Chapter 3

When Mel began to stir the next morning, sun’s rays were still muted and dimmed by the continuing snow. Overnight, another 2 feet or more of fresh powder had fallen on the already blanketed landscape. Based on what he could see out the window, Mel guessed that there had to be at least 10 feet of snow on the ground, and the low storm clouds still seemed pregnant with more precipitation. “Another day or so of snowfall,” Mel thought silently, “that’s what the weatherman said anyway.” He sighed and scratched his face, scraping over the stubble on his jaw and chin, reminding him that he needed to shower and shave. Attending to his own hygiene only took about 15 minutes, including a meticulous straight-razor shave. Sure, he had some a regular safety razors, and tended to use that kind most often, but he wanted his face to be baby smooth in case Kim and DeeDee felt the urge to smooch him some more.

After dressing himself and starting a pot of coffee, Mel used the shortwave radio and contacted the dispatcher. “Any news I should be aware of?” he asked.

“As of right now, there’s nothing new to report,” came the reply. “All roads in and out of the park are still closed, obviously,” he said. “The national office telephoned this morning and tried to warn us that the power could go out if there’s too much ice build-up on the lines ... same with the telephone. But they always do that ... hovering around us with alarms about obvious things,” he commented, “I wouldn’t worry about it too much. That being said, are you well enough stocked that you can handle a day or two without power, if necessary?”

“Yeah,” Mel answered. “I won’t lie to you, it would suck ... but I’ve got enough candles for light, and enough I could always cook up some food on the ol’ potbelly stove, if necessary ... I’ve done it before. Yeah, I imagine that we could muddle through alright.”

“That’s what I thought,” the dispatcher responded. “Hopefully, it won’t come to that though. So, how are those two ladies holding up? Being stuck in your little cabin can’t be too much fun for them, I’d imagine.”

Mel chuckled and agreed. “You’re right about that. But they seem to be doing alright. I’m doing what little I can to make sure they feel safe and secure, and they seem to be settling down ... slowly losing the fear I saw in their eyes initially. I’m sure most of that comes from being back together after such a scary experience. And, they’re in better spirits after we retrieved their suitcases from their car yesterday. At least they have some clean clothes and personal items...”

“Makes sense. Alright then, Mel...,” the voice on the other end, laced with static, commented, “let us know if you need anything. If anything changes on our end, we’ll let you know right away.”

“Roger that, dispatch. Have a good one ... stay warm.”

After stoking the fire in the potbelly stove, Mel decided to start on breakfast. For no particular reason other than offering a tiny bit of variety, he opted to stir up a fresh batch of white rice. While on his naval tour in the Pacific, he’d learned that many Asian cultures eat rice at any time of day, including first thing in the morning. He’d also learned that they sometimes sweeten a bowl of rice with brown sugar or other condiments ... some even sprinkled cinnamon over it. During his limited time in the Philippines, he’d come to enjoy a bowl of sticky white rice with sugar and cinnamon sprinkled on it for breakfast. It was tasty enough (unlike balut), and served the purpose of filling his belly, even if he was severely hungover. So, a win-win. He hoped that Kim and DeeDee would be amenable to it also, but if not, he could always scrambled a few eggs for them.

After he’d already enjoyed one small bowl of sweetened white rice, Kim and DeeDee woke and began to stir. After some initial skepticism, they both seemed to enjoy the rice too.

“Where in the world did you ever hear of eating rice for breakfast,” Kim asked, her face showing her general uneasiness at trying anything new. Mel told both ladies a watered-down, family-friendly version of his time in the Philippines, which only seemed to pique DeeDee’s interest more.

“You were in the Navy?” the young teen excitedly asked. “I’ve only seen the ocean a few times, but I always imagined how great it would be to be on a boat way out far away from land ... and no matter where you looked, you could only see water.”

Mel chuckled. “It almost sounds romantic, the way you say it. But in real life, it’s a whole lotta work.”

“Why?” DeeDee wanted to know. “What do you mean?”

“Well,” Mel began, choosing his words carefully so that he didn’t paint an unrealistic picture, but also not wanting to scare the girl. “Think of all the things that could go wrong on land; A fire, or a wreck, or something weather-related ... anything at all. Now, imagine that you can’t just run away from it.” He looked at her carefully, making sure that she understood. “For example, if a fire breaks out on a ship, there’s nowhere else to go ... you have to put out that fire, or everyone on board will be in deep doo-doo. Understand?”

“Yeah,” DeeDee replied, “that would suck, big time.”

Mel nodded. “So, if you’re so far out on the ocean that you can’t see any land, then you’ve always gotta be on your toes, preparing for anything bad that might happen. You get a little bit of time to admire the sunrise or sunset over the open water, but very little ... there’s just too much work to be done.”

DeeDee’s shoulders slumped a little, then she sat up straight again, causing the high points of her nipples to become evident under the tee shirt she wore. “That’s alright,” she said with conviction, “I think I’d still like to try it. I wanna see what it’s like to be on a boat without any land in sight.”

Mel smiled and chuckled. “Well then, I hope you get a chance to do that someday.” He then let Kim know that he’d already talked with the central Rangers office and relayed the weather forecast to her. “There’s not much chance that anyone else is still stuck in the snow today, not in this part of the park at least,” he continued, “but I’m gonna go out and make a lap in the Sno-Cat anyway. So, you two ladies will have free rein of the cabin for a few hours while I do that.”

Kim realized that he, like any man, needed some time to and for himself. Plus, he’d already told her that he normally patrolled alone. Moreover, she knew that some alone time for she and DeeDee was needed. Between a mother and daughter, especially being as close as she and DeeDee were, there were always topics that needed to be discussed, whether they were of critical importance or not. And so, after Mel had wolfed down another bowl of rice, she let him know that she would take care of the dishes. “So you can go look for more people to save,” she added with a warm smile.

He chose not to point out that there were other duties he attended to while patrolling, primarily centered around park maintenance. For example, even if there were no people present, he generally would tow an abandoned vehicle out of a ditch, or clear it from the main roadway. There was also the ever-present likelihood that the heavy snowfall might cause a tree to fall over the roadway, and that sort of thing needed to be dealt with to ensure that traffic would be able to pass when the weather allowed it. Animal carcasses and other natural debris also had to be cleared from any common thoroughfare, just in case. He didn’t say those things out loud to Kim, because he didn’t want her to feel like he was correcting her. So he simply smiled before announcing that he would layer up before beginning the work ahead.

While Mel tossed on another 2 layers of outerwear, DeeDee poured him a Thermos-full of coffee and tossed some jerky in a brown paper bag for him. By the time he was clad for the outdoors, she was standing in front of him, holding these items. “Is this what you wanted to take with you today?” she asked. “Do you need me to make you anything else?” He smiled down at her cute face and shook his head. “No. This is perfect. Thank you, DeeDee,” he said, causing her to blush and smile broadly. Then, in a move that surprised him greatly, she hopped on a chair so her face would be near-level with his, and planted a deep kiss on his lips, her tongue darting into his mouth hungrily. “Be careful, and try to stay warm,” she said in a low, quiet voice as she pulled her face away from his.

While he was stood stock still, allowing the taste of DeeDee’s kiss to linger on his lips, Kim stood on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck. Then, with greater expertise than DeeDee had, she proceeded to kiss him tenderly. Still there was a gentle hunger to her action. He felt her tongue in his mouth, searching for his. For several blissful moments, the two of them locked lips while she tried to press the front of her body into his. The act was delightful even though he couldn’t feel much of her curves through the 3 layers of thick clothing he wore. Still, her electric smooches proved sufficient cause for his cock to twitch.

Soon after, he exited the cabin and went about his assigned rounds, driving the Sno-Cat and grinning to himself like an idiot the majority of the time.

Kim wasted no time in orienting DeeDee’s attentions into something productive. “You’re not just gonna sit there and watch TV all day,” she told her daughter. “This place could use a good cleaning. I mean, it’s not terrible or anything, but it could use a good once-over, and you’re gonna help me.”

The idea didn’t exactly fill DeeDee with joy, but she realized that there was little use in arguing with her mother. And so, accompanied by Top 40 hits that blared from DeeDee’s handheld transistor radio, the two ladies set to their task. Over the course of just a couple hours, every surface in the cabin had wiped down or dusted, the bathroom and kitchen had been transformed into spotless examples of hygiene, and the ladies had hand-washed the entire floor. Each armed with a rag and a small pan of soapy water, they both knelt and scrubbed until the whole place was free of boot scuffs and muddy tracks. “It might be a good thing that Mel isn’t here to see us doing this,” Kim thought silently to herself as she watched her daughter hard at work. “Then again...,” she stifled a devilish chuckle as she considered how he would react if he could see them right now. Both ladies were still wearing the threadbare tee shirts he’d loaned them (that they’d slept in) and also, she had removed the sweatpants he’d loaned her, leaving she and DeeDee in only those loose shirts and their panties. If Mel could see them crouched on the floor, their taut butts in the air, wiggling and shining with sweat, their breasts swaying and wobbling inside those soft tees ... ooh boy, he’d probably have a heart attack.

But as it was, they were able to complete the housecleaning with plenty of time to spare before Mel returned. Kim and DeeDee each enjoyed separate, steaming showers before changing into their own clean clothes, fresh from their suitcases. Only at that point did Kim allow DeeDee to turn on the TV and plop down on the sofa. She made some sandwiches for she and her daughter before joining her on the couch. The only channel that came in clearly was showing some melodramatic soap opera, but DeeDee decided it was better than nothing. The two ladies noshed on the sandwiches and watched the scripted pap on screen, only paying half attention to it.

“Oh,” Kim mentioned, seemingly out of nowhere, “I meant to say sorry.”

“You’re apologizing to me? For what?” DeeDee replied, assuming her mom was going to try to atone for leaving her in the car alone several days before. But she was about to be truly surprised.

“I didn’t believe you when you were telling me how big Mel’s dick must be. I was wrong and you were right,” Kim said bluntly.

“Oh my God!” DeeDee exclaimed. “Did you see it naked?”

Kim blushed but didn’t reply for several seconds. Finally, she couldn’t contain herself any longer, and a smile of pride began to show itself. She nodded like a giddy schoolgirl and said, “Uh-huh. And if you think it looks big in his pants ... whoo honey, you have no idea!”

“What did you ... how did you see it? What happened? Tell. Me. Everything...” DeeDee demanded, her sandwich set aside and completely forgotten. She grabbed her mom’s hands and they faced each other on the sofa, each sitting cross-legged. If anyone else had seen them, they would have sworn that Kim and DeeDee were both high school freshmen ... well, aside from Kim’s immense jugs, anyway. But their mannerisms and giggling made them both seem like scheming teenage girls with a ‘super dirty secret no one else can know about’.

DeeDee had peeked and seen her mother with other men, and even told her about it later on, so neither of them felt too self-conscientious or embarrassed when discussing ‘naughty’ topics. Still, Kim felt like a wave of childish puppy love had engulfed her – she was just so enamored with Mel already, and she hardly knew the guy. “Well, we were sitting right here on the couch last night, after you went to bed,” Kim began. “And I leaned over onto his chest ... no big deal ... and he put his arm around me ... nothing creepy, just kinda like he was protecting me ... it felt so ... natural. Anyway, he and I were talking about something – I don’t remember what – and I looked down into his lap and saw ... it. Even though you’d told me it was big, I wasn’t ready for just how big that bulge was.” She shook her head with a kind of latent disbelief. “And anyway, I said that since he’d already seen all my goodies, it would only be fair if I got to see his.”

DeeDee giggled and blushed even deeper crimson.

“It took a little bit of cajoling, but eventually, he let me take off his pants and his underwear and ... wow. It’s just ... wow.” Kim shook her head again, smiling dreamily as she did so.

“So,” DeeDee urged, “did you ... ya’ know ... do anything with it?”

Kim nodded. “Yeah. He told me it’s been a long time since he’s been with a woman though. And since I didn’t want to feel rushed or anything, I just used my hands to make him feel better.”

“You jerked him off?!” DeeDee demanded. Then, in a tiny, whisper-like voice, she muttered, “I wish I could do that.”

Temporarily glossing over her daughter’s comment, Kim continued. “He wanted to see my boobs again, of course, and I let him squirt his stuff on ‘em. After I washed up, the two of us just sat here talking a while longer before I went to bed. And that’s all there is to tell.”

“Are you gonna do it again?” DeeDee had to know.

Kim paused for a moment before answering. “I hope so. But that’s up to him, sweetie. I get the feeling that he doesn’t want to do anything that’ll make us feel unsafe. I mean, sure, he’s still a guy, so he probably wants to do more naughty stuff. But more than anything, it feels like he just wants to protect us.”

“Oh my God!” DeeDee shouted. “You’re already falling for him, aren’t you?”

“Maybe,” was all Kim would say.

“So,” DeeDee tried to bring the conversation back to the tastier topics, “ ... when you get him naked again, can I at least watch?”

Kim gave her daughter a doubtful stare. “I don’t know about that, honey. Like I said, he seems like he’s afraid of doing anything that might make us feel like he’s some sort of pervert.”

“Oh c’mon, mom,” DeeDee whined, “I’ve never asked you to let me touch your boyfriends before ... heck, I’ve never even asked you to let me watch!

“But you did anyway,” Kim retorted with a smirk.

“Mo-o-o-o-o-m...,” DeeDee begged, “ ... please? Now, I’ve just gotta see it.”

Kim sighed, well aware of single-minded her daughter could be. “I don’t know,” she replied. “I can’t say one way or the other. It’s completely up to Mel. But you better not start pestering him about it, DeeDee, you hear me?” Kim’s face suddenly wore a very serious expression. She held one finger in front of her daughter’s face, lecturing her. “If you start crawling all over him or pestering him about wanting to see his dick, then I’ll have no compunction about tanning your hide. You get me, little girl?”

“Yes ma’am,” DeeDee replied dutifully. Her mom had never been particularly strict with punishment, but her threats were not to be taken lightly, and DeeDee knew it.

They chit-chatted about other topics for a while. Unsurprisingly, since they’d been discussing Mel’s equipment, the topics that arose were of the ‘naughty’ variety, mostly centered around DeeDee wanting permission to use her mom’s dildo, which Kim wasn’t sure was a good idea while Mel was in the house. Still, the young mother understood how sexually pent up and overheated her daughter felt, because she was beginning to feel the same.

“Whoa,” Kim told Mel as he returned from his rounds, “you can come inside, but you have to stop at the rug there,” she pointed at the small rug on which Mel stood. “We just cleaned the floors, and I don’t wanna see them all messed up again so soon.”

Mel stepped fully inside and closed the door as he surveyed the hardwood floor. He had to admit that he might not have noticed unless she’d pointed it out to him, but the floor did look really good – probably better than it ever had since he’d moved in. And it wasn’t as if he lived like a slob either; He regularly swept up and mopped the floor a couple times a month. But living alone for so long had caused him to become a bit lax on the homemaker front.

“We cleaned the kitchen and the bathroom too,” DeeDee informed him. She had a look of hopefulness in her eyes, like a puppy who had done a good thing and was waiting for a treat.

Mel took off his boots and set them beside the door before walking through the house, nodding his head and thanking them for their work. “Wow! This place looks so much better! Thank you so much, ladies!” he told them with genuine gratefulness. He took a moment to remove the outer two layers of his clothing, then re-stoked the fire in the potbelly stove before taking a seat between them on the sofa. “I don’t think this place has ever been this neat and tidy ... certainly not as long as I’ve been here.”

DeeDee leaned her body into his, inhaling his scent. And though she didn’t make any noise, her entire form looked somewhat feline. She slowly curled into him and nuzzled in such a a way that made Mel believe that she might actually start purring. He placed his arm around her shoulders, prompting an easy, warm smile and a kiss on the cheek from Kim. “I hope you’re okay with soup for dinner tonight,” the young mother told Mel, “ ... I’ve got a pot of scratch-made chicken and rice soup on the stove ... figured we could use up the rest of that rice you made this morning.”

Mel uttered a contented, humming sigh. “That sounds really good,” he responded. In that moment, he saw his own imagined future - a flashing series of short snippets in which he was happily married to Kim, and all three of them were living happily in his little cabin, growing old together. When the thoughts had run their course, he realized that everything he’d imagined was based on nothing at all – purely fantasy. But the episode did make him begin to question a few things:

First of which was the sincerity and nature of Kim’s affection, as well as DeeDee’s apparent infatuation. Could they just be acting out from a misplaced sense of hyper-gratitude? If that were the case, then he would be an absolute asshole if he took advantage of that. It was crucial that he find some way to ensure that their feelings and actions were not based in some silly kind of hero worship.

Second, if their feelings were genuine, how long would they continue to harbor those emotions once the roads cleared and they could safely go back home? Was this just a ‘let loose and be wild’ mini-vacation for them? If that were the case, they would likely forget all about him when they returned to their normal lives. And if that were their intention, how should he approach it? Should he simply give in and use their advances to his advantage, or should he take the high road? After all, the possibility that they could report him to the Parks Department or the police still lingered heavily, nagging at him.

Lastly, he realized that the fantasy he’d imagined was one that surprised him a bit. He hadn’t imagined debauched or perverse scenery like something out of Caligula’s court. Instead, his mind had involuntarily conjured up scenes of domestic tranquility. He had never really contemplated the notion of marriage or settling down, but sitting there between Kim and DeeDee, his brain had painted a picture of a future in which he was completely and joyfully wed, and with no more worldly desires left to chase. It was a blissful notion, to be sure.

With these questions rattling around in his brain, he rose and poured a couple fingers of whiskey for himself. Then, remembering he still had a bit of work to finalize, he stepped over to the shortwave radio and contacted the dispatcher to give his end of day report. While chatting with the central office, Mel received some not-so-welcome news:

“We just got an updated forecast, and it’s not what we were hoping for,” the dispatcher informed Mel. “The storm is expected to move east of us by this time tomorrow – that’s the good news.” Then, sighing into the open mic, the dispatcher added, “The bad news is that they’re forecasting that we could get up to 4 more feet of snow before then.”

“Oof,” Mel replied, shaking his head with disbelief, “that’s ... are we sure about that number?”

“‘Fraid so,” came the reply, “we didn’t believe it at first either, but we double-checked it with the National Weather Service and they confirmed it. So, it sounds like things might get harder before they get easier.”

Looking out the window, Mel could easily see that the rate of precipitation had dramatically increased in time since he’d been back inside. “Roger that,” Mel responded, sounding a bit defeated, “Based on what I’m seeing right now, it looks like it’s already started to pick up steam again.”

“Same thing over here on the west side of the range,” the dispatcher commented.

Then, like a miniature flash of lightning, an idea struck him; The longer the storm continued, the more fresh powder it laid on the ground, the longer DeeDee and Kim would have to stay with him. With that in mind, he wasn’t sure exactly how to feel. Part of him wanted to see them safely and happily on their way back to their lives, while the majority of him wanted them to stay as long as possible. He would have to carefully manage his emotions around them when he shared the news. Better to let their reaction inform his than the other way around.

Unsurprisingly, the soup that Kim had prepared was quite tasty. Simply and appropriately paired with some saltine crackers, it was a lovely and fitting meal for such a cold evening. DeeDee took care of the dishes once everyone had eaten enough.

Mel and Kim returned to the sofa to watch the 5 o’clock news, keenly interested in the weather forecast. After his earlier conversation with the dispatcher, Mel had basically chickened out ... not telling Kim or DeeDee about the additional incoming snow. Instead, he opted to let the TV weatherman share the news, then Mel planned to simply echo Kim’s initial reaction.

So, when the weatherman said, “ ... and up to four feet MORE snow is expected at higher elevations...”, Mel wasn’t watching the television – he was carefully eyeing Kim’s face while she watched intently, trying to read her emotions. She sighed and her shoulders slumped for just a quick moment, and then she turned to him with a smile before saying, “Well, Mr. Owens, it looks like you’re stuck with us for a little while longer.” Her smile held no pretense, while her eyes seemed to be gathering all the light from the room before softly emitting their warmth back toward him.

He returned her smile and then, without thinking, he leaned in to kiss her lips. It was the first time he’d initiated any intimate contact with her, and the normal Mel Owens would have been literally shaking with trepidation. But in that moment, nothing felt more natural. Their lips met with the unhurried ease of a couple who’d known each other for many years, as opposed to a scant few days. An involuntary quiet purr escaped her as she enjoyed the feel of his mouth on hers.

When they separated, he simply said, “It’s entirely possible that I’m the only person within 300 miles who’s happy to hear that it’s gonna snow even more,” causing her to chuckle.

“Well, you’re not the only person who’s happy about it,” Kim replied. “I know it makes me happy ... and after DeeDee gets over the fact that it’ll be a while longer before she sees her friends, she’ll probably be even happier than you and me.”

Mel wasn’t so sure about that. Obviously, it had been a long time since he’d been a teenager, but he recalled how little he wanted to spend time around ‘old people’ when he was DeeDee’s age. Hearing that DeeDee wasn’t as self-centered as every other teen he’d ever met made him dubious.

“Really? And why would she be happy about being stuck up in here with you and I?” he asked Kim.

“‘Cause she thinks it’ll give her more time to try to get into your pants,” Kim giggled.

Mel’s cock began to twitch in his pants. But his first conscience thought was one of abject fear and horror. “What are you...?” He hissed in a frighted whisper. “Kim ... I would never ... she’s just a girl. I would never try to ... ya’ know ... do anything sexual with her!”

Kim studied his face, then let her eyes wander down his body toward his lap. She could clearly see the evidence of his arousal outlined there along his left thigh. Judging by his initial reaction, she believed that he actually meant what he’d said. “But maybe he just needs a little nudge in the right direction,” she silently pondered.

She cleared her throat, then quietly asked, “But what if I told you is was okay?”

His face suddenly turned pale as the blood drained from it. “What?!” he hissed, everything about him clearly indicating that he was genuinely shocked. Kim couldn’t tell if his reaction was based more in horror or surprise, but she intended to find out.

“She’s been creaming her jeans every since she saw that big ol’ sausage in your pants,” Kim explained. “And she’s at that age where everything makes her think about sex ... hell, she’s basically a two-legged hormone factory right now ... has been since she was about 11 or 12. So why not? I mean, you’re a nice guy, you’re good lookin’, and you just so happen to be the best equipped man I’ve ever seen.”

“I ... but you ... how could...,” Mel stammered. “She’s a child!”

“Pftptff!” Kim blew a raspberry, dismissing his fearful comment. “I was younger than her when I lost my virginity, and let me tell you, it did me a world of good. ‘Course, the ol’ man wouldn’t do it with me without wearing a rubber, so I didn’t get to feel it for real until I met the guy who would become DeeDee’s father...” her voice trailed off.

“The ol’ man?” Mel asked, baffled.

“Sure,” she replied in a matter-of-fact tone, “my dad. Who did you think I was talking about? Just some old geezer from church or something?” She chuckled at the thought of such a silly notion.

“Your ... wait a sec ... your own father took your virginity?!” Mel hissed, expelling his shock.

Her face searched his to see if he was kidding and found no evidence there that he wasn’t being sincere. “Well yeah,” she continued calmly, “only he didn’t take it ... I gave it to him. All my friends’ families had the same tradition; When a girl passes puberty and starts to show interest in boys, it’s her parents’ job to educate her.” She shrugged and offered him a look that silently said, “What’s the big deal?”

Mel was struck dumb. He’d never heard of such a thing – a father and his own daughter?! In his state of confused shock, his move began to move, but no sounds were coming out of him.

Kim continued. “Of course, if I’d been born a boy, then mom would have carried the responsibility, but obviously,” she gestured down at her own body, “that didn’t happen”. She chuckled at her own joke, then spoke again. “You see, my dad helped me understand that sex for its own sake isn’t all that special. I don’t think that’s not what he meant to teach me, but that’s how it went. To be honest, he wasn’t a very skilled lover - always rushing to get his own jollies. He never spent much time trying to make sure I was enjoying it. I think that’s why I fell for DeeDee’s father when he got me pregnant. You see, I was still uninformed ... naive ... and I thought that sex with someone who wanted to put a baby in me meant that he and I were really in love. It took me a long time to figure out how wrong I’d been about that.”

Mel raised a finger and opened his mouth to speak, but she interrupted him.

“Don’t misunderstand me, Mel. I love DeeDee more than my own life, and that’s for real. And I wouldn’t trade my experiences – both the good and the bad – because I’ve learned from them all. But I don’t want my baby girl having to make the same kinds of dumb mistakes I did.”

“It’s ... I...,” Mel continued to sputter and shake his head in an attempt to shake some clarity into it.