Please tell them to stop banging at the door and then bequiet yourself."Jesse called out, "Brandon! Mark! I'm okay, just stop banging. It willbe be...alright."Thomas strode to the bay door, used another chair to block it closed oncehe was inside, and then slipped onto the couch and began to expertlyreconnect all the wires and sensors.Jesse could only stare at the console as the alarms rose in intensity.Thomas sat back and stretched onto the soft couch. He flipped twoswitches to close the pod,. “Down, girl,” Emily said, rolling her eyes, “Besides, right now I want you for myself.”“That’s just as well,” I say “I don’t think I could do it again right now. Why don’t you answer one or two more questions for me.”“Emily can answer them,” Xandra says, “I’ll be busy.”“I can, huh? Where are you going?”“Nowhere. My tongue just won’t be available for talking, is all.”“Oh…” Emily smiled, giggling a bit as she laid back and spread her legs, “I’ll definitely try.”“Alright then…” I start, but trail. “Well, I’ll explain later. I want you to join my dojo. With your fighting ability, we can win state and regionals. Hell maybe even nationals. What do you say?”“No,” I say without hesitation as he frowns. “I am not trained to compete. I am trained to protect. I don’t know how to fight without taking out the enemy. Take a look at your son. I dislocated his shoulder. In a real threat situation, his arm would have been snapped in two.” He frowns at me. Probably remembers me taking his son down. “I. And … importantly … I like your values, not to mention your choice of bride. Your mother and I have found so much in common and I’m hoping we have a future. Time will tell. Whatever happens, I won’t forget how much you’ve done for me and made me feel welcome in your life.’ He extended his hand and shook mine firmly. ‘Thank you, Ernie. I feel the same way. We are a lot alike in our thinking, especially about our business. As for Mom, I’m happy for both of you. I didn’t know how much I needed.