Ride to Redemption (12 page)

Yippee,
here I am in full tilt with Candi on the verge of another Big O and we’re about
to come to a complete stop in a line of one lane traffic.

“Stay
here,” I yelled to Gio, as I made an immediate U turn and headed back the way
we came.

“Okay,
baby!” I yelled over the engines roar, “It’s now or never.” Over the next 5
terror filled miles, we squirmed, rocked, tossed and twirled our way to a
simultaneous release, set off by this one wicked curve that I went into, too
hot and too fast. The sudden rush of adrenaline created by the fear of our
imminent demise while catapulting over a 5000-foot bluff, took us jointly over
the top. With our legs wobbling, our hearts palpitating, our throats the driest
of dry, I had to pull over and stop on the side of the road, just to catch my
breath.

“I
can't believe you made me do this, but thank you non the less,” breathed Candi.

“Thank
you,” I replied. “It’s time we redress our 'hot' mess and ride, baby, ride.”

“Cute,”
said Candi, “now I have a poet to contend with,” while offering me a hug, a
smile and a kiss while managing to unzip her chaps and wrestle her skinny jeans
back on.

Within
10 minutes, we had made it back to the construction zone with no bikes or cars
in sight.

The
young, disheveled guy in the orange vest, directing traffic, motioned us on,
saying “your friends said you would be coming through balls to the wall, so
I’ve held back the oncoming traffic just for you.”

Just
what did he mean by that? I contemplated, as I throttled down to catch up,
while wondering what Gio had told him to cause him to wait. I bet it had
something to do with sex.

Woo-hoo
strikes again.

Waiting
in a scenic view pull off were Mile and Gio, lips locked and loaded in a tight
embrace. Sheepishly, Gio asked how it was and before I could answer, Candi
replied in my stead, “Awesome, just awesome.”

“Mile
is happy,” smiled Gio, “you teach me?”

“Sadly no,” I solemnly replied, “especially not on this road. I
almost got us killed earlier.”

“But
she is how you say ready?” Gio insisted, “I make sure while we wait for you.”

Sex
is not safe when left in the hands of the 'horny.' I relented. Looking around I
spied a stone wall roughly 50' off the roadway. Motioning for Gio and Mile to
move in that direction, “I have an idea, hopefully, a safe one at that. Go over
to the edge and sit on the granite retaining wall facing away. Hang on while I
retrieve the accelerator.” Looking in my side bag, I scrounged up my small
bottle of mouthwash.

“Seriously,
D, you’re going to loan them that to help them get off,” Candi asked
sarcastically.

“Yep,
but I’m going to clean your lingering presence off it first. Hygiene first.”

“Hell
No! That we DO NOT SHARE! It’s
mine
,
baby!”

“Granted,
I got it, but what am I supposed to do, find him a place to nail her on the
side of the road?” Reluctantly, she agreed and I was off explaining as best I
could to the Italians what I wanted them to attempt on their first dry run.

“Loosen
your chaps, Mile,” I directed, motioning for her to unbuckle and unzip her
jeans, too. “Don’t worry, Mile, your chaps will cover most of you.”

Truthfully,
I don’t think she cared whether they did or not.

“Gio,
sit on the edge of the wall and ask Mile to snuggle up behind you, as if she
was riding behind you.
 
You’re on
your own. Everything forward is up to you. Good luck, Guys. Oh, yeah, timing is
everything,” I muttered, leaving them to their own (and Candi's) devices.

Walking
back to the bikes, Candi stammered, “I really cannot believe you just instructed
two over-sexed Italians, how to mutually pleasure each other, as if on a
motorcycle, while sitting on a rock wall in public.”

“Let’s
call it what it is, baby ... a dry run. This may also be the safest place they
will ever find around here to practice my madness.”

“You’re
resourceful, D, that’s all I can say. Nope, there’s one more thing, sometimes
you’re downright gross. Better still, you're twisted, especially when it comes
to sex.”

“Thank
you, Candice. I appreciate your candor,” I expressed with a smile, just as I
heard Mile thoroughly enthralled in the moment. Thanks to Gio’s lust filled
foreplay, we did not have to wait long for them to declare success. The
Italians joined us in quick order, looking completely satisfied and equally
content.

“We
rest,” shared Gio between breaths. Mile, too, nodded her concurrence.

“We
rest,” I replied, snatching two bottles of water and some road snacks from the
trunk and heading to the shade of a large tree with Candi in tow.

Chapter
18

F
inally
on the road again, briefly rested, hydrated, and mostly mellowing, we rarely
cruised over 40 mph, soaking in the beauty of the magnificent vistas, the
rain-swollen rivers, the snow capped mountains and the lush green valleys
en-route to Cooke City. The best scenic views thus far that we’ve been
privileged to experience and Gio is not even filming, he’s apparently lost in
his own mind, just breathing in the afterglow.

Woo-hoo strikes again, Italian style!

We
arrived at the only hotel in Cooke City that boasted a restaurant and lounge
shortly before seven. “Gio, Mile, Candi and I are dining in tonight. Call us
when you get up in the morning and we’ll meet you for breakfast, until then,
Ciao.”

“Ciao”
replied Mile. While Gio was seriously trying to come up with something else to
say, I grabbed our bags and Candi and headed to the room; where I hoped to find
some peace and quiet, along with much needed answers.

Taking
a quick shower, without extending an invitation for company, I laid down on the
king size bed in my shorts and tee shirt, while Candi stared off into deep
space. Do you need a shower too, or do we start spinning stories?”

“A
shower,” replied Candi, dropping her clothes in the floor, as she made a
beeline to the bathroom and abruptly closed the door.

I
instinctively ordered room service for the two of us, plus two bottles of
merlot. Surely, between the food and the wine, I can loosen her lips and she
mine. Standing naked and looking refreshed before me, Candi eagerly joined me
on the bed.

“I’m
hungry,” plied Candi.

“I’ve
got that covered,” I replied, “room service is on the way.”

“For
you, baby.”

Oops
… I sure as heck, didn’t see that coming.

“Those
pouting lips are not going to work tonight; tonight we talk, all night if we
have too,” I announced, while thinking, you’re going to turn down this
magnificent specimen of a woman, just like you did with Vic.

A
sign of the times D, maybe you are twisted or you’re just not right!

The
sudden knock at the door, signaled room service had arrived. “Put some clothes
on, baby, or at least hide in the bathroom. I’ll tell you when it’s safe to
come out.” I allowed the steward to set up the dinner for two and open the
first bottle of wine. Reading his mind, I headed off his wandering eyes, “she’s
in the bathroom, naked, impatiently, waiting for you to leave.”

“Yes
sir, right away, sir,” he replied, as I signed the check, leaving him an
excessively generous tip, compliments once again of Giovanni.

I tapped on the bathroom door. “He’s gone Candi, you can
come out now.”

The
door slowly creaked open and she appeared just like the way she went in,
pleasantly, pleasingly naked.

“Would
you please put some clothes on, Candice?”

“Nope,
not now, not tonight,” cooed Candi.

“Just
how, pray tell, am I supposed to carry on a serious conversation with you,
while my lower half is elevated, ready willing and able to jump you on a
moment’s notice?”

“That’s
what I’m counting on D, because no matter how much food and wine we have, I
still won’t be satisfied without having you for dessert.”

Over
a dinner consisting of filets, fresh grilled vegetables and loaded potatoes,
Candi and I made irrelevant small talk, while the lower half of me kept rising
and falling each time my gaze drifted from her eyes to her scrumptious body.
Opening the second bottle of wine gave me the courage to address the giant
lingering elephant in the room.

“Who
the Hell is Giovanni and why is he here?”

“Where
do I start? Asked Candi, fidgeting uncomfortably in her chair.

“At
the beginning if you please,” hoping to get through this dreaded conversation
before morning.

“It
was a cold snowy day in December,” Candi began.

Note
to Self: One bottle of wine was sufficient.

“No,
not that far back smart ass, why don’t you start with Sioux City and Sweet
Fanny’s?”

“Do
you remember one of our late night talks when I told you how protective my
parents were?”

“Vaguely,
go on.”

“Well
they were, anytime a boy was involved and even though I’ve been married and
divorced, they continue to be. They kept asking me about you and all that I
could tell them was what you told me. Some things I even had to lie about, like
how many times we had been out and where your family was from.”

All
I could do at this point was nod and nod and nod.

“I
thought they were more than satisfied with my answers and you, for that matter,
until Giovanni rides up on his bike with his new filly in tow. Evidently, mom
and dad found out he was coming from Italy to Sturgis with his girlfriend, so
they asked him to find me and ride along with us. At least, until he could
insure them I was in safe hands.”

“Interesting,”
I quipped. Followed by, “Just what is his connection to them?”

“I'm
reluctant to answer that. Uh …Well … I guess you could say they're … related.
OK, Gio is their nephew,” Candi replied, barely audible.

“Nephew,
so that makes him, what, your first cousin?”

“Yes,
I guess so.”

“You
guess so. Really, Candice? Your cousin is from an ‘Italian Family’ that just so
happens to change his plans so that he can fly into B.F. Iowa to keep an eye on
you, and me for that matter. What kind of weight do your parents throw around
here in the states and in Italy?”

“What
do you mean what kind of weight? They’re family. That's what families do.”

“Is
that with a capitol F or a small f?” I asked sarcastically.

“They’re
family, we’re family, and Gio is just acting like a big brother. At least, he
was until you showed him how you do your girl (his first cousin D, his first
cousin) on the bike, and then helped him do his. Now all I can imagine is him
trying to do one up on you, by finding some perverted way to have full blown
sex with Mile on the bike so he can show you something, too.”

“But
he’s carrying, Candi.”

“You’re
carrying, D.”

“I
have a permit.”

“He
has a name, therefore he has a reason. For all I know he has a permit.. Did you
ask him? We can split hairs all night long over this or you can just accept it
for what it is. Two overprotective parents, worried about their little girl,
riding off into the sunset with some guy she barely knows.”

“You
emailed me remember, just out of the blue? Which brings me to my next question,
why? Out of all the guys you could have found in Chattanooga, why did you
contact me? “

“Marcy
said you were a really nice guy and I should meet you.”

“And
Marcy deduced that how? I’ve only met her twice, and both times professionally,
I might add. Sure we made small talk, but that was it.”

“Marcy
said it was your eyes. There was something deep inside them that made her want
to see into the depths of your soul. Since she was already taken, she offered
you to me.”

“Really,
like a piece of meat to be passed around till someone bites ?“I asked, more
perplexed than disgusted.

“Nooo.
She was sure you had been hurt and were hiding behind some high wall, just like
me. Marcy figured the best way to heal my hurts was to find me someone hurting
too. Which I assume, is why she zeroed on you.”

“You
could have filled me in a little earlier than today, could you not? “

“Why,
baby? We hit it off immediately and you couldn’t wait to get in my pants by the
end of our first encounter. But you did. You controlled yourself. You respected
me, D. You impressed me!”

“Whatever,
and by our second rendezvous, I couldn’t wait to get into yours, period.”

“So
here we are, now what? Are you going to drop me off at the nearest bus station
or leave me here with Cousin Giovanni and ride off into the sunset?”

“There
are still many more unanswered questions I have for you and we haven’t even
started in on my story. Lay down on the bed with me Candi, I want to look into
your eyes.”

I
was suddenly feeling, totally disgusted with myself. My little brain was
overruling my big one, and now I was surrounded by an Italian family,
capitalizing the letter F, followed by a U.

Looks
like I’m the one being screwed in more ways than one.

“For
now, we’ll have to think long and hard about this.” Which we did, if only for
the moment, as Candi bit her lower lip, before she rolled on top of me, and
began to have a hour long helping of dessert, compliments of my ‘long and hard’
random, misguided thoughts.

I
woke at 6 a.m. to find Candi still naked and brushing her teeth. “Are you ever
going to cover your tits and ass? You make it down right difficult for me to
think of little else.”

“I’m
counting on that, baby. But for now, I’ll put some clothes on so I can walk
with you this morning. Or would you rather I walk in my all together just for
you?”

“For
me, you betcha. For the world just beyond the door … not so much.”

With
Candi finally clothed, we left on a brisk walk toward the northern entrance of
the park where there are a few well-worn trails, veering off into the forest
just before the main gate.

“D,”
breathed Candi, while joyfully swinging my hand, “It would be best for all of
us, if you don’t mention to Giovanni what we discussed last night. It might
send the wrong signal to him, and in turn, my parents would hear of it
immediately.”

“Candi,
you never did tell me his last name.”

“It’s
Cefalu.”

“That’s
good to know,” I replied. “At least it’s not Gambino or Gotti,” I added, hoping
to elicit an immediate knee-jerk reaction out of her.

“What
do you know about the Gotti and Gambino Families?”

“Very
little if anything,” I replied, trying my best to play dumb to the great big
world outside of Tennessee. Then again, she knows by now I'm not a cornbread
fed redneck. I continued, “They have been in the papers quite a lot lately. Oh,
and I heard one of the families was invested heavily in a guy I used to know.”

Bingo!
Watching the color drain immediately from Candi’s face, I knew I had hit a home
run.

Stuttering,
stammering, no longer making eye contact, Candi did her best to change this gut
wrenching subject immediately by asking, “D, I’ve told you my story, when are
you going to tell me yours? “

“More
like, you’ve shown me yours, so when am I going to show you mine? You realize
you’re very distracting. If you can make it a point to keep your clothes more
on, than off, we’ll get to the nuts and bolts of me soon enough.”

“I
can’t believe you said that, D,” Candi retorted. “I thought you liked me naked.
I know you like making love to me. You can’t deny it … I can’t believe you said
that!”

“Neither
can I, baby. Neither can I.”