Chapter 8

Cajun's ears swiveled forward as he slowly walked toward Jack, who had stopped walking. As the horse approached, Jack held his hand a little closer to himself so Cajun would come close enough to hook on the lead rope. As Cajun took the carrot, Jack hooked the rope onto his halter. The horse jerked his head but did not try to run away. Jack gave him the other carrot half and led him to the barn to be saddled. As he led Cajun to the barn, he saw that Ariel had Lady saddled already and was fastening a cooler sack to the back of the saddle.

"What's in the cooler, baby?" Jack asked her.

"Oh, nothing much, dear. Just some sandwiches, fruit, cheese, and soda for a picnic lunch. Can u fasten this back pack to your saddle for me, honey?" she replied, smiling at him.

"I sure can, honey. What's in here?" he asked.

"The picnic basket, four towels, the first aid kit and my cell phone, and a roll of toilet paper, just in case." she said with a wink.

"Towels, huh baby? You planning on getting wet somewhere during this ride?" he asked her.

"Well, I do know of a place where we can stop for a swim, honey. And some other fun there too, Jack." she said. He finished saddling Cajun, tied on the backpack, and they mounted up after Ariel locked the door of the house.

"Lead the way, darlin'." Jack said. They rode out, following a trail south. Along the way, they talked and laughed at funny stories each told about embarrassing dates or other things. Ariel pointed out different places along the trail and where other trails crossed it.

At one point where another trail crossed with the one they were on, they stopped to watch a white-tailed deer and her fawn walking on the trail. Jack took that opportunity to come alongside Ariel and lean over to kiss her deeply. "I've been waiting for the chance to do that since we left the house, honey." he said huskily.

She smiled and said, "We'll turn right at the next trail crossing, honey. There's a lean-to shed there by a pond in a clearing off the trail there where we can have lunch and go for a swim. There's an old corral there too where the horses can be put." Her voice was deep and Jack could tell that she was getting excited at the thought of making love in that lean-to or in the pond.

They rode on for about ten more minutes before turning right from the "Elm Trail" onto the "Maple Trail." Ariel explained that all the trails in the area were named after trees: Elm, Maple, Pine, Oak, Cedar, Sycamore, Poplar, Red Maple, and Willow. About a half hour later, they turned left, rode for about five minutes, and came to the clearing that Ariel told him about. They rode to the right where the corral was, and dismounted from the horses and unsaddled them. Jack led them into the corral while Ariel untied the backpack from his saddle, and the cooler from hers, carrying them to the lean-to on the left side of the clearing.

Jack looked around the clearing as he put the horses in the corral. The corral was on the right side of the clearing and had a pole fence. It was about 100 feet long and 50 feet wide and had a bunch of trees at one end for shade. There was an old barrel there for water and a bucket hanging on one of the posts, probably to use for hauling water from the pond for the horses. He closed the gate and picked up both saddles, carrying them to the lean-to. Ariel was bent over, rolling out the blanket onto the floor of the lean-to. Her jeans were pulled tight across her butt and Jack had all he could do to hold back from rushing to her and ripping her pants off her and taking her then and there.

He looked away from the object of his desire, and surveyed the rest of the clearing. There was a fire pit about 30 feet in front of the building with stumps placed in a circle around it. There was a pond fed by a stream in the center of the clearing. He walked over to the pond and stuck his hand in the water. It was cool, but not too cold. "Just right for swimming." Jack thought. Then he went back to the lean-to. Ariel was sitting on the edge of the lean-to, beside the steps, just smiling at Jack as he was at the pond. He was very curious about the thoughts running through that beautiful head of hers. He would soon find out.