Chapter 5
REGGIE
I help clean up the dishes and push the tray back into the hall for the attendants to pick up. When I walk back into the main room, I find her yawning as she leans against the wall, looking out the window.
“Can you see anything?”
“No, just the passing of trees in the darkness.”
A ding rings through the car, and I know from previous travels that they will be turning the gas lanterns down in the cars soon, so we should prepare for bed. Lord knows the fatigue that plagued me earlier in the day is coming back with a vengeance as night falls.
“Jessica, you are welcome to use the lavatory first. I need to find my sleeping pants and have no idea what bag they are in.”
She turns from the window picking up her small bag, and just as I start to move out of her way, she stops.
“I would have placed them in the small personal bag if I had packed it for you; you might look there first.”
A scent I quickly recognize as solely hers wafts to my nose as she passes by, and I shake my head, clearing the thoughts that shouldn’t be entering my mind as she shuts the door behind her.
Picking up the smallest bag, I smile when I find the sleeping pants tucked neatly inside, along with my cologne and comb.
When I hear the door open, I turn around out of respect, expecting her to be in her nightgown, only to see out of the corner of my eye that she is still dressed. “Do you not have a sleeping gown, Jessica?”
She looks at me and then back toward the floor, her cheeks flushed. “I do, but it is too threadbare to walk around in. I’ve had it for most of my life, and time is not kind to old fabric.”
Just then, I notice a full-length curtain separating the beds, which will provide each of us with some privacy.
“No need for you to be uncomfortable all night. I’ll close this curtain, so you have some privacy while you change. I will leave it closed, but if you need to use the lavatory through the night, don’t worry about waking me. I am, for the most part, a heavy sleeper. Good night, Jess.”
“Night, Reggie.”
I no sooner close the curtain than the room starts to darken as they turn the gas lanterns down throughout the train from the outer corridor.
Because the evening has become unnaturally cool for this time of year, I’d lit the small coal burner in the corner of the room earlier, and it is putting off enough light that I can see her moving around on the other side of the curtain.
I am gathering my own change of clothes when I see her dress pool around her feet, and even though I know I should look away, I simply can’t make myself.
From the movement of her arms, I’m assuming she is unbuttoning the cream-colored shirt that was mostly hidden by the drab brown, unflattering vest she had on over it.
Before the shirt slides completely off her arms, she bends over gathering her sleeping gown, and the sight of her through that curtain is so innocently erotic I bite my lip to keep from moaning out as my shaft hardens painfully.
Long legs, slightly rounded hips, and breasts that will easily fill my hand are outlined in perfect clarity for just a moment before she slides the sleeping gown over her head. A piece of material I instantly hate, and if I could, I would rip it to pieces simply because it hid her beauty from me.
Because I am a terrible man, I don’t step into the lavatory until I see her slip into bed, and I curse myself as I yank off the clothes that seem to be smothering me while my cock throbs.
I pour cold water into the basin, hoping to relieve some of my sudden and unexpected frustrations, only to be disappointed when I pull on my sleeping pants, and the front is still tented.
Leaving the door slightly ajar, I find my own bed, the cool sheets a relief on my hot skin.
I lie there for a while, listening for any sound from the other side of the room, only to be greeted by silence.
After what feels like hours, the gentle rocking of the train and the day’s excitement finally catch up with me, and I drift off to sleep, only to be awakened too soon by the train’s whistle.
Not wanting to wake Jessica, I lie there, willing myself to fall back asleep, since, for once, I have nothing pressing to do, but I end up tossing and turning until my back aches.
With a heavy sigh, I get up and dress in the clothes I’d laid out the night before.
Once dressed, I tiptoe toward the outer door, sliding it open quietly before stepping out into the hall.
“You are either guilty of something, or the little woman is a light sleeper?”
I turn around and see the well-dressed gentleman I noticed the day before standing slightly behind me.
I have no idea what makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, but there’s something unsettling about him.
He’s about my height, not as broad in the shoulders as I am, but it’s as if he radiates power.
His paleness is even more apparent because his long black hair is expertly cut around his strong features.
By the way he is dressed and his demeanor, I can tell he is not from around here.
“The Missus is a little fussy if awakened, so I have learned quickly to escape when I can.”
A faint smile graces his lips.
“A happy wife is a happy life, a lesson all should learn early.”
I stick my hand out. “Reginald Kerns, it’s nice to meet another escapee.” When he reaches out to shake my hand, I feel a tingle move up my arm.
“Tyberius Ashton Darverius, it’s a pleasure.” He motions me on toward the next car. “Are you heading toward the dining car?”
“No, thought I would check on Bells, she is not a fan of traveling like this.”
“Oh, you poor male, two discontent women in the same area.”
Male? How odd. “This little lady is easy to please. If you are only passing the time and would like to join me, I wouldn’t mind the company.”
I swear for a moment it’s like his eyes flash yellow, but it must have been a reflection off the gas lamps in the hall.
He steps back as I walk past him toward the other stock cars at the rear of the train.
Thankfully, our sleeping car is also toward the back, and we only have to make our way through a few others before getting to Bells.
I hear the sound of her familiar whinny the moment I set foot inside the stock railcar.
“Ahh, I now understand, as I have walked past this beauty several times, wondering who she belonged to.”
“I bought her last year and quickly fell in love, but because she is spoiled, I had to pay extra for a side entrance stock car and to have her placed this close to the sleeping cars. She doesn’t do well closed in.
At one point on the trip back home last year, I thought I was going to have to sleep in the stall with her.
Every time I left her alone, she would practically kick the walls out.
Thankfully, this time she doesn’t seem as distressed. ”
I reach out, and Bells bumps against me playfully, her soft lips searching my hands for a treat she knows I have somewhere on me. Pulling out a sugar cube I had wrapped in wax paper, I hand it to her.
“What brought you back this way? Are either of these big guys yours?” I motion to the two huge Clydesdales that are sharing the car with my Bells.
“No, but that is a fine-looking pair. Our luggage car is several cars back, and the trip has been a little rough in places, so I was just making sure some of the more expensive things were tied down properly. I have two private cars toward the front of the train, so I had to pass through half the train to get back there.”
“I don’t recognize your accent. You’re not from around here, are you?”
He grins. “No, I am not originally from the Americas. Victoria and I have several homes, but lately we’ve become restless and have decided to travel. I am enjoying the scenery and the people I am meeting along the way. Are you visiting or vacationing?”
“I am moving, uprooting my entire life. Lord knows how it will turn out, but that’s all part of the adventure, I guess.”
“Ahhh, change … the one thing we all dread, yet should rejoice in, because we are usually leaving behind something that is holding us down. It’s not the change itself that frightens you.
It’s the unknown, and the unknown is the adventure if you don’t allow it to take your joy.
Take my word for it, you will adjust in time, look upon this as a new chapter in your life, with nothing but blank pages waiting to be filled.
In a year, you will look back on this and wonder why you were so worried, or you will be packing up, heading back home where things were familiar. ”
“Sound advice, thank you for giving me a different perspective.”
“Where is your new adventure taking you?”
“Utah, a place called St. George. My cousin already has a place there, and after many back-and-forth conversations, I decided to leave everything I’ve ever known and start anew.
The hardest part was separating from my parents.
Being an only child, I am the first to acknowledge I am slightly spoiled, and they have always been my rock. ”
Tyberius glances away from me, but not before I see pain cross his face.
“Forgive me if I have said something out of turn.”
He reaches over and pats me on the arm. “Life has a way of reminding you, in the oddest moments of the things you miss the most. If you care for your parents at all, stay in contact and visit them as much as possible. Many times I wish I could reach out and talk to my son, but the distance between us makes it nearly impossible. Life never evolves the way you think; in the blink of an eye, everything can change. Days are short in this world, so don’t keep putting things off until tomorrow because tomorrow is uncertain, and you might miss today’s joys by wishing it away too quickly. ”
“Why do I feel like you have experienced this personally?”
“When I was a young man, not much older than yourself, one particular day started out like all others. Then it went out of my control, and a routine trip turned into a complete change of scenery, one I struggled with until I found my Victoria. However, with her by my side, the sunrise is no longer dreaded. The sad part is I had to lose everything in order to find her.”
One of the larger horses’ whinnies, distracting us from our conversation, and Bells bumps my shoulder, wanting another treat. “Behave Bells, you’ve had enough for this morning. I will come back later and check on you.” I hear him sigh as he steps toward the main door.
“It’s been a pleasure talking to you, Reginald, but I need to get back to Victoria. She has a love-hate relationship with traveling.”
“I need to speak to my men and get this day started as well. Hopefully, we will cross paths again before this trip is over.”
“I am sure we will, as the trip across country is several days long.”
I watch him walk out of the car in his tailored suit and perfect hair, and for some reason, I have the feeling that it’s all for show.