A Swim for her Money, Part 1
Brea loves to swim, and so even on a snowy vacation, she doesn't want to be outdone by a bird. Can she take the heat... er- cold?
Been a while, but I have been doing things in the meantime, including this little short story here. It's not going to be a long thing, but thought I could at least post this much so far.
Looking back I'd say I made progress on my writing skills, but still have more work to go, which I hope to accomplish.
A Swim for her Money
"Are you sure about that?" The otter girl asked.
"Come on, it'll be fine." Jack seemed to have the only bit of excitement between them.
"I'm an island girl, I don't do cold!"
"It won't be that cold."
"Yeah, you're a husky, you were born in an igloo!"
"Hey... Mikey said you'd be fine."
"Like I would trust a penguin that I don't even know-"
"-A penguin whose parents own the lodge... I'm sure he could make good accommodations."
"You better be right. You're lucky I'm the very trusting kind!" Brea gave him a dirty smirk.
The husky got real close and returned the look. "But you can't trust me?"
"That depends..." She took a paw and put it in his shorts, "Can you trust me?" she asked with a naughty smile, reaching in deep and caressing his balls.
"You know I'm always lookin' for thrills." Jack replied as he leaned in for a deep, warm kiss before they both fell back onto the bed...
-
The drive to Alaska wasn't the most invigorating ride, especially for Brea, whose low-hanging ears and dreaded gaze out at the winter snow made it feel to her like it was a very bad dream.
"Awwwwww..."
"Have you ever seen that much snow?" Jack asked looking amusingly to her.
"I miss the beach!"
"They got beaches up here."
"Yeah, filled with ice!"
"Nah, they got water... sunshine... plenty of private areas to escape to?"
Even regarding that last part she caught herself before he could get any more enjoyment out of the situation.
"How much farther to go?"
"About another five hundred miles or so."
She groaned loudly. "Of this?"
"Mmhmm."
Brea sighed and curled up with a blanket looking out the window at the rural landscape around them.
"It's still pretty beautiful, huh?" Jack asked more seriously.
"Yeah, I guess; just not my kind of 'attractive.' ... (Sigh) I guess I can't exactly say no, though... not."
-
By early evening the Jeep finally pulled up to the lodge. It wasn't huge, but definitely looked cozy. The car for certain didn't look such, however, as his girlfriend seemed to have teleported to the door.
"I'll get the bags!" Jack shouted sarcastically as she waved and vanished inside.
Jack went around to the trunk and began retrieving the suitcases, though not sure what all they'd need if they'd be spending more time inside.
"Do you need any help sir?"
Another husky, gold-and-white-furred and more athletically fit, padded across the parking lot over to the car.
"Oh, sure. Thank you so- Eddie?!"
"Jacky? No way!" the other dog laughed joyously.
"Dude, haven't seen you since high school! How ya been?" Jack asked giving Eddie a bro-hug.
"Not bad, livin the life! How bout chu?"
"Ugh, trying to back in Cali. What are you doing all the way up here?"
"Ah, left Hamtown, parents moved to New Hampshire to care for his parents while I came up here to live with my grammy. I live for free and got a job fast that easily pays the bills. Oh, and I should introduce you to my girl later."
"Whoa dude, nice! She a local?"
"Yeah, cute husky. Name's Sheila. She even works here at the bar. HEY! You, me, tonight? I'm almost certain she could give you a special blend to get your motor revvin.'"
"Aw, dude I can't tonight. My girl-"
"You mean that otter just now; the one who could've ran the Iditarod in a day?" Eddie giggled.
"Yeah, that's her."
"You and an otter?! Woooo... little far from home, ain't she?"
"Yeah... honestly though, I didn't think it'd be that easy to get her here."
"What's 'er name?"
"Brea. I'm not sure if she'll stay long enough for you to get to know her, though."
"Well I won't go buddin into your personal life, Jack, cuz you know me."
"Yes I do, including a lot of your other special qualities..."
"I know my way around things," he smirked, "but regardless, ask her to join us."
"Well, any excuse not to go out in the snow'll get her going. Speaking of, ya know where I can find Brad Norths?"
"...And how do ya know BP- on second thought..." Eddie raised a paw, "knowing him too, that's better left alone. Great to see you again though Jack, I'll help ya with your bags."
"Thanks"
Jack grabbed one while Eddie took the rest in a stack and carried them to the front door, setting them on a cart... a little sled, just inside.
"Jack, I guess you don't need to worry about your little otter sneaking off very far!"
He found little amusement over Eddie's crack as he looked over to see Brea stretched out in front of one of the fire pits near the front desk, still bundled up.
"Room for, uh, Hugh, please?" he told the lynx at the desk. "Mr. Norths should've called in."
"Yes, your private room has been reserved." The female wildcat turned around and grabbed a key from the wall. "Here's your key, and if you could please sign here... thank you very much! You could go out that door and follow the path down to the left a couple a minutes till you see the cabin. The light should be on."
"And I'll get your bags while you get your girl. Have fun!" Eddie took the sled cart and headed out while Jack padded to Brea.
"Sweetie..."
"Hmm?"
"The room's ready."
"Okay." Her voice was so gentle and tired as she got up and walked beside Jack to the door, stopping when she realized their room was OUTSIDE. Brea turned to Jack. Her adorable sad otter eyes out-performed Jack's any day, and thus they sat back down. The lynx from the desk came to them and offered a couple warm drinks, to which they happily agreed.
Minutes later she returned with a decaf latte and cup of herbal tea, and a bag of marshmallows for them to roast over the fire pit.
"Thank you, you're so kind!" Brea finally spoke up.
"Well you do look a bit uncomfortable honey. Personally, I don't know any otters that come up here. We just want you do be warm and satisfied here. I'm sure the Norths would want it that way."
She walked back to the desk, leaving the two to cuddle together.
"You sure must know this guy if he treats you this well."
"He's a cool bird. We've known each other for a short while, but it was his offer and I didn't wanna refuse. He said it was the least he could do for letting him rent out our side cabana shack for a weekend. You'll like him, he's actually-"
The door banged open. In walked a nicely-built penguin wearing a pair of sunglasses and carrying two bundles of fish to his sides.
"Hey, hey, hey, hey!" He screamed to the room. "Fresh salmon for tonight's dinner if anyone's interested, courtesy of yours truly! Feel free to stop by in the dining room to indulge your palettes! Hey, waddup big J?" He shouted walking up to the two.
"Hey, good to see ya Mr. Norths!"
"Hey, just call me B.P., that's what everyone else does." Norths said, taking both fish bundles in one flipper and shaking with Jack's paw.
"What does it stand for, if I may ask?" Brea asked.
"Big Penguin, cuz I'm kind of a big deal around here, cuz it's my job to help make sure no one goes hungry, and I love it!"
"Heh, looks like it."
"Yeah, dog, and no one can look at me weird about it up here! Everyone loves me; and what shall I call you, if I may ask?" B.P. grinned, grabbing her paw with his flipper and kissing it.
The otter stood up and returned his grin. "Brea. Did you really catch all of those yourself?"
"Sure did, m'lady, n' they're real. If you're a true otter you should be able to smell real fish pretty easy."
"How long did it take you to catch all of them?"
"Heck, I did this in under an hour. I'm the best swimmer around up here." he smiled.
"Really? I'm a bit of a swimmer myself. I could swim laps around anyone back home!"
"Gnarly! You really are a true island otter! Might have to get together for a dip and see how well your rudder can hold up."
Brea smirked. "I'd be up for it, possibly give you a swim for your money."
"Is that so? Even in freezin' water?"
"I could hold up in any water."
"Really? Wanna try?"
Jack butted in: "Um, B.P., no she can't."
"Aww, nuttin ta worry about Big J, just a friendly little swim, nuttin more."
"I'd still be up for that!"
"Alright then. You can help me catch Thursday's lunch. That'll give you a couple a days to get comfy and get a little warmer, and I'll see you two tonight for dinner... that is, of course, if there's no (ahem) other plans."
"Haha, don't worry. We'll be there at eight." Jack replied.
"Sweet! Well, I better get this fish in before it starts stankin' up the lobby. See you tonight."
He took Brea's paw and gave it a kiss before heading off to the dining area.
"Well, we better get going ourselves. The room is ready and who knows how long Eddie's been over there!" He picked up their things and headed for the door. "You sure you'd be up for a swim with him... here?"
"Are you kidding? I'm always ready to make cir-"
Her words were cut short when the door opened and the cold air hit her face. She could only stand there.
Jack walked back in. "I'll get another sled."
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