Honeymoon for Three

several western cowboy towns before stopping for the night at a motel in Lakeview, Oregon. Exhausted and still sore from their horseback ride, they fell into bed.
    ***
    The house of Don and Mattie in Crescent City was a small, one-story affair, not far from the center of town, which appeared to be the Ben Franklin store. Alfred had taken his turn at the wheel, which kept him from thinking depressing thoughts, but by the time they arrived, Don was driving. He pulled into the driveway after dark and parked beside a pickup truck.
    They had eaten dinner in Grants Pass, Oregon. Alfred tried to pay for his meal, but Don brushed his money aside and paid with a wad of bills he took from his pocket. Evidently he had won at poker.
    Although they were all talking to each other by this time, nobody brought up the subject of what Alfred would do when they reached Crescent City. Would they dump him at the Greyhound bus station tonight? He decided that what will be will be and left his fate to the gods of chance.
    “Would you mind helping us unload a few things?” Don asked Alfred.
    That was a good sign. He would unload everything in the camper if they would let him sleep in the house tonight. That would give him all morning to figure out how to intercept Penny and Gary. He felt more optimistic now. Something would turn up. It always did. He was lucky that way.
    Unloading wasn’t a big deal. They unloaded the perishable food and dirty sheets and pillowcases, but not much else. The camping equipment and some of the food stayed in the camper.
    When they were finished, Mattie led him to a bedroom and said, “This is the spare room. You sleep here. We’ve only got one bathroom in this God-forsaken place, but when we’re finished with it, it’s all yours. I suggest you take a long, hot shower because those cold campground showers don’t cut it. I’m going to wash your clothes since you’ve only got one set, and I noticed that they’re starting to stink. You don’t want to offend the passengers on the bus. I’ll give you a bathrobe of Don’s to wear. I’ll have your clothes clean for you in the morning.”
    “That’s very nice of you.”
    “Don’t mention it. Don has to go to work tomorrow. I have off till Monday. I’ll drive you to the bus station or wherever you want to go.”
    Alfred had taken a quick shower at the Tetons, but the water had been cold and he hadn’t stayed under it long. While he was taking the first hot shower he had enjoyed in days, Alfred wondered whether Mattie was cleaning him up to have sex with him. If so, he would accommodate her. He was a man now, and men had responsibilities. It was time he stepped up to his. He went to sleep with a smile on his face.

    CHAPTER 24
    This must be some kind of a record, Gary thought as he looked at the Wittnauer watch his parents had given him at his college graduation. Six o’clock was probably the earliest they had risen on the whole trip, other than the morning they escaped from Alfred. They must be getting back into work mode. He didn’t want to do that quite yet. They still had three days to go on their honeymoon, including today, and he intended to enjoy them.
    They quickly packed the car and were on their way by six forty-five, intending to eat breakfast along the road, probably in Klamath Falls where they would cross the route they had taken heading north. Then on to the California coast. The prospect of returning to California gave him the keen feeling of anticipation one has when something exciting is about to happen.
    Penny must have sensed it too. She started singing, “California, here I come.” Gary joined in. What their voices lacked in quality they made up for in volume.
    ***
    There was nothing like sleeping in a real bed. Alfred stretched and yawned luxuriously as he awoke. The sun streamed in through the white lace curtains on the window. He glanced idly at the small clock on the bedside table. It was almost eight o’clock.
    Alfred jerked himself upright, instantly fully awake. He had things to do. He couldn’t sleep all day. He stood up on the hooked throw rug that covered a small section of the wooden floor that was painted green and glanced down at his stomach. He had slept in the nude. Why? That wasn’t like him. He fingered his bellybutton and looked around the sparsely furnished room for his clothes. They weren’t on the old wooden rocking chair or on the small dresser that had been painted and repainted many times. He spotted