Stacy was the rare friend who I never thought I would grow close to, when we first met. She was shy and distant to the point of being cold, and a little too direct and rough around the edges in personal interactions. She was utilitarian and dispassionate, entirely too logical. We only became friends because she worked with two very close female friends of mine, and they spent all their lunches and work happy hours together. And there was no denying from the moment we met that Stacy was beautiful.
She was very tall, just shy five feet ten inches, with light red hair infused with natural streaks of blonde. Her eyes were light blue, like a frosted window opening on a clear sky. And just like a window full of light, her eyes seemed to twinkle with an inner fire when she looked at you. She had the angular face of her Nordic heritage, with high cheek bones and pale skin. And the most impressive thing about Stacy was her athletic body.
She was crazy about intense exercise. She loved running marathons and had medals from eight separate races. Even more than running, she loved endurance races. When "tough mudders" became popular, she thrilled in crawling through mud pits and climbing over tall obstacles. When the "Spartan Races" were invented, she threw herself into those competitions, becoming one of the few female competitors at the early races. She did a couple of triathlons, but hated swimming. All this physical activity gave her a long, lean body. Her feminine curves were complimented by smoothly rippling muscle. Her long legs were toned and shapely, not an ounce of extra fat anywhere on her body. The first time I saw Stacy after one of her regular afternoon runs, wearing just a sports bra and running shorts, my cock got so hard I had to make an excuse to get away before anyone could notice. Her six pack abs were on full display, every curve in her body so perfectly sculpted. Her flawless, pale skin was covered in a light sheen of sweat, her B cup breasts resting atop a toned and powerful chest.
It was also her drive, almost lust, for physical activity and competition that initially made Stacy so unappealing to me. She had no time or interest in anything that did not contribute to her body performing like a well oiled machine. She never stayed out late and always woke up early to work out. She rarely ever drank, and even then it was either white wine or straight liquor with ice. My friends Amy and Allison insisted that Stacy could be both talkative and funny. But the first few times I met Stacy, she barely spoke and seemed uninterested in conversation almost to the point of being rude.
What kept us on the path towards friendship was that we had more free time then our friends. I had just gotten out of a very strange relationship when I first met Stacy, and was getting used to having free time for myself again. Other than work and endurance races, Stacy had almost no other interests or hobbies in her life. At one Friday happy hour I mentioned that I needed to run to the mall the next day to pick up some things, and Stacy said she had also been planning to go to the mall after her morning run. I casually offered to give her a ride, like I would have to any other friend, and she accepted. We chatted while shopping, it was the most I had ever heard Stacy speak, and it turned out we had some similar interests. At the time, Stacy was 24 and I was 28, but we both had the same taste in movies as your average teenager. Stacy mentioned a movie coming out soon, while she was browsing through winter clothes at The Gap, and I said I had also wanted to see it but didn't know of anyone who was interested in going with me. We agreed to go see it together.
The movie turned into occasional dinners together, some trips to the grocery store together, and going to the movies to see a teen comedy or two. We were not dating, I'm fairly certain that thought never entered either of our minds. We weren't even particularly close friends, based on what we discussed with each other. But I remember thinking at the time that I was surprised to even be spending time with Stacy three or four days a month, with as little as we had in common when we first met. Little did I know, even then, how close we would become.
-----
I know it's strange to say that I was so attracted to Stacy and still didn't expect that much would happen between us. When I've told the few friends who know this story, they react with either skepticism or disbelief. But I think sometimes you know someone well enough to know that you would be a disaster together as a couple, and that keeps your mind from wandering down the path towards what might happen if you got together. That was true for Stacy and me.
The first event to set us on the collision course towards disaster and sexual fireworks was a ski weekend organized by our mutual friend Amy. I've always been more of a beach body than a ski lover, but I do enjoy fun in the snow. A group of us rented a cabin up in the mountains, very close to a ski resort, for a three day weekend getaway. We woke up early and I got in four fun runs before lunchtime. But I was starting to get cold and the slopes were starting to get crowded. Looking at the growing line waiting for the lift, I thought I might call it a day. Amy and Allison were disappointed that I was leaving early, but informed me that Stacy's legs had grown tired after her second run and she had already headed back to the cabin. I was happy to find out I wasn't the first to call it quits, and decided to head back to the cabin for lunch.
When I got to the cabin, I called for Stacy, but there was no answer. I poked around the large, two story house a bit, but saw no sign of my friend. Finally, I made myself a plate of leftovers from the night before, heated up and ate a tasty lunch, and then headed down to my room to change into more comfortable clothes. Walking by the window that led to the back porch, I finally spotted her. She was sitting in the hot tub, eyes closed, head resting on the side of the tub, jets going at full power. I walked quickly to the back door and poked my head out.
"How long have you been out here?" I called out.
Stacy sat up with a start, the warm water falling off of her bare shoulders and flowing down her toned arms. "I don't know," she replied, clearly surprised to see me standing there. "I didn't realize anyone else had come back."
"I've been back for about twenty minutes," I explained, "You're going to turn into a prune if you spend hours in that hot water."
She smiled, her white teeth and twinkling eyes sparkling back at me, as she settled back into the steamy, bubbling tub and said, "I had a race last weekend and my legs are still tired. This hot water feels great for them, that's why I came back early."
"Well that sounds like it would feel good to me," I replied, "You mind if I join you?"
"Of course not."
In five minutes, I had changed to swim trunks and was carefully easing myself into the fiercely hot water. I had to pause with just my legs in, so my body could get used to the heat coming off the tub. While I sat there, I was treated to a view of Stacy's taut, young body beneath the bubbling clear water. She was wearing a dark blue string bikini, and with her eyes closed I was free to stare. She looked good, fit and yet feminine.
As I eased myself into the water finally, Stacy had to make some adjustments. The tub could fit four comfortably, but we were both tall and my legs bumped into hers. Finally, she settled into a position with her long legs resting atop mine.
We made small talk for a little while, but mostly sat in silence, enjoying the heat and the soothing water jets. Then Stacy stood up, the clear water cascading down over the swells of pert little breasts and flowing over her firm abs. She tugged at the bikini string over her neck, adjusting her top slightly, then rubbed at her toned arms.
"The water feels so nice, but sometimes it gets too hot," Stacy explained, standing over me, acres of smooth, fair skin on display. "Don't you think?"
"Yeah," I agreed, trying not to stare too hard at those six pack abs or how nicely her firm breasts rested atop that toned chest, "It can be nice to feel the contrast of the cold."
"It is cold out here, you should feel it," she encouraged, turning to take in the view of the snow covered mountains around us. Her round, sculpted, muscular ass came into view, just beneath the water and tightly encased in her blue bikini bottom.
I laughed, "If I stood up right now, it would get awkward for both of us."
Her light blue eyes turned quickly back to me. "Why?" she asked suspiciously, her eyes narrowing.
I laughed again. "Stacy, your body is incredible. You can't let a guy see you with a body like that and then then get him in trouble by telling him to stand up."
Stacy lowered herself back into the water, her face full of uncertainty. "Are you hitting on me?" she asked. That was Stacy, always brusquely direct.
I looked her straight in the eyes and smiled, "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I'm just pointing out what any other guy would tell you. Your body is amazing, you look great in that bikini, and that means I won't be standing up anytime soon and embarrassing both of us."