Hiers Lost in a Snowstorm

- 1 -

"Thank you, George Lee," said Eli under his breath as he pulled what was undoubtedly an extremely expensive bottle of scotch from the pantry chest. It had been tucked unassumingly between a big tin of olive oil and a bottle of ketchup. The scotch had

not

been on the provisions list, but he wasn't all that surprised to see it; George was a generous sort, and something of a whiskey connoisseur. Strung about the bottle's neck was a little note written in George's expansive hand:

"For my friend Eli. To be enjoyed in contemplative solitude or boisterous company. Have a great winter, and try not to burn the place down!"~ George

Eli smiled to himself and took a look around the cabin. It was a small timber-frame hut, modestly proportioned but beautifully crafted. A cast iron wood stove squatted snugly in one end, with a threadbare but comfy-looking armchair nearby. A small kitchen area occupied the other half, with a sink, a countertop propane stove, a little table and chairs, and cabinets and cupboards aplenty. Above half of the floor space stood a loft, accessible by wooden ladder, with pads for sleeping and small dresser. This would be Eli's home for the next four months.

He was the cabin's caretaker for the winter, looking after it for its owner, billionaire biotech maven George Lee. George had already made a fortune by age 28 after figuring out how to get algae to suck up CO2 and poop out fuel at a scale and production cost competitive with gasoline. Now at 45 he was bouncing from project to project, trying to find something helpful and creative to do with all of his money. One of those things was to buy a significant chunk of central Vermont and make it into a permanent conservation trust; it was on this land that he had built the tidy little cabin that Eli now inhabited.

Another project had been to teach classes part time at the college where Eli had just finished his bachelor's. The slightly awkward friendship they'd struck up in George's meandering "Horizons in Human Advancement" course had led to this amazing caretaking gig. The job paid well, never mind the fact that Eli would have jumped at the chance to stay in a cabin for the winter anyway. Having finished school without any idea of what to do with his life and coming off of a painful breakup to boot, Eli felt that some quiet and solitude à la Thoreau was just what the doctor ordered.

Eli glanced up from the box of provisions to see that it had started snowing heavily outside. A bit strange, given that it was only early October, but freak storms were more and more common these days. No matter. He got a fire going in the stove and settled down in the ratty armchair with some Wendell Berry and a glass of scotch.

Yes: Peaceful, quiet contemplation was the name of the game

, thought Eli.

Four months of pristine woodland, reading good books, and thinking about Important Things. The monastic life, in effect. No obligations, no distractions, no temptations—

Eli's musings were interrupted unceremoniously by a loud rapping on the cabin door.

- 2 -

Leah and Alice waited impatiently and a little nervously at the door of the tiny cabin, the silent snow determinedly forming little mounds on top of their wool hats. The snowstorm had taken them by surprise, and with only about twenty feet of visibility they'd quickly gotten hopelessly lost. A little cabin with smoke coming from the chimney had been a welcome surprise.

"It's probably some sort of extreme survivalist type," muttered Alice. "We'll end up dead or forced to be his wives. I bet he's got a whole underground compound here." This was Alice's first backpacking trip ever. And it had been Leah's idea. At about six inches of snow Alice had sworn a solemn oath never to let Leah forget these two facts.

"Oh hush. I'm sure it will just be some old hippie couple. Vermont's teeming with 'em." Leah's nonchalance was unconvincing. It was definitely a risk to seek shelter in a strange cabin in the woods, but the alternative was getting bleaker by the minute.

Leah was just about to knock again when the door swung open to reveal a rather befuddled-looking young man in a worn-out grey sweater.

He's cute!

thought Leah, relieved that he wasn't (at least by appearances) a grizzled axe-murderer.

He blinked at them from behind slightly crooked glasses and scratched a head full of curly, sand-colored hair. He looked like he hadn't shaved in about a week.

Alice elbowed impatiently past the equally dumbfounded Leah and presented her hand to the young man. "HI. I'm Alice. This is my friend Leah. She can talk usually, but I think she's got frostbite of the brain. We're lost and it's like fucking Antarctica out here. Can we come inside?"

That snapped him out of it, and he blushed, got out of the way, and stammered something affirmative-sounding.

"Thanks. Shall I put my boots over here with your shoes? What did you say your name was?"

"Um. I didn't. Eli."

"Great, thanks so much for letting us in, Eli. We thought we were done for out there. I was worried I was going to have to eat Leah. Still considering it, actually."

- 3 -

"Okay, so Leah is from Vermont originally. Alice, you're from...?"

"Brooklyn. My parents are both crunchy hipsters and they love camping and shit, but I always steered clear of that stuff, until Leah convinced me to give it a try. I can't believe I let her. If it weren't for your little cabin we'd be popsicles right now."

"Oh, whatever Alice," Leah rolled her eyes over a steaming mug of cocoa. "You're having fun." She giggled.

"Shut the fuck up Leah! Gimme your flask again. My cocoa doesn't have nearly enough bourbon in it, and you've obviously had enough."

"Nuh-uh! Eli, protect me! Alice gets mean when she's on the drank! Ack, you'll make me spill my cocoa."

Eli laughed and watched the girls struggle over the flask. He'd been surprised by their arrival at first, and then a bit irked at having his solitude disrupted so early on, but now he was having a great time. After he'd shown them the loft where they'd all be sleeping—there was just enough room for three to sleep comfortably side by side—they'd very quickly gotten down to talking, eating, and drinking.

The girls were about his age, smart and funny, and giddy from the day's adventure. They had both stripped down to their long-johns upon arrival and hung their outerwear up by the fire to dry. The skin-tight black garments left little to Eli's imagination. He was nearing the fourth month of a dry spell that had started with his recent breakup, so he was having a hard time thinking of much else.

Leah was pale and voluptuous, with orange-red curls framing freckled cheeks that dimpled around full pink lips. The thin material of her long underwear seemed only barely up to the task of containing her generous curves. She laughed loud and often, throwing her head back in a toss of curls and causing her breasts to jiggle enticingly beneath her top. Each time this happened it captured Eli's gaze, and the tipsier he got the harder it was to tear his eyes away, to the point where it bordered on ogling and he was pretty sure she'd caught him. She was getting tipsier herself, though, and didn't seem to mind.

Alice was sleek and catlike in her black tights, with slender arms and legs and silk-smooth, tawny skin. Her almond eyes glinted in a way that seemed to suggest some secret joke, and the upturned corners of her mouth reinforced this impression. Her wit was sharp and sarcastic, and her speech well-salted with a creative array of expletives. She was putting down a surprising amount of liquor, though it didn't seem to affect her much. If anything she got a bit quieter, mostly staying out of the conversation except when asked a question or to jump in with a biting comment or two. Her eye contact also became more intense—Eli felt occasionally as if she were staring him down. He'd meet her gaze for as long as he could until he became uncomfortable and had to break it, which would elicit a little half-smile from Alice.

It got later and later (although they'd all lost track of time hours ago and couldn't have said if it were 9pm or 2am) and the conversation slowed to a trickle. Eli was about to suggest bedtime (though he didn't really want this to end), when Alice—who hadn't spoken in about 20 minutes—said, "So. Who wants to play cards?"

Leah looked skeptical, but Eli said, "Sure, I think I've seen a pack of cards here." Before she could nix the idea, he went and got the pack and dropped it on the table. Then he turned to add some more wood to the stove, now burned down to embers. "What shall we play?"

"I think we should play poker," said Alice.

"Aww, I'm terrible at poker," complained Leah.

Then, with a Cheshire-cat grin, Alice clarified: "I think we should play strip poker."

"ALICE!" a scandalized Leah squeaked, and Eli discovered suddenly that the wood he'd just put in the stove demanded his undivided attention. When he'd gotten himself a bit under control, he turned around to see a furiously blushing Leah staring daggers at a smugly serene Alice. "What do you think, Eli? Are you up for it?"

"Um, sure. I mean, but we don't have to play if anyone doesn't want to..." he added, glancing at Leah.

"No, I'm up for it!" snapped Leah grouchily, and the game was on.

- 4 -

Alice shuffled the cards and explained that, since Eli is probably too drunk to read his hand (this drew protests), and Leah is so piss-poor at cards (she couldn't really argue with that), they'd play a simple game of 5-card stud: Each player would get five cards, three face-up and the rest in their hand. Each player would get the chance to fold or bet one or more articles of clothing. Once removed the clothes couldn't be put back on, but they could be re-won (along with others) to use as chips. The game would end when one person had all of the clothes, or they got bored.

Boredom doesn't seem likely

, thought Leah, eying Eli's solid shoulders and slim torso.

I hope he's as bad at poker as I am.

Leah's first hand was a pair of queens, one showing, and she decided to come out swinging with a bet of one article of clothing. Eli saw her bet, and Alice folded. His pair of 10s with an Ace high didn't cut it, and he pulled off his sweater and handed it to Leah, who suddenly felt optimistic about her chances.

Alice folded the next two rounds, and Eli folded the first and then lost again on the second. He removed his t-shirt for Leah, who was practically beside herself with how well things were going. He gave it a little twirl before tossing it at her, and she whooped a catcall and looked his chest lasciviously up and down.

In the next round Alice finally bet one, and Leah, who had drawn a full house (5s over 3s), gave her a wicked grin and raised her two, for a total of three articles. Eli dropped out at this point but grumblingly obliged to remove belt since he'd already bet one.

Then Alice turned the tables and raised Leah another two—bringing the total to five articles.

"WHAT?!" exclaimed Leah. Alice chuckled, and Eli just raised his eyebrows and smiled—there was no way this could go poorly for him.

After some serious soul-searching and a lot of impatient prodding from Alice, Leah eventually decided to trust in her hidden full house. Unfortunately for her, Alice's two visible 10s were matched with two more in her hand—four of a kind. This put Leah in the hole three articles. She sputtered and protested a bit, but knew there was no getting out of it. Socks and bobby pins did not count.

Well, let's get this over with.

She threw Eli's shirts at Alice in disgust, stood up, grasped the hem of her shirt and sports bra, and tugged them both over her head in one motion. She could feel her cheeks and neck flush hot, but she was gratified at least by the look on Eli's face in the flickering lamplight: mouth slightly agape, totally mesmerized by the bright pink silver-dollar nipples, and the way her now-liberated tits bounced back into place. Alice was watching both of their reactions intently, her eyes flicking back and forth between the two, obviously very pleased with herself. Leah noted that Alice's nipples were clearly visible despiting being hidden beneath two or three layers of fabric.

"And the pants," Alice reminded her, unnecessarily. Leah stripped the tights from her pale white thighs and sat back down with a harrumph, down to just her panties. Alice suggested another round of whiskey, and nobody objected.

Alice and Leah both folded out of the next round, and then Eli lost to Alice with a pair of jacks. Alice's eyes glinted mischievously as she motioned him to stand up for them. Eli dropped his pants and tried to sit down quickly, awkwardly hiding an obvious tent in his boxers. "No WAY are you getting off that easy, mister. Spin around for us," commanded Alice. Eli obliged, and the girls were treated to a nice preview of his member, standing at half-mast and poking impudently against the fabric of his shorts.

Leah bit her lip and couldn't resist giving herself a little rub between her legs while his back was turned; her fingers came up wet. She was pretty sure Alice noticed.

Alice finally lost a hand to Leah, but only had to return one article of clothing, which Leah in turn lost to Eli.

Then, the coup de grace: a bet of two, everyone in, and Alice swept it with three kings. Eli handed over his one piece of reserve clothing and gulped, realizing what was coming next.

"You first, Leah," Alice purred. Leah glared, but stood up and tucked her thumbs beneath the elastic waistband of her panties. She took a deep breath and bravely let the panties drop to the floor, revealing a dewy thicket of flame-colored pubic hair. Her mound was luminous in the ruddy light from the wood stove, and a single droplet of moisture shone jewel-like as it slipped from her sex down her inner thigh.

Eli gaped, unable to stop himself from staring openly at this point. After a long moment, Leah broke the silence: "Okay, now Eli has to go."

"Wait", interrupted Alice. "Leah, you're still one in the hole, so you have to take Eli's shorts off for him to pay your dues."

Leah was beyond arguing with Alice, and Eli just shrugged, bemused and breathing a bit more heavily than the exertion of poker would seem to require. So Leah stepped over to Eli and knelt before him. If his cock wasn't fully erect before, it certainly was now. Leah had a bit of trouble stretching the waistband over the tip, but when she did it sprang up exuberantly. Her nostrils filled with the musky erotic scent emanating from the tip, which glistening slightly in the lamplight. After a few seconds of tense silence, she cleared her throat, got up, and returned to her place.

Then she turned her attention to Alice, still fully clothed and happy as a clam. "ALICE! You totally sharked us!"

Alice just laughed, tossed the clothes back into the center and said with theatric yawn, "Welp, I'm beat. Time for bed!" And she went off to brush her teeth.

Leah and Eli studiously avoided each others' eyes as they sorted through the pile of their clothes and re-dressed themselves.

"She's pretty good at poker, huh?" offered Eli a bit sheepishly once they were clothed again. Leah just grunted.

- 5 -

Eli had a hard time falling asleep. The experience of stripping naked with one beautiful stranger, while being basically ordered around by another, had several of his major biological systems running in overdrive. The alcohol did little to calm them; it just added to his sense of disoriented excitement. But bedtime it was; since he couldn't very well jack off with the girls up in the loft with him, he closed his eyes and tried to sleep.

It didn't help that he was positioned next to Leah, with Alice sleeping on the far side of her. She was curled up in her sleeping bag, facing away from him and breathing steadily, but he was close enough to smell her hair, her sweat, and another scent, faint but unmistakably erotic. Not knowing how to fall asleep, Eli wondered if he'd ever see her naked again. He flipped over restlessly, hoping that by facing away from her he'd put those thoughts out of his mind. It didn't work.

But then it must have, because the next thing he knew he was waking up for a light sleep. It was still night, but the sky had cleared and silver light was falling through the skylight and illuminating the cabin. He slowly became aware of what had awoken him: a soft but persistent pressure against his sleeping bag. Leah was spooning him.

At first he was unsure what to do. Was she awake? Had she just rolled over in her sleep, and was she doing this reflexively? He'd just about convinced himself that she was still sleeping and that he should try (somehow) to fall back asleep himself, when he felt warm breath and the wet tickle of lips against his ear. He lay there enjoying this for a few moments, breath quickening, until the lips retreated, and he turned over to face his loft-mate.

Leah was staring at him hungrily, her eyes sparkling in the moonlight. She raised a finger to her lips and gestured at Alice with her eyes:

We have to be quiet.

Then they were kissing, with a passion and intensity born of pent-up sexual tension and multiplied by the need to be surreptitious. Their mouths locked together fiercely and battled back and forth with rooting tongues, occasionally breaking away only to take a breath.

They unzipped their sleeping bags, a painfully slow and frighteningly loud process in the winter silence. Then their hands were exploring each other's bodies greedily, almost aggressively. They did not have the time or patience to be gentle and tentative.

Leah quickly tore off her shirt, revealing unclad breasts beneath. Their ripe volume shone pale blue under the moon, demanding to be cradled, kneaded, suckled upon. Leah's hands went roaming up and down Eli's firm chest, scratching him through the downy hair, then creeping below his navel to squeeze the gently curving rigidity of his erection.

Eli responded by slipping a hand into the front of Leah's tights. His fingers groped through a tangle of drenched pubic hair to find an engorged clit and slick, dripping labia that urged him onwards. When he slid a finger up inside her and tickled her rough inner wall she hissed her pleasure and bit into his shoulder hard enough he worried she'd draw blood.

She rocked her pelvis against his fingers for a while, breathing fast but soft and stroking his straining cock. Then she brought his hand away, gave him a kiss on the mouth and turned away from him again.

But not to sleep this time. Leah pulled her now-soaking tights and underwear down to her knees and presented Eli with her moon-pale ass. The message was clear. Eli struggled out of his own pants and undergarments, and donned a condom from his bedside (it never hurts to be prepared, even in monkish solitude). Grabbing the curve of Leah's hip with one hand he positioned the head of his cock at the entrance to her cunt. She guided him in and with an audible "Nnngh!" pushed back against him until he was fully engulfed in her hot wetness.

He stroked in and out of her, slow but deep, as Leah muffled her moans with her pillow and pleasured herself with a finger on her clit. As Eli's strokes became more and more insistent, Leah's moans became harder and harder to muffle, and her fingers worked more and more feverishly as they both approached their climax.

When it hit they pressed into each other desperately, compulsively, ravenously. Leah's pussy contracted like some ferocious predatory creature, clutching at Eli's cock again and again as he discharged pulse after pulse of semen. Eli let loose a

sotto voce

beast-like growl; Leah keened irrepressibly into her pillow as she crested the peak and slid down the other side, body wracked with spasms.