Lost Highway - Chapter 5

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WithoutSpeaking

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Title: Lost Highway
Authors: 1screamingangel & wo_speaking
Rating: Barely an R, more like a PG-13
Disclaimer: None of these fine Irishmen are mine, and this is complete and utter fiction.

*************

Mel and Paul sat on the rickety porch of the old jail and watched the sun come up in the eastern desert sky. It was a beautiful pink sky with paint brush strokes of purple clouds. As the sun burst above the horizon, Paul picked his head up from Mel’s shoulder and gave her the sweetest kiss they had shared yet. It was a kiss that said thanks for a great night, thanks for spending time with me and thanks for still being here. It was the kind of kiss she hoped to receive someday at the alter when she found her soul mate.

“We best head back to town. Sam might not be up at this hour, but if she is she may get a little worried if you are nowhere to be found,” Paul whispered as he brushed his lips against her cheek.

Mel laughed at the thought of Sam being awake this time of day – especially after the shots of whiskey she’d done last night via her admirer at the bar. However, she reluctantly thought it was a good time to end her impromptu date with Paul lest she become any more in danger of falling totally in love with him. It was already almost too late; any more time with him and she may not be able to leave.

She couldn’t wait to tell Sam about her night in the desert ghost town with this man who had cast a spell on her. Although the night did not include physical sex, they shared intimacy in a way she was surprised she found much more satisfying.

“Yep, we had better get going. I can’t say I want this evening to end though, Paul. It has been a nice night .” With that, she took his face in her hands and kissed him back.

Their drive back was quiet as they were each lost in their own thoughts about what had transpired in the last couple of hours. They’d settled into an easy sense of familiarity with each other, and although not all of their secrets had been revealed, Mel was satisfied she at least got to know him a lot better.

Paul was proud of himself having shown great restraint by not doing the things to Mel that he had fantasized about while they were talking in the old saloon in Bodie. It would have been the perfect place to lay her down, right there on the bar, and show her how strongly he felt about her and how much he wanted her to stay for a while here with him. But all he did was kiss her softly, hold her hand, and listen to her, which meant he had to share a bit about himself. Women always expected you to tell them about yourself if they were spilling their guts to you. Mel didn’t ask too many questions at first, but as the night wore on towards morning, her curiosity got the better of her.

Paul tried to keep her talking as much about herself as he could. He knew more about her now than he had cared to find out about any women he had been with in years. Yet he didn’t mind knowing about her at all. As a matter of fact, he found he wanted to know everything about her. He wanted to know her first memory, her favorite flower, what made her laugh the most, and what brought that beautiful smile to her face.

Actually, if he was being honest with himself, he would admit that he was falling for her in this very short time. But Paul had a hard time being honest about most things in life.

He began to tell her about himself, if only just a little. He was from a small town in the Irish countryside, left to come to America to see what it was all about and decided to strike out on an adventure across the county. There was nothing left for him in Ireland, he was far too ambitious to stay there for the rest of his life.

He left out all the parts he avoided telling anyone these days – he could never be too careful. He knew Mel was suspicious he had some money due to her knowledge about how much his car was worth, but he had no intention of telling her how he had earned it. She didn’t need to know what he did for a living or why he was living in some backwater little town in the desert. And she certainly didn’t need to know his real full name. He had a brief flicker of worry now that she knew his first name and hoped she wouldn’t be able to put anything together from that.

As careful as he was though, he found himself wanting to tell Mel all about who he really was. It wasn’t in his personality to hide away; he was used to being the center of all attention and had been since the day he was born.

He was getting tired of hiding. He wanted to tell her all about his family, his Da, his late Mum and his brother. Paul wanted to be himself with her. It had been a long time since he had been able to just be himself with anyone, let alone a woman.

Paul did end up telling Mel more than he’d originally wanted to, he couldn’t help it. There was something about her that made him trust her, and he didn’t trust others that easily.

By the time Paul turned off the road to Bridgeport he had determined the exact moment he knew she was someone who he might just be able to trust with everything.

They had walked into the old saloon through the wooden door; rumbles of thunder echoed in the distance. Mel went behind the bar saying they might as well try to find some shot glasses in which to drink their whiskey. She had found some glasses and they laughed and joked around about the state of the glasses and the condition they appeared in even in the candlelight. He could not take his eyes from her, she was a beautiful girl with light brown eyes that spoke of honesty and compassion. Mel was about average height, but he wasn’t that tall either. Not a tall man in his Irish family. They stood eye to eye across the bar as he admired the curve of her lips and the funny, easy laugh she had. Then there were her shoulders and creamy white skin that he wanted to taste slowly and savor.

Yes, Paul decided, that was probably the moment he fell for her, the moment he knew it wouldn’t be easy to watch her car ride out of town the next morning, if at all.

*******

Paul pulled around the back of the hotel and parked his very nice car under the overhang. He jumped out of the car and raced around to open Mel’s door. She’d never had a man open her car door and then take her hand to help her out of the car. It was straight out a movie – people in California weren’t the chivalrous type, that only happened in the Old South on Gone With The Wind. This was getting pretty intense, she thought. Meanwhile, Paul laughed at himself; he had never opened a car door for any woman but his Mum – why did he feel the need to do this for Mel?

Mel did not let go of his hand as they walked in the back door of the hotel. She wanted to stay with him but she needed to get back to the room, maybe get some sleep and shower. She had been up all night and knew that if she went to his room, she would probably just fall asleep. That was not how she wanted it to be when they were together for the first time. Mel sighed, knowing they would be spending at least another night in this little town in the desert. She needed to spend the night with Paul and wasn’t planning on leaving without doing so.

“I’m going to catch a few hours sleep, darlin’. I’d ask you to come with me but I think we’re both too exhausted and I don’t want it to be like that.” He grabbed her face with both hands and kissed her softly and sweetly. They had been thinking the same thing.

“I’ll see you later?” Mel questioned him.

“Of course. You won’t leave without saying goodbye now will you?” Paul didn’t think she would but needed to make sure.

“How could I?” Mel tucked his hair behind his ears and slowly ascended the stairs to the room she and Sam shared.
 
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