Sweetness in the Dark Read Online Free Page A

She made a deliberate move to struggle with the zipper as she reached her out thrusted breasts. Slowly, she pulled the zipper up and over them, hiding them from Paul’s view.
    “You don’t know what you’re missing,” Amanda said.
    “Hey, I know what I’m missing. We’ll have private time tonight.” He pulled on the oars and got the raft out into the current. They quickly caught up with the others.
     
    * * *
     
    Around the campfire that night, Paul tried to focus on the entire party and not just Amanda. She was nestled beside him with her North Face polar fleece on to shield her from the cool up canyon breeze. Paul was still in his river shorts but had thrown on an ISE sweatshirt for warmth.
    As the night went on, the others drifted off to their tents to sleep. Soon it was only Paul and his son Matt stoking the dying campfire. Amanda had announced she was cold and had headed to the tent an hour ago.
    “Dad, you don’t need to hang here with me. I think someone’s waiting for you,” Matt said.
    Paul was taken aback by the bluntness of his sixteen-year old son. “It’s OK. I’ve missed you while your mother and I were divorcing. That took a lot of time and energy away from you and your sister.”
    “Look, Dad. You put up with Mom for too long on account of us. I know what she put you through. You deserve some quality time with someone special. Amanda seems to really like you. Go for it,” Matt said.
    As he said it, a coyote howled somewhere on the ridge above their camp. Then a second and a third answered the call. Paul and Matt both looked up at the sound. As they were listening to the nightly chorus, a bright light streaked across the sky.
    “What was that?” Matt asked.
    Before Paul could even answer, another bigger and bolder green light splashed into view. The coyotes went crazy. The howling increased as the light grew brighter. Soon the whole heavens were alive with dancing green and yellow light.
    Paul called everyone to come out and witness the spectacle. Slowly, the rest of the raft party crawled out of their tents to see the light show.
    Amanda rubbed her eyes as she sat down on the sand next to Paul. “What’s going on?” She asked
    “Aurora Borealis, the Northern Lights, like you’ve never seen them,” he answered.
    “I thought they were up in Alaska. What are they doing down here in Idaho?”
    “I don’t know, but they sure are spectacular. Too bad we’re in this canyon and can only see about a third of the sky. I’m sure if we were up on top of the ridge, they would be stunning.”
    They sat transfixed by the light show. Finally, as the night became late, they all began to drag themselves back to their tents. There was another 20 miles of river to run tomorrow, and everyone needed to be rested.
    As Paul started to get up, Amanda held him in place. Matt headed off and soon the two were alone.
    Paul turned to Amanda to ask why she had held him. The answer came quickly. She took his hand and with a blanket under her arm, led him down the long sandy beach to the secluded far end. Away from everyone else, she placed the blanket on the sand and turned to kiss him.
    “With all this noise and lights, I sure couldn’t sleep. I think we need to enjoy the night,” Amanda said. “And I sure don’t want to go to Alaska to try. Too cold.”
     
    * * *
     
    The morning found him and Amanda fast asleep wrapped in the blanket. Luckily, the sun hit their end of the beach first and the heat woke Paul with a start. He sat up realizing where they were.
    He quickly woke Amanda who complained at the interruption. She also suddenly realized where they were. They quickly slid into the river to wash up and raced back up the beach.
    Dressing quickly, they noticed no one else was up yet. As Paul got the propane stove lit and got water on for coffee, Amanda stood sheepishly beside him as they both smiled at each other.
    As the others rolled out of their tents, Paul and Amanda put breakfast on. The smell