* Both Luna and Marina are Mexican-American, but to be honest, I didn't want to take the time to phonetically spell out the accents. Just keep that in mind while reading, and thank you.*
Matthew Whitman left the meeting with his parents attorneys dumbfounded and much better off than when he had entered. They had never approved of his vagabond, pillar to post lifestyle. They had passed within a couple of months of each other, both at the age of 75. Having been married for over 50 years, Matt figured his mother had grieved herself to death. His father had passed due to cancer. The man hated doctors, and never had regular checkups. Once diagnosed it was too late and too quick. They didn't get the chance to say their respective good byes, but he did go to the funeral and stayed in Ft. Smith with his mother. He'd started to get the itch to travel and had decided to tell his mother, but fate had other plans. The day he planned to tell her, she just never woke up.
After the funeral and burial Matt got the call to meet his parents attorney. The house and property he knew about, it was the investments that flabbergasted him. Unbeknownst to him his parents, specifically his mother, was a very shrewd investor. He was utterly shocked to find out his mother's worth was well over 20M dollars. The stipulation though was that Matt could only access 10M maximum, while the rest was to stay with her current fiduciary for further investment purposes.
After a few more months, a depressing estate sale, with a few exceptions for himself, Matt felt like he was ready to travel again. Armed with just over 400,000 cash, left from the sale of the house and property, a brand new Nissan Titan Crew Cab, a u-haul trailer and no place in particular to go, he left Ft. Smith. As he merged onto I-40 east it began to rain, matching his current Monday afternoon mood. He was thinking about maybe settling down maybe buying a farm, but he knew nothing about running one. Buy a store of some kind? He did after all have a business degree from the University of Arkansas. Then speaking to no one in particular,
"Eh, I'll figure it out."
It was just before dusk when the emergency flashers on a Subaru caught his attention, rousing him from his fog-addled train of thought bringing him into the here and now. They were parked under the overpass just past the 101 exit. He had intended to drive past them until he realized they were obviously in distress. A woman, Hispanic or maybe mixed, and her daughter? He really didn't want to stop but he didn't like leaving two females stranded on the side of the interstate. By the same token, it could be a set up. One never knew these days. He pulled over with the thought of, 'what the hell, why not?' going through his mind. Once stopped he checked his Glock and backed up. The taller woman approached the driver's door.
"Thank you so much for stopping! We have a flat tire. Could you help us, please?" Definitely Hispanic, southern California or maybe Arizona. Traveling like he did he was used to discerning different accents from Cali to Maine.
"Yeah, no problem. Y'all have a spare or..." Matt purposely left the question open to figure out just how far they'd been able to get with their own problem.
"Yeah, I'll have to open the trunk again. I couldn't figure out how to work the jack." At least they had tried. He figured it was one of those cheap scissors jack that almost every car had now. The daughter had walked closer to the concrete part of the overpass, arguing with someone on her cell phone. Then remembering his manners.
"Oh! Matthew, Matthew Whitman, my friends call me Matt. Nice to meet you." Extending his hand, she smiled meekly and took it.
"Marina, Marina Peña. Nice to meet you too, Matthew." Her smile was absolutely stunning in that moment.
"You're daughter having boyfriend problems over there?" Marina smiled bigger and giggled.
"Not my daughter, my friend. We're actually the same age, 25."
"Oh, ok. So she's a mid- short person."
"Si, yes." Then quieter, "She left her piece of shit boyfriend. We got out of Calexico a few days ago, and here we are." Southern California, nailed it!
"Ah ok. I won't ask anything else then. Let's see what you have. Pop the trunk for me?" Marina opened the trunk and sure enough, scissors jack, handle, lug wrench and donut spare. Matt pulled the spare out and let it bounce on the pavement, except it didn't bounce.
"Uh, Marina. Y'all have a small problem."
"Shit! Shit! Luna!" The other girl looked past Matt straight at Marina. "La rueda de repuesto también está pinchada! Y ahora qué hacemos?" Luna said something harsh into the phone and hung up.
"Que?"
"La rueda de repuesto también está pinchada! Y ahora qué hacemos?"
"Mierda! No lo sé! Ask him!"
"What do we do now?" Matt looked west, daylight was running out quick. He grabbed the jack, handle, and lug wrench explaining as he started taking the tire off.
"You two get your stuff together, whatever you don't want stolen. I'll throw this tire in the back of my truck. We'll backup, get off this exit, find a tire shop and a hotel. Get the tire replaced, a good night's sleep and have you rolling first thing in the morning." Marina and Luna were both looking at him kind of side-eyed.
"Look, cabrón!" It was Luna. "First, we ain't a couple'a putas! We ain't sleeping with you, baboso! Second, we ain't got the money for all that shit!"
"Woah! Hold on...Luna?"
"Si, yeah."
"Firstly, I didn't mean any offense. Two rooms, one for y'all, one for me. Secondly, I'll pay for everything, the rooms and the tire. I have no problem with doing that for you. WITHOUT asking to be reimbursed, in ANY way!"
"What, we don't look good enough for that!? You ain't had none this good, idiota!"
"Luna! Cuál es tu problema?"
"Nada, es nada."
"Matthew, thank you for the offer, but I don't think we could do that." Matt threw the tire in the bed of his truck. "It's a very generous offer but honestly, we don't have that kind of money."
"Well, I do Marina, and I want to do this for you. Both of you." Looking at Luna "I don't expect anything in return. I'm not wired like that. So you can take my offer and be on your way tomorrow morning, or sit out here on the side of the interstate and figure it out on your own. Either way, I'm ready to go." The two were quiet for a second then spoke in Spanish. It was mostly a quick conversation ending with them getting their bags out of the car. Luna opened the passenger side back door and flung her two bags in the back. Matt kind of snorted/chuckled and shook his head. Marina also with two bags placed hers in the back seat next to Luna's then climbed into the front seat and closed the door. Luna slammed the back door. Something Matt couldn't stand, but he let it go. He waited for a clear spot, backed up and got off the exit.
It was after 7:30 when the tire was finally done. The entire time, they trailed Matt around the store talking back and forth in Spanish. With his limited knowledge of the language he wasn't able to keep up with it. He figured though with the body language, head nods and giggles at least some of it was about him.
"Alright you two, food first or find a room first?" The girls spoke again briefly in Spanish. Marina answered, Luna just nodded her agreement.
"We want to get a room, take a shower and then go eat. We haven't had a hot shower since we left Calexico."
"Where have you been staying?" Matt realized he sounded like a concerned dad.
"Well Papi, rest areas, parking lots. Sleep a little, grab something to eat, drive, repeat." Luna, and she wasn't as terse now with Matt as she had been, although she'd picked up on the fatherly part. Maybe Marina had talked some sense into her.
"Ok. Showers then food it is." They found a Quality Inn after some driving around and pulled up.
"Ok Papi, give us some money, we'll get the rooms." Both women giggled again. 'How the hell did I become Papi,' thought Matt. He just shrugged it off and pulled the wad of cash out of his pocket. Luna had no reaction, but Marina's eyes bugged out of her skull. Matt guessed she'd never seen that much cash at one time. He could also make an educated guess about Luna's ex and his...occupation. Especially being from Calexico. He peeled off two hundred, handed it to Marina and pocketed the rest. The girls jumped out and headed for the office giggling and bumping into one another. He couldn't help but admire the two as they walked in. Luna, a little beauty, not even 4 feet tall. Jet black hair that looked like she had a curly perm, which he later found out was a natural condition. Probably a B cup on the cusp of C but proportional. Cute bubble butt that didn't jiggle in her jeans, but did sway provocatively. Deep, dark brown eyes that belied her street smarts and wisdom. Marina, also beautiful at 5' 5"or 6" tall, definitely C cups that bounced as nicely as her full bubble butt. Straight brunette hair almost to her waist line and lovely brown eyes. His daydream appreciation of the women, and his growing chubby was interrupted as both passenger doors opened up. This time though Luna got in the front, Marina in the back.
"Here you go, Papi. Room 116. We have room 115." Was that a devilish grin on her face? Nah, couldn't be. 'She kinda hates me, I think.' Matt smiled back and headed for the rooms. Grabbing a bag each and sliding the key cards in their respective doors they stepped in. Matt adjusted the a/c heater unit to 70 and realized there was a connecting door to the left. Laughing, he just shook his head. He could hear muted talking next door, Spanish. He was beginning to think the connecting doors were done on purpose but dismissed the thought and went to take a shower. He hated the position of the full length mirror. Not that he was ashamed of his 6 foot frame, it just seemed like a vanity thing that he wasn't into. At 45 he'd had his fair share of lovers and sex. His sandy blonde/brown hair and light blue eyes didn't hurt either.
After a long hot shower and donning his boxer briefs he was looking for clean jeans when he heard a knock on the connecting door. Sliding the jeans on there was another knock and he called out.
"Just a minute."
"Housekeeping." Then giggles from both girls. Opening the door he was taken aback somewhat. They cleaned up VERY nicely! Neither were wearing makeup that he could tell, but the tanned complexion of their skin was absolutely radiant, beautiful. Jeans and tight t-shirts accentuating their breasts and hips. Likewise, they were staring at him since he hadn't put a shirt on, no six pack but a flat stomach nonetheless and a decently sculpted chest with sparse hair that matched the hair on his head.
"Uh, we, a, we were wondering what you wanted for dinner?" Luna's eyes finally found his after she more or less asked the question. Matt could see both women's nipples becoming visible through their bras and shirt. He just hoped his chubby wasn't as noticeably visible to them. Breaking the eye contact with Luna and turning to find a shirt he was finally able to speak.
"I'll eat just about anything to be honest." He turned red realizing as soon as he said it the double entender. Slipping the t-shirt on he turned back around. Giggling from both the girls. "Ok, ok, haha very funny ladies. What would you like for dinner?"
"How about some'a that hog?" It was Luna, and apparently she had noticed the chubby. Matt played it off.
