The weather was getting colder by the minute or at least that's the way it seemed every time they talked about it on the TV. It was snowing but not too hard YET. The forecast was calling for six or seven inches before midnight. The way it was going I would get to my cabin around seven so I should be all right.
I'm thirty-one and work in Manhattan as a lawyer and have a hunting type of log cabin as a retreat up in the Maine woods. It's nothing fancy but it is cozy and can be either heated or cooled electrically depending on the weather. It has one bedroom and bathroom with a combination kitchen and dining area. The living room is my favorite as it has a huge fireplace that is going to be just the thing on a snowy night like they are forecasting tonight. There is a laundry room by the back door with a lot of hooks to hang wet and dirty outdoor type of clothes. It's perfect for a getaway retreat. That's what this trip was all about; I had been working my tail off in the office and needed a break. I talked to one of the partners a week ago telling him that I was going to take a couple of weeks off just as soon as the case I was working on came to trial. That happened a few days ago, I won the case and I am now on my way.
I thought the garage man at the corporate garage had taken care of filling the car with gas but I am not even half way into Connecticut and I can see the gauge is shaking hands with empty. No big deal, I'll stop at the first rest area and fill up. I would be needing to 'check the plumbing' by then anyway.
The credit card reader on the gas pump at the station was having a problem so I had to go into the station to pay the bill. When I was inside and out of the snow I could hear a woman talking to one of the attendants. He was telling her that she had a rather severe problem with the engine on her car and it would have to towed into a big repair shop in town. That couldn't happen before tomorrow, if then, and with the way the snow was coming down he was afraid that it wouldn't be repaired for a good few days.
I couldn't remember seeing anyone so upset about this type of problem but she sure was.
"Damn, I was supposed to be up in Bangor in the morning and now I'll never make it." She moaned.
Well, the Good Samaritan is going to come to the damsel's aid. I moved a bit closer and said,
"Excuse me but I couldn't help but overhear your conversation and perhaps I can be of some assistance. I am going up to Maine this evening and would be more than happy to give you a lift. With the way this weather is going we will never make it much past Portland tonight but I can take you up as far as we can make it."
"That would be terrific. Let me get my stuff out of my car and point me at yours and I'll be all set." It was hard to tell just what kind of body she had but she certainly was pretty enough for me. Let's see where this leads.
I skidded a bit getting out of the rest area but nothing major. The salt and cinder trucks were out doing their thing so while we wouldn't be setting any speed records I felt reasonably confident we would make it.
We made the introductions after just a few miles. She was Sally and I'm Bill. I told her I was a lawyer and when I said that she gulped.
"Why did you react that way when I told you what I did for a living? What do you do?"
"Well, that's the reason I reacted the way I did. I'm a hooker."
I almost choked laughing. "I'll be damned but you have to admit that it's funny."
She chuckled a little and said, "I can see where you would find humor in it. Wait until you tell the guys in the office that you had a hooker in your pretty automobile and you weren't even thinking about sex."
That got me laughing a lot more. I followed on with; "Oh if you only knew some of the assholes I work with. They will do more than gulp when I tell them. They will shit their pants. I can just hear them. 'And you let her stay in your car after you found out without making a move on her'. "
I could see the way she looked at me and it wasn't pretty. "Bill, you can drop me off at the next convenient place .... gas station, motel, restaurant wherever. I sure don't want to put you on the spot."
"You can just stop that crap right now. I was telling you what the assholes would say ... not me. I'll take you as far as we can make it. I am heading for my place up past Portland but that is still a good ways from Bangor but you'll be a lot closer than you would have been. If the roads are clear in the morning I am sure there will be Greyhound busses running up to Bangor from the Portland area. Sit back and take it easy."
"Damn, you are a nice guy and I don't meet many of them." She said.
"Will your place be ready for your visit?" she asked.
"I think so. I have a caretaker that keeps an eye on it when I am not around and I gave him a call to tell him my plans and he assured me he would least have it warm. He was also going to stop at the local grocery store and put some stuff in. The deep freezer has a ton of meat in it so that part should be OK. He also promised to have a good supply of firewood stacked on the side of the house under a small roof shelter to keep the foul weather off it."
"Sounds as if you have things pretty much under control." She commented.
She continued on with, " I hope you don't mind my next question but you have talked as if you are going to take me as far as your cabin. From what it sounds like it is out in the woods and far from any places of lodging. Are you thinking of me staying at your place with you and if so you said it only has one bedroom. Where would I sleep?"
"Oh hell, I never thought about that." And looked over at her with a big smile.
"What are you grinning about Bill. Do you have something about your place you haven't told me?"
"No Sally, it's just as great as I described but it is a little short on sleeping facilities for a guest."
"Well, if you think you are going to get me into your bed you better think that through again. I have a better idea. Please drop me off at the next town we go past that looks like it might have a hotel or motel."
"Oh cut it out. You are going to sleep in the bedroom that, by the way, has a lock on the door and I am going to sleep on an air mattress in the living room right next to a wonderful log fire. You'll be safe from this fearful lawyer"
She broke into a huge laugh and said, "You are going to be in for a big surprise and I want to see your face when it hits you."
I couldn't help but wonder what she meant by that.
The snow was getting worse by the minute and it appeared that the plows and the salt and cinder trucks were having a rough time keeping ahead of it. I felt we would make my cabin all right but not much further. I had a little concern about the dirt road up to my place and gave the caretaker a call asking if he could use the small snow blower he had bolted on to the front of his tractor and blow away all that he could. We would be there in another two hours and if he could get the road cleared now there shouldn't be much more accumulation in two hours. He said he had already went up and down the road once with the blower but promised to give it another go before he got tucked in for the night. Great!
Sally and I had some great conversations but avoided even touching on her occupation. We gave politics, liberals and conservatives a good bashing but nothing deeper than that. She seemed to get a kick out of me talking about some of the cases I had worked on and the characters I had to defend or prosecute when I had worked in the District Attorney's office before my present job. She has a great laugh that is contagious as hell.
We had just passed Portland and the road was pretty well cleared. The snow was coming down heavy but it now looked as if the highway snow crews were staying ahead of it. That let me breathe a sigh of relief for I sure didn't want to get snowed in out in the wilderness of some parts of this state.
It was about an hour beyond Portland when we had to get off the Interstate and onto a country road. I expected a lot of trouble with this but surprisingly the road was fairly well cleared. Not clear but not bad. We had to drive on this for about a half-hour before hitting my long dirt driveway. It was starting to get dark and that was going to make everything even more difficult.
My large mailbox at the end of my drive stood out like a sore thumb but it appeared that my caretaker had done a super job getting the drive cleared. There was four or five inches of snow on the ground around the drive and if we were going to get another four or five we might not get out in the morning.
We made it up the drive with only a touch of slipping and sliding but were able to get the car all the way to the front of the cabin. I was able to get the trunk aimed right at the front door porch and we soon had our suitcases out and on the porch and then inside.
"WOW, I was expecting something like Davy Crockett's place ----not anything this nice." She said somewhat breathlessly.
"Get your luggage in the bedroom while I get a fire going. Josh, the caretaker, took a couple of T-bones out of the freezer for us so supper has been decided. After you get your luggage put away how about going into the cabinet over the sink and pull down whatever kind of booze you would like. I'll have a scotch and water."
"Yes Sir Captain." She said with a smart-ass sound in her voice.
"You keep talking with that tone in your voice and I'll have to do something your mother failed to do and that was to smack your ass hard and often."
She roared saying, "Ooohhh you know just how to turn me on you smooth talking cowboy."
"Just get the booze and be quiet." I ordered with a laugh.
It wasn't long before the fire was doing nicely and the booze tasted fantastic. I had the steaks on the stove grille and I had opened a can of green beans to go with them. We both liked our meat cooked medium-rare so it was easy to cook them right.
The food went over perfectly and we put a hell of a dent in the booze. There were a couple more bottles of it so I thought we would be OK for a day or so!
"Sally, I don't know about you and maybe it was the tedious driving but I'm sort of bushed and am going to hit the sack now. The TV in your bedroom should be working all right so you might want to catch a movie while I am catching some Z's."