“We’re here,” Jay said, pulling the car into a small parking lot.
A few other cars sat in the parking lot, but we were alone.
We got out of the car, and I drew the clear, country air into my lungs. The perimeter of the parking lot was thick with trees. Jay pulled a backpack out of the trunk, and I followed him through a narrow pathway. We emerged onto a dirt path wide enough to walk side by side.
“Where are we?”
He grabbed my hand then looked at me, smiling. “There’s a lake down here. It’s a nice hike.”
I clasped his hand, loving the feeling of warmth radiating up my arm from his touch. We didn’t feel the need to talk, instead listened to running water in a brook. It was, nice. Beyond nice. Amazing. To be able to walk along with someone without having to say anything, a concept that often came up in the movies I watched but I had never once experienced for myself.
But now, with Jay everything seemed to be changing.
A few people passed us, returning to their cars. All but one of them had loose running dogs.
A little spaniel came along, with no master yet in sight. It came up to me, wagging his tail but sniffing madly at my legs. Circling me again and again, even as I kept walking. It didn't seem possible for sniffing to be so loud. A few moments later Calvin came into view.
My heart stopped, and I froze. Jay must have sensed my reaction, and clutched me close to him, shielding my head with his arms. Through the gap in his hands, I could see Calvin staring at us.
“What a perfect day this has turned out to be.” Calvin said when he’d reached us. Shit, he recognized me. I opened my mouth ready to answer when Jay’s hand pulled my head tighter into his chest, I took it as a signal to stay quiet.
“Afternoon,” Jay said, his voice cold.
“Benji Come!” Calvin called after he’d passed us. The dog ran off, but Jay held me for a few moments longer.
He finally let go. I asked, “Is he gone?”
Jay stood facing the direction of the parking lot but Calvin didn’t reappear.
“Yeah.”
“I can’t believe he was here.”
“I know. What are the chances of running into him?”
He took my hand, and we continued along the path. But I couldn’t stop Jay’s last comment from running through my head. He understood my comment right away, and I wondered if Calvin had been talking to him instead of me.
“Do you know him?” I asked.
“No, you told me about him.”
“But, how did you know what he looked like?”
“I could tell by your reaction, you tensed up immediately, I knew it must be him.”
22
The path opened up and spanned out both sides of a small lake. He pulled me to the left. Once again he knew where we were going. After ten or fifteen minutes, Jay pointed to an overgrown narrow opening that veered off to the left again. He looked behind us again, and guided me onto the path that didn’t look like much of a path.
“No one comes this way, but I know a great spot.”
We came to a patch of grass beside some miniature rapids in a brook, and Jay took the backpack off his shoulder.
“I brought some dinner.”
I lightened on my feet, “More quail’s eggs?”
Jay smiled at me. “No, no quail’s eggs, no pate and no champagne. I brought us some sandwiches and a couple of beers. Since you didn’t seem to like the last picnic.”
My face dropped. “I loved the last picnic, it was just so snazzy, I’m not used to that.”
“Well, hope you’re used to pastrami on rye.”
“Love it.” I hugged him. “And I love this spot. It’s beautiful.”
“And no one ever comes here, I don’t even think the dogs have discovered it.”
I took my phone out of my pocket and held it up to take a selfie of us standing in front of the lake. Jay took my phone from my hand.
“I’ll take one of you.”
“But I wanted you in it.”
Almost imperceptibly, he shook his head.
“Why can’t we have a picture together?”
“Because, I don’t do photos.”
Confused, I smiled and tried to sound lighthearted. “What if I get my tits out in it?”
He laughed and sat on the grass. “You can get your tits out, just not in a photo with me.”
Butterflies filled my stomach. He said no one comes here, why not? I pulled my top over my head. It was impossible to judge his reaction but I kept going. I reached around and undid my bra, then slid it off and dropped it on my shirt. Suddenly I felt very foolish, standing there topless in jeans out in the woods.
“You’re nuts.”
I shimmied my shoulders, to jiggle my tits. I carried on the motion as I walked towards him until I was leaning over and shaking them in his face. He cupped them in his hands and licked around both my areolas.