All characters are 18 years or older
PALM SPRINGS VACATION
CHAPTER ONE
Sharon pressed her nose against the window of the airplane as it gradually lost altitude over the sere brown and gray terrain of the low desert of Southern California. Off the left side of the plane, the bright sun glinted off the smooth, mirror-like surface of the kidney bean-shaped Salton Sea. Ahead, stark in the clear air of late spring, she saw the abrupt, vertical, eastern face of the San Jacinto Mountains, still capped by a brilliant, white crown of snow. At the foot of those mountains, she saw the streets and buildings of her destination, Palm Springs.
Her heart pounded with nervous anticipation and excitement as the plane swooped down on the runway at the Palm Springs airport. This trip, her first on her own, was a graduation present from her parents. Freshly out of high school, eighteen-year old Sharon felt all grown up and proudly independent now, as the wheels touched down and she gathered up her things to prepare to exit the plane.
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Sharon eagerly anticipated seeing her aunt, JoAnn, after have been apart for several years. JoAnn, while being a half-dozen years older than herself, was considerably younger than her sister, Sharon's mother. She had spent a great deal of time with Sharon's family as they were growing up, becoming more of an older sister to Sharon and her siblings, rather than the aunt which she actually was. They hadn't seen JoAnn for a number of years, however, because she had taken off for California, after her own graduation, to pursue a career in acting or modeling.
Apparently, JoAnn was doing very well for herself in that world, when she met Ed, a good-looking young man of about thirty. An up and coming young producer, he'd had a hand in several very successful projects for both the movies and TV. When first dating, JoAnn had not been fully aware of Ed's status, thinking that he was just a lower-level flunky in the business. Being leery of all the beautiful, young gold-diggers swarming around Hollywood, he had allowed her to think that of him until they got to know each other better. Already smitten with him, JoAnn readily forgave him this minor deception since she was well aware of the all the sharks in the industry, herself.
They had married and were apparently quite happy together. Now, although just twenty-four, JoAnn no longer had to hustle to get work. With Ed's connections she could take an occasional gig, just to keep her hand in the game, while enjoying their life out on the periphery, in Palm Springs.
Sharon was eager to meet and get to know her favorite aunt's husband. She was sure from what she had heard about him that she would like him as well.
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WaIking down the boarding ramp into the terminal, Sharon easily spotted her aunt, waving to her from the crowd waiting at the gate. JoAnn was easy to spot since she would be a standout in any crowd. A bit more mature now than the girlish teenager that Sharon remembered, it was plain to see why JoAnn had been successful in Hollywood. She was strikingly beautiful, with medium-long, wavy, golden-blond hair. Dressed for the climate, JoAnn was wearing a pair of white, extremely short, shorts and a white halter-top, contrasting with, while leaving exposed, a considerable expanse of golden-tanned skin.
JoAnn threw her arms around her niece in a welcoming embrace and gave her a peck on the lips. Sharon, shorter than JoAnn, found herself peering down between her aunt's full, round breasts, barely restrained by her skimpy halter-top, as they hugged.
"Gosh, Aunt Jo, you really look beautiful!" said the girl as they started walking, hand-in-hand, down the concourse to the baggage claim area.
"Why, thank you, honey," JoAnn said, smiling, her even, white teeth flashing. "I have to work hard not to allow myself to turn into a fat old hausfrau, living a life of leisure!" she laughed. "You're looking pretty good yourself, Sharon, you're not the little girl that remember, anymore."
Sharon giggled at JoAnn's noticing, and complimenting, her own budding womanhood. "So how's married life treating you, Aunt Jo?" she asked.
"Oh, it's wonderful!" JoAnn exclaimed, "Eddie's great...you're going to love him! He stayed home so that you and I would have a chance to talk and get reacquainted for a while before we all get together."
They retrieved Sharon's luggage at the baggage claim and went out to the parking lot. Putting her bag in the trunk of a flashy new BMW convertible, they got in and headed out of town.
The stark desert scenery they passed through on the way to JoAnn's home fascinated Sharon. The jumbled, rocky hills, rock-strewn dry washes, palm trees and cacti, as well as the snow-capped peaks in the distance were all so different from what she had been accustomed to all her life.
After a long stretch of uninhabited roadway, winding through a boulder-strewn valley, they arrived at an oasis-like stand of palm trees behind a high, natural-rock wall. JoAnn punched a button on the dashboard and the iron gate rolled open before them. They drove along a winding road through a beautifully landscaped grove of palm trees and flowering cacti, before rounding a large pool and fountain and pulling up in front of a large, hacienda-style, ranch house. The ten-foot, heavily carved, wooden double-doors opened up on an impressive marble and polished wood trimmed foyer. JoAnn led Sharon to her room to drop off her bags, then showed her niece around the house.
"Well, that's the tour," she said. "Now remember, you're family, so just relax and make yourself at home. Don't be afraid to wander around as you please." She paused for a moment, then said, "I guess Eddie must be out back. Let's go see."
They went out through a set of large, glass doors, opening onto a spacious flagstone patio. Before them was a large lawn area with thick, close-cropped grass. Beyond that, Sharon saw a stable and corral with several horses grazing inside. On the right was a huge, free-form swimming pool set amongst rock boulders, palms, and various tropical plants.
"Ahhh...there he is!" JoAnn said, pointing.
At the far end of the pool, Sharon saw a man standing on a diving board at the top of a twenty-foot high, natural rock outcropping. He ran forward and sprang from the end of the board, performing a forward one-and-a-half, before cutting cleanly into the clear, blue-green water below.
"Wow!" the young girl exclaimed, impressed.
"Oh, Eddie is such a show-off! He must have seen us coming out," JoAnn chuckled as they walked to the edge of the pool.
"Eddie!" she shouted when his head bobbed to the surface. "C'mon out and meet our lovely little niece."
Ed climbed out of the pool and smiled as he looked Sharon over. "Lovely, yes...but not so little!" he said. "She's certainly much more of a young woman than I was expecting."
"Oh, I know!" JoAnn laughed. "She sure surprised me, too! I was still picturing her in my mind as she was the last time I saw her."
