Twisted (23 page)

"We're almost there," he insisted, noting the start
of my impatience.

Suddenly, I noticed the trees opening up, their leaves
draping over dark teal water.  Edwin pulled me from the trail and led me
through the lush emerald green grass toward the soft flowing water.  Hanging
from a huge old weeping willow tree that creaked in the light summer breeze,
was a hammock for two.  It swayed in the wind, hanging over the dark water then
swinging back over toward the land.

"Oh, Edwin," I gasped.  "It's beautiful."

"I knew you'd like it," he said.  "I thought
of you the second I discovered it yesterday.  This is where I did all of my
thinking.  It's so peaceful.  You have to try it out."

"Absolutely," I said, following him into the warm,
grassy sanctuary.

The wind carried the hammock over the land and Edwin held it
for me to hop on.  When I did, it swung me out over the water and threatened
dropping me in.  I giggled and froze as it slowly swayed back and forth until
it came to a stop over the water.

"Give me your hand," Edwin said.  After I reached
out to him, he grabbed onto the netting, holding me up in space against
gravities wishes.  "You ready?"

I nodded, smiling, and Edwin joined me without too much
trouble.  He curled his arm under my neck and I shuffled until I had my head on
his shoulder.  The swing gently swayed us between the dark water and luscious
grass, in the comfort of each other's arms.  It was amazing, a euphoric experience.

The weeping branches wisped around us, surrounding us in a
magical solace.  The air was filled with sounds of nature, soft waves,
quivering leaves and small birds singing a harmonious song.  It was incredibly
peaceful, lying in Edwin’s arms, looking out over the serene morning lake.  We
must have lied there silent for an hour, just appreciating nature and each
other.

"You see?  This is how much I love you," Edwin
whispered in my ear.
      I wanted to swoon, but instead I glued my mouth to his.  He parted his
soft lips and I intertwined them with mine.  His mouth was warm and sweet, but
his body was rock solid.  He grasped my thigh and pulled me on top of him, his
hands gently moving my hips, slowly rocking me against his growing erection. 
He opened his mouth wide on a groan and his tongue discovered mine, hot and
greedy.  The intensity of my emotions was wearing on my control.  I wanted him right
there.

Just then, Aliah and Hunter strolled up the trail and cut
through the grass hand in hand.  "Hey beoch!" Aliah called, when she
realized it was us.

      Leave it up to Aliah to disrupt me from my oasis.  I
reluctantly detached myself from Edwin’s mouth and looked back toward the
oncoming voices.  Edwin held me against him, so as not to expose his condition.

"Good to see you’re alive," she added
sarcastically.  "Nice of you to pop in and show your face last
night."

"Hey, that's my fault.  I had other plans for her,"
Edwin said in my defence, flashing a wickedly sexy smile.

When Edwin gripped onto my butt, Hunter snickered and Aliah
slapped him.

"So what do you want anyway?" I asked.

"Excuuuse me," she whined sarcastically.  "I
didn't know I needed a reason to come and say hi to my friend.  A-c-t-u-a-l-l-y,
I wanted to see if you were up for some shopping in town.  There are some local
shops I wanted to check out.  That is, if Edwin will let you," she teased.

"That sounds like it could be fun," I said, my eyes
locked on Edwin.  "What do you say?"  It was so unlike me to ask for
permission, being a headstrong feminist when it came to women’s rights, but I
did need to know that we were okay.

Edwin raised a sarcastic brow.  "I hate to say no,
but…"

"I'll save you bro,” Hunter cut in.  “Why don't the girls
go and we can take our turn soaking some sun on the beach?  You know, check out
the ladies."

This time Aliah gave Hunter a tight elbow in the gut.  He
grunted, seemingly unharmed.

"I'm just playing baby.  You know I only have eyes for
you," he teased, and Aliah soaked it right up.

I looked at Edwin, unsure whether he would seriously be okay
with me leaving his side.  I was feeling a bit insecure myself after
yesterday's incident.

"I'm cool with that," Edwin said, then brought his
lips to my ear.  "I trust you babe," he whispered.

Aliah came to the edge of the water and reached out to me.  I
grabbed her hand willingly, though reluctant to pull myself from my cozy little
bed of joy.

Edwin stumbled his way off the hammock too and instantly I
was back in his arms.  "Don't make me regret my decision." 

I GAZED
DOWN THE narrow tourist packed street.  Everyone was dressed for the beach and
most were wandering in and out of a collection of little shops lining the road. 
Colourful, flowery clothes and bathing suits were plastered in the windows and
hanging from racks on the sidewalks.  Tacky souvenirs, cheap jewellery,
outrageous sunglasses and a hoard of baseball caps adorned the many shelves and
displays.  Despite my cold reception, I really couldn't wait to look around.

Aliah and I inspected each and every shop.  We pranced around
in wild bikini's, played around with random toys, tried on stylin' hats with
feathers and struck a pose in our cool shades.  After a morning full of girly
fun, we managed to pick up a few things that we really didn't need, but got
anyway as mementos from our vacation.  I even found a little something for
Edwin.

Being parched from all that exercise and, after skipping
breakfast, I was starved.  We approached a cozy restaurant with an outdoor
patio and decided it was the place for us.  The pink lemonade was refreshing
and my meal was delish.  I didn't realize how badly I needed this.

"So, you and Edwin, you're good?" Aliah finally
asked.  She had been avoiding that question all day.

"We're good.  Better than good, I think.  I should've
never done that to him.  I don't know what comes over me sometimes."

"I tried to warn you," Aliah said, flashing me an
I
told you so
look.
"I know.  Sorry for not listening.  What can I say?  I can't pass up an
opportunity for trouble," I teased.

"Now you sound like me."

"I know, right?"

"So, aren't you gonna to ask me about my man?"
Aliah pressed, eager to tell.

"Your man?"  I could’ve swore he was only teasing
earlier.

"Don't play dumb.  Hunter’s mine.  We had a long talk
last night and you were right.  He does like me like that."

"I'm happy for you."

"Thanks to Jay for keeping Maddie's attention all night,
I had Hunter all to myself.  No really: She went and stayed at Jay's place. 
What a whore."

"Now tell me how you really feel," I said, laughing.

After finishing our meal and paying the bill, we went on our
merry way.

"Hey, check this out.  I didn't see this on our way
in," Aliah said, just steps away from the restaurant.

We strolled toward the local sea doo rental store.  A good
looking sales guy approached us before I could redirect Aliah's excitement. 
His dark tan and darker eyes guaranteed that he would have her attention.

"You ladies look like you're up for some fun.  What d’ya
say?  Two for the price of one for the pretty ladies."  He smiled at Aliah
with a mouthful of perfect white teeth.

"Now that depends on what you’re selling."

The cute salesman smiled, but didn't answer her.  It was
pretty damn obvious, since he was standing outside a hut full of PFD's and
photos of extreme sea doo adventures.  There was even an actual sea doo on the
sidewalk with a big for rent sign attached to it.

Aliah winked at him.  "Excuse us," she said,
evidently flustered as she pulled me aside.  "Damn, he's fine," she
whispered.

"You're hilarious.  What were you just telling me about
Hunter?  You think you're in love.  Come on now."

"Stay focused here.  It looks like fun.  What you
think?"

"Seriously?  Absolutely.  I'm in, but are you up for
it?"

"One night with him?"

"Aliah!  I'm talking about the sea doo you horney beoch."

"Oh, right," she giggled.  "Hey a girl has to keep
her options open, right?"

I shook my head.  "I'm gonna tell Hunter you said
that."

"No you're not."  She kept giggling and it was
infectious.

"I say we do it.  I think this might be just what I
need.”

Aliah squealed happily, throwing her hands in the air for a
high five.  "I wonder if
he
comes with the package."

"Actually, I was thinking we could get another sea doo
and invite the guys."

"You’re no fun, but…I guess I could settle for
that," she replied sarcastically.  "Wait, I have an idea."  Aliah
walked straight to the guy in the shop, interrupting his sales pitch to some
seemingly uninterested male bystanders.  "If you've got a third machine,
you've got yourself a deal."

He looked at the schedule for the day, ignoring the other
customers, and smiled at us.  "I only have the two machines available
right now.  I can hold them for you and get another one if you can come back in
an hour.  I'll need a deposit though.  I'm sure you understand," he said.

"That's not a problem.  We are so in.  That is, if your
offer’s still good."

Aliah batted her eye lashes at him, and I tuned her out while
she worked her magic.  Guaranteed her tune would change the second Hunter was
back in the mix.

WHEN WE
RETURNED TO the resort, we found Edwin and TJ tossing around a football in the
front yard.  When I got out of my car, I noticed how the ball would disappear
high into the trees and then, out of nowhere, shoot out the other end with a
burst of leaves.  Boys and their games.  Hunter was sitting in a white plastic
chair, observing the game and critiquing their throws.

"Honey, I'm home," I called out to Edwin.

Edwin caught the football and slammed it on the ground, like
a touchdown.  "Hey baby, I missed you."

I slipped into his open arms and kissed him hello.

Aliah headed for Hunter.  "We rented some sea doos for
the aft.  You guys in or what?" she asked.

"Hell yeah," Hunter cheered.

"Edwin?" I asked, looking into his dreamy eyes.

"I'm in if you're in babe," he said, then brushed
my lips with a kiss.

Aliah pried us apart and tugged on my arm.  "Oh she's
in, so get your shit together cuz it's time to go."

Before long, we were down at the dock searching for our
afternoon entertainment.  We climbed up the steep mound of sand that led to the
water's edge.

"There it is down there," I said, pointing to a
small aluminum dock.  Another random beach hottie was gassing up the machines.

"We only rented three, so someone’s gonna have to pair up,"
Aliah explained to Hunter and Edwin.

“Uh yeah, right,” Edwin said sarcastically, looking to
Hunter.

"You riding with me then?" Aliah asked me smiling.

"No way.  I've seen how you drive.  I'm not riding with
you," I teased.

"We'll see about that," she taunted.

"I take it you’re the ones taking out these bad boys.  Ladies
first," the hottie said.  "I'm Kane by the way.  If you have any
questions or troubles, I'm the man you need to see."

Aliah hopped on first, her smile bursting from her mouth.  "Well
hello Kane," she said enthusiastically, expressing her obvious obsession
with men.

"Before we go any further, you need one of these." 
Kane pulled out some PFD's and tossed one to each of us.  I slipped mine on
over my skimpy bikini and Aliah did the same.  Despite my fears of Ally's
driving, I knew the guys would like to go it alone, so I got on behind her. 
Hunter and Edwin seemed equally pleased with the arrangement.  Edwin wouldn't
stop raising his eyebrows at me, enjoying the half-naked girl on girl action.

"Stop it!  I fear for my life," I shouted.

"That's what the life jacket is for," Aliah said.  "You'll
be fine."

"Drive slow through the canal to keep the wake down. 
When you get out to the open water you can punch it.  You have three
hours," Kane said.  "Here's a watch for you to wear."  He
snapped the watch on Aliah's wrist and away we went.

"See you out there suckas!" Aliah called to the
guys as she cranked the gas and zoomed away.

"Slow down!" Kane called after us, though Aliah
didn't listen to him.  We passed a medium sized boat at the mouth of the water,
before we reached the open lake.  Aliah punched it as I knew that she would and
we sped off at full throttle.  The lake water misted steadily in my face, as we
jumped the wild waves.

"You're crazy!" I shouted.

"I can't get any lift on this thing, with your fat ass
on the back!"

She slowed up a bit and we turned about to see if the guys
had made it out of the canal.  We could see two small figures heading our way
at full speed.  It was them alright.