Chapter 2

The ride ride back to Mel’s cabin was as slow and tedious as the trip outward had been, since the weather didn’t allow for fast travel aside from sliding downhill. But since they weren’t skiing or sledding, it took a considerable amount of time. The hearty and reliable Sno-Cat chugged along over and through the snow pack, between the towering, snow gilded trees while the three of them chatted and Mel tried to gather more information.

“So, how long had you been in that cabin when we showed up?” he asked Kim.

“Since about sundown yesterday,” she replied. “I guess I got really lucky, even though I didn’t find someone to help us, at least I had a place to stay out of the weather ... and I was able to built a teeny little fire.”

“Since last night?” Mel asked, surprised. “And you were still freezing cold when we found you...?”

“Oh, I tried going back out this morning,” she explained, “but after yesterday, I was afraid to go too far. I didn’t want to go past where I could still see that little ... shack, or whatever it’s called. So, after I didn’t find help again this morning, I went back there and threw some more wood on the fire and tried to get warm again. Not long after that, you showed up.”

DeeDee started to sniffle, but was doing her damnedest to stay strong in front of Mel. “It really was lucky that you found that place, mom.”

“You have no idea how lucky,” Mel said quietly, “ ... there’s no other shelter around that part of the park for miles and miles.” Then, trying to put a more positive spin on things, he said, “But I must congratulate you on being dressed for the situation. Most people who try to drive through a storm like this are only wearing their normal clothes. Instead of planning for bad surprises, they just assume that they’re safe because they’re in their car. You and DeeDee both had on multiple layers and good hiking boots and aside from your face, your entire body was covered against the weather. So, good job on that front.”

“I knew it would probably be cold up here in the mountains,” Kim said. “We left Henderson yesterday morning, headed for Visalia, and it’s always colder ‘til we get to the bottom of the pass. But I didn’t know it was supposed to be this bad. I figured DeeDee and I might stop and hike around for a while somewhere along the way. But when the car started sliding and ended up in that ditch, well...”

“I understand,” Mel soothingly told Kim. “And please understand – I’m not trying to add insult to injury or give you a hard time about your decisions. Not at all ... at least, not right now. Instead, I think we should focus on the good things; Like how you were both dressed properly for the situation. And how everything seemed to work out.”

“So, what about the car?” Kim asked. “I mean, I hate to ask, but it’s not like I can afford a new one.”

“The car’s probably fine,” Mel answered. “Sure, the battery might need a jump-start, and you might need some more gas, but other than that, it’ll probably be okay.”

Kim sighed with relief. Then, after a few more moments. “How long do you think we’ll be stuck up here?”

Mel took a deep breath, then exhaled and said, “Hard to say for sure. The weatherman said we’re likely to get at least 3 more days of this heavy snow, counting today. And I can tell you that the roads are already impassable, and most are completely snowed in. They’ve shut down the gap in both directions already ... did that last night.”

“But...,” Kim interjected, “what about you? Are you sure you can put up with me and DeeDee that long?”

“Are you kidding?” Mel chuckled and flashed a warm smile. “I don’t get company very often. And the company that does come by aren’t as pretty as you two either.”

DeeDee blushed, then her curiosity forced her to ask, “Who normally comes to visit? I mean, when the weather’s not so bad?”

“Oh, once a month or so, my boss comes by for a couple hours just to check up on me ... make sure I haven’t gone crazy. Other than that, the only company I get is of the four-legged variety. Ya’ know ... deer, wolves, coyotes, bears, raccoons ... the occasional snake.”

“Hey!” DeeDee retorted while giggling, “snakes don’t have legs...”

“True,” Mel responded. “And they’re not much fun having around the house either. Conversations with a snake are so one-sided,” he quipped, which caused DeeDee to giggle again, and Kim to chuckle at his playful attempt at humor.

“So, you talk to the animals?” Kim asked with an impish glint in her eye.

“Sure!” Mel answered with a smile. “They don’t have much to say to me, but they seem happy enough to listen to me talk.”

DeeDee and Kim giggled again.

By the time they reached the cabin, Kim had admitted aloud that she was really looking forward to a hot shower or bath, some food and a good night’s sleep ... which was all completely understandable. After all, she’d just spent more than 24 hours in the teeth of a snowstorm without any food or water. The fact that she’d been lucky enough to find a place to build a fire is what had saved her life, but she had been through a hell of an ordeal, just the same.

Mel helped DeeDee and Kim down from the Sno-Cat, ushered them inside, then built a fresh fire in the pot-bellied stove. DeeDee gave her mom the same tour of the house that she’d been given the day before, pointing out the bathroom, the bedroom and where to find things like fresh towels.

“I’ll get started on some supper,” Mel announced, “why don’t you take a long, hot bath and by the time you’re done, it’ll be time to eat.” Kim nodded gratefully and asked for DeeDee’s continued assistance.

“My fingertips still feel like somebody’s poking needles into them,” she told her daughter, “it’ll be easier for me to get undressed if you help me.”

Of course, DeeDee was happy to help her mother. The young teen was still riding a high from the joy of finding her mother safe after so much uncertainty. But before she led Kim to the bathroom, she turned to Mel and asked, “Um ... do you think we could borrow some more clothes? Ya’ know ... for my mom?”

“Oh!” Mel hadn’t considered that. “Sure ... yeah. No problem. Let’s see what we’ve got.”

It took a few minutes, but Mel and DeeDee were able to find another old tee shirt that they thought would be comfortable for Kim. At that point, Kim reminded them that she and DeeDee would need to remove her panties and keep them off for a while. “I need to wash them ... I guess I can do that in the bath and then let them air dry overnight...”

DeeDee looked at Mel pointedly, and it didn’t take long for him to get the hint; Though his old tee shirt was long enough to protect DeeDee’s modesty, that wouldn’t be the case on Kim. So, he needed to find something for Kim to wear that covered her ‘downstairs lady parts’. Thankfully, he was able to scrounge around and locate another pair of ratty gray sweatpants. They had a drawstring waist, so Kim would be able to cinch them above her hips.

Once they had some clothing for a clean Kim to use following her bath, DeeDee ushered her mom into the bathroom and they closed the door. Though he stayed in the kitchen, Mel could hear the sound of water running into the tub. Despite himself, he began to recall the image of Kim’s naked body. When he’d seen her earlier in the day, he’d only been viewing her bare skin as a precaution ... checking for any signs of injury or frostbite that the cold had kept her from noticing herself. Still, it had been so very long since he’d felt the touch of a woman ... and he’d never been lucky enough to be with a woman that looked like Kim. Her body was just other-worldly in its rare, delicious shape; So taut and slender, but graced with those hefty pleasure pillows ... Mel’s cock throbbed for attention under his multiple layers of clothing.

That served as a good reminder that he needed to lose the layers of outerwear he’d had on since much earlier in the day, and he did so. He also took a few moments to radio the dispatcher and inform them of the current status.

“That’s outstanding news, Mel!” came the static-filled reply. “Great work!” Neither needed to mention the fact that so many people perished when they left the safety of their vehicle in a heavy winter storm ... they both knew the numbers and had seen, first hand, the all-too-common results.

“Just doin’ my job, dispatch,” Mel deflected with a chuckle. “Besides, it was you that reminded me abot that old poacher’s shack.”

“Glad it worked out,” said the voice on the radio. “FYI, it looks like we’re in for another 48 hours or so of this storm, maybe more.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’ve been hearing on the radio too,” Mel replied.

“Well,” they continued, “the bad news is that it’s supposed to be cloudy and staying cold for almost a week. So all this snow’s gonna stay with us for a bit ... those clouds probably won’t allow enough UV light through to force things to start melting...”

Mel sighed with resignation. That’s another thing that most people don’t consider about adverse weather - the aftermath. Just because the storm passes doesn’t mean the roads will be safe to travel right away. He would need to talk with Kim and set her expectations accordingly. Unless there was a life-or-death reason for calling a helicopter evacuation, she and DeeDee might be staying with Mel for close to a week, maybe longer.

He cleared his throat before asking, “Say, dispatch, I’m looking out the window at probably probably 5 feet of snowfall so far ... but it’s difficult to tell because of the wind causing so many drifts. What’s the official number for the park right now?”

“The last official number I heard was a couple hours ago,” the dispatcher answered. “At that time, we’d received seven feet, ten inches of fresh powder over 48 hours. That’s a far cry from our normal numbers.”

“No kidding,” Mel answered, shaking his head. In a typical winter, they might have 2 to 2½ feet of snow all season. It seemed that this storm system was one for the record books. They each wished the other safety before signing off, ending the conversation. Mel went back to prepping a meal for he and his guests.

He shouldn’t have been surprised by how long Kim spent in the bath, but he was. Yet, to be fair, he hadn’t actually lived in the same house as a woman since leaving his parent’s home so many years ago. So he could be excused for not being used to a female sense of time. He had already cooked some pork chops and had them on a plate in the oven, keeping them warm. To go with the chops, he’d emptied a sizable can of green beans into a saucepan and heated it slowly. Both he and the food were waiting for the ladies to finish their soaking and gossiping. Pouring himself a couple fingers of whiskey, he sat on the sofa and sipped it while listening to the muted sounds of DeeDee and Kim chatting and giggling behind the bathroom door.

Then, finally, the wait was over. And it was well worth it. The bathroom door opened, spilling steam into the hallway, and Kim emerged. Her face carried a newly-scrubbed and refreshed glow. With a towel turbaned around her wet hair, she was otherwise clad only in a gray pair of Mel’s sweatpants and one of his old tee shirts. Mel couldn’t help but notice right away that the shape of her body stretched the shirt in new and wonderful ways. Her prodigious bust line caused the soft cotton garment to hang well away from her soft, but trim belly, so that the shirt itself acted almost like a waterfall, dripping over the edge of a cantilevered rock outcropping and leaving everything underneath in shadow. It was also impossible for Mel to ignore the way her bra-less breasts swayed and wobbled heavily under the thin covering of his old tee shirt, and each time he caught that movement from the corner of his eye, his cock twitched anew. Mel began to worry that, before the storm passed, his balls would explode with aching need. After all, it wasn’t like he could just whip out his dick and jerk himself off ... not with DeeDee and Kim in the house!

They sat at the small dining table and shared dinner, chatting comfortably and peppering their conversation with silly jokes. Though neither lady was particularly impressed by Mel’s cooking abilities, they were eternally grateful to him for everything he’d done, and continued to heap praise on him. So much praise made him feel uncomfortable, and he deflected their comments with more silly jokes until they finally got the hint and eased up on boosting his ego. Eventually, their meal was complete and Mel took away the dishes.

“You should be washing up for him, DeeDee,” Kim noted. “After all, it’s a woman’s job to keep things neat and tidy ... you know that.”

“Yes ma’am,” DeeDee answered before stepping into action. She finished clearing the dishes, then washed everything, rinsed and dried it all. Once that was done, she wiped down the kitchen while Mel and Kim sat and chatted.

“Mel,” the freshly-bathed mom said haltingly to her host, “I hate to ask, but ... is there any way we could go to my car tomorrow?”

He looked at her as if she’d lost her mind. “You know there’s no way you’ll be able to drive out of here yet, don’t you?” he asked her.

She waved her hands at the empty air and responded, “Oh no ... I’m not thinking about that. It’s just ... well, DeeDee and I both have some clothes and ... lady products ... in there. And since we’re gonna be here for a little while, it’d be nice to have those things ... ya’ know?”

“Ah ... now I understand,” Mel answered. “But I don’t remember seeing any hanging clothes or other stuff like that when I happened to find DeeDee.”

“It’s just a couple of small suitcases,” Kim clarified. “One for her and one for me.”

“Oh okay,” Mel nodded. “Well ... I don’t see why not. As long as the Sno-Cat can still handle the trip, then I can go grab your suitcases first thing tomorrow morning.”

“Can we go with you?” Kim asked, her head down but her eyes tilted up toward his. If she hadn’t been the mother of a 14 year-old, Mel would have guessed Kim to be in her early twenties, based on her skin – but he knew that couldn’t be right; She would have to have been only a child when DeeDee was born. So, he changed his assumption to early 30’s ... But in that moment, she looked so much younger than her years, whatever that number was. She almost looked like a pleading child. “I don’t know if I’d feel comfortable or safe with just me and DeeDee sitting around here.”

Mel nodded and smiled. “Okay.”

With that, Kim stood, bent at the waist to lean over him, wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. With his seated position and her bent over directly in front of him, her breasts were mashed into the top of his own chest, causing him to forget how to breathe momentarily, and causing his impatient cock to lurch in his pants.

“Oh thank you so much, Mel,” Kim said to him while clasping his neck with her arms. “I don’t know if there’s any way I can ever repay you for everything you’ve done, but you can bet your bottom dollar that I’m gonna try.”

To preserve his own sanity, Mel spoke up, adding some relevant caution. “But I do have to warn you that it can’t become a habit. The majority of time, I need to have room in the cab in case I find anyone else. Also, it’s important to remember that what I find can be pretty grisly sometimes. And I don’t want you or DeeDee to have to live with those nightmares.”

“What do you mean, grisly?” she asked, backing away from him and taking her seat once again.

“Well ... every once in a while, someone dies up here. Sometimes it happens in a car crash, sometimes they get too brave and try to take on Mother Nature before being shown the error of their ways.”

She looked at him with an obvious question in her eyes.

Mel answered it without further prompting. “Sometimes, we’ll get campers or so-called wilderness experts ... heck, even just visitors driving through ... that do things that tempt the local wildlife. And I don’t care how tough you think you are, you’re not gonna win against an angry bear, or a pack of wolves. The aftermath can be pretty gruesome.”

“Oh...,” Kim responded very quietly, shuddering as horrible imagined images flashed in her brain. “Yeah, I don’t want DeeDee seeing that kind of stuff ... not ever. And for the record, I’d rather not see it either.”

Due to Kim’s understandable weariness, Mel wasn’t able to enjoy her company for much longer that evening. Nor DeeDee’s, as it turned out. The sun had only been down for a few hours or so when Kim announced that she was going to turn in, and DeeDee chose to join her. Mel reminded DeeDee about leaving the bedroom door open to allow warm air to circulate, then told them both good night. But before the ladies turned to enter the bedroom, DeeDee surprised Mel by wrapping her arms around his midsection and hugging herself close to him. Clad only in his old tee shirt, her bra-less breasts mashed against his lower abdomen and her pebbly nipples poked into him with a kind of urgency. As much as Mel wanted to keep his placid and calm demeanor intact for the ladies’ sake, he returned DeeDee’s embrace and quietly enjoyed the warmth of her petite body for a few moments. She then stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek before padding toward the bedroom. Her mom, Kim followed suit, pulling Mel close for a grateful embrace. Of course, she was a bit taller than her daughter, and the added physical gifts on her chest did nothing to quell Mel’s raging erection. He could feel them flatten against his own chest, causing him to involuntarily utter a low, growling moan as he returned her hug, holding her as tightly as he dared in the situation. Through it all, he was terrified that Kim would see or feel his lurching dong as it throbbed against his own thigh. But if she did, she didn’t give any indication of it. Far too soon, she pulled back from their hug and walked toward the bedroom, where she would join her daughter in bed.

Mel chose to change clothes in the bathroom, switching to the same sweatpants and tee shirt he’d worn the night before. The vast majority of the time, he slept in only a pair of thin boxer shorts. But with company, he’d chosen to cover his lower half entirely, fearing that his wang would flop out of his shorts, or extend below the bottom hem of one leg ... as had happened so many times in his life. After changing into the more comfortable clothing, he poured a fresh drink and settled on the sofa with the Vonnegut book, picking up where he’d left off the night before.

For the next little while, he could just barely hear the ladies talking. It wasn’t clear or loud enough to make out the words as they chatted while snuggled under the covers, but Mel could tell that DeeDee was doing most of the talking; Muted mumbles and giggles to which Kim only occasionally seemed to be replying.

Eventually, the noises from the bedroom ceased and Mel spent another hour or more reading in the silence. Finally, he decided to get some rest, lying lengthwise on the sofa. He noticed that the snowfall had slowed, but showed no sign of stopping completely, which matched the forecast. He briefly considered how much the blizzard was affecting his normal routine. Typically, his duties were split between guided tours or nature education, park upkeep, and regular patrolling for improperly-managed campfires and other common wilderness mistakes. He found that he spent a lot of time repairing things - everything from carpentry to maintenance on the vehicles owned by the Park Service fell into that category, and he’d become a capable hand at each of those tasks. But with the snowstorm, there wouldn’t be much for him to do, even if he hadn’t had house guests. Aside from taking the Sno-Cat out to look for other stranded parties, he’d just be waiting out the weather like everyone else.

He was rudely awakened well before sunrise with a heartily-swung pillow to the face. As he sputtered and flailed himself to an upright sitting position, he was met with DeeDee’s scowling face. “You were snoring like a busted chainsaw again,” she hissed through her teeth. “Honestly, how can anybody except you ever get any sleep around here?”

She clearly didn’t expect an answer, but he spent a moment trying to come up with one anyway. Sadly, other than lashing out at her impulsively, he couldn’t think of anything. So, with genuine humility, he whispered, “Geez ... I’m sorry.”

With a combination of disbelief and disdain, DeeDee huffed once before quietly making her way back to the bedroom. Just like the previous night, Mel sat upright and covered himself with the blanket again, eventually falling asleep once more.

The sunlight that leaked through the curtains was dimmed by the storm clouds and continuing snowfall, but it was adequate to the task of waking Mel from his not-so-steady slumber. The last few hours of sleep had been uneven and broken, but he had been able to sleep, so he counted it as a win. He rose, showered, shaved, put on fresh clothes and then started preparing breakfast. Scrambled eggs, link sausage and orange juice. He hoped that it would be up to DeeDee and Kim’s standards.

He needn’t have worried. The ladies rose to the smell of cooking sausage and percolating coffee. Their hair was tangled and knotted, and their eyes showed their lingering state of drowsiness. But once the food was ready to plate, he and the ladies dug in with gusto. By the time they’d finished eating, both ladies’ faces showed their excitement for the new day. Mel took care of the dishes so that both women could spend some time refreshing themselves in the bathroom and getting properly dressed for the outdoors. Per his agreement with Kim, he planned to make one slow patrol around his portion of the park, then stop at their car so he could collect their suitcases. They would all make the journey together.

So, with a large Thermos of coffee for he and Kim, plus a small one of orange juice for DeeDee, they all piled into the Sno-Cat together again. DeeDee had taken her role as navigator seriously and still had the map Mel had given her. As a way to keep her busy, yet involved, Mel agreed that she would continue to be the map reader and mark their progress.

Throughout the tedious trip, Mel patiently listened to the ladies as they chatted. Sometimes, he’d chime in, but mostly, he wanted to learn about them ... and one of the best ways to learn about someone is to simply listen, which is what he did. With a few carefully-worded questions, Mel learned all about Kim’s ex-husband, DeeDee’s father. It seemed there wasn’t much to like about the guy, as far as Mel could learn, and aside from her gratitude to him for helping her create DeeDee, Kim made it clear that the man had zero redeeming qualities.

Were he even a slightly better role model or parent to DeeDee, Kim would never have said an unkind word about the man in front of their daughter. But DeeDee had seen the man’s lack of commitment and care firsthand. Even if her mother had never said a bad word about him, DeeDee would have known her biological father was a shitheel. On many occasions, while in their Visalia home, shared with Kim’s mother, DeeDee had confided in Kim that she prayed to have an attentive and upstanding father. The girl also sensed how much her mother needed the company of a reliable, loving man ... a fact of which Kim did not need to be reminded.

“Oh, I just remembered...,” Kim tugged on Mel’s coat sleeve suddenly. “I have to call my boss and tell him what’s going on. I’m supposed to be back at work tomorrow and if I don’t show up, he’ll fire me. Do you have a phone at your cabin?”

Mel shook his head. “No. Sorry. But we can use the radio and try to relay a message to him.”

Kim looked at him as if he’d lost his mind.

He explained. “I can radio the main Ranger station and ask them to call your boss on your behalf.”

“Oh,” Kim’s eyes lit up. “That would be so nice.”

With that, Mel used the radio in the Sno-Cat to contact the dispatcher. He passed Kim’s name and the contact info for her boss, asking that someone inform the man as soon as possible, since Kim was fearing the loss of her job, which wouldn’t exactly be fair since there wasn’t much she could do about the blizzard. The dispatcher assured Mel that he’d take care of it.

During their purposely-slow travels, Mel learned that Kim and DeeDee lived with Kim’s mother, Fran, in Visalia. Apparently, Kim’s father had worked for the railroad and lost his life in a particularly unfortunate heavy machinery failure on the rail yard. In the months following her husband’s death, Fran realized how alone she felt in the house, and convinced Kim to move in so that DeeDee would have a safe, stable place to grow up, since Kim’s ex certainly wasn’t going to provide it.

By the time Mel had completed a one circuit patrol of his assigned area, over 3 hours had passed. They made their way toward Kim’s stranded station wagon and found it just as Mel had left it. Well, almost. It had a great deal more snow covering it than the day before, but otherwise, it appeared to have been untouched. After Mel spent some time digging one side of the car free enough of snow, he was able to open one of the rear passenger doors and spotted the suitcases Kim had mentioned. He collected them both, tossed them in the bed of the Sno-Cat, which looked like a flatbed truck with wooden guardrails. Then, he double-checked with the ladies before closing the car up again.

“Is there anything else in the car you might need or want?” he asked. “Since we’re already here, it would be silly not to ask.”

They both looked at each other and then shook their heads.

“Okay then,” Mel said, “if you change your mind later, I’m just gonna toss you a pair of snowshoes and tell you to walk back over here.” He threw them a smirking wink to let them know he was (mostly) kidding, then closed up the station wagon again before climbing back into the driver’s seat of the Sno-Cat. They made the trip back to the cabin without incident, and the women lugged their suitcases inside while Mel refueled the Sno-Cat and spent a little time grabbing firewood from the house-side rack where he typically stacked it after cutting.

Both Dee and Kim seemed nearly bursting with joy in their relief to have fresh, clean clothes to wear. They wasted no time dragging their suitcases inside the house and into the bedroom. Mel had only just walked inside with the armloads of firewood when he heard DeeDee’s voice conspiratorially whispering, “Mom!? Oh my gosh ... I can’t believe you had that in your suitcase this whole time!”

In an equally whispery tone, Kim replied to her daughter, “Oh hush ... it’s only a dildo ... it’s nothing to make a big fuss about ... and you oughta know that by now.”

“Well ... yeah, I suppose,” DeeDee responded. “But I sure could’ve used that a couple nights ago.”

Kim looked at her daughter with a curious but questioning expression.

DeeDee clarified, still whispering, “That first night ... ya’ know ... after Mel brought me back here and we couldn’t find you?”

Kim nodded, expecting DeeDee to continue, which she did.

“The thing is ... well,” she began before getting a little embarrassed. When her mother prodded her to continue, she did so. “Mel was wearing those sweatpants, just like he did last night. And I’m pretty sure I saw his ... penis moving around in there. Like ... swingin’ back and forth.”

Kim’s eyes went wide and she smirked at her daughter. “C’mon ... swinging back and forth? There’s no way it’s that big, honey. I mean, I’m sure it looked enormous to you, baby girl, but I’ll bet that you’ve let your mind exaggerate what you actually saw.”

“No, really,” DeeDee insisted. “It’s ... like ... really, really big. And that night, when he started snoring, I went in the living room to wake him up, his thing was hard while he was sleeping!”

Kim continued to nod doubtfully at her daughter while deliberately checking through her own suitcase, trying to remember what clothes she’d packed. She had introduced DeeDee to a progression of smaller dildos a couple years before, and the two ladies both found that they preferred the largest one in her collection. The faux phallus they both preferred was about 8 inches long and thick enough so that even Kim felt a bit stretched, giving them a fuller sensation that the smaller plastic peckers couldn’t.

“Seriously, mom,” DeeDee wouldn’t let the point be glossed over. “I’m telling you that Mel’s penis is a lot bigger than that thing you have in your suitcase.”

Kim was getting a little bit frustrated with her daughter’s dubious claims. “Oh really? Did you get a good look at it naked then?”

DeeDee’s shoulders slumped. “No ... dang it. I wanted to, that’s for sure. But he only changes clothes in the bathroom with the door closed. I did touch it though.”

“You what?” Kim hissed through her teeth.

“Not naked or anything,” DeeDee tried to temper her mom’s shock. “But when it was hard and he was snoring so loud, I saw it in his sweatpants and I couldn’t help myself ... I had to feel it.”

“So you touched him while he was sleeping?!” Kim chastised her daughter, spitting and hissing her disapproval. “Do you know how wrong that is?”

DeeDee’s face showed the fear she had in the moment. She cowered, lowering her head in a submissive posture before speaking again. “I’m sorry ... really I am. But I just couldn’t help it, mom.”