Through Steam and Glass

"So what's on the schedule for tomorrow?"

"Our massage appointment is at 10 am," Tina answered. "Full-body."

"Thank God." Kelly winced a little bit as she and her co-worker walked into the locker room. Each of them carried a bottle of water in hand and were wearing one-piece bathing suits - dark blue for Kelly and Tina's in lifeguard red. "I need someone to work out all the kinks in my legs and hips," Kelly said. "I had no idea horseback riding was this hard on your body. Worth it though," she added. "Those mountains vistas were stunning."

"Absolutely," Tina agreed, "but next time I'll just stick to hiking. Not as hard on your hips, plus you can set your own pace."

The locker room was empty as the pair of women passed through it, heading towards a thick wooden door set off of a small hallway located near the back of the roomy. "Do you see any towels?" After a moment Tina nodded towards a shelf that sat to the right of the wooden door. "Oh wait, there they are." Tina reached out and grabbed a pair of thick, fluffy white bath towels along with a pair of smaller washcloths for their faces. She offered one of each to her friend. "How's the sauna look?"

Kelly was peering through the small glass window set into the wooden door. "No one's inside," she said. "We've got it all to ourselves."

"Let's enjoy it while it lasts, then." Tina took the initiative and opened the door. Immediately she was gently caressed by a wave of soft heat, a light contrast to the relatively colder and more sterile feel of the locker room. She walked into the sauna, Kelly following and closing the door behind them. Both women let the warm air envelop them for a brief moment. Tina could feel the mental weariness from the day's ride beginning to evaporate. Hopefully, the stiffness in her bones and muscles wouldn't be far behind.

The sauna was built entirely of wood, with two levels of smooth pine that ran along three sides and a heating device set near the front wall. The heating device was comprised of a metal tub containing a pile of igneous rocks, it was surrounded by wooden planks to help keep its contents in a rough mound. A large bucket sat next to the tub, filled nearly to the top with water. Two dippers sat in the water, a small one and a larger one, both made from heat-resistant plastic.

Tina was smoothing her towel on the lower bench as Kelly took the large dipper and scooped a generous amount of water from the bucket. As soon as she poured the water onto the rocks a sharp hiss cut through the air, accompanied by a cloud of steam that began to fill the sauna. The process was quickened as Kelly added a second dipper's worth of water. By the time she had set the timer on the wall and turned around to take a seat, a thick haze was evident in the air. Tina, already sitting on her towel, held Kelly's bottle of water out towards her. "Thanks," Kelly said, opening the top and taking a quick sip. In a matter of seconds, Kelly had spread her towel and sat down on the lower level next to Tina. She leaned back against the wood before taking a deep breath through her nose, relishing the cleansing scent of the steam.

"So before we both start to drift off," Tina heard Kelly say, "is there anything on the agenda for tomorrow after the massages?"

"Whatever the hell we want," Tina answered. "I'm spending it poolside. Do some swimming, maybe try to tan a little bit."

"Lying on a lounge chair doing absolutely nothing sounds wonderful." Kelly sighed as she shifted her body on her bath towel. "Too many people treat their vacations like work. Everything's scheduled, everything's organized. They stress out too much instead of actually sitting back and having fun."

"Well I definitely had fun the past two days, but tomorrow I'm going to sit back." Tina reached over her shoulder with one hand and was rewarded with a high-five from Kelly, the slap sounding more forceful due to the impact of wet skin. Tina scooted her butt backward, getting more comfortable on the wooden ledge before closing her eyes. She breathed in and out through her nose, filling her chest with each inhalation before pulling her diaphragm in to force all the air out of her lungs. After a moment she repeated the process. Her breasts pushed against the tight fabric of her swimsuit, her shoulders rising into the air as Tina focused on her breathing. The ambient noise of the sauna began to fade away. The slight noises of Kelly's breathing along with the residual crackling of the rocks were slowly replaced by a pleasant sense of nothingness.

Tina and Kelly were on the second evening of a four-day, four-night, all-expense-paid trip to Blackcreek Basin, a year-round resort nestled in the mountains of northeastern Wyoming. For once, "all-expenses-paid" meant exactly what it sounded like. The company the pair worked for was footing the bill for everything that weekend - travel, lodging, and a per diem whose limitation was, to quote the surprised travel officer who handed them a company credit card, "make sure to bring back receipts." Initially skeptical about the no-limits potential of their per diem, Kelly had put it to the test two weeks before their departure by renting a high-end luxury pick-up truck from Enterprise for the five-hour drive from Boise, Idaho to Blackcreek. The travel officer had understandably raised an eyebrow when Kelly handed the invoice over to her, but several hours later the transaction had come back as approved. So far Tina and Kelly had taken full advantage, using the company card to pay for everything from gas to toiletries to a steak dinner in town the night before.

The trip was a gift from their company in recognition of the two women taking care of a huge problem before it became a huge problem. One late Friday afternoon, Tina had been putting the final touches on the advertising budget for the upcoming fiscal year. The budget was due to be locked in that upcoming Tuesday. While double-checking the figures Tina had noticed a major accounting error, one that if not fixed by Tuesday would cost the company millions in contract penalties and accounting fees paid towards their clients. Tina had brought it to Kelly, her team lead within the advertising office. Kelly's response had been to take Tina to see their office director, who immediately took full responsibility for the error and, much to Tina's surprise, authorized overtime for the two women. That weekend Tina and Kelly worked alongside their office director to fix the error and ensure there were no ripple effects throughout the rest of the advertising budget due to the monetary changes. The trio managed to fix the error by Monday morning and submit the completed budget on Tuesday.

On Thursday, the CEO of the company, Mr. Ellis, had stopped by the office director's suite. Tina and Kelly watched their big boss walk into their boss' office, only for both of them to be called in a few minutes later, where Mr. Ellis showered them with praise. "Your boss," he had said, motioning to their office director, "just took all the credit I was giving him for the budget and handed it over to you two. Have a seat and tell me what happened." By the end of the hour-long impromptu explanation, the CEO had lavished praise upon them and promised that the company would not only make sure they received their overtime and the paid leave that went along with the extra hours, but there would be something extra for them as well. "You two went above and beyond for the company," Mr. Ellis told them, "and I'll make sure the company goes above and beyond for you." And that was how Tina, a second-year employee, and Kelly, a team lead for over a decade, found themselves sitting in a warm sauna enjoying a full vacation on the company's dime.

A soft beep gently pulled Tina out of her reverie. She slowly turned her head to see Kelly sitting up on her towel. "It's been fifteen minutes," Kelly said, groaning slightly as she shifted and set her feet on the bench. Tina nodded, also grousing at being forced to move after getting comfortable. Both women took a drink of water before grabbing their bath towels and heading for the sauna door.

The relatively colder air of the locker room jolted Tina, her entire body shaking for a brief moment at the sensation. "It doesn't have to be a freezing cold shower," she asked Kelly. "Does it?"

"Not your first time through," Kelly answered. "As long as it's enough to cool you down, you can have it as warm as you want. But I prefer my showers cold. They feel SO much better on your skin."

The women headed into the shower area of the locker room. As far as Tina could tell they were still the only occupants. "I wonder where everyone else is," she wondered.

"Probably at dinner or getting ready to go out," Kelly answered as they stepped into the black-and-white tile-enclosed shower area. A set of three curtained wooden shower stalls were set against the front wall. The open area contained over a dozen showerheads, half-a-dozen on opposite walls.

After hanging up their damp towels the two women chose showerheads that were side-by-side. Tina stood to one side as she turned the knob and a gentle spray of water began to flow from the showerhead. She stuck her hand under the water, hissing slightly at the cold sensation. On the other side, Kelly had already stepped underneath the flowing water, humming with satisfaction as the freezing water fell over her body. It took a couple of seconds and some slight adjustments to the knob for the water to be warm enough for Tina's liking. As soon as she walked into the spray Tina heard herself sigh with relief as the water fell on her. She could feel the sweat from the sauna being washed away by the light deluge. The contrast of the warm water on her hot skin was just as wonderful as Kelly had promised. Tina turned around, groaning at the pleasant sensation gently tickling across her skin.

"Feels good, doesn't it," Kelly asked from under her showerhead. "Told you it would."

"Oh yeah...and how many more times do we do this?"

"Two more usually, although in the winter I'll go for three cycles. Four if I'm with my husband." Kelly reached around to the back of her head and easily undid the makeshift bun of black hair. Tina watched as her team lead's hair fell to her shoulders. "He loves saunas just as much as I do," Kelly explained as she ran her fingers through her hair, letting the cold water flow over her scalp, "although it took him a little bit to embrace freezing showers."

"I don't blame him." Tina followed Kelly's lead, her fingers pulling apart the strands of her short brown hair. "How do you even get used to cold showers?"

"A little bit at a time," Kelly answered. "Just turn the temperature down a little bit each time you take a shower. Eventually, you don't even notice."

Pause.

"Me volunteering to be in the shower with him also helped my husband with the process."

"Well," Tina said, laughing at the blatant comment from her team lead, "that's just cheating."

"What, that wouldn't work on you?" Kelly squeezed the excess wetness from her hair as she continued. "Having a cute guy in the shower, and all you have to do is put up with a little cold water?"

"I don't care how cute the guy or girl is," Tina replied. "Mankind's evolution can be traced to one thing - the desire to stay out of the elements, and for me, that means air conditioning and hot water." Kelly chuckled at Tina's observation before closing her eyes and leaning her head back. Tina's eyes followed the spray of water as it ran down Kelly's face and chest. She was drawn to the droplets of water that dripped towards Kelly's ample cleavage. The ice-cold water caused Kelly's nipples to push against the fabric of her swimsuit, which for Tina only served to accentuate the attractiveness of her team lead.

Kelly's body was finally starting to show its age after fifteen years of marriage and three kids. Her breasts were still firm against her chest, but there were dimples visible along the back of her thighs. Smile lines were gently creeping from the edge of her mouth as well. None of that mattered to Tina, who did her best not to frown every time Kelly made a joke about her age. At five-foot-seven and just on the north side of forty, there was a confidence about Kelly that more than made up for any flaws brought about by time.

It was that aura of confidence that attracted Tina to Kelly, not just personally but professionally. When Tina had started with the company nearly two years prior, being fresh out of college with little in terms of a sense of life direction, it was Kelly who had helped guide her through the transition from full-time student to functioning adult as well as acting as her professional mentor. Even though Kelly was nearly 20 years older than her and happily married, Tina had to admit there were times where Kelly's firm leadership and willingness to take charge drew Tina's attention on a more...personal level. At five-foot-six with short brown hair and a runner's build, Tina knew enough about corporate culture that doing anything with one's boss was, in the long run, a bad idea.

Still, there was nothing wrong with looking, and Tina did just that. She soaked in both the feeling of the warm water against her hot skin and the vision of cold water cascading over the body of her team lead.

After another minute or two, Kelly reached out and turned off her shower. Tina immediately followed suit. "OK," Kelly said to Tina as she squeezed and wrung the excess water out of her long black hair, "back to the sauna. How are you feeling?"

"Great," Tina answered, falling in step with Kelly as the pair left the shower area. "I can see why you and your husband are addicted. How many more times do we do this again?"

"Two or three, whatever you're up for. The key is not to get dehydrated." Once at the sauna door Kelly grabbed Tina and her fresh towels from the nearby stack. "If you start to feel dizzy or loopy, let me know and we'll stop."

"I'm still good."

"Alright." Kelly smiled at her co-worker as she reached for the sauna door. "Round two then."

X X X X X

"Excuse me?"

The question slowly pulled Tina from her reverie. "Hmm?" She rubbed her face for a moment before turning her head towards the front of the sauna. Someone was standing just outside the sauna door. Whoever it was had pulled the door open just enough to allow them to be heard without letting the warm air escape. "Sorry," Tina answered. "Can I help you?"

"Just checking to see if the sauna was in use," a feminine voice answered in response. "My wife and I are going to be coming in once she's finished getting undressed."

"Oh. OK. We'll be here," Tina said, her eyes already closing and her thoughts fading back in the mental ether...

"Tina?"

"Yeah Kelly?"

"Did that lady just say 'my wife and I?'"

Tina opened her eyes. "Huh," she said after a few seconds, "I think she did."

The sauna door opened at that particular moment. Two women, both wrapped up in white towels, stepped inside and quickly pulled the door closed behind them. One of them, a chestnut-haired woman who appeared to be in her late 30's, smiled and waved to the two women. "Hello," she said brightly. "Do you ladies mind some company?"

"Not at all." Kelly and Tina both sat up as the chestnut-haired woman moved to the rows of seats on the left wall of the sauna. Accompanying her was a younger woman. The first word that came to Tina's mind when she glanced at the younger woman was "pixie." She was in her late 20's or early 30's, with short black hair and a tattoo on each shoulder - a sun on her right shoulder and a moon on her left one. If she cleared five feet in height Tina would have been surprised. The chestnut-haired woman was half-a-foot taller and was closer to Kelly in her body type. The towel around her body barely contained her breasts while tightly hugging her hips. Her reddish-brown hair, Tina noticed, had been pulled back into two ponytails, both which hung down to just past her shoulders.

Both Tina and Kelly moved down a little bit on the middle rows of benches, putting a socially acceptable amount of distance between the two newcomers. The chestnut-haired woman sat down on the lower level while the black-haired woman paused at the bucket. "Do you guys mind if I pour some more water on?" She waited for both Tina and Kelly to agree, one with a nod and one with an affirming wave, before proceeding. A plume of steam rose from the rocks, adding to the pleasant humidity of the room. Tina decided to sit up, her back against the rear bench, legs stretched out before her. Kelly remained lying down, but she moved to the right side of the sauna and lay down, her head roughly level with Tina as she got comfortable again.

"Mmmm." The chestnut-haired woman sighed as she leaned back to rest her head against the wooden wall. The black-haired woman sat down next to her, leaning forward, elbows on her knees, chin tucked against her chest. The chestnut-haired woman reached out and gently rubbed the back of her colleague's neck. "We're not interrupting anything, are we," she asked Kelly and Tina.

"No," Tina answered. "We've just been sitting here doing and thinking about absolutely nothing for the past...half hour?" Kelly nodded in confirmation before Tina continued. "This is our third go-round. You're actually the first people we've seen so far."

"We just got back from hiking," the black-haired woman said. She ran her hands through her short hair, shaking it as loose as it could go. "I think a lot of people were either just getting back themselves or getting ready to go eat. We went right for our room, changed, hopped in the shower real quick, and ran down here in our bathrobes."

Kelly rolled onto her side, propping herself up on one elbow. "Looks like the four of us beat the crush," she said to Tina. "Well, the peace and quiet were nice while it lasted."

"Actually..." The chestnut-haired woman smiled at Kelly. Her voice held a hint of conspiracy. "We bribed the maintenance guy to put a 'closed for repairs' sign up on the locker room door. $100 bucks for one hour of privacy." She squeezed the pixie girl's neck, drawing a sound of approval from her. "It was her idea. And a really good one too."

"I've always been the idea girl." The black-haired woman leaned back, sliding a little closer to the chestnut-haired woman. "She's the one with the money. My own personal sugar momma."

"And Momma always pays the bills," the chestnut-woman replied with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

Kelly laughed as she sat up. "If you guys want privacy," she began, "we're pretty much done..."

"No, no. Sit down." The chestnut-haired woman motioned for Kelly to sit back down on the bench. "You two were here first. Take your time. As far as I'm concerned you're grandfathered in. I'm Jordan," she said before grabbing the knee of her colleague, "and this is my wife Laura." The pixie girl waved in greeting to the other women.

"So we did hear it right," Kelly said. "We were out of it when you peeked your head in earlier and thought we heard someone say 'my wife and I.'"

In response, both women proudly held up their left hands. A band of gold sat on both of their ring fingers. "Just got married on Sunday," the black-haired woman, Laura, said with a smile on her face. "This is our honeymoon."

"Congratulations! That's great! I'm Tina, and this is my friend Kelly. We're in from Boise on a resort weekend. Where are you coming from?"

"Iowa. Des Moines specifically," Jordan answered. "This is my first time outside of the state if you could believe that."

Jordan was now holding hands with Laura, who said with a smile, "this is the first time Jordan's ever seen a mountain, let alone several of them." She kissed her wife's hand. "I'm from Wisconsin originally, and I figured since it's our honeymoon...go big or go home, right? And it doesn't get much bigger than the Rockies."