"Come here, Big Boy," Cindy purred as she sprawled out sideways across the bed. Her body, still warm from the shower, was growing warmer as thoughts of making love passed through her mind.
"Jesus, Cynthia. For God's sake get some clothes on. Mom is expecting us downstairs for dinner in fifteen minutes." Tom pulled his tan slacks up over his light blue boxer shorts.
"C'mon Tom." Cindy batted her eyes at her husband of fifteen years. "It's just a quickie. Beside, I can't believe that in all your thirty-seven years on this planet, you have never fantasized about screwing in your parents' house."
"No." Tom tucked his feet into his black size twelve shoes. He then knelt to the floor and tied the laces on his shoes.
"Not even when we were first dating?" Cindy rolled over onto her side and cocked her leg exposing herself to her husband. "As I recall, back then you seemed to want to do it in all sorts of places."
Tom looked up briefly then turned away. " I don't know," He stuttered. "Maybe once, but I don't feel that way this second."
"This second? Try this whole year." Cindy dragged herself up from the bed. She slipped a red dress with tiny white polka dots over her head then buttoned up the front. She tied the bow around the waist then sat back down on the edge bed in front of Tom, who was busily wiping an invisible layer of dust off his shoes with a white handkerchief.
In one last attempt to get Tom's attention, Cindy spread her legs in front of him and feinting innocence said, "Oops. I guess I forgot something."
Without looking up, Tom reached into the suitcase on the floor beside him and pulled out a pair of white panties. He held them out in her direction. "Here you go."
Cindy snatched the panties from Tom's hand and yanked them up over her legs. "You know, it wouldn't kill you to look at me every once in a while. I am your wife for God's sake."
"Meaning?" Tom rose to his feet. He folded the handkerchief in half and then shoved it into his back pocket.
"Meaning, we are supposed to be in love and be lovers." A heavy sigh passed through her lips. "I thought this was our chance to escape, maybe find ourselves again and just be together for awhile."
"We are together."
"Yeah. Here at the Mother-in-law Convent of Chastity."
"I guess am just not in the mood. Maybe tomorrow." Tom leaned over and kissed Cindy on the forehead. "Do you want me to find you a bra?"
"No!" Cindy stood up quickly and headed for the bedroom door. "We shouldn't make your mom wait any longer."
That conversation was two days old, but the words were still fresh in Cindy's mind. She had tried to forget it, but now on the drive home all she could do was think about it. "What else was there to do on the cross-country drive through Texas?" she thought to herself. The last radio station had faded out an hour ago, every mile of desert was basically the same and the only thing that broke up the monotony of the road was the occasional dead armadillo. Cindy slouched in her leather bucket seat. Maybe she would nap.
When she awoke several hours later, the digital clock in the car read 6:00 PM. Cindy sat up in her seat and checked the roadway signs. According to the itinerary that Tom had showed her, they were supposed to be stopping soon.
A highway sign passed by and the names of the upcoming towns did not register in her head. She gave a quick look at Tom whom seemed to sense her confusion.
"I decided to drive straight through." Tom said. "We are only eight hours away now and I am sure we can make it home late tonight. I thought it would be nice to sleep in our own bed."
Cindy said nothing and instead slumped back into her seat. Just great, she thought as the image of her five-acre ranch estate in the middle of Nowhere, New Mexico flashed in her mind's eye. I go from the convent to solitary confinement.
Cindy took a quick glance at the dash. How long is this journey back to boredom going to take? The cruise was set at 77 miles per hour, two miles over the posted limit. Warp speed for Tom. Cindy stared at the face, of the man she had chosen to marry. He was humming tunes from his favorite Broadway musicals. Tom was Mr. No Risks or Mr. No Cajones as the Mexicans that worked on the ranch would say. He was a 'vanilla ice-cream in a brown paper bag' type of guy.
Cindy closed her eyes again. She could always escape in her dreams.
The sudden stop of the car jolted her awake. Cindy checked the dashboard clock. Three more hours had passed and the sun had long set behind a thin line of the horizon. The new moon that hung in the sky reminded her of the Cheshire Cat's smile.
Cindy stretched her arms behind the headrest of the chair and pressed her feet hard into the floorboards, hoping to get some circulation back into her dormant muscles. "What's going on?"
"We've stopped." Tom said.
"Thanks for the traffic report. Any idea why?"
"Nope."
"Wanna fool around? We could pretend we are at a drive-in."
"Is that all you think about?" Tom glared at her.
Cindy lowered her head and covered her chest with her arms. She said nothing else. Fifteen minutes past and brake lights turned to parking lights, as the line of cars in front of them seemed to be settling down for a long wait. Tom shut down the engine and then reclined his seat. "We could be here a while." He yawned and closed his eyes.
"How long do you think?" Cindy spoke in almost a whisper.
"As long as it takes, I guess," Tom replied.
"And you not curious about it?"
"Why should I be?" Tom gestured with his thumb towards the back window. "When the time comes, the motor on that rig back there will fire up and we will go." Tom yawned then said. "But, if your curiosity is going to cause you to explode, you can go out there and find out. I'll be here." The last few of Tom's words came out slurred. He had fallen asleep.
Cindy remained silent as she thought about what Tom had said. It was one of the few times he had told her to do something that could even be remotely considered as dangerous; and going out on the highway at night was just that. A minute later she made up her mind, and she popped open the door to the car. The bright light flooded the compartment. Tom eyes flinched, then relaxed. His heavy breathing resumed, and he drifted back into deep sleep.
Cindy took one more look at Tom and then closed the door to the car.
Outside the car, the night air was cool and the dark sky seemed more ominous. She looked up and wondered if she had ever seen so many stars. She never went outside during the night at home. It wasn't safe, Tom would tell her.
Next to her, a car door slam and she jumped. The driver of the car walked quickly into the desert and then disappeared into the shadows. Cindy stared off in the direction he had gone, wondering what was out there beyond the red glow of the lights that was so important. Several minutes later, the man returned. His walk was more relaxed and a content smile covered his face. He saw Cindy and gave a hesitant wave with his fingers.
Cindy smiled at her own ignorance as the realization of what had just occurred sunk into her brain. "Feeling better?" She asked.
The man gave a sheepish smile. "Much. Thanks."
Cindy was sure that his face was bright red with embarrassment though she couldn't see his blushing face in the pale light. The man got into the car and pulled out a map and hid his face from view.
Up ahead some blue and red lights caught her attention. She walked forward hoping to see what was going on, if for no other reason than to have some information to tell Tom when she got back to the car. Not that it really mattered; he didn't care about anything other than financial reports and stock prospects anyway. It still would be nice to have something to talk about.
As she walked, Cindy looked at the cars she passed. They varied in size and shape, but in the dark, their colors appeared black. Cindy walked another 100-yards and passed a large tractor-trailer.
Isolated from the road and the heat of the idling cars, the night air was cold and Cindy wished she had grabbed her sweat suit jacket from the backseat of the car before she left. She swung her arms back and forth as she walked. "Maybe a little movement might help," Cindy thought as she passed the truck's cab.
"Certainly is a beautiful night for a stroll." The male voice came out of the shadows.
The man took a step closer and became visible in the light of the rig's yellow parking lights. The man wore a T-shirt and jeans. A worn baseball cap rested on his head while a pair of old boots covered his feet. He lit a cigarette and offered it to Cindy.
Cindy hesitated. "I really don't smoke," she said as she accepted the cigarette from his fingers.
"Yeah, me neither. I just keep a pack handy for when I get stuck in traffic." He smiled and the lines of a lifetime of laughing appeared on his face.
Cindy stared at his face. His eyes, grayish blue, looked like the sky just after the rain, but it was his soft deep voice that made Cindy's heart race.