“You wanna see the outside?” he asks, and I nod eagerly.
“Absolutely!”
Back downstairs, West leads me back into his kitchen where we step out onto his patio. If I thought his front yard was serene, nothing compares to the tranquility of his backyard. Just a few metres in front of us, his large deck leads straight to the river, where I see his boat waiting for us. The patio forks off into different levels. To the left is a stunning wood table large enough to fit a big group, and to the right is an outdoor kitchen completely made out of stone. In front of us are three steps that lead to another layer of the patio. To the left is an L-shaped couch with an electric fire pit, and to the right sits a hot tub. A few more steps down, the deck leads straight to the dock. On our way down, I look around the yard and spot a little clearing with wood benches and a big fire pit. Behind his garage, near the edge of the water, is a shed. It’s so magical out here.
“I kind of never want to leave this place,” I joke.
“Now, don’t be getting my hopes up.” He winks, making me blush. “You ready to hit the water?”
“Yes!” I say, excitedly.
“Life jackets and drinks are already in the boat, so I’ll just run back to the truck and grab the bags with the rest of the stuff. Meet you down there?”
“Sure.” I smile, making my way down the long stretch of dock.
While I wait for West, I turn and take a look at his house from this view. It truly is magnificent, and I sort of wasn’t kidding when I said I never want to leave.
The sounds of birds chirping and the running water of the river adds to the whole scenic feel of the place, and I smile to myself at the serenity of it all.
Bags in hand, West comes down the dock, meeting me at the edge. “We’re all set,” he says, tossing the bags into the boat.
“Perfect.” I smile.
“I’ll hop in first and then I’ll help you in, okay?”
“Sounds good.”
He gets in and holds out his hand, and I place my palm into his and step over the edge. Like it did with him, the boat rocks, and not used to the feeling, I stumble into his chest. I can feel the hard planes of his chest beneath my hands, and I flush at the contact. His arms are wrapped around me, holding me securely to him, and I realize one of his palms rests against my ass.
“You good?” He chuckles, letting me go.
“Sorry,” I say, embarrassed.
“No worries.” He smiles. “So I was thinking we could make our way up to the little day area that’s about three miles from here. There’s a small beach and it’s closer inland, so there is a perfect spot to swim if you want to get into the water without worrying about currents. What do you say?”
“That sounds perfect,” I say, taking a seat.
“Great. Let’s go then.” West unties the boat and starts the engine as I watch his muscles flex at the movements. We go at a slow pace, trolling down the river, and along the way, I admire the view of the hills and forest. We spot a mama bear and her two cubs and come across a moose wading in the water.
“Have you ever been down here before?” West asks.
“Surprisingly, no. You’d think after living here for almost five years I would have ventured out more, but Sarah and I usually hit up the springs to swim, and I’ve only hiked the falls once.”
“You can’t come to Lavender Falls and not hike to them at least once. It’s a beautiful place.”
“It really is. I’d love to do it again sometime.”
“Yeah? Maybe we could do it together?” he suggests.
“It’s a date.” I smile, getting one in return.
We continue our troll, and when the river starts to open up, I can see the small beach area West was talking about. Pulling up to a dock, West ties the boat in place and cuts off the engine.
“We’re here,” he says, grabbing the bags and tossing them out. Stepping out of the boat, West picks up the bags with one hand and grabs mine with his other.
We make our way to the shore and find a nice shady area to lay out the blanket we brought and start to open up the coolers.
It’s such a beautiful day that I’m surprised we are out here all alone. It both scares and thrills me knowing it’s just the two of us.
