A Modern Cowboy's Dream

Old Florida

Several weeks pass and now that Little Doug has recovered for the most part from his injuries the family heads south on I-95 before cutting across Georgia getting onto I-16 to meet I-75. As Doug puts it they're south bound and down for the Florida  Everglades. A part of Florida Doug him self has yet to explore. The Adults are riding in Sasha's SUV and the kids follow in Katya's truck. Sasha and Ana talk the entire time but Doug tunes them out and keeps driving. Driving has always been one of his favorite pass times. The self driving cars he passes make him uneasy about the changes coming but he puts those thoughts aside knowing he is old school. He cracks a smile when he comes up on a 1975 F-100 painted red that's rolling down the interstate. The dual exhaust can be heard and as Doug passes by the truck he sees a young boy driving with his Father in the passenger seat. Doug drives on with Katya tailing him relentlessly. Sasha looks over at Doug and asks "what's on your mind?" Doug says "I hope that kid in that old Ford realizes how extremely lucky he is to have that old truck especially in this day and age riding with what looks like his Dad." Sasha simply half smiles and rubs his shoulder a bit knowing the story he told her while they were dating that his father was going to find an old Ford like that to rebuild and make it his first truck. She sees the slightly sad look on his face she saw then, the only difference being the wrinkles and scar that wasn't there before. He drives on as Ana restarts her conversation with Sasha. Katya with the encouragement of Caroline pulls into the left lane and passes her parents with Caroline making goofy faces at Doug. Doug hits a few buttons on the steering wheel and calls Katya as she whips in front of them. Sasha says "what does she think she's doing?" Katya says "yes Daddy?" Doug says "you go right ahead and get pulled over by a state trooper for speeding. You'll be paying the ticket not me darling." Katya sighs and says "yes sir." Katya ends the call and moves over to the far right lane of the three lane interstate letting her Father overtake them and then gets back in line behind her parents. Sasha says "well I know who taught her to drive." Doug says "the sins of the daughter shall not bother the father." Sasha says "nor should she repeat the sins of the father." Ana laughs and Doug just shakes his head unamused. After many hours of driving they pull into a hotel on longboat key, the same old hotel Doug and Sasha stayed in for their honeymoon. Doug says "well this place hasn't changed much." Ana says "I didn't know we were stopping at the beach." Sasha says "yes you did don't lie." The women giggle and Sasha says "if we're going to be forced to explore a swamp we want compensation." Doug says "well here it is now take it and quit talking about it." Sasha says "shut up already." Doug says "make me." He gets out of the SUV and everyone else gets out unpacking vehicles. Ana says to Sasha "you two haven't changed much either." Sasha winks "I haven't but Doug has, he's got as much salt in him now as the Gulf Of Mexico." Doug peers back in the car "maybe you should stop adding more salt then dearest." He makes a huge fake grin and Sasha rolls her eyes which always makes Doug chuckle to him self. They get settled into their hotel rooms and Sasha looks under the couch cushions finding some spare change somebody else lost. Sasha collects it putting them in her purse. Doug says "you've just lost those coins throwing them in that black hole." Sasha fake smiles at him knowing he's not wrong about her purse. Doug goes out to the balcony and leans on the railing looking out at the ocean as the kids race towards it in the distance. The nearby pool is teaming with kids and parents swimming with screams and laughter filling the air. Sasha steps out there as well walking up beside Doug and hugs his side watching the kids now out in the ocean. Doug smirks and Sasha says "what is it?" Doug says "there was a time my Mother and I were down there in the water and my Father was on a beach chair. Well a school of sharks appeared and he didn't warn us but another swimmer yelled having seen them so we ran out of the water." Sasha says "If I was her I would have chewed out your Father." Doug chuckles "she did and his response was he was watching and they hadn't gotten close enough." Sasha says "I think I'll head down there for a closer look." Doug laughs "alright Mama Bear." She heads back inside and after a few minutes she comes out in a simple black one piece swim suit. Doug says "No bikini?" Sasha makes a begrudged face "I look terrible in a bikini now. Unless you just want other men looking at me." She winks and he chuckles "they can look all they want to, but touch and we have a different dilema." Sasha asks "what's that?" Doug says "you'll have to bail me out of jail." Sasha giggles and says "I could just leave you in there." Doug says "then I'll have one of the kids get me out. Katya knows where my money is kept." Sasha laughs again "yes she does." She walks over and kisses him then walks off to head down to the ocean. It is apparent that Ana got the same idea because she too is walking down there in a blue one piece. Sasha calls her out and Ana stops to wait for her to catch up. As predicted a few boys and some men ogle over the women walking past them and Doug naturally makes a mental note of each one. Doug raises an eyebrow when he sees one start to follow. Doug quickly heads inside and changes throwing on swimming trucks but letting his full hairy Father figure be seen adoring his black cowboy hat and some sunglasses. He heads down and walks down the sidewalk tailing the man probably in his late 20s. "Damn y'all are fine!" Both women turn around and the man says "ladies I invite you to room 24 tonight." He grins and Sasha says "why? Do you need a babysitter?" Ana bursts out laughing and Doug yells "hey bub! That's my wife you're flirting with!" The young man turns around and sees Doug in his full beach body glory treading towards him. The blonde headed man says "so sorry sir!" He quickly walks back to the pool and dives in the deep end. Ana takes a look and Doug and says "My God he has no shame. You're married to a bear not a man." Sasha sighs "no he doesn't unlike we do, and yes he is a bear." Doug grabs two beach chairs the women and lay out on and him self a regular beach chair. He sets them out and they thank him but before he sits down Doug his hit in the back with a football. Doug turns around and picks it up then eyes Caroline making a guilty face. Little Doug comes up to his Father from behind to get the ball, but to his surprise his Father decides to bolt down the beach with it as if he were going for the endfield. Caroline yells "get him!" Caroline and Little Doug run after him. Katya comes out of the ocean and flips her dirty blonde hair once, then winks at Michael who is still in the water. He grins, then when she turns around he tosses a wad of seaweed at her. It hits her in her butt cheek and she is instantly infuriated. "Ouch!" She turns around and flips him off this time. "Grow up!" She storms off towards her Mother. Ana leans over to Sasha and says "I wonder who's daughter she might be?" Sasha says "the real question darling is who's son is that?" Katya plops down in the beach chair next to her Mother acting disgusted and Sasha says "sweetie, you might as well get used to it. I've had the same problems since I met your Father." Katya sighs and Sasha says "yes be mad at him but not for too long." She winks "but don't let him think you got over it quickly, keeps them on their toes." She half smiles and says "thanks Mama." Sasha asks "where's your Brother Willie?" Katya shrugs and Sasha starts to look around the beach slightly panicked. She sees him pop out of the tall grass and ambush his Father who was running back towards the women having evaded Caroline and Little Doug. They tumble on the sand and Sasha says "wow, those boys have gotten big." Ana laughs "big enough to knock down their own old man." The ball flies away and Caroline catches it from the air. Doug looks at his boy and says "damn son you knocked the wind out of me." Willie stands up and Doug attempts to sit up, but his back is give out and painful from the hit. Doug reaches back there and says "You really did me in boy." He yells "Sasha! Help me out here!" Sasha who saw it happen sighs "I was afraid that would be the end result."