AN – I had a query asking in what state Jim and Trixie slept in the cave. In the second chapter of Abducted, Trixie fell into the stream. Interesting thought – it will be dealt with in this chapter.
Sorry, my life has gotten out of control and updates have been a little slow. I'm attempting to rectify it. ;-)
'Three days late,' Trixie muttered to her reflection in the early morning, still waters of the stream. Half an hour ago she'd finally woken to that sticky feeling between her legs. 'At least I don't have to worry about an unplanned pregnancy,' Trix mocked silently, 'not that it's possible, the way things are between Jim and I. I don't think I could cope with a surprise like that,' she continued the conversation with her image staring back at her. It gazed up with a stern expression reminding Trixie of the look she'd seen on her mother's face while discussing her feelings for Jim and the ultimate consequences of acting on them.
'Now I understand, Moms,' the young woman beseeched, a tear appearing at the corner of her eye, 'I'd give anything to be home now, talking about this with you. I miss you and Daddy so much, even Bobby and all his mischief.' Taking in a deep breath, Trixie considered her new reality. 'Dreaming about a relationship and actually being in one are so very different, so much different from what I imagined. I love Jim, but he's right, neither of us is ready for more than first base. Jim set the rules, and like the honourable man he's become he's sticking to them.'
Laughing at herself, Trix thought about the discussion, more like lecture, her conscious insisted, they'd had the morning after that first kiss as they lay, bodies entwined in the middle of the Hell Hole.
'Trix,' Jim wore his honourable face and she suspected what would come next, 'up to now we've used the old T-shirts we found to sleep in.'
'Except that first night,' she teased, only partially remembering her fall into the warm waters of the stream. Like a silent comedy, Jim came tumbling down after her. With the cold night air biting into their flesh through the soaked material, they'd had little choice but to sleep next to each other naked in the hope clothes might dry by the morning. It started a conversation, uncovering truths that might not have come to life otherwise. The next morning they'd explored the Hell Hole in damp clothing, only to find the soldiers uniforms and other supplies.
'Yeah,' he agreed with a chuckle. Turning serious in an instant, Jim considered his next words. 'I think it would be a good idea if we didn't do anything intimate in the sleeping cave.'
'Why,' Trix asked with wide eyes. She'd enjoyed cuddling up to Jim at night. It gave her a sense of security knowing she didn't face the Hell Hole alone.
Jim couldn't help his response. Allowing a lop sided grin, his explained, 'cause the more we do in there, the faster I'll want to round the bases. I think we need to stay at first base for a while. So the intimate stuff, kissing and cuddling will have to happen out here.'
'Jim,' cheeks aflame, Trixie had to ask, 'what do you consider first base.'
Pointing to his navel, his complexion now matched Trixie's, 'from here up.'
'Oh,' she stated. Looking down at the hard packed dirt under her, Trixie found the courage to say, 'but I like the way we sleep, spooned together.'
'We'll keep doing that, Trix,' Jim reached out for her chin and drew it back to his gaze. Calling on his honesty, he needed to express his fears, if only to relieve Trixie's. 'I need to know you're with me, that I'm not alone down here, but anything more happens in the open. We need to separate our life and relationship. We can't let our feelings get out of control.'
'OK,' she agreed, her mind understanding Jim's plan and the reasons why.
Pulling Jim's head close, Trixie ensured the sealed their pact with a kiss. Learning quickly from the night before, she opened her lips slightly. Jim pounced on the invitation. Testing the new boundaries, Trixie allowed her hands to creep under Jim's shirt. From the moment she'd seen the silver welts on his back, she'd needed to touch them, explore them, and feel the pain Jim experienced as Jonsey inflicted them.
The healed skin, smooth to the touch caused Jim to flinch. Understanding his girls need to connect with him on a physical level, he tried, valiantly to allow the intimacy. He couldn't and pulled away quickly.
Looking into Trixie's eyes, he stated in a sad monotone, 'something's take time, Trix. I'm not ready to tell you everything. I can't, I still feel too ashamed.'
The memory sent ripples of distress down Trixie's spine. So far Jim hadn't allowed more than kissing and cuddling. Watching the frown on the face of her reflection, Trixie new she needed to clean up and start this new day without hurtful memories. Using the flat of her hand, Trix destroyed her reproduction with a slap of the warm water.
'I need to wash away all this muck,' sighing heavily, Trixie Belden came to a startling realisation, 'what am I going to use every month to keep clean?'
Running through a list of their meagre supplies, she considered the old socks. Too rough, Trixie dismissed the idea quickly. A t-shirt would work, but I'll need to tear it up and wash it out, the though didn't appeal either. Besides losing one of her "nighties", the cotton material would be a nightmare to get dry in winter when a thick layer of snow covered the ground.
Whoa, Trixie's mind pulled her up suddenly, who's still going to be here by the middle of winter! Somewhere in her subconscious, Trixie Belden knew it to be a distinct possibility. 'Three and a half weeks down here,' Trix said aloud as she slipped into the warm water, 'and we haven't seen or heard any other form of life. There's nothing around this hole for miles even if we could get out.'
Jim woke with a start. He knew something to be wrong immediately. The usually warm body laying the length of his had disappeared some time ago. No heat remained on the canvas he'd cannibalised from the old army cots. Both he and Trixie quickly learnt sand could invade every crevice of the body without any help on their part.
Levering his weight onto an arm, he spotted a dark patch and knew it to be blood. Panicked, he rushed out into the cool early morning air. Trixie, her sleeping t-shit thrown to one side, bathed in the warmth of the stream. They'd found a rock ledge as the heated waters of the pool gushed into the stream and cooled significantly. At that point the temperate became perfect for bathing and the natural formation a seat gave them somewhere to sit.
'Jim,' she called, bemused by his panicked expression. Usually he woke before Trixie but lay silently at her side until she finally roused.
'Mind if I join you,' Jim asked.
Striping his cotton shirt over his head, James Frayne plunged into the stream beside his girl without waiting for an answer. Both naked and bathing together, the embarrassment from the situation long past, neither anticipated or appreciated the danger of this new intimacy. They'd realised early on, keeping the usual social norms while washing in the open might be impossible. The passage of time dulled their social awareness as they became comfortable with their own bodies and that of the other.
Sliding his body beside Trixie, Jim placed his arm around her shoulders. Mischief twinkling in her baby blues, Trix turned her face up for her morning greeting. Taking the hint, Jim allowed his lips to descend. As the caress grew more intimate, Jim used the buoyancy of the water to gather Trixie into his arms, depositing her onto his lap. Given this amazing opportunity, Jim's hand crept up to the glob of tantalizing flesh he'd often thought about caressing. Weighing the creamy skin in his hand, his thumb stole to the darker area and brushed over it.
'Oh,' Trixie moaned her pleasure at the feelings his touch generated. Starting at her breast, the shudder travelled throughout her body.
Her mind so involved in this new development, Trixie didn't appreciate the ridged instrument which formed part of Jim for what it represented. Her hands travelled to his back, carefully, genteelly stroking the exposed skin she longed to heal. Pleased he didn't flinch or pull away, she tried to deepen their kiss. Jim responded, in the back of his mind he knew the reason for Trixie's early morning bath. They might not have done anything major, yet he felt relieved. The complications an unexpected pregnancy would bring started to ring alarm bells in the back of his mind.
'Trix,' he just had to pull away. Jim found his hands in danger of rounding first base and continuing on to second as his fingers explored the soft smooth skin below her navel. He'd sensed her discomfort and understood the reason.
'I know,' Trixie lowered her head to rest on Jim's chest. As her breathing came back to normal, she felt the protrusion under her left leg. About to ask, she noticed the bright red blush creeping over Jim's expression.
'By the time you're awake,' he stated awkwardly in an attempt to explain this usual morning ritual for most men, 'I've usually got it under control.'
Intrigued as the Belden Boys never spoke about such things to their sister, Trixie sounded astounded when she blurted out, 'every morning!'
'Pretty much,' Jim agreed, hoping she'd drop the subject. He should have known better. Trixie's mind, once it became engaged needed to know every little detail. He could tell her curiosity had been initiated. Yet this gave them the opportunity to openly talk about their sexuality, strengthening the bond between them. They'd needed to learn to communicate with each other, especially about intimacy because they only had instinct to guide them.
'I know boys…' embarrassed by the topic, Trixie made a motion in the air which effectively got her point across. 'Mart got mad when I caught him early one morning.' Making a strangled sound, Jim continued to listen. 'I didn't mean to walk in on him…'
'I bet he felt more embarrassed than anything else,' Jim attempted to sooth while hiding a grin. He couldn't quite make his mind up. Half of him wanted to laugh at Trixie discovering her brother in such a compromising position, while the other half felt for Martin Belden.
'I think I spoiled it for him,' Trixie muttered.
'It's kind of hard to get it back,' Jim agreed, 'in a situation like that!'
'Do you like…' Trixie's eye's turned to the size of saucers as her mind returned to the brief touch of Jim's thumb on her breast.
'Yes, Trixie,' Jim growled, dumping her off his lap. He knew the situation to be spiralling out of control. 'There's nothing I'd like more than you doing it for me, but that's second base and were not going there yet.'
Nodding dumbly, Trix swallowed hard. Watching Jim climb out of the pool, her body still burning from both their discussion and his gentle touch, her mind arrowed on his backside. He's got a great tush, stopping the thought dead, it brought home how far they travelled down the intimacy road with a single bath.
