Crimson Highway by David Wickenhauser (i can read with my eyes shut txt) 📕

“How about this? How about if I hire you to do a few chores for me? You can keep the windshield and mirrors clean, tidy up inside here—maybe even do some grocery shopping and meal preparations?”

Jenny thought about his offer for a minute, then said, “That’s pretty generous of you, Hugh. I’ll do it.”

“I know it sounds like I’m offering you a make-work job. But, I would actually enjoy getting a break from doing all that for awhile,” Hugh said.

“Thanks. When do I start?”

“You started this morning,” he told her, smiling. “How does fifty dollars a day sound? That’ll give you something to pay for your ‘girl things’ at Walmart.”

“That sounds great. Thanks.”

It wasn’t too much longer before Hugh found himself taking the Fernley exit he wanted for the Walmart there. He turned the truck into the superstore’s spacious, well-graveled lot and shut it down. He liked this Walmart so much that he had parked for the night there many times rather than at the nearby travel plaza.

“We’re here,” he announced. “I’ll walk you in, and then we can separate to do our own things,” he said, seeing the relief on her face at hearing the last part of his statement.

At the front door, he peeled five twenties out of a wad that he kept in his pocket.

At her surprised look, he explained, “I pay cash for almost everything except fuel. And I keep a bit of extra cash on hand in case I have to go over a toll bridge or take a toll road.”

Jenny gratefully took the money.

“That will cover two days worth,” he said.

Then he handed her a couple of fifties. “Buy yourself another set of clothes too … on me,” he said.

Jenny just looked at him.

“Don’t worry. I make good money driving, and I’ve got nothing else to spend money on. I want to see you happy,” he said, placing the fifties into her hand.

Then they split up.

All Hugh needed to do was use the restroom, so he finished before she did.

He found a place outside to lean against a wall in the shade, and started a game of Solitaire on his smart phone. Several games later—many games later—when she finally came out, he saw that her hands were full of bags of clothes, “things,” and what looked like groceries.

“What have you got there, Jen?” he asked curiously, trying to get a peek inside the grocery bags.

“None of your business, buster,” she said playfully. “It’s a surprise.”

“Well, let me help you carry, anyway,” he offered, reaching for the grocery bags.

She let him have those bags, but kept the others for herself to carry.

Back at the truck, he made himself busy fussing around outside doing a mid-trip inspection in order to give her time to stow the things that she had bought.

“Let’s hit the road, Jack! Daylight’s awastin’,” she said, as she poked her pretty face out through the open driver’s side window, and smiled at him.

 “Oh, I almost forgot about your surprise,” he said, once they were back on the highway, and not very far from their destination.

“What is it?” she asked excitedly.

“You’ll see,” he teased.

A few more miles down the road, he took an exit that appeared to be going off into nowhere. But, when he crossed the highway on the overpass, he took their truck into a huge, but largely undeveloped, business park, sparsely populated with giant distribution centers. There was a lot of open range land within, and surrounding, the huge complex.

He pointed out to Jenny some of the DCs there, representing many well-known stores and enterprises. Among them was their final destination, a Walmart DC.

“Is that the surprise?” Jenny asked, bravely trying to hide the disappointment in her voice.

“Nope,” Hugh said as he found a wide spot on the shoulder to pull over. He then pointed out the windshield. “They are.”

He got a huge kick out of the surprised expression on Jenny’s face as she discovered what Hugh had brought her here to see.

What they saw at the side of the road just in front of their truck, and starting to cross the road in front of them, in fact, was a herd of wild horses. They were a protected herd of completely wild horses that roamed freely over the thousands and thousands of acres here.

There were signs all along the roads warning motorists to watch out for them, as there were no fences to keep them in, and they crossed the road wherever they wanted.

The herd ran across the road right in front of their truck, magnificent in their wildness. Then they galloped on down a hill, and disappeared into the distance.

“That is really something,” Jenny exclaimed breathlessly when they were gone. “Really incredible. Who would have thought!”

Hugh just smiled.

“You mean, you knew about this? And you thought of me? And you planned to bring me here so I could see this?” she asked him, beaming.

 “Thanks, Hugh. Really … thanks,” Jenny said, leaning back in her seat, smiling happily.

Hugh pulled back onto the road, and drove in the direction of their delivery destination, which was just a little farther up the road. On the way, he pointed out to Jenny the little truck stop on the right where they would be stopping for the night.

“I like coming to this Walmart DC,” he said, “especially if I can plan it around quitting time, because this truck stop is so convenient. You can take your shower here.”

“Are you planning to take a shower, too?” she asked him.

“Are you saying I need a shower?” he asked.

“Yes. Frankly, you are beginning to get a bit ripe,” she said, quoting word-for-word what Hugh had said to her just a couple of days ago.

“Touché,” Hugh said, laughing. “You’ve got me