Chapter 3

WEEEET...
WEEEET...
WEEEET...
WEEEET...
WEEEET...

I slapped the alarm as I rolled over.

I hate mornings with a passion. Even in College I tried to schedule classes in the afternoons unless there was no other options. I rolled over and looked at the alarm clock ... Seven am.

One of the things good about being TB though was I didn't need a lot of sleep anymore. 3 or 4 hrs and I was good to go. I sat up, climbed into my wheelchair and rolled into the bathroom, transferred onto the shower chair from my wheelchair and took a quick shower, but since I was going to be spending at least the next week or so as TB I got back in my chair willed the change. The razor I use has a tiny micro laser that could cut through the tough titanium laced hair on my face. An almost identical laser was used by my barber when I went in for hair cuts.

I headed for the shower "Arthur, some jazz and the overnight news please"

The voice of my Digital Assistant system filled the room <One moment Sir>

Duke Ellington came on as Arthur gave me the overnight news and stock reports. Arthur was a Digital Assistant system that I had installed and modified to act as a security system and personal assistant. He had control of the house security system as well as the van.

I looked into the mirror as I finished shaving "Arthur, is the module for the bike ready?"

<Yes Sir, all you need to do is plug it into the slot under the seat as designed.> <Once I have established contact I will be on board. I took the liberty of> <downloading and studying the rules of the road for motorcycles and will have> <them on call for the ride home.>

I chuckled "Good deal, once I get you installed in the bike you'll have autonomous control"

When I first got here it took a little getting used to the leap in technology in this universe. Artificial Intelligence was common place once some of the more brilliant minds here developed biological computer circuitry. Basically it's vat grown neural circuits suspended in a nutrient tank. The material has a storage capacity of 2 Exabytes or about 2^30th gigabytes.

Yeah I know, it took me a while to get my head around that number. One of the other changes that seemed to come with my switch to this universe was an increased Intelligence. I know for a fact that before I got here I could never have created some of the thing I have. On the other hand some of the truly brilliant minds here make me look sad. Before I came here I was has a slightly above average intelligence and it seems I stayed at about the same point of above average, it's just that the average was a lot higher here than in my home universe. The other thing was the increased IQ seemed to effect me out of TB form.

I ended up expanding Arthur's abilities to allow him to connect remotely to the bike. Technically I could give him control of the bike, but it's a little hard to explain why Mark Andersons van is driving around without a driver. On the other hand Titanium Blue's bike will be just another cool hero gadget.

I jumped back into the shower, scrubbed my hide and got dressed on both side of the coin. Sweats, t-shirt and for Mark, polo shirt, slacks and dress shoes for TB.

"Arthur, dial Denise please"

<One moment Sir>

After a few seconds it rang "Hey handsome, you're up early"

"Handsome huh..." I chuckled "I hope you've had your eyes checked before we drive back." "I'm just about to get on the road, I wanted to get there early." "I thought I'd call and let you know Bob and his wife are coming out to the airport. I was telling Bob and his wife Jane about the trip and she wanted to meet you..."

"Who's Bob?"

"You met him the other night, Sgt. Murphy from Charlie's Tap Room."

"Ok, I didn't get his first name. "So you know Bob pretty well?"

"Yeah, we met about 8 years ago"

Denise giggled "and I bet they want to check me out ... Are they worried the big strong hero is biting off more than he can chew"

I laughed "I told Bob about Jeet-Kune-Do, he was impressed." "Hey I was going to stop and get coffee and bagels with cream cheese for all of us, any preference?"

"There's a place on Milwaukee Avenue called Dave's Doughnuts, grab some of their salmon and chives cream cheese and a couple everything bagels"

"No problem, a woman after my own heart. Ok, I'll see you at Palwaukee, I should be there in an hour or so."

"ok handsome, see you then ... maybe I can interrogate Bob and Jane for more dirt on you."

I grabbed my suitcase and headed down to the garage level below, tossed my bags in the back, switched forms, got behind the wheel and pulled out of my private garage.

After a stop at Dave's Doughnuts for bagels, cream cheese and coffee I was back on the road.

Once I got to the airport I pulled into a corner of the lot, switched to TB, grabbed my bags and headed into the waiting area. I was sitting in the general aviation waiting area when I saw Bob and Jane pull up. I waved out the window and motioned them in.

"Hey guys, I picked up some coffee and bagels on the way. Denise should be here soon, I called her before I left the house."

Bob grabbed a coffee and sat down "So are you ready for the license test?"

"Yeah I'm all set ... plus I have Arthur to back me up"

Jane looked confused for a second "Arthur?"

I took a sip of coffee "Oh that's the name of my household computer system, though at this point he's a lot more than that." "Hey I was thinking, once I get back you two will have to come over for dinner, I make a mean stir fry."

from behind Bob and Jane I heard Denise "Wait a second ... and you cook too?"

I grinned "Yup, Stir Fry, meatloaf with oven roasted potatoes and steamed veggies, lasagna, chili or home made pot stickers, take your pick"

Denise slide into the chair next to me "Hi Sgt. Murphy and this must be yo ... Jane? Jane Ostrowski?!"

Jane laughed "Actually Jane Murphy. Denny as I live and breathe."

Jane and Denise hugged and started giggling like school girls and chatting like long lost friends.

"So what's with still using McCandles?"

Denise blushed and looked at me "Sorry, I was gonna tell you."

I chuckled "When Jane said she knew you but as Arnson I figured it was wanting to make your own way and not on your fathers name, it's ok"

Denise sat next to me "Actually it was my fathers idea, He wanted to protect me. He was always worried that the wrong people would find out I was his daughter and try to use me against him, I just never changed it back. When I was in grade school my dad got worried someone would try and get at him through me so he had me change my name."

I looked at Jane "How did you find out?"

"Back in College Denny and I went to Colorado with her parents skiing one year for New Years over Christmas vacation."

Denise chuckled "you wouldn't believe the checking my Dad did to make sure it was ok to tell you who I was before we went."

Bob nodded "I can, I went thru something like that years ago when I applied to work for the Feds. They poke everywhere."

Jane looked at Bob "When was this?"

"Just before I left the Marines, but I decided I wanted to work in local law enforcement. It worked out pretty good though. I met you and you were crazy enough to date me."

I laughed "Yeah, but didn't you have to get shot for that to happen?"

Bob looked at Jane " ... and I'd do it again."

That got an awww from Denise and a kiss from Jane.

Jane kissed his nose and looked at Denise "He knows how to keep me happy. And the occasional lil white lie helps"

I laughed "and he knows you're very good with a scalpel."

Bob laughed "Damn straight skippy."

Jane laughed "That's why I married you, you're a smart man"

We sat around for about 45 minutes talked while we waited for the plane to get ready. Sometime around quarter to eleven the airport manager came over and let Denise know the plane was ready to board.

"So when you get back we should all do some riding."

I looked at Denise "Yeah I mentioned we should do some short trips and maybe Sturgis in August"

Denises eyes lit up "Sturgis... ? I'm in ... I've never been and Dad would never have let me go"

Jane laughed "Well now we'll have a Cop and a Superhero to protect us"

Bob chimed in "Hell, from what I hear it's Denise that's more dangerous"

Denise got a shocked look on her face "Me? I'm sweet as sugar and innocent" then grinned like the Cheshire cat.

Jane struggled to keep a straight face and then burst out laughing "tell that to Jimmy Reardon. He got his ass kicked for roaming hands freshman year of college."

I looked at Bob "I think we might need to separate these two"

Bob looked at me "you're the Superhero, have at it big guy."

we joked around a bit more, Jane and Denise exchanged numbers and said our goodbyes.

"Ok, so the cargo plane is ready?"

Denise grinned "This is a little better than a cargo plane. Let's grab our stuff and head to hanger 5"

I grabbed Denises suitcase and the small trunk I had "Lead on lovely lady"

"Charmer"

We rounded the corner into the hanger and headed for the plane, I let out a low whistle.

"Nice little puddle jumper you have here"

Denise grinned "Sometimes it's good to be the boss"

"What is it?"

"It's a Bombardier Global 5000."

I put our bags inside and climbed in, the cabin attendant wheeled my trunk and Denise's bag to the back and stowed them.

I found one of the large couches and sat "Ok ... I think I could learn to like this"

Denise smiled "It makes it much nicer to fly to a business meeting and you don't have to deal with the lines"

The captain came out of the cockpit "I'll be starting the engines in a minute and we'll taxi for takeoff"

"How long will we be in the air?"

"We'll be in the air about three and a half hours, we should get to Long Beach about 12:30 local time Ms. McCandles"

"Thank you Joseph"

In about 5 minutes the engines started and we taxied out to the runway for take off. The cabin attendant came back and asked if we wanted anything after we were in the air.

Denise sat down with me "I'll take a cappuccino Andrew"

"Of course ma'am, and you Sir?"

"That sounds good, I'll take a cappuccino as well."

The overhead sound system came on and the pilots voice came through the speakers "Bombardier Robert Nancy David Juliet 1-5-4-9 IFR to Long Beach, ready to copy"

"Bombardier Robert Nancy David Juliet 1-5-4-9, is cleared to Long Beach airport as filed, Fly runway heading, climb and maintain 10,000. Departure frequency is 120.55, squawk 1145"

The pilot repeated "Bombardier Robert Nancy David Juliet 1-5-4-9, is cleared to Long Beach airport as filed, Fly runway heading, climb and maintain 10,000. Departure frequency is 120.55, squawk 1145"

"Bombardier Robert Nancy David Juliet 1-5-4-9, read back correct. Contact ground on 121.7"

We started rolling and were in the air. Soon the wheels came up and we were turning west.

I grinned "Now all I need is a gorgeous redhead traveling companion and it would be perfect ... Oh wait ... I do have a gorgeous redhead traveling companion"

Denise giggled and smacked my arm "Charmer"

"OW!"

"Hey hey hey ... no beating up on the blue guy, I'm fragile."

Denise rolled her eyes "yeah I'm sure that guy at the bar thought you were just so fragile after his hand connected. Just how tough are you anyway?"

I shrugged "I'm not sure actually. I've been shot at a few times and the bullets just pancake against me. Part of me wants to know and part of me doesn't wanna push it. I can tell you having bullets bounce off you can be a bit intoxicating."

Denise nodded "I can relate to that in a way, when I'm sparring and take down a bigger opponent it's a rush"

"I know what ya mean, when I met Bob I was stopping a bank robbery at the Bank of Chicago and it was a rush. Actually except for being very strong and at least small arms fire proof I don't know if I can do anything else. The one thing I'm hesitant about is can I fly, I'm a bit afraid of heights."

"You're kidding right?"

"Nope, as a kid I was scared of tall buildings like the Sears Tower, I couldn't get near the windows on the observation deck. Heck, bunk beds gave me nose bleeds."

Denise laughed "you're not serious are you?"

I nodded "Serious as a heart attack, well except for the nose bleeds part." "I wasn't always 8'3", bullet proof and heart throb handsome" I chuckled.

Denise giggled "Well I can see humility isn't a strong suit either. Though, you are pretty damned handsome."

"So what do you usually do when you fly out of town when you're in the air?"

Denise shrugged "Usually I'm flying to a conference or a business meeting, so I'm going over notes or a presentation. I don't take a lot of time off so I'm not sure what to do. I went ahead and cleared my calendar for 14 days so I don't have much to do."

"What about you when you fly?"

I chuckled "Well usually I put on my IPOD and read."

Just then the pilot popped his head out of the cockpit "Ms. McCandles, we've reached our 35,000 foot cruising altitude and should be in Long Beach in about 3 hours."

Denise turned back to me "So what do you read?"

"Mostly Science Fiction and Historical stuff, but I like a good military/political thriller now and again as well. Otherwise, technical journals and computer stuff."

Denise smiled "Computer stuff? I wouldn't have never taken you for a techie..."

I nodded "Yeah I'm very interested in Artificial Intelligence and autonomous systems, vehicle auto piloting and things."

I think I surprised Denise "I know there are some interesting things going on there, Arnson is working on a few things in that area."

I chuckled "I know, I've read everything I can get my hands on"

Denise gave me a sly smile "So it seems the big superhero is more than meets the eye."

The rest of the flight was fun, we ended up grabbing a deck of card the cabin steward had and played some cards, talked about computers and general tech. I tried not to steer things into specifics because I knew she has security clearances and had way too much she can't discuss. Between breaks of Denise beating me in Rummy I used the inflight phone about halfway out and got some transportation set up. It didn't seem like almost 3 hours, but the pilot came out and let us know they were getting ready to descend into Long Beach. We landed about 20 minutes later and once we taxied to the terminal I grabbed our bags and headed over to the Hummer.

I made a quick call and walked back to Denise in the terminal "M'Lady, your chariot awaits"

"Ok, we have about 3 hours before we can check in so how does some lunch sound?"

Denise climbed into the hummer "yes, I'm famished. What did you have in mind?"

I grinned "I know a really good taco place we can stop at and a cool place we can eat at."

"Ok, where are we headed?"

I chuckled "Just trust me, you'll like this."

A few minutes later we pulled up in front of a place called Taco Loco "Ok here we are, we can grab something and head out"

A cute hispanic girl was taking orders, I waved and walked up "Hey Consuella, I need to order to go."

she smiled "Hi TB, what ya need?"

"Lets see ... hmmmm ... give me 6 lengua and 6 Churizo and did you get the order that was called in?"

"Si, they called it in about 20 minutes ago, it's almost done."

"Ok cool"

I turned to Denise "Ok what would you like?"

Denise turned to Consuella "I'll take 3 Lengua and 3 tripas."

I handed Consuella my bank card "Just throw it all on my bill."

she smiled "Ok that's 105.63"

Denise looked at me "How many taco's are you getting, are you feeding an army?"

I shrugged "Sort of ... you'll see."

It didn't take long and Denise and I grabbed the bags. We loaded up the food into the back of the hummer and headed out. It was only about 2 minutes to get to the shop and Denise squealed as we pulled around the corner in front of West Coast Choppers.

"I didn't think we'd get here til Monday."

"I called Jesse a few days ago and the crew from the show was going to be here in the afternoon so we set up the reveal and all for today. I called after we landed and told Jesse I'd grab lunch for the gang."

As we stopped out front Jesse walked out "Hey man good timing. How was the flight out?"

"Well I had a much better trip than last time. Jesse this is Denise McCandles, Denise This is..."

"Jesse James, I have wanted to meet you since I saw you on Motorcycle Mania 9 years ago."

Jesse held out his hand "It's nice to meet you. So how did you get hooked up with TB?"

"How about we get the crew fed and we can sit and she can tell you. I know the guys get pissy when lunch is late."

The three of us grabbed the boxes the food was in and went inside "Lunch is here."

The guys came out and we got the order sorted out.

I grabbed our bags "Ok where to?"

Jesse started walking into the shop "Let's go up to my office, we can talk up there"

"Ok so how did you meet this guy?" Jesse sat down and started opening tacos.

Denise plopped down on the couch, I sat on the floor "Well I was having a discussion with a couple of drunken morons outside a sports bar when TB came and rescued them."

Jesse looked confused at her "wait a min ... rescued them?"

I laughed "Seems these three morons had no idea what they had gotten themselves into. Denise is a Jeet-Kune-Do Instructor."

Jesse looked at Denise and whistled "Next thing you'll tell me you ride too."

Denise smiled "yup, and do my own maintenance."

"What do you ride?"

Denise grinned "I hand rebuilt a '51 Indian Chief."

Jesse looked at me "This one is a keeper."

Denise explained how she got into motorcycles and was an engineer, then she told the real story of how we met.

"So for your first date he dragged you out here to ride back... ?"

Denise laughed "Well that and getting the chance to meet you"

Jesse grinned "and they say romance is dead."

Denise looked at him then me "So ... are you trying to romance me?"

I'm pretty sure I turned a bit red, not that anyone can tell from my blue skin "What can I say, I have a weakness for gorgeous, brilliant redheads."

We finished up lunch and just hung out and talked for a while. Denise and Jesse started talking about riding and restoring old bikes. I jumped into the conversation when I could, but a lot of the time I was more confused. Give me a computer or a piece of electronics and I'm right there with the conversation, but engines are not my forte.

"I'm really looking forward to seeing the bike."

Jesse stood up "Well the film crew should be here in about 30 minutes. Once they get set up we can wheel it out."

"Hey I'll be back in a minute I need to get something out of the back of the hummer, is there a room I can use to change clothes?"

"Yeah just come back up here, then I can show you around the shop."

I ran out to the hummer and grabbed a large leather duffel I brought with me and dropped it off in Jesse's office.

Denise turned to Jesse "Jesse, is there a place in town you'd recommend I can get a bike in the next few days? Mine's still in Chicago."

Jesse thought for a moment "Actually yeah I do, and it's a one of a kind bike. Since you're an older bike fan you're someone who can appreciate it. Hang on a sec, let me make a call. Why don't you two go down stairs, I'll be down in a few."

We headed downstairs and wandered around the shop a little.

About 15 minutes later Jesse joined us "Ok I think you'll like this. This guy I know has a bike he's willing to sell. He should be here in about 45 minutes with the bike. He's been in town all week for a show here."

About that time the crew from Discovery showed up. Jesse pulled the producer aside for a few minutes and they were talking. I could see them off to the side and the producer looked a bit excited. Jesse pulled out a cell phone and passed it to him and he talked for a few minutes.

Jesse came back a few minutes later "Ok you ready to start?"

I nodded "Yeah, but what was all that about?"

Jesse grinned "you're gonna make brownie points from this ... you're gonna owe me."

We got things set up and Denise and I got back in the hummer and went around the block. They wanted to have us pull in so they could get set up shots and all. We walked in and did the greeting thing and all that to make it look good. Then Jesse and the guys rolled out my bike. I was stunned ... I hadn't seen the bike except a few initial drawings, The gas and oil tanks were angular and a light powder coated blue. I asked for the bigger handle bars, but not quite the old school ape hanger bars. I got on the bike and eased down on the seat.

Jesse laughed "Don't worry, we used titanium reinforced carbon fiber for the frame. We did some testing and we're pretty sure you can jump this sucker and land without a problem. Start it up."

I pressed the starter and it came to life, damn was it loud, but that might have been cause we were in the garage. The damned thing was so loud we didn't hear the 3 bikes and the pickup pull up outside. Denise was standing next to me when she looked towards the door and her jaw dropped. I looked over and saw this older guy covered in tattoos, grey hair in a pony tail and a white wife beater t-shirt. Now anyone who has seen Jesse James on Discovery or some of the other bike shows knows Indian Larry.

I killed the bike and as the noise of the bike died I heard Denise "oh my god, it's..."

He looked at Denise "I hear you're in the market for a bike?"

"OHMYGOD ... I can't believe it..."

I chuckled "I think that means yes, I would love to own an Indian Larry bike."

Larry walked up and held out his hand "I hear from Jesse you rebuilt a '51 Indian Chief."

I could see Denise shift gears and they started talking bike restoration. Eventually she wound down a bit and I was able to get a word in edge wise.

I looked at Denise "Let's go take a look."

I got off my bike and we followed Larry and Jesse out. There behind the pickup on a flatbed was one of Larry's hand built bikes. The bike was painted to a deep copper flake with white flames, ape hanger handlebars, and Larry's question mark logo on the rear fender. I heard Denise gasp next to me. I whistled, I had seen the show where he built it and it was a gorgeous bike.

Denise looked at Larry "I don't know what to say except sold."

Larry walked over and handed her the keys "I talked to Jesse and he said if anyone would appreciate the bike it would be you and anyone who can talk restoration and building like you can knows her bikes. Let's get it off the trailer and you can take it for a ride."

The guys got the ramps off the trailer and rolled it down. Denise walked over as it came down and just caressed the seat.

I looked at her "We'll ... go ahead."

Denise swung a leg over, flipped out the kick start and cranked it over. The bike rumbled to life and I could see her smile light up.

Jesse looked at me "Ok TB, let's get you on yours."

By the time we all got ready it was Denise, Larry and a two of his friends, Jesse and a couple of guys from the shop and I."

I pulled Jesse aside "Jesse, I've never ridden before."

Jesse grinned "Afraid of a little road rash?"

I laughed and then looked at him "No, but if I wipe I'll fuck up the bike."

Jesse shrugged "With how that bike is built you could almost drive the fucker through a brick wall and just scratch the paint. Besides, how often are you gonna get to ride with Indian Larry?"

"or you ... I can't believe I'm gonna ride with you and Larry. Let me run up to your office for a minute, I wanna change real quick."

As I headed up the stairs Denise grabbed me "I need the keys, I'm gonna have someone take care of the hummer for us so we don't need to worry about getting it later."

I tossed her the keys "Ok, I think I have everything I need out of there."

I knew the bike was coming for a few months so I had some custom leathers made. Black leather pants, jacket, white t-shirt, black boots and a pair of wrap around sunglasses. After I changed I grabbed the link module for Arthur and headed down stairs.

I walked over the Jesse "Jesse, how do I unlock the seat, I have the module I told you about."

Jesse walked over and showed me how to unlock the seat with the key and lift the seat up "So what does it do?"

I started hooking it in and mounted it into the slot Jesse built in for me "Actually, it's a satellite link to the Artificial Intelligence unit I designed. I call him Arthur."

I finished the connections and activated the link to Arthur "Arthur, perform a system check and give me a status please."

Mounted just under the few gauges at the base of the handlebars were a pair of highly directional ultra thin surface mount speakers. The speakers were invisible unless you knew where to look.

Arthur's voice boomed from the speakers <Satellite links at 100%, GPS fully functional, FLIR> <and Radar at 100%, Autonomous controls fully functional.>

Jesse looked at me "So that's what those sensors were for in the headlights, tail lights and along the frame rails?"

I nodded "Yup and the those small boxes and servos give Arthur control of the bike. The glasses are part of the system. At night they can show me the road in FLIR mode and give me maps and information right in front of me."

Jesse nodded "is this something that you are going to market?"

I shrugged "I'm not sure, it's more of a specialized system for my bike."

As I sat down on my bike it started it by itself. I walked it forward and pulled out next to Denise. She'd run to the hummer and grabbed a leather jacket and an old school helmet and glasses.

I killed the engine "Damn ... you look good on that bike."

She smiled "you ready to get a crash course in motorcycle riding."

I flinched "Don't say crash, I'm nervous enough as is and now we have 2 legends riding with us."

Denise leaned over, kissed my cheek then turned and sauntered to her bike. I know my jaw hit the ground and I'm sure she was shaking her ass a little more just for me. She climbed on her bike, stomped the kick start like an old pro and the bike rumbled to life. A couple of minutes later 7 bikes pulled out of the shop lot and headed for the highway.

We drove up onto the Pacific Coast Highway and headed northwest. We rode for about 2 hours and stopped at a road side place just west of Santa Barbara around 6.

I pulled in next to Denise and shut the bike down "So ... how was it?"

Denise had a grin from ear to ear "I didn't think I could love a bike more than my Chief, but I do. When we get back into town follow me. I have a surprise for you."

She stepped up on a foot peg and kissed my cheek "This has been one of the best days I have had in a long time. Let's get some food, I'm starved."

It was a beautiful evening so we sat outside and ordered food.

I moved a couple of tables so it was near a low retaining wall. The guys wanted to help move them but they were heavy poured concrete tables and I didn't want anyone to hurt themselves. They were only about half a ton so it was nothing for me to move them, but it would have taken 5 or 6 guys to muscle then around.

Dinner was fun and I was buzzing from the ride. They guys got a good laugh at the almost permanent grin I had.

We started getting ready to leave and I moved the table back where it was. Denise was talking to Larry as I came back to our bikes.

"I just need a bank to transfer the amount to and I can call my accountant in the morning."

Larry nodded "I'll have my office manager call you in the morning and we can get things settled."

They traded cell numbers and she kissed his cheek "you have no idea how much this means to me, thank you"

Denise turned to me "and you, come here."

She grabbed me by the jacket and pulled me down. She kissed my cheek and looked up at me.

Denise smiled up at me "Thank you for asking me to come."

I leaned down and kissed her cheek "Thank you for coming."

"Oh here I meant to give you this earlier." I reached in my jacket and pulled out an ear piece.

Denise looked at it "What is it?"

"It connects you to the AI under my seat, this way we can talk as we ride and you can talk to Arthur as well."

Denise put it in her ear "Cool, anything else it can do?"

Arthur's voice came through my ear piece <Good Evening Ms. McCandles, yes I can navigate, get directions> <given a destination, act as a cell phone, and in the case we are> <out of cell tower range, a satellite phone. I also have the ability to> <contact local, State and Federal law enforcement on their communication> <frequencies. The goggles TB wears also give him FLIR and> <Radar images generated from sensors mounted around the bike.>

Denise looked at the bike "Arthur, Please call me Denise. Are you able to control the bike?"

<Yes Denise, a series of miniature servo-mechanisms and gyroscopes> <have been installed that give me complete control of the motorcycle.>

"Impressive, where did you get it made?"

"Most of the hardware is off the shelf or things I was able to get a hold of through some contacts. The sensors are actually from Arnson. I found them through a guy I know is the auto industry for their autonomous driving system. The software and the micro servos and gyroscopes were some stuff I modified."

Denise nodded "You'll have to show it to me some time."

"Sure, when we get back to Chicago, come over to my place and I'll make dinner, we can look it over."

"We'd better get on the road, we have a 2 hour drive back"

Denise smiled "Definitely, I had some plans for you tonight, but I think it'll have to wait, I'm pretty beat."

I looked at Denise, "Are you ok to ride back?"

Denise nodded, "Yeah, but once we get back I think I'll be ready to crash."

We started up and headed south back to Long Beach and about 90 minutes later we were headed to Malibu Beach and a residential area not far from the water. Denise and I had been talking most of the drive mostly to stay awake. Ok mostly to help her stay awake, I don't need a lot of sleep and I can go 2 or 3 days without sleep before I start to get tired.

I looked over at Denise "Where are we headed?"

Denise grinned "You'll see in a minute, we're almost there"

About 10 minutes later we pulled in front of a large wrought iron gate. Denise stopped and grabbed a small clicker out of her pocket and the gate slid open.

"Here we are, Casa Arnson. Welcome to my west coast place."

The house was a huge Mediterranean style villa.

I whistled "Nice little shack you have here."

Denise chuckled "Thanks, my dad planned it a couple years ago and I finished it after he passed. Just park out here."

I parked and slid off the bike "Arthur, keep an eye on things, see you in the morning."

<Yes Sir, the weather forecast shows no chance of rain for tonight> <we'll be fine out here.>

"Call my cell if you need me"

<Good Night Sir>

I followed Denise up the stairs to the front door and got a fabulous view of her bottom wiggling as we got to the door. She looked back over her shoulder.

"Are you looking at my ass?"

Ok ... there are 3 options here guys:

Say nothing and let her decide for herself.

Say no, even though you both know you were looking.

Be honest.

"Of course I was, your a gorgeous woman with a fabulous bottom and you're shaking it for me"

Denise turned and for a second I thought I might have screwed up, but she reached out, grabbed my collar and kissed me. Not the peck on the cheek from earlier, but a full on, hand behind my head lip lock and then looked into my eyes.

We headed inside and I got a quick nickle tour of the house. This place was even bigger that I thought, 9 bedrooms, 12 baths, kitchen, outdoor living room, den, patio with a heated pool. Denise showed me to one of the extra bedrooms and there was this enormous bed, about 9 ft. long and 7 ft. wide.

Denise said "make yourself at home, I'll be back in minute"

I looked in and my truck was there so I grabbed a pair of shorts to sleep in and slipped into the attached bathroom to change. Just as I came out I was hit with the site of Denise standing there in just a long t-shirt that came to mid thigh, her long reddish hair in a pony tail and those long gorgeous legs. I'm pretty sure I looked like a fool standing there with my mouth open.

"So ... you like?"

It took me a second to get my brain in gear "very much so"

She walked over to me, grabbed a chair, sat it in front of me and climbed up.

"Thank you for today, it's the most fun I have had in a long time."

Denise leaned in to kiss me and wrapped her arms around My neck. "Good."

The kiss was soft and gentle with the promise of more ... a lot more. Just then the chair started to tilt and she lost her footing. I grabbed her to catch her before she fell and ended up with a handful of her bottom. We were both startled for a second, but she blinked and then kissed me again. This time there was no mistaking it. As we kissed I gently squeezed and kneaded her ass. I could feel the heat coming from her. The kiss lingered for a bit and then she pulled back.

"you can put me down"

I smiled "but, I'm enjoying having your sweet lil bottom in my hand."

Denise blushed a little "I am too, but unless you're ready to hear me snore you'd better put me down."

I hesitated for a second because between the sight of her bottom and the feeling of it in my hand I was harder than I can ever remember, but I figured she knows exactly what she is doing to me so I might as well run with it. I lowered her to the ground and let her go.

Denise patted my cheek "Good Night, get some sleep."

Then she turned and shimmied her way out of the room.

Tomorrow was going to be an interesting day. I needed to tell her about my other self before things went too far, I just hoped she would handle it ok. I climbed into bed and decided I should get a few hours of sleep. It was going to be a long day, one way or another.

I slept about 4 hours and was up just before 6 am, but I figured Denise would be asleep for a couple more hours. I grabbed my laptop and moved to the kitchen, started some coffee, put on my headset and logged in.

"Morning Arthur, any problems last night?"

<Good Morning Sir, everything was quiet last night. I have downloaded the over night markets to your laptop and marked a few emails for your attention. I went ahead and transferred the last payment for the motorcycle to West Coast Choppers.>

"Ok cool, I meant to do that last night, but we got in so late I forgot."

I spent some time reading and responding to the over night emails from my broker and some business related things, checked a couple of news sites and checked the forecast for the day. I looked up at the clock and it was almost 8 am so I closed things down, refreshed my coffee and checked the fridge.

"There we go ... eggs, bacon, onions and ... hmmmm where would those be..."

I checked around and found a bag of potatoes in a cabinet in a mesh bag. I figured I would make Denise and I breakfast and surprise her. About 30 minutes later I hear sounds of footsteps behind me.

"Do I smell coffee and bacon?"

I chuckled "I knew the bacon would get you awake. There's a fresh pot of coffee here, the bacon is almost done and the hash browns are in the oven. I'll start the eggs in a few minutes."

Denise walked in behind me and ran her hand along the small of my back as she passed me to get to the coffee "I was pretty sure you were a keeper before this, but making coffee and breakfast seals the deal."

I leaned over towards her and gave her a soft kiss "Yeah yeah yeah, I bet you say that to all your boy toys."

Denise hip checked me on the way past "Nope, only the big blue ones."

"I was about to beat some eggs for omelets, how does that sound?"

"oooh, are you trying to spoil me?"

I winked at Denise "Maybe..."

"So I was thinking since you need some time on the bike before we hit the road for home we should do a trip or two, maybe an over night to San Diego."

I nodded "I was thinking the same thing, I was thinking a ride or two first, maybe San Francisco and then I thought the first leg would be from here to Vegas, spend a few days there and hit the road."

Denise sat across the counter from me "San Francisco would be nice but it's almost an 8 hr ride. I don't know about you but my bottom isn't made of concrete, I'd rather not do more than 6 hrs a day."

I opened my laptop and showed her the map I made in Google Maps. "I tried to break it up into segments of no more than 6 hrs a day."

Denise looked it over "Not to bad, why across the south west though?"

I walked around the counter and looked at the map over her shoulder "Mainly because of the distances between major cities and having hotels that can accommodate my height."

Denise nodded "Yeah I guess that's something you have to worry about."

I moved back into the kitchen and started beating some eggs for the omelets.

"Yeah sometimes it can be a pain in the ass, but I'm used to it. The biggest problem when I do travel making is sure I have a bed that my feet don't hang over the edge of the bed."

I grabbed another cup of coffee and finished making breakfast while we talked.

"Ok so what is the plan today, you know this area better than I do?"

Denise looked at the map again "Well, we could ride down to San Diego and go to the zoo, maybe Sea World ... Oh and I know this great place, do you like seafood?"

I grinned "I love seafood and Sea World is one of those places I've always wanted to go to."

Denise smiled "Ok now do we wanna ride back tonight or stay over night up there?"

I shrugged "I don't know, it's what a 3 hour ride and 3 hours back? If we ride down and spend the day running around that's gonna be a long day for you."

Denise nodded "Yeah, how about we both pack an over night bag, I'll call ahead for a room and we can come back tomorrow."

"Sounds good to me, I can toss our stuff in the saddle bags and off we go."

We finished up breakfast and I loaded the dishwasher so we could get this show on the road. I went back to my room packed some clothes and some odds and ends. I grabbed a quick shower, shaved and brushed my teeth. I was just coming out of the attached bathroom in a towel when my door popped open and Denise walked in.

"Hey gorgeous, if you wanted a free show why didn't you just join me in the shower, I could have used the help getting my back."

Denise grinned "I'll remember that ... Hey I called Hotel El Coronado and they have a small suite for us so we're all set."

"Good deal, How bad will traffic be on a Saturday?"

"It should be ok, nothing too bad."

I grabbed jeans and a shirt "ok give me 5 mins and we can get this show on the road. Oh hey, can you call the hotel back and see if the suite has a roll in shower?"

Denise looked at me confused "Sure ... but what's a roll in shower?"

"It's so that someone in a wheelchair can roll right in and transfer to a seat and shower, but I found they they are much larger and they have hand held showers. It makes it nicer when I don't have to get on my knees to rinse my hair."

"Oh hey, do you have a screw driver handy? I brought my plates with me."

Denise nodded "Sure, there's a tool chest out in the garage."

Once I got down to the garage it took about another 15 minutes for me to get the saddle bags packed and the plates on. About that time I heard Denise coming up from behind me.

I turned to look at her "Ok, I think we're all set, are you ready g ... o?"

I think my jaw hit the floor as I looked at her, she was in skin tight black leather pants, a tight white t-shirt and an open black leather jacket. Her long auburn hair was in a loose pony tail cascading down her back. As she walked up to me I could tell she was braless from the way her breasts gently bounced. Denise walked up and lifted my chin up to close my mouth. "I take it you like."

"I ... uh ... yeah..."

Denise walked to her bike and looked over her shoulder at me as she put on a pair of wrap around sunglasses. "You know the only bad thing about riding a bike like this?"

"No..."

Denise got on her bike and got up on the kick starter. "I usually ride alone and it makes me horny as hell." Then she stomped on the starter, flipped the kick stand up and pulled out with a screech of the tires. My bike started as I climbed on and I pulled out after her.

"I am in so much trouble."

<Yes sir, I believe you are.>