As Mark slowly dipped his body into the warm pool he was reminded instantly of why he made the trek up here very few months on a long weekend.
Harbin Hot Springs was about two hours north of San Francisco. The drive up took you through wine country and the place itself was tucked back off the main roads. It was the perfect place to soak and unwind from the tensions and rhythms of everyday life. The place was known for its amazing soaking pools fed by natural hot springs. You found the temperature your body needed and just relaxed.
It was an added bonus that the place was clothing optional.
Back in the day it had a reputation as a place where "free love" was easy to find. The place still rocked a sensual vibe at all hours even though explicit contact between guests in the pool was forbidden according to the little signs strategically placed around the grounds.
In recent years it had tried to rebrand itself as an accessible hot springs spa...but it wasn't hard to find fun when you wanted it or needed it.
Mark loved taking in the sight of all the beautiful naked female and male bodies. Not everybody had the best physiques, but he always surprised at how in shape so many of the people who came there were. And every once in a while he saw some appreciative glances, both male and female, taking in the contours of his own body. It always sent a charge through his body when he realized he was being admired.
Mark was a handsome guy.
At 48, he still kept his body hard with three trips a week to the gym and yoga and rowing. Dark brown with flecks of grey helped frame his face, as did the 5 o'clock shadow he always maintained through careful grooming. While some middle age thickness had set in on his 6 ft frame, his chest was in great shape and the thick hair that lined it only added to its definition. He saw at the gym how some of the younger guys shaved theirs down, but he couldn't imagine the point of that. So many of his lovers, male and female told him how sexy it was as they ran their fingers through it or brushed their tongue against his nipples in the midst of the type of sweaty, passionate fucking he favored...
Mark had arrived in the late afternoon at Harbin and had gotten settled-in in time to have a plunge in one of the pools before he would head to the communal kitchen to make dinner.
He always really enjoyed the first few hours of getting accustomed to the place. Stripping down in the unisex locker room was an opportunity to take in the sights. Naked men and women of all shapes and sizes were inches from each other, and no one seemed to care. What a change from urban living, where everybody seemed so conscientious of their space and so uptight about their looks and how the people around them looked. After showering at the outside shower, Mark made his way up the short flight of stairs to the medium hot communal soaking pool. Leaving his towel on the railing he then slowly descended down some stairs into the pool itself and let the warm water envelope his body.
As most people did, he made his way to one of the walls. The water in the pool came up just above his nipples. It felt good to be held by the water.
He had been there about 30 minutes when he noticed a young couple make their way down the steps into the pool.
The woman was young and had a supple body. She had her brown hair tied up off of her shoulders, highlight a chain and locket she wore around her neck. A nose ring set off her face's angular features. Her eyes were alert and taking in the nakedness around her. Mark noticed her firm breasts as she entered the water and her hips were ample without being out of shape. Her mound was unshaved...just the way Mark preferred. The man that accompanied her looked of Indian descent. He had a lean athletic torso. He was taller than her by almost a head but looked to be just a few inches shorter than Mark. His head was shaved but his defined torso and chest were coved in ringlets of think black hair. He had piercing dark brown eyes. His dark brown skin contrasted nicely with the black choker around his neck. Mark pegged them as being in their early 30s. They moved through the water looking for place on the wall. When someone on the wall across from Mark finally moved they made their way to the spot which put them just to the right of being in Mark's direct sightline.
The woman seemed a little unsure, but the man acted as if he knew his way around. He was whispering things to her point at the various buildings that surrounded the pool and the paths that led off form the three man pools.
They whispered to each other side by side, until the man gently grabbed the women's shoulder and brought her in front of him with her back to him. As he kneaded her shoulder, the tension she looked to be carrying seemed to melt away. At some point, while Mark had turned to watch the other people in the pool, the couple had turned to face each. And now were exchanging gentle kisses.
For some reason Mark found himself now transfixed watching them. He realized he was full on staring at them when the man's gaze lifted over the woman's shoulder and caught his.
He quickly looked away.
Strangely embarrassed, Mark looked away as well.
When they exited the pool a few minutes later, Mark realized he had been hard the whole time he was watching them.
As the evening sky slowly got darker, Mark eventually exited the pool in preparation for dinner. Grabbing a pair of shorts from his locker and a well worn T-shirt he loved to lounge in at home, he made his way up to the dining hall. ---
The kitchen around meal time was often crowded, but it being past 8pm the number of people was starting to thin out.
As he looked around the room, he noticed the young couple from the pool by the sink.
The man had on a short pair of tight hiking shorts and was shirtless. Mark got a good look at his powerful, muscular, hairy legs. The woman was dressed in a wrap that covered her. It didn't hide the outline of her breasts or her hips.
Mark felt his dick begin to twitch.
They were undeniably sexy, mostly because they seemed so confident in their bodies. Mark sat at a table and watched as they moved from the sink to the stove. The woman wrapped her arms around the man as he started to throw things into the pot on the burner. Mark saw how her fingers moved through the curls on the man's chest.
Mark was still staring at them when the man looked and turned his gaze to him.
"Caught," thought Mark.
The man gave him the upwards nod of his head that guys often do to acknowledge each other.
Mark nodded back, and then to hide his embarrassment, looked down and start to pull out some of the fruits and spread that he had with him. He kept a watch over the couple out of the corner of his eye.
When they finished cooking, they looked around the kitchen for an empty seat. The woman pointed at the empty chairs at Mark's table. Moments later they were in front of him.
"Is this seat taken?" asked the man.
Mark answered as nonchalantly as he could, "Help yourself."
As they sat down the man extended his hand.
"Hi, I'm Farid," he said.
Mark shook it as the woman introduced herself. "Hi, I'm Emma."
They were easy conversation. They asked about Mark's life in San Francisco, what he did for work and if he had come up to Harbin by himself. Mark found out that they were married 8 years, and that this weekend was Emma's 33th birthday. They lived in Oregon and were taking a drive down the west coast. Someone along the way had told them about Harbin and they decided to swing by as the headed south through California on their way to Mexico.
"So you weren't put off by the reputation of the place?" asked Mark.
