I couldn’t speak. I locked eyes with her and nodded my head. Suddenly, hands were going under clothes, zippers were unzipping, and clothes were coming off. Every part of my body was desperate to be in contact with every part of hers. My world was Jodie, the earth beneath me, and the trees surrounding us. There are no words for what transpired after that.
We resurfaced after a time. Jodie’s head lying on my chest, we breathed in and felt the act of breathing move us towards and away from each other by micrometers.
Moments later she turned her head and laughed. “Do you ever get the feeling you’re being watched?”
I turned my head to face the way she was looking and found three sets of eyes staring intently at us. “Well, I guess we know how to get them to stay, now.”
When we both laughed, it seemed to disturb Frodo. He came over and started licking Jodie’s arm and my face to make sure we were okay.
“Okay, fun’s over.” Jodie hopped up and started reassembling herself. I buttoned my jeans and pulled my shirt down, and she gave me a lift up. I dusted a ton of pine needles off my clothes and ran my fingers through my hair, trying to look presentable.
Jodie and I stood still and held each other with our eyes. “You’re amazing,” I told her.
“You have no idea what you do to me.”
“Well, if it’s anything like what I just experienced, you’re welcome.” The dogs were starting to wander off, so I whistled and sprinted towards the truck.
Jodie grabbed my arm and hopped on my back. I’m glad I’ve had to work so hard on the farm because I was just strong enough to carry her for a minute or two before she hopped off. Frodo yapped a couple of times.
“I bet you wished I’d stop abusing you.”
“I got no complaints, but Frodo isn’t too happy about it.”
“Come on, Fwo-do, it’ll be okay.”
Lucy and Pippin leapt over the truck gate and whirled around in circles in the bed. Jodie, Frodo, and I loaded up and we headed back down the gravel road, the only way in or out. As we passed the campsite, a gray haired lady waved at us, smiling despite a strange expression on her face.
“Do you think she heard us?” I asked.
“I don’t know, maybe. Sometimes things can echo. Ask me if I care.”
I looked at the woman in my side mirror, and she was walking back toward the campsite. “Well, now she has a story to tell … So where is this town. We’re still in the wilderness.”
“Look, just turn right, and we’ll be there in like two minutes.”
“Okay …” Considering the thick woods around us, I was still highly doubtful. But in ten minutes, we had parked, hooked the dogs up on leashes and started walking around Idaho City. Whenever the dogs would allow, we held hands, but even when we didn’t, there was still the intimacy from before to keep us connected. I could not stop grinning, and neither could Jodie. The dogs, however, caught their second wind and were dragging us from the park to the jail to the boarded sidewalk. When we passed by a statue of a bear cub, the fur stood up on the back of Frodo’s neck and he started to bark. We gave the dogs some water and loaded them back in the truck. Jodie ran over and got a couple of cones from the ice cream shop, apparently an Idaho City tradition. She got maple and something fruity, and I got rocky road and mint chocolate chip. The dogs also got a treat: The store kept a bowl of dog biscuits on hand. We sat in the truck and observed the tiny town.
“Yep, established 1862, our first State Capitol. Over two hundred businesses at its height, and tons of Chinese. By the early 1900’s, it was pretty much over. There’s only a few hundred people here now.” She licked the edges of her cone between sentences to prevent it from dripping on her pants.
“Chinese?”
“Yep, and a lot of them, too. But there’s only one building of theirs left, the one we passed around the corner back there.” She pointed to the right. “There’s a bunch more stuff at the Historical Museum in Boise. We should go there sometime.”
“That would be cool.” I turned to watch her lick her ice cream cone and mine dripped onto my pants. “Crap.” I dabbed it with my napkin.
Lucy barked at a dog in the car next to us.
“I guess that’s our cue to get going … Lucy!” I started the engine and pulled the truck up to the main road, still eating my ice cream. “Would you take this for a sec?”
Jodie took my ice cream and held it away from Frodo until I got the truck into fourth gear. Back on the road, the sun flickered in and out between the trees. I shoved the windshield visor down to avoid being blinded and finished my ice cream cone. I slid my hand onto Jodie’s leg. Body memories flooded over me, and I had to force my eyes open to watch the road.
“So, um, are you going to be able to stay over tonight?”
“I wish I could. My dad needs my help with a project before I go to work tomorrow. Is it just me, or is what happened back there blowing your mind, too?”
“No, consider my mind blown.” My driving was starting to suffer, so I drove the truck into a pullout.
“Jodie, I have never even come close to feeling anything like that with anyone. Ever.”
“Me, too, but I have only been with a few people. I thought maybe I was making
