The Final Trip Ch. 02

When I wake up the next time it is to a unfamiliar feeling that I am being held by someone. I have a sudden urge that I must leave, but before I can move I feel the arm that is around me tighten slightly.

"Maria, I am right here." Suddenly everything from the night before floods back to me. I remember that Kaleb came on the plane and is currently laying next to me. "Please don't move, my Love. I am enjoying this way to much." I feel him come closer to me and I must say that I, for a moment, snuggled into his wonderfully strong arms. "Maria." My name is almost a groan coming from him. Quickly, for I fear that he is finally coming to regret his decisions, I try to move out of his arms. He will have nothing of it though. Tightening his arm up even more he pulls me back against him. I feel something pressing against my back. Something that wasn't there last night. "Maria, ohh, my Love, I so want to take you right here and right now, but I know that you are not ready. Ohhh, Baby, just let me hold you, please."

"Kaleb, I would like to, I really would, but I am still scared that as soon as you see me you will run like a frightened jackrabbit, and I will be left high and dry. Please, can we just stay here in the dark until I know that these feelings are not right?" I stay just as I am, snuggled up against him.

"Maria, I have to admit something to you. You may be angry with me, but last night, while you were asleep, I turned on the light and saw you. Yes, your scars are bad, but I still want to make love to you." I close my eyes in defeat as the truth sets in. He wants to make love to me out of pity. Before I can move or do anything he starts to speak again. "Before you think the wrong thing, my Dear, I do not, ever, make love to a woman out of pity or anything other than the fact that I love her. I have only ever made love to one other woman. She was my wife. She was killed in Afghanistan. I loved her more than my own life, but she is gone and I have to move on. I have not been with another woman since I was with my wife the last time, and that was almost two and a half years ago. She was in the military as well. Even so, she was alone when she was killed. She had no friendly face to look into as she died, and that is my only regret; that I wasn't there for her." I hear the regret in his voice, and I know that he is being honest with me.

"Kaleb, please, show me what it is like to make love." I do not know where those words came from, but in that instant I know that this is what I want. I want him. I want him to be the one to teach me.

"Maria, are you sure? I do not want to push you in to anything that you are not ready for."

"Yes, I am sure."

Slowly his hand comes up my back and around to where my breasts would be if I had any. Slowly he turns me on to my back and kisses me. My first kiss. When I feel his tongue asking to gain entrance to my mouth I gladly allow it. My arms wrap themselves about his neck as he deepens the kiss. "Maria." He breaks the kiss. "Maria, please let me lead. I don't want to do this to fast and scare you. Please, for right now, as much as I would love to make you mine, right now, I think we had better go out and see the Grand Canyon. That was the first stop, was it not?" I nod my head. "Well, are you planning to only see it at night, or were you planning something that would help you during the day?"

Slowly I get out of bed. I know that I have to turn on the light and even though he told me that he has seen me, I am still terrified of the light. "Kaleb, will you...?"

"No problem, my Dear. Let me get my clothes and I will leave you to get ready for the day." I hear him getting his clothes back on and then I hear his footsteps as he leaves the room.

Once the door is closed, I turn on the lights and go through the few articles of clothing that I have brought along with me. Packed inside are a few brightly colored scarves that are long enough to completely cover my face and arms. I am so glad that I had one of the ladies at the lab show me how to arrange it so that I only need one pin to keep it all together. This way no one has to see my face or my hands, but I can still go out. I guess the opportunity of seeing the Grand Canyon has me feeling a bit more adventurous than I have felt in a while. I hope that Kaleb doesn't mind being seen with someone that is covered. I quickly dress in black jeans, black shirt, and I manage to get my feet into some black tennis shoes that I had. For accents I grab a bright pink scarf, belt, and gloves. Once I am ready to go I grab the last item, and that is a pair of sunglasses.

Just then there is a knock on my door. "My Love, are you okay?"

"I'll be right out, Kaleb."

"No hurry, I was just..." I open the door and stand in front of him. For the first time I look into the face of this wonderful man. His eyes have got to be the greenest I have ever seen, but that just sets off his gorgeous long wavy hair. With one quick glance he takes in my odd attire, but it seems that he approves, since the smile that comes over his face about splits it in half. "I was wondering how you were going to accomplish it, but I should have know that you would come up with something. During the times that we spoke on the computer, you always were coming up with new and creative ways of getting around using the video cam. I use to ask you to, just to see what you would come up with as an excuse not to. Darling, you look absolutely stunning." I have to smile at his words. I knew that he use to make a game of getting me into the whole web cam thing, and a few times he would use one, but I couldn't. I couldn't let him see me. "Well, shall we depart?"

I must admit to being very anxious to see the Grand Canyon. I have heard about it all my life, and I have always wanted to see it. "I can't wait. Are you sure that I look okay? I really don't want to look like a freak, but if anyone sees me, they will think a lot worse."

"Maria, everyone will be looking at the canyon, you do not have to worry." With that, he opens the door and gently takes my hand. Outside is the car that I ordered, and to my relief it does have tinted windows. "Maria, did you, by chance, think about breakfast?"

"I figured that we would stop someplace and pick something up. There was an ulterior motive for the tinted windows too. I figured that way, I could eat in the car, and possibly even take a little nap and no one would see me. I asked for a driver, but the company that I got the car from wasn't sure if they could spare one for the day." Just at that moment and very smartly dressed young man steps out of the driver's door. Walking around, he opens the back door on the passenger side and I slide in with Kaleb just beside me.

Once we are all back in the car, the driver takes the time to introduce himself. "Hi! My name is Johnathan and I will be your driver for the day. Is there anyplace that you would like to stop in particular, or should I just take you to the best loved tourist spots? If you are not sure, I know of some places that tourists rarely get to, but are easily accessible by car. If you are interested, we could go to some of those as well."

Kaleb speaks up, and I'm glad that he does, because I would love for him to totally take the lead today. "Johnathan, is there anyplace nearby that we could get a decent breakfast and take it someplace very private to eat it? It doesn't have to be anything fancy, just good."

"I know of just the right place. I'll run in and get you some food, and then I can take you someplace very private. It is obvious that you two want to be alone. While you eat breakfast I'll get the rest of the day planned out for you. I'll figure out where to take you so that you can have the best views from the car and then you will not have to leave it if you do not wish to."

While Johnathan is talking, Kaleb draws me closer and gently turns my face to him. Very slowly he draws the scarf away from my mouth and kisses me. When I put my arms around his neck, he lets out a groan and pulls me closer. As quickly as the kiss started, that is how fast it deepens and before I know it my arms are around his neck and he is holding me in a full embrace. I never even notice that we are moving. When I feel Kaleb reach for the pin that holds the scarf in place I have a brief fight with myself and finally let him unpin it. I look away as the scarf falls away from my face and bares it for him to see. When I don't hear or feel any reaction, I slowly open my eyes to find him looking questioningly into my face. He reaches up and takes off the sunglasses so that, for the first time, our eyes meet. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly he reaches out and strokes my hair, which I have to admit is the one semi normal thing about me. As his hand comes up to cup the side of my face I rest my cheek in it and close my eyes again. This time not in fear, but another emotion that I have never felt before. I reach up with my gloved hand to hold his warm, strong, callused hand in place as he guides me closer to him and takes possession of my lips again. There is a hunger there that I do not understand. When I feel his hands go down and start to unbutton my shirt I know that if I do not stop this then my first time with a man will be in the back of a limousine. "Kaleb, please, we have to stop." With a groan he backs off. I am amazed to realize that he is breathing very hard, as if he had just run a marathon. When he sits back in the seat and looks over at me I have a feeling that he is disappointed, until he smiles.

"Maria, thank you for stopping me. I am sorry that I got carried away. Just the fact that I am finally seeing the one lady that has captured my heart and I am so wanting to hold you and love you. I got carried away by the feel of you in my arms. Maria, I can't wait until tonight to have you." Just then Johnathan knocks on the window and brings it down just enough so that we can hear what he is saying.

"Just to let you two know, we are coming up to a restaurant that makes some of the best breakfast out. At this time in the day there is no one in there except for the owner, so if you would like to, I am sure that she would not mind you going inside and eating."

Frantically I look at Kaleb. He just looks at me and shrugs. "It is up to you, my Dear. I know that you want to live the last days of your life as normally as you can, so why don't we give it a try. When was the last time that you had the wonderful experience of eating in a public restaurant?"

I shake my head. "I have not had that experience in so long that I do not even remember what it is like." Quickly I put the scarf over my face but Kaleb stops me.

"Maria, please, your face is not as bad as you think. Yes, you have scars, but they really are not as hideous as you think. If there is no one here, I think that you will be able to go without the scarf. Only if you want to though." Looking into his eyes, I can see that he would really like me to keep the scarf off. Before I have the chance to rethink what I am doing, I take the scarf completely off. I am very glad that I decided to wear a long-sleeved shirt today. My gloves are still covering my hands and my sunglasses will cover a lot of my face. "Thank you, my Dear. I know how hard this is for you and I appreciate your faith in me to look out for you." Just then we pull up outside of a building like I have never seen before. It is out in the middle of nowhere, and there is nothing around it. One truck is parked toward the back, so I am assuming that belongs to the owners.

Parking quickly, Johnathan turns in his seat. Do you want me to go in and get the food for you? It would be no problem."

Taking my hand in his, Kaleb answers for the two of us. "We will be going in, but thank you."

"Great! I know that my mom will love to have you."

In surprise I look up at this fresh-faced youth. "Your mom? Your mom runs this restaurant? Wow. I am impressed." I guess Johnathan didn't know that I could speak because if the look of surprise on his face was anything to go by, he just had one of the biggest shocks of his life.

When we get inside I can see that, yes, the place is empty. Kaleb and I pick a booth over in the corner where, if anybody does come in, they wouldn't see us. Almost immediately, a very nice looking woman comes out from the back. When she sees Johnathan she smiles.

"Hi, mom! I brought you a couple of customers. They are looking for the best breakfast around, and I immediately thought of you. Let me give you a hand in the back and we'll make them the best breakfast that they ever had, okay?" As the lady nods, Johnathan turns to us. "Now you two just stay put. I'll be back in a few minutes with something to tempt even the most puny appetite."

While he and his mom walk to the kitchen, Kaleb and I sit together on the same side of the booth. "Maria, I know this one of the things that you really wanted to do. Now you get the chance." Here his demeanor changes. He becomes all business. "Now, we need to talk." I look up at him and he reaches over to take off my glasses. Smiling he looks over at me. "I would like to look into your eyes when we talk." As he reaches out, my eyes are drawn to his hands. He slowly takes my hands in his . "Maria, I need to know. Where do you want to do it? I am hoping that you will allow me to make love to you soon, because I am not sure that I can hold myself away from you. To me you are the most beautiful woman alive. I need to feel your body wrapped around mine, to make you mine. I am so glad that you stopped me in the car, because I do not want your first experience to be in the back seat of a car, even if it is a limo. I would love to have your first experience to be outside, in the glorious scenery of the Grand Canyon. I am sure that Johnathan could find just the right spot for us." Outside? He wants to make love to me outside? Is he crazy?" "Maria, you are perfect, believe it or not, and I do not want you to feel in any way that you need to hide yourself. I need to feel my cock sliding into your wonderful body and to see you in the throws of ecstasy." He stops to take a deep breath and his grip on my hands tightens to almost unbearable. "I will not beg you, but I will tell you this: If you do not allow me to make love to you soon, I am not sure how much longer I can hold out. I will never force you to do anything that you do not want to do, but I may ask you to try some things that you never thought of trying." By looking into his eyes I can see that there is a look there that I have never seen before in any man's eyes.

"Kaleb, I will not lie to you. I want you to make love to me. I just do not know what to say. I can not say that I am comfortable in making love outside, although I can see where you are coming from in desiring that. I do see that it would have an incredibly naughty feel to it, and I kind of like that. Before all this happened to me, I was not exactly the most shy and retiring. I liked to take chances. Not just in things that I knew wouldn't hurt me, but in everything. I would go rock climbing with just my tennis shoes and a backpack full of munchies. If I got caught out there all night, then so be it. It was no big deal. I had something along to start a fire with, so I wouldn't get cold, and that was all I needed. I always dreamed of making love out there on a ledge, in plain sight of any helicopter that came by, and trust me, a lot of them did. Tourists loved to take a chopper up to the top of the mountain, and I always thought about how wonderful it would be to shock them." I have to chuckle at the thought of the horror on the faces of the people in the helicopter if they would see me now. "I use to live life to fullest. When I was attacked, I was walking back to my car from work. When I saw the guys, I didn't think anything of it." I have to stop talking for a moment because Johnathan's mom came at just that moment with our food. After she leaves I continue. "I just thought that they would pass me by, but they didn't. They surrounded me. When I saw that they all had knives, I began to get scared, but I figured that I could fight them off, and I tried. When the first knife entered my bicep I remember the searing pain, and then the anger that they were actually hurting me. I felt every stab, and every cut." I look at the food that had been placed in front of me and realize that I have not tasted real food since I woke up in the lab. Unfortunately, I am not all that hungry. Kaleb must have realized that I would be having a tough time eating because he starts to cut up the food in very small pieces. Suddenly a weakness comes over me and I start to feel the oncoming blackout. I look at Kaleb. "I'm sorry." With that my body crumples over on to his shoulder. Thankfully, he doesn't freak out or anything. He just snuggles me in a little closer and continues to cut my food.

When I come around, I am snuggled up on his shoulder and he is calmly sitting there drinking his coffee. Looking down at me, he smiles that devastating smile. "Hello, Sweetie. Are you back with me?" Groggily I nod my head. "Are you up to eating anything?"

Looking at the plate of food and the coffee that is in front of me I have to admit that I am getting hungry. "I must say that I am getting hungry." Tentatively I take a sip of the coffee. "Oh, that tastes so good." Taking another drink, I remember that I use to be addicted to coffee before the attack. Gingerly I reach out and take a bite. when the food hits my mouth I remember what it was like to actually eat real food. Savoring every bite I finish off half of the plate before I realize that Kaleb and I haven't talked for quite a while. Looking up at him I see that he is watching me with a smile on his face.

"I am glad to see that you are able to enjoy real food. I was actually wondering if you would be able to."

Swallowing what was in my mouth, I smile at him. "I haven't had anything this good in years. I forgot how good food actually can taste. I am so tired of living on protein shakes and bars that taste like cardboard."

"Maybe if you eat you will be able to beat this. Have you ever thought of that?"

Slowly I put my fork down. "Kaleb. I would love to tell you that all that it would take is eating real food, but you know as well as I do that it is more than that. I may get a few more days, but I doubt that it will be any longer than that. I know that you did a lot of research for me and so you should know as well as I do that this does not end well for me." I hate to burst his balloon, but I know that I can't live a fantasy. That is why I left the lab. They kept trying to tell me that maybe in a year or so that they could help me. Yeah right. Like that would ever happen.

"My Dear, wouldn't even an extra day or so be better than giving up? I must say that I do not want to lose you so quickly. I know that you have a lot of things that you want to see. I am just scared that you are trying to do to much. The Grand Canyon, The Grand Tetons, Bryce, and Zion? That is a lot to do. I will do my best to help you though."

Looking at him, I suddenly get this feeling that he is trying to hide something from me. "Kaleb, what are you trying to hide? I just have this feeling all of a sudden that you know more than you are telling me. What is up?"

Sighing, he puts down his fork. "Yes, I do know more than I was saying. I did more research since I last talked to you, and I found out that there are certain things that you can take without a prescription that will help you live longer and might actually start to heal you. Yes, you would need a lot of surgeries to repair all of the organs that were damaged so long ago, but if you are willing, I would be willing as well to be there by your side and to help you get through all of this. You know that I will respect whatever decision that you make though."