Chapter 16

The waitress stopped by with the coffee carafe and our check. "You two are in a good mood this morning," she said.

"We are," Nikki said. "I just found out I'm graduating from high school THIS year!"

"Really! My son's graduating this year. I thought you were younger than that."

"Tested out of two years of it," Nikki said. "Just blessed!"

"Indeed you are, dear," the waitress said. "I'll be right back." She disappeared with my credit card, returning so we could clear out.

We got in the truck and drove out of the parking lot.

"Whaddaya wanna do today, little one?" I asked.

"Why don't we go home, put a load of laundry on, then enjoy this beautiful weather. You know, load up the kayaks and go to the park."

"Sounds like a good idea."

"Uh-huh," she said. "The yard'll wait until mid-week, and we both can knock it out in no time."

Yep! TWO kayaks. An hour later we were on the road to the park where we could put in to play on the water. Nikki looked darned good in a conservative two-piece bathing suit, even if the floatation vest covers some of the goodies. Long legs. Nice butt. Her hair was swept whimsically by her floppy boonie hat.

"You don't want me to get too much sun, baby, believe me. It'll look like my freckles were put on with a Magic Marker."

"Then gimme your hat. You know how I am about your freckles," I chuckled.

"No!" she giggled, clutching the hat with both hands. "Too much of a good thing is BAD for you!"

She pulled the hat back onto her head. We unloaded our kayaks, the necessary accessories, and a cooler with some beverages at the kayak and canoe launch area and then I parked and locked the truck. We hit the waters, gliding along easily the sun glinting off the sparkling ripples. You don't exactly have to be a rocket scientist to do okay with a kayak on flat water, and this was Louisiana. The ONLY water we have is flat.

Nikki was certainly capable. I watched her paddle on ahead of me, the light dazzling off the wet blade of her paddle. She turned her little craft upstream and I knew exactly where we were heading. The meandering of the slow-flowing river had a section of bank that rose away from the water in a clay bluff, one end of which was low enough to pull the kayaks from the water, and then the top of the bluff was a carpet of pine needles, invisible from the river below unless you were standing. I don't think Nikki was thinking of standing, at least for a bit. Part of our gear for the trip was an old blanket stuffed into a waterproof expedition bag.

The blanket was our concession to my sweetie's little 'thing' about making love outdoors. Damned straight I wanted to go kayaking!

We paddled along, enjoying the sun, the sights, the sounds of songbirds, the latter interrupted from time to time by the raucous sounds of outboard motors and personal watercraft, but we still extracted serenity. And exercise. When we rounded the last bend before the bluff that was our goal, I was happy to see that nobody else was there.

"It's all ours," Nikki giggled.

We dragged the kayaks out of the water and onto the bank. I retrieved the bagged blanket and followed a sweet butt to the top of the bluff. I had enough self-restraint to prevent my tongue from hanging out.

At the top of the bluff, a little distance back from the edge, we spread the blanket over the carpet of pine needles. She was grinning at me as she stepped out of her swimsuit bottoms.

"You're beautifully, wildly, erotically NUTS!" I said as I hooked my thumbs in the waistband of my swimsuit. By the time I shucked it off my ankles, she was kneeling in front of me waiting to engulf that which she KNEW was going to be hard. She was right, of course, and my knees almost buckled from the exquisite sensations.

I gave her a few seconds of that before I knelt to face her and we embraced.

"I love you adore you worship you, Dan Granger," she said. "And in this cathedral, I want us to make love."

It WAS like a cathedral, the columns provided by the trees, the ceiling a filigree of green against the blue sky. And I sat and drew her into my lap, our lips merging, our arms pulling one another close. And we merged into one another, my dick deep inside her, her hips moving gently. I pulled back away from her, looking into her eyes. Communion. We wrapped back up together and ground ourselves to mutual orgasm. I had to strain to contain myself until she went over the edge, and in order to NOT have her squeals echoing up and down the river, she fastened her mouth to my neck.

We were coming down from the heights when her eyes opened.

"Oops!" giggle.

"What 'Oops'?" I asked.

"I got kinda carried away. You have a mark."

"Great!" I said, "I haven't had a hickey since high school."

"I'm so sorry, Dan ... I just lost it."

The evidence of 'lost it' was slowly oozing down my balls, and I was still experiencing post-orgasmic aftershocks. "Don't worry, baby doll," I said.

"You. Us. HERE! It's just too much," and she kissed me. "I lost it."

I smiled. "I understand. I lost it, too. And I found YOU in my arms. And my heart. And my dreams."

"And your life," she said.

"I love you."

"You got me, babe! I love you too." She kissed me back.

We heard voices from somebody else on the river below. Her soft blue eyes met mine. "We better get dressed, huh?"

"It's a thought." I pulled her swimsuit over to her then rolled onto my back and slid my own trunks on.

A couple of wiggles and bounces later and she was as dressed as the two-piece bathing suit would make her. We stuffed the blanket back in the bag. She saw a damp spot. "Blanket goes in the washer when we get home, baby," she giggled. "And I need to kinda swim for a little while. I'm sticky."

"We can do that," I said. "That spot up around the next bend?"

"Uh-huh," she said.

In a few minutes we were back on the water, our two colorful craft side by side.

"You know, little kitten, you're pure magic."

"You sure this isn't weird, honey? I mean, the idea of doin' it out here under the trees and the sky ... that just amplifies things." She sighed happily. "Like our love is as big as all outdoors."

"Poetic, aren't you, kitten?"

"Still tingly," she giggled. "And very happy!"

"Me too," I said. I didn't mention the fact that I too was feeling tingly aftershocks from our very recent mating.

We paddled upriver against the lazy current. A few minutes later we found the popular spot where boaters congregated, a little sandy beach that eased into the water in a gradual slope, popular with swimmers. We beached our pair of kayaks and hit the water for a swim. It LOOKED like a swim, but both of us seized the opportunity to relieve ourselves of the mess we'd made earlier. I completed that task while enjoying the water over my body.

I also enjoyed watching Nikki playing around in that swimsuit. No, it wasn't a bikini. The bottom covered too much to be called a bikini and the top was elastic, like an aquatic version of sports bra, a concession to Nikki's qualms about showing her body off in public.

I remember the conversation when we bought it.

"THIS is what I want for a bathing suit." She held it up for me to see.

"Not as revealing as a bikini, baby."

"We talked about that, Dan," she said. "I'm just uncomfortable showing too much in public."

"Your call, sweetness," I answered, "but you do have the body for a bikini."

"Modesty," she said.

"Says the girl who LIKES doing it outdoors."

Giggle. "That's different!"

"But a two-piece, right?"

"Uh-huh," giggle, "So I can get the bottoms off fast!"

"What a wonderful use of your analytical capacities."

"One must assign resources to the task at hand," she smirked.

That was the suit she wore for our outings on the water, and I absolutely adored her in it.

The first time she wore it for me, I told her so.

"I thought you wanted me to get a bikini."

"I wanted you to know that I didn't MIND you getting a bikini," I said. "But this is a 'Nikki' kind of suit. You look perfectly charming. Not flashy. Charming!"

She was right about getting the bottoms off easily.

But back to today, the two of us joining about a dozen others playing in the water, enjoying what would probably be one of the last days of swimming in the autumn in Louisiana. We put our flotation vests back on, she donned her floppy hat over wet hair, and we paddled lazily back to our point of origin.

The sky was darkening in the east as we loaded the truck up for the trip home.

"Sandwiches okay for dinner?"

"Works for me," I said.

"Then we can lay around the house this evening, after we shower. Music. Books. Maybe a little snuggle or two." Giggle.

We drove home together talking about what we'd seen, making plans for a serious expedition in the springtime, maybe to a river with real rapids as opposed to the slow, flat Louisiana waters. While I stowed the two kayaks in the ceiling of the garage, Nikki bounded inside with our ice chest and the blanket bag.

I joined her inside. First order of business was a shower. We spent way more time in there than we needed for purely sanitary purposes, then got out and attended to her hair drying and my shaving.

Come Monday, it was back to the grind. Nikki was off to school, I to my work. Mid-morning, the cellphone on my hip rang.

I answered it. "This is Dan."

"Dan Granger, this is Ernie Richard."

"Sheriff Ernie," I laughed. "How you doin', buddy?"

"Stompin' out crime, boy," he laughed. "Look, I got something I need to talk to you about. Concerns your wife, but I want to talk to you first."

My antennae extended fully. "Whatcha got?"

"Her mom. Still in an Arkansas prison, but she's trying to find out about her daughter now."

"Mighty motherly of her," I asked. "It's been four months since the hurricane."

"Kinda what I thought," he said. "But she is trying to contact her daughter."

"You know where she is? I mean, what facility in Arkansas?"

"Yeah. Not like she's gonna move and not leave a forwarding address for the next five years."

"Five years, huh?"

"Oh yeah," Ernie said. "Meth lab. Possession with intent to distribute."

"Cute!" I said.

"Well, I wanted to present you with the information. What you do with it is your business. But you might wanna see how Mizz Nikki feels. It's kinda her problem too."

"Boy," I said, "With what I know from you and her, I really was hoping we wouldn't face this."

"I know, Dan," Ernie said. "Nikki's a doll, but that's the baggage that goes with 'er."

"I guess I need to talk with her about it."

"I would. Good luck, man." He paused. "Oh, by the way, if you're not doing anything weekend after next, we're goin' to the huntin' camp to get ready for the huntin' season. You an' Nikki are invited!"

"Let me get back with you on that one. After this stuff. But I appreciate the offer. I think me an' Nikki will like it."

"Try, buddy. Talk to you later." Ernie hung up. I slid my phone back into its holster.

I was worried. Made for a lot of apprehension during the remainder of the day. When four o'clock rolled around and I got in the truck, I got the customary phone call from the love of my life.

"Hi, cutie," I said.

"Hey, baby! You on your way home?"

"I am. Are you having kids over this evening?"

"Yeah. Math study group."

"Okay."

"You sound different. Is something wrong?"

"Baby, you haven't said anything about your mom lately. Have you thought about her?"

She sighed. "I've been meaning to tell you. She didn't exactly abandon me, honey. She's in prison in Arkansas."

"How did you find out?"

"Miracle of modern technology. Plus I asked somebody at school who knew somebody at the police department to do a search for me."

"How long have you known?"

"Since a week after school started. I've been meaning to tell you..."

"That's okay, princess. Sheriff Ernie just called me today. Told me she was trying to find you. I wanted to talk with you about it."

"I love you, Dan. I don't want this to come between us."

"How do you think it would, baby?"

"I don't know. Mom's ... Mom's out there. And now you tell me she's not ignoring me. Baby, my life changed when I met you. For the good."

"So did mine, princess," I said. "Whatever comes of this, we're together. You and me. And what can she do to that? She's in for five years, according to Sheriff Ernie."

"Five. I'll be a college grad in five years. Twenty years old. Married."

"Yes, Nikki, my love."

"Hurry home. I need to hold you."

"I'll be there as soon as I can, kitten."

I drove on. Nikki was trying to protect ME from bad news. I was trying to protect HER. That thought made me smile. Still worried, though.

I pulled into the driveway and clicked the garage door opener, driving my SUV into it, and then walked into our house. Didn't get far. Had a lithe Cajun girl wrapped around me.