Dream Big Dreams
The next night, Ace dropped me off at the cargo train so I could catch a ride into Chamberlain, and we planned to meet back at the garage afterwards. I found Ace right where I expected him, laying on a creeper with his legs sticking out from underneath a car. I got down onto my hands and knees and peered under it to see him doing something that looked disgustingly greasy.
"Eyeball's car's parked out front. Did he come in tonight?"
"He's out on a boost."
"And Vince?"
"Didn't see Vince."
"Really? I thought Vince would show but not Eyeball."
"Guess he's still sulking."
"I feel kinda sorry for him. Did you know he even had a picnic hamper to take to the lake?"
He let out a sharp laugh. "That boy'll do anything if he thinks it'll get him laid. He'll get over her. He'll be back."
"Yeah. I'm sure." Although, I wasn't.
I got up off the cold, concrete floor and went into the trailer to fix myself a drink. By the time I chose something and found a clean glass to pour it into, Ace had followed me in. He came from behind and wrapped his arms around my waist, and I cringed and looked down, expecting my pretty blue shirt to be smeared with grease. Lucky for him, he'd washed up and it wasn't. He still had grease all under his nails though – you know how they get, and you wonder why they never wear gloves.
"I'm all done. What are we doing tonight?"
"Well…" I said before taking a quick sip. "I was thinking… maybe we could go down to the lake."
Ace laughed softly in my ear, making it tingle. "You're not gettin' sappy on me, are you?"
"I just wanna see it. That's all. I feel like I'm the only person who hasn't been."
He spun me around and just grinned at me. A teasing, taunting grin.
"Stop laughing," I said. "I just thought it would be nice. Like the view but better."
"You wanna get a good view of the lake? I got a place we can go. Somewhere… more private than the waterfront." I felt his hands dip under the rim of my shirt and slide up the skin of my back, making me sigh softly and lose myself to him for a moment. He kissed into my neck, making my head roll with pleasure, and he laughed before saying, "Let's go."
Instead of the '49, Ace decided to take one of the cars he'd just finished working on. He said his car might draw attention. We headed up into Castle View and drove right through it, eventually pulling off the road and into a large gravel area. We got out of the car, and Ace walked me right to the ridge where he explained that we were at Castle View's southernmost lookout. The sky was clear that night and the moon high, touching its faint light to the trees and rooftops and making the lake shimmer in the darkness below us. I could see that Castle Lake was like a huge crater with residences dotted all up the sides, peeking out of the shrub, while the lake itself was deep down in the basin, right at the center of it all.
He pointed at a cluster of houses up on a hill in the far distance, on the other side of the lake. "See those places up there?"
"Yeah…"
"That's where we're going."
"Oh," I said, surprised. "Do you know someone there?"
"Could say that. Come on."
We got in the car and followed the road as it began its descent down into Castle Lake. Even the impressive real estate in Castle View seemed low-class compared to what we passed on our way down. Most of the properties were concealed behind walls or trees or bush and so were hard to see into, but every now and then, we'd get a peek at huge gems poking through the rough.
We did a drive by of the lake front which was beautiful and peaceful at midnight. It was the commercial side of the lake where there were plenty of stores, hotels and places to eat, but apparently there were more rugged and private sides further around. Ace didn't plan to take me to any of those spots that night. He pointed up into the southern hills again, and now we could clearly see houses peeking through the trees. They looked a lot smaller than the ones we'd seen coming down into the lake district but just as lavish. He said most of them were vacation homes where people from up the city, who had more money than sense, would come to laze in luxury overlooking the lake.
The road began to incline, and it twisted and turned as we gained altitude. We soon turned off the road and he parked on the side of a street which was dead-quiet. It was the summer holidays, but it felt like there weren't many holiday goers around yet. I couldn't see many cars. On one side of the street was a row of two storied properties up the hill, elevated well above road level. The houses on the other side had been built sunken below road level so that both sides of the street could have unobstructed views of the lake.
Ace got out and I followed. We walked up the road to one of the properties built below road level, then through a gate and down a steep path into the front yard. The dwelling had the log cabin look with the rounded wooden logs, but it was double-storied and the size of a mini-mansion. The entrance way looked like a landscape artist had spent a great deal of time down there, sketching his most immaculate creation. The lawn was perfectly trimmed, the bushes and trees were neatly pruned and the ferns gave a lavish touch against the dark stained wood of the houses' exterior finish.
"Are you sure we're supposed to be-"
"Wait here."
"Where are you…" I didn't get to finish before he disappeared into the darkness.
I stood on the front porch, gazing up at the two storied 'vacation' home which towered above me. I wondered what the owner's everyday home looked like.
A few moments later, the front door swung open and Ace appeared in front of me. "Come on in," he gestured.
My runners patted the polished wooden floors as I walked across the large space. We were standing in, what appeared to be, a combined kitchen and living room; the kitchen was off to the left-side and the rest of the room was laid out with loveseats and chairs causally spread across the vast wooden floorboards. I looked up to the open beam ceilings which were a full two stories high, and the windows up there let the moonlight stream through, lighting up the entire room.
"This is unlike anything I've ever seen," I said.
Ace walked over to a large set of French doors and undid a bolt lock before pushing them out, swinging them open wide, exposing the back area. I went outside to see it was completely private out there due to the natural bush on both sides and trees on the hill, but we had an unobstructed view of the lake stretched out in the distance. Better yet, the paved courtyard had a rectangular, 30ft long in-ground swimming pool.
"A pool overlooking the lake? This can't be real…"
He laughed. "Knew you'd like it."
"Are you gonna tell me who owns it?"
"You wanted a view, you got one."
"True. Just, tell me you've got it covered."
"Course I do. Trust me. And relax. This won't be no fun if grandma's hangin' round."
"I'm not being a grandma," I sighed.
"Good. Then you'll have a drink with me."
He headed back inside to the kitchen and picked up a short, stubby bottle of something from the small collection on the bench and squinted to see the label. Failing that, he opened the refrigerator door and held the bottle to the light. "1920," he read. "That's a good bottle of scotch."
"Do they have mine?" I asked, trying to relax into things.
"Right on the end there."
I found the JD's and a couple of glasses for us, and then we went back outside to the courtyard. There were various pieces of bamboo furniture for relaxing by the pool, and there was even a hammock hanging in one corner. Ace held my drink while I tried the hammock. I had some fun trying to get on the thing, because it wasn't easy at all. Ace laughed at me, in good humor, as I wobbled on it, too unsteady to take my feet off the ground. I eventually got my balance and managed to lay up there, but I felt like one move would tip me off and I'd fall flat on my face.
"I'm gonna need some help here," I giggled, trying not to move a muscle.
"I got my hands full," he grinned, still holding both glasses.
"OK, looks like I'm sitting here all night. How's that for fun?"
He laughed and placed the drink down on the small café table that was out there and helped me off. We took an easier seat on a small cane sofa, and I hugged into Ace's side as we looked out over the vast panoramic view laid out in front of us. It was exquisite. The massive body of water that was the lake, spread from east to west below us, shimmering in the moonlight.
"I'm gonna get a place like this," he said.
"Really?"
"I'm looking at some places down in Cali. There's some new buildings going up right by the beach in Santa Cruz."
"You know I was born down there, right? But we left when I was young, so I don't know it too well."
"You might get to know it soon enough."
"That'd be kinda cool," I said softly.
"But there's still a lot to do. The places I'm looking at are around 90K."
"Wow…"
"And most of my money's still dirty."
"I'm guessing you have a plan to solve that?"
"I always got a plan, baby. You know the garage I been sending you to sometimes in Chamberlain? I'm going part owner. And once I'm in, it'll become a money cleaning machine."
I grinned at him. I grinned at his cunning. Just a few weeks ago, I would have been shocked, but I was becoming accustomed to his ways.
"You're comin' with me, right?"
"Yeah," I shrugged. "Of course. I've got nothing keeping me here. Not really." Something made me think of Chris when I said that. Part of me felt like I'd be abandoning him if I ever left, but another part felt like it wouldn't matter. I hadn't seen Chris for weeks now. He hadn't reached out to find me, and so I didn't know if he wanted anything to do with me anymore.
"I thought you would have more keeping you here than I do," I said.
"We can't keep boosting in this area forever. Every cop knows me, is watching me, but when we move to Cali, I'll set up something new for us."
"Yeah." I spoke kinda sullenly and Ace immediately noticed it.
"What's up?"
"Out of all the things I wanted to be when I was kid, I never thought I'd end up a professional car thief."
"Don't make it sound like that. You kick ass at it."
"But it's not right."
"You didn't seem to care about morals when I handed you eight grand the other night. You said you'd stick with me on this."
"I know. And I probably will. But I'm still getting used to the idea. I always did it for Diego. And for you. Never for me. Never to live in a place like this. Maybe I'm letting myself in for a lifetime of guilt."
"How much were you making at the diner?"
"Eighty dollars a week plus tips," I sighed. "I get your point."
"I'm never going back to working for asshole bosses who pay shit wages. But, if you wanna pull out, that's your call. I won't force you. Just remember - there's worse crimes, Cass. With this, no one gets hurt, no one dies – it's all about the money. And most people get the insurance anyway. So now who are we stealing from? Insurance companies can be thieves too."
"True. My mom had life insurance – she paid it for all those years, but because she ended her own life, they wouldn't pay it out. That's why I was left with nothing."
"There you go," Ace shrugged. "They owe it to you. They owe you a fucking load."
I sighed and snuggled in closer to him. It was so beautiful sitting out there. The houses of Castle View could be seen peeking through the trees on the other side of the lake, some with lights on, but most laying in a deep slumber. It was about 1am by this time, and not a single sound of civilization could be heard. It felt so private, like we were the only people up there and for miles around. I loved that feeling.
I noticed my glass was empty and Ace's was getting low. "You want another drink?" I asked him. I took his glass and went to get up, but he teasingly weighed his arm more heavily on my shoulders so I couldn't leave. "Oh, you don't want another drink?"
He touched my cheek and drew my lips to his, indulging me in a little moment. Then he paused and his eyes rolled over to the water as he seemed to think for a bit. "OK – top us up."
I went back inside and poured us new drinks by the light of the refrigerator. Just as I was about to go back out, I heard a low-toned boom and a delayed splash. I went out to the courtyard to see Ace swimming laps from one side of the pool to the other, his strong arms ploughing him through the water. I walked up to the pool's edge where a pile of clothes and a pair of boots had been left. I kicked open his pants with the toe of my shoe. Yup… there was underwear in there.
Ace paused his swimming in the center of the pool and shook the water out of his hair as he waded on the spot to keep himself afloat.
"I thought you wanted another drink," I said.
He swam over to me and I handed him the glass which he greedily downed. Then he put the glass aside and reached up to grab me by my shirt and playfully yanked it like he was going to pull me in. "Ace!" I said, getting a fright from it and almost dropping my drink in the pool.
He laughed. "Get in here."
"Shouldn't I find us some towels first?"
"Get in here," he said much more firmly.
"OK! I will…" Although I was a little hesitant. If anyone came, I didn't want to be running naked through the bush. I started by taking my shoes off, and then I sat down on the edge and hung my feet in. The water felt warm and looked dark and inviting.
Ace came in between my knees, spreading them slightly and undid the button on my shorts with wet arms, soaking the front of them as well as my thighs. He reached for the waist band, and I raised myself to let him pull them and my panties to my knees. I got my legs out of the water to take them the rest of the way off, dampening them even more, but I didn't care. Ace stared up at me with a devious gleam in his eyes. "And the rest," he said.
I grinned at him as I reached behind me to unhook my bra, and I pulled that and my singlet over my head and tossed it aside. He gave me a low wolf-whistle and I giggled before lowering myself into the water.
The water temperature was lukewarm and soothing as it hugged every curve. I'd never been skinny dipping before, and it didn't feel anything like taking a bath. The sensation of being out in the open without a thread of clothing, feeling the cool water touching your most intimate areas was quite erotic. I stretched out my limbs, feeling the weightlessness and watching my hair float around my neck like thick seaweed. I couldn't see much of the lake from down at that level so I swam to the other side to get a better view.
Ace kept on amazing me. "There's never a dull moment when you're around," I said. I turned, expecting him to be right behind me, but he wasn't there. He'd disappeared. My eyes scanned the dark water, searching for any signs that he might've gone under, but there were none.
Suddenly, I felt hands wrapping around my thighs and a head of hair slipping between my legs. I squealed as I was surged upwards through the water, and I found myself sitting on Ace's shoulders as he surfaced and took a breath.
I instinctively wrapped an arm over my indecency although I was sure nobody could see. "Ace! Put me down!"
"You got it." He cupped his hands under the bottoms of my feet and hoisted me upwards to launch me into the air. I let out another squeal before gracelessly splashing down into the water, getting the rest of my hair wet.
I resurfaced and wiped it back out of my eyes to see Ace grinning at me.
"You're gonna pay for that," I told him.
"Ooh. Show me what you got, baby."
I cupped my hands together, locking both thumbs and thrust my palms through the water's surface towards him, covering him with a wall of water. I did it over and over, forcing him to turn his back on me.
"You call that a splash?" he laughed when I was done, and he wiped the water from his face.
"I'd like to see you do better."
Ace went to the side of the pool and hoisted himself out to stand at the edge.
I couldn't help a giggle. "Are you showing off your splashing skills or yourself?"
He jumped off the edge and tucked himself in, landing in the water right beside me with a giant cannonball splash. I got covered with a tidal wave and was almost sucked down into the undertow.
He surfaced and shook the water out of his hair and looked at me with a cocky grin. "Can you top that?"
"No, I don't think I can!" I answered honestly.
Ace eyed at me in the darkness, and his sly smirk gave me butterflies. He felt for my thighs under the water to pull me to him and sat me on his hips. The weightlessness was a strange sensation. I found myself having to cling to him tight or I would have floated away.
"So, what do I win?" he grinned.
"What do you think you deserve?" I grinned back.
His hand broke through the surface of the water to grasp my jaw, and he gave me one of those mesmerizing kisses that left me stupefied. I had to remind myself to breathe. He took me to the edge of the shallower side of the pool where he could get a firm footing on the bottom, and the waves softly lapped at our chests as he persisted in smothering me.
I could feel any last barriers I had breaking down. My heart was finally opening, exposing every insecurity and vulnerability to him. I wasn't afraid anymore. I trusted this was going to be forever.
