Logan
I snoozed my alarm, twice. We have a long hike ahead of us today but I’m too comfortable to bother with the morning schedule. Alanna is tucked into my side, her head on my chest and her leg slung over mine. Cole is pressed tight behind her, his hand wrapped around my waist.
It’s an unusual situation we found ourselves in last night, his hand in my pants, his voice the one barking orders to both myself and Alanna.
When we got back from the barn and all the sawdust was still stuck everywhere despite a thorough brushing off, I hopped in the shower.
When I got out, Cole was standing bare ass naked in front of the mirror, shaving.
He didn’t even glance my way, just asked if I was planning to use the guitar I brought and whether or not I would treat him to a song.
I knew which song.
By the time he was out of the shower, I’d already tuned the guitar and made myself comfortable on the side of the bed.
Cole didn’t walk so much as he stalked toward me, towel still in his hand scrubbing at his hair.
The look in his eyes told me all I needed to know about how he was feeling, a look I’m all too familiar with after years of arguments and tension.
He needed to let off some steam from the fire I lit and he needed to be the one to steer that particular release.
He stopped in front of me and I had to tip my head up to catch those eyes boring into me. He leaned down to kiss my forehead and the gesture sent a wave of warmth through me.
Relief. It felt like relief.
He settled himself behind me and drew in a deep breath as he kissed the back of my neck.
“Play.” That was it, just one word.
I hummed through the song first, then started over and sang it to him.
I was just reaching the end verse when the door opened and Alanna peeked through.
She looked cautious as I nodded for her to have a seat at the end of the bed.
I don’t know how we looked, like that, with Cole’s energy practically vibrating from behind me, but it was definitely new for her.
The warm up was incredible, the rest was even better. Turning myself over to Cole was easy, and waking up with her tucked in my side and his hand holding me tight is exactly what I needed to relax into the idea of the three of us and what we can be. This can be it.
Cole’s hand moves up to brush the hair on my forehead before I realize his eyes are open.
“Hey.” His voice is soft.
“Hey.” A simple exchange.
“What’s on the agenda for today, Sir?”
A low chuckle leaves me at the name. The same sort of low chuckle that left Cole when Alanna called me Sir last night to wind him up, refusing to address him even though he was clearly calling the shots.
“Don’t you start.”
“Yes, Sir.”
I’m not feeding it, even though my dick stirs when he says it the second time. “We’re going hiking.”
“Venture into the woods. Avoid the bears. Try not to get lost. Got it.”
He rolls over and sits up, stretching his arms over his head. The muscles in his back flex and I take my time watching them before he gets up and throws me a wink on his way to the bathroom. Some day I’ll admit to us both what I actually feel for him.
“What time is it?” Alanna mumbles against my chest.
“Time to get up. Barbara will probably be calling for breakfast soon.”
“Is the shower free?”
“I don’t think anyone would object if you took it, regardless. Though we probably would never get out of here.” She nudges my side and kisses my chest before she climbs out of bed and heads toward the bathroom as well.
Several hours later, we’re following trail signs down a path that was paved as we entered the tree line but faded to a worn dirt path a few miles ago.
Alanna is talking animatedly about a waterfall she’s hoping to find that we circled around a few times during our first trip late last fall.
Cole trudges behind us, watching like his usual self.
Alanna’s hand swings in mine, sharing this moment between just us.
“Right there.” Cole points to a spot where the trees open up and you can see the mountains framed in branches that are just starting to fill with leaves. The freckling across the range is beautiful.
Cole pulls out his phone and shoos us toward the opening.
Alanna puts her pack down and I pull her into me by the waist, my gaze immediately dropping to her face.
She smiles up at me and comes up on her toes to press her lips to mine.
I encircle her, swallowing up her smaller frame between my arms with a sigh.
“Yeah, yeah. I wanted a picture, not a home video.”
Alanna sputters a laugh and takes the phone from Cole, pushing him towards me for another photo.
We wander through the treelines doing much of the same, new combos in photos, Cole and his ridiculous comments, the awe on Alanna’s face as she takes in the forest around us.
Then we find it; the waterfall Alanna has already screenshot on her phone, the natural pool and rocks beneath it, and her face brightens with excitement as she starts pulling off her pack, then her open jacket.
“No,” I object.
“Aw, come on!” she complains.
I grab the hand she’s reaching to the hem of her sweater with. “Babe, it’s like barely sixty degrees out.”
“And?”
“And that waterfall is stream fed from way up there.” I point to the top of the pitch. “It’s April. There’s still snowpack up there. The water is like forty degrees.”
“That’s why I brought this, silly.” She rips open the top of her pack and produces a wetsuit, grinning ear to ear. Her grin continues to spread as I stare at her while she removes her pants and pulls the wetsuit over the thin athletic tights she has on underneath them.
“Can’t we do this next time?”
“Why do it next time when I can do it this time, since we couldn’t find it last time and I have a wetsuit?
” She pulls her sweater off and tosses it to Cole who catches it with a shrug.
Then she tugs at the legs, pulling the material up before she puts a plastic bag on her hand and slides a sleeve on over her thermal shirt.
I cross my arms and watch her, steaming, because I don’t love this idea. Or maybe I’m just being too protective.
“There,” she proclaims with a little hop after she pulls the zipper strap and secures the neckline closed.
“I don’t love it.”
“Really?” She makes a half turn, checking out the sides of the suit. “I kind of like it. It’s not glamorous or anything.”
Cole chuckles and I shake my head. “That’s not what I meant.”
“I’m aware,” she deadpans. “I swam the Silfra fissure. I do a polar plunge every year. Well, except last year, I missed it last year because we were out of town. This is nothing compared to the water temps at the fissure or those day-of temps at the plunge every year. At least the air is warm here.”
“That’s controlled. How are we supposed to go in after you if something happens?”
Alanna bends down, reaching back into her bag and produces another wetsuit. Slapping it to my chest she grins again. “I thought of that already. Suit up.” Then she hurries down the path leading to the side of the pool.
Cole steps up next to me, his arms folded over his chest, mimicking my own just moments before. “She’s fire.”
I smack the suit to his chest much in the same way Alanna did. “Yup, that’s her.” Without another word I follow Alanna down the path, hurrying to catch up as Cole complains about having to carry the extra pack Alanna left behind.
“Maybe give us five minutes to set up the tent before you hop in?” I ask Alanna, snagging her fingers when I’m close enough to reach her.
I tug her into me and wrap my arms around her waist. “We can peel you like a banana and warm you back up.” My voice is low.
I lean my forehead against hers and she shivers under my hands.
“That sounds delightful. I’ll go pick a spot and I promise not to jump in until I see the tent pop up.” Her eyebrow quirks as she smirks.
“That’s my good girl,” I murmur, with a pat on her butt before I let her go and the other eyebrow joins the first one.
“Well then.”
She hustles to the side of the pool and I turn to grab the pack off Cole’s back. He’s carrying the tent pack and I need him to get on that, pronto.
We work quickly to get it assembled and turn the heat fan on immediately. It might get toasty running it in the daylight like this, but I still don’t love the idea of Alanna jumping into the stream, even with the full length wetsuit. So, toasty tent it is.
I duck back through the opening and zip it closed behind me. Alanna is standing right where we left her at the edge of the natural pool, looking like a kid in a candy store and it stays that way as I come up beside her.
I lean over the edge and look back to her with concern. “Please tell me you aren’t planning to jump?”
“I’m a thrill chaser, Logan, not perilous.”
“Looks perilous to me,” Cole calls from where he’s leaving the tent as well.
“I’m going to climb down the rocks there, where there’s a pretty even path, dip myself in, swim a few strokes and come right back out.”
“Next time, we’re staying on the farm,” I groan.
“Next time, it’ll be summer and I’m stripping you both naked for a swim across the pond so we can relax on the rocks behind the falls and see what happens,” she says, her hands sliding up my chest before she pops onto her toes to place a gentle kiss on my lips.
Her nose scrunches and she bounces off to the edge of the rocks where she seats herself on the end of the first one and slides down to the second.
It isn’t a long descent, maybe five rocks total, but my heart hammers the whole time she’s making her way down.
When she reaches the last one, she takes off her shoes and socks, takes a deep breath, and slowly lowers herself into the water.
She lets out a few yelps and laughs, proclaiming it’s icy.
But true to her word, she pushes away from the wall of rocks, swims the few paces back to it, and climbs out again.