Now Wouldn't You Like to Know

by Curtis Bennett

  “I see,” I murmured, weighing her words. “So you think that he found out that you had used his phone by calling the last number listed. No doubt when he called, someone at the bus terminal answered.”

  “That’s pretty much what I believed happened,” she said gazing across at me. “I mean, I told no one else where I was going.”

  “What about your family up in Brooklyn? They know you are coming up?”

  “I called them just before I left home this morning. My phone was charged by then.”

  Minutes later we wrapped up dinner and returned the cooler to the Navigator. To counter some of the calories we had digested we decided to walk around. With Diana at my side, we took off on a promenade. From time to time, I’d stop to take pictures of her. A few of them were of Diana as she posed unabashedly, with and without her stylist sunglasses. Like a godsend, an elderly man passing near where we stood taking pictures paused long enough to ask if we wanted him to take a picture of the two of us together. He said he had nothing better to do while he waited for his wife to reemerge from the ladies room.

  Diana and I looked at each other, then nodded yes. Walking over to the man I handed him my Vivitar digital camera. After I showed him where to push the aperture button to snap the picture, Diana and I posed together for three photos.

  “Thank you sir,” I said as I retrieved my camera from the kind man.

  “You have a lovely wife there, young man,” he said with a benevolent smile, adding a warning. “Good women are hard to come by so hold onto yours and don’t ever stop loving her, okay?”

  Glancing at the old man and then at Diana, I just nodded my head. I wasn’t sure how he came to believe that we were married but I took it in stride. Together we watched the kind man rejoin his wife then we returned our gaze to each other.

  “Now what made him think that we were married?” Diana pondered aloud.

  “I don’t know,” I said, shrugging. Hell, I was wondering the same thing myself.”

  “From the looks of it, quite a few honeymooners pass through this attraction,” she announced as she surveyed the area.

  “That’s right, I forgot about that,” I said, looking about. “A cousin of mine renewed her wedding vows here some years back. Perhaps that’s why he thought we were married. He thought we were possibly on our honeymoon.”

  “I don’t know why the old man thought what he thought but what your cousin did sound so romantic.”

  “I’m sure it was for her and her husband. I remembered after their vows they headed over to Myrtle Beach for their second honeymoon.”

  “A second honeymoon,” Diana murmured.

  “Yep.”

  “Some couples barely make it pass the first honeymoon,” Diana chuckled.

  “That’s so true,” I added.

  “Hey, how ‘bout we finish our little walk before we get too sentimental.”

  “Sure thing,” I replied.

  We soon came upon the Gulf of Mexico, an 18-hole indoor mini-golf course. We decided to shoot a few holes. When Diana won the first round, I insisted on playing another round. She won that one too. An hour later we resumed our walk.

  “Oh, by the way, I wanted to let you know something Sheldon.”

  “What’s that?” I asked, looking over at her.

  “Now that you know that I can play mini-golf, ands beat you at it, I just wanted to remind you that I can drive as well and if you want me to, I’ll drive the next hour or so. You are probably in need of a break.”

  “Do you really feel like driving or are you just being kind and nice to me,” I asked.

  “Why not all of those reasons,” she said curtly.

  “Okaay,” I said defensively. “I’m feeling you and besides, you’re right. I could use a break.”

  Pulling the car key from my deep pocket I handed it to her.

  “Thank you,” she replied, taking the key in hand.

  I watched in amazement as she turned and strolled off in the direction of the Navigator. The woman was sensational. But the marrying type, I just didn’t know. My final thoughts were, perhaps. And with someone else. Though I respected the institution of marriage, it just wasn’t for me anymore.

  Coming out of my daze, I sprung to life and followed in her wake.

  Diana handled the Navigator surprisingly well. She told me that this was the first time she had gotten behind the wheel of a big luxury SUV. Before this she hadn’t handled anything larger than a Jeep Cherokee.

  Thirty miles into the drive we stopped to gas up and to get drinks. Taking off, she guided the Navigator back onto the northbound ramp of I-95 and merged with ongoing traffic. Accelerating, she activated the SUV’s cruise control once she had reached a cruising speed of 72mph. Forty miles into our drive I grew quite comfortable and to the point that I drifted off to sleep while she listened to music from the radio. I didn’t know it but I slept during our drive through Fayetteville, North Carolina. The next time we spoke was two hours later after I stirred and woke up feeling groggy. Diana appeared more alert as ever, even more so than before I drifted off.

  “Where are we?” I asked, gazing over at her.

  “We’re approaching the small town of Lumberton,” she said, peering over at me with a warm smile.

  “So, we’re still in North Carolina. How long have I been knocked out?”

  “A long time, probably close to two hours.”

  “Man, I guess I needed the rest.”

  “I would say so,” she said smiling at me. “You sleep well?”

  “Pretty much,” I answered.

  “I guess about now you’re ready to make a pit stop, huh.”

  “Yeah, let’s pull over at the next rest stop or exit?”

  “Sure thing.”

  “Thanks.”

  “You’re welcomed,” she said softly.

  “Any problems with the Navigator or the drive?”

  “No, but you can take over whenever we stop, if you care to Sheldon.”

  “Sure. You probably need a break as well.”

  The next comfort stop came twelve miles later at a travel center. Since the price of gas was just right I decided to top off the tank. I last gassed up in Georgia. Amazingly, we had gone as far as we had on two fill ups. Now we were good to go for another two hundred miles or more. Before taking off, I bought a cup of cappuccino and Diana bought a large bag of pistachios and a drink. Walking side by side, we headed out of the travel center and over to the Navigator. She got into the back to watch a DVD.

  In a short while, we were back on the I-95 corridor and heading north. For the next seventy miles or more I drove as she completed her movie.

  “You look a little tired. How are you holding up?” I asked, gazing at Diana through the rear view mirror.

  “I’m beginning to grow just a little road weary.”

  “Road weary,” I murmured. “You want to stop somewhere else sometime soon, or what?”

  “Well, actually I was thinking along the lines of stopping at a motel or hotel to stretch out and get some real rest, perhaps sleep a couple of hours.”

  “You want to stop at a hotel?” I asked, as if I didn’t hear her right the first time.

  “Now, don’t go getting any cute ideas,” she warned with a smile. “You and I will get separate rooms.”

  “That’s what I was about to suggest,” I came back. “So, do you want me to stop at the next motel we get to or do you have a preference?”

  “Anything that’s respectable will do,” she said leaning back into the seat.

  “Okay, we’ll stop at the next respectable motel.”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  As I drove on I pondered what lied ahead. A layover was not on my agenda. But most of what I had encountered on this trip was not on my agenda. I decided to just play it by ear.

  Though we both had emphasized beforehand that our sleeping arrangements would be by way of separate quarters, it felt awkward going up to the check-in counter of the Knights Inn together a
nd asking for two separate rooms. Even the friendly middle-aged clerk behind the counter seemed a bit surprised. And though the thought did cross my mind about sharing a room with her, I wasn’t keen on the prospects of such an arrangement, which typically meant that I’d be sleeping on the floor while she got to sleep on a nice comfortable bed. I needed some shut eye too. So, separate rooms it would be.

  After I escorted her to her suite, which was a couple of rooms down from where my room was located, I told her that I’d try to get perhaps three or four hours of sleep and then we’d head back out on the road.

  Checking my watch I saw that it was nearing 3:30PM. If I had been traveling alone I would have been closing in on Fredericksburg, Virginia by this time. But since I wasn’t in any rush, and was enjoying Diana’s company, I did not look at it in terms of what I had lost, time wise, but rather what I had gained and that was a wonderful friend.

  After a refreshing shower I popped out my contact lenses and stored them in their solution, connected my phone to the charger, shut off the lights and crawled under the warm covers and fell fast asleep. When I opened my eyes, I put on my glasses and saw that it was going on 7:00PM. I turned on the television to see what was on. Not much.

  Going over to the sink I soaked a washcloth in cold water and doused my face with it. Grabbing a hand towel I dried myself off. I then washed my hands really good. Heading over to the table I sat down to put on my contact lenses. I had done this procedure a thousand times before but for some odd reason, my left contact lens decided to dive off of my finger and down onto the carpet below. I carefully and deliberately took the right lens out and put on my glasses to look for the missing contact. I could not find it anywhere. This minor mishap had just turned into a major and significant operation. I decided I needed to enlist Diana’s assistance in my efforts.

  I dressed, grabbed my cellphone, and headed over to her room. I knocked on the door but got no response. I knocked on it again, then several times more and still got no response. God, was this woman a heavy sleeper or what? I decided to fall back on my one last option. Pulling out my phone I called her cell.

  “Hello,” her soft voice answered. “I see you have decided to rejoin the rest of the world.”

  “I imagine I have,” I replied stiffly. “Where are you? I am standing outside of your suite but you have yet to answer when I knock.”

  “That’s because I am over at the cafeteria having a coffee. I slept maybe two hours and have been up ever since then.”

  “Okay, I am heading over that way.”

  “See you when you get here.”

  I immediately made my way over to the exit door. It was dark and much colder outside than it would be at this same time in Florida. But again, we were heading north and it was the fall season. Opening the door to the restaurant, I entered it.

  Diana was seated at a table not far from the entrance of the cafeteria. And she wasn’t alone. She had company. Male company. I walked over to where they sat.

  She acknowledged me after a delayed pause. I’m sure it was because I was wearing glasses. I never told her that I wore contacts. I never saw a need or reason to tell her.

  “Hello, Sheldon,” she said as I stopped at her table. “Sheldon, this is Dwight, Dwight this is my friend Sheldon.”

  We shook hands and exchanged mutual greetings. Dwight looked to be in his late thirties and looked like he pumped iron. He was well built, and was actually a younger version of Lee Haney, a renowned bodybuilder and former Mr. Olympia and Mr. Universe. Perhaps Dwight was his son.

  “Dwight was kind enough to help me find my way over here. Have a seat and join us.”

  “Actually, I need your assistance on a certain matter, if I may tear you away for a short while.”

  “Sure,” she said grabbing her purse and rising up from the table.

  “Hey, I hope that I haven’t encroached on anything or anyone,” Dwight said apologetically.

  “No, it’s nothing like that,” I stressed. “I just need her help with something that came up.”

  “It was nice chatting with you Dwight,” she said as she extended her arm to shake his hand.

  “Was a pleasure talking to you Ms. Diana,” he said, giving her an overdose of his dreamy eyes and inviting smile. A wannabe playa, no doubt.

  We took off.

  “What’s up, and why are you wearing glasses?” she asked, struggling to keep up with me.

  “I wear contacts, Diana,” I answered. “While in the process of putting them on I dropped one on the carpeted floor and cannot find it. I need your help in locating it before it dries up.”

  “Sure, I’ll help,” she said as we paused in front of my suite. Swiping the card key, I opened the door and we entered. I immediately asked her to take off her shoes and so did I. Kneeling, I gestured for her to do likewise. Then I pointed to the area where I had dropped the contact lens and then we crawled carefully over to the area and closely scanned every micro-inch of carpet along the way.

  “I know it’s got to be here somewhere,” I insisted as I lowered my head closer to the carpet.

  “Hey, I think I’ve found it,” Diana said, then declared, “Yes, this is it!”

  Picking it up, I leaned back against the bed. Diana joined me at my side, our legs extended on the carpeted floor.

  “Whew, that was a close call,” I said, turning to face her. “Thank you for your assistance.”

  “Hey, what are friends for?” she said gazing across at me.

  “Well, I am going to have to put this back in the solution and let it sterilize again.”

  “How long will it take?”

  “About six hours.”

  “Are we going to get back on the road before then?

  “Naah, I see much better at night when I’m wearing my contacts.”

  “Me too,” she said to my surprise.

  “You wear contacts too, huh,” I said.

  “Ever since I was sixteen,” she answered. “And you?”

  “I’ve been wearing them since I was around twenty years old.”

  “So, what do we do now while we wait for your lens to sterilize?”

  “I’m not sure,” I answered, looking into eyes that appeared more enchanting the more I revisited them. The exotic fragrance of her body and hair seemed to cast a spell over me as well.

  Leaning over, she rested her head gently against my shoulder, and then said, “We can always watch a movie on HBO or something.”

  “Yes, we could,” I said feeling my nervous heart pound wildly, a primal response brought on by her close proximity and contact with my body.

  “Or we could sit here on the floor like we are doing now and fall asleep against one another.”

  “Yes, we could do that as well,” I said inhaling her sweet and intoxicating fragrance.

  “Or we could just sit here and talk for the next couple of hours.”

  “Yes, we could do that as well,” I repeated.

  “So, what do you want to do Sheldon?”

  “To be honest, I’m hungry. Why don’t we go and get something to eat,” I said wanting to distance myself, not from her, but the feelings I was beginning to feel inside for her. I could not deny that Diana was growing on me. Seeing her sitting there with Dwight sparked something inside of me I hadn’t felt for a woman in a long time…a ting of jealousy. This was not a feeling I want to manifest. I needed to clear my head, I told myself. Going out and getting something to eat appeared to be my escape clause.

  “That’s right, you haven’t eaten dinner.”

  “No, I haven’t.”

  “So, where do you what to go?” she asked, placing her hand on top of mine and rubbed it. “The cafeteria closes in a few minutes.”

  Good I thought. Since I didn’t want to eat there and end up back in this room with her, not the way I was feeling, which was conflicted, I patted her on the thigh and said, “There has to be restaurant establishments somewhere close by. I say we head out and find one.”

  �
�Sounds like a plan,” she said as we stood up.

  Placing the contact lens in the solution holder, I grabbed my jacket and we headed out to the Navigator in search of dinner for one, since she had already eaten. We came upon a Denny’s Restaurant less than two miles away and decided to dine there. I was beyond starving. So I started my meal off with a small salad bowl of Cole slaw with raisins and followed that with a charbroiled New York strip steak, mashed potatoes and brown gravy, seasoned vegetables, and a slice of New York cheesecake for dessert. It was a New York meal in her honor, I teased Diana. She was content to order strawberry shortcake and a hot cup of coffee.

  In order to kill time, I drove across the boulevard to a super Wal-Mart store to browse around, and for the most part, that was my plan. Diana had other ideas. She had shopping in mind. An hour later, it took quite an effort to peel her away from the clothing section but it was time to leave. When we returned to the Navigator she had two large shopping bags full of clothing items and some lingerie.

  “Who’s that for?’ I asked looking at the package of lingerie at the top of the bag.

  “Now wouldn’t you like to know,” she smiled.

  “I think I’ll leave that one alone,” I quipped.

  “Boy, it’s gotten colder since we arrived here,” she said, changing the subject.

  “It’s going to get even colder as we near our destination,” I proclaimed.

  “God, I’m not looking forward to that part of the trip,” she replied entering the SUV.

  “Neither am I,” I said.

  Turning the ignition key I backed out of the parking space.

  Glancing over at the florescent green clock on the dashboard it read 11:12PM. Within minutes we were back at the Knights Inn and in our separate suites. My original plan was to load up the SUV and get back on the road right away but because it was late and Diana had grown tired, we decided to sleep over. After all, the rooms were already paid for. After a good night’s sleep, we’d head out around 6:00 in the morning.

  Chapter 7

  Diana smiled and batted her eyelashes when she greeted me at the door. Though dressed, she still appeared tired. But once her eyes met my gaze, she perked up a little and her smile broadened. Even in a tired state, her eyes looked dreamy, even more so. The skin on her face looked like creamy cocoa butter. Her full lips were painted red and appeared wet and scrumptious looking. Her teeth were perfect and brilliant white. And her hair sat like a curly crown atop her head. I was smitten, to say the least, but I continued to resist what I felt growing insides of me for her.