Bruce entered the kitchen to find Jenifer holding a bottle of wine in each hand.
She lifted them up, and said, "Hey, Stud, all we have to make sandwiches is peanut butter and jelly. Which goes best with P. B. and J., red or white?"
"Hmm, good question." He pondered the dilemma for a few seconds, and decided, "I say we take the white, only because it won't stain your skin when I lick it off you."
"Good point, very logical and, may I add, seriously arousing," she said, wrapping the bottle in the blanket for protection before slipping it into the backpack.
"Do we need this Rodney King in here?" She pulled out the heavy, 4 D-cell flashlight that looked and felt like a nightstick.
He laughed, "Rodney King? I don't expect to club anyone, but I do expect to be walking home in the dark. Leave it."
"Okay, you're the Stud Guide. I guess we're ready, let's hit the dusty trail." She handed him the backpack and swatted his butt on the way by.
Bruce smiled, picked up the pack, and followed Jenifer out the door.
****
"I'm telling you, dude, she's the hot piece of ass that got me fired. I owe her a bitch slap, and she owes me at least a blow job." Carl looked in the rear view mirror to make sure the coast was clear, and said, "Gimme some."
His best friend, Lou, or what passes for a drug pig's friend, reluctantly handed over the crack pipe.
Carl took a deep drag, held it in a while, and blew the smoke sideways through the half open window.
"Working security for the porn studio was an awesome gig, until she popped me for doing a little blow on my break, the bitch."
Lou watched the pipe with a soul felt need. Carl didn't look like he was giving it back anytime soon, so he pulled out a bone of his own and fired it up.
"Man, how do you know where she lives?"
"I spotted her in the city walking to her car and followed her home. She's all alone, too. We are going to have some big fun tonight!"
He slowed the car, and said, "This is her crib -- in the middle of fucking nowhere. Gotta love it."
Ever observant Lou, said, "There's a truck and a car. I think she's got company."
Carl pounded on the wheel. "Shit!"
Driving by, he spotted Bruce and Jenifer cresting the hill behind the house. "Looky there! Just the two of them out for an evening stroll. We should pay them a surprise visit."
"That's a long walk," said Lou, not feeling Carl's motivation. "Let's just wait for them to come back."
"No, this is perfect. We can keep an eye on them, like wolves stalking a couple of sheep, waiting for the perfect time to strike."
A mile up the road, Carl made a clumsy five-point turn, drove back, and parked in the driveway, blocking both vehicles. "Dude, grab my gun and knife out of the glove box. Nobody's leaving until I say so."
***
The red and gold foliage reflected brightly in the mirror surface of the pond.
Jenifer moved close beside Bruce and hugged his arm as they walked. "Wow, it's so quiet back here, so peaceful and private."
Bruce turned and kissed the top of her head. "It's a beautiful spot."
"How deep is the water?"
"The realtor said it's about 15 feet deep in the middle. It's spring fed, so the water's clean and stays pretty cold until the middle of June. We'll have to go skinny dipping next summer."
She let go of his arm and put her hand in his back pocket, giving his ass a squeeze. "I'm not a very good swimmer. In fact, I've never swam in water without chlorine."
"You never went to the beach when you were a kid?"
"Well, once we almost made it to the state park, but Mom's boyfriend at the time ran a red light, got pulled over, and failed the sobriety test." She shrugged, and said, "Life's a bitch and then you die."
"Life is what you make it, so let's make it worth living."
"Having kids will do that?"
Bruce put his arm around her shoulders as they walked while contemplating his answer.
He thought, 'Together for almost two years, and we've never talk about things like this before. I've been an idiot, thinking with my dick.'
Aloud, he answered, "Well... for me, yes. I think it will make me unselfish. Instead of focusing on what I want, I'll be focused on being a good father. I'll focus on your welfare, our children, and their future. There's no more important job than that. They'll be our legacy, our contribution to a better world."
Jenifer rested her head against his shoulder, and said, "Sounds like hard work. And how many children are you talking about, exactly?"
He laughed, and said, "Let's just take it one at a time. But twins would be cool."
Jenifer groaned, but playfully squeezed his ass again.
They reached the gently sloping bank of the pond. Bruce removed the blanket and wine bottle from the backpack, and spread the blanket out in the sunshine.
"Uh oh, how are we going to open it?"
Bruce looked up, and his breath caught at the vision of Jenifer in the low angled sun. Loose strands of hair fluttered in the soft breeze against her radiant smile. Her left hand rested saucily on her canted hip with the wine bottle held up in her right, the shadows of her nipples elongated in profile to the light.
