A Simple Life Ch. 72-83

I stand and take one last big, deep breath then smooth out my jacket. I stare at the steep slope and towering conifers before me, calling to me, and already I can feel some of stress inside of me start to seep away. Leaving the world of people and buildings and streets and garages behind me I strike forward through the expanse of tall grass to the green oasis that beckoned.

***

Chapter 80

I walk amongst the feet of venerable giants, themselves mere hairs upon the toes of a more ancient titan. High above me the heads of mighty pine, spruce and hemlock sway to the steady western breeze blowing in off of the endless Pacific as I climb the slope of the green peak on which they grew. These arboreal residents clothed by vestments of verdant moss and festooned with the draping finery of bearded lichens stood proud and ancient as my fool ass scrambled over and around the rotting limbs and trunks of those whose days in the sun were over and were now returning to the mountain.

Brushing my hands the soft fronds of damp ferns in the shade and the rasping branches and thorns of the shrubby underbrush in the places the light found the ground. Underfoot dried twigs and desiccated needles crunch beneath my treads. The way was not easy. There were no paths here. No trail to guide my way. But I had been this way many times before.

It was only a few steps in when the voices of Winona and Amos had been swallowed by the forest and wind and now, except for the occasional intrusion of a vehicle passing down the highway, the sounds of that world were absent here. When my footfalls fell still a subtle symphony would reveal itself. The soft breath of the forest boughs. The distant sigh of the surf. The long rise and fade of the buzz of a passing bee. The shrill repetitive peep-peep-peep of a Northern Flicker joined the pips and trills of contented Chickadees to give it all vibrant drama. For as much as I loved him, even Beethoven's great genius sounded the plonking of an amateur by comparison. And there, among it all, my own breathing made deep from the effort of my climb. Not apart from it, but a part of it.

With each of those breaths I take in the heavy aroma of earth and pine mixed with the sweet dewy fragrance of fern and flowers. It is cool in the shadow of the towering conifers and warm upon the sun-kissed stones of the outcroppings.

It is on one of these outcroppings that I pause to find my peace.

I sit down cross-legged at north edge of a flat expanse of granite that I had found nearly nine years ago. Swaddled on all sides by forest I could not see the ocean or the garage or anything beyond this sanctuary despite my elevation. Without even really thinking about it I begin to search for, and soon find, the wild alpine strawberries I knew would be there. One by one I begin to collect the saccharine scarlet morsels and place them in a small depression in the rock. These had not been provided for me. These gifts of the mountain were here for another's hungry palate. But nobody would mind. The last of our island bears had been shot in 1953.

Between the sixth and seventh berry I stop, close my eyes, and let out a long breath.

There it was. Oh yes. There it was. That moment where the steady, constant drain on my energy of just existing reversed to begin replenishing instead. I didn't know it at the time but that little heart to heart I shared with Mama on the way up here had helped to clear the slate of confusing emotions so that I could find this moment of still all the easier. I guess that therapist might have been onto something after all. Maybe talking things out, while not solving anything in itself, helped to open the way.

I open my eyes and look around. What I see is all things in their place. All things in their context. All things put into proper perspective. Aligned and interwoven. From the ageless mountains to the enduring forest to me to the singing chickadee to the ladybug crawling across the stone that was here a year to the violet nightshade blooms across the clearing from me that were would only show for a season. I was in it. Among it. One with it. Ehkolie. My home.

Everything suddenly became so simple. Not easy, but simple. Here there was no judgment. No pride or shame. No love or hatred. No need to be clever or witty or know the right thing to say to make people like me. The chickadee didn't care that I stuttered or giggled in that childish way I had. To it I was just another silly human bumbling through the brush. The mountain didn't care about my black eye or how I'd gotten it. To it I was but a brief speck that would be here and gone in scant instant. Here it was just life, unvarnished. Life with all of its hardships and beauty. Like the trees I would have my days in the sun before returning to my mountain. Like the birds and the flowers I would sing my songs and show my colors before they faded forever.

I pick the remainder of the ripe red berries then spin in place and stretch out on the warming rock. I pop a strawberry into my mouth then put my hands behind my head to stare up at the breaking clouds above me. The sky sure was blue today. And this berry was delicious!

During the climb up here I had been wishing that I'd brought my camera and maybe a bit of gear for a day camp but now that I was here I had no regrets. I might have been able to get some great shots but it would have distracted me from...this. This wonderful peace. And as for the gear, as good as this was I had no intention of spending the day up here. There was now another call of nature competing with the first. I needed this time as much as sleep or sustenance but there was something else I needed just a much now. And that something was her. My girlfriend Winona.

I smile and stretch out. "Girlfriend. I have a girlfriend." I sigh. "Wait until Grandpa hears."

I take one of the berries and hold it in front of me between my thumb and finger, enjoying how the brilliant red popped against the azure heavens and marveling at just how tiny those seeds were. I think about myself like one of those little seeds clung to the side of the mountain. A thing so miniscule that under the right conditions might sprout and grow and give nourishing joy to the world. Soaking up the sun's life-giving rays as surely as the strawberry leaves and drawing up Earth's nurturing nutrients as surely as the strawberry's sprawling roots I lay and decompress from all of the stress and socializing of the past couple of days.. The resulting fruit might not be as sweet but it would see me through another bout back there.

I munch down the berry and savor again the incredible potency of its sweet flavor. Those big strawberries in the store had nothing on these little gems. I'm not sure how long I lay there staring and listening and immersing myself in Ehkolie's rejuvenating aura. Maybe an hour. Maybe even two. Long enough to watch the lazily drifting clouds break apart until there is more blue than white in the sky above. The longer I lay there the more my thoughts and daydreams return...to her.

"Hahhhh." I sit up and look to the little black-capped avian friend that had been serenading me the past ten minutes. I giggle as I think that maybe he'd been actually telling me off all that time for laying on his favorite rock. Either way I'd been happy for the music. "Thank you Mr. Chickadee-dee-dee. I hope your song finds you a girl as nice as mine." I collect up the uneaten berries and put them in my pocket. "I wish I could stay longer but I have a j-job to do. I'm a photographer if you didn't know."

While not completely recharged my battery was back in the safe zone again. I get to my feet and brush myself off. I then set off to explore the area for good angles of the garage.

***

Chapter 81

"There's the mountain man." Amos says as he steps through the back door of the garage wiping his thick hands with a rag that turns from pure white to being streaked with brown-black grease before my eyes.

"H-Hey Amos." I say as I cross the last dozen or so feet to stand near him.

"Someone was starting to get worried." He winks.

"Is that Avery?" There is a clank of metal of concrete from inside the garage and in a blink there is suddenly a smiling Winona framed within the door. She was wearing blue coveralls that matched her dad's except for the name on the tag that read 'Winnie'. Unlike her dad she wore it with her sleeves rolled up to her elbows. She looked so rough and rugged and sexy! Of course, I always thought she looked sexy. When she sees me she breaks into a bright smile, as do I. Though her grin gave away her excitement she plays it cool. "Hey Sprout."

"Hey." I bashfully tuck a lock of hair behind my ear. The way she looked at me made me feel all happy inside.

Slowly she looks me up and down, the nibble to her bottom lip telling me that she was liking what she was seeing. "You're a bit early."

"Yeah." I say. "Th-Thought I might come back and m-make us some lunch. Is s-soup and sandwiches okay?"

Amos' thick eyebrows shoot up. "He's making you lunches now? You got yourself a keeper there kid." He nudges his daughter.

She is BEAMING. "I sure do Pops."

I giggle. "It's n-no bother, really. Are you st-sticking around Amos or...?"

"Nah!" Winona cuts in before he can answer. "He's heading back to town to eat."

"I'm...heading back into town to eat with Cher." He says with a knowing smirk. "Or so I'm told."

"Cher?"

"Mom." Winona answers. "Her name's Cheryl but everyone calls her Cher. Like the singer."

"Yeah. I know her." I say as happy images of Grandpa in Halloween drag flash through my mind. "W-Wait a second. Cheryl? Her n-name is Cheryl Crow?"

"Don't start that again." Winona gives me a warning point. "Don't!"

"Cheryl and Russell Crow!? He he he. I didn't even know they were related!"

"You brat!"

I giggle despite myself. "Pfft! He he he he!"

Amos chortles and shakes his head at our silliness. "The boy likes to live dangerously I see."

"Indeed." Winona's eyes narrow. Even as she scowls though she reaches out her hand. I take it and we squeeze hands tightly before letting go again.

"So did you find what you were looking for up there Avery?" Amos looks up the slope.

"Unfortunately no. Not really." I say. "B-But I do know of another place where you can see the whole peninsula and town. C-Can't quite see the garage from there but it wouldn't be too hard to c-composite it in. Or I-I could get a shot from the approach from town up at the garage. With the sunrise shining over the m-mountain behind it it might be p-pretty cool."

"Yeah sure Avery." Amos says. "I'll leave it to the pro. I'm sure whatever you come up with will be amazing."

"I-I'll do my b-b-best." I say softly. "H-How about I do up a few things and see wh-which you like?"

"Great." He looks at his daughter and stuffs the rag into a pocket. "Another half hour and we'll break for grub?"

"Sounds good." Winona watches her dad walk back into the garage then reaches for me again, this time with both hands.

I take her hands and get pulled right up against her. Gazing up into her rich hazel eyes I whisper. "Miss me?"

"You know it." She kisses me softly once, twice, three times. "Feel better?"

"Yeah. I needed that." I take a breath and lay my head on her shoulder. "Tired, but better."

"I'm draggin too." She hugs me and kisses my head. "Those long nights'll catch up with ya."

"Worth it though." I look back up at her. "I wouldn't trade last night for a thousand good night sleeps."

"Damn right!" She plays with one of my bangs for a few seconds then sighs a happy sigh. "You should check out the sign. It looks awesome. I still can't believe it."

"I will."

"I'll be a bit." She runs her hand down my smooth cheek. "Okay? Just make yourself at home."

"I will."

One last kiss and then together we walk into the garage. As Winona peels off to help her dad with whatever they were doing with the main vehicle lift I walk right through and out one of the open bays. Taking a few strides away from the building I turn around to see 'Win's Garage' proudly emblazoned along the top of the building. The big, bold letters alone gave the place a much need shot of life. With a coat of paint and little sweeping and weeding around the front and this place was going to look new again.

I head back in, pause to say how good I thought it looked and give Brutus a little fist bump, then carry on into Winona's suite. With a look around I decide to do as I was told, make myself at home. For me this means tidying up. The place wasn't messy, just a few errant clothes and a sprawl of books and papers across the table, but I set myself to get the place looking perfect without being too disruptive. As I work I hum one of the more upbeat country songs I'd heard recently. Country had never been my genre but I was definitely developing an appreciation for it now. After tidying I give the place a quick clean and open the window so the place would smell great for Winona's lunch break. And after the sweaty work of traipsing up the mountain I also take a very swift rinse off in the shower. If everything else was clean I'd only look dirtier by comparison if I hadn't. And then at last I head back to the kitchen area to begin rummaging around for the fixings of a meal.

In a small pot I get a can of beef and barley stew warming on the hotplate. Certainly not my favorite soup but I knew from our shopping trip that Winona liked it. I wash a few vegetables to chop and set them on the counter then bring out some bread, tomatoes, cheese, sliced turkey, mayo and mustard. Looking at the yellow mustard then looking at my spotless shirt I decide to play it safe and grab an apron and tie it around my slender waist.

As I smooth it out over me I smile. She liked me in an apron. 'I do love a man in an apron.' She'd once said to me. 'Very sexy.'

I titter. Me in my apron, sexy? I found that funny. My new nylons, my clit-cage, a nice suit, sure. But an apron? Funny. But who was I to judge? I thought she looked absolutely smokin hot in those sturdy coveralls. It lifted me knowing that I would be looking good for her when she walked in. I untie it then cinch it a little bit tighter around my svelte physique. If I was going to flaunt what I got I might as well flaunt it right. And it was then than an idea strikes me. A silly, sexy, playful idea. Should I? What if Amos came in? After a moment's pause I laugh. What the heck. The reward outweighed the risk.

"He he he!"

Again I loosen the waist ties not believing I was doing this even as I was doing it. Winona would find me in an apron alright. An apron...and nothing else!

***

Chapter 82

Barefoot and naked, except for the tightly cinched kitchen apron of course, I stand at the counter preparing lunch with my ears perked for the slightest indication that Amos might be heading my way. If that happened my only hope would be a mad dash for the washroom but as it was across the room and I'd have to pass right by the door to get there Winona's huge father would almost certainly see my pale white fanny streaking across the room. My heart is beating like a scared bunny's even though I had a grin plastered to my face and occasionally giggle in giddy anticipation. I felt like I did that time my face was mashed into Winona crotch in the truck as I hid from Amos. The chance of getting caught was such a heady thrill!

I let out a sigh of relief as I hear Amos echo through the garage. "See you after lunch."

"Have a good one Pops." Winona calls back.

A few seconds later there is the slam of a car door followed by the thrum of an engine. Yes! Winona and I were alone.

With my bare ass exposed to the room I do my absolute best to play it cool as I stand at the counter chopping carrots.

When the door swings open I don't look as I knew I would burst out laughing if I did. Instead I just focus on the task in hand.

"Honey! I'm ho..." Winona's voice cuts off mid-word as she sees what awaited her. I bite my lips so as not to giggle. For a few heartbeats there is silence followed by a loud SLAM of the door swung shut behind her. Again, silence for a long electric moment. Then I hear the clomp, clomp, clomp of Winona's steel-toed work boots slowly approach me from behind.

A shiver of aching anticipation runs up my body causing gooseflesh to raise every fine hair on my body. With a casual tone that impressed even myself I say. "How's your day g-going dear?" No response. Instead she leaves me to squirm under her silent treatment. Closer and closer she comes until... "Hah!" I gasp as suddenly she presses right up against my back. Against the tender naked skin of my back and butt and upper hamstrings I feel the coarse cotton weave of her coveralls. Her breasts push against my shoulder blades, the cold brass of the zippers that ran across her breast pockets makes me tremble. And between my bare buttocks I feel a now familiar bulge nestle in, right at home. Her taller, wider, heavier frame looms over and around me to pin my hips to the counter. Try as I might to resist it the experience overwhelms me, forcing me to set down the knife before I hurt myself. "Ohhh!"

"Mmm." Winona jams her lips into the curve where neck meets shoulder and nuzzles hard. Three long, sucking kisses grace my neck, each one a bit higher than the last until her nose is buried in the hair behind my ear. At the same time her hands slip along my flanks, below my armpits, to slide right in under the front bib of the apron and grab my pec-titties. "What's for lunch?" She whispers as she peeks over me at the plates and bowls I'd just prepared for us before kissing back down my neck and across my shoulder.

"Ohhh...um...soup and v-v-veggies and...oh...turkey and ch-cheese sandwiches." The way she was touching me already had me breathing heavy and sets my skin to tingling from head to each of my ten curling toes. "Ohhh."

"Sounds...yummyyy." She croons between two lingering smooches behind my left shoulder. "But Daddy wants a bit more than soup and turkey sandwiches."

"Ohhhh." I sigh. Winona holds me there with her weight as her softly sucking lips pass back the way they came and her groping hands explore chest and sides. Bringing a hand up suddenly she lifts the short length of hair that hung from the back so that she could snoozle into the shorthairs at the back of my neck. "Oh!"

"Oh baby girl." She whispers. "You drive me crazy." Her hands glide down my bare arms then over my hands where she interlocks her fingers through mine and holds my hands firmly to the counter. Holding me there she kisses my neck and down my spine. "I'm gonna eat you up."

"Hmmm!" I moan and press my bum back against her growing cock. My own dick was already as stiff as the carrot on the cutting board in front of me, tenting my apron as it was squashed between my body and the drawers. In a sudden motion Winona's face was alongside my own again and in the next second she had my earlobe pinched in a nibbling bite. "OH! Daddyyy!"

Another flurry of motion. This time her hands let go of mine and swoosh back up my slender arms. Her left arm loops down to hold me around the chest, her hand clutching my right titty, while her right hand comes up to find my mouth. She lightly drags the tips of her fingers back and forth across my tender bottom lip as the harsh citrus smell of the soap they used in the shop crawls up my nostrils. When her middle digit does find the center it finds my lips pursed and parting for it. I wrap my lips around her finger and suck it with all the passion I would give to her cock. As my suction pulls her finger in she pushes until she was two knuckles in. Her finger had the sudsy bitterness of soap but I couldn't have cared less. I begin to suck and tongue at her middle finger hungrily. As her finger thrust in and out her palm presses up against my chin, forcing my head up to lay back against her shoulder. The arm around my chest tightens, the grip on my boob squeezes hard.