Bullets and Lace Ch. 01

After sharing a shower, Cole and I dressed to go out for breakfast. Neither of us made mention of what had happened the night before. I wondered if Cole was feeling guilty about cheating on his fiancé. Then again, maybe he'd forgotten all about Angela and his pending marriage.

"Whatta you think about renting a boat at one of the marinas and spending the day out on the lake?" Cole suggested. "Surely we can take some time away from planning out the assignment."

"Sure. Why not?" I responded. "But we won't need to rent a boat. I've got a powerboat docked at Paradise Cove."

"Great!" Cole exclaimed with a pleased smile. "Do you ski?"

"No." I replied. "I just use it once in awhile to get away and spend time alone."

"You prefer being alone?" He curiously inquired.

"No. Well...sometimes." I stammered, looking away from him.

"Is my being here bothering you?" He questioned in a concerned tone of voice.

"No. Not at all." I replied with a smile.

After breakfast, we stopped at the supermarket to pick up a few things before heading out to the marina. I was as anxious as Cole to get out on the water and spend the day enjoying ourselves. Making plans to carry out our assignment seemed secondary.

Descending the steep hill into the Paradise Cove Marina on the north side of the lake, I glanced over at Cole. His handsome face was beaming a big smile, like a kid in a candy store.

"WOW! Would you look at that lake!" He exclaimed.

"That's just Cumberland Creek." I stated, grinning. "The main body of the lake is downstream about twenty miles."

Cole picked up a pair of swim trunks at the marina's store before we headed out to my boat. He couldn't help but stop and look at a few of the houseboats that were tied up to the docks. Seeing them up close for the first time, he was quite mesmerized by their size and luxuriousness.

"I wouldn't mind renting one of those for a week." Cole asserted, looking at me.

"Yeah. You and Angela could spend your honeymoon on the lake." I smarted off without thinking.

"I'm...I'm sorry." I apologized. "I shouldn't have said that. It was callous of me."

"Let's not think about anything but the two of us having a good time." Cole proposed, reaching for my hand. "OK?"

I nodded my head, still regretting having made the comment about his fiancé.

My boat, which I named "Bullets & Lace" was moored in the covered dock area of the marina. The Fountain forty-two foot Executioner powerboat, equipped with twin Mercury 525 EFI with Bravo XR drives, was capable of propelling me across the water at speeds of over eight-five miles an hour. Complimented with a sleeping area in the bow, a galley and head facilities, I often spent several days out on the lake. The custom paint scheme and full compliment of gauges completed the boat, making its appearance colorful and ominous.

Cole helped me remove the boat cover, taking note of the name written across the stern.

"Bullets & Lace." He said with a grin. "The name really fits you."

"I think so." I agreed. "Although I'm more into leather than lace."

Stowing the cover in its storage compartment, we stepped down into the cabin area to change clothes. I always kept a supply of bikinis onboard. Picking one that I thought Cole would like wouldn't be much of a problem as long as it showed plenty of skin. Putting on a very skimpy white bikini with tie-sides definitely got his undivided attention!

After topping off the fuel tanks and picking up several bags of ice, we set out for a day on Lake Cumberland. The powerful twin engines rumbled noisily, resonating off the rock walls, as we sped off towards the main lake. I kept the speed down to about forty miles an hour so we could enjoy the scenery along the winding creek.

Noticing Cole was watching me at the controls, I sensed he wanted to try his hand at driving the boat. Being a weekday there weren't many boats on the lake so I let him take over after reviewing with him the control levers and gauges. Cole took to driving the boat with great pleasure. The smile on his face told me he was having the time of his life.

Reaching the main body of the lake we turned east. Cruising along, I spotted the narrow entrance to one of my favorite places on the lake, a huge, isolated canyon. The walls are sheer rock with a few trees growing amongst the rocks just above the waterline.

Motioning for Cole to ease the boat through the narrow opening, we pulled along the shoreline and tied off to one of the trees. Other than a houseboat across from us we were the only ones in the cove.

Diving into the water, we swam out from the boat. Cole was quite the swimmer, diving under the water and coming up underneath me. We played in the water for hours until we both grew tired.

Returning to the boat, we decided to have some lunch and rest up before continuing on down the lake. Sitting out on the bow of the boat with the windshield for a backrest, we enjoyed the warm summer sun beating down on us.

"I could stay out her forever." Cole remarked. "I'm gonna hate going back to Washington."

"Then again, maybe I won't." He added, glancing to see my reaction.

"Won't hate going back?" I questioned, knowing what he really meant.

"NO!" Cole exclaimed. "I meant maybe I'd...well...stay here."

"With me." I muttered. "Is that what you're saying?"

"Yeah. That's what I'm saying." Cole confessed. "I've been doing a lot of thinking and I'm starting to have doubts about getting married."

"Don't confuse lust with love." I warned. "Don't let the sex cloud your judgment."

"How do you feel about me?" He asked, putting me in a difficult situation. "Or would you rather not say?"

"That's not a fair question so I won't give you an answer." I mumbled. "We've got more important things to worry about so let's not let our personal feelings for each other get in the way."

I sensed by the expression on his handsome face, he knew how I felt about him. Still, I wasn't going to admit I had strong feelings for him.

I was growing worried that something would go wrong down in Mexico and Cole might not survive a gun battle. All I could think of was making our plans as safe as possible with both of us getting out alive and unscathed.

We spent the rest of the day cruising the lake and enjoying ourselves. Neither of us said much, hoping to avoid saying something we shouldn't. We had a good relationship going so why take a chance on screwing it up.

It was early evening when we returned to Paradise Cove. I took over the driving chores since I was more familiar with the boat and the layout of the marina. Easing the forty-two foot Fountain powerboat back into its slip, Cole tied off the bow and stern lines while I gathered up our gear. After shrouding the boat with the mooring cover, we walked along the docks toward the parking lot. Cole clasped my hand, entwining our fingers, as we strolled past the multitude of boats.

We spent the rest of the evening watching old movies on DVD's. Our only interruption was a cell phone call from Cole's fiancé, Angela. Overhearing Cole's end of the conversation, the girl seemed all business, asking him about the assignment he was working on. He couldn't divulge anything and that seemed to irritate her.

During their ten-minute call I never heard Cole say anything intimate or even tell her he loved her. She must not have said anything lovingly either and it seemed to bother him. Concluding the call, he seemed upset, slamming his cell phone down on the end table. I didn't say anything, forcing my eyes to stay focused on the television.

It was around midnight when I told Cole I was going to bed. He barely looked my way. I could tell he was still fuming over his fiancé's phone call. I wasn't sure if he was going to sleep in the guest room or slip into bed with me that night. I hoped his decision would be the latter.

Waking later that night, I noticed the time displayed on my alarm clock was 3:00am. I was sleeping alone. The house was dark so I figured Cole had decided to sleep in the guest room. I thought seriously about slipping into bed with him but decided against it since he wasn't in the best of moods. I finally managed to go back to sleep, cuddling up with a pillow.

The next morning I found Cole in the kitchen fixing breakfast. Besides being a good swimmer and a fantastic lover, he was quite a cook. Freshly brewed coffee filled the kitchen with its strong aroma mixing with the smell of bacon frying.

"Wow! Everything smells great!" I exclaimed. "You're quite a cook!"

Cole ignored my compliment without so much as bothering to look my way. Accidentally dropping a tablespoon on the floor, he angrily kicked it across the kitchen floor instead of picking it up. It was clear, his mood hadn't changed since the previous evening.

"We need to decide what kind of firepower we're gonna take with us." I suggested, pouring myself a cup of coffee. "I've got a contact down in Texas who can supply us with about anything we want."

"Let's just pack up and go down to Tampico and get it over with!" Cole exclaimed, slamming plates down on the countertop. "I'm tired of all this planning!"

"Ok! That's it!" I shouted. "Why don't you just call that bitch and tell her it's over with between you two? I'm not puttin' up with your attitude another damn minute!"

My outburst didn't calm him down much but at least he regained control of his anger. We ate breakfast in peace, barely looking at each other. My worries about Cole had now doubled, knowing he wasn't thinking straight.

While Cole cleaned up the kitchen, I called my contact down in Laredo, Texas. Ron Garrett, a former Green Beret, was an exceptional weapons expert with an extensive background in jungle warfare. Long retired from the military, Ron made his living as a hunting guide in the Texas hill country. Built like a Sherman tank, the sixty year old Vietnam veteran was well known for modifying and building specialty weapons.

Garrett was one of the few people I could trust implicitly. Filling him in on our assignment had Ron eager to outfit us with everything we needed, including a specially modified Hummer. It would cost us some big bucks but I knew Gerald Barnes, head of the Force Agency, would cover it.

Cole and I spent the morning preparing for the trip to Laredo. With someone to help drive the thirteen-hundred mile journey, we'd be able to make the trip in less than twenty-four hours. Cole started out driving, venting his frustrations out on the other drivers. After we'd covered the first two-hundred miles, he started to settle down. He was talking, asking questions about Ron Garrett. I recanted a few funny stories about my relationship with the man, which seemed to put him at ease.

We drove through the night, running into several rainstorms after we crossed into Texas. Cole reclined the passenger seat, grabbing some sleep while I drove. I wondered if he was dreaming and if he was, what or who he was dreaming about. Hopefully it wasn't about his fiancé.

Approaching Laredo, I gave Cole directions to Ron Garrett's ranch, a few miles southeast of the border town. I sensed his growing nervousness, which I took as a good sign. At least he wasn't acting all gung-ho and throwing caution to the wind.

Garrett's ranch was off Highway 83, not far from Rio Bravo, which is less than a mile from the Rio Grande River that separates Texas from Mexico. Dusty and full of potholes, Cole drove cautiously down the ranch's driveway. Looking more like a small industrial complex than a ranch, Ron preferred a poured concrete building with iron bars over the windows to living in a house. To him, it was like living in a bunker, a place he felt safe. The other two buildings were pole barn structures.

Finding Ron wasn't difficult. Hearing rapid fire gunshots coming from behind one of the pole barns, we just followed the noise. Garrett was lying on the ground, squeezing off rounds through a vintage Browning Automatic Rifle. Off in the distance, an old pick-up truck was taking the brunt of the shots, its body riddled with bullet holes.

"Bout time you got here!" Ron exclaimed, turning to face us. "Damn near had you listed as AWOL!"

"What you're really saying is you were worried about me." I countered, grinning.

"Worried! Hell, you're old enough to take care of yourself!" Garrett laughed, getting to his feet and dusting himself off.

"This your boyfriend?" Ron inquired, approaching us.

"No. This is Cole Thornton." I replied, introducing the two. "Cole, this is Ron Garrett."

"COLE!" Ron exclaimed, shaking Cole's hand. "Sounds a might gay!"

"He's not gay." I declared, giving Ron a hug.

"You know that for a fact?" Garrett asked, smirking. "You can't believe anything these young guys say nowadays."

"I know for a fact Cole's not gay." I answered exasperatedly.

"Come on, I'll show you what I've got lined up for us." Ron said, leading us towards on of the pole barns. "We'll have enough firepower to take out half of Mexico."

"We?" I questioned, grabbing his arm. "Whatta ya mean we?"

"I'm goin' with you!" Garrett proclaimed. "Nobody's taking Black Max without me goin' along!"

"Besides, I wanna get in on some of the action." He added with a grin. "And, I wanna make damn sure you get out safely."

"Worried about me, huh?" I laughed. "Afraid I'll take a hit?"

"Shooting someone who's not expecting it is one thing. Getting into a firefight is a whole different story." Garrett stated with a stern look. "Worried? Damn right, I'm worried!"

I wasn't surprised by Ron's statement. He and I were very close, almost like a father and daughter. When I first met Ron Garrett, he was living in a rundown hotel in Saint Louis. Wearing Army fatigues, he looked like he hadn't had a good meal in days. He didn't have any family to speak of so we kind of adopted each other. The Garrett Ranch, as we called it, was registered in my name since I was the actual owner. Ron took care of me, furnishing me with any kind of weaponry I needed. All he asked was for me to be his family.

Entering the pole barn, Cole and I couldn't help but notice the black Hummer sitting in front of the sliding doors, looking like something out of Mad Max. Painted a dull black, the Hummer had a huge grill on the front made out of pipe. Eight Halogen lights mounted on top of the vehicle looked like they could illuminate several football fields. Large, oversize tires, filled with foam allowed the vehicle to traverse the roughest terrain without risking a flat tire.

The interior was all business. No air conditioning, CD player or leather seats. Equipped with a GPS system, CB radio, police scanner and an onboard radar system, the only comforts were the racing style bucket seats with multiple point safety harnesses. Black Max was truly a vehicle that could get us in and out of Tampico without any trouble.

"I'll do the driving but you'll need to learn how to drive her." Ron stated. "Just in case something should happen to me."

"What about guns?" I asked. "We'll be shooting from over a quarter mile away, maybe further."

"For you, a Minty Urbach PSG-1 sniper rifle with scope." Garrett replied. "And a Glock, Model 37, 45-caliber pistol with four spare clips. You'll be comfortable with both."

"What about me?." Cole inquired. "You got something that'll suit me?"

"I thought maybe a Colt M-16 Machinegun might be best, seeing you're a rookie." Ron replied with a laugh. "All you gotta do is squeeze the trigger. You won't have to hit anyone. The noise alone will scare everyone to death!"

"How soon can we be ready?" I questioned. "I'd like to get this over with."

"Two, maybe three days." Ron answered. "There's a tropical storm making its way up the coast. We'll need to wait until it passes through before we head out."

"I've got some aerial photos and a map of the hacienda." Cole stated. "We probably should look them over with you."

"That's a good idea." Garrett asserted. "Why don't you let me look them over while you two get settled in?"

"I've got a camping trailer you can stay in while you're here." Ron affirmed, motioning for us to follow him. "It ain't much but it's comfortable."

Garrett led us over to the other building, which he used for storage. Parked inside the structure, along with several military vehicles, was a late model travel trailer. Ron left Cole and I to ourselves. I was tired from the trip so all I wanted was a quick shower and a long nap.

"Your friend is quite a character." Cole remarked. "He'd be a great asset to the Force Agency."

"Ron's fine right where he is." I avowed, slipping off my blouse and tossing it on the couch. "He wouldn't like working for anyone but himself."

"You saying he wouldn't like working for Barnes?" Cole questioned.

"I'm saying Barnes wouldn't have him working for the Force Agency." I replied, tossing my slacks on the couch. "Ron's got a few problems dating back to his days in Vietnam. Depression, flashbacks and fits of rage, just to mention a few."

Cole understood what I was saying. Even though he had just two year's experience in the Bureau, he'd had encounters with several Vietnam veterans and was aware of the nightmares some of them lived with.

The warm water streaming over my body refreshed my energy but didn't do anything for my worries. Stepping out of the shower, Cole dashed in for a quick scrub. Wrapping the towel around me, I headed for the trailer's refrigerator, hoping to find cold beer. Ron had thought of everything, including an ample supply of food.

Popping the top on two cold beers, I drank one halfway down. Cole stepped out of the shower just as I finished the last of it.

"Hope that wasn't the only one." He stated, approaching me. "I could sure go for a cold one."

"There's more but you'll have to drink it quick." I responded with a grin.

Letting the towel drop to the floor, I took the second beer and slowly poured it over my breasts. Cole lapped up the beer as it streamed down my body. I took a couple of sips from the bottle, giving him time to lick the alcohol from my body.

"Hmmm. We should do this more often." Cole murmured, giving me a kiss that took my mind off everything but the matter at hand.

"Well, we've got a couple of days to kill and a case of beer." I kidded, reaching down to stroke his hard cock. "What say, we have another beer?"

Grabbing another cold beer from the refrigerator we headed for the bedroom at the rear of the trailer. With Cole lying on his back, I trickled a stream of beer from his chest down to his tummy. His eyes watched as I sucked up the beer, my mouth slowly working its way towards his groin.

"Oh Geez!" Cole exclaimed realizing what I was going to do.

Pouring beer over his magnificent cock and his balls, I started licking up the brew, positioning myself so he could see my tongue working him over. Cole's dick grew harder, throbbing in my hand. His eyes were wide open, watching every move I made. Licking up and down his shaft, I poured all but a mouthful of beer over his upper thighs. My mouth lapped up the brew, sucking gently on each of his warm balls.

Cole's body tensed as he fought off the urge to let himself cum. Massaging his thighs seemed to help him relax. Holding his steel hard cock at the base, I slipped my mouth over the mushroom-shaped head. Sliding my lips down over his shaft, I took as much of it as I could in my mouth. My tongue brushed back and forth over his cock as I lifted my mouth upwards, letting the head of his cock spring free with a loud popping sound.

Cole's eyes grew even wider, watching my mouth work up and down on his cock, making slurping sounds and lubricating his shaft with heavy globs of saliva. Sucking cock was something I excelled at and giving Cole a blowjob he'd never forget was all I thought about. The more he fought off the urge to cum, the harder I tried to make it for him. His body was writhing on the bed, his muscles tensed.