Peter White brushed back his longish brown hair and stared at his angular face in the mirror. His brown eyes stared back, unblinking. Looking better now, unwinding after the long drive, he decided. A hot shower had worked wonders.
Turning to open the door of the motel room, he faced a glorious sunset, the intense orange glow to the west silhouetting the towering wooded mountain ridges. A nice reward for choosing to leave the interstate today for a more scenic route north from Florida, he thought. Tomorrow early though, back to the four-lanes and pedal-to-the-metal home to Buffalo.
As was the case at the motel, the small rustic log restaurant across the parking lot wasn't busy this weeknight, just a couple pickup trucks and a Jeep in sight. He had figured his jeans and tee shirt would blend right in with whoever was there. The sign, sporting the silhouette of a howling wolf, identified the place as the Evenstar Steakhouse.
In a few seconds he entered the front door. The log-walled interior was decorated mostly with folk-art paintings of mountain scenes and animals, and some deer head taxidermy. An enormous black bear skin stretched across the back wall. Pete felt a strong impression the place had been in business a very long time. The front counter near the antique cash register included a rack of locally made handmade jewelry for sale, many fashioned from arrowheads and colorful polished stones.
"Good evening!" came the cheery greeting from a young lady emerging from behind the counter.
Not bad, he thought; petite, nineteen or twenty maybe, spectacular tanned cleavage, nice ass, long auburn hair and a great smile.
But...too young now, he had to admit. And her sparkly engagement ring. Once upon a time maybe.
And of course, there was Pete's fortieth birthday a few days ago. The celebration with old friends down in Daytona had been a blast. Hell, to be honest it had been an orgy. He was single again, and former girlfriends from his college days had lost none of their freak on hotel beds and balconies.
The greeter's perky voice brought him back to earth. "Just one this evening?" He nodded. "Follow me, nice sunset tonight, are you staying next door?"
"I am, and it really is beautiful," Pete replied, glancing into her blue eyes. She wasn't really on his radar, but he still couldn't resist a little flirt.
"This booth okay?" she chirped. "You can watch the sunset over the mountain from here."
"Perfect, thanks." Pete settled in, she handed him the menu, and he ordered a long-neck.
"Your server will be here in a sec. Enjoy your meal!" Pete watched her walk away in her slim tight fitting black pants. Damn, he thought, in his younger days she would have been on his menu too.
His fixation was broken by the arrival of his beer.
"Hi there, I'm Jen," she said in a soft mountain twang. "Ready to order, or need some time?"
She was tall and trim, mid thirties he reckoned, with deeply tanned skin, lustrous straight black hair, high cheekbones, and an intriguing smile that instantly captivated him. Her blouse barely contained her spectacular breasts, the nipples clearly prominent under the coarse multi-colored fabric. Around her neck was a thin leather thong, looped around a flint arrowhead that nestled in her deep cleavage. She wore silver hoop earrings, incised silver bracelets, and silver rings on her fingers, but he noticed no wedding ring. There was an indescribable aura about her, magnified by intensely piercing brown eyes, that aroused his curiosity. And his cock. He shifted on the seat, trying to appear nonchalant.
"Jeez, I dunno, never been here, what's good?"
"Well, I personally looooove a big beef tip or two." She winked slyly.
Wow, he thought, where's this going?
Pete cleared his throat. "Know your way around meat, eh? Guess I should take your advice." He felt his face flush, an unfamiliar reaction for a man who prided himself on his prowess with women.
"Oh trust me, I'm an expert," she said, leaning in. The arrowhead slid slowly down her cleavage as she pointed to the list of side dishes. "See anything else you fancy? How's your appetite tonight?"
"Hungrier by the minute," he heard himself stammer as he stared at her breasts. "Um, baked potato, thank you Jennifer."
"With a big squirt of sour cream I'll bet," she teased. "I can sense you have a...healthy appetite. And it's not Jennifer."
His brows raised. "Just Jen?"
"Not quite. Maybe I'll tell you sometime." The sly wink again.
"Aww, that's too bad Jen, I'm back on the road to New York first thing in the morning. Now you've got my curiosity all worked up."
"Your curiosity huh?" she grinned knowingly as she pushed a long strand of hair back behind her ear. "Well, maybe we'll see if you're a good tipper. How'm I doing so far?"
"Batting a thousand. I'm liking what I've seen."
"Me too. I'm beginning to think you'll do," she laughed, and disappeared off into the kitchen.
I'll do? Well that's intriguing, he thought with a grin.
The brilliant sunset had faded into deep purple as the day slowly turned to night. Through the windows Pete noticed a bright star appearing over the darkening mountaintops. The ridgelines were still faintly visible against the night sky as the moon rose. Can't get this view in the city, he thought with a sigh as he sipped his beer. Looking around the room after a time, he noticed he was now the last diner in the place.
"Dig in, here you go." Jen set his sizzling meal before him, her arm brushing his. "Need anything else?"
I sure as hell do, he thought, the touch of her arm still electric on his skin.
"Good for now Jen, thanks. You closing soon? Looks like I'm the last one here."
"In a half hour, take your time. So what's your name?"
"Peter. Pete. White."
"Peter Pete? Well which is it, Peter or Pete?" she laughed.
"Take your pick Jen, whatever you like."
"Well I personally looooove Peter," she cooed.
"I'll just bet you do," he smirked.
They both erupted in laughter. He was loving their little game.