Catching Up Ch. 04

Kristen's hopes of laughing off the incident and getting back to normal with Joel were short-lived. The next morning he could barely make eye contact with her as he came in, and so it continued for days and weeks afterward. She understood why, and a part of her feared that they would never be the same again. She kept thinking she could make light of it somehow, but it was obvious he wasn't ready to do that. All she could do was talk to him when work demanded, her skin crawling with discomfort each time.

She sat at her desk, the hours dragging painfully by, and reflected that this was the price she was paying for getting out of control. Once or twice had been fun, but setting her sights on every guy out there had been a bad mistake. She'd not lost a shred of self-respect when she'd picked up two strangers in the club and taken it hard from them at both ends, for all Pam's disapproval, but doing this to someone she cared about made her hate herself.

When she finally got her summer leave it was a relief to abandon the office for a couple of weeks and try not to think of anything -- work, the impending divorce, or her recent excesses. She had booked a vacation months before, when she and Tony were still an item, and there seemed no reason why she should cancel it just to sit at home and stew some more. A few days at a cabin on a remote hiking trail were just what she needed right now, even if it would be more lonely than cosy.

She had a long journey up in the car, with just the radio for company. She watched the trees fly by on either side and started to lose all sense of where she was. This time round she didn't have someone by her side touching her up, yet she was still finding it hard to concentrate on what she was doing. When she finally found the sign leading off to the park where the trail began, it was more by luck than by judgment. She edged down a narrow track which opened up into a rough, overgrown parking lot, ringed by a low wooden fence.

Kristen got out gingerly after the long drive, and made her way across to the map pinned up by the exit. The trail headed up a short incline and into the darkness of the woods beyond, there to run for miles through a series of hills and valleys. She tried to make sense of the route, and before long she felt the presence of another pair of eyes trying to do the same.

"Don't worry, I've been coming here for three years now and I still can't make head nor tail of this thing." Kristen turned and was met with a welcoming smile from the new arrival. He was tall, his hair in a short buzz-cut and a slight ring of stubble round his face. He leaned confidently against the map, his hands in his pockets but looking anything but disinterested. She could tell straight away that he was the outdoor type. He wore a beige jacket with all kinds of flaps and pockets sticking out of it, and large baggy shorts.

"OK, so... the cabins are up here?" she asked, pointing to a semi-circle of open ground marked on the map. "How are you supposed to get to them?"

"Well, most people take the next exit a couple of miles on -- that takes you straight up there." He looked at Kristen's bemused face. "Y'see, this is the start of the trail. It runs through the main camp, but it's not quite the same thing." He gestured to the largely empty parking lot around them. "There aren't many of us who come through this way."

"Oh, I see." Kristen felt a little embarrassed. She pointed down at her floral dress and sandals. "I don't exactly look like a hiker, do I?"

"Eh, you're fine. We don't all tool up in combat gear and carry our weight around on our backs."

"Well you do," she observed, nodding back towards the 4 by 4 parked a few feet away with a large backpack sitting on the open tailgate.

"Yeah, well, I am hoping to cover a good stretch today. Maybe about twenty miles or so." Kristen raised her eyebrows, impressed. "This trail runs across three counties, there's plenty of routes to choose from."

"Where's your cabin, then?"

"If you're interested," he said in a wry tone, brushing past her elbow as he pointed at the map, "right up here. It's a bit more remote than the rest, but I don't feel like parking an SUV in the woods and unpacking a ton of luggage. That's not exactly getting away from it all."

"Do you like to get back to nature then?" she teased him. "Live off the land, forage for berries, stuff like that?"

"No, I stock up at the supermarket down the road first." He jerked a thumb towards his backpack. "That's where all the extra weight comes from, but don't tell anyone. I've got an image to maintain." He smiled and held out his hand. "Sean."

"Kristen."

"So... you here on your own?"

"Uh-hmm," Kristen nodded, suddenly feeling her arms hanging awkwardly at her sides. "Wasn't supposed to be, but..." She shrugged, and could see him staring at her with a flicker of curiosity, but thankfully he didn't press the point. They stood silently, looking down at the ground for a few moments.

"Well, if you get bored looking at the scenery," Sean said eventually, "come up and say hi some time. If you need any help getting around, choosing the right routes to follow, just ask."

"Thanks," she said with a slightly sardonic nod of the head. "Y'know, I may not be a great outdoorswoman, but I did go camping a few times as a kid." She could see a little smile breaking out on his face, and felt herself mirroring it. "I made a fire and all. Seriously."

"No no, I believe you," Sean said hastily, holding up his hands in defence as he backed away. "I can see you've got a lot of skills."

Kristen fixed him with a reproving look. "Yeah well, while you're fixing up your canteen or whatever, I'm heading up there. Might as well take a look at my other neighbours. If you run into me, I'll shout if I need rescuing."

"Please do," he said with surprising directness, his eyes suddenly fixed on her. He looked away suddenly, and concentrated on his pack. "Well, I'll see you around," he added, giving her a little farewell wave. She turned to head up the track into the woods, but allowed herself a final look back at him as he returned to his car. She liked what she saw very much. This could be a more interesting week than she counted on.

The further Kristen got up the trail, the more she began to wonder whether she should have swallowed her pride and gone round the front way like everyone else. The path wound its way up through a thick blanket of shrubs and trees, which blotted out most of the light. The slippery gravel slope began slowly to level out, but when she reached the top of the hill there were still very few distant points visible through the tree cover. She knew the main path should take her to the camp eventually, but the distances seemed a lot further than they had been measured out on the map.

She advanced cautiously along the track, pushing stray branches out of her way. It was an overcast but humid afternoon, and she began to feel the sweat gathering below the shoulder straps of her dress. She wiped her forehead on her arm and tried to get her bearings from the few landmarks she could see. There was a hill off to the left, covered in thick conifers and surrounded by a mass of scrub which encircled the entire valley between the two ridges. To her right, the vegetation got even thicker as it steadily dropped down towards the distant highway.

Kristen was about to turn round and head back the way she'd come, eating some humble pie if she ran into Sean, when the trees in front of her began to thin out. She could see open ground up ahead, and with a renewed burst of effort she pushed her way out of the undergrowth and into a large clearing. The trail carried on ahead of her round a bend and back into the trees, but there was also a lower, pebbly ridge running below it, dotted with heather and thick clumps of bushes.

With the humidity suffocating her, Kristen climbed down onto the ridge and sank gratefully to the ground, surveying the forest. From up here she could see a few more gaps in the vegetation, and had a slightly better sense of where she was. The cabin site couldn't be far now. The sun had dried and hardened the soil beneath her into a slippery powder, and she shuffled about on it awkwardly as she tried to make herself comfortable. Finally she lay backwards, stretching her legs out lazily on the grass, and relaxed in the summer heat.

She glanced to her right, in the direction she'd come from, and realised after a few seconds that she could see something bright moving in the tree line. It was Sean's flashy sports backpack, bobbing up and down as its owner climbed the slope. He was heading up towards the main track that she had followed into the clearing. All she had to do was lie there and wait for him and in two or three minutes, he'd come walking innocently by...

As it had so many times over the past few weeks, Kristen's deviant brain formed an idea -- and instead of thinking better, of taking the sensible option, she embraced it at once. She sat up and pulled off her sweat-soaked dress, flinging it to the ground beside her. Her bra and panties swiftly followed, and there she was, completely back to nature. She lay flat on the ground, her heart pounding as she felt her bare flesh press into the earth. She was conspicuous enough already, but now it was time to make a real spectacle of herself.

The humid air stuck to her skin in huge pockets, coating her neck and chest, as she spread her thighs wide and reached down to her crotch. She slid two fingers inside her pussy without the slightest resistance, and got to work with a speed and force that surprised even her. She was so wet she almost felt she could fit her entire fist in there. Spreading her legs even wider, she wallowed in the dirt and dust, her chest heaving with the sudden effort. The unreality of it all, out here in the middle of nowhere, only increased her arousal.

Kristen took a deep breath and closed her eyes, her other senses suddenly on fire. She arched and writhed against the rough soil, feeling pebbles sliding down either side of her undulating body. Above the pleasant rhythm of bird song came the insistent slurping noise of her fingers pumping in and out of her cunt, and gradually another sound became discernible in the distance. There were footsteps tramping heavily down the gravel pathway, completely oblivious to what they were about to discover. Kristen steeled herself, biting into her bottom lip, and fingered herself faster and deeper. She had no way, no time, to back out now.

After a few seconds she heard the footsteps stop abruptly and there was total silence, except for the blood rushing through her head and a frantic voice yelling at her that this was really happening. A giddy wave of excitement surged through her and she let out an involuntary moan, her body twisting to one side. She stopped, her fingers still halfway inside her, and let out a long, soft breath. Then she lay there for a good thirty seconds, calming her body down, before she finally opened her eyes.

Sean was perched on a rock a few feet away from her, arms folded on one knee as though he were listening to a lecture. He bent his head slightly as her eyes focused hazily on him. "Y'know," he said at last, taking a long pause, "when you said you'd shout if you needed rescuing, I didn't quite realise this was what you meant."

"Sorry," Kristen smiled bashfully. "I got a little carried away."

"No you didn't," he said gently. "You knew exactly what you were doing. Maybe if you thought you were out here on your own..." His gaze swept over her naked body. "But you saw me coming, didn't you?"

"Busted!" she admitted, covering up her eyes.

"It's OK, I forgive you."

Beneath her outstretched palm Kristen smiled, broadly enough for him to see it. She slowly pulled her hand off her face and looked at him, the adrenaline rush of being caught masturbating replaced by a feeling of relaxation and comfort at having her body looked at by him, out here in the middle of nowhere. "Do you mind if I finish?" she asked, the words sliding out of her as easily as if she were asking for directions. "I'm having too much fun here. I'll be with you as soon as I can."

"Take your time," said Sean affably, leaning back on the rock. "You've got me as a lookout now, haven't you?" Kristen grinned and settled back on the ground, her eyes closed once more. She was glad he was enjoying the view, but she had no intention of leaving it at that. Not this time.

With her fingers thrust deep into herself again, she reached up to the roof of her pussy, searching for her G-spot. When she hit the soft mound of tissue a little tingle of pleasure ran all the way down to her toes and she bucked upwards, a gasp erupting from her mouth. She focused all her efforts on that spot, a consistent, steady motion, drawing her orgasm out of her. The blades of grass below her and the sticky heat above both pressed in, pinning her in position. She let her head drop to her shoulder and ground herself against the soil, her thighs caked in dirt and sweat.

After a couple of minutes she felt her pussy lock down on her fingers, contracting fast. With a low grunt of satisfaction she rolled to one side, clenching her thighs together, and a warm wave of pleasure travelled down her body to her extremities. She let it engulf her, eyes still tight shut but well aware of Sean taking in every last detail. Fluid trickled out of her fist, soaking the ground beneath her.

She didn't even hear a sound this time; the first she knew of it was when she suddenly felt Sean's lips on hers, and her heart leapt in shock. She quickly recovered her composure and savoured the kiss silently, reaching up to stroke his neck and draw him closer to her. His stubble tickled her skin as their mouths danced together, tasting each other for the first time. He lay beside her in a gentle embrace, running his hand all the way down her naked trembling torso.

Kristen opened her eyes at long last and stared into his sparkling green irises, his face only inches from hers. She let out a puff of air, her cheeks glowing from her recent exertions. This outdoor life really took it out of you.

"I guess you didn't need rescuing after all, did you?" he murmured, stroking her chin.

"You know what I need," she replied in a low voice. She wrapped her arms round his neck and drew him down into a longer, firmer kiss, their noses and brows pressed tightly together. She felt his chest pumping hard above hers, and something else even harder against her thigh. Suddenly she had the urge to rip those baggy hiker's clothes off him and get down to it straight away.

"By the way," Sean whispered in her ear, as if he had anticipated that very thought, "you were trying to find the main camp site?"

"Yeah...?"

"Well it's just on the other side of that line of trees, where the path goes round the bend," he informed her, nodding towards the far side of the clearing. "Good job you couldn't hold out any longer, or you'd have drawn quite a crowd."

"My God," Kristen giggled, holding a hand up to her face in disbelief. "I'm such a slut."

Sean smoothed her hair back from her face. "Prove it," he muttered, and kissed her again. Their bodies writhed together more forcefully this time, grinding against each other in seething frustration. Sean held Kristen's arms behind her head, pinning her tightly to the ground, and she was just steeling herself to be taken there and then when he suddenly stood up and lifted her to her feet. She flew straight into his arms before she knew what was happening.

"I think we need to take this somewhere more private. You want to come and see my cabin?"

"I bet that's the line you always use," she whispered, pressing her hand against his shorts and giving him a long, sustained grope. After another bout of kissing she reached down and gathered up her clothes, lifting a leg to slip on her panties.

"Why don't you let me take those?" Sean suddenly offered. He gripped her wrist firmly and took the garments from her. She looked at him open-mouthed as he knelt down and stuffed them into his backpack. He stood up again and shrugged. "Well, you're not gonna need them, are you? If we meet someone on the way there, I'll just tell them you're a naturist who got lost."

Kristen stood there watching him sling his pack onto his shoulders and realised that this was happening, right now. She gave a little shake of her head and glanced round nervously at the trees, her arms folded protectively over her crotch. Suddenly she was keenly aware of her nudity in a way she hadn't been when she was lying on the ground pleasuring herself. She thought about asking nicely for her clothes back, but the dirtier side of her found his idea hugely appealing. After the shock she had given him, it was only fair that she would have to earn her clothes back. She would enjoy the process of earning them, too.

Sean gestured further up the trail, where it branched off into a smaller path that ran higher into the forest. "After you." He took hold of Kristen's arm and propelled her gently forwards in front of him, as though steering a child. They set off down the path together, Sean acting as her escort and guide through the woods.

As they walked Kristen felt her heart pound uncontrollably, her sandals all that separated her naked body from the forest floor. She stared straight ahead, thinking constantly of what she would do if someone came into view round the next corner. Even for her, this would be a tough one to brazen out. The fear and anticipation mixed together like a cocktail, impossible to distinguish from each other.

Sean was doing a pretty good job of keeping level-headed, as though he did this kind of thing every day, but she could tell that he too was breathing quickly. Once they got up to a higher ridge where the trees thickened again, he picked up the pace dramatically, urging her onwards in front of him. She felt stray branches tug against her calves as she passed, and swatted away insects that dived close to her breasts and shoulders. The heat had built up again, and it clung to her like an extra layer of skin, a thick film shimmering on her body.

Gradually the ridge began to dip down and the path grew wider, becoming a gentle incline. This area was better shielded from the sun, and there were thick wet leaves carpeting the ground. In the distance Kristen saw the path level out into another clearing, occupied by a little wooden cabin nestled against the trees. Knowing they were safe from prying eyes now, she allowed her mind to wander to what was about to happen, and what exactly she was going to do with Sean.

They strode down the bank together, half-running, and suddenly Kristen felt her hands being pinned behind her. Sean marched her forwards across the few feet of open ground, right up to the cabin door, then spun her round and pushed her against the wood with a force that took her breath away. He tossed his pack down and grabbed her hard, his fingers digging into her eagerly waiting flesh. She wrapped her legs round his torso, allowing him to lift her almost bodily into his arms.

He sucked greedily at her neck and chest, gripping her right nipple hard between his teeth. Kristen gasped out loud, arching her back against the hard wooden planks. She took hold of Sean's head and guided him to her other breast to do the same. Her hands tugged impatiently at his jacket collar, the thrill of being naked in his arms replaced by the desire to make the situation a little more equal. They stayed like this for another few seconds, until Sean released her and reached out to the cabin door. It had barely opened before he was pushing her inside.

In the sudden darkness, Kristen shed her last traces of inhibition. Kicking off her sandals, she swung round and tore the layers from Sean faster than she ever had with any man. In an instant she had his jacket off and was ripping his shirt buttons open. What she found more than lived up to her expectations, and her fingers tickled his ribcage as she kissed her way down his warm, sculpted chest, the hairs on it tickling her nose slightly. She gave him a deep, smothering kiss on his belly button, then dropped to her knees, poised just above the waistband of his shorts. She looked up at him appealingly as she undid them and slid them down, affecting a look of surprise when his dick sprang up into her eye line.