The Adventures of Ranger Ramona Ch. 01

Piney fished a handful of change from his pocket. "Think I'll put a few quarters in the jukebox," he said.

"Play something besides George Jones," Cassie admonished him as he rose from his seat.

Just as Piney was returning to the table and George Jones was singing the opening lines of A Good Year For The Roses, Ramona saw Martha's face light up in a wide smile. She waved at someone, and Ramona looked over her shoulder to see a young redheaded man in neat jeans and a blue and black flannel shirt wave back.

Piney pulled out his chair to sit, but Martha waved him off. "Piney, sit on the other side of Cassie, let Grant sit there."

Piney shrugged and followed her instructions. The young man came to the table, and sat down between Ramona and Cassie.

He looked around the table, greeting Piney and Cassie, then looked at Ramona.

"Grant," Martha said, "This is our new ranger, Ramona Greentree."

Grant held out his hand, and Ramona shook it.

"Have we met?" she asked, "You look familiar."

Grant smiled. "I saw you and Piney on the road this afternoon and waved."

"Oh," Ramona said after a moment's thought, "You're the UPS driver!"

"I am," he said, as Martha slid a glass of beer across the table to him.

"You must keep very busy, with so few places here for people to shop."

He sipped his beer and nodded. "I am, and it's a responsibility I take very seriously. People depend on me."

Ramona found his earnestness charming. He was cute in a boyish way. A lock of hair kept falling across his forehead, and she had to resist the urge to brush it back.

The bartender turned on a television over the bar, and the Red Sox came on, the sounds of the game competing with George Jones singing She Thinks I Still Care. Piney and Grant began a friendly argument about Boston's changes this season. Grant was sure it would be their year, but Piney was older, and had suffered through more disappointment.

The women made small talk while the men watched the game and George Jones sang He Stopped Loving Her Today. Finally, Martha patted Grant on the arm to get his attention.

"You know," she said, speaking loudly to be heard over the television and the jukebox, "Ramona is from Hancock County. You ever get out that way?"

"That's outside my delivery area," he replied, looking at Ramona, "But I've been to Acadia Park a few times. You from around there?"

Ramona shook her head. "Not from MDI. I was born in Bucksport. Grew up a little ways outside of Ellsworth."

He asked her more questions, and was especially interested in how she had come to join the rangers.

"Since I was a little girl, I have loved nothing more than the woods, the wildlife, just the outdoors generally." she told him. She was pleased that he seemed genuinely interested.

"There is something about it," she continued, "That I don't think I can explain to anyone who hasn't felt it, but to me, the woods are like, a holy place. If I stand and look up to the tops of the trees, I feel like I'm in a cathedral. I feel small, but at the same time, a part of something big and important. The most important thing there is, the precious web of life. And I can be its protector and its nurse and..."

She saw that everyone at the table was staring and listening to her and stopped, feeling embarrassed. Then Piney lifted his glass of Coke and held it out toward her. She raised her beer and they tapped glass. Piney smiled at her and nodded.

They finished off the pitcher and there was some discussion about ordering another, but Grant had a long drive home, and Piney and Cassie were unaccustomed to staying up much past nine, so it was decided to call it a night.

"May I walk you to your car?" Grant asked Ramona.

There was a chill in the air as they stepped outside.

"Springtime in Maine," Piney muttered, "Frost warnings tonight."

They said goodnight and went their separate ways. As they walked to her truck, Ramona asked Grant, "Were you in on the plot?"

"What do you mean?"

"Obviously, Martha invited us both here tonight so that we would meet."

"Well, she did mention that you'd be here," he said with a note of caution in his voice.

Ramona laughed. "Don't worry," she said, "It's fine. I was just wondering."

"Okay. Well, it really was nice meeting you, and I hope to see you again soon."

Ramona opened the door of her truck, then turned to Grant and kissed his cheek. "Oh, I think you will," she said before hopping into the seat and driving off.

Torrential spring rains came down all through the next few days. Ramona spend most of her shifts patrolling the roads looking for flooded spots and little else. It gave her a lot of time to think, and mostly she thought about Grant. He was cute enough, and she really liked the way he had talked to her. He had let her talk about herself without interrupting, and unlike so many men, did not seem amused or condescending about her dreams of being a ranger. She was surprised that he had not come right out and asked her for a date, but he seemed shy in general, and she didn't mind taking the initiative. There was one other thing that made him attractive to her . He lived all the way down in Farmington, and would not be around constantly. It would be easy to keep things casual.

On the fourth day of rain, Ramona spent the morning patrolling the north end of the valley, cruising along the dirt roads near the Wabanaki village of Beartown. Piney had not shown her much in this area; he had said that he preferred to leave the residents alone to take care of things for themselves. Ramona understood that the relationship between the ranger service and the Native American community was not always friendly, but she was determined to learn her way around every corner of the region.

The village itself consisted of no more than a dozen small clapboard houses and one long empty store, the parking lot of which was often occupied by a battered old Volkswagen van from which a guy named Rennie Crow sold game meat out of styrofoam coolers.

"It ain't legal," Piney had said, "But leave him alone."

The center of the community was a long Quonset hut with a covered porch attached to the front and a weed strewn playground to one side. There was no sign to identify it, but the natives all knew it as "The Social Lodge". As Ramona drove past it, she saw two old men sitting in rocking chairs on the porch, sharing a bottle of coffee brandy. She decided to pull in and introduce herself.

The brandy bottle had disappeared by the time she pulled up parallel to the porch. She rolled down her window.

"Good morning, gentlemen," she said, smiling.

The men mumbled greetings in reply, one of them tipping his weather worn Bruins cap to her.

"My name is Ramona Greentree. I'm the new ranger here, and I just thought I'd stop and say hello as I was passing by."

A woman stepped out of the door, two little boys hiding behind her and peeking around her legs. She was no more than five and a half feet tall, but she gave an impression of being taller. She worn a pair of overalls and a white tank top. Her shoulders were broad and her biceps bulged.

"Greentree?" the woman asked. "You got native blood?"

"Not that I know of," Ramona replied.

"Greentree sounded like it might be a native name." The woman leaned over the edge of the porch and held out her hand. "My name is Simone Laurent."

"Her Indian name is Big Bad Bitch," one of the men said, causing his companion to cackle loudly.

Simone nodded her head toward him as Ramona shook her hand. "His Indian name is Sits On Ass," she said, to another round of laughter.

"Is there something I can help you with, Ranger Greentree?" she asked.

"No," Ramona said, "I'm just learning the lay of the land, getting to know people, that sort of thing. I thought I'd stop and say hello."

"That's fine," Simone said, "But keep in mind that the land you are getting to know is our land. And I mean all of it. You remember that and we won't have any problems."

"Well, all I want to do is keep it safe, so I don't think we have any issue."

Ramona was not sure if Simone's expression was a grin or a smirk. "We will let you know if we need any help, Ranger Greentree," she said.

"Alright," Ramona said, "Nice to meet you. Oh, and you can tell those guys to go ahead and drink their brandy. I don't care, I'm not a cop."

"That's a good start, ranger," Simone said, patting the roof of the jeep as Ramona pulled away.

She headed towards Reed's Corner, and saw the familiar brown UPS van pulled off the road a mile out of Beartown. She turned in behind it, put on her hat, and walked over to the drivers window. Grant, oblivious to her approach, was holding a red and white box and gnawing on a chicken wing.

"Hey, is that KFC?" Ramona asked.

Grant jumped, and dropped his wing to the floor.

"Jesus, Ramona, you scared the crap out of me."

"Oh, you're a man," she said, "I'm sure you're still full of crap."

"That's not very nice."

"Well, it's not very nice that you keep me standing in the rain while you're in a nice dry truck enjoying your lunch."

"Oh," he said, blushing, "Come around the other side."

Ramona did so as he slid open the door. She climbed up into the van and leaned against the dashboard. She took off her hat, held it by the door and shook most of the water from it, then set it on the end of the storage rack.

"So where did you get KFC?" she asked.

"Bought it in Farmington this morning. Want a piece?"

"Sure."

Grant held out the box. Ramona took a leg and thanked him. After a couple of bites, she asked, "Everything okay? Did you just pull over to eat?"

"Yeah, I like this spot. It's a nice view of this little creek over here. When it isn't raining too hard to see it, anyway. So, how about you? What have you been up to today?"

"Just cruising. Checking for flooding. Oh, and I shoveled a dead raccoon off the road this morning. That was exciting."

"The Wiscapassett Valley isn't the most exciting place in the world," he shrugged.

"It could be," she replied with a sly grin.

Grant looked up at her with a puzzled expression. Ramona finished her chicken and dropped the bone into the box.

Grant handed her a napkin. "I've got a couple of water bottles in my cooler, if you're thirsty."

"Where are they if I'm not thirsty?"

"Huh?" He looked at her in confusion. "Oh...you're teasing me."

Ramona poked her index finger into his shoulder. "You don't like being teased?' she asked.

"No...I mean, sure..."

Ramona laughed. "You seem kind of nervous, Grant."

"Well, you're kind of sending mixed signals."

"I don't think I am. I think I am pretty clearly flirting with you."

"Oh. Well, um, good. I'm not good at guessing about these things."

"Well, you don't have to guess, because now you know."

"Yeah, that's good."

"So Grant, I thought you were going to ask me out at the Alibi, but you just said 'see you around'. So, I thought I'd give you another chance to ask."

"Oh. Yes, of course. I'd like to go out with you."

"Okay."

"Good."

There was a moment of awkward silence.

Ramona threw up her hands, then slapped them on her thighs. "See, Grant," she said with a sigh, "You told me that you want to ask me out, but you didn't actually do it."

"Yes, I just did."

"No, you said you'd like to go out with me. That's just telling me how you feel, it's not asking me."

"Oh, I guess that's true."

"You're kind of skittish around women, aren't you?"

Grant furrowed his brow and shook his head. "I wouldn't say that."

"What would you say?"

He sat forward and looked down at the floor when he answered. "It's really important to me that I live up to what I think a good man should be. I don't ever want to say or do the wrong thing."

"So, you end up doing nothing."

He looked up at her and she thought his face looked sad. "Yeah, I guess so."

Ramona put her hands on his shoulders and squatted in front of him.

"Ask me if I will go out with you," she said.

"Will you go out with me, Ramona?"

"I'd love to."

"Thank you."

Ramona drew her face closer to his. "Ask me if you can kiss me."

"What?"

Ramona rolled her eyes. "You are going to be all tied in knots worrying about the first kiss. Let's just get it out of the way."

Grant blushed, but managed in a faint voice to ask, "Ramona, can I kiss you?"

Ramona pressed her lips to his. When she drew her head back, she saw that his eyes were still closed, and she kissed him again. His hands slipped around to her back, hers dropped to his thighs. The kisses continued, each lingering longer than the one before.

Ramona dropped to her knees. She leaned back and looked into Grant's eyes.

"Still nervous?" she asked.

"A little bit."

"Why? Obviously I like you. I said I'd go out with you. Hell, I'm making out with you in your truck."

Grant chuckled. "Yeah, I know, but that's just the start of it. I still have to think about where to take you, what we will do..."

"Will we sleep together?"

Grant swallowed hard and looked away. "Yeah, that too," he muttered.

Ramona sighed and sat back on her heels.

"I'm sorry," Grant said, "I feel foolish."

"Don't," Ramona said, "I think it's sweet that you are so considerate, so concerned about doing the right thing. But, once again, you are paralyzing yourself."

"Yeah, I guess that's true."

"Okay," Ramona said, patting his thigh, "Let's work this out. So, what do folks in Saw Whet do on a date?"

"I have no idea. I live in Farmington."

"Well, if it's like the small town I came from, they mostly just drink and fuck."

"Oh my god, Ramona..."

Ramona laughed. "It's true, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I guess it probably is."

"Okay, tell you what. I have the day off tomorrow. Why don't you come to my place for lunch? I can pay you back for eating some of your chicken."

Grant's brow knotted. "I'd have to figure if it fits into my delivery schedule."

"Well, I'll be home whenever you can stop by. You know where it's at, right?"

"Yes, I do."

"Okay, then." She planted a kiss on his lips and jumped up. "Got to go. Still plenty of roads to patrol. See you tomorrow."

She jumped out of the truck and dashed through the rain back to her jeep. Fast work, Ramona, she said to herself, one week in town and you've got a date. Maybe this won't be such a lonely posting after all.

She did her best to spruce up the cabin the next morning, opening all the windows and propping the door open to air out the perpetual mustiness. She found phlox and peonies growing in abundance nearby, allowing her to place several fragrant vases in strategic locations. She made chicken salad and arranged plates of cut fruit and cheese cubes.

She gave a lot of thought to what she ought to wear. Ordinarily, she would lean toward something casually sexy, maybe shorts and a tank top, particularly if she was hoping that the date would end in bed. And she was hoping this one would. It had been a while since she had hooked up with anyone, and she was definitely missing it.

But having come to understand Grant's shyness and anxiety, she thought she ought to step back a bit. She chose a pair of good jeans, admittedly a tight pair, and a white peasant blouse.

She was ready for him and sipping a glass of freshly made iced tea when he texted at eleven thirty and said he would be there in about an hour.

He knocked on her door exactly on time. She was surprised, she had not heard his truck.

"I had to park it down the driveway," he explained as she let him into the cabin, "Some of those tree branches are hanging too low. I guess your landlady will be wondering why it took so long for you to get a package delivered."

Ramona poured him a glass of tea and they sat at the little wooden table to eat their lunch. She was determined to get him to open up to her, so while they ate, she kept steering the conversation to being about him. She started by asking him about his job. How much area did he cover? What did he like about it? What did he dislike?

It proved to be a good strategy. He obviously enjoyed what he did; his face lit up as he talked about it.

"Every day is a little different," he said, "And look at where I am driving, it's some of the most beautiful country in the world. But more than that, Ramona, I am proud to think that people depend on me, and I, well, I deliver."

Ramona found his love for his occupation endearing. It reminded her of her own feelings about being a ranger.

When they had finished their lunch, Ramona got up and moved to the couch. She patted the cushion next to her, and Grant came and sat beside her.

Ramona ran her fingers through his hair. "I don't know why you are so nervous with women," she said, "You are really quite charming once you open up."

"But it's getting to the open up part that's hard."

"So you need a little push." She leaned into him and kissed him quickly on the lips. She drew back, testing to see how he would respond.

He put his hand on her arm and leaned forward, kissing her back. Ramona parted her lips and felt his tongue in her mouth, and a moment later, his hand on her thigh.

Grant was a surprisingly good kisser, and the passion between them mounted. But his hands stayed planted where they were. Ramona lifted the one on her knee to her breast.

There was just a second of hesitation before Grant began to gently caress it. When he did, Ramona slid her own hand down across his abdomen to the front of his pants. Grant moaned into her mouth as she ran her fingers up and down over the outline of his erect cock.

He responded by lowering his hand between her legs. She opened them wider as she tugged his belt loose and worked down his zipper. She reached inside and found his cock, already poking through the fly of his boxer shorts. She pulled it free, then glanced down at it.

"You have a very nice penis, Grant," she said, looking into his eyes. They seemed slightly unfocused.

"Thanks," he stammered with a nervous giggle.

Ramona held eye contact with him while she stroked his cock. He swallowed hard.

"Relax, Grant, I'm not going to bite you."

Sliding off the couch, she knelt beside him and lowered her head to his lap. She kissed the underside of his cock, then the tip of it, and opened her mouth and cupped her lips around the head. She flicked her tongue along the slit a few times, then took more of it into her mouth and slowly, softly sucked on it.

She lifted up, pulled her blouse off over her head and unfastened her bra and dropped it to the floor.

"I thought I'd save you the trouble of fumbling with the hooks," she said, smiling.

She moved between his knees and took hold of the waist of his pants.

"Lift up," she said. He did, and she pulled the pants and his shorts down to his calves. She grasped his cock, then bent down between his thighs and circled his balls with her tongue. He moaned loudly.

"Oh, you like that?" Ramona said. She licked them some more, then sucked on them for a few minutes. Grant began shifting in his seat, so she stopped, realizing that if he were to come too soon, he would feel humiliated.

She rose up and dropped her arms over his shoulders. He pulled her closer and kissed her. He fondled her breasts, then lowered his head and kissed them all over. Ramona cradled his head while he sucked on her nipples. When he raised his head to kiss her again, she began to unbutton his shirt. She had a little trouble with the second button, so he took over and she returned to his cock, taking it into her mouth while he finished removing his shirt and pulled his undershirt over his head.

He had softened a little, but quickly became fully hard again as she sucked. Ramona enjoyed giving head, to either women or men. She considered it the perfect balance of two aspects of her personality. While on the one hand, it seemed to be an act of submission, of service to the partner, at the same time, it gave her a sense of control over them. Feeling a man grow hard in her mouth always turned her on. She was so focused on sucking Grant's cock, that he had to push her away to get her attention.