Road Trip Ch 04 3

continued...

Day 4...

'Chirp'

The sound of Marni's phone signaled that she had received a text message, the signal almost lost in the reggae sounds of Margaritaville Radio.

We were a few hours south of Denver on I-25 heading towards Raton, New Mexico where we'd hook a left, turning east towards Amarillo, Texas.

"SWEET!" Marni shrieked when she read her text. It was from the property management company we had been working with in Gulf Shores, we, trying to secure a week-long rental on the beach.

"A last-minute cancellation has made half of an on-the-beach duplex available and we have first dibs," Marni said, her voice positively bubbling with happiness.

"Snag it," was my simple thought on the matter.

"Okay...that's fine and what time do you close on Wednesday?...No, that shouldn't be a problem at all and if you'd like, I'll give you a credit card right now to secure it," So went Marni's side of the conversation.

My day to drive so I concentrated on that, letting her deal with the details with the agent. I had locked the Beemer at eighty and kept it between the ditches with minimal effort. Hell, doing eighty on a seventy-five mile per hour highway and I was still getting passed.

We would settle for a hi-rise condo, or a B&B, if a beach property wasn't available, but we really, really wanted to walk out of our place and onto the sand, we really did.

"Done and done, Julie-girl," Ms. Marni announced when she broke the connection with the agent, "Now, all I have to do is figure out how to make sure we get there by five PM on Wednesday."

Scrolling through the navigation system of the car, she played with different scenarios for a few minutes. Then, reaching to the back seat, into her shoulder tote, she brought out her IPad and started it up, snagging the signal, and jumped into whatever the hell she was going to do.

"Hmmmm..." She mused.

"Hmmmm, what?" I asked.

"Your system keeps showing us barely able to make that deadline but going through Google maps, it shows a routing that would get us there with a couple of hours to spare," Marni finally announced.

"Can you program the Google routing into my system?" I asked.

"Think so," She replied while looking for the owners' Manual-disk in the glovebox.

"Do it...I'm ready for some serious sun, sand, and warm water," I voted.

"On it."

"That's my girl," I said brightly.

She just looked at me and smiled her beautiful smile...

"Could it be any less scenic?" Marni commented on our drive across the flatlands of Eastern New Mexico and into the Texas panhandle.

"Ever hear the song, "Mile and Miles of Texas"? I asked, "Well, this is the inspiration for it," I joked, "Miles and miles of miles and miles."

We had an ambitious plan for the day.

All the mapping programs and such were indicating that Dallas, Texas would be our overnight stop but Marni and I 'thought' we could get as far as Tyler, Texas, east of Dallas. If we could do that, we'd have a very mangeable drive into Gulf Shores the next day, Wednesday, and should be able to beat the five PM deadline by a couple of hours.

We had gotten a good jump on the day and left Denver an hour ahead of 'plan'. With a little fudging of the speed limits-okay, maybe more than just a little-I thought we could easily make Tyler that night.

"Drive long today and short tomorrow?" I suggested.

"Works for me but if you get tired, I can take the wheel for some of the drive, okay?" Marni replied.

Marni took advantage of being able to use her IPad as we drove, catching up on some work and personal 'stuff' and I just concentrated on staying alert and in control of the car.

Our tag-along passenger, the 800 pound Gorilla that's been with us since we started our trip, napped in the back seat, neither of us acknowledging its presence.

But, it was there, it surely was.

Not a word had been said about our last night in Denver, not even an oblique reference to what, for me, was the best-fucking-orgasm-in-the-world. Nope, Magilla Gorilla continued to sleep peacefully and undisturbed.

"Wichita Falls city limit," I announced, " We're making good time.I think we're going to make Tyler tonight after all, but it'll be fairly late, Marni."

"Doesn't matter, Jules, after this long-assed day, I'm pretty sure the only thing either of us will want to do is crash and burn at whatever hotel we pick," was Marni's thought on the matter.

"Yeah, you're probably right," I agreed, "but, for the record, that doesn't mean I wouldn't want to do 'something' else," I added, flashing her a wry smile.

Oh, hell yes, I was thinking about sex with Marni, after all that has happened since we started this trip, why wouldn't I? But, the reality of this day was that after fourteen or so hours on the road, coupled with the lack of sleep of the past few nights, she was right, we'd crash and burn.

As if she was in my head, reading my thoughts, she reached her hand over, laying it on my shoulder, her fingertips playing with my hair,and said, "We have a lot of time ahead of us, Jules...let's get a good night's sleep tonight, get some much needed rest for the both of us, okay?" smiling at me at the end of her expressed thought on the matter.

Oh goodie, I thought then, at least I'm not the only one thinking about 'it'. From the backseat I was sure that I heard Magilla snort a snore...

Day 5...

"Welcome to Mississippi," Marni remarked as we drove over the bridge that crossed the river of the same name, leaving Louisiana in our rear-view mirror.

"Big-assed river," Marni commented after glancing to her side, then mine, as she drove across the bridge.

"I read that further south, at Baton Rouge and New Orleans, the river is even wider," I contributed, agreeing with her as I took in the view as well.

"By my calculations, we should easily beat the five PM deadline this afternoon," I proclaimed.

"Sounds 'bout right, Sherlock," Marni replied with a big smile.

Tyler had turned out to be a fair-sized city with a good choice of hotels and there were rooms available. Checked in at ten-thirty last night and we were both asleep by eleven, libidos left in the car.

We got a nice start on the day, both of us waking at five'ish. Showers, a quick cup of hotel-room coffee and we were rollin'. Two quick stops for some Starbuck's lattes before entering Louisiana had us both fully awake.

'Chirp', Marni's phone signaled.

"Want to get that for me, babe," Marni asked so's not to drive while trying to read and/or text.

"From the agent," I informed her, "and, in a nutshell, if we would like to send her a list of grocery items, including liquor, she'd see that it gets picked up, delivered and stored...part of their concierge service."

"There should be a truck stop a few miles up the road according to the billboard I saw and there'll be WiFi. Let's grab a bite to eat, fuel up, and email the agent with our list...whad'ya think?" Marni suggested.

"Do it, sounds like a plan," I agreed.

We did just that and received confirmation from the agent of our request, she saying we'd square up when we got to the office to pick up the keys and our directions.

"Almost there, Jules. Can't fucking wait to dip my toes in some warm water," Marni waxed, "Don't get me wrong, I love the Oregon Coastline, but it's mostly rock, and while very scenic, the water is just too fucking cold to enjoy."

"Preaching to the choir, girlfriend," I agreed with a nod, finishing my last bite of breakfast afterwards.

"Think I'm going to recline my seat and rest my eyes, Marni," I informed my travel-pal when we rejoined the interstate traffic after our stop, "I won't be asleep so if you need me to do something, just ask, 'K?"

Marni told me later that I was making low, snoring sounds within three minutes...

"Well, ladies, I think that just about covers everything," Said Slyvia, the property manager, putting all the info and receipts into a large manilla envelope, "any questions?"

"Nope, don't think so," I answered, looking to Marni for confirmation, she nodding her head in agreement with me.

"Remember now, over the bridge and when you get to the 'T', at the light, turn right. You'll go a couple of miles, then just look for the address on the houses on your left, beachside," Slyvia smilingly reminded us.

"Got it, Slyvia, and thank you so much for all of your help," Marni said for the two of us as we said our goodbyes.

The sun was shining its ass off, not a cloud in the sky and the temperature a spring-warm seventy-two. The sun-roof was opened and our windows down as we drove the boulevard towards the bridge and 'T'.

Across the highway, on Marni's side, as we neared the bridge that crossed over a large canal where boats of all types, private and commercial, were docked as far as one could see, we saw a car-filled parking lot of a water-side restaurant, the large sign proclaiming that this was LuLu's.

"Must be good judging by the filled lot," Marni averred, "we might ought to check it out while we're here."

"I'm sure we'll be checking out many of the food and booze joints," I said, "but, you're right, that one bears looking into."

Lots of touristy shops, restaurants, water-sports rental places dotted our route as we wended our way to our 'home', at least, for the next week it'd be our 'home'.

Watching for our place, the beach-facing homes and condos all had numbers and made the search easy.

"Here it is," Marni announced when she spotted our rental, "damn, Jules, I likes it, girlfriend." she exclaimed driving over the sand/shell driveway to our 'side' of the duplex, parking underneath of the raised structure.

"Let's check it out," I exclaimed a bit excitedly, both of us leaving our bags in the car for now, too excited to begin schlepping our stuff up the stairwell that led into the place.

"Oh damn, Jules, will you just look at this place?" Marni said, her excitement level as high as mine, her eyes taking in the huge vaulted ceiling, doing turns as she moved towards the patio doors.

It was beautiful, both inside and out, the stairwell from the ground floor, where we had parked, led to the main floor with a large living area, dining room off to one side, and kitchen, all open, spacious, and well-lit by the glass doors and windows that faced the Gulf of Mexico.

Climbing the stairs to the top level, the third floor, we found a large master-suite with a humongous master bath that had both a shower and a large, two-person spa-tub. There was a balcony that faced the beach, a large balcony with sliding doors in the master suite. The smaller, but still good-sized, second bedroom that adjoined the master, faced the roadway.

"Lookee here, Marni," I said when I spotted the doors of a large, dumb waiter-type elevator tucked away near the stairwell. Not an elevator in the people sense, more like a very small freight elevator to haul up bags and groceries and shit. All three floors had access doors and there'd be no schlepping of bags for these ladies, no sirree.

Before unloading the car, we opened the beach-facing windows and sliding doors, leaving the sliding screen doors closed which kept out 'critters' but allowed the gentle breeze to flow. Off of the second floor, the main social area, the sliders opened to a large porch that had steps leading down to the sandy beach.

The water was about two hundred feet away, small dunes with long, waving blades of 'sand-grass', and a section of a break-fence to keep the dunes from traveling onto the property of the duplex, fronted the beach side.

"Oh Jules, this is the bomb, girl," Marni exclaimed standing at the bottom of our stairs that led onto the beach, her face tilted towards the bright blue sky and sunlight.

"Let's unload, and see who can get into their swimsuit the quickest," I challenged.

Okay, it was late in the afternoon, near five'ish, but the air was tropical-warm and my thought was we'd be able to say that we 'hit the beach' on day one of our stay in GS.

"Wow, this is a nice emenity," Marni remarked when she put the last of her 'stuff' on the "Butler Lift" as the door proclaimed it to be.

Locking the Beemer with the remote, I pushed the button to take the lift to the top floor while Marni ensured that the entry door from the stairwell to the parking spot was locked and secure.

Upstairs, we each grabbed some of our bags and shit, both stopping for a second, looking at the two bedroom doors.

"Master, right?" Marni asked with her eyebrows arched.

"Unless you'd prefer me to use the other bedroom, then, yeah, the Master," I replied.

"Seriously?" She remarked with a look to me as if I was the dumbest human being on the planet.

We took our time once we realized that, though it was spring, the air would be turning coolish as the sun continued its trip over the western horizon. We'd save the swim suits for the 'morrow, it was decided.

The large, walk-in closet easily accomodated all of our hang-ups of which there were few, with shorts, tees, casual wear comprising the bulk of our clothing.

We chit-chatted like a couple of old biddies as we put away stuff, both moving in concert to stay out of each other's way while doing so. Crap put up, we breathed a collective sigh of sucess and smiled to one another.

"We're here, Jules, we're finally fucking here," Marni said with an air of satisfaction as she slipped her arm around my waist and led me out onto our large balcony that provided a most marvelous view of the water and the beach.

Peeking around the dividing wall to the other side of the duplex, Marni turned back, saying, "I don't think anyone else is here, looks empty, no lights or anything."

"Don't you remember? Slyvia said that there was someone coming in on Friday, for a long weekend...otherwise, we're alone all week," I reminded her.

"Oh...yeah, that's right," She acknowledged, adding, "well, don't know about you but I think I'm ready for a cold beer, join me?"

"My pleasure, cold beer sounds about right," I answered, eagerly accepting her invite.

"Here ya' go, girlfriend," Marni announced, handing me a Corona, complete with lime. We were sitting on the porch, kicked back in a couple of lounge chairs, feet propped up on the railing that framed the porch of the duplex.

"Ooooh, that tastes divine," I pronounced after a long pull at the long-necked bottle, my proclamation meeting with an agreeable nod from Ms. Marni.

"So, whatd'ya think about dinner?" Marni asked after a few moments of silent enjoyment of the entire scene, "Go out? Order in? Fix something ourselves? I'm open to whatever."

"Tell you the truth? I'd just as soon stay in tonight, fix up a sandwich, maybe a bit of salad and just enjoy not having to rush to do anything," I voted.

"Aaah, good...we're on the same page," She said in agreement, "Maybe take a walk on the beach tonight?" her voice clearly showing that she'd really, really like to do that.

"Sounds like a plan, chickadee...now, finish your beer and I'll get us each another and then we can figure out something for dinner."

Three beers later we were putting the finishing touches to our ham and cheese sandwiches on a French Baguette bread, topped off with some chips.

"Eat out on the porch?" She suggested and, of course, I was all for it.

We ate in silence for the most part, save for some passing comments about various beach-walkers and their hideous choices of clothing.

Seriously? Do people no longer use mirrors to check their appearance?

"Ready?" Marni asked when she returned from putting our paper plates and empty bottles in the trash, holding her hand out to me.

Taking her hand in mine, she pulled me to my feet and still holding on to me, walked us down the stairs and onto the soft sand. Took us about ten feet before the sneakers came off so that we could walk barefoot, throwing our sneakers onto the porch.

We probably walked a couple of miles before turning around to return to 'our' place. The whole time we walked, we did so hand in hand, which, in retrospect, is probably why we drew some stares from others we passed along the way.

"Didn't really think about it," Marni said as we trudged back through the warm sand, "but do you realize we've been holding hands this whole time?"

I did realize it. I just didn't care. Didn't think it strange. Felt 'right'.

"Bother you?" I asked

"Not in the slightest, I'm evolved," She replied with a smile to me.

"Okay...good, doesn't bother me either," I declared, "others don't like it? Fuck 'em." And with that pronouncement of my view on the matter, we reached our little piece of paradise and climbed the stairs to our home for the next week...

"Hey Jules?" Marni's voice called out, sounding like it was coming from the walk-in closet.

"What?"

"Would you be okay with me letting you shower first? I'm kinda' feeling a bit inspired right now and I'd like to get a couple of ideas down on my sketch pad," exiting the closet with sketch book and a handful of art pencils.

"Oh no, go ahead, run with it," I answered with a smile, "I'll holler at ya' when I'm through, 'K?"

"Don't holler too loud," She smilingly replied, "I'm just going to be out here on the balcony." and opening the sliding screen, she sat on one of the two chairs.

Funny thing is, I remember thinking as I soaped and washed myself, I was okay at showering separately, I didn't feel slighted or anything like that.

I was okay with it I had decided, then and there, because I would be sleeping with her, sharing the same bed with her, and I was going to make love to her, and I was really wanting to do so in the worse way.

And, if it went like I so hoped it would? I would eat pussy for the very first time in my life while making love to another woman.

And I never wanted anything else in my life as much as I wanted that.

"Talk with me while I shower?" Marni asked as she shimmied out of her shorts, kicking 'em from her feet when done.

"If you'd like...actually, I was thinking about sneaking a peek at what you were drawing," I confessed.

"Oh, don't do that...I really don't like showing my sketches until I'm almost done," Marni said semi-sternly.

"Oh, okay...I can see that," I assured her but feeling a wee bit disappointed.

"How would you feel about cracking open a bottle of wine, sitting out on the downstairs porch with me and enjoy a peaceful evening?" I asked as Marni was finishing with the rinsing her hair.

"I think that is a wonderful plan," She answered, her voice sounding very much like she liked my suggestion.

"Tell you what, toots, I'll scoot downstairs and open the wine, let it breathe, and I'll fix a small tray of finger-food if you'd like," I suggested.

"I'm not really hungry, babe," She said, turning off the shower at the same time, "Unless...," her voice sounding as if she were 'musing' about something, "if you were to put your sweet butt on a tray, well then, hell yeah, I'd be interested in some finger-food."

Have to say, I kinda' felt good when she said that.

"Cute," I replied sacrastically, but floating on a cloud when I left the room...

"Okay if we leave the porch-light off while we sit out here?" She asked, switching off the light.

"Oh, that is so much nicer...oooh Marni, look, the moon, an almost-full moon is coming up over there, looks like its rising from the water," I cried.

It was simply a gorgeous moment in time that you had to be there to appreciate.

"Wow...that's beautiful," Marni said softly.

Walking to where I was standing, at the railing, she put her arm around my waist and leaned against me. Without thinking twice about it, I slipped my arms around her and hugged her to my body while we silently stared at the rising moon.

Not a lot of conversation as we sat on the darkened porch, sipping our wine and enjoying the sound of the surf breaking gently on the shore.