“The ring box, where is it?”
“In the garbage.” I sigh. “I can’t have the box in my pocket; it’s too obvious,” I say, running my fingers over the ring again. This is a new habit; touching it does something to calm me.
“How long have you had it?
“A little over a month,” I say, shrugging. I like having it with me. I don’t know when I’ll ask; I just have a feeling that when the time comes, I will know.
“It ain’t burning a hole in your pocket?” Austin asks, looking at me curiously.
“Honestly,” I shake my head, “yeah, but I want to make sure that she is ready before I ask her.”
“I know a spot she loves,” Austin says, looking thoughtful. I’m not sure I would want to ask her to marry me at any location they used to go to together. He must read my face when the next words come out of his mouth. “Childs Glacier. She loves it out there. And no, we never went there together,” Austin says, and I remember her telling me about that place, saying there wasn’t anywhere in the world more beautiful. I can even remember the pictures she had in her apartment when I first started dating her.
“I’m not sure when I’m going to ask her. I want it to be in the moment.” I look at Austin and Frank, who both smile.
“Well, if you want her to say yes, then you should be in the moment at Childs Glacier.”
“She will say yes,” I say, not feeling so confident when I read the looks on their faces. “What?”
“When she was a little girl, she told me she wanted her future husband to ask her to marry her at her favorite spot, just like I asked her mom to marry me at her favorite place.”
“I don’t know. I just keep thinking I will know when I’m supposed to ask her.” I sigh, pulling the hat off my head.
“Bud, just take her out to the glacier. If you don’t get the feeling when you’re there, then don’t ask her,” Austin says. I really don’t want to like this guy, but he makes it hard not to.
“I’ll think about it,” I say, thinking over the idea.
“All right.” Frank smiles and pats my back. “Enough of the women-talk, time to go find our bear.”
“Shit,” I groan. “How the hell did I end up in this situation?” I look at Austin, who laughs.
“You need to man-up,” Austin says, smiling. “We need to make a man out of you. Hunting is like coffee; it puts hair on your chest.”
“If that’s the case, I think you need to quit drinking coffee and hunting.” I look him over, shaking my head. He looks like a bear.
“Jealous?” he asks, pulling down the top of his shirt and showing off his chest hair.
“Fuck no.”
“Chicks love it.” He smiles, and I can’t help but laugh.
“What the hell are you two gossiping about? Get it together; we’re burning daylight,” Frank yells. Austin looks at me and shrugs before taking off hiking again.
“You better be careful, Austin, you could easily be confused with a bear,” I tell his back. His hand raises over his shoulder so he can flip me off. I start to jog so I’m not so far behind and pray we don’t see a bear.
Chapter 11
Lilly
I look out the window of the truck into the side-view mirror. The dirt road we’re driving on is creating a large dust cloud behind us. All along the side of the road is empty space with large mountains off in the distance. My mom and dad are keeping the kids for us for a few hours so that Cash and I can go out to Childs Glacier. There are two glaciers near where I grew up in Alaska: one is Childs, the other, Miles. Childs Glacier has been one of my favorite places to go and think since I was young. There is just something about looking at a natural wonder that has been around for thousands of years. Along with the beauty of it—the amazing glaring white and turquoise color that is woven throughout the ice, and the river running along the front of it—if you’re lucky, you can watch a piece of ice fall off into the water; the sound of thunder that fills the air when it happens is awe inspiring.
“What’s going on in that head of yours?” Cash asks, pulling my hand up to his mouth to kiss my fingers.
“Nothing.” I smile, looking over at him.
“Are you sad that were leaving in a couple of days?”
“Yes and no.” I squeeze his hand. “I miss my parents, but I also miss home,” I tell him and see him smile.
“I miss home too, but I am gonna miss it here.” He puts my hand on his thigh with his on top of mine, his thumb running across the top. “This is someplace I could see myself living,” he says, and I laugh; he is only saying that because he has never gone through an Alaskan winter. “What’s so funny?”
“Honey, in the winter, there are times it snows so badly that you can’t even open the front door. A couple of years ago, the National Guard had to come in and dig people out because there were fifteen feet of snow in some areas.” I watch as his eyes almost bug out of his head. “So, now do you want to move here?” I ask him.
“I think we will just have to find time to visit in the summer.”
“I thought so.” I smile.
“What the hell is that?” Cash asks. My eyes go from him to the road, and I see a giant black blur in the middle of the road ahead of us.
“I don’t know,” I mumble, squinting my eyes. The closer we get, the clearer the object in the middle of the road becomes.
“Is it an elk?” Cash asks, and I shake my head no. I haven’t seen a wild moose up close for years, and this one is huge; the antlers alone look as big as the truck we’re traveling in.
“Slow down,” I say, trying to breathe.
‘What?” Cash asks, and I can see the moose take notice of us. I know we’re screwed unless we can get the truck turned around.
“Slow down!” I repeat, this time shouting the words. Cash slams the brakes, making the truck skid on the gravel road. The moose, who had been standing in the middle of the road, has now started running towards us. In Alaska, wild moose can be very aggressive, especially the males. “Turn the truck around!” I yell as I watch the moose running at us.
“Holy shit.”
“Turn the truck around now!” I scream, seeing the moose running at full speed. Cash looks at me, then slams the truck in reverse. The truck backs off the road, the tail end hanging off the road, down into the ditch. I look out the side window, seeing that the moose is still coming towards us. He is now a lot closer, his head down, and his large antlers swinging back and forth. “Go, go, go!” I cry, listening to the tires as they try to catch the road, but by the sound, I can tell that all they’re hitting is air.
“Baby, when I say, I need you to throw yourself back against the seat,” Cash says calmly.
“What?”
“Just do it…on three,” he says, his eyes on me. I nod, then he starts to count. The second he gets to three, I push myself backwards hard against the seat and feel the truck tip back. The tires hit the gravel, and the truck lunges forward. The only problem is now we’re heading right for the moose. “What the hell are you doing?” I scream, my hands going to my face to cover it.
“Shit!” Cash yells. I feel the car jerk to the right, making me slide across my seat, we jerk to the left. And I wait to feel the impact from the moose running into us, but nothing comes. “We’re good, babe,” Cash says, and I remove my hands from my face. “Are you okay?” Cash asks, and I nod as his hand goes to the back of my neck where his fingers move in slow circles. A few minutes later, he pulls the car over, unbuckles my seatbelt, and then pulls me over into his lap. “Are you okay?” His hands and eyes run over my body.
“Yeah, I’m good.” I wrap my arms around his shoulders, burying my face in his neck.
“We’re not moving to Alaska.”
“Agreed,” I say, breathing him in.
“I thought I was afraid of seeing a bear; now I know I should have been afraid to see a damn moose.” He chuckles, and I feel the rumble against my cheek. I don’t know if it’s the near death experience or what, but I want…no, I need
him. I feel my clit pulse and my mouth opens up on his neck. My tongue comes out, traveling up his neck to his ear, and I feel him grow hard under me. “Baby, what are you doing?” His voice is rough and goes right to my core, where I feel myself become wetter. His hand at my waist travels up my side so that his thumb is resting under my breast.
“Please, touch me.” I move my mouth to his, where I bite his bottom lip, giving it a hard tug. “Please, touch me,” I beg as I watch his eyes flash. Then his hand is in my hair at the back of my head.
“You want me to touch you?” he asks, pulling my face away from his. I nod and he tugs my hair again.
“Give me the words, Lil.”
“Yes, I want you to touch me,” I say barely above a whisper.
“My girl misses my touch?”
“Yes,” I agree. Since we have been in Alaska, we haven’t had sex. Being in my parents’ house isn’t really conducive. Their walls are like paper, and the kids have ended up in bed with us every night since we got here.
“Tell me what you want, baby.” He pulls my head forward, and I can feel the slight sting of his fist in my hair.
“Anything,” I say; I just need to feel his hands on me.
“Anything?” he asks, looking me over. His hand goes under the seat, and we slide back suddenly. “Don’t forget that you just said anything.” His hands go to my waist, where he turns me so that I’m straddling him. “Wait, take off your pants,” he says, helping me move so I can get my shoes and pants off. Once I get them off, he pulls me back over on top of him. I’m so turned on that the feel of the denim of his jeans rubbing against my inner thighs has me moaning out loud. “Put your hands on the steering wheel behind you.” My hands go behind me automatically, grabbing onto the steering wheel. This position causes my breasts to thrust out and my back to arch. I watch as Cash’s hand comes up and wraps around my neck before traveling down, and I hear the distinct sound of the zipper of my hoodie being pulled down. Once he has it open, his hands come up, palming my breasts through the thin tank top I’m wearing. My eyes close and I feel him tug the tank top and my bra down until my breasts are free. “You have beautiful tits,” he says, pulling on each nipple. “But you know I love your ass,” he says, his hands going to my behind, squeezing and pulling me hard against him. I cry out against the friction. “You’re really wet, baby.” I can hear the hunger in his voice; my eyes open and he is looking down between my thighs. His fingers run over the center of the thin material covering me. My body jerks, and his eyes come up to meet mine. Then I feel his finger move the material aside, the tip of his finger sliding over my clit. “Jesus, baby, what the fuck?” he growls before I’m flying through the air. I land on my back in the seat. I don’t even have time to react before my legs are thrust open, my panties ripped to the side, and Cash’s mouth is devouring me.
“Yes!” I cry, my hands going to his hair, holding him to me. My leg that is on the floorboard of the truck comes up to wrap around his shoulder. “Oh, God, don’t stop.” My head thrashes back and forth against the seat, and the minute I feel two fingers fill me, I come hard and fast. The force of it takes my breath away, and my hands in his hair fist and pull, trying to get him away from me. My eyes open when he stops; his eyes are on me as he wipes his mouth on the inside of my thigh. He sits up on his knees, still between my open legs, his hands go to the button of his jeans, and he unbuttons and unzips them quickly. His hard cock springs free when he pulls down his boxers, and his hands go back to my thighs, then under. He pulls me up, then leans his big body over me, filling me full in one long stroke.
“So fucking tight.” His words are said against my mouth. I can taste myself on him, his hands at my ass pulling me up to meet each stroke. My hands go up the back of his shirt, my nails digging into his skin. My foot goes to the steering wheel, getting leverage. “Fuck me, baby,” he rumbles, his body arching so he can bend his head to pull my nipple into his mouth.
“Yes,” I hiss, my head going back to push my breast deeper into his mouth. His pace picks up, his hips slamming into me so hard that my head starts to bang against the door until he puts his hand at the top of my head to cushion it.
“I love this pussy,” he groans, and I know he’s close when I feel him get even bigger inside me.
“I’m close,” I tell him, my mouth going to his shoulder and my legs tightening around him. His free hand comes between us, zeroing in on my clit. I thrust up against him and break apart, biting down hard. I feel myself convulse, and I know that my orgasm has caused his to set off. His hips jerk a few more times before his strokes slow and then stop. His forehead comes to rest on my shoulder. He is breathing heavily, the skin of his back wet with sweat.
“I missed being inside you.”
“I missed you too,” I breathe, my limbs squeezing him more tightly against me. His forehead comes off my shoulder. His eyes meet mine and he smiles.
“Are you okay?” His hand rubs the top of my head; it feels tender from being banged into the door of the truck.
“Yeah.” I smile then start to laugh, shoving my face into his throat.
“What’s so funny?” He chuckles, kissing the top of my head.
“Nothing.” I smile, feeling happy.
“You ready to take me to the glacier now that you’ve had your way with me?” he asks.
“No, I think we should stay here for the rest of the day,” I tell him, pulling my face out of his neck and my hand out from under his shirt so that I can run my fingers down his jaw.
“This is a good place to be.” He smirks, rotating his hips and making me bite the inside of my cheek. “But we only have two more days in Alaska, and I really want to see this place that you have been telling me about since I met you.” He gently touches his mouth to mine, and his hips pull away so he can slide out of me. He bends forward, kissing my belly, then helps me sit up. I watch, fascinated as his hips lift off the seat and he tucks himself back into his jeans. “Babe, seriously, get dressed.” I nod and look away, picking my jeans up off the truck floor. I pull them on, then my socks and boots. Once I have straightened out my clothes and hair, I put my seatbelt back on and he puts the truck in drive. It takes twenty minutes to get out to the glacier. Once we reach the Million-Dollar Bridge, better known as ‘The Bridge to Nowhere’, I know we’re close. “So you’re telling me that that bridge goes to absolutely nowhere, and that the state of Alaska paid a million dollars to have it built just so they could get rid of the money so it wouldn’t go back to the government?”
‘That’s what I’m telling you.” I smile. “Well, that’s what I have always been told about the bridge, anyway.” I shrug. We pull off the road and get out of the truck so we can walk across the bridge. It is in much better shape than it used to be in. About fifteen years ago, you would have to walk or drive across wooden planks; now that it’s refinished, you don’t have to worry about plummeting to your death. We stand in the middle of the bridge. Cash’s arms wrap around me from behind, and we look down at the water below and at the glacier off in the distance. I feel him kiss the back of my head. I always wanted to share this place with someone. It really is beautiful. I snuggle into his embrace, just enjoying the feeling of having him here with me. I miss the simple life of Alaska; everything is so different here. In the winter, you know every person in town since there are no tourists. And if something ever happens to one of the residents, everyone comes together to offer any support needed. I guess the town where I now live in Tennessee is similar. You just have to multiply the number of residents by a few thousand.
“You ready to show me the glacier?”
“Yeah.” I smile, looking over my shoulder. He leans in and places a kiss on my forehead before taking my hand and leading me back to the truck. Once we’re both buckled in, he drives the next few minutes to the bridge leading to the perfect spot to see the giant body of dense ice. We both get out and meet at the front of the truck. Cash takes my hand again, and I pull him down the long dirt path to the glacie
r and the viewing area. You can’t see anything until you climb to the top, then you see nothing but a beach area, a giant river, and Childs Glacier sitting on the other side.
“Holy shit,” Cash says, making me smile. I know it’s one thing to talk about seeing a glacier, but it’s another thing completely to see it for yourself. The air near the glacier is so much colder, but it is also so much cleaner.
“I told you it was awesome.” I tug on his hand, dragging him behind me to the edge of the river. “You would think just by looking at it that it’s close, but it’s actually miles away,” I tell him, looking across the river at the giant white wall of the glacier in front of us. The colors of turquoise and blue that run through it are so vibrant that the whole thing looks like a painting.
“It really is the perfect place,” he says, standing behind me. One of his arms wraps around my waist, the other around my chest, his chin resting on the top of my head.
“I love coming out here.” I put my hands on his arm at my chest. “This is the one place where you really are apart from all the stresses of normal life. I know, standing here, just how small I am in the giant scheme of things.”
“You may be small in terms of the whole world, but to me and my kids, you make up our world,” he says softly against my ear. My tummy flips over, and I can’t help the tears I feel filling my eyes. I feel his hand leave my waist, and he reaches into his pocket. I think he is going to pull out his cell phone so he can take a picture, so when his hand comes around in front of me, it takes a second to realize what he is holding.
“Holy shit,” I breathe, my nails digging into his arm. In between his fingers is the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen.
“I have been carrying this thing around for a while now, waiting for the right time to ask you to marry me.” My brain slowly registers the words. It starts screaming ‘yes, yes, yes!’ but I can’t make anything come out except, “What?”
My eyes are glued to the ring; it’s absolutely perfect. I feel myself being turned, but my eyes are locked on the design of the ring—three diamonds, and two smaller stones in-between. I don’t really notice the change in position until Cash is kneeling in front of me.