The Wrong Way Road Trip

Wayward was standing at the curb with two giant bags. The cowgirl outfit and hat looked stunning. I found a place in the back for the bags and took the wheel.

"Two different guys tried to pick me up in there."

"Last time I let you loose looking that way."

"A girl does appreciate attention now and then." Her smile was seductive.

"Now you know why girls like you got locked in the tower in the Middle Ages."

"By the way, we are stopping somewhere and changing into the grubby clothes that Mac and Lucy wear. Something that will not attract attention. Emphasize not."

"Darn, I'm not even Queen for a Day." She laughed and poked my sore rib again.

She was checking for a place to stay and said, "Grubby may not work. All the places out this way toward the lake are pretty decent. Grubbsville is back in town."

She looked over, "We are not going back are we? I'm not keen on drugs and prostitution as neighbors, even for a few days."

"Let's keep going and check out the waterfront." As we came down the final grade, the solution to our problem presented itself in the form of a large sign that said, "Houseboat rentals. Special winter rates, check here."

Simultaneously, we both said, "Yes!" and looked at each other, laughing.

Chapter 4 - A Houseboat Hideout

The overweight guy in a Hawaiian shirt behind the counter said five days was the same as a week, which would be $859, payable in advance. Plus a $1000 security deposit if we didn't use a credit card.

There were the usual extra cost options, like a rowboat with a small electric engine for fishing. Shortly, I graced his palm with twenty Franklins and he smiled.

I told him Lucy was my main squeeze and we were getting away from the folks in Searchlight for a very long weekend. Lucy came strolling in, having changed to grubbies, and asked, "Mac, are we shopping now or later?"

The clerk, whose name was Armand, said there was a small market at the marina halfway up the lake. And handed across a poop sheet about where to anchor at night, and how not to venture anywhere near the dam or we would find ourselves in federal custody.

There was more fussing and instruction which Lucy absorbed as I loaded everything valuable on the boat. If my old sedan was stolen, so much the better.

We moved away from the dock at a good clip, smiling and laughing. "Mac, how come you didn't tell me we were going to do this?"

"Honey, I just blew all the cash I have saved for a year. That terrific body better take good care of me."

Suddenly, Lucy's shirt and bra were on the deck and she was in my lap. "Brian, what is that fancy word for good things happening"

"Serendipity."

Her tongue explored my lips and darted inside. Her best sultry voice said, "I hope there is more serendipity traveling with you. I know Jeremy will be pleased."

"How big is he?"

"Not very. When we go to the doctor, they will take a picture and you can check. Can we do the doctor somewhere other than here?"

"I was thinking about that. The low desert is going to be warming up. What about finding a doc in St. George? It's a good Mormon town and they care about babies."

"Isn't that near Zion? It's another place I always wanted to visit when I was a kid."

"Those folks are also big on technology. Maybe we can get the blog launched."

"A doctor visit means we have to look respectable. No Mac and Lucy."

While we were talking and I was trying to steer a straight course with a body in my lap, my tee shirt disappeared. The bare tits rubbing on me were not very respectable, but they needed a lick or two, which I provided.

She reached between my legs and squeezed, "I suppose this big thing needs to find a home? A warm, wet home?"

I turned her around and slid out from under. "Right now, you are Captain of this ship while I get things organized in the galley."

She started to complain, but saw my phone in my hand focused on her front. "You said they had to be turned off."

I told her to stick out her chest like a proper female Captain and took several great shots.

"No Service out here, but we'll turn them off anyway."

The master bedroom was actually on the small side and completely filled with a Queen bed. The galley was linear along one side of a living room, which opened to a deck on the fantail. There was a small but adequate bathroom, with a sign saying to conserve water. I fixed a G&T for myself and took a soda for Marigold up to her at the steering station. "Sun is getting low. Are we anywhere near one of the mooring places?"

She pointed in front of her. "Look at the map and see what you think."

Fifteen minutes later, I was tossing the anchor over in what the depth sounder said was fifty feet of water. We were five or six boat lengths from the shore, which seemed enough distance to amateur eyes. The Captain had done a nice job of backing the big Yamaha outboard to stop our progress, and got a kiss for her performance.

"You were born to command a ship!"

"This meets the quirky test, Brian!"

I had to admit that puttering around on a big reservoir in the Southwest, surrounded by sharp rocks and heaps of gravel, did seem quirky.

"But there are thousands of quirks who do this all the time!"

Leading me by the hand, she descended to the main deck. "All this excitement makes me hungry!"

"And horny," she added. We checked the groceries for snacks and opened a bag of chips. I made myself another G&T and we settled on a chaise on the deck to enjoy the sunset in our very temporary new home. Wayward had fizzy water, which she gulped. Pulling her to my side, I tickled a rib and asked how the youngest one was doing.

"His Mom couldn't be better. He is floating around in there, concentrating on growing."

She turned her lips up for a kiss. "He is very happy to have a Daddy person around."

We had the cove to ourselves, although another boat could show up anytime. The Mommy person cuddled into me and asked, "Can we afford to travel around for months without income?"

"You know, the name Wayward isn't working. You have to choose another one while I work on the answer to your question."

"It is kind of cheeky, isn't it?"

"Pick something with historical significance that is easy to pronounce."

"What about Anne? She is in the Green Gables story."

"But Anne Boleyn lost her head, which is not a nice image."

"Tricia? Lisa? Alisa? Licia?"

"What's your middle name?"

"Katherine."

"Are you a Kat?"

"What about Kate?"

"Yes. You make a good Kate. I think of Catherine de Medici, who was Queen of France and a patron of the arts."

Another kiss. "I am an aspiring artist. Does that count?"

"More than aspiring. Those are good images you took in Death Valley."

She wiggled against me. "I bought fresh pasta and frozen prawns for dinner. There is a nice Chardonnay I put in the propane refrigerator."

Dinner on our little floating home was marvelous. I decided to push worries about the future to the far back of my boyfriend brain and concentrate on Marigold's rejuvenation, which was going very well. There was a lot of mushy teenage behavior.

"There are berries with whipped cream."

"I'm going to nibble on parts of you covered with whipped cream."

"Go right ahead. This is the first time with a guy when I want to..."

"Actually, since the shower is minimal, maybe we will wait on that..."

I nibbled on a boob tip anyway, without the whipped cream.

"Brian, do we have something going? Or am I just a foolish girl on the rebound?"

I pulled her in very tight, "My dear Katherine, it's both. We don't need to figure everything out right now."

"Hmmm. Jeremy says to not let you get away."

The peace and quiet on Lake Mead was terrific. But just after sunup, with Kate snapping some teleshots of slanty light on the rocks, another houseboat came around the edge of the cove with loud rap music polluting the atmosphere. At least a dozen young bodies were dancing. It anchored about a hundred yards away and everyone plunged into the lake.

"See anything you like, Brian?"

"Captain, we need to vacate this mooring pdq."

Waving and smiling, we were underway in minutes. An hour took us well up toward the east end, where the map warned of shallow mud bars. Yours truly did not fancy getting us off a mud bar.

This time, we moored in thirty feet of water. The houseboat drew less than four feet. Kate stood behind my lounger, fingers working my hair. "We can't just laze around."

"What about more sex? Doesn't that count as a workout?"

She sat on my chest in her polka dots, pounding here and there. "What about my question on income?"

"My grandparents left me some money with a note to use it creatively."

She leaned for a kiss. "Well, I guess picking up foolish coeds is one way of being creative."

I knelt on the plastic carpet and bent her into a yoga pose. "Did you do yoga at school?"

"No, but I should have. I guess part of the 'new me' is getting in shape?"

I moved her to a different pose. "Part of yoga practice is learning to move seamlessly from pose to pose. It takes concentration. At the same time you are supposed to be in another space, the movements require concentration in this space."

We did four or five of the standard poses, in sequence. "Now, do them again, concentrating but being in a different space."

After three minutes she collapsed, reaching for me. The hug was very tight. The voice was barely a whisper. "That's hard, very hard. It takes months of work, doesn't it?"

"This is your chance. Jeremy needs nourishment from a bloodstream not full of stress chemicals. You can practice yoga, telling yourself it is your stressfree space."

Marigold lay her head on my chest, eyes closed, and said, "Yes, but it is Brian who is providing the stressfree journey. I love you and I love the journey we are on."

We lay there in each other's arms, on the sunny deck of a houseboat moored at the edge of a mammoth reservoir in the middle of desert, for almost an hour. Finally, she lifted her head, "We are not going to last for five days out here. I can feel the energy flowing through you even now."

I rose to hoist the anchor. Kaptain Kate steered us a meandering path, watching the depth sonar. The reflection off the water was intense, reminding humans that the sun ruled the desert.

She said, "We take this back tomorrow morning. I would like to go to that Red Rock place. Perhaps we will see the wild horses. Those would be good shots for the blog. We find a decent very out of the way motel. Everything cash only."

I undid her top, palming the fine boobs, and kissed under her ear. "You have the game plan down, partner."

"I'm trying. I have a ways to go to catch up with you."

"There is a special discount for young ladies recently rescued."

I went on, "You've also reminded me I need to make the wire transfer to Ben. He will be happier about us when he sees our green in his bank account."

The next morning, I looked at Armand across the counter in his office and said, "We decided we have too much to do to stay the full five days."

He said, "Normally, there are no refunds, but since these folks are looking for a rental and my inventory is sold out, I'll let you have $150 back if the boat is in good condition."

As we walked up the hill to my dusty vehicle, which hadn't been stolen after all, Kaptain Kate nudged me, "Nice work, First Mate, you're good company on a cruise."

"Thank you, Kaptain, let's find a Starbucks to get me online for that wire transfer."

An hour later, it looked as though Ben had my money. Tomorrow was the 4th working day. Probably ok to call then and inquire if he saw the money in his account. And ask if five days was actually going to work.

"Do we have provisions for Red Rock Canyon?"

Kate was staring at her new phone. "Just a sec, I think I have found the perfect place. It's called Mohave Springs Ranch. I'll call and see if they have a room for a couple of days."

In thirty minutes, we were back on the road with a cooler full of ice and provisions, headed for Red Rock. Kate was driving, looking like a million dollars and smiling from ear to ear. The gold ring on her finger flashed in the sun.

Chapter 5 - Romance at Red Rock

"Honey, I'm really excited about the honeymoon cottage you have booked."

"Mac, I'm getting upset. First you said we would find someone in Vegas to marry us. That didn't happen. Then you said we could pretend the houseboat was a honeymoon getaway. Now, it's a hole in the wall in the desert. Are you looking to just dump me under a red rock cliff?"

Her eyes were dancing and all I could think of was a real marriage. I took a deep breath and banished those thoughts. Maybe I could dare to revisit them in a month.

The Mohave Springs Ranch was perfect. Plenty of people to get lost among. A pleasant reception clerk who was happy to accept $500 for two nights, paid in advance, meals included. We asked for and received the most remote unit, saying we were newly married.

Inside, looking at western furniture and motifs, I hugged her and kissed the back of her neck.

"Marigold, after that little speech you made in the car, I realized we need to forget our cares and enjoy a couple of days of honeymoon. It goes with being pregnant, even if we are a little late."

She turned around, eyes teary, and said, "Unzip me. You know what has to happen first on the honeymoon, don't you?"

I hardly had time to get the bed quilt out of the way before we were slamming together. A fleeting thought went through my mind that it was a good thing our bodies didn't have to learn about each other for the first time on our honeymoon. They already knew what to expect and went about getting it. The tension of our situation took a bit to work out, but soon she was being vocal and I was thrusting hard. Orgasm came roaring at us and over we went, gasping and moaning.

After several minutes, she turned into me, applied a kiss, and asked, "Are we really going to get married?"

I lay there another minute or two, and kissed her back. "You know what went through my mind after that speech on the way over?"

She pulled up the sheet and mumbled, "What." Her knee came up between my legs.

"I sat there and looked at my beautiful bride and said to myself that I needed to be married to her."

She buried her head, shaking. "Brian, it hasn't even been a week! This is crazy."

"That's why I didn't say anything."

She crawled over me, "You made a terrible mess. Time for a shower and a hike. We need to talk."

Striding down the trail in back of the motel, she cut a fine figure in fashion jeans, gingham shirt and wide brimmed Stetson. There were binoculars and cameras in my pack in case any of the horses showed up, which wasn't likely.

She turned around and let me walk right into her. "I was really scared, asking you about marrying me. All I could think about was that you would decide I was pulling a fast one to get at your money."

I turned her around and got us moving again. "But I'm not that kind of guy, and you are not that kind of woman."

"I know. At least I think I do. I've been so scrambled up..."

"But you are soft scrambled, the kind I like best."

After another hundred yards, she said, "Brian, how can we be marching around out here in the sun, being so silly?"

"People on their honeymoon are allowed to be silly."

In a few more yards, there was a bench in some shade. She pushed me down and sat on my knees. I wrapped my hands around the boobs that were pushing out the shirt front and held tight.

"Here's a thought," I said. "You are still on the rebound from family rejection. You've found a guy who is being nice and all of a sudden he is substitute family, providing protection from bad things and bad people. Your subconscious thinks a marriage certificate would make it all real."

She was silent, but finally asked, "Would it?"

"Who knows? A piece of paper is only worth what you want it to be."

While she thought about that, I said, "I have a deal for you. Starting one week from today, I will marry you anytime you ask me to."

She slapped my hand, "Deal. Now let's go back and have a nap. Worrying about all this has me worn out."

While my girl of many names napped, I went outside and called Ben. "Hi, just checking in to see if the money arrived and if, by faint chance, the car is going to be ready on day five?"

"Brian, I have to tell you, my guys would kill me if we were late with your woman's new wheels."

He added, "And the money showed up. So we are all ok for three o'clock in two days."

"I know they have knocked themselves out. What kind of something extra can we provide?"

"Well, you didn't hear me say this, but since I know you will want to abandon that wreck you are driving in my back lot, what if there was a keg of IPA in a tub of ice in the trunk?"

"That's a terrific idea. Consider it done. See you soon."

I turned the burner off and took the battery out, but didn't crush it. Might come in handy later.

Creeping back into the room, I found her eyes open and face smiling. "Brian, you are happy about the car?"

"Yes. It is on track. Three o'clock in two days. Where are we going to stay that night, trip planner?"

"Please find me a soda and fix yourself a drink while I look. It's only a couple of hours to St. George in our new wheels?"

"Yes. But it might break down halfway there and leave us stuck in the desert with the coyotes."

She smiled at me, "Jeremy would not be pleased!"

I came back with the drinks, watching her fingers fly on my laptop. "What about this, the 'Resort on the Cliff?' Has great view of the city. Not too expensive. Nice looking pool."

"Sign us up. What about the doctor thing?"

"I'd like to get there and ask the woman at the front desk. Is that ok?"

I nodded and grabbed her foot for a massage. "You'll never guess what we are bringing the guys in the shop in the way of a present."

"Tell me. I don't have to parade naked, do I?"

I licked and nibbled on a toe. She frowned. "Tell me this instant!"

"They are taking the Corolla off our hands. In the trunk when we arrive is going to be a keg of IPA sitting in a tub of ice, complete with large cups and a tap."

She lay on me, her tongue busy. "Sounds better than a naked woman any day."

"Probably easier on their marriages, don't you think?"

Her teeth were now working on my ear. "Brian, I am already suffering because seven days is so far away. This torture is to test my self-control, isn't it?"

"Might be."

"I hate you but I am going to marry you anyway."

It wasn't very long before we were naked and coupled tight. "This is very foolish."

She was on top and raised her head. "What do you mean?"

I turned us over and worked the hips that answered every thrust with a smile and a hump.

Before she could come, I said, "I'm giving up on the seven days."

"No, you can't!" She struggled but I pounded harder. "Come for me, woman, you are mine!"

I flipped us back over and sat her up, my firehose spurting hard into a wildly clenching cunt.

She collapsed on my chest, wailing "No, no, no..."

When we had our breath back, I inquired, "What's wrong?"

"I was going to be so proud of myself with self-control! A whole week of self-control!"

"OK. We'll get married a week from today in St. George, or Hurricane, or maybe in the Park itself, if it is permitted."

She was silent for a while, lying there in her divine nakedness. "I have a better idea. Clean me up and I'll explain over dinner."

We were in a corner of the rustic dining room and she was grinning at me. I shared a sip of my margarita. "Ok, give."

"We are going to have a Las Vegas marriage. The ceremony and the reception are going to be in the middle of Ben's shop. Afterwards, the bride and groom drive away in the new car!"