The Hitchhiker

DALLAS

My eyelids fluttered closed, the giant knot in my belly relaxing when we crossed into Oklahoma. I didn’t really think they would come after me, but I felt safer outside of Texas.

My family was wealthy and powerful. As the owners of one of the largest cattle ranches in the state, they had a lot of government officials in their inner circle.

I drifted off to the twang of Axel’s country music blaring from the stereo.

The familiar smell of fresh hay tickled my nostrils. The weddings always took place in the main barn. They were private affairs, with only family in attendance.

I had eleven siblings and twenty-one cousins. Some of them were twenty years older than me, with kids my age. I had nieces and nephews who were older than me. Folding chairs lined both sides of the aisle.

My dad wrapped his strong fingers around my wrist, dragging me down the aisle when I refused to walk.

“Let me go, Dad!” I cried. “Please don’t make me do this.”

“Dallas.”

“Please, Dad.”

“Dallas.”

“No.” I tried to wrench my wrist out of his grip.

“Dallas, wake up.”

I bolted upright, momentarily disoriented. “Oh. Thank God.”

“Are you okay?”

I stared at the stranger in the driver’s seat. “Where are we?”

“On the outskirts of Oklahoma City.”

“Sorry.”

“For what?”

“Falling asleep.”

“I don’t give a fuck if you sleep.” He glanced over at me, his lips curling up in a sexy half-smirk. “You’ve got a little drool on your chin, sweetheart.”

“Gross.” I pulled down the mirror and wiped away the drool with the back of my hand.

“Are you hungry?”

“A little.”

“What’s your pleasure?” he asked, stopping at a red light. We were on a busy commercial street with several fast-food joints.

“McDonald’s is fine.”

He swung into the lot and steered the hearse into the drive-through lane. “What do you want?”

“Just a cheeseburger and a small Coke.” I pulled out my wallet and handed him a five-dollar bill. “I know I should buy your food since you’re driving me to Florida, but I’m a little low on funds.”

“My rich boss is paying for everything.”

“I know. But I’m not a freeloader.”

“Relax.”

“Axel,” I hissed, when he ordered two double quarter pounder combos. “I said I wanted a cheeseburger.”

“Make that two double quarter pounder combos with cheese,” he corrected.

“Here,” I said, shoving a ten-dollar bill at him.

“I don’t want your money, sweetheart.”

We collected our food and headed back out on the road. I inhaled my burger, grateful for Axel’s generosity.

He wiped his face with a napkin, eyeing my empty burger wrapper. “Did you even taste that?”

“I was starving.”

“I see that.”

“Are you married, Axel?”

“Nope.”

“Girlfriend?”

“Nope.”

“Kids?”

“Nope.”

“Pets?”

“Nope.”

“Tell me something about yourself.”

He popped some fries in his mouth. “What do you want to know?”

“Do you shampoo your beard?”

“Yep.”

“You’re from Los Angeles?”

“Born and raised.”

“What do you do when you aren’t driving dead bodies across the country?”

“I’m a mechanic.”

“Cool. So, do you, like, fix all the hearses?”

“My boss owns ten funeral chapels in the greater Los Angeles area. Each one has a fleet of vehicles that needs maintenance and repairs. That keeps me pretty busy.”

“What do you do for fun?”

“I think it’s my turn to ask you some questions, sweetheart.”

“Ask away.”

“What are you running from?”

“Wow,” I said, laughing nervously. “You don’t fuck around.”

“Nope.”

“Is that your favorite word?”

“Nope.”

“You use it a lot.”

“I’m a man of few words.”

“I love to talk. I guess I’m the yin to your yang.”

“You’ve barely said a word since I picked you up.”

“I needed a little time to explore your aura. Now that I feel comfortable with you, you’ll probably wish I had an off switch. I can’t help it.

“When you grow up in a big family, it’s a constant battle to get a word in. Nobody pays attention to anything you say, because there are always several conversations going on at the same time.

“I never had one-on-one time with anyone, not even my mom. The only person I could talk to was my big sister, because we shared a bedroom.

“We were the only girls in our house, other than my mother. I have ten brothers. I’m the youngest. My sister is five years older than me, but we’re close.”

“What is all this aura shit you keep mentioning?”

“You’re a funny guy, Axel.”

“What makes you say that?”

“I just told you I have eleven siblings, and you want to know about auras. Most people are really curious about a family that large in this day and age.”

“I’m more interested in why you’re running away, but I’m sure you’ll tell me when my aura gives you the go-ahead.”

“The aura is an electromagnetic energy field that surrounds our bodies,” I explained.

I continued, “There are seven layers. The physical aura layer is the first layer. It goes latent during our waking hours and rejuvenates when we sleep. It’s linked to our five senses and overall bodily health.

“The next is the astral layer. It’s all about our emotions, memories, and experiences. Then you have the lower aura. It deals with logic and thinking patterns. When we’re awake, this layer is where we spend the majority of our time.

“Next is the higher aural layer. It’s the one that enables us to connect to other people. The spiritual layer allows you to connect with people on a spiritual level.

“Then you have intuitional, which is the one that I used to determine if you were safe. The final layer is the absolute layer. It balances everything out and guides you on your destined path.”

“Sounds like a bunch of malarkey.”

“It is not.”

“Whatever,” he muttered.

“You know what, Axel Kramer?”

“What?”

“My intuitional skills are usually pretty sharp, but I think I must’ve been off my game this morning. I thought you were a decent human being, but now I’m not so sure.”

“Just because I don’t buy into your foo-foo nonsense, it doesn’t make me a bad person.”

“You’re absolutely right. I’m sorry. Everyone is entitled to their beliefs. Every human being should be free to be themselves and live their life how they see fit.

“Nobody has the right to cast judgment on another person. If we could all just exist in peace, the world would be a much better place.”

“Unfortunately, that’s a pipe dream, sweetheart.”

“I know.”

“Your aura tells me you’re troubled, and you’re running away from something,” he said, glancing over at me with one bushy eyebrow raised.

My eyes traveled down to the dark hair peeking over the edge of the collar of his tight black t-shirt. His arms were also covered in a thick layer of dark hair. Axel was a hairy man.

Normally, I’d be totally turned off by that. Most guys I knew were meticulous manscapers. I fucked a guy once who shaved his armpits. Most guys I’d been with kept very little pubic hair, with clean-shaven balls.

Maybe it was a generational thing.

My pussy clenched, producing a puddle of moisture in my panties as I imagined what it would feel like to be eaten out by a guy with a long, bushy beard.

I hadn’t had any cock in a year. That was the only explanation for why I was fantasizing about fucking an old dude right after escaping from a lifetime of that.

The difference was, if I fucked Axel, it would be my choice. It wouldn’t be forced on me. And it would be for pleasure only.

“Where are we staying tonight again?”

“Lake Murray.”

“Like, at the Holiday Innor something?”

“No. I don’t like hotels. Too many people.”

“So, where are we staying?”

“In a floating cabin.”

“That sounds interesting.”

“It’s supposed to be like a floating dock.”

“Are there two beds in the cabin?”

“I certainly hope so,” he muttered.

I hope there’s only one, ’cause I don’t plan on sleeping alone tonight.