Ride to Redemption (7 page)

“It’s
not perfect, but it’s getting better. At least I don’t call her “big tits
bimbo” anymore.”

“Progress,
Vic. That’s progress.”

“Do
you want to get out of here?”

“Sure
where do you want to go?”

“Your
place?” Vic asked, lingering on the question.

“We
can, I guess. I’m staying at the Crown Plaza.”

With
that, Vic grasped my arm and led me up the catwalk with the same bravado I
experienced during our first meeting.

In
hindsight, I have no idea why I agreed to bring her back to my room. Well,
that’s not entirely true. The Woo-hoo again, had moved to the forefront of my
mind. She seemed to convey the essence of Pam, only older and significantly
smarter. The fact that I had grossly impugned her character earlier, led me to
believe all would be fine, regardless of what would happen later.

“Would
you like a glass of wine, my lady?

“Yes,
please. If you’re trying to get me drunk to take advantage of me, don’t worry
about that. You are welcome to take advantage of me as much as you want, with
or without the wine.”

“Nope.
I’m trying to get me drunk so I will unwillingly take advantage of you,” I
responded, not knowing just how Vic would take to the truth. I felt like as
forward as she had been, so some upfront truth probably wouldn’t bother her.

“You
don’t like what you see?” purred Vic as she slipped out of her dress and draped
it across the chair. Her black silk teddy and matching panties contrasted
nicely with her milky white, freckled skin.

“I
do, young lady, far more than you could ever imagine. Thanks to Pam, my very
first redhead at fifteen, I’ve been ready to fall madly in lust with you since
you first accosted me by the rail.”

Pouring
two glasses of wine into red solo cups, I handed one to her while lifting mine
into the air. “To courage,” I exclaimed.

“To
Pam,” Vic cheered.

I
surely couldn’t argue that.

Taking
on a more serious tone, Vic asked, “Why are you in Sioux City?”

Against
my better judgment, I reluctantly shared with her my forthcoming bike trip and
my soon to arrive co-rider.

“Really?
You mean this girl you barely know is flying in tomorrow to go with you on a
two or three-week bike trip? You’re either a really smooth operator or you’ve
got something else going on, D. That’s all I can say.”

“That’s
just part of it, Vic. We’ve emailed and texted every day, too I mean It’s not
like we’ve just met.”

“Woo-hoo…”

“What
did you just say?” I asked her to repeat it.

“Woo-hoo,
again, I’m impressed you’ve managed to keep it in your pants all this time. Just
talking about her is causing your jeans to rise,” giggled Vic, as she pointed
to my crotch.

“Remind
me to tell you about my definition of woo-hoo, later.” I couldn’t seem to find
the right words. “I’m complicated, it’s complicated, and you’re making it even
more complicated,” I confided, suddenly at a complete loss for words.

Vic
moved onto the king-sized bed and patted her hand on the mattress, motioning
for me to join her. “I’m the real thing, I’m here, and I’m yours right now. All
you have to do is make the move and I’ll be Pam, Candi, or whoever you want me
to be and more for the entire night.”

“You
have no idea how badly I want you, Vic. I really do. I want to breathe in the
perfume on your neck. I want to kiss your beautiful lips. I want to taste you,
and make you scream with pleasure. But, but,” I stammered.

Vic
spoke and she raised her forefinger and pressed it to my lips. “You don’t want
to potentially screw up this trip with Candi, just as it’s about to become
reality.’

“That’s
the crux of it,” I confessed, shamefully.

“You
do have willpower, D. I’ll give you that. Sitting in an excited state of need,
on this bed, with an almost naked woman who has basically thrown herself at you
… with no one to be the wiser … and you still won’t succumb to my charms. What
do you suggest we do?”

“I
have an idea, but you’ll think it’s outrageous.”

“Try
me,” Vic said, anxiously awaiting my reply.

“I’d
like us to finish this bottle of wine and then I’d like to fall asleep in your
arms. Could you do that with me, without sex entering the mix?”

“If
you’d asked me that question five hours ago, I would unequivocally have said,
‘Hell No!’ But, now that I’m in the here and now, with you beside me, I guess
my answer why the Hell not.”

And
that’s how we left it. Sleep came quickly.

* * *

Reaching
down to the bed, I kissed Victoria gently on the cheek. “Good Morning,
Barrister, it's 6 a.m. I’ve brought you both coffee and hot tea. Pick your
poison, and I’ll dress it accordingly.”

“Thank
you, D. You’re sweet. Are you sure you won’t reconsider making love to me, if
only for a quickie?”

“You
deserve much more than a quickie, Vic. I promise if this doesn’t work out
between Candi and me, you’ll be the first person I call.”

Sporting
a subtle frown, Vic began, “Last night will forever be etched in my mind; I had
an attractive man, in his underwear, mind you, with little next to nothing, and
I mean nothing on, and his virtuous will overcame my seductive wants and wily
ways, all night long. What do you think that does to a woman’s confidence? Come
on let’s get real here. No guy in my lifetime has ever turned me down after
sleeping in the same bed with me.”

‘They
have now, huh? I promise I won’t tell anybody, if you won’t. I’d hate to soil
your stellar reputation.

Vic, we’re good,” I began, “I’ve been thinking, I’d
like to retain you permanently as my legal counsel, if and when the need
arises.”

“And
just how do you suppose we do that, D? I’m not employed full time with a firm
and I sure don’t have a private practice of my own.”

Reaching
into my backpack, I pulled out another medium sized, nondescript package. “With
this,” I announced, placing it in her hands. “Two things … don’t ask me where
it came from. You may learn soon enough anyway, and don’t open it until after
you get home. Oh, and there’s a third. Whatever is left, after you become
successful in your practice, pay the rest forward. Never refuse to represent
anyone, if you believe you can help them, regardless of whether they can pay or
not. Everybody needs somebody to believe in him or her, to give encouragement,
and a leg up when they’ve gone as far as they can go. You have an uncanny
ability to see through people, like your initial read of me. If you will
continue to nurture these amazing talents of yours, you’ll be able to pick and
choose worthwhile clients based on your intuition. That, my dear, is a rare and
priceless attribute.”

“You’re
a strange one, D. I hope that Candi girl knows what she’s getting.”

Walking
two steps higher than when we first met, Vic and I exchanged phone numbers and
email addresses, before she left for home.

“Thank
you for a most wonderful evening,” I joyfully expressed, while giving her a
hug. “I hope this is just the beginning of a long and prosperous relationship.”

“I
have no idea what’s in this package, D, but if it does what you say it will do,
I’ll be here for you as long as you need me to be. And, lastly, this is the
selfish Vic talking now, if things don’t work out between you and Candi, I’m
ready, willing and able at a moment’s notice. I’ll strip completely bare this
time and pick up where we left off.”

“Thank
you, Vic,” I replied, hugging her one more time. “That’s one whale of an offer.
I promise I will hold you to it.”

Chapter
11

S
itting
in the restaurant the next morning were Billy, Frank and Dusty. They almost
looked out of character without their hats and sunglasses. If it were not for
Billy and Dusty’s extremely long beards, they would almost look normal, kinda
like Frank. Billy extended a hand and an invite, “Join us D. Still waitin’ on
that buxom girlfriend of yours?”

“Yep,
she’s due to arrive about 2 p.m. Central. If you’re still hanging around here
somewhere, I’ll bring her by to meet ya.”

“We’re
not headed out right away. We tend to be slow-moving in the mornings,” Frank
mentioned. “Kinda goes with the line of work!”

“I’d
say it does, guys, we’ll try to catch you this afternoon sometime.”

I
left the men to their breakfast and made my way outside. I gave myself a brisk
morning walk instead of a hard run today. I figured Candi would be giving me
quite the workout upon her arrival. I'd better save my strength.

After
a pleasant walk and a relaxing shower, I was ready to grab a bite and make a
run to the airport. It sure would be nice to see her again. I can’t wait to
hold her and taste those beautiful luscious lips, never far from my mind.

I
arrived at the airport a little before two and parked in the cellular waiting
area. I have trouble getting used to the new regulations at airports. I’d love
to be waiting for her at the gate, a giant smile greeting her as she stepped
into view. But, alas, I settled for the waiting area and texted her my
whereabouts. Once she cleared security, she was easy to spot, carrying only a
backpack and a look of enthusiasm and joy.

Candice
Parker came bouncing through the main doors in a low-cut top that made all the
guys within earshot look twice, including me. Kissing her deeply just as she
reached the truck, I looked her over, head to toe. “Wow, you look great!” I
exclaimed. “It’s time we got reacquainted!”

She
squeezed me in tight, almost giggling with happiness. “I’ve missed you!”

“Me,
too, I’m glad you’re here. Your next adventure awaits,” I proudly announced.

As
we traveled back to the hotel, I said, “By the way, I met some interesting guys
at the hotel. If we get back by four, they said they’d like to meet you.
They’re in a band, and they even offered us back-stage passes to their concert
in Sturgis on Tuesday.”

“No
kidding?” she asked. “Just like that — out of the blue, they offer up big
tickets! Wow. Who are they?”

“I
never asked, actually. All I know is their names are Billy, Frank and Dusty. I
think they’re from Texas, but I’m not even sure about that. Honestly, I felt
kinda bad not recognizing them. I hated to ask who the heck they were.”

“I
guess it doesn’t matter,” she offered. “Shoot, we’ll be in Sturgis —
might as well take in the sites back stage! It’ll just be a mystery.

The
rest of the trip back was filled with her latest engagements since we’d last
seen one another. Her work days had been stressful and tiring, but she was
ready to play hard now that she’d finally arrived and was settling into this
new adventure. I was pleased to see how excited she was about it all. It
settled my own nerves knowing her as receptive and willing to enjoy this
moment.

The
route, back from the airport brought us in by the convention center, located
next door to the hotel. “Look,” Candi squealed, “ZZ Top is playing here
tonight! Oh, let’s go! Ah, crap,” she said instantly. “They’re sold out. Dang
it! I’d love to see them.”

“I’ll
ask the hotel concierge. Maybe he’ll have some insight on where we could snag
two tickets,” I suggested, knowing there was no chance in Hades of finding
tickets this late.

“Okay,”
she chirped, happy with the suggestion.

“Where
are these guys I’m supposed to meet?” Candi asked. “Do we need to look them up
before heading to the room?”

“We
should find them in the bar, if they’re still here. We had better check now.
Hang a right down the hall, the bar is on the right, just ahead.”

Following
her into an almost empty bar, Candi looked sorely disappointed. “They’re not
here, baby,” she spoke rather glumly. “Shoot, I was hoping they were ZZ Top.”

“Funny,
Candi,” I laughed, “Fat chance of that!”

“I
think you’d have known ZZ Top if you’d seen them!”

I
pondered in my mind if I really would know them. All I knew of ZZ Top was a few
songs and a name, eh, no matter.

Off
to my left was the pool and there was a small bar set up and off to the side.
“Come on, one more place to look.” I followed up that comment with, “It’s really
no big deal, I guess if we meet up with them today or not. We’ll see them at
Sturgis, one way or another.”

We
gave up our search after not seeing a soul at the poolside bar. “Are you up for
an early dinner?”

“Sure,
baby. Just let me freshen up. Lead the way to the room.”

It
took only five minutes of freshening, a record I bet somewhere was broken, and
we were out the door, headed downtown to Sweet Fanny’s.

Within
the hour, we’d found two cozy seats in a booth, beside the front window.

Candi
ordered their famous corned beef and cabbage, while I munched on their fish and
chips. Wandering around the restaurant, we discovered multitudes of signed
pictures on the walls, commemorating WWII events and the soldiers that took
part in them. “Amazing,” said Candi, “that the owners could manage to assemble
a collection like this in the middle of Iowa. This is neat!”

We
enjoyed our meal and our little history tour of the place. Dinner was again
memorable and Candi, by her rather hearty appetite, more than approved of my
restaurant choice.

“I
haven’t eaten since breakfast, baby. I was so starved. You want to split a
dessert?”

“How
about later,” I offered, “right now I have your inaugural motorcycle ride
planned for this evening.”

“I
wondered when you were finally going to take me riding. I need to get my rear
accustomed to the bike seat before our trip.”

“I
really thought it best we start here, that way you could not back out. Kind of
like you’ll just have to adjust, adapt and overcome any fears you may have over
the next eighteen hundred miles.”

“That’s
mean, D; I’m here, aren’t I?”

“You
certainly are, baby.”

You
most certainly are.