Every day was getting a little bit cooler and shorter in the mountainous national park. Deer and elk roamed constantly during this mating season. Bears got fatter and squirrels hid nuts.
Visitors were few and far between, although intrepid campers and hikers continued to check in daily. That was Katy's job. Katy Adams was one of two employees who staffed the office and general store during park hours. It was boring and low paying, but it got Katy out of the house.
Having just turned forty, she all but gave up on having a career. She was smart and quick to learn new skills. Working in the corporate world, however, just wasn't her thing. Katy liked the forest, the wildlife, and the peace and quiet.
Katy liked to jog in the park. It took her into the surroundings she loved and among the wildlife that didn't care about her life choices. On this dark and dreary day, at the end of her shift at the store, she changed into her jogging outfit and started out on a run that would take her up dirt roads she rarely travelled. With bear repellant in hand, she started off.
This route would bring her close to Tom Conway's ranger station. Her days were always better when the cute ranger, five years her elder, stopped into the store for supplies. Tom played professional baseball in his twenties and thirties, never having made it past the AAA level. Still, he kept in shape and brought a smile to everyone around him.
Katy's path grew steeper, and the air temperature dropped accordingly. She considered going back but knew that Tom's station and the intersection with another road that went down to the store were not far ahead. Thunder could be heard the entire jog. That wasn't unusual in the mountains. However, now the lightning was closer and the thunder louder.
Katy was not often taken by surprise by Mother Nature, but on this day, the heavens opened up suddenly and torrential rain pelted down. Hypothermia was real. Katy wanted no part of it. She quickened her pace to a sprint and ran toward the smoke that was coming from Tom's cabin.
Tom stepped onto the front porch, under the cover of a slanted roof, and took an armful of firewood. As he turned, he looked down the road and saw a runner.
"Katy! C'mon. Get in here," he yelled.
She was breathless as she ran up onto the porch.
"Oh my God. Thank God you're here," Katy panted.
Tom stared at the drenched woman. Her shoulder length hair couldn't have been any wetter had she just taken a shower. Her clothes clung to her body.
"Get inside," he said, following her into the small cabin.
Katy was easily Tom's favorite co-worker. She would never make the cover of a fashion magazine, but Katy had a simple cuteness of her own with a wonderful body to match. They had, in the past, playfully flirted with nothing ever coming of it. They just liked each other.
Katy rapidly walked in front of the huge fireplace at one end of the cabin, turning her back to the fire Tom had started hours earlier.
"I had no idea this storm was coming," Katy said.
"Welcome to the mountains."
"I know. I know."
"You must have wanted to see me really badly," Tom said, moving to a couch not far from her.
"That's not entirely untrue," Katy grinned. "I just wanted some exercise."
"I think you need dry clothes, first of all," Tom told her.
"No. No, I'll be fine," Katy said, unable to conceal her shivering.
"Come with me," Tom said, rising from the couch and walking toward a small bedroom.
Katy followed. She watched him pull a long sleeve flannel ranger shirt from the closet and lay it on the bed. Then he opened a dresser drawer and grabbed a pair of boxer shorts.
With both items on the bed, Tom said, "Put those on and bring your wet things to the fireplace. Oh, and there are towels in the bathroom if you need one."
Before Katy could protest, he was out the door, closing it behind him.
Moments passed before Tom heard doors opening and closing behind him. Then, finally, he heard her footsteps approaching and he turned. Katy was clutching her wet clothes to her chest, the long shirt stopping mid-thighs. Her hair was a little dryer and brushed. Tom thought she looked marvelous.
Katy laid out the clothes on the hearth, allowing her ranger shirt to rise above the bottom of her boxers. When she was done, she walked to the couch and sat next to Tom.
"You look so cute," Tom said.
"It's a nice, soft, warm shirt. I may keep it."
Tom smiled. "It's yours. I'll tell Evan a bear ripped it off me while we were wrestling."
"Don't joke about that," Katy said sternly. "I worry about you out here."
"You do? Honest?"
"Sure. I think about you more than you know."
Tom turned toward Katy and said, "Tell me. When do you think about me?"
He saw her blush. Katy was introverted in a crowd but put her in a one-on-one situation with somebody she trusted, and she'd say almost anything.
"Well, I'm not sure you should hear this."
"Tell me," Tom demanded.
After a short pause, Katy said, "Whenever David gets drunk and wants to mess around...and that's the ONLY time he wants to mess around...we'll be in bed and, um, I'll think of you."
Tom wasn't exactly expecting that. Still, he grinned, and said, "And?"
"I think about how gentle and loving you'd be. How you would kiss me before we did anything."
"Am I a good kisser?" Tom asked.
"Oh, you're the best."
Tom leaned over and lightly kissed Katy on the lips. When she didn't refuse, Tom leaned harder and the two of them fell to their sides. Tom kissed Katy again, this time more passionately. She eagerly accepted the kiss and ran her tongue across his lips. Their mouths opened and Tom wrapped an arm around Katy.
She moaned softly throughout the prolonged embrace. They were both stretched out on the couch, hugging and kissing.
"What's your verdict now?" Tom asked when the kiss ended.
"Still the same. You're the best."
"Tell me more about what you think about."
"After you kiss me," she said, "you lick my tits and suck on them until I can feel it in my pussy."
