Chapter 37- Topock
We pulled into Topock on the afternoon of the eleventh day out, our mule train drawing out all the folks who had set up a tent city along the river. I recognized some of the women and saw they had brought a few men along as well.
Among the crowd was Charlotte Jenkins who called out to me, "Oh Josh is that really you?" she had recognized Barb as I rode up. She was dressed in just an undershirt and pants and she swung a rack you could hang your hat on! She had her hand up shielding her eyes from the sun.
I was off Barb and at her side in a flash, "Charlotte! Are you coming to Burney?" she took my hand.
She smiled, put her hand on my shoulder and kissed me, then pulled back, "Best we both take a bath," she wrinkled her nose at my trail scent. "Yes I am going to Burney and you really must tell me what it's like! I get off after chow. Are you free?"
"I've got to discharge the cargo and see to the mules but I will make some time. I better catch up." I waved to her and followed Sue to the depot.
"Who was that?" Gloria asked me when I rejoined the string.
"Charlotte Jenkins, a friend of mine." I said looking back at Charlotte. "She and I went through the University together. She was my lab partner."
Gloria looked back at Charlotte as she turned to go back to the tents. "Dairy Science major, I'll bet." Gloria snickered and poked me in the ribs.
I laughed at her and nodded.
We discharged the cargo and signed it over to the quartermaster of the team who would transfer it to Davis. Sue, Linda, Gloria, and Amelia stayed with Robin Jennings, who was leading the team that was coming to Burney, and Jack Osblat who would be leading the team that was going back to Davis. Gloria helped me unsaddle the mules and stow the tack. I told her to go find Amelia and get a bath, while I took our mules out to pasture them down river from the stock that was headed to Davis.
I took the mules in two strings of 10 down the path pointed out to me as being the way to the pasture, "Can't miss it," Osblat told me. "Just over a rise south of the tent city there's a large arroyo, fenced in bamboo and with a nice little beach on the river. I'll send some girls out to watch over them, give me a chance to round 'em up."
I led the mules down to the ridge and turned, looking back over the camp from the top of the rise. To the north were the corrals, also of bamboo, then south of that the Trading post was just hard floored tents now, but Robin had told us that a new company of Engineers were coming to replace the girls who had been here since last winter. "They have to bring in timber so we can put up a solid Trading Post.," Robin had said.
South and closer to the River was the subcontractor's camp and the beginning of a permanent settlement. They had been able to connect to the sewer system of the Post, and had water from the canal that the Engineers had dug on the top bank's edge. I marveled at the changes that three months could make.
I saw two riders following me at a trot and waved. They gave me the "go ahead" and a "meet you there" signal. I tipped my hat and took the mules into the arroyo and then down to the beach.
I was checking the first string out before releasing them to water, when the two riders came over the rise and entered the pasture, closing the fence. I gave each of the mules a once over and released them. The riders went to what looked like a common camp site and began to unload their horses.
I had released Barb and she had wandered down to the river to drink. I went down and caught her. I took her up to the camp the two riders were pitching and called out, "Hello the camp,"
A redhead looked up over her shoulder as she was bent to spread out her ground cloth. She had a nice wide ass, I saw. A brunette was smiling at me from the other side of the ground cloth.
"Hi, you just come from Burney?" The brunette asked.
The red head turned and pulled off her hat smiling at me, "What's it like?"
I pulled my hat off and beat it against my chaps and laughed. They were just vibrating with energy; I was fading fast and needed a bath to wash off three days of dust and sweat.
"Ladies, I'll be happy to tell you all about it but how about we take a swim? I'm hot and filthy and Barb wants to roll in that sand."
The red head said, "Who's Barb?"
"My horse," I pulled Barb up and held her head as the two came forward to pat her nose.
The brunette smiled, "I'm Doris Williams, and this is..."
"Ellie, Ellie Prescott," the red head offered her hand.
"Josh Perkins, SCT one, I'll be your guide to Burney."
Ellie grinned, "I know Charlotte Jenkins, does she know you're here yet."
"Yeah I saw her coming in."
"She talks about you all the time. I feel like I know you Josh." Ellie said taking my hand. She turned my hand over and stroked it then looked at Doris, "This is hand that gave us the number 742."
Doris blushed and looked at my hand and tentatively touched my palm. She frowned, "It's just like every other hand."
I said, "Well it's been treated rough, when Charlotte and I developed the 742, I was still in college and didn't do much rough work."
In a 742 you used the palm of your hand on the exposed lips and massaged, applying various pressures to the pubis with your cupped palm and fingers to the mound and major lips. It could be done upright or reversed but Charlotte like upright.
Ellie dropped my hand, "There is a saddle tree up there, go unsaddle and bring your bags back," she grinned, "We won't attack you, Josh, besides we are forbidden to copulate until we get to Burney. You're safe with us."
I grinned back, "That is good to hear, Ellie. I'm plumb tuckered out."
By the time I had Barb unsaddled and came back with my bags the women were fussing with their camp fireplace and so I just put my bags down and began to undress; Barb grazed off in the short alfalfa. Osblat had told me that the first Engineer team had planted alfalfa everywhere they thought it would grow and so the pastures around Topock were semi-improved. The mules seemed to appreciate it anyway.
I took off my shirt and sat down to pull off my boots. Doris and Ellie gave me some space but kept an eye one me as I stripped off. I gave them a good show, including scratching my balls and pulling on my cock to get the dust out of the cracks. I picked up my kit bag and started for Barb, when Ellie called out, "Josh?"