Riviera Maya Ch. 01

Author's Note

This is a bit of a slow burn story. I've been editing and writing a few other stories and stumbled over this old chestnut. I wrote it a while ago and while rereading it, I thought it was an interesting little story and might be fun to serialize. Fear not, it'll have lots of fun sexy time, throughout.

As always, thanks for reading.

-Mud

The nonstop din of Spanish was as deafening as it was unintelligible to him. He sat irritated in the holding cell. He glanced at the clock again and wondered how much longer it would be. He was American after all. Surely that should cut him some sort of slack around here. He thought back over the previous evening and couldn't see anything he did that was that bad. Sure, he was pretty drunk. But c'mon... EVERYBODY is drunk here. That's the draw to the place. Sun, sand and young, drunk Americans. It's the center of the economy in a place like this. It might get a little rowdy, yeah, but this is kind of biting the hand that feeds. This isn't how you continue to be the vacation destination for American kids with money to burn.

The guy across the cell was still trying to stare a hole in him. He absently reached up to rub his jaw. It still hurt from where the guy had hit him. He stared back at him. The blood from the guy's nose had started to dry and his eye had begun to darken. The fight was actually over as soon as it had begun. They had both got a shot in before the guards came in looking to join the fun. He and the guy were both yanked back down by the others. When the guards came in, he knew enough to not say shit. The guard scanned the cell and then yelled loudly in Spanish and banged his nightstick against the bars. The guy had been staring at him menacingly ever since. He didn't care. He just wanted fucking out of there.

"Soo-yee-bahn," The guard came to the door and announced "Ha-raid Soo-yee-bahn?"

He felt an elbow jab into his arm. He turned to the guy next to him.

"Hey man" he said in a deep accent, "you Sullivan?"

Jared was taken aback for a moment. The guy turned towards the door and cocked his head at the guard. Jared stood up and walked over to the door. The guard stared impatiently at him.

"I, um, I'm Jared Sullivan." he said in a low voice.

"Manos," the guard snapped, "MANOS!!!" He gestured with his hands.

Jared quickly placed his hands through the gap as the guard placed the cuffs on his wrists. He opened the door and quickly yanked Jared out of the cell. He closed it and locked it back. The guard turned to him and brusquely shoved him down the corridor.

"Caminas!" the guard ordered while prodding him in the back.

Jared walked in the direction he was being pushed. He had no idea where he was going. The signs on the doors and walls were all in Spanish giving him no indication what was to come. The guard grabbed his arm in front of a door

"Aqui,!" the guard said.

Jared stared at the door as the guard quickly knocked twice. The guard reached in front of him and opened the door. Jared looked inside to see the man sitting at the table. It appeared he was looking at all the pertinent information regarding Jared's current predicament. The man looked up and gave a slight smile to Jared. He gestured for him to sit in the chair opposite him at the table. The man looked past him to the guard still standing at the door.

"Gracias, Hector" he said warmly. The guard gave the man a nod and exited the room, closing the door behind him. The man said nothing more to Jared and returned to the information before him. Jared watched him, waiting for him to say something. Apart from the offer to sit, the man gave no indication that he even noticed Jared was there. Five minutes had passed. Then ten and not so much as a word from him.

"Umm," Jared stammered, "Senor?" The man stopped writing and glanced up at Jared. "Uh, que es... this?"

The man looked at Jared with a smirk and a questioning look.

"Uh," Jared stammered. "Tu es Lawyer? Attorney?" Jared said, confused.

"No," the man said with a chuckle, "I'm not a lawyer."

"You're American?" Jared exclaimed.

"Last time I checked," the man said as he returned to the paperwork in front of him.

"So you're from the embassy?" Jared asked.

"Embassy is in Mexico City," the man replied without looking up.

"Well I mean like the branch office here," Jared clarified.

The man looked up from the table and sighed, realizing the questions weren't going to stop.

"The consulate," the man corrected, "and not exactly."

He could see Jared's hungover brain trying to figure out what was going on.

"Look," the man began, "I'm Nick Tanner and I guess you could call me a fixer."

"A fixer?" Jared said.

Nick sighed and rubbed his eyes.

"Ok. Try and keep up," Nick began. "Last night, it appears you were arrested for public intoxication, disorderly conduct and... dude.... public urination on private property. Anyway, at some point the embassy was notified. They passed it along to the consulate in Merida, who passed it along to the consular agency here. At which point, they notified me. Now, you might be thinking, 'Nick, I thought you said you don't work for the Embassy or Consulate or whatever?' To which I would repeat 'I am not associated with the Embassy or Consulate in any official capacity.' You with me so far?"

"I think so?" Jared cocked his head.

"Now," Nick continued, "the Embassy's rule is that you are subject to the laws and jurisdiction of the country you are in. They will make sure you are being treated relatively well and point you towards an English speaking attorney. They can't, however, get you released."

Jared visibly slumped at this information. He had thought for sure they would roll up into the jail shouting "You shall release this American NOW!!!" He was beginning to see that would not be the case.

"They can't," Nick smiled at him, "but I can."

"You can get me out?" Jared asked. "They'll just let you?"

"Yeah," Nick answered, "pretty much."

"I mean, why would they do that?" None of this was making sense to Jared.

"Why would they just let you leave with me?" Nick said. "Well, Jared, there's a lot of reasons buddy. They have enough real problems that a hungover white boy in their drunk tank is usually something they would prefer not to have to worry about. On top of that, you're a foreign national from America no less. While you might be under their custody and jurisdiction, the last thing they want is the US Embassy looking over their shoulder every five seconds. Lastly, and most importantly, like all of us, they like money. They really like money that's not subject to pesky things like record keeping and taxes."

"Wait" Jared spoke up "So like a bribe?"

"I'm sorry?" Nick said as his eyes narrowed slightly.

"Y'know" Jared continued, "A payoff. Like they're on the take. Crooked cops and stuff."

Nick's smile vanished as he took a deep breath and stared hard at Jared.

"Jared," he said just barely above a whisper but in a completely serious tone, "bit of advice, son. In the future if you feel the need to insult or question the integrity of local law enforcement, you don't do it in the interrogation room of the fucking police station!. Has it occurred to you that they are listening to everything that is being said in here?"

"Uhh...," Jared stammered.

"Now" Nick said, "if you are having some sort of moral problem with resolving your situation 'off the books', you are more than welcome to avail yourself of the Mexican legal system. Best of luck with that."

"Wait. Wait. Mr. Tanner," Jared was pleading, "I didn't mean anything by it. It's just, y'know, how it looks at first glance."

"What it looks like is the authorities throwing you a bone and maybe teaching you a lesson at the same time," Nick relaxed a bit. "Look, if you go to court and are found guilty, and you would totally be found guilty, you're never setting foot in Mexico again for as long as you live. Not to mention your passport is flagged as a convicted criminal, which piles up a whole other list of countries you can't go to. Probably wouldn't go to jail, but you're definitely paying a fine. The nice gentlemen here are offering an opportunity to pay the fine and not permanently be on some TSA watchlist. And maybe, just maybe, the next time you are here you'll have learned to be more respectful of a country that has you as a guest."

"They'd let me come back?" Jared said with a dry chuckle.

"The economy runs on drunk Americans with money to burn, kid. They ain't gonna shoot the golden goose."

"Ok," Jared said with a defeated sigh, "how much are we talking here?"

"Three grand," Nick said.

"Nick! Mr. Tanner!" Jared almost choked, "I don't have three thousand dollars."

"No kidding," Nick chuckled, "calm down. I didn't figure you did. I'll cover it."

"What do I have to do in return?" Jared said, his voice tinged with worry and doubt.

"Sneak drugs back into the States," Nick answered.

"What!!?" Jared squeaked, "Really?"

"No not really, you dumbass," Nick laughed, "you should have seen your face, man. What do you think you'd do in return? Pay me back my three grand."

Jared wasn't sure what to make of his potential savior. He seemed to be funny and serious at the same time. He wasn't even sure if any of this was legit. He did make a compelling case for avoiding the traditional avenues of legal recourse though. He looked around the room and at his situation. He thought back to the cell he had shared with twenty of his newest bestest buddies. The distant echoes of Spanish from the hall pretty much sealed the deal for him.

"All right," Jared looked back at Nick, "what do I gotta do?"

NIck watched as Jared signed the forms in front of him. The whole process was nowhere near as shady as one might first think. Basically it was a service contract. I do this for you, you in turn pay me this much. The fact it's between two American citizens and the documentation is filed in the proper channels in the states, the fact the transaction took place in a foreign country technically doesn't factor into it.

"So is that it?" Jared asked as he slid the last paper back to Nick.

"That's it," Nick replied, gathering up all the paperwork as he stood up, "hang tight, we'll be out of here in a minute."

Nick left the room. Jared looked around and wondered what he had got himself into. He was fairly certain this Nick guy was legit, at least he hoped he was. It would be just his luck that this whole thing was some bizarro scam. The guard came back in the room, Hector wasn't it? He motioned for Jared to stand up.

"Manos," he said in a far nicer tone than earlier.

Jared presented his hands to him and removed the hand cuffs. The guard stepped aside and held his arm out towards the door. He gave a small nod indicating he could leave.

"Gracias, Hector," he said softly as he moved to leave the room.

"De nada" he heard the curt voice respond.

He stepped into the hallway unsure which way to go. He glanced around trying to find something that resembled an exit. He finally caught sight of Nick, who was standing by a sitting area. He had just finished speaking to someone and waved Jared over.

"Hey," Nick smiled at him, "you all right?"

"Yeah," Jared said, "just glad to be out."

"I'll bet," Nick said, "ok. Phone. Wallet. Keys."

He handed each to Jared who stuffed them in his pocket.

"Thanks," Jared replied.

"Uh huh," Nick responded, "let's get out of here."

Nick turned to walk towards the door and Jared fell in behind him. Nick stopped abruptly.

"Jared," he said, "don't forget your luggage."

"My what?" Jared looked back and realized he hadn't recognized the bags as being his. "How'd those get here?"

"I'm guessing the hotel decided that after your arrest, you were no longer in need of your accommodations. Sorry man," Nick sympathized.

They walked out of the building into the sun. For a moment, Jared felt nothing but relief. He came to this morning hungover and in a crowded jail cell. Now he could smell the ocean on the wind as it blew past him. The heat of the morning warmed his skin. He might not have been in the clink very long, but he found himself appreciating his new found freedom.

"Hey," Nick interrupted his momentary zen, "souvenir for your troubles."

Nick handed him the folder of paperwork that he had been reviewing when Jared had first come into the room. Jared looked at it in his hands and the reality of his situation came rushing back. While it appeared his troubles with the authorities had been fixed, he realized this was only one of his problems.

"What's this?" Jared asked.

"All the paperwork in regards to your arrest and whatnot," Nick explained, "while I'm sure it'll be a long time before you forget your stay here, as far as the municipality is concerned, it never happened."

"Shit," Jared said, rubbing his eyes in frustration.

"What?" Nick asked with a laugh. "C'mon kid, it's a good thing."

"No it's just...," Jared trailed off, "if the hotel kicked me out, I got nowhere to stay now. I damn sure can't afford another place."

"Ok. When's your flight home?" Nick asked.

"Next Sunday," Jared groaned.

"Wait. Did you like, get arrested on your first night here?" Nick asked with a laugh.

"Yeah," Jared mumbled.

"Holy shit!" Nick exploded into laughter, "lemme guess, your plane ticket is not transferable?" Nick asked with a giggle.

"No," Jared said, as his head fell dejected.

"Ah Jared," NIck managed to stifle his laughter a bit, "I'm sorry kid. I shouldn't be laughing at you."

"Nah," Jared sighed, "nobody's fault but mine. If it was somebody else, I'm sure I'd find it fuckin hilarious. Look I better get going, I gotta figure out what I'm gonna do for the next week."

"Tell ya what," Nick clapped a hand on his shoulder, "lemme buy you some breakfast. See if we can't figure out what to do."

"Yeah, all right," Jared said, mostly because he couldn't think of anything better.

____________________________________________________________________________

Jared looked out the car window as the town flew by. It looked nothing like the resort areas by the beach. He realized he might have passed it on the way from the airport, but failed to notice as he was pounding the complimentary Coronas on the bus ride. Jared sighed, remembering the most likely starting point of this whole shit show.

"Did it rain?" Jared asked, seeing everything still wet from a storm.

"Yep," Nick said, "everyday at some point. Torrential downpour, then sunshine and blue skies."

"Wow" Jared absently mumbled.

"I guess," Nick replied. "happens in a lot of places. You never been to Florida?"

"Nope," Jared said.

"Oh," Nick said, "common in coastal places."

"Not a lot of beaches in Kansas," Jared chuckled.

"No," Nick laughed, "I don't guess there is."

"Where are we going?" Jared asked.

He had seen a bunch of the famous chain restaurants by the hotels.

"Little spot up here," Nick answered, "we'll get some food, see if we can solve some of your problems."

Soon, they found themselves parked in front of a quaint building. It wasn't particularly large or new, but appeared bright and clean. The hand carved wooden sign out front said "Norte del Rio."

"Mexican for breakfast?" Jared asked with a smirk.

"Hmm?" Nick asked as Jared nodded towards the sign, "Oh. No man. It ain't Mexican. C'mon."

They walked into the restaurant and appeared to be the only ones there. Jared looked around. It was a cozy place, he thought. The warm lighting and furniture gave it kind of a homey feel. He also noticed the decor around the place had a decidedly American feel to it. Nick led them over to the bar and they sat down. They suddenly heard rapid fire Spanish being shouted into a phone. Jared had no idea what they were saying but they seemed pissed and it didn't sound good whatever it was. Suddenly a smiling face popped around the corner of the kitchen door. She signaled to them to give her one minute, and then returned the Spanish ass chewing she had apparently been the one to be giving. Jared looked at Nick, who was looking at something on his phone.

"She doesn't look Mexican," Jared said.

"She's not," Nick said without looking up.

Well obviously, Jared thought. The girl or woman, Jared didn't know, she looked young. She was kind of tall, in shape and well... black. She was also really cute, Jared decided. That smile really was something. She finished off her tirade and slammed the phone back down.

"Hey Nick," she said with an excited smile.

"Hi," she said, standing right in front of Jared with a chipper grin.

"Hello," Jared gave a shy smile.

Nick looked at them both for a second.

"Ashley Duval," Nick said motioning towards him, "Jared Sullivan"

"Nice to meet you, Ashley," Jared said with a smile.

"You want the usual Nick?" Ashely said, still looking at Jared though.

"Yes ma'am," Nick said, amused at the two of them.

"And how bout you Jared? What would you like?" Ashley asked.

"Umm," he paused, "can I just have some toast maybe and an egg?"

"Oh c'mon Jared," she groaned, "eggs are fucking boring. What's your favorite dish?"

"I dunno," Jared laughed, "country fried steak?"

"Oh all right, fine," she said. "It's better than eggs anyway. Coffee's fresh, Nick"

She returned to the kitchen as Nick walked around the bar and poured them both a cup.

"So how about that Ashley? She's something ain't she?" Nick teased a little.

Jared grinned in spite of himself. He still played it cool.

"Yeah, she seems really nice," he said, taking a sip of his coffee. "holy shit, that's really good."

"Yeah man, they grow it here," Nick said, "fresh as it gets."

"So wait," Jared said, "she's American too, right?"

"Ashley?" Nick said, "yeah she's from New Mexico."

"But she lives here, like you?" Jared asked.

"She does," Nick nodded.

"She was like, talking crazy good Spanish, though."

"Well yeah," Nick said, wondering where he was going with this.

"How do you wind up living here? I mean I haven't seen a single thing in this entire place written in Spanish. Did she just decide to open a restaurant down here in a foreign country with a foreign language?"

"Ashley didn't start the restaurant," Nick laughed, "she's like the same age you are, dummy. The place was started by her dad. She just grew up in the kitchen."

"Oh" Jared exclaimed.

"As far as how you wind up here," Nick continued, "there's quite a few of us down here. Everybody's story is different. We all got our hows and whys."

"What's Ashley's story then?" Jared inquired. "How does a New Mexico girl find herself growing up here of all places?"

NIck gave a small smile and stood up to grab the coffee pot to refill their mugs. He returned the pot to the brewer and began making a new pot. He turned back towards Jared and took a sip.

"Well with Ashley," he said, then trailed off, "that's not my story to tell."

Jared sensed that it wasn't a good thing. He had originally wondered what would compel someone to make a foreign land with a foreign language their home. Now, it seems some of them didn't have a say in the matter. He gave a slight nod to Nick in understanding.

"All right," the chipper voice announced, "here we go."

"Thank you dear," Nick said as she placed the biscuits and gravy in front of him.

"Give that a whirl," she said, placing Jared's plate in front of him.

"Thanks," Jared smiled.

He had to admit it looked really good and he was starving. She watched him carefully as he cut his first bite.

"Holy shit," he said with a mouthful, "that's so frickin good."

Jared saw her smile with pride. He watched her eyes dart past him for a moment.

"Be right back guys, enjoy," Ashley said and began walking over to a table.

Jared watched her as she greeted the table with a hug and smile.

"She know them?" Jared asked.

"Hmm" Nick replied with a mouthful of biscuits and gravy.

"The table that just walked in. Looks like they are regulars too," Jared observed.

"Oh," Nick said and looked over his shoulder and gave a wave, "umm... that's uh, Derek and Connie Mason. Derek is a marine engineer and Connie is a teacher. She taught Ashley."

"They're American too?" Jared asked between bites.

"Indeed they are," Nick said, "Oregon? I wanna say. Really nice folks."

"Is this just like a meeting spot for all the Americans in the area?" Jared laughed.

"Well yeah," Nick chuckled, "kind of the whole point of this place."

Jared only looked at him confused.

"The name of the place. Norte del Rio. It means north of the river," Nick said "y'know, like the Rio Grande?"

Jared nodded.

"Anyways, we come here to feel a little closer to home. Argue about politics. Eat food from home. Have a killer Super Bowl party every year. Just feel a little more American. It's where we're all from and we still miss it," Nick explained.

"So only Americans are allowed in here?" Jared asked.

"What? Shit no," Nick said incredulously, "Locals come in because they're friends. Some come in because they've fallen in love with a particular dish. The high school kids like to come here and practice their English."

"For real?" Jared asked.

"Yeah cause we all speak Spanish, we can work with them on it. That, and we teach them all the fun dirty words."

"Wow," Jared exclaimed.

"Looks like you enjoyed the country fried steak," Ashley reappeared and was topping off their coffee.

"Gotta say," Jared said, "that might have been the best I've ever had. Seriously."

"But of course," she said with a giggle.

"ASHLEY!!," a gruff voice came from somewhere back in the kitchen.

"Coming," Ashley yelled back, "be right back guys."

She walked back to the kitchen.

"Hey Nick," Jared turned and said.

"Yeah," Nick looked at him.

"I appreciate breakfast and everything, but I gotta figure out what I'm gonna do till next Sunday."

Jared had almost forgotten about his predicament, but the reality of it had returned all of a sudden.

"Yeah," Nick said, "I think I might have an idea on that. Just gotta check with someone first."

"Who?" Jared asked.

"He just walked in," Nick answered and motioned towards the kitchen.

____________________________________________________________________________

Lee Duval came through the back door of the kitchen. He flipped through the pile of mail in his hands as he closed the door behind him. A whiff told him Ashley had already been cooking. Odd for a Saturday. A big breakfast crowd was more of a weekday thing when everyone was going to work. Weekends usually meant the busy time moved to later in the evening. He weeded out the two or three pieces of mail that were actually relevant and chunked the rest in the garbage. He looked up and caught the back of Ashley's head through the kitchen door window. He grabbed an orange off the produce shelf and began peeling it.

"ASHLEY!" he called out.

He grabbed a clipboard off the wall and began reading it.

"Morning Dad," Ashley announced as she came through the door into the kitchen.

"Good Morning, mija," Lee said as he gave her a quick squeeze when she hugged him.

"I thought you were coming in later?" Ashley asked him.

"Yeah, figured I'd get a jump on orders if it was slow," Lee answered.

"Speaking of," Ashley began, "what did you do to piss off Javier over at Selecto?"

"Ah," Lee realized, "mighta been a little bigger order. Because of the thing."

"He was going on and on asking 'how many trucks do we think he has?" Ashley laughed.

"Yeah," Lee chuckled, "I'll give him a call in a bit and talk him down. You'd think he'd love having the order. Ha"

"That's what I was thinking, but you know Javier," Ashley shrugged.

"You already been cooking," Lee said, "who you got out there?"

"Derek and Connie," Ashley smirked, "Nick's here too".

"Nick's here?" Lee's head popped up.

He sat the clipboard down and walked towards the kitchen door pushing it open.

"Well damn, I almost gave you up for dead," Lee said with a grin.

"Oh no, I'm fuckin dying on your doorstep, asshole," Nick smiled and got up to embrace Lee.

"Jeez, it's been like a month and a half," Lee asked, "where you been?"

"Ah, a couple of weeks in DF. A week in Juarez. Had to run up to the states for a bit. Just been busy y'know?"

"All right," Lee said with a chuckle, "I hear you. Glad you're back though."

"Good to be back," Nick said, then lowered his voice a bit, "we talk for a minute?"

Nick gave Lee a look.

"Yeah," Lee raised an eyebrow, "sure. Let's go to the office."

"Oh," Nick said at a regular volume, "Lee, this is Jared Sullivan. Salina, Kansas. Jared, this is Lee Duval. Owner and operator of the fine establishment we are in."

"Pleasure to meet you, sir. Got a great place here." Jared stood and shook Lee's hand.

"You too Jared. I guess this probably beats the jail at least," Lee said with a stern smirk.

"Yes sir it does," Jared said, turning red. Everyone laughed.

"C'mon Nick," Lee said.

____________________________________________________________________________

"Where are we going?" Jared asked.

"Gotta run a couple of errands," Nick answered, "figured I'd show you around a bit. Although, I'm sure Ashley will run you everywhere at some point."

Nick gave him a pointed look. Jared only returned a smirk.

"Look," NIck said, "I know you weren't planning on working your whole trip here. But look at it this way. You got some place to stay until next Sunday. You'll be fed. Maybe you'll manage to stay out of trouble."

"You sure Lee is ok with it?" Jared asked. "I mean, I'm just a fuck up tourist you sprung from jail this morning. Kind of a big ask, right?"

"Maybe," Nick laughed, "but here, nobody cares who you were, only who you are. Everybody's trying to outrun something in the past."

"Wow Nick," Jared said half sincerely and half in jest, "that's some pretty profound words. Put that in a book of quotes or something."

"Well it's not mine," Nick replied, "that pearl of wisdom is from Leland Duval, himself. So don't do anything to make him regret helping you out."

"Gotcha," Jared said.

Nick pulled into the driveway of the white stucco building. It sort of had an iron fence around the small front yard. It looked like it had three floors and lots of windows. Jared thought it might be a house. The area kind of looked residential.

"What's this place?" Jared asked.

"This," Nick shut off the car, "is my house. C'mon."

"Oh ok."

Nick unlocked the door and stepped inside. Jared could hear the alarm panel announce their arrival.

"Nicky?" a female voice called from the other room, "that you, babe?"

"Yeah," Nick called back, "you decent?"

He sat his keys and sunglasses down.

"Enough for a Saturday," she said as she walked into the room, "good morning," she smiled at him and stood on her tip toes to give him a kiss, "where'd you run off so early this morning?"

"Had to work," Nick replied.

The lady noticed Jared standing there.

"Oh, hello," she said to him with a smile, "who is this?"

"This," Nick said, "is work."

The lady shook her head and gave Nick a stern look.

"Sorry," Nick giggled, "Jared Sullivan, this is Dr. Ryuuka Edmonds."

"Please call me Ryu," she smiled and shook his hand, "although most everybody pronounces it Roo. I'll answer it all," she laughed.

"Nice to meet you," Jared said softly.

"What are you boys up to today?" Ryu asked as she walked back to the kitchen.

"Figured I'd show him around," Nick said, "his flight home isn't until next Sunday. He's gonna stay at Lee's, help out around the restaurant and earn his keep a bit."

"Ashley know about this?" Ryu said with a loud laugh, "she's weird about people in her kitchen."

"Yeah," Nick laughed and shot a glance at Jared, "I think she'll be all right with it."

Ryu popped her head out of the kitchen and looked at Nick and then Jared. She gave Nick a smirk.

"I'm gonna take a shower and change clothes," Nick said to her, "make yourself comfortable, Jared. I'll be back in a few. Ryu, you coming to Lee's tonight?"

"Yep," she replied.

"Cool," Nick said and went back to the bedroom.

"Please Jared, have a seat," Ryu said from the kitchen, "coffee?"

"Please," Jared said, "thank you."

"Of course," Ryu said as she walked in with two cups of coffee, "there you go."

She handed it to him and sat on the sofa across from his chair.

"You have a beautiful home," Jared said as he took a sip of coffee, it was just as good as it was at the restaurant.

"Well thank you," she beamed, "we've worked really hard on it. So how are you enjoying the sun soaked Mexican Riviera so far?"

"Well," Jared said sheepishly, "so far I've seen the airport, the hotel bar and the uh... jail."

"When Nick said your flight wasn't until next Sunday, I wondered if this happened on your first night here."

"Yes ma'am," Jared mumbled and looked down.

"Oh Jared," she chuckled, "don't sweat it. You aren't the first, you won't be the last. You're out now, still have a chance to enjoy your trip."

"Maybe if I hadn't got bounced from my hotel," Jared lamented.

"Probably a blessing in disguise," she said, "you came all the way to another country, might as well actually see it. Better than the beach, bar, hotel cycle in Little America over there. This place is really beautiful outside of the tourist traps."

"I didn't think about it that way," Jared admitted.

"So," she changed the subject, "where's home?"

"Kansas," he answered, "Salina."

"What do you do there?"

"I'm a mechanic. Mostly work on farm implements," he explained, "keeping ancient equipment going for just one more year."

He gave a laugh, which she joined.

"What brought you here?" she inquired. "Finally taking that vacation for some fun in the sun?"

The sad shadow crossed his face quickly. There and gone in a second, but she saw it. The corners of his mouth returned upward.

"Yeah," his smile didn't quite reach his eyes, "something like that."

"I'm sorry Jared," she sat back, "I'm prying. Don't mind me. We are glad to have you though."

"No I'm sorry," Jared quickly replied, "nothing big. Just my fiancee broke off our engagement and I guess I just wanted to run as far as I could for a while."

"Oh," she leaned forward with concern, "I'm so sorry, Jared. That couldn't have been easy."

"Probably for the best," he tried to be pragmatic, "she was working on her masters at K State. She probably didn't want to be stuck with a tractor mechanic."

Ryu noticed he tried to sound flippant, like it was no big deal, but she could tell it had cut deep and stung hard. She reached over and put a hand on his arm.

"All work is noble, Jared," she said firmly, "and important. I'm sorry she couldn't see that."

Jared felt the knot rise in his throat. He blinked his eyes quickly and cleared his throat.

"So," Jared stammered, "where are you from?"

"Well I was born in Tacoma, Washington," she said, it wasn't the cleanest pivot, but she let him have it. "My mom is originally from Okinawa. She met my dad there when he was in the service. They got married and settled in Tacoma."

"Wow," Jared exclaimed, "Okinawa, that's so cool. Where's your dad from originally then?"

"The booming metropolis of Oglesby, Illinois," she said as they both broke into giggles, "so yeah, not quite as exotic as Okinawa."

"How did you wind up here?" he asked.

"Once I finished medical school, I got into a program here to do a residency for American doctors who could speak Spanish," she explained, "I guess one day I looked up and realized I had made a life. Been here ever since."

"Oh so you already knew Spanish?" Jared asked.

"Before my dad retired and moved us back to Tacoma, he was stationed in Rota, Spain. Once we moved back, my best friend was from Mexico and all they spoke at her house was Spanish, and I was always over there," she said.

She had refilled their coffees and sat back down on the sofa.

"That's really cool," Jared exclaimed, "almost like it was meant to be and stuff."

"Haha," she smiled, "maybe so."

"So what kind of doctor are you?" he asked.

"I'm a clinical psychiatrist," she answered.

"Ahhhh, ok," Jared said tentatively.

"Don't worry Jared," she reassured him, "I'm not on the clock."

"Oh man," Nick exclaimed walking into the room, "so much better."

He came out dressed more like someone who lives in a beach town. It made him look a lot younger.

"You hang your towel up?" Ryu looked up over her shoulder at him.

"Yes ma'am," he smiled and leaned down to give her a kiss, "you ready?" he said to Jared.

"Yeah," Jared said as he stood up, "Ryu, it was good to meet you and talk with you."

"It was Jared," she said and stood to hug him, "I'm sure we'll see each other again."

Jared awkwardly hugged her back, but also realized that after the last 24 hours. A caring hug was nice.

"Hope I passed," Jared mumbled.

Ryu loudly busted out laughing.

"You did all right," she said, "just keep listening to Nick, you'll be ok."

"See you afterwhile, right?" Nick said with a hug and a kiss.

"Definitely," she smiled up at him.

"Love you, Roo," he said.

"Love you too"

Nick and Jared were soon back on the road headed towards the resort district. Jared marvelled how it was almost two different worlds. As far as Jared could tell, you'd almost never know you were in Mexico.

"Ryu called this Little America," he said looking out the window.

"Yep. Pretty much," Nick replied, "the whole thing is geared towards mostly American tourists. They romanticize the idea of jetting away to an exotic foreign locale, but what they really want is shit they recognize when they get here."

"They come all this way and then they go have dinner at an Applebee's?" Jared chuckled.

"Apparently they know what keeps them coming back." Nick shook his head.

"Where are we going now?" Jared asked, realizing he had no idea where they were headed.

"Gotta make amends, sport," Nick replied as he pulled up to the bar/gift shop off the main drag.

"What place is this?" Jared asked.

"Well," Nick turned the car off, "last night, it was your personal impromptu toilet."

"Shit Nick. Seriously?" Jared panicked, "I'm already three grand in the hole. Why do I have to apologize?"

"Because you're here for a whole other week," Nick said brusquely, holding up a finger to emphasize his point, "and if you learn nothing else from this whole deal, learn this. As an outsider, this is not the place to make fucking enemies. The people here are some of the most caring and generous you'll ever meet. Their livelihood though, literally depends on Americans who at best treat them like the help and at worst treat them like slaves. You're a broke American, Jared. Which makes you absolutely useless to these people. Do you think pissing them off, by pissing on them, is gonna make things better?"

"No," Jared croaked out, the brutality of the truth puts things in perspective, "I wouldn't think so."

"Ok then," Nick said and shut off the car, "let's go make some new friends."

____________________________________________________________________________

Nick and Jared walked up to the building. An older man was leaning under the hood of an even older car. The boy in the driver's seat might have been eight or nine. Periodically, the older man would call out to the boy who would try to crank the car. It appeared they had been at it for a while. Nick walked up to the car.

"Good Morning, Mr. Sandoval" Nick said in Spanish.

"Ah Nico," Mr. Sandoval replied, "Good Morning. How are you?"

He sounded cordial but flustered. Jared figured he had definitely had better mornings than this one. Maybe this wasn't the time for apologies.

"I am well. I was hoping you had a minute," Nick said.

"Of course, Nico. How can we help you today?" Mr. Sandoval said as he stood up from underneath the hood. He turned towards them and wiped his hands.

"Mr. Sandoval," Nick switched to English, "this is Jared Sullivan, a new friend of mine."

"Ah," Mr. Sandoval smiled and held out a hand, "a new friend of Nico's, eh? Ah well, we all make mistakes."

Nick and Mr. Sandoval broke into uproarious laughter. Jared managed a pained smile.

"I kid, Jared. this Nico is a good boy," Mr. Sandoval reassured him with a pat on the shoulder.              

Jared looked at Nick who gave him a nod.

"Mr. Sandoval," Jared glanced down, "last night I umm, had too much to drink and at some point I came here and got pretty loud and damaged a few things. I, uh, wanted to sincerely apologize for my behavior, sir. If there's anything I can do to make things right, I would be happy to do it."

Mr. Sandoval looked at Jared intently. He glanced at Nick and then back to Jared.

"My wife thought it was dogs," Mr Sandoval said, "Mateo there, thought ghosts."

He gave a sad chuckle.

"I knew though," he said, "American kids, too much to drink. Happens more than we like. Ehh," he gave a small shrug and placed a hand on Jared's shoulder, "Gracias, Jared, for your apology. I accept."

Jared nodded and looked at his feet.

"Jared," Mr. Sandoval looked at him, "are you one of them who want to ban the Mexicans?"

"No sir," Jared said and looked him in the eye, "I'm from Kansas, it's all farms. If there were no Mexicans, everything we know would fall apart."

"Like the Americans are here," Mr. Sandoval said, "seems a strange way your country chooses to treat such an important guest in their home," he slightly shrugged again, "but I'm an old man. What I know?"

He smiled and turned back toward the car.

"Good job, kid," Nick smiled, "ready?"

"Hang on one minute." Jared said and jogged to catch up with Mr. Sandoval.

Nick watched as he talked to him for a moment. He saw Mr. Sandoval hand him the screwdriver. Jared looked at the engine bay for maybe ten seconds. He popped out and began looking around the ground by the car. He quickly found what he was searching for. A spray can of some sorts.

After a few more tweaks under the hood. He told Mateo to crank it. It began to sputter and lurch. Jared backed his head up slightly and turned the screw driver. The flame shot out of the top of the engine with a bang and the engine roared to life. Jared quickly put the air filter back on. Mr. Sandoval put a paternal arm around Jared as they both grinned at the churning engine. He looked at Nick who had just walked up.

"Where did you find this kid?" Mr. Sandoval said with a laugh.

"Jail." Nick answered.

Mr. Sandoval laughed harder and clapped Jared on the back.

____________________________________________________________________________

"Pretty cool trick kid," Nick chuckled, "where'd you pick that up?"

They were back in the car. Nick watched the traffic as he talked, so he could pull onto the road. He found his window and slipped into traffic, which wasn't too bad at just after noon.

"I'm a mechanic back home," Jared laughed, "like, it's my job and stuff."

"I dunno man," Nick said, "seemed awfully well versed on an 83 Cutlass for someone your age."

"I spend my days keeping forty and fifty year old tractors going through harvest. The car back there was state of the art compared to what I'm usually elbow deep in," Jared grinned.

"Well check you out," Nick said.

"Where to next?" Jared said.

He was feeling pretty good. He felt like he squared things up with Mr. Sandoval. It was always nice to feel like you helped someone, especially after you wronged him. For the first time, last night's troubles weren't weighing quite as heavy on him.

"Well," Nick said, looking back and pulling to the curb, "I got some grown up shit to do and I gotta fly solo on it so, out ya go."

"Wait what?" Jared's eyes widened, "you're leaving me here? What do I do? Where do I go? I don't even know where I am."

"Very true," Nick said, then pointed at the windshield, "but she does."

Jared turned to see Ashley standing there. She was talking to a couple of kids who were all giggling at her. She glanced up and gave a quick wave to him and Nick.

"Cool?" Nick asked.

"Uh yeah," Jared stammered, "cool."

"Yeah, thought you'd like that," Nick said, "all right. Hit the bricks, I gotta go, see you tonight."

Jared got out of the car. He barely had the door shut when Nick sped off back into traffic.

"Hey Jailbird," she said.

Jared turned to see her smiling at him. He couldn't help but grin back.

____________________________________________________________________________

Ashley knew her life thus far had been pretty unconventional. Much of it had even been dark and tumultuous. Not that she thought it had affected her much. Since she had been with her dad, Lee, she had always felt safe, provided for and loved. Her childhood wasn't any worse than anyone else's, just different.

She was born in New Mexico, not that she remembered it, but most of her childhood had been spent in Mexico. It was her home and what she knew best. She was American though. She was born there. She had been raised as an American, by one. The community she lived among were all Americans. She had never thought of herself otherwise. However she had returned to the States many times, and every time it all seemed very strange and confusing to her.

She remembered going with Nick once for a week when she was fourteen. She always had fun with Nick and he took her to Disney World too. He even noticed the disconnect that seemed to happen when she was there. She had tried her best to explain what she felt and Nick had said something that had always stuck with her.

"When you're from here, part of growing up is finding a way to reconcile America in theory with America in practice. You grew up speaking Spanish like a native, playing soccer barefoot in the street and free diving coral 50 feet down. Make no mistake Ash, you are just as American as anyone here. You just ain't had to live here is all."

The only reason she was thinking about any of this, was because she figured with such a strange and unconventional upbringing, there was no way she'd believe in something so cliche as love at first sight. She was still pretty sure she didn't.

When she saw him, though, she sure as hell felt something.

"Hey," he smiled.

He had laughed at "hey Jailbird" which she had worried was lame as hell. She noticed he seemed a little less anxious than he was before.

"You look amazing," he said to her without thinking, his eyes went wide in shock from what came out of his mouth.

"Thank you," she laughed.

"So umm," he stammered, trying to right the ship, "you got stuck babysitting me?"

"No," she said nervously, "I asked Nick if I could. Y'know, hang out with you, not babysit."

She groaned to herself, apparently her turn to trip over her words.

"Oh, really," he said as a smile lit up his face.

"C'mon," she giggled.

She felt her hand grab his without thought and she started walking. When he was even with her, he let go long enough to secure a better hold on her hand. She looked at him and smiled.

Whatever this feeling was, it was not going away.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

They didn't seem to be in any particular rush. He was content to just keep walking and holding her hand.

"You said you had never actually seen the beach or the ocean," she explained, "figured we'd go see it."

"Cool," he said, "I don't have any swim trunks though."

"Oh we don't wear bathing suits here."

"I'm sorry what?" he almost choked.

"Just kidding," she exploded in laughter, "I'm sorry. That look though."

"Ha ha ha," he mocked with a chuckle, "here I was thinking I was gonna get to see you naked already."

"Maybe later," she said.

He turned to look at her and saw she wasn't kidding this time. He turned to look ahead again.

"May be," he said softly.

She gulped so hard she worried he might have heard it.

"So I hope you don't mind, I got some swim trunks out of your luggage," she said and patted her shoulder bag.

"Not at all. Thank you," he said.

"You're welcome." she said.

She felt him squeeze her hand a couple of times quickly.

She still wasn't sure what she was feeling, but she was feeling the hell out of it.

They walked up the pathway to the top of the dune. Jared was staggered by his first glimpse of the ocean. He didn't realize he was standing there staring with his mouth agape.

She looked at him with a mix of wonder and affection. She wished she could remember the first time she saw the ocean and how it felt.

"Wow," he almost whispered.

"Right?" Ashley smiled.

"Is it always so loud?" Jared asked.

"Yeah kinda," she chuckled, "c'mon"

They walked down the dune towards the beach itself. Jared noticed it kept getting louder like the roll of thunder across the plains back home.

"Figured there would be more people here," he noticed.

"All the resorts and hotels have their specific beaches for their guests. Walk out the door and boom, you there. No people who don't belong. Only Mexicans are the ones working there." she explained.

"Ah classy," Jared lamented.

"Exactly," she said, "now this is where the locals go. More laid back, lots of interesting people and way more fun. Everyone interacts with each other here. Parties break out all the time and everyone is invited."

"That sounds a lot cooler." He said.

"These are the changing cabins up here," she pointed to the row of simple corrugated metal rooms with doors, "we can get our suits on."

They walked down the row where most of them were occupied. Ashley looked ahead and saw an open door to one. She walked up to it and poked her head in. She hung the bag on the hook inside. Jared had stood back to wait his turn to get dressed. He looked around the beach and ocean taking it all in. The sights, sounds and smells were intoxicating.

"Hey," Ashley called out to him, as he turned to see her in the doorway, "you coming?" she inquired with a nervous smile.

Jared said nothing more, but walked into the small changing room. Ashley shut and latched the door behind him.

Ashley hadn't realized what she had done until she turned back from latching the door and found them both in the changing room still needing to get changed. She looked at Jared whose face was somewhere between confused and amused. She gave a very awkward grin and giggled.

"Uhhhh," she stammered, "so I ummm, didn't want you to have to stand out there and everybody think you were some kind of creeper gringo predator."

"Ahh, thank you?" Jared said. "Y'know, not being a creeper gringo predator, I appreciate you looking out for me."

Ashley laughed.

"How about we just face in opposite directions?" she suggested as she handed him his swim trunks.

"Good idea," he said, relieved.

They both turned around and began getting changed. They tried to make idle conversation to counter the awkward silence.

"So uh," Jared asked,"does this beach have a name?"

He had taken his shirt and shoes off and was pulling off his socks.

"Most everybody calls it La Playa. The Beach," Ashley explained as she kicked off her shoes, "Its actual name is Playa del Amanecer."

"Cool," Jared said as he undid his shorts and slid them down his legs.

He was unaware that Ashley was doing the same thing at that moment. He bent over to grab his shorts and felt his bare butt run right into Ashley's. They both shot back up and turned around on reflex. Their eyes locked on each other. Neither of them dared let their gaze wander.

"Sorry," Jared said in barely a whisper.

"No I'm sorry," Ashley said in a quiet voice.

"I didn't look Ashley. I swear," he said right into her eyes.

"I know, me neither," her voice shook a little.

"Ok," he said with a small smile.

"Jared," Ashley said quickly. "Did you... wanna look?"

She squinted her eyes and couldn't believe she asked that.

"Yeah," Jared croaked, "yeah I do."

"Ok, me too," Ashley bit her lip, "I swear I didn't plan this."

"I know, it's ok," Jared gave a relieved chuckle.

Ashley gave him a grateful smile.

"Ready?" Ashley asked.

"Ready," Jared said with a giggle.

They both took a step back and let their eyes fall on the other's body. They quietly took it all in. They were both surprised at how unselfconscious they were.

"Can I umm," Ashley took a very tentative step forward, "hug you?"

"Yeah," Jared smiled shyly, "I'd like that."

Ashley gave a cute giggle and slid her arms around him. She felt his arms wrap around her. Oh that feels so good, she thought. She fit perfectly there. She turned her head and softly kissed his chest. She felt him graze his fingers down her spine as she let out a ragged breath as she looked up at his eyes.

"Jared," she said with a nervous laugh, "I promise I don't make a habit of getting naked with tourists I just met this morning. Like ever."

"Yeah, me either," he stammered, "I mean, not tourist of course, or anybody else really."

"No, I get what you mean," she smiled, unable to take her eyes off of his.

"Ashley," he whispered, "I'm uhh, I'm gonna kiss you now."

"Yeah," she nodded quickly, trying to find words, "good. Very good."

Ashley closed her eyes as his lips met hers and every one of her senses was turned up to eleven. Her heart felt like it was screaming at her that this was the one. It felt like something new opened within her, something that had been waiting for him. She knew at that moment that once upon a time in the middle of Kansas, the soul she was to be cosmically bound with had been created. And as their lips parted and their eyes met, she knew with everything she had that he knew it too.

His arm slid up behind her neck and pulled her head to his chest. She listened to his heartbeat, took a deep breath and made her peace with the moment.

"Did you feel that?" Jared asked her, 'y'know... that.'

Ashley squeezed him as tight as she could.

"I did," she said with a sigh of relief.

"Ok good," he let out the breath he was holding.

"Can we just stay here for a minute?" Ashley asked.

"Definitely," he said, "Sorry though, I gotta boner."

"I know," she chuckled, but made no attempt to move, "it's ok."

"Cool," he laughed.