Zoey was surprised when she slowly came awake and noticed it was close to noon. She was surprised for a couple of reasons. First off, she'd expected her parents to wake her up early to chew her out over what had happened last night and, second, she was surprised she'd slept that long, sure that the worry circling round in her head when she'd gone to bed would have woken her up long ago. She smiled to herself and muttered as she got out of bed, "I guess there's nothing like a good night's sleep after getting soundly fucked."
She pulled her robe on and brushed her hair as she looked at herself in the mirror. "All right, girl, might as well get this over with."
Steeling herself against who knew what, Zoey made her way downstairs and into the kitchen. She was surprised to see her mother sitting at the table on her own, nursing a coffee. Her father was nowhere in sight.
"Uh...where's Dad?" Zoey asked as she poured herself a glass of orange juice.
"He's out in the garden," her mother replied firmly. "I told him I'd handle this, he's too upset to even think straight."
"Mom, I...I can expl--"
"Don't even start!" her mother interrupted. "We know exactly what we saw, so don't try to come up with some wild explanation. It was obvious those boys weren't holding you hostage."
"But Mom..." Zoey gasped out, feeling her eyes welling up.
"Zoey, sit down! Right now!" Her mother gestured to the chair at the table next to her. Zoey did as she was told, looking down at the table as she cradled her glass of orange juice in both hands.
"All right then, after what we witnessed last night, your father and I have decided that something has to change for you."
Zoey looked up, her eyes misty as she stared at her mother. "Change?"
Her mother nodded solemnly. "Yes. After talking with your father, I've made a phone call this morning and things are settled; you're going to spend the summer at your grandfather's ranch."
"WHAT?" Zoey belted out.
"Yes, your grandfather has agreed to take you in for the summer, and I told him I want him to put you to work. At the ranch, you'll learn the importance of hard work, discipline, and family. Things you obviously seem to be lacking."
"But Grandpa Jack's ranch is all the way over in Nevada," Zoey responded as she shook her head. "No mom, I can't do that. I've got things I need to do here."
Zoey could see her mother getting angrier before the older woman spoke again. "We saw exactly the kind of 'things you need to do here'. And that's too bad, you're going, and there will be no argument about it."
"But Mom, that's not fair."
Her mother shook her head. "Don't talk to me about fair, this decision is more than fair. Your grandfather runs his ranch with a firm hand and discipline. That's exactly the kind of thing you need in your life right now. So you're going there, with no computer, no phone, nothing."
"You can't take away my phone!"
"Okay, you can take your phone," her said, a sarcastic smile on her face. "But I'll tell you right now, it's not going to do you much good. There's no reception way out there on the ranch."
"But--"
"No buts! It's decided," her mother said as she got up from the table. "I'll drive you there Monday morning after your dad goes to work. And you're not to budge from this house until then." She paused and looked at Zoey sternly. "Do you understand me, young lady?"
"Yes, ma'am."
*
Zoey spent the rest of the weekend wallowing in misery. At least her parents hadn't taken her phone away. She was quick to text Claudia and let her know what had happened, and that it looked like their plan to spend the summer competing for cock had gone up like a puff of smoke in a hurricane.
Saturday seemed to drag, as did Sunday. Her father barely looked at her during mealtime, which made her feel even worse.
It was after dinner Sunday when her mother stuck her head into Zoey's room. "I forgot to tell you, you don't need to pack much. Basically just your toiletries and makeup stuff. Your grandparents will take care of the rest."
Zoey couldn't keep the flummoxed look off her face. "What? What about my clothes? What are you talking about?"
"Your grandfather's kind of old-fashioned and he expects any woman, whatever age, to dress a certain way when they're on his ranch. I've given Grandma Rose all of your sizes and she said she'll make sure you have everything you need."
Zoey held her hands up in exasperation. "You're kidding, right?"
"No, I'm not. And here..." Her mother tossed a bag towards her. "I went to the store and got you something to wear tomorrow. Your flat white sandals should look fine with that. I know the kind of thing your grandfather expects and that should do the job for when you show up. It's been a long time since you've seen any of them and I want to make sure you get on his good side right from the start."
Zoey caught the bag her mother had thrown at her and stood there staring at it, totally confused.
"All right then, I'll wake you up at eight tomorrow. I want to be on the road by nine. It's a long drive and I want to be there before it gets dark."
Zoey could only nod, feeling like her life was unravelling right before her eyes.
*
Zoey still felt bleary-eyed as her mother pulled her SUV out of the driveway and they were off. Zoey sat in the passenger seat with the window open, the warm summer air washing over her.
Surprisingly, she wasn't as disappointed as she thought she'd be when she'd checked out the bag of clothes her mother had bought her to wear today. Inside was a simple yellow sundress. It was sleeveless with a modestly-scooped neckline, not as daring as Zoey usually wore, but still low enough for some of her substantial cleavage to be visible. The dress fit snugly in the bodice before flaring out over her hips with the bottom portion flaring out until the hem ended just north of mid-thigh. Zoey thought it actually looked cute and girly, but again, a little too conservative for her compared to anything currently in her closet. It looked nice on, and with the warm weather she didn't mind wearing it at all. As her mother had suggested, her flat white sandals matched the look of the outfit perfectly. Zoey glanced over at her mother, having noticed when they'd gotten into the car that her mom had on something different than her usual attire as well.
Her mother, Liz Colton, was already doing well in real estate when she'd married Zoey's father, so with a certain degree of name recognition already out there, she kept her maiden name after marriage. Zoey understood that, and heard that her mom had stood firm when Zoey was born, making sure that her daughter got her last name as well, even if it was hyphenated with Zoey's father last name. Zoey had asked about that when she was little, and understood when her mother told her how proud she was of her family, how much it meant to her to be a 'Colton' and that she hoped Zoey would feel just as proud.
Her mother, Liz, was built very much like her daughter, and they were often mistaken for sisters, Zoey's mother looked that good. A little heavier than Zoey, a little taller, but packed with the same alluring curves and shimmering chestnut hair that her daughter had inherited from her. Her mother was wearing a summer dress in a sky-blue color that was almost identical to Zoey's in style, and looked great on her. The bodice hugged her upper body attractively, following her curvy hourglass figure with a nipped-in waist before flowing out playfully over her matronly hips. The flouncy hem ended at about mid-thigh, like Zoey's, and her mom's legs looked great, her feet clad in matching sky-blue flat sandals.
Although still ticked off, once her mother had the car in cruise control on the highway, Zoey realized that no amount of complaining would get her mom to change her mind at this point. She could tell by the look on her mother's face that nothing she could say would make a difference. Resigned to her fate, she decided to stop sulking, at least for the rest of the long drive ahead.
It had been quite a long time since Zoey had been to her grandparent's ranch, not since she was a little girl. She knew her mother paid a visit there a few times a year, helping out with things while Zoey and her father stayed home. Her mother always looked happy and rejuvenated when she returned, as if she regretted having to come home. She would often talk longingly about how happy she had been growing up there on the ranch. To a city girl like Zoey, she just didn't get it.