Author's note: All my stories are long with a lot of set up, but I think well worth the time. Thanks for taking your valuable time to sample my wares.
PROLOGUE
With our son now in college and both of us moving into consulting jobs, we are able to vacation more frequently and in the off-season, which is great because we really do dislike the crowds and all the touristy hoopla that accompanies the regular vacation times. And we were very much looking forward to some more "adult" venues. When you have children, you are tied to school schedules, and to the typical destinations -- think mouse ears.
When we were planning our first new adventure, we looked for an off-the-beaten-path destination and a hopefully unique, "not in the regular tourist guide" experience. This story is about that first empty-nesters vacation we took last fall.
Destination: The Ural Mountains in Russia -- unique, off the beaten path? Check!
Through a business associate from Munich, I learned about a mountain lodge that sits below a waterfall in the southern end of the Urals, north of Kazakhstan. October is the beginning of the off-season there, and the serious weather doesn't usually come until mid-November. This provides about a month-plus window of opportunity for a perfect, uncrowded and less pricey vacation -- and no mouse ears!
The lodge is regionally famous for its scenery, beautiful accommodations, its great spa and its fantastic, highly personalized service. Once a retreat for elite Soviet party members (and their mistresses), it now caters mostly to wealthy Russians and well-healed Eastern Europeans (and frequently, their mistresses); occasionally, however, it is visited by Western Europeans and a few adventurous Americans. As part of a two-week vacation, starting in St. Petersburg, we booked a week at the lodge in mid-October to round out our all-Russia vacation.
The grand lodge completely lived up to all its press; and our stay did not disappoint in the "unique experiences" category, either. That box was a definite check!
INTRODUCTIONS
Jan and I have been married 19 years and have one son. We are middle-upper class, conservative, and sexually moderate. We are not fuddy duddies, but when it comes to our sex life, reading adult erotica, fantasy role-play and some reasonably tame experimentation is about as far as we stretch the envelope. Jan is mildly bi-curious, and we have entertained the idea of swapping; those two areas provide most of the fodder for our fantasy play. But we have never had the collective nerve or the opportunity to actually participate in either one.
I am James, 6'-1," 190 lbs. and 47 years old. I am quite fit and women notice me, but don't go "gaga." I have dark blond/light brown hair, still thick with only a light smattering of gray. I wear it in a long business cut. I have a medium complexion and am usually sporting a moderate tan from frequent outdoor activities (We live in the Sun Belt). According to my wife and my mirror (lol), I am good looking. I have well defined facial features, but nothing especially striking. My eyes are a steel blue and I am clean shaven.
Physically, I am fairly well proportioned and reasonably well muscled, but not broad shouldered or barrel-chested and no washboard stomach. I jog faithfully and have a moderate exercise routine, but do not work out. We live a very active life style and are involved in a variety of outdoor activities that contribute to our good health and physical fitness.
My wife, Janine, 40, is a beautiful, auburn-haired pixie and she is hard to describe without giving the wrong impression. She is buxomy, even voluptuous, but slim and petite. Essentially, she is a short, slender woman with big boobs and a big butt. No, not that big!
Barely 5 foot tall and 105 pounds, she is a testament to the saying, "Dynamite comes in small packages!" Her almost porcelain-white skin and long, wavy, cinnamon-colored hair (natural) are a striking combination by themselves, but add her lovely, delicate facial features, luscious, full lips and striking, emerald green eyes to the mix, and you have a face that can stop traffic! And yes, men do go "gaga" over her! I sure did the first time I saw her -- and every day since.
But it's not just her beautiful face that gets men's attention. If her face could stop traffic, her body could make a Navy aircraft carrier under full, military power come to a screeching halt, leaving skid marks in the water. Her petite, slender body is blessed with two sets of attributes that just force men to stare. They can't help it. She has the firmest C-cup breasts I've ever seen on a woman her size and they have only a moderate amount of declination, just enough to keep them from looking fake, which they absolutely are not. Now, size-C breasts would not be so noticeable on say, a woman who was 5'-8" and 140 lbs. or larger, but on my wife's petite, slender frame, they do stand out!
I mentioned two sets of attributes -- she is blessed, coming and going. For the "poor guy" who can't take his eyes off her beautiful face and gorgeous breasts as she walks by, there is no mercy "around the corner," because as soon as she passes by, his eyes will be drawn to her perfectly sculpted, incredibly firm and beautifully rounded behind. Of course, by this time, that poor guy has a hard-on, his wife has punched him and stormed off in a snit, and his phone is already ringing with a call from the divorce attorney.
All kidding aside, I saw that very thing happen. Two years ago at a company picnic, I watched a guy's wife confront him because he had been ogling my wife all day. I couldn't hear the exchange, but while she was dressing him down, he actually looked past her at my wife again. She slapped him and stomped off. And the kicker? The guy was in his mid-twenties and his wife, although pretty and much younger than Jan, well, she just didn't "stack up!" I'm pretty sure that story didn't have a happy ending. But, worry not, the upcoming story does have -- a happy one -- ending, that is.
THE STORY
I. THE FIFTH KEY
We arrived at the lodge in the waning hours of daylight, and getting there was an adventure in itself; it took the better part of a day traveling by personal taxi from Yekaterinburg's Aramil Airport over some of southern Russia's finest goat trails. But, we arrived safely and as it turned out, about an hour before dinner.
When we arrived at the lodge, we were greeted by a beautiful old wood and stone, alpine building perched on the steep side of an imposing mountain slope and breathtaking vistas greeted us in every direction. And with snow blanketing everything, the only sounds in the air came from the waterfall and stream splashing and gurgling in the background. It was a truly idyllic setting.
The lodge was charming, lots of old polished hardwoods, highly polished stone floors, and actual gas lanterns, along with unobtrusive modern lighting. After entering the lodge, we approached the front desk and the first thing I noticed was that only four room-key boxes were empty. Hopefully that meant only four other rooms were occupied. Ours would make five. Perfect, no crowd!
We were informed at the front desk that dinner would be served in an hour. We were grateful for a chance to freshen up and change clothes after a long day of travel. We went to our gorgeous and surprisingly large room and got ready.
The main dining hall consisted of a dozen or so semi-private dining cubicles along three walls; in the open area, running the length of the hall were two very long, heavy wooden tables which currently had 12 place settings, all at the near end of one table. The first two seats on the right were occupied by a couple in their late 50's to early 60's. Across from them sat a family of four, a younger couple with two pre-teen children. My guess was they were eastern European. We took seats next to the older, heavy set couple. Easily guessing we were Westerners, they quickly greeted us in English with a thick Greek accent. As we exchanged pleasantries, the staff began taking orders. There was two basic entrees to choose from with different combinations of sides available.
With our arrival, that left two other sets of visitors, and as our current company seemed nice, I was hoping the other patrons would also be pleasant. There is almost nothing worse than unpleasant dinner guests.
We didn't have long to wait. A thirty-something couple, both of them very tall, handsome and immaculately dressed, entered the dining room, and seeing the children on the one side, chose our side and sat down next to us. Right behind them came what appeared to be a mother and daughter dressed to the nine's plus. I later found out they were the family of a ranking government official who probably sent them off to give him time with his mistress. What? Me, cynical?
The dinner was not high-tone cuisine, but was flawlessly prepared and delicious, and the staff didn't hesitate to fill our wine glasses. So, by the end of dinner, not only were we sufficiently sated, all the adults on our side of the table were pleasantly buzzed. The family on the other side excused themselves when we became a little too "adult" for the children, followed shortly by the Russian mother and daughter. I think we were a bit too common for their taste.
