Reni lay back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling of the guest bedroom at Jack and Annie's. She had been out of the hospital for two days, and this was the second day in a row, Dev had treated her like a fragile piece of glass, going off to do what he had to do as far as the truck went, but not doing more than cuddling with her and making sure she was comfortable. And what was with this talk about another driver coming down and taking the truck back while they rented a car, and drove back that way. She loved the truck; she loved riding in it with him.
The worst part was every time she tried to talk to him about it, he reminded her of what the specialist had told her about her vocal cords and that she was to speak as little as possible. Her throat still hurt, and she had had to have Dev call her mom and tell her what had happened. It had been interesting to see the way he responded to her mother and surprisingly her father as well. He had been intimidated by two old people who were over a thousand miles away. That had shocked her.
Annie knocked on the bedroom door. "Reni, are you awake?"
She sat up and nodded. "Yes."
"Good, because Dev just called, he's on his way back and he told me you need to be up and awake when he gets here...Reni, he didn't sound happy..."
What now? She moved off the bed and went into the living room, it was Saturday and Jack was home. He gave her a grin and a wave as she sat on the sofa, feeling guilty over making Annie do so much by herself. Well she would make it up to her, and to Jack. Somehow, some way, she would.
A car horn sounded and she went to the door. Dev was back, and he wasn't alone. The man who crawled out of the passenger side would be Rusty, the driver who would be taking the truck back; he gave her a friendly wave and then went to open the back door. Once it was, an all too familiar voice sounded from behind it. "Well, don't just stand there young man, help an old lady out of this car like a gentleman should." Reni groaned and walked toward the car. Her hearing wasn't as bad as her throat, and when she reached the door, her mother was indeed standing in front of her, all five feet six inches, a hundred and fifteen pounds of her, and across the top she saw her father being helped out of the other side by Dev. "Well don't just stand there young lady, I know you can't talk, but you can come give me a hug and then lead me inside out of this awful heat. Rusty, you can help Devlin with Charles." As Reni hugged her mother, she heard the older woman low whisper. "I must say I approve of your taste in men dear, that Devlin is an absolute hunk. Maybe it is a good thing he's putting a wedding ring on your finger before you come back to Portland..."
Once inside she found herself being gathered up in her father's strong arms and hugged tightly. "Can't tell you how good it is to see you baby girl, the house has been way to quite since you left, and..." like her mother his voice dropped to a soft whisper. "Must say I approve of this Devlin fellow, seems to know his mind well. And this young fellow Rusty told us a great deal about his boss on the plane. Self made men are the best of the bunch of course."
Reni smiled. Of course her dad would say that, he was a self made man and he admired any man who could manage to do it these days. "I'm glad you approve daddy..."
Before his father could respond, another voice caught her attention. "Hey hon, you think I could get a hug too, or is that asking too much...?"
Considering how tired he looked, she didn't think it was. Moving into his arms, she wrapped her arms around his neck and he claimed her mouth in a kiss that she hadn't tasted for the last two days. He held her tight, and she felt his arousal as keenly as she felt her own. When he drew back, she saw the hunger in his eyes and licked her lips.
"We would have been here sooner, but your folks wanted to get checked in to their hotel and I wanted to get Rusty settled as well. The truck won't be ready for another three days and after that we can head north anytime you're ready..."
She had been ready for days, but it still felt good to know they had a few more days of layover. Glancing at her parents, she saw that they had made themselves right at home and Jack was playing the perfect host. Rusty was admiring the view from the backyard. Seeing a chance to get Devlin to herself, she took his hand and led him into the bedroom. Once there she hugged him again and whispered in his ear. "What are mom and dad doing here?"
He grinned. "I have no idea, all I know is Noreen told me as soon as I called in to check in that they had called and told her the airline and time they would be landing. It turned out to be the same plane Rusty was due to come in on, so what could I do? Leave them at the airport?"
She almost told him yes, but instead she hugged him and drew his head down so she could kiss him. It was clear that they had to wait, but she had every intention of showing him that tonight she wanted him and he moaned as they drew apart.
"Oh Lord Reni, do you know how hard it has been for me? I been wanting you so damn bad, but wanting to give you some time to recover, and feeling like a sex maniac for feeling the way I do."
"Shower?" she spoke the one word with meaning.
A gleam in his eye told her he was in favor and they were tearing at their clothes as they went in to freshen up. This time he turned the water on first, but once he was in her, it didn't matter. More than once she had to bite her tongue from crying out and Dev's rough whispers in her ear told her he was as frustrated with having to hold in how he felt as she was. The sooner they got a chance to get the hell out of here and back on the road, the better for both their nerves.
As they dressed, she wondered again why they wouldn't be taking the truck back to Portland and Seattle. She was sure he had a good reason; Reni just wished he would talk to her about it.
The afternoon passed pleasantly enough, Jack and Devlin fired up the backyard barbecue and her parents told her all the news from home. Rusty and her dad discovered they were both avid fishing fans and Annie became a favorite with her mother the minute she agreed with Mrs. Marks on the type of wedding dress Reni should have to highlight her figure and her looks. Reni had to blush when Dev spoke his mind on it.
"As long as it's easy for her to get off, I love looking at her dressed, but I could spend the rest of my life just watching her run around in what she was born with."
"You say that now Dev," Reni heard her mother's response, "but tell me that again in fifty years, when everything has sagged on both of you and it's all falling to the floor."
Perching on the arm of the chair beside her, Dev ran his fingers along Reni's face. "Sylvie, in fifty years I will love looking at her body as much as I do now. I will still love her, still want her and still wonder how the hell I got so damn lucky that she is willing to forgive me my jackass moments." Bending down he kissed her mouth and when he drew back she saw the sparkle in his eyes. "And I will still be thanking who or whatever it was that put me next to her in that truck stop café that night, because they did me one hell of a big favor."
"Well said son, well said..." Her dad spoke up. "And on that note, I think it's time you called us a cab and sent Sylvie and I back to the hotel. You young people can while the night away, but us old folks need our rest, and if I know Sylvie she will be up at the crack of dawn wanting to explore this town and its shops and such. Never fails, get her out of Portland and she has to find out where every store is in town...wonder I have any money left between her and Pauline, not to mention that jackass son of mine. Which reminds me, have some business I'd like to discuss with you tomorrow Dev if you're not too busy."
Despite protests from Dev that he could take them, the cab was called and Rusty joined them for the trip back to the hotel. Annie and Jack looked as tired as Reni felt and smiled when Jack pointed out that for an elderly man with cancer, her dad was a hell of a man. She nodded her agreement. "I couldn't have found one better. The best part is he chose me, him and mom both."
"So what do you think this business deal is that he wants to discuss with me?" Dev looked curious.
"I would say that he has it in mind for you to take over as the main hauler for the company. My uncle is a good businessman but he has no idea how to handle things like outside contractors. Just in the last five years he's changed haulers five times, and you know as well as I do that while most haulers need the contracts more these days, a company that has a reputation of switching haulers once a year is soon going to find themselves without anyone but the cheapest and worse of the bunch."
"Have any idea how many trucks he uses in a year?"
"There are at least ten trucks at the warehouse at any one time, so you're looking at a good fifty to sixty in a day if not more. Back about twenty years ago, we had our own fleet, but when uncle John took over, he decided it was cheaper to contract out, he was wrong. We have stores coast to coast, with two main warehouses, one in Portland and one in the Midwest. Portland's covers five square blocks, and a terminal down at the port. The main manufacturing plant is in Japan and parts are constantly being shipped back and forth, it's a big organization."
Annie looked impressed. "You seem to know a lot about it Reni."
"Just ask mom and my sisters about it. They know as much as I do, so do my other uncles. But John is the oldest, and needless to say, the one who was groomed to take over." She groaned as a realization hit her. "Oh Lord..."
Dev looked at her with concern, "what the matter baby?"
