Day Nineteen - Friday
I woke at six with brown hair in my face and her head on my chest. I hated to wake her but we need to get going. I kissed her awake saying it was time. She smiled and asked if she could interest me in some loving.
"How about when we finish the job. We'll celebrate," I said hugging her.
She smiled and got up going straight for the washer to put the clothes into the dryer. I put on my shorts and the T-shirt I had brought saying I was going to start the coffee.
Over at my trailer, I started the small pot first then assembled the big one. The small pot is really fast so I had coffee by the time Sue looked in on me. I brought her a cup along with one for me and she pulled the light switch and kissed me.
Ruth and Tiny came walking from the back, Glenda and Martin from the side and Charlie and Shawna from the front. The eight of us discussed the previous day. Charlie and Shawna were really excited that I was doing work for the NASCAR guy. He said knowing someone like that would be a career maker. I told him about the offer of traveling with him. Charlie almost drooled.
Not for me I said.
I asked Glenda where her Victoria Secret stuff was. She blushed and said she didn't have the guts to wear it out here yet. Tiny told her he would love it if she did.
Martin added, "If she wore it out here, she'd wear me to a frazzle. Just trying it on for me had us acting like we were teens."
Glenda blushed but said, "You were the stud yesterday. You probably won't be able to handle any for a week."
"Try me sweet stuff, try me," Martin grinned.
I asked Glenda if she could cut my beard shorter again so I could have a close cut beard. She jumped up and came back with her scissors and a big towel. She worked my face over till she stood back and looked me, "now you're really handsome."
Sue, Shawna and Ruth all agreed. I told them I just wanted to look more business like. Charlie kidded me saying, "Yep all the yuppie business types I know have two foot long pony tails."
We sucked up two rounds of both pots before saying it was time to get going. I put everything away and rinsed out cups then headed over to Sue's to get dressed. The coveralls were a nice light blue and came out of the dryer looking good.
We stopped at a Burger King for a sausage, biscuit and egg sandwich along with a container of milk each. That should get us through till lunch.
We walked into the shop at eight sharp. Gene was staring at the frame. He had one of his squares measuring angles and a tape measure holding it to check a distance as we approached.
"There is no way you did this already," he said.
"It's not done. We have most of a day yet probably," I said pointing to welds that had not been cleaned up.
"Where?" he asked.
"All these have to be cleaned up to look like those in the front. We have all of the chassis and cage plus we have to finish the rear. I haven't drilled any of holes yet or mounted any of the tabs."
"You'll do that too? For the same money?"
"Sure unless you want to pay us more. Now I need the plate metal for the tabs."
"My guys will drill the holes but I'd really get off on you doing the tabs. I'll get the blanks over here right now."
We got out all the equipment, put the old battery on the charger and put in the fresh one. I showed Sue that on some of the welds the straight grinder would work better and on some of the welds the conical one we be good. She understood and started in as a guy walked up a handcart full of plate blanks.
I measured up and cut all the blanks marking each one with chalk and numbering the print, continuing from the last number Sue had stopped at.
I shaped any that needed it and smoothed all the edges of the rest.
I double checked the prints and measured multiple times then tacked the piece. I tacked a group of tabs then went back and re-measured. I repeated the process till I double-checked every thing to make sure they were all accounted for. I got an electric drill out of the truck fitted the grinder bit and started grinding the welds. I had done a good job and there was hardly a bead. I used the files then the sandpaper on each one.
Sue had finished up the tube welds on the tabs. We finished by eleven. I went out to the truck and got my drill bits and clamp set. I checked the print and had Sue help find the exact spot for the hole. We measured several times checking to make sure the hole would be at the right degree of the tube. I set the clamps, making sure once more the hole was where it should be, turned on the drill then used the control arm to lower the bit while squirting a little oil on the bit and bar contact.
There was only about two dozen holes. By almost one o'clock we were done. I put all my tools away and closed up my table while Sue swept up around the frame. We stood together looking at the frame checking all the contacts admiring our work.
I went to get Gene. He said, "You done with those tabs already?" as we walked to the frame.
He was looking at the welds shaking his head, "This is beautiful work." His hand caught and he saw the hole. He started looking at the print then back at the frame and asked, "You drilled all the holes already too?"
"Thought you should get your money's worth. We want to do more for you as you need us."
"You have my business. If the other team owners find out about you, you'll be all over the area building frames. You really do nice work."
He had one of his senior crew chiefs come over and had him check it out. Everyone was happy so Gene came out with a check for us. We shook hands then I looked at the check. "This isn't what we agreed on."
"The extra is for the speed and the extras you gave me. You know the tabs and holes and especially for the nice work. Just say I gave you a tip so you'll do more work for me."
We shook again then Sue said she would follow me to the storage place.
When we got there I remembered that I had not ordered the material for the bike frame. I used my cell phone and ordered two sets of the material to be delivered to the shop. After giving them my credit card number, I asked if I could get some kind of account with dating. They had to have my credit card account as guarantee. That was reasonable so the deal was done. I told them this order should be paid for when they shipped it. I was assured it would go out today.
Sue said for us to go to the computer store to get my equipment. Sounded good to me. Sam was glad to see us but said he wasn't worried as I had already paid for the PC. He had ordered an Internet account from GTE for me and had it all set up with the Windows 98 installed.
Sue said she would show me how to do everything else but the big thing would be for me to get used to entering everything on as near a daily basis as I could.
We loaded the computer in the pickup then headed home stopping at the grocery store for some romaine, four big porterhouse steaks, some potatoes to bake and a couple of packs of frozen chopped spinach. I wanted to make some Caesar dressing and found a small food processor that was the perfect size. I bought the other ingredients to make it then we were on the way home.
We brought everything into the house and looked at how we were going to re-arrange the living area to accommodate the PC. Sue had the solution, "You don't use the counter much. It's so big, the PC will fit on it and you'll still have counter space. It'll be perfect for you.
We made all the connections then plugged the phone cable into the convenient wall phone outlet. She turned it on and let it boot, helping put in passwords as we went. She booted Internet explorer then used the passwords Sam had written down for us. She showed me how to type in the address for a site. Then pulled a card out that Gene had given her. She had me type in the site and it came right up. We looked through the site with my marveling at the information that was available.
"You ain't seen nothing yet," she said then typed in the name www followed by biggirlclothes then a dot com. A site with very large women decorating the page showed up. Sue was in the middle, much, much heavier in the picture than she was now. I pointed to it and she said that was a hundred and thirty pounds ago. When I lost all that weight, the things that didn't shrink were these as she fitted her tits in her hands through the coveralls. She smiled at me and asked, "does that make you a happy camper?"
"Sure."
"The weight loss or the tits?"
"If you wanted to lose the weight then I'm glad you did but of course I'm happy you still have a very nice chest. If we had met and you were a hundred and thirty pounds bigger, I would have enjoyed you just the same. It's you I like."
"You say the nicest things."
She explained how she had an agreement with a clothing manufacturer. They supplied her with a catalog that she displayed on her site. She took orders that were sent to both the manufacturer and her. She followed up on everything to make sure everyone was taken care of then checked her bank account for the money being deposited from credit cards. She said she didn't make a ton of profit but it had grown till she could soon live on it very nicely.
"You do this all on the Internet?" I asked marveling how compact everything was.
"The more big girls that get on the net, the more business I get."
I called the bike shop to tell them that we were going to have porterhouse steaks. Charlie said they would knock off before six and be home. I told Sue that I needed to run to the bank to get a business account and she said she would go do some of her order input then be back over.
The bank was easy, I showed the corporation articles that were still in the truck then signed the card. They said my checks should be there next Wednesday to pickup. I deposited the five grand check then drew out fifteen hundred from my personal account for a cashier's check for Sue. I asked for a visa card for the business account and said it would arrive at my home address in a few days.
I showered and put on some shorts and a T-shirt to make dinner in. I had just popped a beer and was looking through the card-printing brochure when Sue came in. She gave me a kiss and I said, "I have something for you."
"Save for later, we have to start supper soon," she said now giving me a hug and another kiss.
"Some foolin' around would be fun but I have something else for you," I said reaching over to the counter for the cashiers check, "Your cut and part of the tip for the job we did." I smiled at her as I gave her the check. "Your part of the job we did together."
She frowned at me, knitted her eyebrows then looked at the check. Her big brown eyes were silver dollar size almost matching her open mouth. She looked back up at me with a shocked expression, "You can't give me this. It's too much."
"Probably not enough. Without you being there helping me as much as you did, I would still be there grinding welds. You were great. You're a fast learner, not afraid to get your hands dirty and you really work at doing a good job. That's worth a lot. Consider that a couple of tough day's pay and your part of the grand tip we got for the job."
"If I'm going to get this kind of money, you have to teach me how to do more so I can help you on more jobs."
"Well, we have a couple of more car frames to do and I'm sure we'll be back for an encore for NASCAR and we have some bike frames to do. We're probably charging too much to do a car frame like that but even at three grand we would come out pretty good. We won't have to kill ourselves to get them done so it will take us a lot longer. There is lot's more money on the way.
She said, "I'll be right back and ran to her place then came back quickly, giving me another smiling kiss and hug when she came. We went out to the patio and were soon joined my Martin, Glenda and Ruth, who joined us drinking a beer. Sue drank a diet coke. She wanted to keep her now small figure.
They all contributed toward deciding how the card should be and we drew one up so it could be printed. Sue offered to make a copy on the PC so I said that would be great so she went inside.
Martin kidded me about getting into the computer age. I told him I probably was a little late getting there.
I was trying to write down all the dollar transactions I had done so far. I listed everything by date from the first cases I did right up to today. I wrote down all the money that I had given Abe as well. I was glad I was doing this now or I wouldn't have been able to remember it all pretty soon.
Tiny came over and told me how to account for all the money I had put into the business and how I could get it back out without paying taxes on it. When I explained how my biggest expenditure was the auction, and what I made on the subsequent sale of the equipment he whistled and complimented me on making a good deal.
I fired up the grille about five thirty. Sue had already put the potatoes in the oven and had the spinach in a bowl to microwave. I prepped the steaks and made the Caesar dressing and pulled the lettuce apart while carrying on a conversation through the screen door. The other folks said they were headed home to eat and left. We set the table, complete with wineglasses then Sue and I cuddled and kissed a little until Shawna opened the door and said, "Get a room."
Her hair was still wet from a shower. I handed her two beers took one for myself then carried the steaks and put them on the grille. We were done eating and cleaned up by seven-thirty. Charlie looked at me and said, "Let's ride." We all had to dress to ride so we split up to meet in five minutes watching me pull my bike out of the shed. I fired it up letting it idle while I helped Sue with her helmet.
I put her on first to show her how to sit and where to put her feet. I told her to put her body against my back and just lean when I did. Stay right with me and it will be smooth as glass. Charlie took off with Sue and I close behind. He rode north instead of back toward the city. Way out highway 41 we came to a place called the Florida Bar. It had a bunch of bikes in front. I recognized several of the guys outside and inside from the club. I noticed that there was another group wearing different colors. They were all getting along so I figured they were not competing clubs or else the other club was an affiliate.
Hap saw us and came over with another guy checking out Sue, "Well welder man, you just keep coming with new rides." He gave Sue the once over again then looked back at me winking, "How do like riding Jake's old luxury liner?"
"It's a real nice ride, I'm working on Snakes old shovel so I can have some wind in my face too. I know why they call the monsters like that garbage trucks now," I said trying divert Haps eyes glued to Sues bulging T-shirt. "There's so much junk and garbage on it, you need a program to figure out what toy to play with next."
It wasn't that funny but must have tickled Hap's funny bone as well as the guy that came over with Hap.
Hap pointed at the man next to him, "Steven Big Jones from down south. They came up for a visit and are camping near here. These guys are a spin of our chapter in Miami. Jones, Steve is the best welder you'll ever meet and Charlie is definitely a great wrench."
The man nodded, he didn't offer his hand or anything. His eyes were, for lack of better words, dead, completely emotionless. I'd hate to play poker with him.
Hap pulled me aside, leaving Sue with Shawna and Charlie while Big Jones went back to the bar.
"You did good with the cops. My man at the gun shop said you brought in Charlie's piece to modify. How come."
"Easy, Charlie can't shoot for shit and really doesn't want to learn. Bloodthirsty Shawna can't hold it up with an eight-inch barrel so I'm having a four-inch put on it. If they ever need it, she will be able to shoot."
When I said blood thirsty, Hap started laughing again, "You need to buy them something that Charlie can shoot, like an automatic or a .38 special revolver."
"When all this shit happened I picked up another 9-mil for her. She's deadly with it. Now along with the big gun, I feel safer in the neighborhood."
Hap nodded then told me that one of his prospects had a broken frame and could I help the kid out. I told him that I would drop by Saturday around noon so I could have some of the Saturday chili after I fix it. Hap slapped me on the back and said I would be welcome to some chili.
He went off to the bar and I rejoined Charlie and the girls.
Charlie asked, "Hap tell you what he needed? Probably a kid with a cheap broken frame."
"I'll take care of it Saturday real quick," I said.
Shawna was quick, "Yeah and eat so much of their chili till you can't walk. That stuff is dangerous."
"I think that's how they get most of their prospects. They entice them with their Saturday chili," Charlie joked.
"That and all the extra property of babes they have since the last batch of junkies went to jail," Shawna said with some disgust.
"Hap's done a good job cleaning out the junkies and heavy dealers. He knows the club can't survive in town if cops think they are dealing. They make enough money honestly selling used bikes and bike parts to be playing fast for easy money," Charlie explained then said, "Let's roll, we'll take Sue for ride down to Jim's."
We rode out of the parking lot of the Florida bar sedately then cranked it on as soon as we were clear. The acceleration pinned Sue back in her seat making her holler from excitement. As soon as the g's were reduced she hugged herself to my back, saying she loved it. She added that if I kept it up she would come in her jeans.
We rolled into Jim's and were greeted by several guys I now knew. All of them gapped at the giants under Sue's blouse. One comment we heard was, "Geez, he goes from double d to that, I wish I had what he has, man oh man."
Sue nudged me, hugged my arm against one of her pillows and smiled.
Inside Denise was tending bar. She was standing on the end where people who are intimate with the barmaids sit. There was the deputy in jeans and T-shirt sipping a long neck. Denise saw us and came running out from behind the bar. She ran up and jumped wrapping her legs around my waist and her arms around my neck. She gave me a toe-curling kiss, then leaned back and said, "Thanks."
Then still hanging on to me she turned to Sue, who had been startled by Denise' demonstration, "You are so lucky if you are close to this guy. He is the best. I love him to death." Denise got down from me, reached over and pulled the deputy my the shirt over to us, "now this guy is my heart throb love of my life, but Steve? He's my friend that I'll love for live." Denise gave the deputy a kiss, and then she kissed me, then kissed him again.
Then she really shocked Sue, Denise put her arms around Sue and hugged. The sight of all that tit flesh pressed together probably gave every guy who saw it, a hard on. I could hear Charlie and the deputy groan.
Denise just said, "Take care of him for me. He needs a good woman," and then she went back behind the bar hollering, "Whadaya have?"
The deputy looked dazed from the display but recovered to ask how we were. Charlie and I both agreed that it was nice that we didn't have to see him because of trouble.
Sue drank a light beer with us, but was sipping it slowly while Charlie, Shawna and I chugged ours. We had a second one while visiting with folks. Shawna introduced Sue to the other women there and who those girls' partners, husbands and boyfriends were.
Charlie said he wanted a longer ride so he suggested the Crab Shack for a quick one then home. We blasted across the causeway hoping the cops were watching out somewhere else. At the Crab Shack, the smells were really enticing. Sue said, "this place makes me gain five pounds just smelling it."
I described how great the grouper sandwiches were and the onion rings were to die far. Sue just smiled and said, "Perhaps you can share a little of yours with me sometime."
Sue didn't have a beer but Charlie, Shawna and I did. We drank it outside rather that stay squashed up within the throngs inside. For a tiny little junky place, they did a hell of a business.
We finished our beer then headed home, once across the causeway we backed off and rode sedately the rest of the way passing several patrol cars off the side of the rode hidden or with their lights flashing while they discussed a driver's misdeeds.
We were passing a county deputy car with the lights flashing, barely going ten miles an hour because of gawker congestion. The officer had the stopped cars door open with the driver standing in front of him. Just as Charlie was about to pass the car, there was a flash in front of the officer and he actually came off his feet flying backward. Charlie swerved to miss the deputy rolling on the ground trying to keep his bike upright with all the traffic around us.
I saw the driver of the stopped car raise the gun again pointing at either the deputy or Charlie and Shawna. The only way I could help or stop the guy was to hit him. I yelled for Sue to hang on and rammed the front end of the big bike into him. The front tire and fender squashed the guy into the doorframe of the car. The gun went flying and we almost did too. I had my feet braced on the crash bars and my hands on the grips. I went head on into the windshield with Sue hugging my back.
I didn't get knocked out and we didn't fall over. The bike was kind of wedged into the guy who was screaming. I told Sue that if she could get off the bike, do it quick and go stand on the gun. Because we were going so slowly and the bike had been idling, the motor died on contact. Sue was able to get off and went to do as I asked. I switched off the key then stood over the bike and pulled it back off the trapped guy. As soon as the bike was off him he fell on his face.
Charlie came up looking a little scratched up with Shawna right behind him also looking tattered. Sue was hollering at Shawna who went over to Sue. I could see Sue pointing at the gun the Shawna standing on it. Sue walked quickly back to the sheriff's car and was doing something inside of it.
Cars were now stopping to look at Charlie's bike laying on the street as well as mine and the deputy and the guy on the ground. Charlie said the deputy was hurt bad but should live. I told him to watch the guy while I checked the deputy. A guy had stopped his car next to the deputy and was standing there. I asked him if he had a cell phone and he nodded yelling, "I already called 911. Are they dead?"
I shook my head no then crouched by the deputy. He had been shot on his lower right side and was bleeding pretty badly. I opened his shirt then tore open his T-shirt, seeing the entry hole and the seeping blood. I pulled off my T-shirt, tore it in half and press half of it over the entry hole then pushed him over to see the larger exit hole with the metal sticking out of his back. I pressed the second half of my T-shirt into the wound.
Sue came from the sheriff's car opening a field first aid kit. She looked at what I had done, nodded then quickly pulled some tape off a dispenser and taped the front. I rolled the deputy over and she repeated the taping.
Sirens were coming, lots of them. Another sheriff's car ran up on the sidewalk stopping next to bad guy's car. Another one slid up behind him. Both deputies came running over with their hands on their guns. I pointed to the bad guy and told them to check him. They couldn't have cared less about the bad guy yet, they leaned down and tried to talk to the deputy on the ground that was in shock.
I told the deputies to get some blankets quick while we were waiting for an ambulance and for one of them to get the traffic under control. Two more squad cars came rolling up. The senior deputy I knew for the confrontation with Jeff's kin came running up. He checked his man that was down and was yelling for blankets. The guy on the ground said in a whisper, "The biker already told them what to do Sarge, he saved my life, twice."
I told him, "Don't talk, the medics will be here in a minute."
Pointing at Shawna, I told the Sargent that she was standing on the gun the guy laying on the ground shot his deputy with. He asked why she was standing on it. I just shook my head, "One, so the guy on the ground over there didn't recover and go after it, two, so none of these gawkers picked it up for a souvenir, and three so it would not be touched until you guys got here."
"Ah, good thinking. Ah, what's with the motorcycle on the ground over there, and what's this other bike parked here for?" The Sargent asked trying to get a grasp on what all was happening.
"I'll tell you everything in a minute," I yelled at him in frustration as Sue and I put a couple of blankets over the deputy. We finally heard what must be the paramedics. "Have someone take over watching that guy and get this traffic out of here so the medics can get here."
That must have shocked him as he stood up and was yelling at his deputies what to do.
The ambulance was able to pull right up next to the deputy. There was a fire truck behind it and more flashing lights coming up the street. Two paramedics jumped out and started looking at the deputy. Seeing what we had done they asked what was under the packing. I explained they were just compresses. That the bullet had gone all the way through the deputy and it didn't look like major organ damage or any main arteries, as the blood wasn't dark enough.
They nodded taking his blood pressure and listening to his heart. The downed deputy told the medics that Sue and I had fixed him. They looked at the compresses again the started an I.V.
A second paramedic team arrived and was directed to the downed driver. I went over and explained what had happened to him and told them that the bike had been wedged against him for almost a minute. They asked me if we had checked him. I told them that he wasn't dead but we had figured to just leave him till someone who cared could get there. The medic grinned at me and said, "That's cold, really cold."
Shawna was still standing on the gun when I hollered at the Sargent again to get someone over to watch the damn gun. He looked around, shrugged then walked over himself and stood there. Shawna went over to help Charlie who had their bike up on its wheels looking at it.
I walked up to the Sargent and asked him if he needed a crime scene team since it was an attempted murder on a police officer. He looked at me funny then called in on his portable. More deputies arrived, one had a camera and started shooting flash pictures everywhere. A paramedic was hollering, asking whose bike that was damn near on the bad guy and someone to move it.
I pulled it up on its wheels and began pushing it over to where Charlie was working on his bike. All of a sudden, the bike went easier. I looked back and Sue was pushing. She was going to be a real biker babe. I told her to stay with the bike and went back over to the medics with the deputy.
They had brought out a stretcher telling him that a med evac helicopter was on its way. I slid the stretcher under the deputy when they rolled him over making sure the compress was holding. It looked like they had added some gauze to it. As they began to lift him up on a gurney, the deputy reached out and touched me, "Thanks, thanks a lot, sorry about your bike."
I nodded saying, "You are more important, don't worry about it."
They had cleared a large area of the street for the helicopter to land. As soon as it was on the ground, the deputy was loaded in and the chopper was off again without ever reducing the rotor speed very much.
As I walked back to the scene they were loading the bad guy on a gurney to put into an ambulance. There were four suited guys with badges sticking out of their breast pockets directing people now. One of them was putting little signs on the street where evidence was or where someone had been down. One of them came over to me and said, "The Sargent said you played a key part in what happened here, come over in front of the car and tell my partner and I what happened."
"I know you guys or at least the squad cars carry T-shirts in their kits. Could one of you guys loan me one? I had to use mine to stop the deputy's bleeding."
One of the suits grabbed a deputy and had him running. He was back in less than a minute with a white T-shirt. I put it on feeling instantly warmer as the temperature was probably getting under seventy.
The suits resumed their expectant stance asking me to tell them what happened. I waved Sue over to us and introduced her to us and told them that she had been on the back of my bike when the incident happened. I gave the whole story as best that I could remember it. I really didn't see Charlie and Shawna go down but figured they were probably hit by a gawker, he'd have to ask.
One of the suits asked, "You just drove your motorcycle into the guy?"
"It was the only thing I could think of," I said.
"Weren't you afraid of getting hurt?"
"We were not going but five or ten miles an hour because of the traffic around the cars. I was more afraid of hurting Sue here." Sue hugged my arm into her, sending comfort signals to me. I looked at her and she gave me a little smile.
"I got this all down. You'll probably have to come in to give us a statement. We'll tell you when to come," the guy said arrogantly. I looked to see if I could tell who was the senior guy but I couldn't. Of the three, none of them looked or acted like a leader.
Sue and I went over to Charlie and Shawna who were talking to the Sargent. I asked him, "Sarge, when you were out handling both of those messes I was involved in, you took charge and handled everything with ease, what happened out here, you acted scared?"
"Sorry you noticed. I've never had a deputy hurt bad much less shot. I can't believe that guy was able to pull a gun and shoot him. Anyway, my heads back where it should be. You okay? You get along with those newbie gold shields. None of them know what's going on yet. They treat you with respect?"
"I'm okay, they're a little pushy but we'll make it. They might be a little surprised when I tell them that they will have to come to me for a statement rather than me coming to them, but we'll work it out."
The Sargent smiled then held out his hand, "Thanks for helping my deputy. If you had not done what you did, he would have been dead, thanks. Like he said, you saved his life twice."
He had been looking at me really hard, "You cut your beard. Looks good but you're starting to look normal instead of like a one percenter."
I smiled, "Never have been, never will be one."
"Thank this babe next to me," I said while squeezing Sue to my side. "She called it in on your radio and got the first aid kit out of the squad car. She's the one who had to take the hit when I smacked that guy. Thank God she's okay."
The Sargent stuck out his hand taking Sue's and giving it a squeeze saying, "Thanks."
Shawna came over and said she thought both bikes could make it home. They both started and the lights worked. She said she felt like I might have screwed up my forks but time would tell. I would need a new windshield and dash but nothing else looked bent.
The Sargent finally came over and said we could go. He said he still had my number and if I allowed it, he would give it to the injured deputy. I nodded then loaded Sue up and cranked the bike. It started fine and shifted into gear okay. Charlie led, not going very fast, checking out if the bike was tracking okay. I was doing the same trying to feel if the front end shimmied or shook. Everything seemed okay. It was just a couple of miles home. We rode in and separated. I put the bike into the shed then turned to find Shawna talking to Sue on the patio.
Shawna left before I got to them. Sue said Shawna thought that Charlie and her would just go to bed. They had enough excitement for one night. I agreed and asked Sue, "Your place or mine."
Sue said, "I want to sleep in your bed, wrapped around you, keeping you safe. You can find more trouble to get into than anyone I've ever known can. Let me go get a robe for in the morning and I'll be right back."
I went inside thinking that even with a carry permit, I wouldn't have been able to react fast enough to save the deputy. Perhaps carrying all the time wasn't what it was cracked up to be.
I pulled my boots and pants off then washed off a little. I brushed my teeth finishing as Sue came in the door. She had a thick terrycloth robe on but was carrying a gown or robe or something. She laid it on a kitchen chair. She also had a couple of towels saying, "How about fifteen relaxing minutes in the hot tub," no hanky panky, just to get the kinks out.
I would go just about anywhere with this girl at the moment. I finished stripping, put on my robe and flip-flops and was out the door with her instantly.
When he got there, Shawna and Charlie were sitting in the tub lying back with their eyes closed relaxing. We hung up our robes and slid into the tub not disturbing our two exhausted friends.
Sue and I sat and cuddled in the bubbles for ten minutes before Shawna opened her eyes. They became big round orbs seeing us then asking when we got there. Sue explained that we needed the same thing they did, to unwind, nothing else, just to relax.
Five minutes later, the four of us had enough tub and were ready for bed as it after one o'clock. Way past our bed time.
Sue and I went to my place and crawled into bed. I think we were asleep as soon as we were snuggled up, holding each other on our sides facing each other.