Racing Towards Love

Racing Towards Love - Part 5 - Suspense in Spokane

The early sun was working its way down the steep walls of the canyon at Skykomish when a steaming mug of coffee was offered by a naked Elise. After the wild chase the previous afternoon, she had been apologetic and promised to sit with me and sort out our work agenda for the next few weeks.

I sat up and gave her a stare. Anna was by my side, equally bare and smiling, "You are in trouble, daughter. Promising yourself to him and then trying to run away!"

I got the three of us propped up on pillows and said we had to be serious. A third naked female body advanced toward us from the kitchen. "I heard that. Another lead up to a string of broken promises?"

Cheryl crawled across the duvet, impossibly captivating. I said, "The McLaughlin women will get in here and behave!" The fact that sexy bodies had made me hard was detected, and howls broke out. "Look at him! You call this serious?"

Anna said, "I will control this. We actually do need to talk about the new lab. I have decided that we might want to establish our own facility instead of clinging to someone else's place and rules."

She gave us one of her "I am in charge" looks and we pounced. Kate heard the racket and joined the group. "This is planning?"

Quickly, the lab directors were side by side, Anna explaining that for several reasons, including protecting possible patentable discoveries, we might need our own facility.

Kate nodded and sipped her coffee. I noticed that her breasts were as beautiful as ever, with nipples firmly projecting.

"How can we plan anything with that male perving us?"

I grabbed Elise to my lap and said, "She will make me behave."

Soon, all the bodies, with clothes on, were gathered around the settee, offering ideas about our next home. It didn't take long to write down a list of desirables.

*Near, but not necessarily on, a research university campus.

*Likewise, near but not necessarily adjacent to industrial R&D facilities.

*Access to affordable real estate located where there is also workout and running space.

Kate was on my knee, pulling hair and pinching my ear. "We don't want much, do we?"

Anna answered, "Well, we can draw circles around Portland, Eugene and Corvallis, for a start. Each one has a research university and industrial labs."

Nicole spoke up, "I have a suggestion. What about Oregon City?"

This was new news to the rest of us. Where was Oregon City?

She ran down the important history of the town, which is located south of Portland at the Cascade Falls on the Willamette. It was the original terminus of the Oregon Trail, the site of locks which enabled navigation on the upper Willamette River, and had a preserved downtown. It was also surrounded by freeways and railroads.

I asked if anyone knew any details. Silence, and then Ginnie said, "One of my school friends is from West Linn, which is across the river. I could ask her to help us find a house to rent. Maybe even promise a date with Brian." She smirked at me in the midst of hisses.

"As your new Chief Planner, I suggest either a run, or a move over the mountain, while we think about that. This gang has always been big on water."

It was decided the women would run while Paul and I cleaned up and disconnected. Showers would be in the facility here and then we were on our way.

We made our way slowly up the highway to the pass, everyone's eyes taking in the scenery and the ski hill on the way. Heading downhill to the east, Ginny and Nicole used their hotspots to search for the next RV park.

"What about Lake Chelan? If we are big on water, there is a nice looking place right on the edge of the lake."

I was driving the twisty road, with Anna and Elise sharing the front passenger seat. They were hugging and kissing and darting looks at me.

Anna asked, "You are really going to marry that bum?"

"I have to. He is my ticket to a 3 hr PR."

"Poof! What foolishness. After you do it, then what?"

Elise whispered in her ear and Anna loudly said, "No!"

My intended moved over to nibble on my ear. "She's changed her mind. I can't marry and have your babies."

"OK, I'll take her pills away and impregnate her instead!"

Elise picked up the thread, "If you marry me, but impregnate her, the baby will be my sister and your daughter!" She moved back to Anna's lap for a wrestle.

I said, taking another tight downhill turn, "I'll bet the genealogy DNA tests have found more than a few of those relations?"

Anna stared at me, "The mother is being ignored by her husband, and is jealous of the loving the daughter is getting every night from the well hung young husband?"

Elise added, "The wife is worn out from hard sex every night and decides sharing his awful prick is a good idea?"

I was laughing and suddenly Kate was after Anna and Elise, "What awful ideas are you trading?"

Elise stood and put Kate in Anna's lap. They looked at each other and laughed. "Delicious nonsense. How are we going to get them to do biology research?"

Elise disappeared to the back and returned with three young female bodies. "If we win in Spokane, we are your slaves forever!" The chant went on until the lab directors plugged their ears.

The road soon straightened out into dry foothills. We were in the rain shadow of the Cascades, dropping down into the watershed of the mighty Columbia. At one o'clock, we pulled in at the city of Chelan's RV Park, ready for lunch. It turned out that the twins had been lucky enough to grab a late cancellation before someone took it. The park was beautiful and our site was less than fifty feet from the water.

I was hustled out from the driver's seat to a camp chair and handed a beer. "Relax. You got us here and the rest of us will do chores." Relaxing was very nice because a parade of female bodies found my lap for a squeeze and a kiss.

Soon, Elise was next to me in her own chair and a small camp table for our lunch. Her look was fierce. "We have a week for training and tapering. You are going to get the remaining six minutes off my time?"

There is a special torture involved in a three hour marathon. A seven minute marathon pace got you home in 3 hours and three minutes. The seven minute pace was a hell of an accomplishment, but left you looking at those miserable three minutes still on the clock that kept you from the admired ranks of three hour marathoners.

I gave her a fierce look in return, "You ready to join the ranks of six minute runners?"

Her face fell and I reached out with a reassuring hand. "Oh Brian, how can I possibly do that?"

We held hands tightly. I said in a quiet voice, "Lots of things can derail us. Bad weather, course problems, intestinal issues. That's why every race is an adventure. We are going to Spokane, lover, ready to run the fastest race of our lives. Only at the finish will we know the verdict!"

By the end of my little speech, she was in my lap, collapsed on my chest with a loud sigh. "Oh, pooh, I thought you were going to tell me it was a sure thing!"

I tickled and she giggled and we put the tense moment behind us. The job right now was to get ready. In a week, the race would take care of itself, one way or the other.

Elise and I were still munching when Anna and Kate walked up behind us and said, "We have an announcement. We have decided that there is to be no talk about the new research or its lab until after the Spokane race. The old ladies are going to train with you and concentrate on reducing stress!"

Elise was in her mother's arms in an instant. I had Kate myself and we were kissing and hugging. I said, "Yes, stress relief, there are so many varieties!"

Our partners in crime, still eating, pointed fingers and laughed. I grabbed Nicole and Ginnie, "Tell them they must take charge of the daily schedules because you will be too busy training!"

* * *

We were on Highway 2 again, headed straight as an arrow east toward Spokane. One day to the race, which was cutting it close. Elise and I had been banned from any driving or other chores. Kate suggested a Zen state in which we were to have visions of crossing the finish line with the clock still showing 2 hours and something. Elise lay on me in the back whispering, "Not possible."

I hugged and whispered back, "Anything is possible..."

The Moms had tracked down the Race Director and he was supportive of the need for the RV to have a spot where women could be recruited for the study.

I tried boosting Elise's morale, "The course is one-way and downhill, finishing in Riverfront Park. There is no wind showing in the advance weather report."

The twins pounced, "We are going to pace you right at seven minutes for as long as we can."

Elise buried her head in my shoulder and fell back, giggling. "I am going to wear my special cape and fly when necessary!"

With Cheryl navigating, Paul drove through downtown and then east to the park, where a spot miraculously had a red cone with our name on it. Everyone cheered.

Elise and I made sandwiches while charged up bodies danced around outside, looking for someone to checkin with.

I set up the big camp table under a tree and carried lunch to it. Anna had cut off the beer ration two days ago, saying alcohol did not win races, so lunch had soda or lemonade.

Elise crept up behind me with a poke in my ribs. "We are going to do it! Look at this wonderful spot." I grabbed her, "Yes, we are!"

Our minds were diverted from the race by preparations for recruiting the final group of study participants. The Race Director said they expected 1500 runners, a modest number. I asked the twins how many experienced females they expected to find.

"The winning time for women last year was just over three hours, so there are some okay runners here. If we get lucky, there will be twenty recruits!"

I nudged Elise, "You hear that, your sub-three time may win!"

She backed into me, sighing, "Why don't we rent a car and just drive somewhere far away?"

"No negative thinking! Let's do a few intervals to loosen up."

Keeping Elise's morale up was helping mine. The intervals were good, several sub-six. Afterwards, we sat on the park's grassy lawn doing stretches. "It's going to be low Fifties at the start. That's good. Some of the fastest marathons have been done in Forties temps."

"Too damn cold, Brian. Parts of me will freeze!"

"You are going to do this, and not even work up a hard sweat!"

Getting back to the RV for a shower, we found a rental van with Kate and Anna in it.

"We have decided the twins should run and we will be van drivers to get you to the starting line without riding in the race bus."

This was a welcome surprise and would avoid a lot of milling around in the cold. I teased, "This will give you time to discuss forbidden topics?"

Frowns said don't push your luck. We thanked them both and got cleaned up.

Dinner was quiet. We worked our way through a race special pasta entree that was delicious. Finally, Cheryl said, with a smile, "We are all sitting here, Brian and Elise, with our mental energies urging you on. You are going to leave us far behind tomorrow morning, and that is good!"

Elise eased into my lap and buried her head. I hugged the shaking body tight, thinking that it was damn hard to break seven minute pace for twenty-six miles. A little voice said, "That's why you are making a fuss, dude. Now go out there and do it!"

Sunday dawned with a fresh northwest breeze. As I spooned oatmeal at six am, I couldn't believe our luck in capturing a tailwind for the one-way downhill course! A subversive thought went through my mind, Elise was actually going to break the three hour barrier!

With twenty minutes to spare, we were dumped out less than a hundred yards from the start. Four bodies were poking and nudging us from behind. "Get up there near the front. They don't seem to have an elite start."

The twins stayed with us, ready to pace as advertised. I collared Nicole, "Right on seven, ok? When we get everything clicking, we'll pick it up some."

Dancing around, they were full of energy. "Ok boss. Whatever you say, boss."

Elise wasn't saying anything, but her face was a mask of determination. I got a quick kiss and a "Damn you!"

If she needed to blame me for setting a three hour target, that was fine. My girlfriend and fiancee was special, whether we made the three hours today or not.

After the usual self-congratulatory speech by the race organizers, and a quick version of America the Beautiful, the gun sounded and we were off. A smallish group for the Marathon, maybe four hundred. But at least fifty moving at seven or better. I smiled to myself that with all the concentration on Elise, what about Brian's body? I felt good. The usual small voice said not to get optimistic at the start. I had previously wondered if a negative split would be possible today. The voice said, "concentrate on getting to the Half on pace."

The four of us were running closely together, fast and loose. The sun was warm. The tailwind was great.

At a seven minute pace, the mile markers go by in a hurry. At six miles, we were almost a minute under our pace target. The twins shouted, "Hey, why did you put us in such an easy race!"

Even with a couple of course twists, we made the halfway mark still more than a minute faster than seven minute pace. I knew the fourteen mile hard spot was coming up and mumbled, "Hang in there," to the others. All four of us got by it without losing pace, and headed for twenty. A second wind had us moving sub-seven again. There was hope for three hours.

Marathons self organize into four pieces, of which the last six are the hardest. You've already run the equivalent of three 10K's and have another to do. Surprisingly, the twins were still with us, and still smiling. I took a quick look around and there weren't many others in sight. Our group of four had maybe twenty in front of us. And another twenty within a hundred or two hundred yards behind.

At the twenty-four mile marker, one of the twins hollered, "There's only two women in front of us!"

We were on the final stretch, where you just bulldozed your way to the finish. I remembered something a coach had said to me years ago, "You are not supposed to have anything left at the end!"

Elise was struggling and gasped out, "Go Brian, get your three!"

I kept one step ahead, responding, "You are doing this, Elise, one more mile!"

The twins were losing ground, but Elise and I pushed harder and could see the finish line. "Now!" I hollered at my partner and let it all out.

"2:59:30" said the clock! Elise was hanging in my arms. The twins crashed into us, nothing left.

We sagged and staggered through the exit corral, getting a finish medal draped over our heads, and a bottle of water thrust into our hands. At the gate, our welcoming committee was jumping up and down. "You did it. You did it!" Cheryl and Paul were there, having been rescued from the finish of the Half by Anna and Kate.

Elise peppered my head with kisses. "You totally bad guy! I'm barely alive!"

After a few minutes, the eight of us arrived at the study signup tables. Kate and Anna were hard at work explaining the study to tired women, more than a few of whom were accepting clipboards to fill out their information.

Nicole said, "Ginny and I are going to fix snacks. You old folks just relax."

Elise tightened her grip on me. "Yes, old folks." After a pause, she added, "How did I do that?"

I whispered in her ear, "You are a runner. A damn good runner."

Still catching my breath, I lounged in a camp chair, holding hands with my bride to be. All around were tired bodies that had just run twenty-six miles and were proud of it.

I gazed at the startup cadre of Kate and Anna's new company. Tired, but everyone headed for a PhD and a career chasing science.

I smiled and kissed the back of Elise's hand. "Still wanna' get married?"

She assumed the frontal cowgirl position in my lap. Sweaty, smelly and lovable. After a careful kiss, she said, "I used to wonder whether you were the best or the worst thing that had happened to me. I guess I know the answer now."

The enigmatic smile was designed to keep me confused a few years longer.

The End.