Chapter 12: EARTH FORCE
The young couple were holidaying with a group of friends but after several days of sun, surf and sand, had decided to spend this particular day alone, driving up to the hopefully cooler, hilly region a few miles inland from where they were staying.
Martin and Brenda had known each other for nearly two years and been living together for much of that time. Until recent weeks everything had been wonderful but then niggling problems had begun to arise and as they had been getting progressively worse they both secretly hoped that the holiday would provide them time to identify and resolve the cause, a chance to revitalise their relationship.
There had been many things that had first attracted them to each other, they had similar interests and attitudes, she loved his sensitivity and quirky, off-beat sense of humour, and Brenda's common sense and loyalty were exactly what Martin needed from a partner. But underlying and supporting all the other reasons why they had initially been so happy together was their mutually strong, physical attraction and excellent sex-life.
Although neither had been a virgin when they met, when they ended up in bed for the first time each at first thought the amazing things they felt were the result of not having had it for some time. But as those feelings continued, and in fact got even better over the following weeks, they both revelled in having found someone that could both arouse and then satisfy them so fantastically.
By comparison with most other men she had known Brenda found Martin's much more tender and caring love-making both exciting and deeply satisfying. And Martin had been thrilled to find a woman who not only obviously enjoyed sex, but was also both willing and eager to try something new, and as well as that, could be an enthusiastic initiator.
So when both Martin's interest and actual performance began to wane Brenda was understandably concerned about what might have caused the dramatic change in his behaviour. At first she had put it down to pressure of his work, and understanding that it was unreasonable of her to expect him to be able to perform like a super-stud when he came home tired, she tried to help him. Gave him time to relax before their evening meal, dressed more seductively, and tried a variety of things that she hoped would re-fire his flagging performance. But when, in spite of everything she tried, little or nothing happened, she not only didn't know what else to do, but at first became frustrated, then in turn started losing interest herself.
And what made things even worse for her was the nagging thought, which she hated to even consider really, that Martin might be seeing another woman. That seemed so totally out of character for the man she thought she knew, but there were times when it seemed the only explanation she could think of to account for Martin's behaviour.
For his part Martin was just as concerned. There certainly wasn't anyone else in his life. It was true that there was no shortage of attractive women where he worked, and like any other normal male he had momentary thoughts of what another woman's body and reactions to his love-making would be like. But he loved Brenda and that simple fact enabled him to resist the occasional temptations that came with a pair of flirting eyes or all too prominent breasts.
But he was only too aware of his decreasing level of desire, and although he'd tried, he had been unable to pin-point the cause. He knew there was something at work in his subconscious but just couldn't get a firm handle on what it was. He could tell from the efforts Brenda had made and from the look in her eyes when he failed to respond - sometimes hurt, sometimes bewilderment, sometimes anger, always tinged with her increasing frustration - that the pressure on their relationship was increasing and that if something didn't change there was a very real risk of it breaking-down.
So for a variety of reasons, as the frequency and intensity of their love-making grew steadily less and less each of them in their separate ways found it more and more difficult to think about anything else.
But that additional pressure to perform seemed to just make it all the more difficult for either of them to actually do so, and up to that point even the holiday had made very little difference. In spite of the fact that Brenda was looking even more gorgeous than usual, was dressing, and doing everything she knew to arouse him, although they had certainly made love several times, the intensity was still missing, and both of them were only too aware of that.
So although they had the day to themselves, each actually found that not having their friends there as a buffer made them feel even less comfortable, and not surprisingly, at first they drove without saying much to each other, the radio filling the otherwise awkward silence.
But even in that atmosphere whenever Martin glanced sideways he still found himself appreciating both the way Brenda's breasts filled the T-shirt, and the length of smoothly tanned thigh left exposed by her crisp new shorts. He was aware of his body's faint response to her, but was even more conscious of the fact that if they had been in similar circumstances just a few months earlier he wouldn't have been able to stop himself pulling the car off the road and making love to her there and then.
Brenda had similar thoughts, the sight of his hands on the wheel, strong but sensitive hands with long, well-shaped fingers, triggered thoughts of the things they were able to her. His caresses did things to her body that no other man had done, things she ached to experience again. And even as she let her mind drift back to recall some of the incredible times they'd had together, she felt her involuntary response, felt her nipples tingling, her pussy starting to get moist. As those feelings strengthened she silently prayed that between them they could find some way of recapturing the spark that had made their being together so special, so wonderfully satisfying.
Whether because each in their own way desperately wanted to overcome the barrier that seemed to have grown between them, or merely as a result of the changing country-side around them, their mood did begin to lighten. They began chatting more freely and as the road climbed up through the foot-hills and the scent of the surrounding woodland replaced the sultry humidity of the coast their mood seemed to improve even more. So when Brenda suddenly spotted a sign indicating a secondary tourist route turn-off, she had no hesitation in saying.
'Let's get off the main road Martin. I'd love to take a walk amongst the trees.'
'O.K. darling, sounds like a good idea.' Martin replied cheerfully. 'Keep your eyes open for any side tracks we could try.'
Once off the main road Brenda began to get the strange feeling she was actually re-visiting somewhere she had been before, although she knew she had never been within a hundred kilometres of the area. And that feeling grew stronger the deeper they went into the forest and she confidently told Martin which way to go, taking them off on to a series of obviously less travelled tracks which not only took them further away from civilisation, but also took them progressively higher.
