"I found a nice place where we can spend the July 4 weekend," Eric said one evening during dinner.
"Where?" I asked, even though I had a mouthful of spaghetti.
"Up in the mountains, about five hours from here. Four hours to the base, and about an hour upward. A place which rents out small cabins in the mountainside forest. Plenty of Nature around us. People are rare there, so it would be just you and me and the animals in the area. Yet it still has most of the amenities we're used to, including electricity and running water. No high-speed Internet, though -- dial-up only."
I shrugged. "I can deal without any Internet access for a weekend."
He smiled. "So you're interested in going?"
"Absolutely! You were right: We definitely need to get away for a while. But we couldn't leave until Noon on Thursday, though. Because of the holiday, the library is closing at Noon and operating on a skeletal staff that morning, and it's too late now to try to get the full day off."
"That's fine. We'd still be there in time to enjoy the sunset."
Underneath the table, I slid my ankles against his. "I'm looking forward to it."
"We'll need to come back Saturday, though, so I have time Sunday to deal with the work I know I'll need to do over the weekend."
"I don't mind," I assured him with a smile. "A few days away will be perfect for us both, I think, especially if it's truly just us out in the middle of nowhere."
*****
We packed the night before, and that morning Eric had his car quickly checked over to ensure all was working properly under the hood. Not long after the library closed, I met him by the fountain, and we bought lunch as I often did at the sandwich cart, eating on the way to the car.
The first phase of the drive was four hours, but seemed more like four minutes. I was definitely looking forward to spending so much time truly alone with my big brother. For once, I would not need to worry about how others might view us and our relationship. For once, I would not need to keep quiet as I was eaten, or use a pillow to mask my screams as my body was being repeatedly filled. For once, I would not need to keep all the blinds closed so that I could walk around mostly or completely naked in my forbidden lover's presence.
For once, I could truly be a little sister, Eric could truly be a big brother, and we could truly be fated lovers.
At the base of the mountain, we stopped at the "front desk," a small base from which the rental operations were situated. We picked up the keys to the cabin as well as a very good map to guide us the rest of the way, and also picked up some food and fuel at the small grocery store across the street. Then it was back into the car for the trek up the mountain.