Off of the Beaten Path

Chapter One Ashley flew the plane toward the remote jungle airstrip, the Cessna shuddered briefly on a current of air, then settled in to land on the tiny slip of cleared ground. Jess waited impatiently at the edge of the airstrip. “You’re late,” he charged as Ashley cut the engine and pushed open the door. She ignored him, jumped out of the plane and immediately turned around to retrieve his package of supplies from the backseat. Jess noticed her legs for the hundredth time, her firm tight rear encased in tiny short shorts. She was always a sight to behold. Her long blond hair was tied up in a loose ponytail so her hair cascaded about her face in a mass of unruly curls. “I don’t have time to stay, the rains are on the way,” she said. “No, I don’t suppose you do,” he agreed. He looked down at her loose tank top, cut so low he could see the succulent swell of her breasts. “I’ve got to go,” she said hopping back into the plane, as she took note of the wind beginning to whip about them. “Damn it Jess, if it weren’t for your little emergency, I’d be finished with this flight, sitting at home drinking beer, watching the rains come in from my front porch.” “I’m sorry,” he shrugged apologetically. She grimaced annoyed. It was pure Ashley. She’d been flying him supplies for nearly two years, flaunting herself in tight little clothes, reminding him of what he missed while on assignment in this remote jungle station. One all too brief night in Caracas with Ashley had only whetted his appetite for this tomboy brat. Ashley turned the ignition, and the engine gave a sputter, then died away. A second try and it was no better. “Damn,” she said, kicking out the door, and with a wrench in hand she proceeded to the engine, tinkering around for some minutes. “Damn, I thought it was fixed!” Jess stood back admiring her; when she bent over he could see her t**s right down to her navel. Normally, when she wasn’t angry, she loved teasing him. She tried the engine again with the same weak sputtering, followed by the same dead calm. “Damn, it’s dead. I should have taken care of it in town,” she fumed. She knew she’d been reckless not fixing the problem at her last stop, but she never figured to be marooned in the middle of nowhere. “You’ll just have to wait this storm out and we’ll radio for another plane. “No one will fly in here for days. I’ll have to walk out.” Ashley was used to taking matters into her own hands, and she’d be damned if she waited for anyone. “That’s twenty miles of dense jungle!” Jess protested. “It’ll take a day, maybe two, I’m fast.” He looked at her incredulously. “You’re not that fast and you’re not that foolish. You can stay with me until the weather settles.” “If you think I’m going sit on my butt drinking iced tea for a week with a boring scientist with a zilch future, you’re more stupid than I thought. I can’t afford to ground this vehicle, I’m walking out. I’ll find someone to fly me back in and repair it.” “You’ll do nothing of the sort,” he said. “It’s not safe and you know it!” She glared at him, looking as if she was about to strike off through the jungle that instant. Jess grabbed her arm. “You’re not going anywhere,” he said. “Take your hands off me,” she charged, as she tried to wrench away. “You promise you’re not going to do something stupid?” He watched her eyes carefully, the way they shimmied in the changing light, an iridescent blue green kind of color that was hard to pin down. He watched them as they turned from flashing to a softer gleam as she relinquished. “All right, I won’t go anywhere,” she said, making sure that he let go of her arm. The wind was whipping them even more furiously, then the sky suddenly broke loose with a terrific downpour, and the two ran for Jess’s hut. “God, how safe is this,” Ashley blurted out from behind the rain that ran off her face. “Looks like the thing will blow away.” “It’s really very sturdy,” Jess replied, as he went to a cabinet, rummaged around, and threw a towel in Ashley’s direction. The two dried off in silence. It was clear Ashley would have to change clothes or be stuck in her wet things all night. “You want to change back here, there’s a little screen you can pull?” “How convenient,” she snapped, picking up her soaked bag. “Everything’s probably wet.” “Sorry I don’t have an electric dryer.” “Funny, very funny,” her sarcasm continued as she scowled. She pulled the curtain behind her and began to undress. The hut was really just one huge room. The kitchen and small living area were in the front. Ashley was at the back of the hut near the bath and Jess’s bed. Right behind the kitchen were lab tables and a desk for Jess’s experiments. The place suited his needs, though he wasn’t certain exactly what he’d do with a visitor for the night. Sometimes, the few visitors he had could sleep on the screen porch, but with a driving rainstorm, he’d have to be more creative. “I can make some dinner,” Jess called to her from the kitchen. “Don’t do it for me, I’m not hungry,” Ashley answered. Jess shook his head and turned back to the cupboard where he kept his food. It wasn’t much since he had regular flights in and out of the jungle with supplies, but there was plenty on hand to whip up something for the two of them. With Ashley declining the offer, he wasn’t certain whether to believe her, or make enough for them both. After a few minutes, Ashley yanked the curtain back, and emerged with fresh dry clothes. She was patting her wet hair on the towel. “You gonna stand there all day in those wet duds,” she asked. Jess turned to her and smiled. “You were in my bedroom, sweetheart,” he reminded her. “Oh,” she answered, not fazed by Jess’s hint of irritation. “I’m making spaghetti, so you can have some in case you get hungry. I only open a few cans a day you understand. Gotta remember that I’m rationed.” “I can’t see how you live in this place, god it gives me the creeps,” she said. “Why’s that? It’s clean. It may be small, but I’m not lacking much here.” “A second bed is one thing I can think of.” “I have a cot you can use,” he informed her. He had thought of offering her his bed, but since she was being so snotty, she could sleep on the old canvas army cot he kept in the storeroom. If her disposition didn’t improve, she might end up sleeping in the storeroom too. She gave him an impatient “humph”, and walked around the room. “I should have just taken off anyway. I might as well be sleeping in the jungle as here.” “You always this rude to your hosts?” Jess asked. “You don’t have to be so flip,” she replied. “Listen, you may not want to be in my house, but since you’re here, you’ll behave yourself.” He waved his can opener at her as he spoke. “Oooo, gonna get nasty about it,” she said. “You’re acting like a brat.” “Oh I am, am I?” she retorted. “So what do you plan on doing?” “It would suit me no end to spank your bottom,” he said quite seriously. Ashley laughed and walked away, plopping down in Jess’s overstuffed reading chair, the only really comfortable piece of furniture in the room. The storm raged outside, and the feeling inside the hut was close, much too close for comfort. Jess had the feeling he made Ashley nervous. She might just be afraid she’d remember the fun they’d had in Caracas. Jess ate his spaghetti in silence, while Ashley watched, feeling her stomach growl, though her pride kept her from asking for something to eat. Since his guest didn’t seem about to budge from the chair, and had picked up a novel from his bookcase she was beginning to read, Jess gave up his usual after dinner quiet, and decided to work for a while in his laboratory. About nine o’clock, Ashley put down the book, and looked out the window at the rain that was coming down in sheets. She looked as if she’d stare forever, and Jess could hardly stand looking at her. The feverish nervousness he felt from her seemed to flood his well-arranged space with undo tension. “How about a game of Rummy, Chess? Cribbage?” he asked. Ashley looked back at him with a vacant glare. “No, thanks, I think I’ll take a walk.” “A walk? In this rain? You already have most of your clothes soaked.” They were hanging about the walls of the hut drying. “I have a poncho,” she informed him as she jumped up from the chair. Going to her bag she rummaged for the plastic poncho she always carried with her. “Ashley don’t do anything stupid,” Jess warned. “I’m not leaving if that’s what you’re worried about,” she said saucily. “Besides, it looks as if the rain is letting up, the wind’s died down.” “Suit yourself.” Jess was tired of arguing with her, and at the moment he wondered how he could ever have been attracted to her. Let her drown like a rat, he thought. Ashley let the screen door bang against the doorframe. “Don’t go too far from here,” he had to say, “the ground can be unstable with all the water.” “How sweet.” He heard only half the slightly garbled retort, the rest drown by the sound of the pouring rain. Ashley waltzed out into the clearing around the hut, the rain quickly pouring off her poncho. Jess watched her for a few minutes, then turned back to his work. About ten minutes later, the rain had let up considerably, the constant torrent on the storeroom roof ceasing to make its ungodly sound against the metal structure. It was one drawback of that shed, the cantankerous noise that wouldn’t stop until the rains ceased, and in the jungle, sometimes that could be days. A few minutes later, Jess thought he heard a voice rising above the sound of rain. Stopping his own movement, he listened intently and then went to the front door. “Jess! Jess, come here!” It was Ashley’s voice from somewhere beyond the first row of jungle trees. Jess bolted from the door. “Where the hell are you?” he shouted. “Over here.” The voice was more distinct, and he shot through the dense growth, finding Ashley just beyond the tree line, slumped to the ground, her foot twisted in a tangled mess of roots and mud. “What the hell took you so long!” she blared. “I couldn’t hear you,” Jess shouted angrily. He tugged gently at her foot and pulled enough to let it free. “Ouch!” “You’re going to have to stand a little pain, or you’re going to stay here all night with the snakes and bugs,” he snapped. “Just help me out of here,” she ordered him nastily. Setting the young woman free, Jess picked her up and carried her back the hut. “What the hell are you doing carrying me, I can walk,” she charged. “We don’t know that,” he answered, and he said no more as he carried her to the porch steps then into the hut. Setting her down on the kitchen chair, he pulled the wet poncho from her and threw it out on the porch. “My god you’re a muddy mess,” he remarked, seeing her legs and shorts were covered in the thick goo. Though the mud in the hut was not as much a concern as Ashley’s ankle. “Of course I’m a muddy mess,” Ashley said. “I slipped, what did you expect?” “I’d suggest you button your mouth, if you know what’s good for you,” Jess told her. “I’ve had about enough of your nasty attitude.” “You ass!” she blurted out. “Ouch!” “You don’t shut up, I’ll live up to my warning.” “What the hell was that?” she asked. “Ouch!” Jess was taking her shoe from her wounded foot. “Don’t try me,” he muttered under his breath. He was just a little concerned about Ashley’s foot. It looked swollen, and it was certainly tender to touch. “Ouch, stop it!” “Let’s hope it’s not broken,” he said. He moved the foot gently, waiting for her to grimace and howl again, but this time, the foot didn’t seem to smart as much. Jess was pretty sure it wasn’t broken. “That’s better,” he said. “How do you know?” “You forget, I have full medical training. I can treat you for just about anything out here, including a bratty disposition.” “What’s that supposed to mean?” she snarled. “I’d just as soon spank your ass, as dress your wounds right now.” That shut her up, she was smart enough not to fight with a man who had her painful ankle in his grasp. She backed off her barbs long enough to allow Jess to wrap her foot in a heavy ace bandage. “Damn it still hurts.” “It’s going to for a couple of days, you really twisted the hell out of it.”