Helpful Encounters

Faith looked out the car windows. Yes, she seemed safe. A lot of people were moving around the gas station, going in and out of the convenience store or using the nearby pumps. Nobody was paying attention to her. She was a woman typing on her phone, waiting for the guy with her who had pulled over to go inside. That was easy to accept.

An email from Stephanie Coleman flashed across her phone as she typed back to Moira that yes, she was safe, and yes, Wouter was cute. "He's from overseas," she also typed, deciding to answer the email after finishing her current conversation. "Visiting the Garin-Ruiz resort from England on behalf of his bosses. I don't think he'd expect anything long term from me if we did hook up. And I'd gladly get with him if I wasn't dating you."

"Fine, we're not married," Moira replied. "Hook up with him if you want. I have to work this weekend organizing paperwork for Doc Evans, or I'd be there with you. Hope you have fun, get a picture so I can dream!"

Okay, that's permission, Faith mused. "Thanks," she typed. She decided not to mention the bear- no need to worry Moira if it wasn't necessary. She then checked the message from Stephanie Coleman.

"I know Doug Ramsay," the message read. "Keith and I hung out with him a lot in college at UT-Austin. He talks like a Brit, but he's actually from Texas. We've visited his club in London too. If Wouter is the guy I think he is, he's part of Dougie's retinue. Dougie introduced us, we've hung out a few times. The last time was back in 2010. Dougie doesn't hire bad guys, I know Wouter's okay. Honorably discharged former Dutch commando soldier. He's worked for Dougie for over fifteen years and known him longer. He's a decent guy."

Faith felt herself relax, reading the words. Stephanie had confirmed everything Wouter had said.

"Just in case," the message continued, "I can send my big sister Lisa to help you. She lives and works at Garin-Ruiz, she's their resident psychotherapist. Lisa is also really good at mixed martial arts. Her main gig besides psychotherapy is as a Hollywood stunt person. She rides a motorbike and doesn't mind rapid response to bad situations. Okay to send her to your phone's GPS location?"

"Sure," Faith typed back. Stephanie was a computer hacker, of course she had already traced the location of Faith's phone. "I know your sister. I'll beep the horn of the car I'm in twice when I see her."

I've met Lisa Coleman multiple times at company get-togethers, she reminded herself. Guess Stephanie either doesn't remember or didn't know. I've also seen her interviewed on web and tv talk shows a few times. She's an internationally known psychotherapist employed by many Hollywood personalities and other rich folk, some less famous folk also. And she's a famous stunt woman and media influencer too. She's told multiple talk show hosts she wanted to get into acting once upon a time, but some sleazy producer demanded a tumble on the casting couch and she declined. He tried groping her anyway, so she broke his finger and beat the heck out of him. Got him arrested by the cops too and thrown out of the movie industry. I don't remember his name right now, not that it matters. No casting agency would hire her after what she did to the jerk, but stunt coordinators didn't mind employing her. She's stunt doubled for Scarlett Johansson, Karen Gillan, and a few other big names in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films and other action movies. Also dating James Franco, I think I heard they were engaged. She's dated some other celebrities too, including Chris Evans and Ellen Page. I can't remember all her hook-ups' names. Lisa Coleman's let me and the rest of the world know she's a polyamorous bisexual, lives by her own judgement, and is happy with who she is. She's been nice to me at the company events when we've met, but has never hit on me. She can help me out against this guy Wouter if I need it. She's not a bad person, she's hot too, and since Moira already gave me a pass on Wouter...

"My boss is sending her cute older sister to help me," Faith typed. "Mind if I hook up with her for the weekend if things with Wouter don't work out?"

"If it's only for the weekend, no problem," Moira answered. "But you are dating me once you're back in Seattle, right?"

"Of course!" Faith replied. "This chick lives in Nevada, not Seattle. And she was engaged to a big Hollywood star last I heard- but in an open relationship. She makes no secret of her polyamory in talk show interviews. People either don't care or she argues them down, and she almost always shuts them up with her attitude. And she's crazy good at martial arts too, if Wouter turns into a bad guy. Google her if you like. Lisa Coleman, stuntwoman and psychotherapist."

"Okay, you sold me!' Moira texted back after a few minutes. "She's pretty and sounds cool. Have fun and get me photos of you two together same as you would for Wouter?"

"You got it," Faith promised. She looked around the car again. What to do? she wondered. Trust Wouter, hoping there are a few good men left in the world and he's one of them? Wait for Lisa? Call a tow company? She was having trouble deciding what seemed best.

She looked through the windows of the gas station convenience store. Wouter was coming out of the restroom, stepping around two other men who were waiting to use it. He looked through the merchandise on display, didn't seem in a hurry. Faith watched him select a bag of mini donuts, then get in line for checkout. Okay, she thought, he's either giving me more time to decide what to do or he doesn't care and wants a snack. Either seems safe. So do I call a tow company?

No, she thought. They'll put me on hold again, and I'll have to wait here, then go deal with my car. I don't feel like doing that right now. Plus I'm not sure I can trust a random tow company. I'd rather wait for Lisa or Wouter to get over here, take me to Garin-Ruiz, use who they recommend. Maybe the resort owners can even have my rental car picked up without me getting involved and arrange me a taxi ride back to the airport on Monday. I think at this point I'd rather accept a taxi ride than chance driving that rental car again. And I'll be giving the rental company hell of course. I'd call them right now if I thought they could help me, but that'd probably be a waste of time.

She noticed a curvy woman in her late thirties on a red Kawasaki motorbike zip into the Circle K parking lot. The bike parked at a spot not far away and its rider stepped off. She had a helmet on. Brick red hair stuck out from under it. She raised the helmet's visor as she looked around. Faith recognized Lisa Coleman and immediately honked the horn of Wouter's car twice.

Lisa heard and started heading over. Faith checked the gas station checkout line. Wouter had yet to reach the register. Only one employee on duty, lots of people buying snacks and other things. Okay, I have a few minutes, she thought, rolling the car window down.

"Faith, right?" Lisa asked her. She spoke in a deep Southern USA accent that easily put Faith at ease.

"Yes, Lisa," Faith said. "Thanks for coming. This guy I'm with seems okay, but I can't be sure."

"He is okay," Lisa assured her, smirking. "I hooked up with Wouter eight years ago, and I'd do it again. He's a horndog, but he's a good man too. I don't hook up with assholes... well, not anymore. Everyone's allowed a few mistakes."

Lisa waved a gesture at Faith, the same weird gesture Wouter had used earlier. "Um, I don't know what that means," Faith said.

"It means Wouter's okay. Or at least in an organization whose members are usually okay people. I'm in the same group, it's called the Friendship." Lisa shook her head. "Maybe you'll find out more about the organization one day. For now, never mind."

"Okay," Faith shrugged, having no reason for suspicion. "So Wouter is okay then?"

"I think so," Lisa smirked. "If you don't, you're welcome to ride with me to the resort instead of him."

Faith considered that idea. "I, um, have never been on a motorcycle before," she confessed. "Do you have a car?"

"Yes, but I didn't bring it." Lisa grimaced, then took out her phone. "I'll call one of the resort taxis. They can be here in about thirty minutes tops."

Faith thought about things, then shook her head. "I think I'll trust Wouter instead. I might as well. You can follow us on your bike, just in case?"

"No problem." Lisa gave her a thumbs up. Then she opened her jacket and displayed a large holstered handgun. "This will stop his car no problem, I'm very good at shooting out tires. Shall we agree on a signal?"

"Um..." Faith tried to think of something appropriate.

Before she could, Wouter exited the convenience store. He recognized Lisa on sight. "Lisa! Hey!"

"Wouter," Lisa nodded back. She pointed at Faith. "This lady works for my sister's tech firm, which might merge with Garin-Ruiz Enterprises in the near future. You treating her with respect?"

"I hope so. Has she given you reason to believe otherwise?"

"He's been fine!" Faith said before Lisa could answer. "It's just... you can never be sure."

"I'll be following you two back to the resort if that's okay," Lisa addressed Wouter after nodding in agreement with Faith.

"No problem," Wouter answered. "You alone this weekend?"

Lisa shook her head. "With James, I hope. We're on the rocks again. You know Hollywood playboys like him, trying to sneak around behind your back. I caught him hooking up with a girl I don't like, he apologized and said he dumped her... I'm giving him one more chance. We're not quite on the outs yet." Lisa put a hand on her hip and posed suggestively. "Why, you alone this weekend?"

"Uh, yeah, I guess." Wouter released a heavy sigh, then looked at Faith. "So you decided to trust me, but called in another ally you trust more. Am I right?"

"Yeah." Faith realized her possible error and shrugged. "You're a stranger and did admit you were possibly dangerous. I couldn't be sure about you."

"I get that." Wouter jerked a thumb at Lisa. "My boss Doug has told me a lot about this lady, let's just say you picked as helper someone nobody smart should want to offend. And I know she's loyal to you over me."

Faith looked at Lisa, who nodded. "I did hook up with this guy back in 2009," Lisa said, "but it was just a one night stand. He's my friend with benefits, little more. I wanted Doug the night we got together, but he was dating this other woman and more inclined to be loyal to her. They still married, Wouter?"

"Doug and Marie? Officially, yeah, but that's only because the courts have yet to give them an audience. Doug has sworn off dating until the divorce is finalized. Maybe he's hoping to patch things up with Marie like you are with James, or maybe he'd just rather not date anyone else while he's still married to avoid drama. The boss has a weird attitude sometimes." Wouter chuckled. "He ought to be like me or Jodie Lee, value his freedom and keep it, let bygones be bygones. Marie cheated on him, Clarke gave him proof. She told him she's not in love with him anymore. It's over between them."

"Either he accepts that or not, I got it." Lisa bit her lip. "Oh, Hero. I warned him I didn't like Marie O'Day, but he had to decide he was in love with her for eight years."

"It was mutual for a while, you know."

"Yeah, and she had bad credit and a few other red flags. I alerted him to them, he didn't want to end things back in 2009... eventually things went bad between them as I thought it might." Lisa waved her hand in dismissal. "Whatever, I'm glad to hear their relationship's close to over now. Hope it gets the rest of the way over soon, for his sake and hers too, I guess." She looked at Faith. "Sorry about airing drama you don't need to hear. Stephanie gave me your number, give me a sec and I'll send you mine. Text me the word 'pork', I'll shoot out Wouter's tire and stop the car, then help you. Cool?"

"Works for me," Faith answered.

"Me too," added Wouter, "not that I plan to provoke you. Hey, is that the same bike you owned in the 90s when you were at college with Doug? The one Robbie Kneivel owned?"

"Of course not, motorbikes don't last that long. This Kawasaki is my third. Dirk Cussler traded it to James for a Jaguar six months ago and James gave it to me for my birthday back in July. My bike back then was getting old, so I accepted the trade. I bought that bike ten years ago to replace my first one when it got old. I miss them both sometimes." Lisa released another frustrated sigh. "Any more issues to settle?"

"Not immediately on my end." Wouter looked at Faith. "You?"

"I'm fine." Lisa isn't free to date anyone but James Franco this weekend, Faith reflected. I just learned that. Oh well, Wouter still is free, and if he stays nice... I owe him an apology. One quick thing. She waved at Lisa. "Um, you still date women on occasion?"

"When the mood strikes me?" Lisa giggled. "Of course! I've dated Anna Paquin, Ellen Page, Kate McKinnon, and a few other famous girls I don't need to name. They all decided they preferred other people. In some cases, it was mutual." She shook her head. "Same for other famous guys I've dated in the past, like Ashton Kutcher and Chris Evans, to name a couple. James and I might break up soon too. He needs to learn to tell me about his side pieces and clear them with me before he hooks up with them. Some I can approve, some I can't. Fine line to walk, I know. Only man who ever has toed it close to even... he left me, too." She made a dismissing wave again. "And I just found out he's still off limits for me. Oh well, I'm with James anyway. For now."

She took out her phone and tapped a few keys while talking. Faith heard her phone chirp, indicating a received text. She looked and saw she now had Lisa's number. A few quick key taps accepted it into her contact list.

"Ready to go?" Lisa asked.

"Yeah," Faith answered. If things go bad for her with Franco and for me with Wouter in the next couple days, we might still have a chance together, she thought with a smirk. Maybe I can get with Wouter tonight and her later, too. I am here three days. Multiple hookups might be fun. No reason to limit my hook-ups either, I'm not a cynic and Moira gave me a pass. "See you at the hotel."

"Yes, see you at Garin-Ruiz," Wouter agreed, opening his car door. Lisa nodded and walked back to her bike.

Faith waited until Wouter had buckled himself in and started his car again, then spoke quickly. "Look, I'm really sorry, Wouter. Can you blame me for... taking precautions?"

"Of course not," Wouter replied, smiling. "You don't know me. I could be a bad guy. Not all strangers are helpful. Of course, some are friends you have yet to meet. And some are mutual friends." He sighed. "At the end of this, I hope you and me are friends. Of course, that can't be just my decision."

He looked frustrated for a second, then recovered and shrugged. "it's your decision, Faith. Like I said before, I'm helping you but not expecting a reward in exchange. I apologize if I've made you uncomfortable. Let's get to Garin-Ruiz, then we can say our goodbyes."

Faith reached for his hand as he moved to put the car in reverse. "Or not."

Wouter paused, staring at her when she touched him. "Huh?"

"Go ahead and back out," Faith instructed him, pulling her fingers away after a brief touch. "We don't want to make Lisa think something bad is going on. Let me talk while you drive."

"Okay..." Wouter said, pulling out as directed.

Poor lonely man, Faith thought as she watched him drive. He's in a strange foreign land, isn't entirely sure of himself... but he still chose to help me and he's made clear he isn't expecting a reward, nor has he insisted I give him one. He's been the kind of stranger I would want to know, "a friend I had yet to meet" to use his words. I like this guy. Now I just need to prove that to him.

"I appreciate you helping me," she said to Wouter. He opened his mouth to reply, but she waved him to silence. "Don't talk, please just listen. I wasn't sure of you before, I am now. Well, I'm more sure than unsure." She laughed, hoping he would understand what she was trying to convey. "Look, I'm not particularly lonely this weekend, but hooking up for fun might be nice. My girlfriend gave me a pass, I haven't been with a guy in a while, you're a nice guy I like and might never see again after this weekend... if you want to jump my bones this weekend, stay nice to me and it might be okay."

Wouter got a puppy dog look on his face that Faith instantly found adorable. "Really?"

"Yes," she said, touching and squeezing his wrist on the gear shift again. Her hand lingered and she let it.

Wouter smiled at her touch. "You really don't have any... problems being sex positive?"

"I might if you keep doubting me." Faith laughed. "Would you prefer I have such problems?"

"No," Wouter answered quickly. "Of course not!"

"Then don't doubt me and don't put me down. I'll do the same for you." Faith relaxed, released his hand, and settled back. "Let's get to know each other better for the rest of this ride."

***

It took them another half hour to reach Garin-Ruiz. They spent the trip getting further acquainted through chatting. Upon arrival, the resort's atmosphere overwhelmed her. It was so positive, welcoming, and clean. Faith checked in at the front desk of the main resort building. A short beautiful Hispanic woman- Elena Ruiz herself- approached and introduced herself to Faith. She said she had been talking with Stephanie and had a tow truck ready to help retrieve Faith's rental car. Faith agreed to take advantage of the service and a taxi back to the airport on Monday morning. Elena Ruiz also agreed to let the rental car company know their car had not been filled up as they had assumed and it was necessary to either fix the gas gauge or give Faith a vehicle with a working gas gauge and a full tank as soon as possible.

"Or a refund, if you prefer," Elena added. "In any case, your taxi back to the airport is free of charge. Stephanie called in a favor on your behalf."

"Cool, thanks," Faith told the efficient resort manager. "Um, my bags were in the car. Can you get them to me tonight?"

"I think so. We'll have them delivered to your room as soon as possible. You have your car keys?"

Faith handed the keys over, hoping she could trust Elena to deliver on her promises. It seemed likely, she thought.

Lisa Coleman walked up to Elena ranting as Faith left the desk. "James dumped me by text! Said he was sick of my shit and I'm a trainwreck! I need... positive attention. Are you and Boris available tonight?"

Elena nodded, smiling. "If our other guests can take care of themselves, yeah, and we'd love to give you positive attention. Just let me check with Boris."

"Thanks! God, why did I have to be such an idiot back in the day and let Doug go?"

"He was an idiot too, if you remember. He asked you to let him go."

"You and Boris stayed together, Keith and Stephanie stayed together, so did Shauna and Tara... why did we have to be the stupid ones?"

"Maybe someone had to be."

"I guess."

"Maybe you'll get him back someday."

"Maybe."

Faith was still attracted to Lisa, but decided it was better to let her old friend Elena soothe her through the obvious bitter breakup. Wouter was more on her mind anyway. I'll get with him for now, she decided. Later, we'll see.

After texting Moira and Stephanie that all was fine, she moved to the lounge of Garin-Ruiz's main hotel. Wouter was waiting for her at the central bar there, sipping a drink. He drained it, put money on the bar, then moved to her side.

"Like this place so far?" he asked Faith as they walked to the elevator.

"Yeah, it seems great."

"Ir's a bigger place than Doug's cabaret club. He ever has reason to shut it down, he should come work here. Either that, or we can join Yoshi in Japan. That's another friend of ours. He had his uncle Goro, who has experience in the cabaret and construction businesses, help him get his own club in Tokyo about six months back. It's called Club Shine and is among the sister clubs for Doug's joint."