Mark was driving around trying to clear his mind. ‘Same shit different day’ kept creeping into his mind. He had thought he had found the perfect girl. She was everything he had wanted, or at least he thought he had wanted. They been seeing each other for almost a year, and was thinking about marrying her. That is until he walked in on her with some guy. He really didn’t pay them any notice just grabbed a long sleeved shirt from his dresser and left. Even though he lived in Florida it still managed to get chilly, and the last thing he needed was to get sick. So he got on his bike and rode away with Erica wrapped in a sheet chasing him down the driveway. He headed towards the highway without stopping or looking back. He figured he should call Glenn and tell him that he was leaving. But he didn’t feel ready to talk to anyone just yet. ‘ I’ll call him later.’ It was about mid morning when he left. Now the sun was hanging low in the sky and the chill had once again returned. He pulled off to the side of the road to look at the view. The Gulf of Mexico reflected the reds and gold’s of the setting sun. Noticing that he was very low on gas he looked around to see if there was at least a gas station around. His luck hadn’t changed. There was just mile after mile of land stretching on endlessly. I he got up to get the blood flow back in his legs again. Even though he was in his forties years of wrestling had taken their toll. He had already had one hip replaced and was going to need his knee replaced as well. He had been retired for nearly five years but he still had the aches and pains. He supposed teaching in a wrestling school wasn’t exactly the best thing to do. As he walked around he saw a small building in the distance he squinted his eyes to make out the form but couldn’t succeed. Maybe his doctor was right about him getting glasses after all. Even if they were just for reading, he hoped that he could make it to the building with the little gas he had left. As he got closer to it he saw that it was an old house overlooking the beach. He eventually reached the driveway and pulled down it. An old gate closed off the front lawn of the house. He cut the engine and walked up to it. Opening it up he pushed his bike over to the garage parking it next to an old Indian in the middle of being restored. A high shrill whinny made him jump out his shoes. He turned to see three horses standing behind another gate waiting for him to come over. He walked up to them holding out his hand letting each of them smell it. He had really never dealt with horses before, but he had an uncle who did. Mark had gone to see him when he was younger but he usually stayed away from his uncle’s horses. A grey horse began to rub against his arm asking for attention. He rubbed his nose and ears. His uncle had told him enough about the breeds that could identify some of them. The grey was a thoroughbred; he was shoved out of the way by a black quarter horse that was then chased off by a Clydesdale. He was to enthralled with their antics to notice that a car had pulled up or the young woman who was watching them. She had been alarmed to see the gate open; Chester had already broken it twice when he decided to go for a stroll. Instead of finding a loose horse she found a stranger. Mark saw the grey’s ear perk and watched as he wandered up to the fence expecting. The Clydesdale butted his shoulder asking for more scratching.
“ He likes to be scratched under his chin.” Mark jumped about three feet in the air when he heard the voice. He turned around to meet its owner. He saw a petit female in her mid to late twenties, with sparkling jade eyes, and hair that looked like glided fire. It was pulled back in a sloppy bun with long tendrils falling down her back. She pushed herself off the car and walked over to the grey. She began to rub his nose and he put his head down further so she could scratch his ears.
“ It’s nice to see that you gave them attention, when people come by the usually just ignore them.”
“ You’re not mad? Cause if you want me to leave I’ll leave…”
“ Why would I want that? I’m sure you have a good reason to be out in the middle of nowhere loving on a ham.”
“ Yeah you could say that. Do you if they’re any gas stations around here?”
“ The closest one is about sixty miles away.”
“ Damn”
“ Yeah it’s a real bitch but you get over it. Life’s to short to worry about crap like that.”
“ True but I don’t think have enough gas to make it there.”
“ Well he’s probably closed by now and if he’s not now he will be by the time we get there. So if you want you could stay the night and I could take you there tomorrow.”
“ You’d take me in without knowing me?”
“ Should I know you?”
“ Aren’t you afraid I’d try to kill you or something?”
“ No” The quarter horse whinnied from behind the grey.
“ Do they have names?”
“ Yeah the quarter horse is Jarred, the grey one is Dalton, and the ham there is Chester. So were you off to anywhere special?”
“ Nope just trying to clear my head.”
“ Know the feeling, where were you coming from?”
“ Tampa” She turned and looked at him in shock.
“ I know the drive back isn’t going to be fun.”
“ Well I’ll tell you what if you help out with a few things then I’ll tell you a quicker way back.”
“ I’d help you out regardless.”
“ That’s nice to know. I’m warning you now I have five highly over affectionate dogs.”
“ What types?”
“ A Rottweiler, German Shepard, Siberian Husky, basset hound, and a boar hound.”
“ You have a husky in the south of Florida?”
“ He was a stray that I found. His owner never came to claim him. So I gave him a good home.”
“ I take it you have a thing for animals then.”
“ Biggest soft touch you’ll ever meet, I can’t help myself. Plus it’s nice to have a few animals to keep you company. Living alone can be very lonely sometimes.” Mark could understand that. He used to have dogs but once they died he really hadn’t wanted anymore. He could see why she wanted to live here. It was beautiful, and very peaceful. No neighbors, restrictions, traffic anything just miles of empty land and water. He wanted this, always had. For the first time in a long while he was jealous of someone, he looked around the area wondering if the surrounding land was for sale. A small hand on his arm jolted back to reality.
“ Earth to big guy. You ok up there?” He looked down at her, eyes full of laughter and a smile on her face. He thought back to Erica she would have left him standing there, and she sure as hell wouldn’t have checked on him. She was young, pretty, and only attracted to his money. Glenn had warned him several times about her but Mark refused to listen. Glenn’s love life wasn’t perfect of course, but he really never got attached. One would get bored with the other and move on. Mark had done that for to long. He was ready to settle down and live out his life like a normal person. He then thought to what this girl had said. It had been five years since he had been on t.v. but most people knew who he was or were at least intimidated by him. She had shown no fear, and at least acted like she didn’t know him. She had treated him like a normal person, like someone who had run out of gas and turned up in her driveway.
“ What do you need me to do?”
“ Finally I thought I was going to have to give mouth to mouth. Do you space out like that often? “
“ Just coming to terms with a few things, didn’t mean to worry you like that.”
“ Thanks um I could use you to carry in the groceries. I don’t have much but it’s still food. Just let me take care of the puppy.”
“ Don’t you mean puppies?”
“ No you’ll see exactly what I mean.” She opened the door and a big black dog knocked her to the ground. His tongue covered her face in kisses. He then took notice of Mark and ran over to him. No matter how hard he tried Mark would budge. The dog whined and turned back to its mistress who was laughing.
“ Aw poor Pluto looks like you finally met your match.” The other dogs had gathered around her all begging for attention. They began to move the groceries inside and had them put away.
“ Thanks ….”
“ Mark, Mark Callaway.”
“ Sorry I suck at introductions. My name’s Maria.”
“ You have a last name Maria?”
“ Why would you want to know it you’re only going to be here one night?”
“ Well maybe I’d like to come back.” She looked at him in shock.
“ Come back?”
“ Don’t tell me that no one has every come back to stay again?”
“ Hell no, I usually don’t let people stay.”
“ Exactly how many people end up in your driveway?”
“ Not that many, but the ones that do are usually a bunch snobs with forty foot poles up their asses.”
“ What made me any different?”
“ Because you were trying to get away from something, not just go on a vacation. Plus you loved on my many animals and helped me out. I may not have much interaction with people but you’ve got a good heart and your head screwed on straight, which is an unusual thing now a days. People get to caught up in themselves to notice anyone else. Sometimes I think things like true love, and morals don’t exist anymore.”
“ Where did you live before you moved here?”
“ Well I was born in Savannah, then my parents moved to Pensacola when I was nine. So I grew up in the city. It was a nice change when I moved here.”
“ Why did you move?”
“ Because I lost my job.”
“ You couldn’t find another one?”
“ Not in my field. I was a teacher and my specialty isn’t offered anymore.”
“ What did you teach?”
“ General art for beginners and then for the more advanced students I did painting and photography. It’s a little hard find a job in that area when no one’s willing to fund it. It’s the worse thing to do to children. They’ll go to school all day with no creative release, and no real way to develop their imaginations. That’s what art is to me in a sense part looking part imaginative.” Mark remembered when that happened. It had been right before he retired.
“ So Mark what do you for a living?”
“ What makes you think I work?”
“ Everybody works, you’re too young to be retired.”
“ Well your wrong about that one little lady. I am retired but I do have a day job to keep me occupied.”
“ Alright what did you do before you retired?”
“ Professional wrestling.” He was waiting for her to figure the rest out but instead he was met with her laughing.
“ What is so funny?”
“ I could see you being one with size, but not your personality. You’re to nice.”
“ I’ll have you know that we aren’t all mean, that’s just our characters.”
“ Then you obviously didn’t socialize much. I’ve met quite a few professional wrestlers and they were either trying to intimidate me or being assholes to me. So far the only nice one that I’ve met was Dennis Knight. Mark looked at her for a second.
“ How do you know Dennis?”
“ I designed a tattoo for him, and taught his kids. The parent teacher conferences were always interesting. How do you know him?”
“ I used to work with him. He’s a good friend of mine.”
“ He never mentions your name.”
“ Not my real name, but he probably refers to me by my character name, and what is a school teacher doing designing tattoos?”
“ After I lost my job Dennis said he’d pay me to design a tattoo to help me out. He also wanted me to continue to teach his kids.”
“ Why didn’t you?”
“ I was kinda pissed off at the world and didn’t want that to rub off on his kids. So I did the tattoo, sold my house and moved down here. He comes to visit once in a blue moon.”
“ He ever talk about his career?”
“ Not really, he did tell me about how he went from plain old Dennis Knight to Mideon.”
“ Really what he say about it?”
“ He said that he was sacrificed by some guy, I forget his name. He let me watch it once. That was some freaky shit.”
“ What made it freaky?”
“ I used to be big into shit like that. It was scary how close some of it was. I don’t know who the guy was but he definitely did his homework.” Mark smiled for a second.
“ I believe you’re thinking about the Undertaker.”
“ I guess, I never really watched wrestling. You know him?”
“ I was him.” She stood there in shock eyes growing wide. She then began to turn bright red.
“ I’m so incredibly sorry, I didn’t mean to insult you like that.” It was Marks turn to laugh.
“ Trust me I’ve been called a hell of a lot worse than a freak. Truth be told that’s what I was aiming for. Nice to see it worked.”
“ Your not mad?”
“ Hell no, you were speaking your opinion. I can’t get people to do that around me usually.”
“ So why did you go around sacrificing people?”
“ Why not? They needed something for me to do and that’s the way the character was headed.”
“ Your boss didn’t get pissed?”
“ Nope, he loved it. The more people that I upset the better.”
“ Sounds twisted”
“ Then you’ve never met Vince. “
“ What’s your day job?”
“ I own a wrestling school in Tampa. What’s yours?”
“ I have my own little graphic design firm.”
“ You looking for any business?”
“ Always am, what do you need done?”
“ All sorts of things I imagine. I really don’t take care of the advertising. That’s my partner’s end of the business. Speaking of which do you have a phone?”
“ Yeah it’s over there in the living room.” Mark walked over to the phone looking at the different pictures. He picked it up and dialed Glenn’s number. He picked up on the second ring.
“ Mark please tell me that’s you?”
“ Yeah it’s me, call off the search.”
“ Where the hell are you? I got a phone call from Erica this morning saying that you got on your bike and never looked back.”
“ Did she mention she was fucking some other guys brains out when I left?”
“ No she neglected to mention that.”
“ Figures, listen I’ll be home sometime tomorrow. I think I found someone that’ll be able to help with the advertising. She runs a graphic designing firm out of her house.”
“ How can we trust her?”
“ Call Dennis”
“ Knight? How would he know her?”
“ She designed a tattoo for him a while back, and she taught his kids. I’ll bring her by tomorrow.”
“ What’s her name?”
“ It’s Maria.You know if Erica’s still at my house?”
“ Wouldn’t doubt it. She’s probably formulating lies to tell you as to why she was with that guy. Please tell me you’re finally going to dump her ass.”
“ Yeah listen could you make sure she’s gone when I get home?”
“ Sure thing more than happy to help.”
“ I’ll see you tomorrow buddy.”
“ Back at you.” They said their good byes and hung up. He turned back to Maria for a moment.
“ I don’t want to be rude, or tell you what to do in your own house but I think you should leave the room. There’s probably going to be some very nasty things said and I don’t want you to hear them. My father taught me it wasn’t proper to curse in front of a lady.”
“ It’s alright Mark go right ahead. You won’t say anything I haven’t heard or said before.”
“ Ok but I warned you.” He dialed his house and got the answering machine. She was screening the calls. He waited for the beep then left the message.
“ Erica if your there pick up the phone. I think we have a few things we need to discuss.” His voice had gone from a friendly one to a low deadly tone. It only took her a few seconds to pick up.
“ Ma…Mark is that you?”
“ You know damn well it’s me.”
“ What is it you want to talk about?”
“ You getting the hell out of my house.”
“ What do you mean, you can’t just throw me out!”
“ You know exactly what I mean. I would think that you would have more common sense than to fuck someone other than me in my own bed. As far as me throwing you out I can and I will. I’ll be back sometime tomorrow. I’m expecting you gone, and Glenn will be coming over to make sure you leave. He’ll also be making sure that you don’t take anything.”
“ Where do you expect me to go? I can’t find a place in that amount of time.”
“ Not my problem should have thought about that before you started fucking around.” He was losing his hold on his temper, and he would have if Maria hadn’t started to calm him down. “ Like I said Erica either you’re gone by the time I get home or I throw you out I can deal with both. Either way there going to be hell to pay when I get back.” He slammed down the phone making Maria jump.
“ I’ll go make up a bed for you.”
“ No wait” He reached out for her “ Sorry I didn’t mean to scare you like that. She just really pissed me off.”
“ Yeah well if this is pissed off remind me never to make you angry. Besides I really do have to make up a bed for you.”
“ I can’t sleep with you?”
“ No I just met you.”
“ So I said sleep with as in an unconscious state. I’ll save you the work of making up a bed.”
“ That’s ok I don’t mind.” She slipped out of the room before he could reply. He watched as she moved down the hall to a linen closet. He ran a hand through his hair. He had let it grow back to its original length after he retired. It was too much trouble to keep it short. He was trying to get the though of her lying underneath of him out of his head. He was going to enjoy having her ride behind him. She walked back out and nearly ran into him.
“ You alright darlin?”
“ Fine just didn’t see you.” He had placed his hands on her shoulders to steady her. He then ran them down her arms enjoying the softness of her skin. She tried to pull away but he tightened his grip.
“ What is it about me that you find so repulsive?”
“ I don’t find you repulsive. I just don’t know you.”
“ Well I could fix that for ya.” He gave her a little smirk. Her body was very stiff and rigid. “ Your acting like you’ve never had anyone come on to you before.”
“ Because I haven’t. Would you please let go? I need to start dinner.” She looked away from him.
“ Maria you don’t have to do anything. I’m not very hungry anyway, and you don’t seem to be either.”
“ Mark…” He bent down and seized her lips with his. He let go of her arms and let her back away.
“ Everything you need is in the back bedroom. I’ll come wake you up so you can get home in time. Goodnight.” She dashed up the set of stairs and slammed her bedroom door behind her. He then heard a lock click. ‘ So that’s how she ensures her safety’ He walked up the stairs and stood in front of her door. It had a deadbolt lock on it. He brought his fist up and banged on the door.
“ Maria?”
“ Do you need something?” He needed her but that wouldn’t get her to open the door.
“ Yeah looks like I’m hungry after all. I’d cook it myself except I don’t know how to use a gas stove.” God he hoped this worked.
“ Alright why don’t you pull out what you want and I’ll be down in a second.” Mark moved downstairs and began to rummage through the fridge. He heard the lock click and then saw her return back downstairs. She had her hair pulled back into a ponytail letting it spill down her back. She was wearing a pair of flannel pajama pants and a tank top.
“ You decide what you want to eat?” He pulled out some pasta and set it next to some sauce. She moved over to the pots and pulled one down for the sauce and the other down for the noodles. She could feel his eyes on her back.
“ Do you want anything else?” There’s plenty that he wanted it’s just she wouldn’t give it to him.
“ You have anything sweet?”
“ Some cookies. Why don’t you tell me about your career, I bet you have some pretty interesting stories.”
“ Not really, I just didn’t have much of a life for about twenty years. But I guess constant travel will do that.”
“ You never found anyone?”
“ Not until now.” She stopped and looked at him.
“ Your still upset about Erica.”
“ No I’m not. I’m used to women like Erica. I’m not used to someone like you.”
“ Really? What makes me different?”
“ You have yet to try to seduce me or use me to get something you want. The only reason Erica was seen in public with me was because of my money.”
“ Well I think there’s a lot more to a person than just material things. Besides you’re a different person than what your character was. Unless you really do go around kidnapping and sacrificing people.”
“ I stopped doing that after I got hurt. I became basically what you see now. Cut my hair off and had fun being a bad guy.”
“ So instead of kidnapping them you sling them over the front of your bike and ran off with them?”
“ You’ll have to find out tomorrow.”
“ If you don’t mind I’ll follow you so I can get back.”
“ I don’t mind taking you. It’s the least I could do after you let me stay the night.” He had moved right behind her and had started to play with her hair. ‘ The least he could do is keep his hands off me.’ He was doing everything in his power to try to get her in bed with him without slinging her over his shoulder and dragging her upstairs. She stiffened when his hands slipped under her top and began to trace her back. He leaned down and began to nuzzle her neck, his goatee tickling her skin.
“ How do you get your skin so nice?”
“ Regular exfoliation, and lotion.”
“ Your bound and determined to get me to stop by being a bitch aren’t you?”
“ No but I’m going to sleep with you just because you’re some celebrity with an ass load of money. Plus you just found out your girlfriend was screwing other guys behind your back and the only thing I would be is revenge. You were right I’m probably not like the other girls you’ve dated. I’m not going to throw myself at your feet and be treated like some slut that walked through the revolving door of your life. My mother raised me better than that.” She set the plate down in front of him and went back upstairs. Shutting him out again. Everything she had said was true and then some. She was the first genuine person he had met in a very long time and he had just treated her like slime. He picked up the plate and carried it out to the deck. He listened as the waves crash and found some peace in them.
Maria sat alone in her room wondering what had just happened. He had just made a very clear-cut pass at her. Of course he was still delusional about Erica, she was kicking herself for letting him stay. Why in the hell didn’t she give him, the gas can and a few bottles of water and send him on his way. She had to talk to someone; unfortunately the only person that was there to listen wanted to take her right there in the middle of the kitchen. She would call Dennis in the morning and talk to him about Mark. Till then she got up and walked out onto the small balcony she had. This was her haven, the only place she had ever felt alive. Mark looked up when he heard her step out. She seemed very distant and confused. It was his turn to frighten her.
“ You alright up there?” She looked down at him and started to head inside.
“ Maria wait, I just wanted to apologize for my behavior. You were right I guess I’m still pissed at Erica, but I still want to come back here and I’d still like to see you again. Would it be to much for you to at least come downstairs and listen?”
“ I listen better up here. I’ll unlock the door so you can come in. Just bring a cast iron skillet from the kitchen with you.”
“ Why?”
“ So I can smack you over the head with it if you start up again.” He burst out laughing
“ You got it little lady.” He went inside and picked up the skillet heading up the steps. The door was slightly ajar allowing him entry. It was definitely the largest room in the house. It was all hardwood floors, with a four-poster bed, dressing table, wardrobe, and an ass load of pillows of every shape and size. It had an eastern feel to it with bright sari’s serving as the bedspread. There were silks and satins all over giving the room a very warm and comfortable feel. She was seated in the middle of the bed reading a book She smiled when she saw him standing there.
“ Here’s the skillet.”
“ Thanks, have a seat.”
“ No, offense but I think I’ll stand. I m afraid you’ll hit me with the damn skillet.”
“ Mark what I said downstairs…”
“ Was absolutely right. Darlin I told you before I have a problem finding people that are truly honest with me. It’s nice to meet someone that isn’t afraid to chew my ass out. I’m not saying I liked it but I it put things in perspective for me. You’re the first person in a long ass time that doesn’t want something in return, or isn’t disappointed with the real me.”
“ Mark that’s all you’ve shown me is the real you. I never saw your character and after Dennis described him to me, I don’t think I want to.” She had had that damn kiss on her mind the whole night wondering what was next. She really hated the whole touchy feely deal that went along with dating someone. For the most part she hated people touching her period. With Mark she really didn’t notice. She instantly tried to think of anything else. She couldn’t fall for him, he was here for one night and then he would leave. She would do most of the consultation over the phone, and email them the final product. After tomorrow she would never see him again.
“ Maria do you know if the surrounding land around here is for sale?”
“ Probably why?”
“ Because I want to move the school down here.”
“ Why?”
“ Less distraction for the students plus I get to be closer to you.”
“ Mark you’ve known me for a few hours.”
“ And so far I don’t have any complaints.”
“ Why did you date Erica?”
“ She was there. I thought she was the best I could do.”
“ What happened?”
“ Found out she was cheating, and then I met you. She was something I thought I wanted, you’re something I definitely desire and need.” She blushed at that comment. “ Please let me in. Whatever happened in the past is not me. I promise never to leave. I could live here the rest of my life and never want for anything else. I’m jealous of the fact that you have the one thing I want.”
“ What’s that?”
“ Peace”
“ I’m sure you can find peace in Tampa.”
“ Not likely, you were right about your perception of the city. I’ve never met someone as genuine as you. It kinda threw me.”
“ I noticed, do you come on to every women that cooks you dinner?”
“ Only if it’s as good as yours.”
“ You should try my homemade sauce.” He took a step closer.
“ I’d like that.”
“ There’s a real estate office in town if you’d like to go. I’m sure if you’re serious about moving the school down here they could help you.”
“ Can we go in tomorrow?”
“ What about Erica, and your partner?”
“ They can wait. Now what will it take for you to ride back with me on my bike.”
“ Hell to freeze over. I don’t like being the passenger, I like being the driver.”
“ We’ll see about that.” She shot him a look before he turned to leave.
“ Night darlin.”
“ Goodnight Mark.” He shut the door smiling. Hopefully she didn’t think he was a total jackass. He wandered down the stairs and the hall to his room. It was on the backside of the house giving a great view of the ocean. The bed was also large enough for him to sleep on comfortably. He undressed and fell into the bed.
Maria crept downstairs the next morning and let the dogs in so they could eat. She then walked down the hall to wake Mark up so they could get an early start. She knocked softly before entering and almost immediately left. He was stark naked in the middle of the bed sleeping like a big baby. She thought he was somewhat handsome before but now all she could do was stare. Maria moved closer to him and pushed on his shoulder trying to wake him up. A pair strong arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her on top of him. His balls were grinding right into her junction making her blush. Then before she could react again he had her rolled on her back.
“ Mark!” He opened his eyes and smiled.
“ I saw you admiring and I thought you wanted a closer look.” She turned bright red and tried to get from underneath him. He looked down at her enjoying what he saw. Her hair was spread all over, and her struggles were only enticing him further. He had a feeling that she wouldn’t let him exercise too much dominance over her.
“ I’m sorry but I’m not used to seeing a naked man lying in one of my guest bedrooms, it’s not an everyday occurrence for me.”
“ You could make it one.”
“ Mark get off of me. Other wise I’ll make you walk to the gas station.” He let a growl and rolled off of her. He placed a hand on her stomach preventing her from getting up.
“ What you get to look, and I don’t?”
“ You didn’t walk in on me naked in the middle of a bed.”
“ I’d like too.”
“ I have a feeling there’s a lot of things you’d like to do to me that you’ll never get the chance to do.”
“ What makes you say that, I can be a very persuasive man?”
“ You can also be a hyper sexual dipshit, now let me up or I’ll call the dogs in here.”
“ Give me a kiss and I’ll let you up.” He lowered his head giving her better access. The boarhound had come in walked over to Mark and licked him square on the lips causing him to fall off the bed letting Maria up. She laughed all out of the room and down the hall. Mark got up and yelled after her.
“ I’ll get you, and your damned dogs too!” This only made her laugh harder. She started breakfast had had it ready by the time he was dressed and ready to go. It took everything she had not to start laughing again when he walked into the room.
“ Silence woman.”
“ When did we revert back to the middle ages m’lord?”
“ If we had your ass would still be underneath of me in that bed.”
“ You would take a women’s virtue without marrying her? I’m shocked.” She fained a fainting spell.
“ You’re anything but virtuous Maria. Now how about we get on the road.”
“ Fine by me Mark.” She let the dogs back outside and then made her way to her car. Mark had placed the gas can in the back seat and was trying his best to get comfortable in the small car.
“ Maybe I should have gone.”
“ I’m fine, just stiff. Twenty some odd years of wrestling will do that for you.”
“ Then you must be a glutton for punishment.”
“ Yup” She laughed again. They continued the drive trading insults to each other. She pulled into the small gas station and was met by the attendant who had the hot’s for her. Mark stepped out of the car and carried the gas can over to the pump beginning to fill it up. The attendant noticed him almost immediately and began to question Maria about him.
“ What you’re now driving them here?”
“ It’s to hot to make them walk. Besides when I found him it was dark and you were closed.”
“ Since when have you been letting them spend the night or have you finally started trading favors? I’ll scratch your back, and you’ll scratch mine deal.” Mark set the can down and walked over to them.
“ Actually my bike ran out of gas and the lady was nice enough to let me sleep in her driveway.”
“ I see how it works. You won’t have me but the first big tattooed redneck that comes around and you’re on him like bees on honey.” An older man came out and yelled at the attendant.
“ Travis what in the hell have I told you about bothering her! Now get to work and leave her the hell alone.” The younger man ran over to the pump and began to fill Maria’s car up. Mark walked back over to the can and finished filling it up.
“ You alright?”
“ Thanks Phil, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“ Well if he wasn’t my son I would have fired him long ago. It’s a good thing your friend was here too.”
“ Mark? I think he only made Travis angrier.”
“ I think you should hold onto him.”
“ He lives in Tampa Phil. Besides he could find someone more deserving than me.” Mark had heard that last part and stood there in shock. That’s why she wouldn’t have anything to do with him? She didn’t think she deserved him? Travis finished up with her car and walked over to Phil giving him the price glaring at Mark the whole time.
“ Boy get inside before I send your ass to the moon.”
“ Phil please”
“ Sorry “
“ What do I owe you?”
“ A kiss on the cheek and a promise to stay out of trouble.”
“ You sure?”
“ Well it’s the least I can do. Mark make sure you take good care of my girl. She’s the only reason I’m still in business.”
“ I’ll make sure she gets everything she could ever want or need.”
“ Alright” The older man watched as they got into the car and drove off. He hoped that this guy was the one. Maria had been alone for a while and seemed ready to go back out into the world. Mark almost instantly questioned Maria about the guy at the station.
“ You want to tell me what that was all about?”
“ No, it doesn’t concern you.”
“ The hell it doesn’t.”
“ Travis likes me and has been trying to hook up with me since I moved here. That’s the first time he’s ever done that.”
“ Won’t be the last. So I assume we’re heading back to your place.”
“ No, you said that you wanted to see if any of the land around here is available.”
“ Yeah”
“ The only place to do that is in town, and I have to check my mail.”
“ You drive in everyday to check your mail?”
“ Every few days”
“ I thought you had email?”
“ I can’t get my art supplies through email.”
“ Guess you can’t.” About a half an hour later they pulled into a pretty deserted small town. She stopped at the post office and turned off the car.
“ You might want to make sure to watch your head.”
“ Why it’s not like I haven’t been smacked in the head before.”
“ You seriously scare me. I feel sorry for the guys that
had to travel with you.”
” They got through it just fine.” She shook her head and walked over to a
large post office box. Taking out her key she opened it up and pulled out a few
envelopes and a small box. They then walked over to the real estate office. They
were stared at the entire time. Mark was to busy looking around to notice. When
they walked in the realtors nearly fell over. A younger man walked over to him
straightening his tie.
“ Ms. Henderson, have you finally decided to sell that nice piece of land you have?”
“ No I haven’t. My friend wants to see if any of the land around me is for sale.” She gave him a forced smile and turned to Mark. The younger man-sized Mark up and only became more peeved when he agreed with her.
“ I’ll go get the books for you sir.” They both watched him walk off.
“ What in the hell is his problem?”
“ I think it’s because you’re an outsider. They don’t like those kinds of people around here.”
“ Is that why he wants you to sell your property?”
“ Yup, that’s why I only stop at the post office. I never venture out into the actual town. The staring bothers me to much.”
“ There’s a first time for everything.” The younger man came back with a few books and helped Mark look over the different areas. He found a few possible places and told the guy that he’d check with his business partner. They both walked out of the office and headed back to her car. When they were finally back on the road she let out a sigh of relief. About an hour and half later they pulled into her driveway. Mark got out of the car and carried the gas can over to his bike. She walked into the house and set her mail on the table. He snuck into her front bathroom so he could wash his hands. He then crept up behind her and caught her around the waist. He snatched the keys out of her hand and walked over to pick up her briefcase. He walked out of the house and locked the door behind him. She was fighting against his grip the entire way. He tightened the pressure to stop her from slipping. When her briefcase was secure he sat down on the bike and set her in front of him. He started it up and pulled out of her driveway and onto the highway. When they were about an hour away he pulled over onto the side of the road to let her slip on to the back of the bike. She hardly waited for him to stop before she jumped off.
“ What in the hell do you think you’re doing!”
“ Going home.” He got up off the bike and walked over to her. “ Seems like a waste of gas for you to follow me, and since Glenn and I will have to drive down to look at the property tomorrow this seemed a natural choice. I don’t want you running off or getting lost.” She had a sudden loss for words and she couldn’t come up with a good reason or excuse for him to take her back.
“ Why did you stop?”
“ Well, I figured it wasn’t comfortable ridding up front and I wanted to see if you wanted to slip on back.”
“ Oh, I guess that would be more comfortable.” They both slipped back on and headed towards Tampa. They arrived at his school in the late afternoon. She assumed that he was looking for Glenn. They both walked in and headed towards the office.
Glenn looked up when he heard the door open. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Mark walking up.
“ Hey stranger.”
“ About damn time you got back.” Glenn stopped when he saw Maria. He gave Mark a look before they were introduced.
“ Glenn this is Maria Henderson, she’s the Graphic Designer I told you about. Maria this is my partner Glenn Jacobs.”
“ It’s nice to meet you ma’am. It’s also nice to see that you brought him back unscathed.”
“ Like wise, and trust me the unscathed part wasn’t easy.”
“ Really?”
“ I didn’t do anything to ya darlin.”
“ Besides trying to take me in the middle of my living room and kitchen, and then slinging me over the front of your bike a bringing me here.” Glenn raised an eyebrow.
“ I didn’t sling you over the front of it, I placed you there. I also could have made you ride up there the entire time.” Glenn cleared his throat cutting into the conversation.
“ Mark you’re not planning on taking her home with you are you?”
“ Of course I am, where else would she go?”
“ Well you might want to leave her with me till you get Erica out. I went over there this morning and she was refusing to leave.” Marks mood had instantly darkened. Erica had been the furthest thing from his mind all day.
“ Alright I’ll head over there now and take care of it. Glenn I’ll need your help with all of her crap. Maria I want you to stay out of sight. We’ll come get you when everything’s over.” They shut everything down and locked up the school for the night. Glenn pulled his car around from the back and propped the door open for Maria. Mark pulled out and they followed. Glenn almost immediately broke the silence.
“ So you’re a graphic artist?”
“ Yeah, Mark said that you guys needed some work done.”
“ Yup, but we’ll talk about that later. I hope you don’t mind but I called Dennis Knight and he really wants to see you.”
“ I’m not going to be here for very long.”
“ Really?”
“ I have pets that need to be taken care of.” Glenn gave her another skeptical look when they stopped at a light.
“ You mean to tell me that nothing happened last night?”
“ He spent the night, that was it. He was still to upset about Erica.”
“ If Erica wasn’t in the picture would you have let him get his way?”
“ If Erica wasn’t in the picture we wouldn’t have met. I bet he’ll forget about me in a week.”
“ I bet he won’t.”
“ What makes you so sure?”
“ Because I’ve known him for a long ass time. I also know that look in his eyes. He’s in love more specifically he’s in love with you. Why else would he want to move the school down by you?”
“ How did you know?”
“ He’s been thinking about it for awhile, and then this morning he called me and told me he found a place. That’s when I figured he must really love you if he wants to move out by you.” They pulled in front of a pair of gates.
“ This is going to get ugly so stay here till Dennis shows up.”
“ He’s meeting us here?”
“ Yeah I’m not the only one that figured Erica would give Mark hell when it ended.” Dennis pulled up behind Glenn and walked up to the passenger side window. He practically crushed Maria when he hugged her.
“ You came back!” He was elated.
“ D just make sure that Erica doesn’t see her, and make sure she doesn’t get involved.” Mark walked over and tapped Glenn on the shoulder. He looked at Maria and gave her a smile.
“ This won’t take long. I promise.” He winked at her and walked off with Glenn. When they reached the gate a shot rang out missing Mark by inches. Dennis pulled Maria back into the car. Glenn pulled out his phone and called someone.
“ God I hope he’s calling the cops.”
“ God I hope they come back here.” Another shot rang out striking the ground by Mark’s foot. Both men pulled back a little bit.
“ You told me you got rid of your gun collection!”
“ I lied, you call the police?”
“ Yeah they’re on their way now. I was able to get your valuable stuff out of the house.”
“ Really?”
“ Yeah I had to wait till she left for dinner with that asshole. It’s at my place.” Both men smelt smoke. “ You smell something burning?” Erica came dashing out of the house shot gun in hand yelling profanities. She swung open the gate and aimed the gun at Mark. Dennis saw her and reaching in the back for something.
“ Get down!” Maria slid down behind the dash. The house exploded into flames knocking everyone to the ground and shattering the glass in the cars. Dennis yanked her out of the car and headed for the opposite side of the street. Flashing lights pulled up behind Erica.
“ Drop the gun!” The heat from the fire was becoming oppressive. Two officers walked up behind her and took her down. Mark stared at the fireman struggling to contain the fire. Maria walked up behind him and rubbed his arm.
“ I’m so sorry.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
“ It’s alright, what doesn’t kill me will make me stronger. Besides Glenn got anything of value out.”
“ Won’t that look suspicious?”
“ No, I knew she’d pull a stunt like this.”
“ How?”
“ I had a background check done her when I thought she was screwing around and found out that she had three prier arrests for arson.” He watched as the police hauled her off. “ Well I suppose this means I get to come stay with you for a little while little lady.”
“ Mark, the school.”
“ What about it?”
“ You still have to instruct at it for starters.”
“ It’s the off season. Besides if we’re going to move it then we really shouldn’t be taking in any students till we decide on a spot and getting a building erected.”
Maria watched as the last of the students pulled into the parking lot. She had agreed to help get the students settled. Mark was proud to have the students living on campus for what he termed the school year. Some of his other friends and former co-workers had come in to help train and stay in the dorms with the students. Maria walked down the hall after helping the last family. She was ready to get home. Since opening the school Mark had helped revitalize the small town. He had brought tourism, and trade back. She walked into the front door and felt someone sweep her up.
“ About time you got back. I was getting worried.”
“ You were getting hungry.” Neither saw the dark figure lurking by one of the windows.
Erica stood outside watching them.
“ That should be me.” Her hand tightened around the gun. She wasn’t sure who she wanted dead more. Mark or the little bitch he was with. She waited until they went to sleep before she entered the house. Erica had decided to get rid of Mark first, that way it would be pinned on his new girl.
Maria woke up to one of the dogs scratching at the door. She got up and followed him downstairs. He ran into Marks room and growled at the intruder. Maria walked up behind her and pushed the gun up just before it went off. The shot woke Mark from his sleep and he saw two darkened figures fighting. He reached over and clicked on the light. Erica was pinning Maria to the floor choking her. A few feet away was the gun lying useless on the floor. Maria flung Erica off of her and through the window. Maria stood up and went to the phone by Marks bed. When the cops were on their way Mark helped get Erica back in the house and secured her so she wouldn’t set anything on fire.
“ How did she get out?”
“ She made bail. This time she won’t. You alright?”
“ A little sore, but other than that fine.” By the time the cops came to haul Erica away all of the students had come out to watch. The instructors herded all of the students back inside to get some sleep. The next morning Mark or anyone else weren’t understand or relenting in the training sessions. Maria came in to get some pictures for the catalog.
“ Alright this is a pretty easy thing to learn. When you’re in the ring you need to ignore the photographers, and camera people. Now lucky for us we have a very good photographer. The only down side is that she’s also very beautiful which can be a distraction. This could also be a lesson on ignoring the beautiful woman that they send you down with or the one’s around the ring.” Maria had learned how to dodge the bodies flying out of the ring and get some pretty good shots of them working. She took her desired place and waited for Mark to begin. Glenn had also come into to watch.
“ Hey Taker, how about you take a breather for a few minutes and let me take this group. That way you can watch their form.” A smart ass took advantage.
“ Don’t you mean Ms. Henderson’s?” A few of the guys got a laugh.
“ How about she watches yours while you do a few laps around the building after class.” That shut him up and they finally got the lesson under way. Maria listened to Mark and Glenn bark orders while she snapped pictures. Later in the afternoon they left Glenn behind to see Erica arraigned. She had a wild look to her and was glaring at Maria. When she was remanded Erica mouthed “ You’re mine” to Maria. Mark had taken no notice of it and tried to calm her as best he could.
“ She’s not getting out for a long while. Not after this last go round.”
“ If you knew she was trouble then why did you stay with her?”
“ Well after I found out I thought that maybe she had changed but the day I met you I realized that she hadn’t and she wouldn’t besides, I’d rather have you than her anytime.”
“ Compliments will get no where. I’m still not sleeping with you and that’s final!” He let out a groan.
“ Come on darlin your missing out on a lot of fun.” He wagged his eyebrows at her.
“ I can have fun with you without having to go to your bed.”
“ You realize how much hell I get because of you. The guys are starting to wonder if my irresitble charm is fading.”
“ You have charm?” He pulled into her driveway and parked the car. As she got out she felt a finger poke into her side making her jump. Another followed it till she saw that Mark had decided to tickle her as a form of response. She ran into the nearest room which happened to be his and slammed the door. She clicked the lock and tried to push something in front of it. In a matter of seconds he kicked the door in and came after her. She let out a scream and leapt across the bed trying to get away. He grasped her ankle and pulled her down onto her face.
“ Ha you see m’lady it’s not as easy as you think to escape.” She rolled over and gave him a small kick to the crotch forcing him to let go. Before he could make another go at her she was out the door and up the stairs to her own room. He ran out and saw her standing in her doorway. “ Curses foiled again” Mark flopped down on the couch, and felt a pair of arms around his neck.
“ Next time you shouldn’t start out with running m’lord. Then you might actually stand a chance.” He abruptly stood up and grabbed her belt pulling her towards him. The back of the couch stopped her from getting any closer.
“ I want to see if your missing lord placed a chastity belt on you to keep you loyal to him.”
“ There is no missing lord, I killed him and buried him in the back yard. I stay chaste for my white knight who will someday come and rescue me from my dark captor and his minions.”
“ Well my dear I hate to disappoint you but we’re one in the same. But it’s nice to know that none of my competitors for your hand got to taste the fruit before I did.” He gave an evil laugh before swinging her over his shoulder and walking up the stairs and slamming the door behind himself. He set her on the bed and began leering at her while rubbing his chin. “ Now what to do first.” Both heard a crash outside.
“ What the fuck was that?”
“ I don’t know but I’m about to find out.” He walked out onto the deck and saw three of his students all laying in a pile.”
“ Evening Taker, do you think it’s a nice night to look at the stars.”
“ The ones in the sky, or the ones that are going to be floating around your head after I get through with you?” He glared at the two boys when they stood up not bothering to help the one female student up. “ You know you could at least be gentlemen and help the lady up.” She was pretty much there and pushed them away. Glen came wandering around finding the three missing students and Taker giving them the stare of death.
“ Alright you three back across the road and head straight for my office. Sorry Taker I think they wanted to find out what really happened over here.”
“ Absolutely nothing happens over here!” He said it loud enough for Maria to hear.
The next morning Mark was especially hard on the three spies. Maria sat up in her room working on the flyers, but her mind was elsewhere. The last time I did anything with a man was close to seven years ago. Maybe I should go ahead with Mark. We’ve been together a year. She decided to finally give Mark what he had been asking for since they had met. That night….
Maria finished lighting all of the candles and laid out on the chaise lounge she had waiting for Mark. She had put on the negligee he had given her at Christmas. He came into the darkened house and trudged up the stairs. He walked into the room and marveled at how it looked in the soft glow. Then his eyes fell on Maria and his jaw nearly hit the floor.
“ You think you could do this every night?” She laughed before walking across the room and pulling him towards the bed. She carefully got his shirt off and started massaging his shoulders.
“ You’re awfully tense.”
“ You try doing my job, it’s not easy. Now what exactly are you up to?”
“ I was thinking about the past year and decided that you were safe and that you wouldn’t pull a 180 on me after we slept together, besides I don’t want the boy’s to think you’ve lost your charm.” She shifted to the side and let him lay back.
The next morning Mark was walking with a spring in his step that none of the students recognized, the downside to it was that he had more energy and drive than he usually did. Most of the other instructors figured it out when Maria rescheduled to come down and take portraits of everyone. The two stayed together for the rest of their days enjoying the others company. They never married but ended up having a son who took over the school for them. Before he retired Mark stressed to his students that you should always look below the surface, and try to find the persons real intent. That and if they ever had kids to always be kind to their teachers, cause you never know when you’ll run out of gas and have to depend on them to get you home.
The End.
