Sharing Rose Page 6

  She tried not to make a sound as her finger continued to make a circle, doing her best to avoid brushing against the sides of the sleeping bag for fear of making a rhythmic rustle that might rouse them.

  In her mind she pictured them waking up, Alex opening his eyes and seeing her. Her head arched back, her hand between her legs. She could almost hear the noise of him unzipping her sack, throwing it aside and exposing her. Her fingers still inside herself. Then Jacob waking up too, and seeing her naked between them, trying to hide her modesty, trying in vain to pull up her leggings. Alex stopping her and putting his hand between her legs as Jacob leaned in and kissed her.

  She put her hand on her own breast and squeezed, imagining it was Jacob as she quickened her pace. Then she let out an involuntary moan as she pictured Alex rolling her onto her front and parting her legs.

  She thought of his dick resting on her ass, how big it would feel, and how hard.

  The feeling of him pulling her up onto all fours.

  Thrusting into her.

  Filling her up.

  She moaned.

  Alex wriggled and she froze.

  Then a second later he rolled over towards her.

  Her eyes remained fixed, looking up at the roof of the tent and then ever so slowly she turned her head to look at him.

  He was still asleep.

  She took a stuttering deep breath and then turned away to exhale before starting again. Her mind going back to imagining herself vulnerable, warm, and naked between them.

  On all fours.

  Exposed.

  The pair of them fucking her, one after the other. First Alex and then Jacob and then Alex again as Jacob filled her mouth.

  Harder and harder.

  Both of them cumming inside her.

  Alex’s seed in her pussy, warm and wet. Jacob’s in her mouth.

  She moaned again.

  Jacob stirred beside her, beginning to wake. She panicked but then found she couldn't stop, it was too late.

  The orgasm was quick and dirty and she twitched and shook, turning her head from side to side as it worked its way through her. She tried not to moan again or even breathe out and her vision filled with stars, floating in front of her likes motes of dust.

  She felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped.

  It was Jacob, and he was looking right at her.

  ‘Rose, are you okay?’ he whispered, gently shaking her shoulder. ‘You're having a bad dream.’

  Her skin was covered in a thin layer of sweat and the tent was dripping with condensation.

  She breathed out, at last, shuddering as she did so, still not quite able to form words so she nodded and looked over towards Alex as she slipped her hand out from between her legs.

  She left her underwear and leggings where they were. There was something naughty about talking to Jacob whilst she was secretly in an indecorous state.

  ‘I’m okay,’ she said.

  He nodded and lay back down, still looking concerned.

  She wanted to kiss him so much.

  To tell him that she was touching herself and thinking of him.

  Of them both.

  But she couldn’t, she didn’t dare.

  Not yet.

  *

  CHAPTER FOUR

  THE FOLLOWING MORNING, Rose woke up to find both Jacob and Alex awake, dressed and sat in the porch cooking breakfast. Outside the weather was wet and dreary and she could hear the wind whipping at the flaps of the tent.

  ‘Something smell’s amazing,’ she said, sitting up, her sleeping bag still wrapped tightly around her. ‘What are we having?’

  ‘Bacon and eggs,’ said Alex.

  ‘Oh my goodness,’ she said, laying back down. ‘I'm in heaven.’

  She started to laugh and the two men turned around to look at her.

  ‘I'm on a mountain, in the Swiss Alps, and my two favourite men are making me bacon and eggs in bed,’ she said with her eyes closed.

  ‘There's a cup of coffee out here too,’ said Jacob.

  ‘I love you, I actually love you,’ said Rose sitting back up again.

  Jacob passed the warm insulated mug through to her and she took it in both hands.

  She suddenly remembered that her knickers and leggings were still down around her knees and she blushed, hiding her face in the steam from the coffee.

  ‘So, didn't fancy sleeping on your own last night then?’ said Alex as she sipped.

  She shook her head slowly and smiled. ‘Bad dreams,’ she said.

  ‘What happened?’ asked Jacob.

  ‘It was my wedding day, and Alex was the groom,’ she said, grinning.

  ‘Oh wow, that's rough,’ said Jacob. ‘I'm surprised you're still here.’

  Alex laughed and winked at her. ‘If it had been our wedding night you wouldn't have wanted to wake up.’

  ‘Ooh, how rude,’ said Rose, then she shook her head and shrugged. ‘Honestly I don't remember, I just woke up feeling scared and I didn't want to be alone.’

  Jacob nodded. ‘You can stay with us again tonight if you need to?’

  ‘Maybe you can finish the dream?’ said Alex, raising his eyebrows.

  Rose took another sip of coffee and smiled, nodding gently.

  ‘I’d like that,’ she said, grinning at him.

  Jacob stabbed his fork into the small frying pan and lanced a piece of bacon, dropping it onto a small camping plate next to a neatly fried egg. He passed it back to Rose who took it eagerly, setting aside her coffee.

  She leant forward, forgetting that she hadn't adjusted herself before she fell asleep last night and in doing so exposed her breast.

  Jacob faltered and nearly dropped the plate, eyes wide.

  ‘Oh sorry, you, er-’, he pointed as Rose looked at him confused, then she followed his gaze and gasped, pulling her top down swiftly, her face turning crimson.

  ‘Oh my,’ she said.

  Alex’s face appeared in the gap. ‘What? What did I miss?’ He looked at Jacob whose face was frozen with the slightest hint of a grin.

  Rose started laughing and covered her face in shame. ‘You missed boob, I'm afraid,’ she said.

  ‘What? That’s not fair,’ said Alex. ‘You're dreaming about marrying me, but he gets to see your boobs?’ He shook his head. ‘I demand a replay.’

  ‘No!’ said Rose, laughing harder.

  ‘Slow motion rewind?’

  ‘No way!’

  ‘Then I want a divorce,’ he said, his head disappearing back into the porch. ‘We’re over, Prim.’

  ‘I’m so embarrassed, I'm so sorry Jacob.’

  ‘Don't be sorry, it was an accident,’ he said, laughing as his own face regained its normal colour. ‘A happy accident.’

  Rose picked up a sock and threw it at him and he darted out of the way, disappearing into the porch with his friend.

  She threw herself backwards and buried her face in Alex’s jumper, sniffing it again as she did so.

  ‘I'm just going to stay in here today,’ she called out, still mortified but smiling. ‘Don't really fancy it out there.’

  Whilst she genuinely hadn't meant to expose herself, it had certainly had a desirable effect.

  She opened her eyes briefly to check that the boys weren’t looking and then shuffled her arms down inside the sleeping bag to pull up her knickers and leggings.

  By the time she emerged, still somewhat embarrassed and feeling very awkward, the wind had begun to pick up and the visibility was dropping.

  What had once been a stunning view of the snow tipped Alps was now just a mottled spread of dark and grey clouds.

  The air felt damp too, and although it wasn't raining yet, it was threatening to do so.

  Rose walked over to her abandoned tent and slipped inside to get changed as the two men began to pack and decamp and a few minutes later she emerged in full waterproofs, her hood shaped tightly around her face.

  ‘Don't think there’s any chance of any more happy accidents today, ma
te,’ said Jacob as he watched Rose packing away her tent, wrapped up from head to toe.

  After clipping the lightweight canvas bag onto the bottom of her rucksack, she hoisted it onto her shoulder, and then turned and smiled at the two men.

  ‘So what's the plan today?’

  Alex stood up, leaving the partially rolled up inner layer of their tent on the ground, pulled down his hood and beckoned her over.

  He knelt on the grass and removed the map from his rucksack and then flattened it out on a fairly large piece of rock.

  ‘I was thinking we could take this scramble up the side of here but I think it's going to be too dangerous now, especially if the rain comes in, so instead, we head down and round here and walk through the forest, which might give us a bit of shelter. Then we can head back up to tonight's camp,’ he said as he pointed. ‘If we cut up through this track here.’

  ‘Could we go up and over instead?’ said Rose.

  Alex frowned and Rose leaned in to point.

  ‘If we double back here and took this route up and over, then we might get to see an inversion, and then we can peak today too,’ she shrugged. ‘Depends on how high up the cloud cover is though.’

  Jacob nodded. ‘Works for me.’

  Alex looked up at him, frowning. ‘You saw boob this morning, I don't trust your judgment,’ he said. ‘But, it does seem like a good idea.’

  Rose smiled.

  ‘Tell you what Prim, if you promise to even the score,’ said Alex, nodding toward Jacob. ‘We’ll go with your plan.’

  Rose’s eyes widened and she looked over at Jacob, shocked.

  ‘I'm not getting involved,’ he said, laughing.

  ‘I'm not showing you my tits just to get my way.’

  ‘Fine, woods it is,’ said Alex, standing up.

  Rose was incredulous, her eyes wide and her jaw open in astonishment.

  ‘Fine. How about this? I might even the score later this evening, on the condition that I get to sleep in your tent again, and we go up and over, and I get another bacon sandwich and a coffee tomorrow morning?’

  Jacob laughed. ‘She drives a hard bargain.’

  Alex feigned thinking about it as Rose stood, arms crossed and pouting.

  ‘Just the one boob though,’ she said. ‘Not both.’

  Alex laughed and smiled. ‘Deal, but you do know I'm kidding don't you?’

  Rose looked a little disappointed.

  ‘I hope not,’ she grinned. ‘Come on, let's get going before the rain soaks your groundsheet. I'm sleeping in there tonight don't forget.’

  The two men packed up quickly and stowed their gear, covering their own rucksacks in clip on waterproof outer shells as Rose helped.

  As they began to leave the first rumble of thunder grumbled in the distance.

  *

  The rain was light at first. It felt like more of a mist than a shower and as the breeze grew in strength, Rose could see the fine drizzle drifting and forming shapes amongst the rocks. Ahead of her was the shrouded figure of Jacob, hunching forward as he stepped up onto a raised outcrop, slick with rainwater. Their path was becoming treacherous but Rose was used to it. She’d spent weeks, possibly months of the last three years on and around the mountains of Snowdonia. This part of their climb reminded her of Tryfan in the Ogwen Valley, an enjoyable but difficult climb in good weather, but lethal in the rain and wind.

  She hoped they would peak before the weather caught up with them.

  She paused to look back towards Alex, her knee bent up onto a ledge, one foot down and her hands splayed and gripping the rock face. He was thirty foot behind and below her, and although he was strong, his bulk was slowing him down.

  ‘Do you need a hand?’ she shouted into the wind, but there was no response.

  She pulled herself up and steadied her feet as the wind whipped at her hood. She could hear the waterproof cover of her backpack working its way loose and she swung it down off her shoulder to tighten it.

  When she stood back up she saw that Jacob had paused and was looking back down at her. He raised his thumb and she replied in kind and then turned back to look down at Alex again. He was closer now and seemed to be moving a little faster, perhaps spurred on by the increasingly poor weather.

  Adjusting her rucksack she found a foothold and clambered up onto the next step. She was very appreciative of her waterproof boots, now they were being dunked into three inch deep rock pools every other step.

  Jacob was waiting for her and as she approached she saw his expression.

  ‘What’s wrong?’ she shouted over the noise of the rain battering her hood.

  ‘I think we’ve gone wrong,’ said Jacob. He nodded at the map in his hands. ‘I think we should’ve come up this path here, but we’ve ended up too high.’

  Rose studied the map as Alex caught up with them.

  ‘We lost?’ he said as he approached.

  ‘A little,’ said Jacob. ‘We’re too high, I think.’

  Rose nodded in agreement.

  ‘We can rejoin the path up ahead, but it looks like we have to cross a stream,’ she said, handing the map back to Jacob. ‘Or we go back down and find the intersection.’

  ‘Cross the stream,’ said Alex.

  Rose nodded. ‘Might be tough in this weather?’

  Jacob shrugged. ‘Beats going back down that way in the rain.’

  Alex took the lead now, stepping ahead of the others and onto the narrow path before them. The wind was still gathering strength and as they began to walk, Rose tightened the hood around her face. In the distance, she heard another, much deeper rumble of thunder.

  The stream was a few hundred meters ahead and as they approached, Rose wondered if they would have been better heading back. It was six foot wide, with only a narrow crossing and it barely contained the torrent of rushing water which was crashing down into it from the side of the mountain.

  Alex arrived at the edge first, looking down into the mist below where the water disappeared and then up into the clouds above them. To cross they would have to first climb down into the eroded channel that the water had carved, and then carefully step across several boulders that had fallen into the path of the fall at some point or another and been pushed downstream.

  Always the brave one, Alex slid down first. The side of the rock was smooth and as he reached the edge he struggled to find his footing, the power of the rushing water dislodging his feet wherever he placed them. Once he was steady, he looked back up and signalled for Rose to come down to him.

  She nodded and then turned to face the wall, sliding the toes of her boots down on the rock face and lowering herself with Jacob’s help. Alex took hold of her waist as she reached the bottom and steadied her, and she couldn’t help but feel humbled by his strength. Finding her balance and a solid footing, she looked sideways at him as he caught her eye.

  ‘You okay?’ he said.

  Rose nodded.

  ‘I’m going to cross and then throw a rope back for you and Jacob,’ he said. ‘I seem to remember you’re pretty good at catching.’

  ‘The best,’ said Rose, laughing.

  There wasn’t a lot of room between them and the torrent, and as Alex slid past he had to hold her waist tightly, pressing her into the rock face with his body.

  Had he lingered longer than necessary? Or was it just her imagination?

  She turned to watch as he started to cross, crouching down and holding onto a sharp outcrop with her fingers. She was so close to the stream now that the spray as it crashed past was making her squint.

  Alex steadied himself and let go of the side, balancing momentarily and then swinging himself forward and onto the first boulder, spreading his weight and testing how steady the rock was before adjusting his centre of gravity and moving up and onto it fully.

  He had nothing to hold onto now, so he crouched low before moving onto the second, lower rock which Rose could see was just an inch or two below the surface.

  There was a bright f
lash of light and then a second later a deafening roar of thunder.

  Rose jumped and nearly lost her footing, and for a moment she took her eyes off Alex. When she looked back, he was unbalanced. It was happening slowly, not in slow motion, but she could see that he was fighting to stop himself from falling into the torrent. His foot, now two inches into the current was being pushed off the rock, but his centre of gravity was too far over and he couldn’t recover.

  Rose watched in horror as Alex’s foot slipped and he fell into the water. The current was carrying him down, and in that moment she reacted, reaching out and grabbing his arm as he tumbled past.

  The muscles in her arm screamed in pain as she held on to the ledge, her fingers white hot as they dug in. Alex’s fingers gripped her arm hard, crushing her as he held on. She felt movement beside her as Jacob slid down and then a moment later, he was hauling Alex back and pushing him against the side of the small gorge.

  Her arm ached, but she didn’t care.

  She’d nearly lost him.

  She choked back tears as she looked over at him, panting and staring up into the sky, a strange grin on his face. Part of her wanted to hug him, and the other part wanted to slap him.

  ‘Oh shit, that was close,’ he said. ‘You’re a life saver, Prim. I owe you one.’

  ‘Damn right you do,’ she said. She wanted to rub her arm but there was no way she was letting go of the ledge.

  Jacob was moving now and had stepped over onto the large boulder from where Alex had fallen.

  ‘Alex, pass me the rope,’ said Jacob.

  The rope was attached to the side of Alex’s bag, looped and tethered with a carabiner. He unclipped it and slid it down and then threw Jacob one end whilst he tied the other around his waist.

  ‘This would’ve been more sensible,’ he said, grinning at Rose.

  Jacob tied the other end around his own waist and then with much more confidence than Alex, he stepped down onto the submerged stone and then straight away stepped onto the next, a raised but slanted rock, just a foot from the other side. He deftly jumped and then turned and leaned back against the muddy hillside opposite.