Ryan, the Wench, and the Road Home

"My hummingbird? I've got a good friend in banking who says anytime I'm ready, she can introduce me to the people who can make it happen. They're called venture capitalists and they're on the lookout for people with good ideas that they can make money from by supplying the start up cash."

"It's ready right now, isn't it?"

"There are a few tweaks I need to make. I'm not happy with the material I'm using for the strapping, and I want to replace that D battery with rechargeable ni-cad batteries. That way it doesn't have to be so long."

"What else?"

"I'm toying with the idea of making it self lubricating throughout the love making," he turned to her, "you're awful interested."

She grinned at him from behind her mirrored sunglasses. "I don't run into creative people very often, I'm trying to figure out how you think."

"For me, I get an idea stuck in my head and think about nothing else year in and year out until I make it real, or drop it because it isn't feasible. It's one of my many traits that makes me such a dullard."

She shook her head. "You won't get me to believe that, not after what you did to me last night."

Ryan continued pedaling thinking. She was asking too many questions about how one would go about turning his idea into money. Was she interested because she thought he was going to be a rich man?

"This is it," Ryan pointed at a motel sitting on a hill. "The place I'll be staying tonight is called Bare Oaks and it's a short way back down the road. I'll pick you up around 8 am tomorrow morning and we'll get you to your car."

They parted and after he watched her walk into the vestibule of the motel, he continued down the road.

A quick ride brought him to a small sign barely visible among the roadside weeds that read 'Bare Oaks'. He turned onto a gravel two track that led a hundred yards back into woods. It opened up to a parking lot in front of a timbered lodge. The sight brought a smile to his face. Memories of long evenings sitting on the dock beside Lisa looking out over the lake as twilight faded to night brought smile to his face. Maybe what once was could be his again. No, it was better not to think that way. Lisa could be married with a kid for all he knew.

He walked into the building where a very naked middle aged woman sat behind the counter sipping a glass of iced tea.

"Ryan, you're here," she got up with a delighted smile, walked around the counter, and hugged him.

"It's been a year, stranger. We've got to get you up here more often," the woman said still hugging him. "We're thinking of building a year round resort to get you up here off season."

"Delores, why is it I only get older while you get prettier and prettier?" Ryan kissed her on her cheek.

"Ryan, you've been coming to the camp for ten years, it's time you got some better jokes." She patted his cheek. "You look well."

"I'm doing really well, I rode my bike three days to get here."

"You know if you drove a car, you could spend more time here, I'm just saying."

"The biking keeps me fit and strong."

She stood back and looked him over. "I can't argue with that."

"Could I have a camping spot where I won't be sandwiched between two motor coaches belching diesel fumes?"

"We opened a platform area for tent camping in the white pine grove. Would you like a spot there? Campers say the skeeters don't like it there."

As the middle aged woman processed his card, she looked up. "You picked a good night to be here. It's Taco Tuesday for dinner at the cafeteria."

The woman handed Ryan a map with a circle drawn on it. "The platform area is across the bridge and off to the right. There aren't many campers out there so you should have a quiet night."

"I'd like to say hello to Lisa, is she here this year?"

"She's life guarding for the kid's swim down at the pool. She'll be happy to see you."

As he walked his bike back to the camping area, he had plenty of time to look around. Over the ten years he had known Lisa and her family, the camp had evolved. The pool complex had been added five years ago. Her family had added ten cabins, and now a platform area for tent camping. The place looked spiffier every time he saw it. For being hippies at heart, her parents had good business sense. The campground had evolved into a resort.

The knot in his stomach surrendered to the magic of the place. After the accident he had spent an entire summer here letting the sun and the serenity heal his body and mind. He had hated returning to his regular life after all that time.

He approached the pool.

A suntanned beauty at the pool screamed, "Ryan, is that you?" then sprinted over to him on bare feet.

She jumped into his arms wearing nothing but a life guard whistle around her neck and a sun visor. "I've been waiting to see you ever since my parents said you were coming." She gave him a big kiss and then backed away.

"Lisa. Look at you, you've never looked more gorgeous," Ryan grabbed her by the shoulders. An amazing, deep, all over tan matched her curly sun bleached hair perfectly. She had changed though, her girlish slenderness had matured into lush womanly curves. He had thought she couldn't get prettier, and yet she had.

"You have to eat dinner with mom, dad and me this evening."

"I'd love to."

Lisa pouted. "I want to catch up. How long has it been?"

"Two years? I think the last time I saw you was when you were getting ready for your junior year at U of M. I teased you about being so used to nudity that you'd forget and go to class naked."

"Are you seeing anyone?" Lisa asked.

"Nope, still single. Who would want me?"

"I would, for one." Lisa held his gaze.

She wanted to say more, he could tell. Instead she stepped back.

"I've got to get back to the pool. I lifeguard in the afternoon during the kids swim. Join me at the pool after you set up. We can go to dinner from there." She turned and jogged back to her life guard chair.

He watched her go. There wasn't much that jiggled on her that wasn't supposed to. He had never understood how she could look so 'girl-next-doorsy' one moment and so exotic the next. In addition, she had the most kissable neck he had ever seen. The old feelings surged into him. The two years apart meant nothing at all.

"You're a fool," he muttered to himself. "She has a steady beau now, and whatever was between you and her is long gone."

He pushed his bike up the sandy trail past the motor homes, across a low bridge spannng a spring fed creek and into a stand of evergreen trees where fallen needles cushioned his steps and the air grew thick with the redolence of pine.

Setting up camp went without a hitch. The tent sprang into position once the clasp was released. It would accommodate two friendly sleepers . All he had to do was tie the tent down using the eye-bolts on the platform. Once the tent was up, he stripped off his clothing and folded them and slid the pile into the tent. He wouldn't need them until tomorrow.

He stretched at the marvelous kiss of sun on long hidden parts as the breeze caressed his naked body.

A middle aged women wearing only a red bandanna over her hair wandered from an adjacent platform.

"That's a pretty minimal tent. Are you sure you know how to camp?"

"Wendy, how are you?"

She was a tall woman who still looked good despite the years putting a little padding around her middle. Her cafe-au-lait complexion glowed in the sun.

"I'm really good. We're up for the week with the rest of the family."

"Tell the chief hello for me when you see him."

"Tell him yourself when you come over to visit. You know he likes you."

"I'll do that when I get settled and have a chance to spend some time with Lisa."

Wendy shook her head. "When are you two going to get married? You both love each other. If I had jurisdiction here, I'd arrest you both and hold you in the same cell until you married."

Ryan looked her in the eye. "I can't imagine you as a cop."

She gave out a low chuckle. "Maybe it's the way I'm dressed?"

"No, it isn't that. There's a sweetness to your personality that makes it hard to believe."

"If I catch you speeding while I'm on duty, you'd believe it."

"Well then, you'd have to tell me what city you and your husband work in, wouldn't you? When are you going to tell me?"

"We aren't. Life is simpler if we keep our lives up here and our lives in the city separate."

Wendy looked in the direction of the lake. "I see the chief and my grandson are done fishing, I'll catch up with you this evening." Ryan waved at the man and boy and got a wave in return as he applied sunscreen. There were pale parts that he did not want to get sunburned.

Immersing his very tired body in a hot tub and spending an hour soaking away his aches and pains seemed like a very good idea. He set off down the path to the pool area wearing only his shoes and a smile.

"I love this," Lisa slid down until only her head poked above the bubbling surface. "The only thing that makes lifeguarding kids all afternoon bearable is slipping into this hot tub afterwards."

"It feels good on my weary body too."

Lisa cuddled in beside him and he slid his arm around her waist. It was there before he realized that he had done it. He kept it there when she spooned in even closer.

"Two years are too long," he sighed.

"You could have called me, Ann Arbor wasn't that far away from where you live."

"I know, but I wanted you to find someone you could have a normal life with."

"Why aren't you seeing anyone?" she looked up into his eyes.

"You ruined me for other women. You seeing other guys?"

She shook her head. "There were a couple of guys I got semi-serious with in college, but it never went anywhere because they weren't you," a bittersweet smile graced her lips, "we are a pair, aren't we?"

He pulled her into his lap, and kissed her. She kissed back with enthusiasm.

"You're breaking pool rules, mister, no Public Displays of Affection in or around the pool."

"I'm in tight with management. Besides, there's no one around to report us," he kissed her again running his hand up and down her back. She was real and soft and ever so fascinating.

"Are you free this evening?"

She nodded, "What do you want to do?"

"I've got something I want to show you. It solves my erection problem."

Lisa sat up. "You're not hard now, and I'm sitting naked in your lap. What is it, a pill?"

"It's a bionic penis."

Lisa frowned. "You're kidding, right?"

"Nope, it's real. It's taken me two years to work out everything. I'd like for us to try it out tonight."

"It isn't weird or anything, is it?"

Ryan kissed her. "It's as natural as I can make it. You decide if it's weird, and I'll understand if you decide to pass on the experience."

She laid her head on his shoulder. "I wanted to marry you two years ago. I still want to marry you with or without your electronic toy."

"I know. I'm the problem, not you. I've read about marriages without the husband being able to participate and things can get weird. I couldn't and wouldn't do that to you. I love you too much."

Ryan squinted at the clock on the wall. "It's getting late. Most everyone is at the cafeteria. What time do they stop serving?"

"Seven."

Lisa sat up. "We need to get going, it's Taco Tuesday. I can't tell you how hungry I am right now."

Ryan stood and held out his dripping hand to steady Lisa.

He handed her a towel and took a moment to look her over. "You're definitely arm candy. I would be proud to escort you to dinner."

"How about I make you my arm candy tonight," she gave him the once over. "You look a little pale around the groin, but otherwise pretty good.

"I'm sure I don't qualify."

Lisa shook her head. "Men have no say in it. Women decide if you're hot or not, and I declare you hot. Those hours of pedaling a bike have put lean muscle on you," she stroked his six pack," now let's get something to eat."

They ate dinner with her family. Delores, Lisa's mother and Tom her father treated them to a bottle of wine.

"I've wondered what wine pairs fish tacos," Ryan picked up the bottle and squinted at the label.

"It's a winter white that's grown in a vineyard north of Traverse City. If you prefer a beer like I do, I've got a couple bottles of a summer shandy cooling in the refrigerator in the kitchen," Tom pointed over his shoulder.

Ryan shook his head. "The wine is great."

Tom was a big guy. Lisa got her height and her sandy blond hair from him. He had been a lineman for U of M in college and he had the knee surgery scars to prove it. Blond body hair and freckles covered his sunburned complexion from the neck down. His most prominent feature was the wire rimmed glasses that made his eyes look bigger than they were. He was the quiet one. Delores dazzled people with her personality. It had taken Ryan a while to realize that Tom went about the business of keeping the place up and running while Delores handled customer relations.

"Did Delores tell you about our plans to expand? When you get a chance I'd like to talk to you about it. A hundred grand gets you in the door as a partner."

"I want in. You folks treated me like family when I needed one, and this is one way I can return the love," Ryan sipped his wine. It was a little on the sweet side, but otherwise not bad.

"Would you two stop talking business," Delores slapped each of their arms. "There are two delightful women here, and you need to pay attention to us or at least me."

Lisa looked like a younger version of her mother except for the hair. Delores' hair was a deep brown shot through with gray worn short and curly. Her modest bust had yet to sag making her look younger than she was. Both women had intelligent hazel eyes although Delores had smile lines bracketing hers. Lisa was bustier than her mother, but otherwise had the same athletic figure. Her most notable feature was her curly blond hair that she had pulled back into a bushy bun almost as big as her head. She looked like she had walked off a California beach.

"My hot shot business major daughter is taking over the books," Tom pointed at Lisa. "I'm beginning to slow down at the age of sixty, and retirement is looking sweet. People tell me there are warm places to go to in the winter."

Lisa raised her hand. "It's true my first task following graduation was to drag my parent's manual accounting practices into the computer age which means I spend my mornings in a tiny little office staring at a spreadsheet while sorting through invoices and accounts receivable. Lucky me."

"I spend my morning plunging toilets and keeping the pool water from turning green," Tom chuckled. "I'll trade anytime you want."

"I spend my mornings washing load after load of sheets and towels," Delores declared.

"You all make owning a business sound so glamorous," Ryan interjected, "I think I'll remain a writer."

"It's not a bad life, but it has its sucky moments." Delores opined.

Lisa slid her hand into Ryan's under the table and gave it a squeeze.

Ryan grinned. Were the old feelings coming back?

"I will say one thing," Ryan looked down at his chest and stomach, "nudity takes all the anxiety out of eating tacos. If you drop ground beef or taco sauce down the front of you, it wipes right off." Ryan daubed a bit to taco sauce off his chest with a napkin.

"I know, right? There were times at school when I dripped something like spaghetti sauce down the front of my blouse and ruined it. It would have been so much easier if we were all nude. I could never get my house mates to agree to nude dinners though."

"Any activities tonight?" Ryan asked.

"Nope, Tuesdays are a quiet evening. Tomorrow night there's the bonfire on the beach. Most everyone brings something to drink which loosens the party up a bit. Sometimes we sing songs, sometimes people dance around the campfire, there are a few games we play to break the ice. Everyone gets toasty and a little bit naughty then they go back to their accommodations knowing they've had a true camp experience," Lisa looked to Ryan, "you'll be here for it, won't you?"

"Not unless you help me. Yesterday, I helped a woman with a flat tire. She had been abandoned by her boyfriend and needed to get to her car parked up at Wilderness State Park."

"Where is she?" Tom asked frowning.

"I didn't want to drop an unexpected guest on you guys without warning."

He watched Tom, Delores and Lisa exchange glances.

"We've got empty rooms here. Why don't you go and get her this evening? We won't charge her for the room. At least offer her the opportunity to come here. Staying alone in a hotel room can be deadly dull," Delores looked around the table for agreement, "If nudity bothers her, she can stay in her room for the evening."

"We can pick her up in the truck. I don't imagine you want to climb on the bike again this evening," Lisa thought aloud.

Ryan nodded, defeated. The evening with Lisa was not going to happen. He would be accompanied by Bree whether he wanted her or not.

Delores stood. "Well this fifty-eight year old woman wants to go home and relax. These days keep getting longer and longer."

"You're fifty-eight?" Ryan stood to take her tray to window, "I guessed you were in your forties. This running around naked must keep a person looking young."

Delores smiled and turned to Lisa. "I like him; keep him around."

Everyone at the table stood.

"I'm headed back to the tent," Ryan stretched his tired legs, "I need to climb into clothes again."

Lisa kissed him.

Delores shook her head. "What the heck."

She reached up and gave Ryan a hug and a kiss.

"I never pass up a chance to give a handsome man a hug and a kiss." She reached down and pinched his ass. "That's because I want to." She winked at Ryan.

Ryan ambled back to his tent and pulled on a t-shirt and shorts. When Wendy gave him the 'what the heck is going on?' look, he shrugged.

"I've got to leave camp for an hour or so. I'll be back."

She nodded and Ryan walked the trail up to the lodge. Lisa was waiting in the pickup.

"What's you relationship with this woman?" Lisa asked before they were out of the parking lot.

"I met her yesterday along the trail like I said."

"Did you sleep with her last night?"

She studied his face longer than she should have considering she was driving.

"Sort of," his voice sounded sheepish to him. He resolved to sound a little more macho.

"Define sort of," there was steel in Lisa's voice.

"I wanted to try the Hummingbird out before I sprang it on you. It seemed like that ideal chance. I turned the sensation way down for me so I could observe the effects of my unit on her."

They turned out on the highway and Lisa mashed down on the accelerator. Ryan braced himself.

"Do you have feelings for this woman?"

"None," Ryan shouted above the engine's roar.

The speedometer readout said they had passed 80.

"Lisa, you need to slow down or we'll pass the motel."

She looked at the dashboard, "Sorry."

They made the turn into the parking lot on two wheels, and skidded into a parking spot.

"I want to be angry. Sleeping with her feels like a betrayal to me in my heart, but my head knows that there were no expectations of exclusivity between us." she glared at him, "but if you pull something like this again, I'll drop you."

She sat back and smiled. "Now give me a kiss."

They climbed out of the pick up and walked up to the motel.

"Could you ring up Brieanne Bonner's room and tell her that there are two people waiting for her."

The baby-faced summer intern dialed up the room and waited.

"There's no answer, sir."

"Tommy, I dated your older brother, you know me. Is she up there, or is she out?" Lisa pounded her fist on the desk.

Tommy looked to see if the boss was in his office. "She and a guy left about twenty minutes ago. The guy was driving one of those tricked out pickups with a big wheels and the really high suspension."