“This region was the last refuge of the Moors in Spain,” she said. “That’s why there are so many ruins. But the culture still rings through in the regional food and the architecture of the small flat-roofed villages.” She pointed to where they’d come from, the outlines of the cubic buildings now clear from a distance. “The name ‘Las Alpujarras’ originates from Arabic and means ‘land of pasture’.”
“That it is. The landscape is so lush and untouched.” Lisa took Stella’s hand and smiled “Want to swim? I’ve always wanted to swim in a natural pool.”
“It looks deep and it will be cold,” Stella warned her, but Lisa was already kicking off her trainers and her socks. The sight of Lisa, now taking off her tight top and her running tights along with her lingerie made her forget about the freezing mountain water, and she stripped off too, then followed Lisa to the rocky edge. The woman was naked, so how could she not? Her perky behind was irresistible, her nipples erect in the cool breeze. “Nature looks good on you,” she said, staring Lisa up and down. “God, I want you.”
“Oh, yeah?” Lisa’s gaze travelled to Stella’s breasts in return, and she licked her lips as their eyes locked. “You’ll just have to come and get me then.” She dived in gracefully, but reappeared screaming and Stella laughed as she watched her frantically panic paddling in the pool that was much deeper than it looked. “Okay, that was probably not my most sensual moment,” she joked.
“I told you it was cold.”
Lisa wiped the water from her eyes and laughed out loud. “Come in, it’s really nice.” Her teeth were chattering, and she failed to keep a straight face as she said it.
“Sure it is.” Stella shot her a sceptical look but dived in anyway. Although she’d expected it to be freezing, the temperature was still a shock to her system and she gasped as she swam towards Lisa, who was laughing even harder now.
“Come here, baby. Let me warm you up,” she said, draping an arm around Stella’s waist as she held onto a rock with the other.
“Thank you, that’s better.” Stella slowly got used to the cold, her body relaxing while the sun warmed her face. Lisa pressing against her was most certainly helping, and with her wet hair and shimmering water droplets trickling down her face, she took her breath away. This woman was everything she wanted and more and lately, the tight longing in her core she felt each time she looked at her came paired with something warmer and deeper. And Lisa was about to meet her parents. Stella had told herself that it was no big deal. After all, she wasn’t the first woman she’d brought home. But she was the first woman she’d had such overwhelming feelings for, and it mattered to her that Lisa would feel comfortable around her family.
“This is perfect,” Lisa whispered, gazing over the water and the mountains that towered over them. Now that they were closer to the top, the small patches of snow dotted along the peaks were clearly visible. “Don’t you think?”
“You’re perfect.” Stella smiled and kissed her softly, then parted her lips to take the kiss deeper as her hunger grew. She steadied her foot on a rock so she could hold Lisa and pull her in as tight as she could. Lisa’s chest was heaving but it wasn’t from the hike, and the tremble in her thighs drew Stella to slide a hand between her legs and cup her centre. Lisa’s throbbing flesh was warm against her hand, her hips pushing into her as she moaned.
“What if someone walks past?” she asked through ragged breaths, her eyes darkening when Stella put more pressure where she needed it most. “Or what if—” Her lips were still parted as she stopped herself, closing her eyes.
“Small chance,” Stella whispered, although she wasn’t so sure of that. They’d met a handful of people on their way, and she suspected this pool was one of the destinations of the many hiking trails. She shot Lisa a mischievous smirk and raised a brow. “But if you’re worried, I can be quick...”
51
“Wait… what’s that over there?” Lisa was just about to get in the car after a comfort break on their way to Seville when she saw something moving in the field behind the petrol station. She walked back and approached it carefully, expecting a lynx or a fox, and she gasped when she saw it was a puppy sitting in the tall grass. It was tiny and yellow, and started trembling when she came closer.
“Everything okay?” Stella yelled from out of the car window.
Lisa nodded and placed a finger over her lips, beckoning Stella to be quiet, then bent down beside the puppy and slowly reached out to stroke it. The puppy winced and ducked down, as if trying to make itself invisible. “Hey, don’t be afraid, I’m going to help you, okay? You’re way too small to be on your own.” Lisa had never had a dog before and wasn’t even sure how to pick it up, but after a few failed attempts in which it shot from left to right, dodging her, she got hold of it and held it tightly against her chest. A couple of fleas jumped off it, and one of the puppy’s eyes looked a little gummy. “You’re a boy,” she whispered, softly cradling him from side to side as she walked back to the car. “A tiny little boy.”
“Oh, God.” Stella stared at the fluffy creature and placed a hand on her heart. “Poor thing.”
“He’s got fleas,” Lisa warned her when Stella took him to examine him. “You look like you know what you’re doing.”
“I know a thing or two; we used to have dogs at home. He can’t be more than eight weeks old, and he looks skinny. Who knows how long he’s been out here.” Stella glanced in the direction of the petrol station. “I doubt he belongs to the owner. He’s too young to be outside and he’s not wearing a collar, so someone must have left him here.” The puppy relaxed a little when she scratched him behind his floppy ears. “If there’s one, there might be more. Will you give him some water while I have a look in the field? He must be really thirsty.”
“Of course.” Lisa rinsed her coffee cup with her water bottle and poured some for him. She could feel his heart rate slowing as she stroked him, but he was afraid of the cup. He refused to drink at first, so she dabbed his mouth with her wet finger, and he licked it off. “There you go. And a little more.” She repeated the action a couple of times until he finally leaned over the cup and frantically started drinking. Whispering sweet words to him and covering him with a jumper so he’d feel safe, she waited for Stella to come back. Ten minutes went by, then twenty. Lisa was just about to get out and check on Stella after she’d disappeared behind the petrol station, when she turned the corner with another puppy.
“God help us,” she said as she got in the driver’s seat and handed Lisa the other puppy. It was a girl. She was bigger, a little darker and her ears were smaller, but they clearly came from the same litter. The two puppies squeaked as they were reunited and settled half on top of each other for comfort on Lisa’s lap. The girl licked her brother’s eyes and face, and the adorable sight stung Stella’s eyes.
Lisa felt emotional too. They’d been in distress, possibly trying to find each other for hours, or perhaps even days. “You’re together now. Everything is going to be fine.”
“She’s braver than her brother.” Stella held out her hand and the girl sniffed it, then clumsily swung her paw at her finger while the boy hid under the jumper.
“Yes, you are. I’m glad Stella found you, so you can make your brother feel safe.” Lisa held the water cup in front of her and while the girl drank, Lisa felt something warm spread across her lap. “I think he just peed on me.”
Stella rolled her eyes and laughed. “Great. This is going to be an interesting journey; you’ll probably be soaked by the time we get to the nearest vet.”
“Is there one nearby?” Lisa asked when Stella scrolled through her phone.
“There’s one eleven kilometres away. I’ll call ahead to let them know we’re coming.”
“I don’t understand how someone can just abandon helpless puppies,” Lisa mumbled, using her jumper to clean the urine off the puppy.
“Don’t get me started. It makes me so angry I can’t even think about it.”
