"Cissy," the blonde-haired woman with wide-eyes shook Jan's hand. Jan climbed into the van, noticing the woman was pregnant.

"Jan," she introduced herself quietly. She'd hitchhiked all the way out here after her marriage failed. She couldn't face her brothers or anyone, knowing what she knew about herself now. So she'd taken to the road as best she could.

"You're not from around here," Cissy steered the van off onto the highway headed south.

"No, from Wyoming originally. I had to leave there."

"Your family run you off?" Whenever Cissy's eyes strayed from the road, they got this crazy, wild look like she was on drugs. Her fingers tapped the wheel impatiently. Everything about her seemed on-edge.

"Not yet, but they would have," Jan answered.

"You kill someone?"

Jan laughed at the preposterous idea. "Not hardly."

"You seem nice enough. Better not be planning on killing me because I swear to God I'll shoot you."

Jan laughed again, and this time Cissy laughed in return.

"Well, if you didn't kill anyone, it can't be too bad."

"Maybe not by California standards."

"Nothing is bad by California standards." Pregnant Cissy reached into the glove compartment while driving and lit up a joint, as if to punctuate her declaration.

"I was having... thoughts about other women. Serious thoughts. I couldn't stay around there any more."

"What do you mean, thoughts?"

"You know, like..." Jan couldn't bring herself to say more.

"Oh! Thoughts of fucking women. Why didn't you say so? I can't read your damned mind."

Jan's jaw dropped open, but another laugh fell out.

"Did you ever do anything about those thoughts?," Cissy asked.

Jan shook her head.

"The hell. You're running from something you haven't even done."

Just then, Cissy pulled the van off the road with a jerk, sand flying under the tires, and started down a narrow sandy strip of alley through the scrub.

"Where are we going?," Jan asked warily.

"Well, I know I'm pregnant, but I'm still a women. You game?"

"But, what about the, the father?"

Cissy laughed. "Mitch and I aren't talking right now."

"So you ain't married?"

"Oh no, we're married, but we're not talking. He'd probably out fucking some woman anyway, so why can't I?" Cissy's wild eyes roved over Jan's face. "And you're pretty." The van screeched to a halt and Cissy pushed it into park. "Come on back here, there's room."

"But I don't think-"

"Jesus Christ. You gonna go your whole life just thinking about women?"

Jan sat there, starring, jaw clenched, at Cissy's dark, tanned skin, and long, frizzy, blonde, hair. She looked so exotic, sun-soaked. She was wild in every way. A California girl, and pregnant too. When would Jan ever get this chance again?

Jan lifted a shaking hand and layed it on one of Cissy's swollen breasts. Cissy grabbed it, clenching hard, and yanked Jan back into the back of the van. Loose clothing went flying from Cissy's dark body, tanned even where a swimsuit should cover, and skinny in all the places the pregnancy hadn't effected. Jan ran a hand back and forth over a breast, afraid to go further. "What do you do?," Jan asked with a shaky voice, feeling like they ought to know each other better.

"Surf," Cissy answered. "You?"

"Travel, I guess."

"Travel here." Cissy grabbed Jan's hand and thrust it between her legs. Jan gasped at the sensation of the soft, curly, dense fur between her fingers. Cissy moved on Jan's hand and worked Jan's shirt up at the same time, laying lips against Jan's nipples where only one man's lips had been before. Jan felt like she was going to weep with joy.

Cissy worked her other hand underneath Jan's skirt and inside her cotton panties. Jan felt delicate fingers enter her, and she twisted to do the same to Cissy. Soon, she had a finger inside another women for the very first time, and Cissy was moving up and down on it, Cissy's large belly bouncing against Jan's arm.

Jan came with a cry and a whimper, and Cissy with a carefree scream like she had caught a wave. Cissy pulled her clothes back on with haste, made some signal with her hand that Jan had never seen before and laughed. "Welcome to Imperial Beach, cowgirl."