Gallup!

“I now have time to explore some of my recesses. You can watch, but make sure you don’t run off the road.” She slid her fingers underneath the waistband of her white panties.

“What are you doing?”

“Warming up for you, honey.” She closed her eyes, and let her head fall back to the headrest.

Rory drove headlong into Gallup. Katie kept her eyes closed, thinking of other things until the car stopped at the light.

“Do you want to stop anywhere in town, Rory?”

He shook his head. “You’re kidding, right? We should get to Ellen’s as soon as possible. Why don’t you start putting your clothes back on?”

“I don’t need to.”

“Why not?”

“I asked Ellen if she and the Doctor could find somewhere else to be this afternoon, as a gift to us.”

“That was sweet of you.” Rory grinned as he pulled into the driveway.

“Can you open the front door, Rory? I want to make a quick dash.”

“You bet!” He jumped out and rushed up the walkway. He pulled down the lever to open the door, but it did not open. He tried it again. The dogs on the other side of the door were barking their intruder warnings.

“It’s locked, goddammit.” He marched back to the car. “Katie! Ellen forgot to leave the door unlocked. I can’t get in.”

“Are you sure? Try it again.” Katie turned around to retrieve her blanket from behind her seat.

Rory ran up the walkway and pushed on the latch again. The door still did not open, but the dogs were in full voice now.

“Katie! Let’s just make love in the back of the car. I have the sleeping pad in here.”

“Oh my gosh, no. Not in the middle of the afternoon. You have to find a way inside. Check the windows and the other doors. Look for a key. Look under the mat, check in the mailbox, check on the top of the door sill, look under flower pots.”

Rory tried again, unable to find anything of value under the mat, in the mailbox, over the door, or under the flowerpots. The windows were all locked, but the dogs thought this was a new game, excitedly running all over, barking at the window where they thought the human head would pop up next.

Rory walked the deck to the back of the house, but the bedroom window was locked. More dog barking. He went to the sliding door. It was locked. More barking. They were good at finding the human head. Rory jumped off the deck to the side of the house where the garage was. He checked the window to the garage. It was unlocked, but was the door to the house open? He slid open the garage window and hoisted himself up on the sill. The entry window was above the workbench. He would have to step carefully; otherwise, the tools and hardware on the bench would fall to the floor. He jumped off and tried the door.

It was unlocked!

The moment he pushed it open he was surrounded by three yapping dogs, and he spent precious seconds petting each. However, his primary focus was to save Katie from having to re-button any of those twenty-six fasteners.

Rory went out the front door and walked to the car. “I found a way to get in, the door is open for you, my Queen!” He bowed down to her like a knight from Camelot.

“Why, thank you, my good sir. Would you please hold my blanket up, and wrap it around me as I get out of the car?”