Finding Home (27 page)

“
I think she will miss you
almost as much as I will,” Marissa said.

“
She has been a good friend
to us,” Nat said. “These boots are beautiful,” she said. “You did a
good job on the boot strings too.”

“
Maggie put a lot of love
and time into sewing them for you. She really appreciates all you
have done for her. ”

“
I know. That’s what makes
it so easy to hunt or chop wood for her,” Nat said.

Nat settled back into the rocking chair
as Gyp trotted back onto the porch. She picked up her knife and the
bear carving and after another hour, she put the finishing touches
on the base of the carving. “Not bad for a first try,” she said to
Marissa. “I want you to have this,” she said.

“
It is beautiful, Nat,”
Marissa said as her fingers moved over the smooth wood. “I can’t
believe this is your first piece. You made it look so easy.
”

“
You just have to open your
heart to the creature hiding in the wood and let him come to life,”
Nat said. She picked up the honing stone and sharpened her knife
and then slipped it into the boot sheath Maggie had sewn into the
boot. She smiled at the fact Maggie had remembered that
detail.

As the sun started to fade, Marissa
turned to Nat. “Would you like to share a bath tonight?”

“
I would love that, yes,”
Nat said with a smile.

“
We have cornbread and chops
left for dinner if that is fine with you,” Marissa
added.

“
Sounds wonderful,” Nat
said. “Would you like me to start the fire?”

“
Yes, please and I will pack
up the ham and biscuits for your trip. I already have the chicken
wrapped up for you,” Marissa said.

“
Thank you,” Nat said. She
kissed Marissa and walked out to start the fire under the wash pot
as Marissa went inside to wrap up the food.

Nat was kneeling down beside the wash
pot when she felt Gyp brush up against her thigh. Gyp looked up at
her with sadness in her eyes. “I know you like it here too, don’t
you, my friend?”

Gyp responded by licking Nat’s hand.
“We will be coming back here,” Nat promised.

The longer she stayed, the harder it
would be for Nat to leave and it was already difficult for her to
separate from Marissa. Never in her wildest dreams had she thought
four months ago she would meet and fall in love with someone like
Marissa. Her life was changing quickly and thoughts of the future
scared Nat, even though she would not admit that to anyone beside
herself. If she left the woods, would she make enough money to
compensate for not trapping or would she need to change her
standard of living, she wondered. Nat chuckled softly at her
thoughts. Her standard of living was much improved with Marissa.
She had a roof over her head every night, a home cooked meal and a
beautiful woman to wrap her body around each night when she went to
sleep. Nathan would probably think she was crazy to leave that
behind, but Nat had to know.

With a deep sigh, Nat stood and walked
back into the cabin. Marissa had lit candles in the bathing area
and had set out fresh towels for them to use. Marissa had made them
a cup of coffee and was sitting at the kitchen table when Nat
entered. They ate the meal Marissa had prepared and talked
quietly.

She looked up at Nat. “Will you return
here at the end of the fall?”

“
I will definitely be coming
back here,” Nat said. “The latest would be at the end of
fall.”

“
My heart already misses
you,” Marissa said.

Nat smiled warmly at Marissa, but had
no words of comfort for her. She could not tell her exactly when
she would return and would not fill her with false hope.

“
I can’t believe how quickly
this day has passed,” Marissa said, as she stood to walk out to
check the water temperature.

When Marissa entered carrying a bucket
of steaming water, Nat joined her in carrying the water in for
their bath. After several trips each, they had plenty of water and
stripped out of their clothing to enjoy a steamy bath.

Nat climbed in first and then Marissa
followed and rested her head on Nat’s shoulder. “This feels really
good,” she said.

“
I will miss our bath
times,” Nat said. “Not too many opportunities for hot water in the
woods,” she said with a chuckle.

“
How do you bathe?” Marissa
asked.

“
Usually in very chilly
streams and lakes,” Nat said.

“
I can understand why a
hearty meal and a bath are so appealing to you then.”

“
I typically don’t get to
lay my head back and hold a beautiful woman in my arms when I bathe
in the wild,” Nat said with a chuckle.

“
It makes me happy to know
that you think I am beautiful,” Marissa said.

“
You are beautiful and
thoughts of you will keep me warm on the long chilly nights,” Nat
said.

“
That is so sweet of you to
say.”

“
You have given me so many
fond memories to take with me, Marissa,” she said as she nuzzled
into her lover’s neck.

“
If you keep talking like
that you will have me crying again,” she warned.

“
I am sorry, but it is the
truth.”

Marissa sighed. “I know exactly how you
feel.”

She turned in Nat’s arms to face her
and leaned in for a kiss. “I will miss your sweet kisses,
too.”

“
I promise to make up for
lost time when I return,” Nat grinned.

“
You had better give me
plenty tonight then to hold me for a while then,” Marissa teased
back.

“
That is no problem,” Nat
said as she held Marissa in her arms and kissed her
softly.

They kissed until they were breathless
with passion and Marissa locked eyes with Nat. “It is time you take
me to bed.”

They climbed from the bath tub and
dried their bodies. Nat took Marissa by the hand and led her to the
bedroom. They lay down beside one another and continued to kiss as
their hands caressed and explored the other’s body.

Nat rolled Marissa onto her back and
touched between her legs to find her body drenched with excitement.
She locked eyes with Marissa and watched them glaze over with
passion as she entered her body with two long fingers and gently
caressed her delicate body. Nat’s mouth moved down across Marissa’s
breasts, tantalizing her nipples with an expert tongue. Marissa
arched her back, tempting Nat to take more of her hypersensitive
flesh into her mouth, but Nat continued to tease Marissa into a
frenzy of desire. The juices of her passion spilled into Nat’s palm
as Marissa’s body climaxed with a violent shudder as she called out
Nat’s name and pulled her head firmly onto her breast.

Nat could feel Marissa’s inner muscles
quivering around her fingers as her climax faded and she slowed the
movement of her fingers as she suckled her breasts and massaged
Marissa’s swollen clit with her thumb.

“
You are driving me mad with
desire,” Marissa purred as she arched her back, filling Nat’s mouth
with her breast.

Nat suckled her breast until she felt
Marissa’s body vibrate with pleasure and then lowered her mouth to
take Marissa’s throbbing clit deep into her mouth, sucking it
gently in and out of her mouth. Marissa’s body gushed with a flow
of pleasure as Nat’s tongue fervently lapped up her sweetness. The
taste of Marissa’s passion filled Nat’s senses and she allowed
Marissa to roll her onto her back.

Marissa’s body burned with excitement
as she lowered her face into Nat’s wetness for a long, deep,
sensual kiss as her fingers twisted Nat’s aching
nipples.

“
Turn your body toward me,”
Nat instructed between groans and Marissa climbed to her knees,
turning her body to Nat’s reach. Nat penetrated her body with three
fingers and thrust deeply inside Marissa’s velvety wetness,
mimicking the movement of the tongue inside her body.

Marissa’s deep moans of pleasure
vibrated inside Nat’s body and her body erupted onto Marissa’s
face, soaking her with her wetness as Marissa bucked wildly onto
Nat’s thrusting fingers.

Nat lifted Marissa’s head to cover her
clit as Marissa continued her wild ride and her excitement flowed
through her body to her mouth as she greedily sucked Nat’s clit
until they both were overwhelmed with passion and collapsed
breathing hard onto the bed.

Marissa’s head rested on Nat’s chest as
they waited for their bodies to calm. “You make me feel so
incredible, Nat,” she whispered against Nat’s skin.

“
That feeling is mutual,”
Nat said as she softly stroked Marissa’s hair.

Silence hung between them as they
embraced and when Nat heard the soft purring of Marissa sleeping
she carefully pulled the linens up to cover their
bodies.

PART EIGHTEEN

Nat woke the following morning to the
smell of bacon cooking. She climbed from the bed and pulled a night
shirt over her body before walking to the kitchen to find Marissa
toiling away.

Marissa looked and up smiled as Nat
approached. “I had to send you off with a full stomach.”

“
It smells wonderful. How
long have you been awake?”

“
For almost an hour,”
Marissa said.

“
Long enough to cook fresh
biscuits and bacon,” Nat said with a grin.

“
I have eggs too. I was just
waiting for you to wake. Fried or scrambled?” she asked.

“
Fried ma’am if you please,”
she answered.

“
Did you sleep well?”
Marissa asked.

“
Like a rock and
you?”

Marissa blushed slightly. “So well, I
fell asleep on you.”

“
That’s all right. Last
night was beautiful,” Nat said.

“
Yes, it was,” Marissa said
as she cracked a half a dozen eggs into the frying pan. “Will you
break up a biscuit and some bacon for Gyp in her bowl while I
finish the eggs?”

“
Yes ma’am,” Nat said. “Are
you hungry Gyp?”

Gyp sat at Nat’s feet and her entire
body wiggled.

Marissa smiled at Gyp as she dropped
two fried eggs into her bowl and then served the remainder onto her
plate and Nat’s.

Nat mashed up her fried eggs and took a
bite of bacon as she dipped half a biscuit into the yellow mixture
to sop up the yoke. “Are you sure I can’t hide you away in one of
my packs?” Nat asked.

“
No, my love, even with all
your skills, I would not do well living like you do,” Marissa
answered.

“
I know, but I couldn’t help
but ask one last time,” Nat said.

“
I have to leave for work
soon. Will you stop by after you are packed?”

“
I couldn’t leave town
without saying goodbye,” Nat said.

“
I would have to hunt you
down if you did,” Marissa said.

“
Now that could be fun,” Nat
teased.

“
I love you Nat, don’t ever
forget that,” Marissa said.

“
I love you too, Marissa and
will come back to you,” Nat promised.

Marissa stood and carried her plate to
the counter to hide the tears in her eyes. “You two better eat all
this food, so I don’t have to store it,” she said.

“
I don’t think that is going
to be a problem,” Nat said. “We both love your cooking.”

“
I will go get dressed and
will be back shortly,” Marissa said.

Nat and Gyp finished off the breakfast
Marissa had made for them as they waited for her return.

“
How long do you think you
will be?” Marissa asked when she returned to the
kitchen.

“
No more than an hour,” Nat
said. “I just need to pack the animals and saddle Hardy for the
trip.”

Marissa embraced Nat and kissed her
passionately. “I will see you soon then, my love,” she said and
turned to rush from the cabin.

Nat rinsed off her plate and Gyp’s bowl
and then turned to her companion. “Are you ready to get
started?”

Gyp jumped to her feet and rushed to
the door.