincidence, fate, and the evil spirits all joining hands and shitting on me, simultaneously, at the same time, and together, no less, I lost them, all four of them, in an aircraft accident. Grampa was at the controls and Dad was the co-pilot, according to the records, and as they were approaching an airport in Northern California, their vacation destination, an idiot in a Bonanza T-boned them in mid air. If someone tried, really, really hard, they could NOT have performed that feat on purpose with any accuracy. The investigation proved that the offending pilot was not completely sober. Not even close. That doesn’t explain it away, but what can one do?

Four years later, with an MBA, a CFP license, and a multitude of other milestones surpassed, I tried to get on with my life doing something other than making trades and watching my money make more money.

I shopped around for years, renting all kinds of different aircraft models, then replaced the plane, opting for a jet instead of the twin turboprop like Dad and Grampa owned. Their big Beech King Air was nice, but I wanted something a bit quicker, and money was no longer an issue at all. We were wealthy before their accident, but I took proceeds from the settlements and invested it, turning a lot of money into a lot more money and even more gold.

The replacement took six months to get my hands on, since it was a custom-made Pilatus PC-24. Everyone raved about them, and I was one of those who did so. I loved the one I was checked out on. The only problem was range, as it is with any single pilot plane. Yep, range, plain and simple. I needed just a bit more than the Pilatus came with, in its standard configuration, since we liked to vacation in some spots a bit west of California. Yeah, west. That means you have to make it to Hawaii. Once you get there, you can make it around the globe, but that first twenty-two hundred nautical miles is pretty much a requirement. It also has to be planned for, since way too much head wind will cause a problem ending in a long swim. There is the alternative, spending six days flying the other direction, but it seems so… So… Never mind. That is not the way to go.

In any case, I had more fuel capacity added, at the expense of losing four passenger seats. Until later in life it wouldn’t really make a difference, as I’d be able to handle six people, two up front and four in a club type seating arrangement, with a full galley and top of the line lavatory included in the deal. All in all, the best of all options, but it was just me when I bought the plane and if I was careful, again later in life, five other average sized people and I could make it to Lihue with enough fuel left over to taxi all the way over to the hangar at the FBO, so all was good with the world.

This story starts out with me doing just that. I very carefully moved all of my volatile investments, those that needed constant care and monitoring, transferring them into growth instruments, low risk and moderate gain types, and convinced myself I needed a month off. Just a month, then I’d get back at it.

While I knew I didn’t NEED any more wealth, for myself anyway, I wanted someday to have a family. That meant taking care of more than just myself, and for beyond the foreseeable future. I also wanted to provide for my heirs into the not so foreseeable future, so I put a plan together to do just that. More about that later. I lived through the vacation, just barely, so it did happen. The plan, that is.

My trip from home, then to San Jose for refueling, then on to Lihue, on Kauai, in the Hawaiian Islands, was as uneventful as one can hope or pray for. I did both, and it seemed to work out for me. While flying alone can be boring, it can also be dangerous, especially if one is distracted or overly tired. I was neither, and I stayed awake and alert, hence, uneventful.

That changed at the airport. Naturally, I wanted a rental car, since I planned on running all over the island, playing in the sands of the beaches as well as on the trails up in the hills. I also wanted to get some fishing in. A two-week stay in Hawaii provides for a generous offering of divergent activities, regardless of which island you find yourself on. I had a nice car reserved. It was a model I’d had before, and I really liked it.

I approached the rental desk and was next in line behind a young woman, quite a bit younger than me, in a heated discussion with the clerk.

“I was told over the phone that a reservation wouldn’t be necessary. Now you tell me there are no cars available because someone died? Seriously? How is that even possible?”

“Ma’am, I apologize, but hundreds of families have come in for the funeral and we really don’t have any vehicles left. There are always the taxis and such.”

“To heck with that. I wanted a bit of freedom. I don’t like relying on others. Not at all. Are you positive I can’t just get one for a few days to get me back and forth to Princeville?”

“No, ma’am, we have nothing. The other rental companies are out as well. I’m sorry, but there is just nothing we can do.”

Uht, oh, here he comes. Watch for him. The knight in shining armor. Silly me opened his mouth. “I can take you up there, miss. I’m on the way to Princeville myself. I’d love to give you a ride.”

“Then what. I’m stuck at a resort in Hawaii for three days with no wheels and no friends.”

“Poor, poor, pitiful you?” Her eyes shot daggers at me. “Sorry. Bad joke. There is a country song about that. Hey, it can’t be all that bad. Where are you staying?” I asked her.

“The Wyndham, Bali Hai. Why does that matter? I still don’t have wheels.”

“No, but I can get you up there and you can catch all kinds of rides in Princeville, to all types of places and activities. Ever been here before?”

She shook her head, frowning. It didn’t become her. She looked down at the floor. I stepped forward and did something I might have been sorry for later, but it didn’t work out that way. I held out my hand, index finger forward and lifted her chin until she was looking at me.

She opened her mouth, and I think, her heart, to me. “My sister will be here in three days, and when she shows up, me with no wheels, it’ll prove once again that she has the upper hand and she’ll tell me all about what I should’ve done. I know now what I should’ve done. I listened to the wrong person once again.” I could tell she was to the point that a tear was about to fall.

“Hey. No problem. I’ll get you up there and we can pretend you worked out a deal to have wheels and save some money. I’ll bet that’s the rest of the issue, isn’t it? She’s rolling in dough, and you might just not be?”

“To some degree. I had to scrounge for some of my part the trip. Airfare, hotel, the whole bit. I thought if I could save some money with a last-minute rental…”

“Those last-minute penny pinchers almost always backfire… What’s your name, anyway? I’m Josh. Joshua Coats.”

“Brenda. Brenda Williams. Nice to meet you, Josh. In any case, I tried once again, and failed once again, and now I have to hear about it from BB.”

“BB?”

“Beverly Bitch. My sister. Her middle name is Belle, and she thinks that I call her BB like it was her initials. Nope. Our parents asked us to try to patch things up with a little vacation over here, so they paid for some of it for each of us, and we paid the rest. I didn’t really want to come, but… Dad was pretty convincing. He ended with, ‘You may need a kidney someday.’ After I stopped laughing, I told him I’d come.”

“Why did you laugh at him, Brenda? That’s a pretty serious subject.”

“We don’t want one of BB’s kidneys, Josh. They are probably… How can I say this politely? Pickled?” She smiled. It was then I noticed just how pretty the girl was. It’s amazing what a smile can do to a face. In this case, it turned an otherwise plain Jane girl into a Beacon of Beauty. My own little BB.

“My sister is a very successful, yet very young attorney in a very large firm in Denver. Her only vice is alcohol. She claims she uses it to cope with the people she defends. She’s a criminal lawyer. Whatever.”

“And what do you do, Brenda?”

“Fourth grade. I teach. I’m not going to be able to do this every six months like BB can. I might be able to pull it off once every six years if I travel with a friend.”

“Brenda, I think my earlier idea just might work. We are going to get you up the hill, then I want you to convince your sister that it was me that was in trouble, you helped me out, saved some money in the process and got a driver and guide out of the deal for free. What do you think of that?”

“T G T B T.”

“Huh?” I was lost at that point.

“To good to be true. There has to be a catch.”

“Not really. I’m going to be here for a while decompressing. I have no plans, no commitments, and no appointments. I literally flew in here to goof off and get away.”

“What airline? I didn’t see you on our flight.”

“Uhmm. Coats Airways?” I said, grinning somewhat. She cocked her head. “I have my own plane.”

“SHUT UP!”

“Sir,” the rental agent said, “I need to get you taken care of. There are customers coming. Quickly. Lots of them on the flight that just came in.”

“Oh, sorry. Last name is Coats. Just wanted to check in to make sure the car was ready before I went out on the lot.”

“Let me see. Oh, here it is. Yes, sir. It’s in A 7. Ready to roll.”

“Thank you, Makani. See you in a couple of weeks.” I turned to Brenda. “Shall we?”

“Did I already decide to do this? We don’t even know each other.”

“Tell you what. You have a phone?” She nodded. “I know a bar not far from here where we can stop and get a sandwich and have a drink and talk. You game?”

She cocked her head again, then smiled, and said, “Why not? I’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain, including a guide. Not to mention a chauffeur. How I pulled that off, I’ll never know.” She giggled. She was getting cuter and cuter all the time.

I picked up her bag, then mine, and off we went to the lot behind the rental car desks. When we got to the first few cars, there were a couple of nice Mercedes Benz models right there.

“Wouldn’t that be nice. If BB saw me in one of those, she’d have a cow.”

“This should be funny then. This is A 6, the black one. The blue one, mine, is in A 7. It’s a nice car. I’ve driven it a couple of times before.”

“SHUT THE F… SHUT UP!”

“No. It’s nice. Beverly Belle will love it. Maybe she’ll have a Jersey Milker. I asked for it specifically. They don’t last long. After they get so old, or so many miles on them, the company sells them and gets new ones.”

“We’re really going to be in a Mercedes?”

“Yep. Not just a Mercedes, though. It’s a nice one. It’s a bit sportier than your average Benz.”

“This is so great. More than I could have ever asked for. BB drives one. A little one, but it’s still a Mercedes, you know, so she gloats a little bit.”

“And what do you drive?” I asked her as we got in and were buckling up.

“A Jeep Cherokee. One of the little ones. Not a Grand one, just a regular one. I like it in the bad weather and Lord knows we get our share of that.”

As we were driving, I noticed she seemed more comfortable. “Are you from Denver, too?”

“The metro. Aurora, actually. BB works and lives in downtown Denver. I hate it down there. Too much hustle, bustle, and all, for me. I like living farther out.”

“Why do you always have to mention your sister, Brenda? She obviously isn’t your favorite topic of conversation, or is she?”

“No, Josh, she’s not. Sorry. I’m just upset about the car and all, and… No, she’s not.”

“When we see her, and, oh... Were you supposed to pick her up at the airport?”

“Yes. That was the plan.”

“It IS the plan, Brenda. It IS the plan. We’re going to show up at the airport in a Mercedes CLA45 AMG and let her deal with it. She may have one, for all I know, but for the time you are here on the island, you definitely have one. OK?”

“OK, Josh. It seems like a tough thing to get through, but I’ll do my best.” She giggled. “How am I ever going to be able to thank you for this?”

“Be good company while we’re showing off to your sister. That’s all I ask. I don’t need anything else. From anyone, come to think of it.”

We chatted a little bit about this, that, everything and nothing, then pulled into the Bamboo Grill just off the main highway headed north to Princeville. We ordered, each of us having draft beer with sandwiches and fries.

“Josh, you said you had your own plane. Explain that. Do you fly it? Do you have people for that? What gives?”

“I fly it. It’s a small one. Nothing outlandish like Travolta has. It gets me where I want to go. Kind of like your Cherokee. It works for me.”

“Cool. Now, tell me about Josh. Family?”

“No. My mother’s parents are gone. Cancer and an aneurism got her and him, respectively, about ten years ago. I lost my parents and my father’s parents several years ago in an aircraft accident. Freak accident at that. My grandfather taught me how to fly. He was an amazing man. So was my father, but his father was the king of all fathers in my eyes. You mentioned your parents, and of course, your sister.”

“Of course. They are alive and well. Daddy is an accountant. Mom is a paralegal. My grandparents all moved to Florida a few years ago. All four of them. They took The Villages by storm and haven’t looked back. BB is what BB is. The older sister needing to be more, to be better, to be above, and to be superior. I teach. That is what I feel I was meant to do. I don’t pretend to be anything but a teacher and try to be a good person, as much as I can be, anyway.”

“Noble dealings, Brenda. There is nothing wrong with being a teacher. They make less money and change more lives, for the better, than any other profession, with the possible exception of nurses. Nah, forget that. You get a new crew every year. They see the same patients, for the most part. In any case, don’t let some two-bit ambulance chaser make you feel any less than worthy and a complete success.”

“You mean unless I suck at teaching?”

I had to laugh at her retort. “There is that, but I doubt that is an issue.”

“I hope not. I’ve only been at it for four years now, but I think I’m pretty good at it.”

“So, you’re what, like twenty-six?” She looked well under twenty, if a day, but I was doing the math in my head.

“Twenty-five, but I have a birthday next month. Late next month. The twenty-ninth. BB is thirty. Thirty-one the month after mine, on the fifteenth.”

“You sure do mention her a lot. I’ve never even met the woman, but I already know her middle name and her birthday.”

“I did it again, didn’t I?” I nodded but did it with a smile. She could talk about Satan himself and I’d enjoy hearing her voice and watching her speak. The girl was really making an impression on me.

As she spoke about their childhood, I took a better, and much closer, look at Brenda Williams, the woman I had just volunteered to spend at least the next several days with. She was cute. The kind of cute that could still be considered beautiful. Her blonde hair, shoulder length, highlighted her dark tanned complexion and bright green eyes. Her lips were shaped perfectly for kissing. Yeah, I know. That was from the mad, mad, mind of a man that wanted to kiss her now that he’d spent some time with her. Her nose was as cute as the rest of her. It made her look younger, if that makes sense. She had the facial qualities of a young girl. She could pass for sixteen from a distance, if a person didn’t know she was traveling alone and arguing with rental car agents.

She was beautiful. That was my point. She also seemed to be a great person, yet a little hung up on the fact that she felt belittled by her older sibling. I’d never had one, so I couldn’t relate. I did know, however, from just being a halfway intelligent human being, that it wasn’t good for her to dwell on it, and no matter what, she didn’t deserve to be treated that way, if in fact Beverly did that. This little plan of mine with the car and providing rides and help for Brenda will certainly let me know what is happening between them.

After we ate, we exchanged numbers so that we could contact each other and headed up the highway to Princeville and the Wyndham, to check her in to her accommodations, and then ultimately, I’d head to the Westin, where I would be staying.

The ride was a scenic wonder for her. She’d never been to the islands before, so it was new, and fresh, and exciting. I’d been here, and to the other islands several times, but it was still that way to me. New, fresh, and exciting, that is. I never grew tired of leaving home behind, with work and traffic, and all that those things entail, and heading off to a tropical paradise. We, meaning my family and I, also frequented a few places closer to home, in the Caribbean and such, but that would be a discussion for another day.

Arrival at the Wyndham was more of a circus than anything. It seems that the less expensive hotels and resorts were inundated with guests. At least she had a reservation for this place. We took seats in the lounge after signing her in on an arrival sheet and waited for her name to be called to get her registered in. Her room was guaranteed, already paid for, thankfully, and she was checked in without any further difficulty. I helped her get her bag to her room then turned to head out.

“Josh, thank you again for your help. This was turning out so badly, but it seems maybe now…”

“Think nothing of it, princess. All is well. We’ll be in touch, and you are now in charge. Just holler when you want to go somewhere or do something, and I’ll make it happen. It’ll be my pleasure.” I gave her the hand sign for ‘call me’ and again started to turn for the door when she quickly crossed the room, hugged my waist and kissed my chest.

“OK. It’s a deal. I’ll call you very, very soon.” She leaned her forehead into me and sighed.

I kissed the top of her head and smelling something really nice, I quickly left before I couldn’t work up the strength to do so. She was as tempting as any temptation I’d ever been tempted by, and to be honest, I didn’t want to ruin it by being stupid and impetuous.

Chapter Two - The Ultimate Trade - Chnydleigh Whyplasche

My first chore after checking in and getting to my suite was to unpack my swim shorts and flip flops. My second was to walk as far down the beach and the rocks as I could and still make it back before dark and without getting too awfully tired. It worked. I got back just as the sun set over the ocean, showered, changed, and made off for one of the restaurants for a bite to eat.

As I sat there, contemplating my broasted chicken platter, I got a text.

‘lunch tomorrow then beach walk?’ It was, of course, Brenda.

‘love to. I’ll come get you tenish.’

A smiley face was all that came back. That was all I needed, though.

I finished dinner then hit the lounge and listened to a small combo play a few dance tunes while convincing myself not to go through all my emails and messages until later. With a feat of strength known only to a very few traders and financial planners, I turned my phone off and laid it face down on the table. The next sip of Black Cherry Windsor Canadian tasted even better, and the music continued to soothe the beast inside. In all actuality, I was just people watching, relaxing, and enjoying myself. There were a couple of working girls in the place, both of which got lucky with a couple of young men. Watching them at work was entertaining. There were also a few middle-aged women working their husbands quite a bit. A few tropical cocktails will do wonders for a romantic getaway.

------

I pulled up to the Wyndham’s lobby a few minutes before ten the next morning. There was Brenda, looking like a million bucks, and dressed quite differently from the previous day. Instead of the slacks, button up shirt, and ballerina flats, she was wearing tight fitting white cotton short shorts, a tight, light blue knit tee top and high heeled sandals matching the blouse. In a word: gorgeous.

I rolled the window down, looking directly at her and said, “Hey, beautiful. You interested in a date?”

“Certainly, sir. How much is this going to cost me?”

“Depends on what you want from me. I can go all the way from a simple lunch to a moonlight serenade with violins and champagne. From a dollar two-ninety-eight, to ‘If you have to ask, you can’t afford it’.”

“I’ll take my chances.” Her smile was glowing and very infectious. “Good morning, Josh. I’m glad you weren’t busy on your vacation. This may be a lot of fun. I mean, it’s going to be a lot of fun. It’s already started.”

“True, that. You look amazing this morning, Brenda. Absolutely amazing.”

“This is the real me, Josh. The teacher in me is either in my suitcase, or back at home.”

“Lucky me.”

“True, that, as you say. Lucky you.” She giggled as I pulled out and hit the highway south.

I was taking her back to the Bamboo Lounge for a late breakfast or brunch, if you will. It was quite a hike, but I liked the place and she seemed to be all right with it. We wouldn’t share the place with her sister, keeping it just between the two of us, if I had anything to do with it. That way, if something did happen between us, we’d have our ‘special place’. Those are always nice to have.

She seemed to enjoy our meal together. She said she did, at least. I was able to convince her not to mention Beverly, which made our conversation much more interesting and enjoyable. At least for me. She told me stories of troublesome and just plain funny fourth graders while I regaled her with stories of clients who asked me to invest their money in some pretty weird things. I also shared my own stories of monumental successes and epic failures. She laughed at a few of them that I remembered at the time had almost brought tears to my eyes when they happened. Her sincere apology at her own insensitivity was almost as funny as her laughter at my past plights.

We took that walk she wanted to take, spending the next twelve hours getting to know each other. We stopped in at any number of tiki bars, snack bars, a restaurant, and even a dance club, before we made it back to her place.

“The car is about to turn into a pumpkin, Josh. It’s almost midnight. I don’t think I’ve ever had this much fun. Thank you.”

“You are more than welcome, hon. We have another day before your sister arrives, right?”

“Yes. She’s taking a late morning nonstop flight, so she should be here around five in the evening, day after tomorrow. That gives us a day and a half. Do you think we could take one of those catamaran cruises tomorrow? I saw them advertised. We could see the ‘Jurassic’ side of the island. Up close and personal like.”

“Yes, definitely. I haven’t been back there for a few years. I’d love to.”

“You’ve already done it? That won’t be much fun.”

“Oh yes, it will be. I’ll have different company, and the scenery never gets old, trust me.”

“Then it’s a plan?” I nodded. “Goodnight, Josh. Thank you, again.” She leaned over the console and kissed me lightly on my cheek then took off to her room.

We were able to get tickets on a cruise, had a few Sneaky Tikis, her maybe a few too many, then were able to get back to her hotel, all the while talking about the wonderful scenery on the other side of the island. It is truly spectacular what with all the green cliffs rising hundreds and hundreds of feet above the ocean on their way to the inner island.

Another spectacular view was of my date. She was sporting a small, yet conservative bikini and a coverup. Again, she wore high heeled sandals, green to match her suit and coverup, not to mention her eyes, but they were left at the dock in the cubby with my boat shoes. They don’t allow shoes of any kind on the island cruise boats, which was more than fine with me. Even Brenda’s feet were pretty. The green bikini, her green eyes, and her blonde hair got even farther into my psyche that day. I was enamored, to say the least.

I walked her to her room, my heart pattering as I was listening to her giggle and swoon about the trip we went on. While carefully guiding her, my hands touched her in places I maybe shouldn’t have, but it was never lascivious, and it was never on purpose. She felt so soft. So wonderful. So dangerous. I wasted no time getting her into her room and bidding her a fond farewell until the next day. She was intoxicated. We both knew that. We also knew nothing good could come of us getting too friendly in that condition. I wasn’t completely, one hundred percent straight, but I was in total control and would have passed any test they threw at me, I think. The most important test I passed was getting her into her bed with just her shoes off. Her coverup looked plenty comfortable and I made sure it was loose around her as I covered her up, kissed her forehead, and backed out of the room.

It was early evening when I left Brenda’s room, so I headed back to the Westin and figured I’d people watch for a while before I, too, hit the sack. Before the cruise was halfway through, Brenda and I had decided to make it to the canyon in the morning. She’d heard the Waimea Canyon State Park would remind anyone of the Grand Canyon back on the mainland and wanted to see it firsthand. Basically, all that meant was that I needed to make sure she was up and ready to go around seven so we could make the trip and get to the airport on time to pick up her sister.

I people watched for a while, saw the two disgruntled gentlemen as they watched their previous night’s entertainment picking up others for the evening’s activities. I also noticed as the women, both amazingly gorgeous in their own right, sneered at the young men in question. Someone didn’t have a fun date, to be sure. My mind wandered, imagining a story of how they got to the room, a room shared by the men, the fun started, and the money didn’t work out somehow. I imagine that would cause sneers. Mind you, I had no idea what happened, I just let my imagination run away with me. It’s fun.

I got a text at five in the morning. I wasn’t so far under that I didn’t hear it.

‘sorry’

That was a preview of The Ultimate Trade. To read the rest purchase the book.

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