The Man

"Hey, Darlin' what are ya doing out here in the middle of nowhere?" The man shouted over the sound of his engine idling. He tipped the brim of his trucker hat up, getting a better look at Bonnie in her white pajamas  that were still quite damp, and she was just realizing, very transparent. She instinctively covered her breasts with her arms, feeling even more vulnerable now than she did a few seconds ago.

"I—I don't suppose you could give me a lift back to the south side of the lake, could you?"

The man looked her up and down once more, a sly smile creeping over his face. She couldn't help but notice while he was eyeballing her, that he appeared to have a holster under his zip-up fleece jacket. It was mostly unzipped and Bonnie could see the straps of the holster peeking out around his shoulder.

"You know what," Bonnie stammered, taking a step back,"  I'm actually good, I like a nice hike in the morning. I'll be fine. Thank you." She turned and began walking along the edge of the trees, knowing there was a very slim chance that the man would turn back and leave her alone.

"Oh, well, that don't make very much sense, now does it? I can't just leave a beautiful gal in the woods, lost and wet and cold, that's not very gentlemanly."

"I appreciate your concern, but really, I think I'll be fine." Bonnie shouted over her shoulder as she tripped over a root in the forest floor, falling flat on her face.

"Now, I definitely cannot leave a damsel in distress out here in the wilderness. Get on the back, I'll take ya back around the south side of the lake." He rode his wheeler up next to where she lay on the ground, extending a hand to help her to her feet. "I promise, I won't bite." 

Bonnie reached up and took his hand, not seeing another option. She straddled the seat behind him and begrudgingly put her hands around his waist as he stepped on the gas and the pair or them took off through the woods. 

As the wheeler sped away through the trees, Bonnie could feel the pistol under his jacket. 

"Where abouts on the south side do ya want me to take you?" The man shouted over his shoulder. Bonnie thought for a second, the last thing she needed right now was this guy knowing where she lived.

"Could you drop me off at the old wooden dock?" She thought that would at least get her close enough to her house to walk back, but far enough for anonymity. 

"The abandoned one? You don't live there, do ya? What, are ya scared of me? I told ya, I don't bite." He chuckled to himself, swerving the wheeler back and forth around bushes and roots.

Bonnie clutched his body tightly. It wasn't his bite she was worried about. 

"I'm supposed to meet up with a friend at the dock this morning for a walk so if you could just drop me off there—" 

"Darlin', now you know I noticed you ain't got shoes on, where do you think you'll be walking to with no shoes and wet pajamas?" He glanced over his shoulder, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Sh—she has my gym bag, so I'll have clothes and shoes. She'll be there any minute, I'd hate to keep her waiting." Bonnie closed her eyes and prayed that he would just take her story at face value and not push for any further details.

"Alright, fine. If you don't want to tell me where you live, you don't have to. But your story ain't adding up. I guess you probably ain't tellin' me your name either, then?" He pulled to an abrupt stop in front of the dock. Bonnie leapt off the back of the wheeler as fast as she could, turning to face him.

"You'd be correct. But thank you for the ride, I do appreciate it." She held out her hand and he gripped it firmly, holding on a little longer then she expected. He stared at her for a few moments, taking in her body through the clinging fabric once more. 

"I'll see you around, Miss South Side." He turned and hit the gas, taking off so fast that rocks kicked back at Bonnie as he sped away down the dirt road.

Bonnie turned and headed back toward her house, glancing over her shoulder every so often to make sure there were no signs of the man coming back for her. She remembered the way his eyes moved up and down her body. The flashback sent shivers down her spine. Her heart raced as she thought about all the possible outcomes of the situation she had found herself in this morning. She was incredibly lucky to have survived this ordeal. The next time she may not be so lucky.

As Bonnie approached her house, she could hear her cell phone ringing inside. She ran to grab it, but missed the call by a few seconds. Then, the phone pinged alerting her of a new voicemail. She put it on speaker and set the phone down to listen while she cleaned herself up.

"Good morning, this is Dr. Schriver's office, we are calling about a referral from Dr. Iris. Please give our office a call anytime to book your referral consultation with Dr. Schriver."

Bonnie walked back to her phone, staring at the screen. Dr. Irish had referred her to someone else? Why would he do that? They were making so much progress. She had come so far under his guidance! Was this about their last session? Because she didn't mean to upset him, she was just caught off-guard by her sister. This had to be a mistake. She would have to call Dr. Irish and clear this up.