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“Namaste and welcome to Mystic Pines Spa,” Kip Larson greeted for about the twentieth time that afternoon, as the Mystic Pines Resort checked in guests for its ‘soft’ opening. Family, friends, and many of those that had helped them from nearby towns to build the resort were there, both as a relaxing weekend, as well as once more helping Kip and his four friends who had embarked on the journey to turn Mystic Pines from a dying town to a resort that catered to the LGBTQ community. This weekend was about testing everything from rooms, to services - like the spa - and other features for issues.
“Namaste?” Sarcasm dripped from one of the men who had entered the spa with a small group of townspeople. “Could you be any more cliché? I mean, we get it, it’s a spa.”
The scowl that formed on Kip’s face couldn’t be helped even as he tried to achieve a more serene demeanor when dealing with others. It wasn’t his fault though. This way too gorgeous man was antagonizing him on purpose, which was too bad, since Kip would love a chance to climb him like a monkey.
“It is a standard greeting,” Kip said as calmly as possible.
“Yeah, in India, if you’re Hindu, but we’re in Alaska.” The guy chuckled and damn if that deep gravelly voice didn’t cause Kip’s dick to twitch. “And you clearly aren’t from India.”
Kip wanted to tell this jackass off, but there were six others from town with him and it wouldn’t do Kip, or his spa, any good to show them that side of himself. Counting silently in his head to ten, he took a breath and said, “No, I’m not from India, but as I tried to say before you interrupted me, this is a spa. In spas, namaste is a common way to greet people.”
He wasn’t about to get into the fact that there were plenty of places that used the greeting. Some would probably claim cultural appropriation, but the fact was, Kip grew up with that greeting. He honestly said it more than hello. It wasn’t until college that he found out that Americans didn’t really use the term all that often.
It was what had gotten him into things like yoga and Pilates, which eventually had led him into massage, facials, manicures, and pedicures. He actually found he had a flair for it when he’d begun working in a spa to help pay his way through college, where he’d studied business in hopes of opening his own salon.
“Whatever you need to tell yourself, sweet cheeks.” The dismissive way the man spoke to Kip was insulting enough, but to be called sweet cheeks, as if he were some brainless idiot who was somehow beneath this Neanderthal, put Kip on edge.
“Rogue,” Harper Jennings said in a warning tone. “Stop being mean to Kip. If you ask me, you could use one of his massages to see if he could remove that stick up your ass.”
A sound between a bark of laughter and a snort exploded from Kip. He couldn’t help it. He’d been worried these people would think less of him because of this asshole, but apparently, they saw right through him.
“I’m just telling this guy the truth, mother.” Rogue’s calling Harper mother had Kip frowning.
There was something Harper, or maybe her husband Curtis had told him about their son, but damn if Kip could remember what it was. If only the obnoxious man wasn’t so damn gorgeous, maybe Kip wouldn’t have been too distracted to remember.
Rogue was every one of Kip’s wet dreams rolled up in one. Dark hair, with a neatly trimmed beard that was slightly longer than scruff, yet not so long that it would get food caught in it. There was nothing worse in Kip’s opinion than seeing food in someone’s beard. It made him want to tell the person to please take a much needed shower.
But Rogue’s beard was perfect. Just enough hair that Kip would be able to feel a nice sting when having his neck, or other more sensitive areas kissed, licked, and hopefully bit, without him being grossed out. Then there was Rogue’s eyes, a deep, dark brown that Kip could easily see getting lost in. If only there wasn’t sarcastic amusement in them, they would have been perfect to stare into.
But as handsome as Rogue was, it was the man’s body that had lust coursing through Kip’s veins. Big, brawny, without an inch of fat on him based on the tight fitting t-shirt he was wearing that showed off his broad chest, bulging biceps, and from the ridges and dips he could count, six-pack abs.
Not that the somewhat bulky pants did anything to give him an idea what was behind them, but based on the rest of the man, Kip figured nature would be too cruel to give Rogue anything but a large cock that would burn deliciously as it slid into Kip’s ass.
Feeling his dick twitch and his ass clench at the thought, Kip gave himself a mental slap to pull himself out of the sinful fantasy before he ended up with a bulge he couldn’t hide. Distracting himself, Kip turned to the counter and grabbed a handful of brochures about the various services he offered.
“As you can see from what is listed, Mystic Pines Spa has a full complement of services. Everything from simple manis and pedis to more exclusive options.” Kip was proud of all there was to offer. He’d have been even happier if all of the four employees he’d hired to help him had arrived.
Only two showed up and he had yet to hear from the other two. For this weekend, as well as the reviewer’s weekend in two weeks, that wouldn’t be a problem as there weren’t many people in the resort. But by summer, according to Spencer, who was running the hotel side of things, they had the resort booked and Kip was going to need more help.
“I’m sorry.” Rogue’s tone told Kip he wasn’t about to like whatever the man had to say. “Are you seriously charging people to get into mud?”
Despite that fact that Rogue’s voice was dripping with sarcasm, Kip managed to remain calm. “Yes. The healing properties are quite amazing, which is why we offer several different experiences to go along with the mud baths.”
“Now I’ve heard everything.” Rogue clearly wasn’t impressed with what Kip had to say. “Mud has healing properties. Is there anything you won’t say to get people’s hard earned money?”
“Rogue,” his mother chastised harshly. “Stop antagonizing Kip. If I’d known you were going to be royal jerk, I never would have invited you to join us on a tour of the resort.”
But Rogue didn’t back down, not even with his mother glaring at him as if she were ready to smack him. “I’m only telling the truth. Mud is mud. There are no healing properties in it,” Rogue said derisively.
“Actually, that’s not true,” Kip told the group, pretty much ignoring Rogue, since the jerk wasn’t going to believe him anyway. “There are different types of mud, as well as sea salt from all over the world that offer different healing properties for skin, joint pain, as well as muscle aches. Why, right here in Alaska, mud created from the melting glaciers wearing away the mineral rich mountains, create some of the best curative mud in the world.”
Rogue was shaking his head, but his mother, as well as Maggie Burgess, who was Harper’s best friend, smacked Rogue before he could open his mouth to say anything else derogatory. “Do you have a room where multiple women could do a mud bath?” Harper asked. “It sounds like a fun day to have with some of the other girls in town, assuming they can join us.”
Maggie was nodding. “I agree. Since we’ve never had a mud bath, I don’t imagine it would matter which one we did, although Grace has been complaining she has some joint and muscle aches recently.”
Grace Higgins, along with her husband Jeffrey, were wildlife photographers, who almost exclusively worked in Alaska. It wasn’t hard to find people to hire them since the animals of Alaska were so popular.
“I have two rooms that will fit up to ten.” Excited to see how the women might like it, plus hoping to earn some good will in town, Kip made them an offer he knew they’d never be able to refuse. “Since this is the trial run, and you’re residents of Mystic Pines, I’ll only charge a one person fee, instead of everyone. Hopefully, that will encourage the other ladies to join you.”
Shep Finley, a single man who lived in town, asked, “What about for a massage? Any deals there?” He was reading the page of various massages, his eyes lighting up when he saw one of them.
“Which one are you interested in, Shep?” Kip would give all these people a deal just to prove to Rogue his spa wasn’t some joke. Admittedly, he planned to anyway, but he’d practically give it away if it kept that frown on Rogue’s face as steam was practically coming out of his ears while the others asked about the various deals they could get.
By the time they were ready to leave, Kip had booked a group mud bath, massages for those that were currently there, as well as a promise that for any other townspeople, he would honor the same deal. He also reserved time for facials for Maggie and Harper, and a yoga class on Sunday morning.
“I can’t believe you people are falling for this shit,” Rogue grumbled as Kip made out the appointment cards for them all, as well as put them into the computer system where a text would be sent to their smart phones.
Grinning widely, Kip told Rogue, “I’m not sure how you can put something down when you haven’t even tried it. Have you ever had a massage?”
Rogue let out a snort of derision. “Absolutely not. Nor do I have the time. I’m still trying to finish the repairs on the cabin I bought from Anook, as well as get things in order for my hunting business. As it is, I was forced to come to this opening...”
Kip didn’t hear the rest. He didn’t need to. The blood had leeched out of his body as he heard those horrible words Rogue had said. ‘Hunting business’. Now he remembered what it was Harper had told him about her son that had instantly put Kip off. The man was an avid hunter.
He even provided his parents’ grocery store with most of the game meat they sold, as well as for several other stores in nearby towns. Sure, he was going to be sick, Kip put a hand to his stomach.
“You kill things for a living?” Kip asked in horror. “How? Why?” He didn’t really want to know those answers but his brain wasn’t exactly functioning at the moment either. It dumbfounded him how anyone could kill another living thing for any reason, even food.
“Don’t tell me,” Rogue’s voice once more dripped with disdain. “You’re one of those people who think when they buy meat at the store, the meat fairy brings it.”
“Rogue,” his mother whispered harshly, but Kip’s brain had reengaged and he wasn’t about to let anyone speak for him.
“Actually, I don’t eat meat,” Kip told him with a huge amount of satisfaction. “I am a vegan who believes every living creature on this earth is special and shouldn’t be killed just because some asshole with a gun thinks it proves he’s a man.”
Rogue actually rolled his eyes, as if what Kip had said was a joke. “Of course, you are. And as for hunting, there is a purpose for hunting that goes beyond proving I have a dick, but I can’t imagine you would ever think beyond your little bubble to realize the world isn’t all about you.”
Then he stepped back toward the door. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to head out.” Those deep brown eyes that Kip had thought were gorgeous moments ago, flicked to him with nothing but contempt in them. “The air in here has suddenly become too thick with underserved self-righteousness and I could use some fresh air.”
Kip stared after the man as he strode down the hallway to the main part of the resort, unsure what had just happened. How had that... killer, managed to make it seem like Kip was the unreasonable one?
“I’m so sorry, Kip,” Harper said. “Rogue can be a bit... sensitive when it comes to hunting. If you don’t want us back, we’ll understand.”
“I won’t,” Shep grumbled. He nearly appeared be as upset as Rogue had been. “I get that you don’t believe in killing animals. I even understand your point of view on the way animals are slaughtered as if they are nothing, but that isn’t what hunting is about. But I still accept you have a right to your opinion. All we ask is for that same right.”
Shep held up his appointment card. “Now do I get my aromatherapy massage or not?”
Kip blinked, unsure how to respond. Not about the appointment, but the rest of what Shep had to say. Deciding the better part of valor was to not say anything about hunting to someone who obviously hunted, Kip stuck to the question. “Of course, you’ll have your massage. I would never deny services to anyone.”
The thing was, even though he’d said the words, Kip wasn’t so sure that was true. On some level he’d known these people hunted. He’d seen them carrying their guns, and in these parts, that usually meant they were prepared to shoot and kill an animal. But being aware of it and truly being faced with it, wasn’t something he’d been prepared for.
When it came to eating meat, he’d never begrudged anyone. Although, if he were truly honest, it sickened him to see it. But to actually know that person was willing to kill? Kip wasn’t so sure.
Somehow, he was going to need to come to grips with it sooner rather than later. Like tomorrow, after Spencer and Reese’s wedding, when Shep’s massage was scheduled.
