A Taste of Summer

by Beverly Preston

  “I might’ve spared her some of the inflight service details…”

  She could feel her face flush. Judging by the gleam in his eyes, her discomfiture pleased him immensely.

  “You’ll get better reception near the window in the kitchen.”

  “Thanks,” she replied smugly. Carrie Ann dialed the familiar number, wandering into the kitchen.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey, Shay.”

  “Finally! How are you?”

  “I’m okay. Tired, I guess. I’ve been sleeping a lot. I’m not sure if it’s a reaction from the drug or if I was just exhausted from working so much the last few months.”

  “Probably both, and I wasn’t referring to your sleeping habits. Look, I’m not trying to discount the fact that you were drugged, but the last time Summer called, he was trippin’ out because you’d run off and were sitting by his pool in the pouring rain.”

  Carrie Ann rolled her eyes. “I was under a tree,” she replied mockingly.

  Binoculars sat on the windowsill above the sink. Lowering the dog to the floor, she raised to her tiptoes. She could see the farthest edge of the mineral pond beyond the grassy knoll.

  “Don’t give me that shit, Carrie Ann. I need to know if you’re okay. And so does Summer. He’s worried sick about you, thinking he’s lost his…” Shayla’s words trailed off.

  “Lost his what, Shay? Another chance with me? He hasn’t lost anything. He never had a second shot.”

  Shayla cleared the agitation from her throat. Ahem. “You’re always the one insisting we keep it real. Right? So this is me keeping it real and don’t even think about tabling this! When we spoke on the phone you were happily packing to go on your, and I quote, ‘million dollar vacation with the love of your life.’ I’m going out on limb here, but I’m guessing you don’t remember?”

  Drawing an insufferable amount of air through her nostrils, she hinged at the hips, exhaling as she propped her elbows against the chilly slate counter. Holding up her forehead with the palm of her hand, Carrie Ann shook her head. “No. I don’t.”

  “You were ridiculously happy,” Shayla paused, seemingly to make an attempt at masking her sniffles, but they resounded loud and clear, over the Pacific and half way around the country. “I have tried to stay out of this shit for too long. I’ve been there for both of you! Hurting on both sides. But it’s to the point where I just really…” Profuse emotions choked in her throat. “I really just want to kick your ass! You know that? You can sit there and pretend you don’t have any feelings for him, but I am here to clearly inform you that you do! In fact, you have deep feelings for him.” Her tone gathered strength. “You need to tell to him!”

  Caught off guard by Shayla’s outburst, she whispered shamefully, “You know I can’t, Shayla. He’ll never forgive me.”

  “There is nothing to forgive!” Tenderness filtered through her tone. “Do you remember what you told me when I realized that John was six years younger than me?”

  “That’s totally different, Shayla.”

  “It’s no different. I considered letting go of the best thing I’d ever had in my life because of a number! And do you know what you told me… everything happens for a reason.”

  “I can’t, Shay. It’s been too long. What would I say?”

  “You tell him the truth. He’s not just a boy with a nice set of abs, Carrie Ann.”

  “He never was.”

  “He’s a grown-ass man, a great man, who can handle the truth. What are the chances that you’d run into him, attend his premier, get drugged at your own event. And let’s not forget that the man laid out a cool million to simply spend time with you. I know, I know, it borders on desperate, but look at the lengths he’d readily go to. Who would do that?”

  John’s voice broke through the receiver in a quiet but firm undertone, “I would do it for Shay. Does that help?”

  “No, boy wonder! That doesn’t help. Stay out of it.”

  Shayla’s voice muffled, repeating Carrie Ann’s words of caution to her hubby. Aspen hightailed it down the hallway. She could hear Summer talking to the puppy sweetly in his bedroom.

  “He’s out of the shower. I gotta go, Shay.”

  “Can you please do me the favor of at least giving him a chance to say what’s on his mind?”

  “I already know what’s on his mind.”

  “After all these years and everything we’ve been through together…if you can’t listen to me…” aggravation elevated her tone. “You know what? I’m done. Figure it out for yourself.”

  The phone went dead in her ear.

  Carrie Ann held the phone out, blinking repeatedly, utterly dumbfounded. In a bit of a daze, she ambled toward the living room. Summer and Aspen were both down on all fours, facing each other in a standoff. Bottoms raised, they crouched like tigers, ready to pounce at any minute.

  “She hung up on me.”

  Without breaking his stalking position, Summer questioned, “Are you sure? Maybe you lost connection.”

  “No. I’m sure.”

  He pounced toward Aspen and she flopped to her back with a whimper. “Chicken,” he teased, rubbing her pink belly.

  “I’m not a chicken!”

  “Not you. The dog.” He seemed amused by her misunderstanding.

  Taking closer examination of his position struck a chord. The corner of her lip twitched as her gaze fell to his thighs, solid in muscle, rocking backward and resting on his calves. A smug smile touched his mouth, tracking her movements. Forcing one foot in front of the other, she swiftly made her way by him, sinking into her comfy chair.

  Pretending to read, she periodically peered above the cream colored pages watching the two pounce, roll, chase tail, and play dead. Both were content in their playful bonding time. After a while, the sound of soft rhythmic breathing kept time with the wind howling through the thick branches of the majestic pines. She glanced over her book. Heat painted her cheeks, striking flames to the lobes of her ears. Summer lay sprawled out on his back, sound asleep with Aspen curled in a ball, nose to tail, in the crook of his armpit. The endearing sight turned her heartbeat unruly.

  Unable to shy away from the scene, she quietly raised from the chair and tiptoed to her room. Returning with her phone, she snapped a few pictures. A strange ease of contentment, old and acquainted, simmered over her.

  He stirred, rolling to his side, pulling Aspen to his chest. Seeming to sense her nearness, Summer reached out, caressing her ankle. One heavy lid peeled open. His mouth bowed upward. “Whatcha doing, Red?”

  Not wanting to disturb his sleep, she whispered, “Just taking a picture. You two look so cute together.”

  His grin grew lazy and lopsided as his eyes drifted shut. His thumb turned a lumbering circle near her calf. “We’d look cuter if you were down here with us.”

  He made another pass over her skin before the tension slipped from his hand. The moment the warmth left her flesh, she suffered the distinct sense of melancholy. A profound feeling of loss she’d all but forgotten.

  Moving numbly toward the chair, Carrie Ann retrieved a throw pillow and blanket. She covered him from the waist down. Gently tapping him with the pillow, she encouraged him to lift his head. He managed to murmur thank you before dozing back to sleep.

  She didn’t know how long she’d stood beside them, paralyzed, watching them sleep, but it felt like forever. His handsome features, relaxed and peaceful, resembled the young man she knew before. Carrie took several deep breaths, searching for courage with each exhale. The burden of years of secrecy staking claim to her voice. “Summer,” came a hushed whisper. “I need to tell you something.”

  He responded with a soft snore.

  Licking her parched lips, she tried again. Her conscience desperately yearned to spill, but her affliction grew even stronger at the chance she might. The inner struggle verged on maddening. Carrie Ann opened her mouth, but a dry broken sob burned her throat stealing her words.

  She began to unr
avel at the seams. Her face crumpled and the tears broke free, streaming down her face. Swamped in despair, she went to her room, crawled in bed, and cried herself to sleep.

  *

  Carrie Ann laid awake in bed for hours waiting for the dawn to break. A lull in the falling rain beckoned her to the window as morning filtered through her room. The planked flooring still held its early morning chill as she traipsed to the window bundled in the comfy down blanket.

  The dark, ominous thunder clouds gathering on the horizon mirrored her sullen attitude. She’d slept straight through dinner, declining grumpily I’m not hungry when Summer tried to wake her. Stress knots gathered in her neck and shoulders. She stretched her neck from side-to-side and rolled her shoulders in broad circles, massaging the soreness with her fingers.

  Peering out the window, she watched the wet leaves on the tree shimmer in the wind. The white bark of the quaking aspen was stark in comparison to its vibrant green foliage. A dense fog hung above the soaking pools practically calling her name. Carrie Ann tossed the blanket on the bed and plodded toward the armoire. Flipping through the hangers, she managed to find her bikini…bottoms.

  “Whatever,” she grumbled, stripping out of his boxers and into her cheeky Brazilian cut bottoms.

  She brushed her teeth and piled her long dark hair on top of her head, looping a hair tie around the loose bun. Her reflection in the mirror wore puffy red eyes and bruising shadows hollowed the thin skin beneath.

  She hated crying.

  Quietly, she ventured into the kitchen wearing his oversized flannel shirt from the day before. Wandering into the living room, a cool draft wafted across the back of her bare legs causing her to shudder. There was no sign of Summer or Aspen and the fireplace held only a pile of grey ashes.

  Tiptoeing through the living room, she heard a noise coming from the hall. Twisting her neck, she noticed Summer’s door ajar. As she stepped into the hall, the corner post of his bed became visible through the six inch crack.

  Carrie Ann stopped dead in her tracks catching a glimpse of him lying on the bed. His back hard-pressed to the mattress and torso strained with exertion. A sensual awareness ripped through her, taking aback by the sight of his head thrown back, buried in his pillow as he pleasured himself. The veins in his neck were thick and pulsing, and his lips parted for breath. The lids of his eyes closed drowsily. Velvet lashes lay like crescents against his skin.

  Her tongue played over her open lips, craving the sweet taste of him, the clean masculine scent of him, the silky feel of his skin in her mouth.

  Silently, she shifted to one side so not to be seen, gripping to the wall for support, fearing her knees might buckle. The white linens made a glorious backdrop for his dark tan physique. His broad chest labored in breathing. Sinews and muscles flexed in a delicious rhythm, his movement sure and purposeful.

  Her nipples tightened and a low throbbing ache began to build between her thighs. She eased forward, hugging the wall, stretching her neck to see more. Her own heavy breathing bounced off the wall. Waves of moist heat fanned across her face.

  Grrr whoof whoof Aspen’s boisterous growl and bark boomed from the far side of his room.

  Carrie Ann nearly jumped out of her skin. She lurched to the side, hiding from their view. Both hands instantly covering her mouth to silence her panting. Not that it would matter. She was fairly certain Summer and the dog would be able to hear her heart slamming against her chest from all the way across the cabin.

  Her stare locked on the doorway, waiting for a shadow of movement. Before she had time to steal another peek the puppy barked again and again. Not letting up.

  “Fuck.” She heard a long groan of frustration. “Go on girl. Go lay down.”

  The sound of his body lifting from the mattress and several snarling curses, indicated no happy ending. Contractions bound her core in a tight relentless knot. She’d damn near climaxed. Confusion wracked her body, unsure if she were happy or unhappy about the outcome delivered to both of them. Fearing her legs might buckle, she stumbling down the hall, slipped on her boots and quietly snuck out the door.

  Crisp mountain air whipped against her face, bringing clarity to her head. The coolness stung her heated skin, covering her in goose bumps. Loneliness started to take hold of her heart. God, she missed men. The intimacy of kissing, holding hands, waking up next to a warm body. And talking. She missed long intimate conversations.

  Another round of waterworks burned the back of her eyes, threatening to break. Not gonna happen. With each step, her feet ground into the saturated earth, pounding out some of her frustrations.

  There’d been only one man who checked all the boxes in her life and he was just jacking off in the other room. Left to pleasure himself because she was too afraid to let her guard down. Too stubborn to even consider believing his bullshit.

  She’d drawn a definitive line in the sand that day and her pride wouldn’t dare cross it. No matter how painful her heart hurt. No matter how excruciating the longing. No matter how agonizing the fear of never knowing.

  Blades of tall grass tickled her legs and the pungent smell of sulfur permeated the air. She took off her rain boots and laid them sideways on a bench cut from a log. She unbuttoned the flannel shirt and slipped it from her shoulder, placing it atop the boots to stay dry.

  Though the mineral springs were natural, the pond had been designed to mimic the natural landscape and rock formations of the dramatic Montana mountain range. Carrie Ann gradually made her way down five huge granite steps placed precisely at one end of the pool to simulate the curves of an outdoor amphitheater. Mist swirled and eddied around her. The chilly vapor pulled her tender pink nipples taut.

  Smooth rounded pebbles felt good on her feet. The water, silky and clear, teased along her collarbone as she gingerly waded deeper. The luxurious healing water lapped at her chest promptly relaxing her stiff, sore shoulders.

  Carrie Ann crossed the pond, back-and-forth, with a lazy breast stroke. The change in her body temperature and release of fatigue caused her to feel light-headed and weak. Needing some cool air, she perched on top of a rectangular boulder, rising from the pool nearly flush to the water’s surface. Blood rushed to her skin, covering her body in a pink glow from the neck down. A clear indicator she’d been in the hot water too long.

  Her body felt relaxed, muscles loose and warm, but her mind spun wildly listening to the low groans of thunder in the far off distance. Lifting her feet to the edge of the boulder, she laid back, using her locked hands as a pillow. Her knees knocked, waggling her legs to and fro. God, he looks so good. Carrie Ann stared skyward, mesmerized by the ominous clouds moving quickly overhead, comparing them to her life.

  “What the hell…” A short scoring pause. “Are you doing?”

  A high pitched sound of surprise whooshed from her lungs. Carrie Ann jolted upright, half falling, half leaping, into the pond with a splash. All thoughts scattered from her brain and her pulse went crazy. Her petite hands flew to her breasts, barely covering her dark pink nipples. The beating of her heart, hard and steady, forceful inside her chest.

  “You scared the shit out of me.”

  Aspen shrunk to her belly hearing her loud shriek.

  “Are you just trying to fucking kill me, Carrie Ann,” Summer grumbled, his voice holding a savage note. He scowled, glowering in disbelief. “I saw the top of your head bobbing in the water, but I assumed you had a bathing suit on.”

  His eyes lingered with ravenous interest, drifting over her full, lush, buoyant breasts.

  Feeling vulnerable with nowhere to hide, she put on her invisible cloak of distain and slogged up the steps. Marching by him, she found it nearly impossible not to drink in the sight of his exquisitely masculine form in tight ocean-blue trunks.

  He looked sexy-as-hell, every inch carved and defined, like a scene straight from a James Bond movie. Minus his grey fluffy robe, opened and untied. The blue speedo-like suit left nothing to the imagination. Not that she neede
d to use her imagination. She didn’t even need to close her eyes. Carrie Ann knew exactly how stunning he was. Every single inch of him.

  Dodging left, he moved in front of her. His hands immediately found her shoulders, stealing her breath.

  “Please don’t go, Carrie Ann.” His tone was soft and urgent, sending a tingle to the pit of her stomach. “It’ll be difficult, but I’m sure I’ll manage.”

  Standing before him partially nude, a heady rush of sensation sprung to life, warmth seeped to her bones. “Maybe you should’ve packed my top along with my bottom, that way I could’ve stayed out here with you.”

  He touched her chin and lifted her face upward. “You packed your things.”

  “Whatever. It’s not like you haven’t seen them before.”

  Summer skewered her with a harsh stare. “Stop acting like you don’t feel the connection we share.”

  “That was a long time ago, Summer. You don’t know anything about me anymore.”

  “Ah, that’s where you’re wrong Red. I know exactly who you are. What you want. What makes you happy. You need a man who will want you for exactly who you are. Independent, hardworking, passionate, fun, bossy and as stubborn as the day is long…in Alaska.” In spite of his seriousness, she almost smiled. “You also need a man who’s confident enough to put you in your place occasionally.”

  “Don’t forget faithful,” she stabbed, whirling her back to him. Her breasts on display to the great outdoors reaching for her shirt. Thrusting each arm into the oversized sleeves, she busied herself with the buttons. High strung emotions caused her fingers to tremble, hindering her progress. “That man doesn’t exist.”

  She heard him make a scoffing sound as he latched his fingers around her wrist, turning her to face him. Her heart spurred into a frantic beat. His grip so gentle and caring that she had no chance at resisting him. The soft cotton fabric of her shirt listed open all the way to her navel and below. The slope of her full breasts fully exposed, yet he seemed enthralled with her face.

  “Our connection is far more than physical. We share a closeness, an intimacy that stretches beyond that of past lovers, Carrie Ann. Our bodies, our energy, we vibrate on the same frequency.” A familiar strain in his tone, low and ragged, flooded her with memories of long nights filled with passion and companionship. “Your laugh reaches the darkest, dustiest corners of my soul and brings it to life. When you’re near me my heart feels fuller. My breath comes easier. My smile…fuck…I can’t wipe it off my face when I’m near you. I connect with you on every level of my being, Carrie Ann.”