Up in the Mountains

I had been waiting for this trip all year. At last, it was time to go. I took an Uber to the airport with my buddy and we checked in for the flight. I had just graduated college and a group friends and I planned to a trip to Northern Italy for a few weeks in the summer after graduation.

The core group was mostly people I had been close with through school. By senior year, a few of the guys were in serious relationships. They wanted to bring along their girlfriends and some of the girls asked their closest gal pals to come along. It ended up being a pretty good mix of couples, some single guys, and some single ladies. We were all open to bringing friends of friends, as long as the vibe of the group stayed casual and fun.

My buddy was teasing that I must have more baggage than anyone else in the group. I had an extra huge duffle bag. The village we were staying in was close to the base of some spectacular mountains and the thing I was most excited about on this trip was the opportunity to hike in the Alps. I brought a mass of outdoor equipment with me. We met up with the rest of the crew at the gate and we were a gaggle of excitement in one corner of the departure area. I was chatting with some of the guys and scanning the crowd. On the other side of our little group, I spotted a cute blonde who was talking with one of my friend's girlfriends. I didn't recognize the blonde and I wasn't sure if she was part of our group. I didn't think much of it at the time, other than noting that she had a sporty look that I usually found attractive. If she was coming with us, I was interested to get to know her.

The flight was long, about 14 hours including a layover. When we finally landed in Milan, everyone was feeling pretty tired. I was no exception, and dragging all my stuff to the waiting hired vans was no fun. I was slinging that heavy bag up when my buddy again joked that I packed like I was never coming back. I told him there was no way I was coming to Northern Italy without spending some serious time up in the mountains and I needed my gear.

"That sounds like fun." I heard a female voice say behind me. "I brought my hiking boots too." I turned around to see who was speaking and discovered it was the pretty blonde I had noticed in the terminal She was about three inches shorter than my six foot and had bright blonde hair pulled back into a short pony tail. She was dressed casually in sweat pants and a t-shirt from the flight, but I was paying the most attention to her sparkling blue eyes and friendly smile. "I'm Lindsey," she said offering me a soft hand. I shook her hand warmly and smiled back. "Cindy invited me along on the trip. I wouldn't miss a chance to get up in nature in the Alps for the world, so here I am." Cindy was one of the girlfriends with the group. That explained why I hadn't met Lindsey before - She fell into the "friend of a friend" category.

"Awesome," I said. "I was hoping I wasn't going to be the only hiker. It's very nice to meet you." I dropped her hand as we started moving again toward the van. What kind of hikes are you into? I'm usually a backpacker, but I think there will be more opportunity for day hikes on this trip."

"I guess you could say I'm a nature hiker. I'm mostly interested in hiking for the wildlife and the ecology," she said, "But I don't mind a challenge." We exchanged a few more words about the hiking around the lakes as we all piled into back of a few vans. We ended up in the same van, but she sat in the back row next to Cindy and Mike, Cindy's boyfriend. I had another couple next to me who were talking with each other, so I decided to doze on the ride to the lake.

When I woke, the van was winding its way through the narrow streets of a village. I was struck immediately by the scenery. The lake was a stunning blue beneath a clear sunny sky. It was ringed by sharp mountains and green hills that seemed to come right to the water's edge. The village was nestled between the lake and the hills. It was charming, with little shops, restaurants with little dining areas out on the sidewalk, and a few bars. There were some small hotels along the waterfront and a few blocks of tile-roofed houses surrounding a central square. The village was buzzing with activity, as it was getting on toward late afternoon. The vibe that I was picking up was a town that was definitely a tourist destination, but also had a vibrant local life.

The van squeaked to a stop in front of our accommodation, a vacation rental property a good distance away from the central part of town. As we all piled inside, the haggling over rooms began. The couples moved to lock down privacy for themselves and the gaggle of single girls decided to share a larger room with two sets of bunk beds. As a single guy, I found myself relegated to a large couch in a common area. I thought to grumble about how I had paid the same as everyone who had secured a bed, but I decided it wasn't worth it. I wasn't going to let a few dollars between friends ruin the mood.

That evening was relaxed with everyone tired from the flight. I walked to the center of town for dinner with one of my good friends. We had a good meal and stopped to pick up some bottles of wine for the group. When we got back, we popped them open. Everybody in the house had a drink while we chatted about the flight, the ride in, and how nice the house was.

For the next day, I proposed a short walk in the morning up to a ruin overlooking the village. It was only a little more than a few miles away up a path that was very easy. I know that there's a lot of people (most of my friends among them) who like the idea of hiking or being outdoorsy, but don't really care much for a big-effort hike when it comes down to it. I figured I would get some interest for a hike that got everyone back in time to do something else. Nobody would want to leave the Alps without being able to say they did a little walking in the hills. A good handful of the group agreed to the plan and I noticed that Lindsey was among them. The rest made their own plans and the talk broke up into little knots of conversation.

I took my drink and wandered over to where Lindsey was sitting at the dining table. She was talking to Cindy, who helpfully beckoned me into the conversation.

"Mark," she said, "do you know something about the ruin we are going to see?"

"Yeah, it's supposed to be really neat. It's a small outpost. The keep of the local lord."

"Oh Good," said Cindy. "Lindsey was asking me what it was we were walking to see, but I told her that you were the history nerd."

"Excuse me," I said, with mock offense, "but Indiana Jones was an archeologist and I think everyone thought he was pretty cool. Not a Nerd."

"Hmm, yeah, okay," said Cindy, a little sarcastically, but with a smile. "Well anyway, I thought you could tell her more about it." As Cindy got up to leave the table and rejoin her boyfriend, I thought she might have given me a small wink. Encouraged, I set down my glass and took the seat across from Lindsey.

"I'd love to. I've mostly been studying medieval history. I'm in heaven in a place like this. Okay. Honestly, Cindy is right. I am a nerd for this stuff." Lindsey smiled and chuckled at my self-deprecation. "But what do you want to know?"

"Just a bit about the building. What was it for? I mean, I know a castle is a fort. But why is there one here?"

"Well, yes it's a fort, but it's also a center of government and administration," I said with a hint of excitement. I started to talk a little about feudalism and the warring Italian city states. She seemed to be listening closely and asked a few questions to show she was interested. I was just starting to bring up a neat paper I had read about an excavation at the keep in the 1970s, when I could sense I was making a mistake. Her smile was starting to look a little more forced and she stopped asking questions. I trailed off my explanation and lowered my eyes for a second. "Sorry, I am rambling, now aren't I?" I smiled trying to channel some self-teasing again.

"It's alright," she said, "I like that your passionate about something." As she said this, she smiled and reached over and touched my hand. I returned her smile and we sat that way for a heartbeat. As she released my hand, she rolled her eyes a little. "Besides, if I started talking about ecology, I bet I could put you right to sleep." I leaned forward a little bit.

"I doubt it. What do you get excited about?"

Her eyes sparkled as she said, "I love nature and the outdoors. I majored in environmental science, but I like geology and bio too. All of it. I just really like to be out in nature. It's fascinating to see how the different parts of the ecosystem work together." She went on to explain that she wanted work in environmental policy. "I thought about a Ph.D., but I don't think pure research would be that would be much fun for me. Academia can suck the joy out of anything. I want to get to work now, but maybe later I'll go back to school to study environmental law."

"Maybe you are right about Academia," I laughed. "I think I'm about to find out. I'm going to do an archeology graduate program this fall. I think a Ph.D. is down the road somewhere." She made a mock cringe face.

"Better you than me. Well, maybe it won't be so bad?"

"Maybe not. For me, a chance to keep studying what I love is really exciting. I tell you what. If you promise to teach me about the nature in this place, I'll try to show you the interesting history and the best trails. Only the interesting stuff, I promise." She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms with mock gravity.

"I think I can live with that deal. As longs as means we're going to do a lot of hiking." We both laughed at ourselves and I poured us both another glass of wine.

We sat at the table the rest of the evening talking. We learned a lot about each other and were enjoying ourselves. At some point, we realized that we were the only ones left awake out in the common area. Looking at the clock, we agreed we had better call it a night if we were going to get up in the morning with the others for the walk. As we said good night, we shared a hug that lingered for about the space of a breath. I relished the fresh smell of her hair and the feel of her breasts against my chest. As she left for her room, she gave me another smile over her shoulder. While I lay on the couch that night, I tossed for at least an hour thinking about the feel of her body as we hugged, the touch of her hand, and her twinkling smiles. I couldn't remember a time that I had so enjoyed getting to know someone.

The next morning, most of the crew got up to walk up the ruined castle. Some of the ladies wanted to head into the city by train for some shopping and some of the guys decided to stay and lounge by the lake. It was a manageable group of six of us that set off on the walk. I took charge of guiding the crew up the path, which was really pretty straight forward. As we walked along, Lindsey was pointing out some of the plants along the way. I was impressed. It seemed like she had also done some studying of her own before the trip. Except, while I was looking up dukes and castles, she was studying wild flowers and mountain goats. Even though our interests were different, I appreciated her even more for her obvious intelligence. I was certainly paying her the most attention among the group.

As expected, it was an easy walk up to the ruin. When we got there, we all marveled at the view down over the lake, even from this only slightly higher elevation. We split up to wander around the small site. Lindsey walked with me into the small inner yard of the overgrown ruin. We spent about twenty minutes poking around and she seemed genuinely interested when I pointed out interesting features. I ducked through a gate to one side and was surprised to find a fantastic view waiting for me. The wall here was crumbled and missing, but the gap framed a stunning scene down the other side of the hill. Golden rays of the early sun were lancing through the trees into an open field flecked with flowers. It was a special place of peaceful beauty. I ducked back to find Lindsey in the courtyard.

"Come with me," I said, "I need to show you this."

"What is it?" I took her hand as I led her through the gate. She allowed me to guide her to the opening in the wall.

"Look at this," I implored. As we approached the gap, I released her hand and brought my hand to the small of her back to bring her up to where I had been standing before.

"Wow," she said softly, seeing what I had seen, "that is special." Almost without thinking, I slid my hand from her back to hold her around her narrow waist as we stood looking at the scene. After another heartbeat, the sun passed behind a cloud and the striking effect of the light was over. We pulled away from each other a step, and both let out a small nervous laugh and smiled.

Lindsey and I were quieter on the walk back down the hill as we walked side by side. I thought that she was feeling the same connection that I was, but I wasn't sure. We spent the rest of the day in each other's company exploring the village, but always with the others. I was anxious to have more time together in privacy, but another opportunity didn't come along.

Later, we met up back at the rental house with the everyone else. At the end of our first full day of the trip, we all had a reservation at a nice restaurant in town. I made a point to clean up for the occasion. I told myself I would have done it anyway because we were going to a nice place, but on some level, I knew I did it to try to impress Lindsey. I put on nice shirt and a pair of my best stylish and form-fitting jeans. Those jeans had gotten me compliments in the past and I thought they were a good choice. When Lindsey came out of her room, I felt shabby by comparison. She was wearing a red knee-length sun dress with thin straps and bare shoulders against the night air. Her blonde hair was pulled half up, framing her face. She was also wearing more makeup than I had seen her wear up to that point, but the overall effect was tasteful and her natural beauty was on display.

As we all walked to the restaurant, Lindsey walked beside me. I told her I thought her dress was nice and she smiled. At the table, we sat next to each other. It was a rather loud dinner and a long one. We were all still feeling the excitement of our first day of the trip and we were certainly enjoying the wine and beer. I'm sure some of the locals probably thought we were being "ugly Americans," but we were just young people enjoying ourselves in a place that felt exotic to us.

After dinner, as we were stirring to leave, I told the group I was going to take a short walk to the pier at the lakeside before heading back. Lindsey casually said she was going to join me. To my horror, Mike thought that was a fantastic plan and asked Cindy if she wanted to come to. I thought I saw Lindsey and Cindy share a glance, and Cindy loudly yawned and said she wanted to go back. I could tell Mike was disappointed she seemed to not like his idea, but of course he walked back with her. Lindsey and I headed down to the lake alone. As we left the glow of the restaurant lights into the darker street, she slipped her arm into mine and allowed me to escort her down the cobbles. We walked in pleasant silence out to the pier.

When we reached the end of the pier, we stopped and I moved my arm to hold her around the waist. She rested her head on my shoulder and we looked out over the lake twinkling in the moonlight.

"This is nice," she said. "And thanks for sharing the view with me this morning. It was nature at its best." We turned to face each other. I brought my other hand up to her waist and she set her hands on my shoulders.

"It was my pleasure," I said.

Then more playfully she said, "But I thought we were going to go on some real hikes. That was pretty easy." She rolled her eyes with playful derision.

"Of course, but I thought that was a good start," I said with mock offense.

"Sure, but we had a deal. And the deal was some serious hiking. What are we going to do tomorrow?"

"I have some ideas. There's a peak I want to climb not far from here. It would probably take most of the day and it's a real scramble at the top. The view is supposed to be unreal."

"Oh, sounds promising."

"I'm a man of my word."

"We'll see. I'll reserve judgment until I see the trail."

"What if you don't like it?"

"Hmm. Then I think you'll have to be punished."

"That sounds fun. And if you like it?"

"Then maybe you'll be rewarded."

"Sounds win, win," I said. She giggled and I pulled her in closer. As I leaned in to kiss her, she lifted her face to meet me. I let me my hands explore her back and waist, relishing the feel of my hand sliding over the soft fabric of her dress and her athletic figure. I felt her hold her breath as our lips joined softly. As we kissed, I pulled her in just a bit tighter, enjoying the sensation of her body against mine.

Unfortunately, just as I was really liking how things were going, we heard the low voices of another couple coming down the pier. We broke off the kiss and loosened our grip on each other. Standing face to face as the other people drew nearer, I whispered, "Maybe we should move on to somewhere else." In the faint light, she nodded and sighed with a small hint of annoyance at the interruption. Turning to walk up the pier back toward the village, we nodded and mumbled a greeting at the other pair who had invaded our moment. They answered in Italian. As we walked back, we cemented our plans to get up early for the hike.

Reaching the house, we found that there was no one in the common area. Most of our friends had gone off to sleep already it seemed. There were some voices coming from the back patio, but for the moment we had our privacy. She took a seat on the couch and shot me an inviting look while flipping her hair back. Needing no further invitation, I flicked off the light and slid next to her. I wrapped one arm behind her to hold her close while my other hand found hers and we renewed our earlier kisses. My head was spinning from the excitement of our apparent mutual attraction and maybe from the wine at dinner. As we kissed, I released her hand, which she laid on my chest. With my now free hand, I gently explored her body. Judging by her heavier breathing and how she snuggled tighter against me, she didn't mind. I started on her flat stomach, then explored her hips and her thigh. My hand slid down the outside of her thigh to the bottom hem of her dress. From there, I rubbed back up her bare inner thigh, lifting her dress on the way. She breathed in sharply in anticipation, but I trailed my back to her outer thigh before I reached her groin.

We broke off our kiss and she slowly let her breath out as she closed her eyes and leaned back against the couch and the arm that I still had wrapped behind her. I lowered my face to kiss her neck, her shoulder and the exposed skin of her chest above her breast. My free hand roamed up her flank until it cupped the bottom of one of her round breasts. She turned her head toward me and let out a small sigh as I softly savored the feel of her breasts through her dress.

I had been apprehensive with each advance. I wanted to keep going, but part of me was worrying that she would think it was too much too soon. I'm usually self-conscious and a slow mover, and I had never felt such an instant connection with a girl. Her reaction to my touch was stoking my desire even further and I pushed aside my nerves. My erection was hard as a rock and straining against my tight pants. I moved my hand from her chest back to her bare upper leg. Her breath caught as I slid my hand up her inner thigh and softly probed a finger underneath her panties.