The Virgin Vagabond

Chapter 10

Day number three in Salinas started with a knock on the door. Kesia and Luke woke up, entwined in the bed, not realizing that the noise they heard was actually a knock. Eventually, Luke got up and put on a t-shirt before he went to open the door, forgetting to ask who it was before he did. 

”A letter for you, sir” said the valet and gave him an envelope. 

”That’s the first time you open the door without first asking who it is” said Kesia. 

”I know, I’m sorry.”

He came back to bed and they opened the envelope together. 

”A few miles south of Soledad, the Salinas River drops in close to the hillside bank and runs deep and green.” Luke read. ”Hey, it’s about Salinas! I wonder if that means anything?”

”Interesting. It might, I guess.”

”Do you know where it’s from?”

”Yes, of course” said Kesia and googled it. ”It’s the first line from the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck.”

Luke put the paper on the bedside table and got up from the bed. Kesia was about to do the same when her phone rang. It was Matilda. 

”I have to get this” she said.

”Sure, you do that. I’ll be in the shower.”

Kesia took the call and went out on the balcony to talk in private. 

”Heeey girl!” Matildas voice brought Kesia all the way back home again.

”Hi! So good to hear from you! How are you?”

”Never mind that! How are you?” 

”I’m good, we’re having a really good time.”

”Where are you?”

”Currently, we are in Salinas, in California.”

”Wow! That is so cool! Tell me everything.”

”Ok, we started in Cape Town where we got our footprints and the first clue. We lost that round when the seekers abducted Luke and lured me into a trap. Then we went to…”

Matilda interrupted her.

”Ok, ok, I get it, you’re like a globetrotter now. The important question is: Have you done it yet?”

”What? No!”

”Really? Why? You said he was handsome.”

”Yes, well, that’s not enough.”

”Oh, so he’s a douche then?”

Kesia thought about telling Matilda everything but decided not to. She didn’t want to talk about Luke behind his back. Even if it was just stuff she had already said to his face.

”I guess it’s a bit complicated” she just said. 

”Oh, come on! Tell me!”

In the corner of her eye, Kesia could see Luke coming out of the shower. 

”We’ll have to talk more about it when I get back” she said. ”Bye, Mattie, I’ll call you soon.”

She hung up and just stood there, watching Luke getting dressed.

After examining the envelope several times they concluded that there was nothing else in it. The two previous ones had contained an adress as well but this one didn’t. Kesia and Luke had to assume they were supposed to draw some kind of conclusion from the quote itself so after breakfast they snook out of the hotel and drove south on route 101 until they came a few miles south of Soledad where the river ran close to the hillside. Luke pulled over in a spot where there was actually a small parking lot. They were not the only ones there. 

”Is this risky?” Kesia asked and looked at Luke who shrugged.

”What choice do we have?” he answered and started walking along the river. Kesia followed him and realized that this was a beautiful place. The green shade of the trees and bushes here felt more like home, although the hills beyond them didn’t. At all. She could hear so many different birds and the sound of the water moving around in swirls and over rocks was really refreshing. The air here felt easier to breathe.

”Over there!” Luke yelled and pointed at something that was floating in the middle of the river. 

Kesia looked at where he was pointing and saw a note, stuck to a small raft. 

”How do we get to it?” she asked.

The water in that part of the river was pretty still and the raft moved around a little but didn’t get caught up in the stream. Kesia looked around and found a long stick that she used to try and make the raft float in their direction. Luke took off his shoes and sock and started walking carefully in the water towards the raft.

”Hand me the stick” he said and reached towards Kesia. She gave it to him and he easily reached the raft with it. Soon, he had his hands on it it brought it back to the shore. Kesia took the small envelope off the raft and opened it. As they expected, it contained a key to the clue.

”Great!” said Luke. ”I was afraid that there would just be an adress on a little piece of paper. Now we can actually find out where we are going next.”

”But we don’t know where to leave the footprint” said Kesia.

”Hu,” said Luke and looked in the envelope again. There was nothing in it but he turned it inside out and there was something written on the envelope itself. 

”Monterey Bay Aquarium, number 10” Kesia read. 

”I guess we’re going to look at fish” said Luke and shrugged.

Kesia had always thought fish were kind of creepy. It was something about the eyes and the way they swam around all the time, breathing water. Cold blooded creatures had always been a mystery to her. At the aquarium, there was a big tank with all kinds of fish swimming around in it. Kesia stopped by the glass and just looked for a long time while Luke looked for locker number 10. A clownfish swam up to her, close to the glass. She smiled at it and it stared back at her. It looked kind of crosseyed and stupid.

”Found it!” 

Luke was suddenly right next to her, waving around with the key to the clue. 

”Do you wanna stay a while or should we just go back to Salinas?” he asked.

”I don’t know, I could stay a while. It’s very soothing to stare at fish. Besides, they have a nice gift shop where I could get something for my parents.”

Luke nodded. They walked slowly along the big fish tank and on to the next one. When they reached the gift shop Luke received a text.

”It’s from John” he said, ”he writes to inform us that our seekers are outside of the aquarium. They must have our car bugged or something.”

”What are we going to do?”

”Well, if they come in here, they are going to find us, eventually. The most likely scenario is that one of them comes inside and the other one waits by the parking lot. That way, if we sneak outside, we will still be caught.”

”Is there a back entrance? Or an emergency exit?”

”Probably. There is also staff rooms and bathrooms where we might be able to hide.”

”Do you think they’ll let us?”

”Maybe. But it’s better not to ask” said Luke and took Kesias hand. They started walking towards a door that said ’staff only’. It had a code lock on it. Luke swore to himself and looked around. He must have seen something useful because he started walking in another direction, dragging Kesia with him. She could tell that he started to feel stressed because he tightened his grip and picked up the pace. He turned back abruptly, one of the seekers had spotted them. 

”Ok, any small space behind any door is now acceptable” he said.

After rushing past the shark tank and the entrance to the whale show they came across a janitors closet. Luke jerked the door open and let Kesia go in first, then he went inside and closed the door.

”We are completely screwed if he saw us go in here. If he opens that door, we will have nowhere to go” said Kesia, pressed up against Lukes body in the small closet. 

”I know. I have someone on it” he answered and took his phone out. 

”I’m asking Keren for backup.”

”What can she do?”

”Well, our seekers don’t know what she looks like so she will be able to act as a stranger telling him that she just saw two people, a man and a woman, sneaking out the back.”

”Good plan. Let’s hope it works.”

”Let’s hope we don’t run out of air.”

They tried to breathe quietly and carefully for the next few minutes. Kesia liked being this close to Luke and she felt her heart racing a bit. So did Luke. He smiled and kissed her. She kissed him back and soon, she lost herself in him completely. His hands was under her shirt and she gasped.

”Shh” Luke whispered, ”we have to be very quiet.”

”Then, your hand should not be under my shirt.”

”There are other places were I could put it if you like.”

With one quick move, he had turned her around so that she faced the wall and could feel his breath in the neck. She had to bite her hand not to make a sound when Lukes hand slipped down her skirt. He groaned quietly in her ear and she could feel him harden against her butt cheek. His phone suddenly vibrated.

”Keren says our seekers has been diverted. They both just left in their car.”

”Oh, ok, good. Shall we leave the closet?”

”Do you want to leave?”

”Well, you know I like these moments but I don’t think my first time should be in a janitors closet.”

”But maybe it should be in a hotel room in Salinas?”

Kesia felt her heart speeding again and she smiled a little. 

”Maybe it should. Let’s go.”

”You go first. I need a moment.”

Kesia smirked at him a little and left the closet.

”Did you have fun in there?” asked Keren who was waiting right outside.

”Depends on how you define ’fun’ I guess. Thank you for the help.”

”Oh, that was nothing. Like we already told you, we will make sure you win.”

”And this isn’t cheating?”

”Depends on how you define ’cheating’” said Keren with a crooked little smile. The door to the closet opened again and Luke stepped out. 

”Thank you” he said to Keren, ”that was really close”. 

”Yes, it was. They would’ve won if it wasn’t for us.”

”Where’s John?”

”Waiting in the parking lot. We took the liberty to move your car to make your seekers think you guys left.”

”How did you do that?”

”Ask John. He’s a very inventive person when it comes to these kind of things.”

”Tell him thanks from us. We should really get back to the hotel” said Luke and put his arms around Kesia, ”to finish what we started before.”

”And I should get back to John” said Keren, ”we’ll be in touch.”

Getting back to the hotel felt like it took forever. Kesia was eager to be alone with Luke, she had forgotten all about the clue and the key they had picked up at the aquarium. Her mind was overflowing with thoughts about what it would be like to have s*x for the first time. She felt a sudden urge to call Matilda. As they got out of the car and went up to the room she snook out to the balcony with her phone. 

”Hello?” said a tired voice in the other end.

”Oh, s**t, I forgot about the time difference!” 

”It’s ok. What’s up?”

”I think I’m about to lose my virginity, Mattie, and I couldn’t do it without talking to you first.”

”Why? It’s not like you need my permission, go ahead and just do it, girl!”

”Really? Should I?”

”Not if you feel insecure about it” she answered.

”How do I know?”

”I can’t tell you, Kesia, you just know.”

Luke came out on the balcony, wrapped her in his arms and kissed her neck. She gasped.

”Ok, I’ll talk to you later” she said to Matilda and hung up. She put the phone down and held on to the railing. Lukes hand explored her entire upper body while kissing her neck and sucking her earlobes. Kesia was consumed by the pounding desire that awoke in her.

”Shall we move into the bedroom?” whispered Luke in her ear and she shivered.

”Why is it so hot when you stick your tongue in my ear?”

”I think there’s a g-sport in there somewhere.”

”That is so insane!”

”I know. Let’s explore other g-spots” he said and pulled her into the room. As they were on their way to the bed, Lukes phone rang. 

”Don’t!” said Kesia.

”But it’s Cornelia” said Luke and answered.

”Hello? What? No, we haven’t checked yet…”

Kesia tried to make out what Cornelia said but she couldn’t.

”Oh, really? Well, we’ll check then. Ok. Bye.”

"What did she say?”

”She wanted to know what the next destination is and I told her we haven’t checked yet.”

”Can’t we do it later?”

”No, I’m afraid not. The flight might be in the morning, we need to know where we’re going.”

”Ok, fine” said Kesia and rolled her eyes. 

They sat down on the couch, poured themselves some wine and looked at the quote again. The key gave them the letters E, I, U, D, N, R, H, B and G. Kesia looked at it for three seconds before she figured it out. 

”Edinburgh” she said and took a sip of wine. 

”I love your brain” said Luke and wrote it into the device. The response was immediate, ’well done. Your flight leaves tomorrow at 10am from San Fransisco’.

”Great. Can we get back to business?”

”I need to just let John and Keren know where we’re going.”

He texted John and then put away his phone. 

”Now, we can get back to business” he said and got up. Kesia took his hand and followed him into the bedroom. When they were in bed Kesia got suddenly nervous. 

”What is it?” asked Luke who noticed something was a little off.   

”Nothing, I’m just a little nervous” she said.

Luke smiled and kissed her. 

”You don’t have to worry. I’ll give you as much time as you need. If you are not ready tonight, we can wait. We don’t have to rush anything.”

He kissed her again, tenderly. Kesia felt a rush of heat and a tingling feeling go through her entire body and she cuddled up against him. Luke was right of course. There was no point in rushing anything. For now, she could just enjoy him and his body, his hairy chest and the rush she got from just being close to him, kissing and touching him.