He smiled. ‘Something like that. Come.’ He held out his hand and helped her down from the minibus, his backpack over his shoulder.
From the road it looked like there was nothing here but more rocks and turf, horses grazing to the left, not a house nor person to be seen, just the coastline ahead. But what lay only a few metres down this uneven land was pure heaven for the soul and that’s what he knew Chloe needed.
‘Is this where the Yule Lads hang out?’ she asked as they walked. ‘With their potatoes and ghoulish faces? I looked them up on the drive by the way, terrifying.’
‘I am hoping that no one is here,’ he replied, squeezing her hand.
A few more steps and then it opened up and the sight was even more special than he remembered. A thermal spa, circular, steaming, completely natural, like the Earth had created a precursor to the manmade infinity pools everyone craved. This wasn’t the Blue Lagoon with its drinks’ packages and bathing robes, this was just the healing hot water in its natural state.
‘Oh my God,’ Chloe exclaimed, gripping his hand. ‘It’s so beautiful.’
‘It is,’ Gunnar agreed, stopping with her to admire the view. ‘It is one of the best places in my opinion because you are surrounded by everything that Iceland is. The Earth, the mountains, the sea, the sky and this gift of hot water.’
‘A gift that no one knows is here,’ Chloe stated. ‘There’s no one else here. We could be the only people in the world right now.’
They started to walk again.
‘Oh, some people know it is here. Local people. My mother knew it was here. She used to walk here with her friends from school and play mermaids.’
‘I wish we could go in,’ Chloe said, sighing.
‘What?’ Gunnar asked. ‘We are definitely going in.’
‘But I don’t have a swimsuit. I was going to hire one at the Blue Lagoon and…’ She stopped talking and smiled. ‘Oh, OK, I see. No one here, no swimsuits required.’
‘Krúttio mitt, public nudity is completely legal in Iceland.’
‘Is it?’
‘Are you blushing?’
‘No.’
She definitely was and it was causing a geothermal reaction inside him that really wasn’t the reason for bringing her here. He needed to maintain respectful balance.
‘You can leave your clothes on if you would feel easier,’ Gunnar said, taking his backpack off. ‘I have a towel. We Icelanders are always prepared for most things. The weather, the need to take our clothes off and swim.’
‘Well then,’ Chloe said, letting go of his hand and moving her fingers to the zip of her coat. ‘I wouldn’t want to go against any local traditions.’
‘OK,’ Gunnar said, taking off his hat. ‘But we must be fast when we are naked, so we do not freeze before we get into the water.’
‘That sounds like a challenge,’ Chloe said, looking him in the eye.
He met her gaze, coat already halfway to being off and then both of them began tearing off their clothes in a bid to be the first out of them and in the water.
53
The water was beautiful and as it lapped over Chloe’s shoulders and the back of her neck it felt like all her anxiety and stresses were being rinsed out of her by Mother Nature herself. It was so peaceful here with the mountains towering above them and the sea in front and below. Yes, a wilderness, but a landscape that also, somehow, gave off ‘nurturing’ and ‘nourishing’.
She wasn’t sure seeing Gunnar naked was giving off anything other than pure sex appeal though. As much as she had been hurrying to get out of her clothes, going quicker as each layer came off and more of her was exposed to the cold conditions, she had taken time to appreciate his fine form. Strong, muscular, looked like he could uproot a Christmas tree if needed. But she also knew how gentle he was, outside and in.
‘You like massage?’ Gunnar asked, swimming closer to her.
‘Doesn’t everyone?’ she answered.
‘I was asking only about you.’
She nodded, feeling both calm from the warm water, yet also softly bubbling with anticipation for whatever was coming next. ‘Yes, I do.’
