Christmas Knight

by Kimberly Llewellyn

"Right. Settled." Zach echoed her words under his breath. Zach assumed his position under the blankets, and faced the opposite way.

  Tori then draped Stephen's little quilt across the two of them. "My mom made this quilt for my son, I brought it with me to feel closer to him."

  He didn't mind while she adjusted the quilt as though tucking them in before settling back down.

  She shifted occasionally, but each time she did, she rolled into Zach, whose weight sank deeply into the mattress. Zach tried to ignore each time he felt her tight little body against his but it grew more and more difficult to do so.

  He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to wipe the thought of her nearness out of his mind. He tried to ignore her light, airy breaths. And finally, he tried to fight the desire to gather her into his arms.

  Spike hopped over Zach and wedged between the two of them until he was comfortable. Tori finally lay still now that Spike, as a barrier, stopped her endless rolling.

  He lay in silence hearing nothing but Tori's breathing. Zach's eyes, which had been overwhelmed with drowsiness a short while ago, remained uncomfortably alert. The mixture of the evening shower that lacked good, hot water and walking in the cold night with wet hair must have revived him. Yes, that had been the reason.

  Tori had nothing to do with it. Absolutely nothing.

  He promised himself never to take a cold shower at the end of the day again, although he couldn't remember ever being bothered by it before.

  "Zach, are you asleep?"

  Zach smiled, knowing Tori couldn't sleep either. Maybe it wasn't the shower after all. "Nah."

  "Me, neither. Do you think we'll make it to St. Louis in time?"

  Zach didn't want to think about getting to St. Louis and dropping off Tori. It seemed a strange thought to have, but not surprising with the little sleep he'd had. The important thing to do would be to make Tori feel better about seeing her son.

  "Sure. As long as nothing goes wrong between now and then."

  "Oh." Tori said nothing more. Zach couldn't understand why she didn't sound happier. In fact, she sounded disappointed.

  "Tori?"

  "Yes?"

  "Do you need anything? Another blanket?"

  "No. Thanks." After a long pause, Tori spoke again. "I guess it would be best if we got to St. Louis as early as possible so we don't have any more problems or waste any more time together, huh?"

  "Yeah, I guess." Zach lowered his eyelids and allowed sleep to finally overcome him. Somewhere between semi-consciousness and reality, dreamy images meshed in his head, coaxing him into sleep.

  Memories of the day's events slowly subsided and gave way to new visions drifting through his mind; images of Tori sauntering toward him wearing only his soft flannel shirt, reaching out, and wrapping herself in the warmth of him.

  In his dream, she had an ethereal, dreamlike look in her eyes that showed a wanting and needing that only he could sate. With kisses all over her body and his hands tracing a searing path on her skin, he would appease that need. And through her rounded, pouty lips, she'd let out sweet gasps and whisper his name over and over.

  The images sailed and drifted through his mind, but the seduction of sleep eluded him.

  * * *

  "It's late! I can't believe we overslept!" Tori shook Zach. When he didn't respond, she shook him again. Zach partially opened one eye as his body rocked back and forth.

  Through a half-opened eye, he saw Tori sitting beside him on the bed. She reached out to him only to shake him again. With one hand, she pointed to the alarm clock that cast a faint greenish light in the dimness of the bunker.

  "Look at the time. We should have been gone hours ago. Why didn't you set an alarm?" Tori shrieked.

  Zach threw the sheet over his head to ward off the bombardment of questions. He didn't care how late in the morning it was, he didn't want to wake up and face an interrogation. He felt her hover dangerously close, the roundness of her breasts pressing against him until—

  —she yanked the sheet off his face.

  "Zach, I'm serious! We should have been on the road."

  Zach responded by turning away from her and resorted to throwing his pillow over his head. He could still feel her body leaning against his; a sure indicator that he would not be left in peace.

  "Zach, you promised we'd leave early."

  Zach brought the pillow down from his face and turned back toward Tori.

  "I said I'd get you there. I just don't like being woken up in a panic like this, that's all."

  Tori stopped her hovering and fell silent. Although Zach appreciated the quiet, he didn't recall telling her to stop leaning her tight little body against him.

  Tori emitted a girlie huff. "Fine. I'm going to freshen up at the lockers. I'll take Spike with me. You have to get up soon." Tori bounded off the mattress and walked to the foot of the bed. Zach opened his eyelid again, keeping a lookout for what she would do next. She picked up her black fitted pants from the neat little pile on the floor and slid them up under the flannel shirt. She gathered her things and with Spike at her feet, left the bunker.

  Zach let out a satisfied sigh at the newfound peace. Tori would have to understand more about his traveling habits. If his internal clock told him he needed to sleep a little longer, then so be it.

  He'd never needed an alarm clock before, and he didn't intend to start using one now. She'd just have to wait for him this morning. He squeezed his eyes shut.

  But being awakened first thing in the morning by a beautiful, hovering woman aroused more in him than just his usual five senses. Recalling the soft fabric that she pulled along the bareness of her thighs before she left made his sleepy thoughts go haywire with desire.

  "Damn!" Zach flung off the sheets that suddenly became too binding around his hips from the sexual torture she'd inflicted. Frustrated and furious, he stood up, and within minutes left the bunker to enter into the cold morning air. Time to take another brisk, cold shower.

  * * *

  A half-hour later, Zach hoisted himself into the cab where Tori already sat waiting. He placed two Styrofoam cups of coffee on the dashboard along with two large packaged breakfast pastries he had purchased from the vending machines with spare change.

  "Okay, so we're off to the open road. Nothing can get in our way now. We stop for nothing. We stop for no one. We've got food. And the little guy here is fed," Zach announced. He toyed with the red bandanna still around Spike's neck.

  "And we just drive, right?" Tori asked.

  Zach took a sip of coffee and nodded in wholehearted agreement. They had no choice. They had lost too much time. And yes, he was partially responsible.

  Tori glanced down at her disposable cup. "We'll have to do something about these Styrofoam cups. They're not good for the environment, you know. They never decay in the earth."

  Zach placed the cup on the dashboard of the cab and grabbed the packaged breakfast pastries. He handed one over to Tori.

  "We have the planet to think of and our future generations," Tori continued as she set the pastry to the side.

  "Personally speaking, I won't have any future generation to worry about since I won't be bringing kids into this world. Having kids would be kind of tough anyway when you're married to the road," he said as he tore open the breakfast package.

  Tori toyed with her cup and hesitated before continuing their conversation. "You must feel that way for a very good reason."

  "Yeah, I have my reasons." Zach filled his mouth with a piece of pastry to ensure he wouldn't have to answer any further probing questions. He had his reasons and they were meant for him and him only. He set the rig in motion.

  He turned on the radio to a country and western station. He felt grateful that Tori hadn't objected to his current choice of music. He also felt grateful that she respected his sudden silence about his reasons for not wanting a family. Why bother going into the loss of his parents and the loss of the one woman he ever took a chance on?

  "Let's just g
et to St. Louis in one piece." He wanted them to focus on the trip, not on his opinions about family life. "At this rate, my boss and I should be pulling into work in Boston about the same time. And once he finds out what I've been up to, I'm out of a job."

  "I guess that means you have no time for anything else except going to the shelter and heading right back."

  "That's right."

  "Not even a few spare hours? Say, an afternoon, as long as no other problem comes up?"

  "Tori, what are you getting at?"

  "Nothing, just asking." Tori refrained from asking Zach any more questions about his spare time.

  "You're not gonna ask me to come to your house for dinner, are you?"

  Tori's eyes widened. "No! Don't worry. I wouldn't think of doing such a thing," she scoffed.

  "Okay, then what is it? Why did you keep asking if I have a few spare hours?" Zach asked.

  "No reason. Just in case we needed spare time, but forget I mentioned it. I'll be fine," Tori said

  If he had no spare time for her then she would have to work things out for herself. She couldn't help notice the terror in his eyes when he thought she was asking him to dinner for Christmas. It was obvious that Zach Endicott wanted no part of a family gathering with dinner, presents, and a so-called brat running around.

  Zach had already summed his feelings up when he explained that he married the road. She'd have to accept that. It seemed a rather lonely life, but perhaps he saw it as a romantic life, much like that of a cowboy or a drifter.

  She snickered to herself at the irony that he'd soon be surrounded by dozens of excited kids, but he wouldn't want to be around just one child. Specifically, her child. Or was that the problem? Could it be that he could handle a dining hall full of unwanted children, but was petrified of getting attached to one little boy?

  She wondered what Zach feared and decided that if the appropriate time came, she would ask. But for now, she had her own dilemma to worry about. With her home so far south of St. Louis, she couldn't think of asking Zach to drive her to her front door. Someone would have to pick her up in St. Louis and that was that. She already tried calling this morning, but no one answered.

  "Zach, something's bugging me. If you don't like kids, why do you keep doing this every year?"

  "Because I have to. No one else can—"

  "No, I mean the real reason. I mean, if you really didn't want to do this route every Christmas, I'm sure you wouldn't do it."

  "I guess it beats sitting in front of the TV alone on Christmas Day," he answered with a dismissive shrug.

  She didn't buy his coolness on the subject. She read into his response that Christmas had more meaning to him than he was leading on.

  "What about spending the day with friends?" she asked.

  "I have offers but I don't want to be a charity case to them."

  "And delivering toys to a homeless shelter reverses that feeling, I suppose," she said.

  "Plus I get a free turkey dinner, of course. It sure beats leftovers in the microwave."

  Although he spoke in jest, Tori noted the loneliness in his tone. Wordless, she looked over at him. His hard-lined features and wide shoulders reminded her of his reserved strength. A man like Zach Endicott certainly didn't seem the type to ever fully reveal his true feelings. That aside, she was silently grateful that the kids at the shelter had someone like him on their side.

  He kept his attention to the road and occasionally rubbed his neck. The long stretches of driving on the road were taking their toll on him. Tori could see that now.

  "We'll fix you right up next time we stop." Tori pointed to his back. "I've been known to give one mean massage. All part of a dancer's training. Deep tissue massage is therapeutic, but not necessarily comfortable."

  "I bet I can take it."

  "Is that a challenge?"

  "Maybe."

  "It's not a pretty sight," she warned "You don't know what you're getting yourself into."

  "I think I do and I'm looking forward to it."

  "Then it's a date." Tori held out her right hand.

  Zach shook her hand and chuckled. "You're on."

  Chapter 6

  Zach pulled off the highway and into a downtown area.

  "What is it? What's the matter?" Tori asked.

  "Something's wrong with the truck. We have to pull over. It's time to take a break anyway and stretch. It's been hours and my muscles are really screaming at me now."

  "Do you know where we are?"

  "Almost through Youngstown."

  "You mean we made it out of Pennsylvania? I never thought we'd get that far."

  "We just have to make it through a few more states and then over the Missouri border."

  "At the rate we're going, it should only take a few years," Tori remarked, but Zach was too busy concentrating on the gauges that suddenly lit up the dashboard and glowed against the darkening afternoon.

  "Not now. Don't do this to me, sweetheart. We can't have this tonight." Zach gripped the steering wheel. Somehow he hoped that talking to his rig would cure its current symptoms.

  "Can't have what tonight?" Tori asked, but Zach neglected to answer her. He had to focus.

  "I don't believe it. I just don't believe it," he said between a few mumbled curses. How could his favorite old rig give up on him now?

  "What's the problem?"

  "Hard to say until I get it checked out. I have my suspicions. Let's hope I'm wrong."

  Tori sat and waited patiently with Spike at her side. Zach steered the truck into a service station building, as the rig jerked back and forth. It finally rolled to a stop and hissed as though to let out one final sigh.

  "I'll be right back," Zach said and hopped out. Before shutting the door, he turned and asked, "Will you be okay?"

  Tori nodded. "I could use a little walk. I'll take Spike with me." She took the dog and left the rig.

  As he walked toward the service station office, he realized that he'd overdone it this trip. His muscles cried out for a rest. He could use that massage right about now.

  From where she stood, Tori watched Zach head over to the service station office. Smiling to herself, she noted that he looked the same way she imagined a cowboy must have looked a century ago after hours of riding on horseback. He had those long, lean, denim-clad legs that made a man amble, instead of walk. A casual, confident stride. No rushing. Just sauntering. Like a man with all the time in the world, despite the looming deadline.

  And like many a cowboy, he chose to travel through life alone instead of settling down with a family.

  Tori soon stopped her musing, and climbed back into the truck with Spike. Whether Zach led this way of life because it suited him, or only because he felt compelled to do so because of demons from his past, he had made his feelings about women perfectly clear. And about her. Zach obviously preferred to live without commitments; he had chosen the open road. He had made his decision. Who was she to question that, despite her growing feelings toward him?

  Spike broke Tori's thoughts as the little dog clawed his way onto her lap to get a view of Zach through the side window. Tori held onto the animal and patted him reassuringly.

  Zach soon returned with a service station attendant. He and the attendant walked over to Tori's door and opened it.

  "Why don't you and Spike go on into the station to stay warm? We have to take apart the rig."

  Once Tori took Spike safely out of the way, Zach and the attendant tilted the large cab forward to reveal the truck's engine. The attendant tinkered with the motor parts and then inspected the vehicle's other vital parts.

  Tori stayed outside in the chilly air for as long as she could to try to hear the final diagnosis of the failing engine, but finally sought shelter from the wind. She brought Spike inside the station office. The animal immediately solicited attention from the old gentleman sitting behind the counter with the antiquated cash register on top.

  The man heaved himself off his stool and with a promise of
fresh water in the back room, coaxed Spike to follow him. While the dog kept the man company, Tori eyed a pay phone on the wall. She picked up the receiver and made the collect call home.

  "Mom? It's Tori."

  "Honey? Where are you?"

  "I'm not sure exactly. Ohio probably. We ran into a bit of engine trouble. It'll be a while longer. I have a favor to ask you—"

  "You're only in Ohio? What about all those extra days you had planned to stay? By the time you get here, you'll only be able to eat and turn back around."

  "I know, but there's nothing I can do about that now. At least I'll make it there in one piece. I need to talk to you about that. Do you think—"

  "Yes, we do need to talk about that. It would be nice just this once to have you home for a reasonable amount of time. Your father's been in bed all day with the flu. And we didn't want Stephen to catch it so near to Christmas. He's staying with the Johnsons."

  "But Mom, you don't drive. Dad drove Stephen over there? If they were cooped up in the car together, Stephen's bound to catch Dad's flu anyway."

  "Don't worry, Mr. Johnson came and got him. Do you want his number?"

  "No. It's okay. I'll wait until tomorrow. I don't want to get Stephen confused."

  "Tori, is that man treating you all right?"

  "Who? Zach?"

  "Yes, you sound kind of funny, dear."

  "Zach's very kind and likable, for the most part."

  "For the most part? What does that mean?"

  "We just disagree on a few issues—okay, so, all the big issues, actually. When you get to talk to a person for hours on end, you can get to know someone fast."

  Too fast, Tori thought to herself but bit back the words from her lips. "A lot has happened and I'll explain it all soon. You'll have a huge phone bill this month if I don't hang up. Blow Dad a kiss for me, but don't get too close to him or you'll catch his flu."

  "All right. Come home soon."

  Tori hung up and thought about her dilemma. She'd lied when she told Zach she lived in St. Louis. Well, it was a half-lie actually. What else could she do? Zach was a complete stranger at the time. Her parents lived in a small town outside of St. Louis, a few hours outside, to be specific. Knowing Zach's tight schedule, she didn't have the heart to ask him to take her all the way there. And now that her Dad was sick, having him pick her up was out of the question. She thought about asking her parents to wire money, but again, with their travel schedule, where would the money be wired?