~* Ness *~
Oh my garsh, Scott is hilarious. I bend over because my sides hurt from laughing. I take a minute to catch my breath. It might not seem as funny unless you’re here, and I guess I’m in that ‘zone’—you know, when you can’t help but be giddy even if it’s not all that funny. Everything just makes you crack up. That’s being in the ‘zone.’
But it’s not only what he says that cracks me up, it’s also how he says it, and especially his facial expressions. How can somebody make a goofy face and yet still look so handsome? I should be so lucky that I don’t look like a Chihuahua on steroids when I make a goofy face.
He seems to like that I enjoy his jokes. Well, I do, he’s funny and charming at the same time. I do detect some awkwardness at times, but I’m sure I’m looking worse in that department. He’s got to have a lot more experience with the opposite sex than me, so I’m surprised he seems nervous sometimes.
I have to say, I’m so attracted to him that I can hardly see straight.
“You okay?” he asks me.
“Yes, but I won’t be for long if you keep cracking me up like that.”
“Well, you make it so easy, how can I resist?”
I take a moment to wind down and say, “Shall we continue?”
He smiles with his white teeth gleaming and replies, “Yes, we shall.”
I swear it seems like his gorgeous blue eyes are twinkling in the sunlight. I know this isn’t love yet since I’ve known him less than 24 hours, but I’m definitely developing a hefty crush on him. When he looks at me with his dreamy eyes, I melt like a popsicle on a hot summer’s afternoon.
I sure hope he’s camping here the entire summer because I don’t want him to leave any time soon. My dad would probably throw him off our land if he knew he was here, but that won’t happen—he’ll never find out.
Ever since Dad started working as a drug rep, he hasn’t shown any interest in doing any hiking or outings anymore. He’s a lot different now from when I was younger. I can’t explain it exactly, but it’s as if he’s withdrawn from life.
Except for work, watching TV, and doing occasional repairs around the cabin and his shed, he doesn’t do much of anything else, recreation wise. He has no hobbies that I’m aware of, nor does he go on vacations. He used to go fishing, hiking, and camping with me, but no more—I’m not sure what changed in him.
But I haven’t let Dad’s disinterest stop me from doing these things on my own and taking in what nature has to offer. I love being out here in the wild. It’s what relieves me from feeling like an emotionally trapped animal.
“How long are you planning to camp out here?” I ask, to get an answer to my burning question.
“I don’t know. I hadn’t really made a plan and am just playing it by ear for now. If I like it here, I’ll probably stay most of the summer.”
Yes! I better make sure he likes it here.
Then he gazes into my eyes and says, “And after meeting you, I’m heavily swaying on the ‘staying’ end.”
He sure knows all the right things to say. I smile coyly at him.
“Do you mind getting dirty?” I ask.
He stares at me as if I said something shocking.
“What kind of dirty did you have in mind?” he responds.
Oh God, I think he took that the wrong way. I blush full-on again.
“Not that kind of dirty, you perv!” I exclaim in a jesting way.
He laughs at me again.
“I’m not a perv, I swear, but I’m a guy, so you mention ‘dirty’ and of course my mind goes that route.”
“Well, I’m a girl and if you had said it instead of me, I guess I might’ve misunderstood too, and thought that route myself.” I chuckle.
“Okay, since we have established that you’re not talking about that kind of dirty, just what is this thing we’re going to do that will cause our filthiness?”
“It’s a surprise, so just answer the question if you’re okay with it.”
He eyes me suspiciously with one eyebrow cocked up.
“Hmm, should I trust you with my hygiene?” he says.
“Sheesh! Are you squeamish about getting a little grubby?” I put my hands on my hips. “Are you a wimp, or are you a man?” I’m getting bold with him now and I’m having a blast.
He makes a ‘well, I never . . .’ expression on his face and I laugh.
“You’re going to get grubby too, right? You’re not just leading me to face the pig pen alone, are you?”
“We’ll, see,” I tell him.
“What?! If I’m getting dirty, you’re getting dirty, girly.” He folds his arms across his chest. His arm muscles are apparent when he does this and my eyes take in the strong lines.
But I immediately catch myself staring, and smile mischievously, folding my arms mimicking him, sans the muscles, of course.
“How far to this filthy place?” he asks.
“Not far. About a fifteen minute walk from here.”
“Well, lead on then. The longer we stand here, the cleaner we stay,” he says.
“The cleaner you stay,” I correct him.
“Hmm.” He tweaks his mouth to the side of his face and flares his nostrils.
I again laugh at his funny face.
We walk at a brisk pace, making small talk along the way, and reach my surprise location in no time.
“Do you know what this is?” I ask him.
“Uhh, dirty water in a dirty pool?”
“No, silly. Well, yes, but it’s more than just a dirty pool. It’s a mud bath. The clay that’s on the bottom of this pool has medicinal properties. That’s what my dad told me, anyway.”
“Oh, cool.”
“This is the source pool and it channels down into smaller pools further down.” I can see the excitement in his eyes because of my excitement. I guess I’m contagious. “Have you ever sat in a mud bath before?”
“Nope, can’t say that I have. Will I come out a new man?” he kids.
I ignore his cute wiseass remark. “The water is only about three feet deep, but the mud feels wonderful. You’ll sink into the soft clay about knee deep if you stand in it.”
“Well, why are we still standing here talking? Are we going in or are we going to imagine ourselves soaking in this medicinal wonder?” He’s smiling at me with his full teeth brightly shining again.
“You go in, I’ll watch you,” I say.
“What? No, you won’t. You’re coming in.”
“I can’t. I normally go in nude, but I’m not about to do that with you here. You, on the other hand, don’t have as much to hide.”
He lifts both his eyebrows. “I beg your pardon? I’ll have you know, I’m fully equipped.”
I let out a laugh. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to infer anything insulting, but you know what I mean. It’s different for you than it is for me.”
“Hey, I already saw you naked, remember?”
Oh, yeah, how can I forget?
“But you couldn’t see everything, could you?” Oh God, was my body not submerged enough?
“Sorry, Ness, but I caught a glimpse of everything.” He makes an apologetic face.
Oh, that’s just great. Now I’ve got more to blush about. I don’t care even if he saw me naked once, I’m not about to let him see me naked again.
“Hey, I’m just kidding about you getting in naked. How about you keep your underwear on? Will you join me then?”
I think for a moment. Hmm, I guess that wouldn’t hurt. He won’t get to see anything but my underwear.
“Okay, but you go in first,” I say.
“Why can’t we go in together?”
“Because once you’re in there, I’m going to have you turn around until I’m undressed and in.”
He shakes his head as if I’m being silly.
“You know that I’ve seen other girls in their underwear before, right? I’ve even seen them naked, so it’s not like you’re the first, you know.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?” I ask. “It’s the first time I’ll be having anyone see me, so that’s what matters.”
This seems to be very amusing to him, and I guess to me too. A part of me is excited to do this with him. I’m already getting a little hot and bothered down in my privates.
“Okay, okay. I’m just teasing you again, anyway. I know you’re not that kind of girl.”
“Huh? What kind of girl?”
“You know, the kind who isn’t modest.”
“Have you been with a girl who was like that?” I am so curious to know more about the girls he’s been with.
“Well, yeah, a few, but most girls are modest, like you.”
“How many girls have you been with?”
“Just because I’ve seen naked girls doesn’t mean I’ve been with all of them. Girls bare their bodies at parties and stuff.”
“Really?”
“Hey, I thought you said you watched TV Haven’t you seen movies where that happens? Or how about your novels? I’m sure you must’ve read about stuff like that happening.”
“Yeah, but I always think of that as fiction, so I wasn’t sure if it really happens in real life.”
“Trust me, it happens. At my college, the parties are wild and that stuff goes on all the time.”
“Really? Oh my gosh.”
“Yup, booze and drugs—that’ll always do it.”
“Do you enjoy seeing that stuff? Naked girls?”
“Well, sure. I’m not going to lie about it. Guys never turn down the opportunity to see naked girls running about.”
He looks at me with a curious gaze.
“How about you? In your steamy novels or movies, don’t you like to imagine or see good-looking, beefy guys in the buff?”
Oh my gosh, this conversation is making my upper lip sweat—and it’s not due to the exerted walking we just did to get here—I can handle that without breaking out in a sweat.
“Okay, are you going in or what?” I quickly change the subject.
He smiles, and yup, my cheeks are ablaze again. I’m sure he’s getting a kick out of making me blush so much.
“Okay, turn around,” he tells me as he removes his backpack and sets it to the ground.
I watch his every move. His eyes are still on me as he takes off his shirt. Oh God, yes, he’s nicely built as I had suspected, and he’s got a nice tan.
“Hey, if I can’t watch you, you can’t watch me. It’s only fair.” He throws his shirt down over his backpack. He sits on the ground to undo his shoes.
“Yeah, but you’ve got less to show than me. You’re keeping your underwear on, right?”
I can see in his eyes that he’s going to tease me again—they’ve got mischief written in them.
“Well, I don’t know. If this mud is good for the skin and health, then I could use a good detoxifying of all my vital parts.”
Okay, I’m really starting to sweat now. If I were wearing a t-shirt with sleeves, my armpits would be soaked to the point I could wring out a bucketful.
He tucks his socks into his shoes and stands up. My eyes take in the defined muscles in his arms, his shoulders, and broad chest. Oh, how I want to go over to him and touch him, to run my hands over his smooth, hairless skin.
Oh my God, am I drooling? I now realize that my mouth is hanging open. Damn it. How embarrassing.
When I come back to my senses and my gaze plants on his face, he’s smiling at me as though content that I liked looking at his body. Well, hell yeah, I did like it! I could look at it some more if he didn’t make me feel as though I were doing something naughty. My eyes look away from his in shame. Unfortunately, I bring my gaze downward, smack dab on his shorts.
Oh shit, he’s unzipping it, and I can’t make my eyes move away from him. I should turn around and face the other way, like he wanted me to, but I doubt he meant it, but I really should, but my feet won’t move, and my eyes continue to look where his hands are as they are about to drop his . . .