Page 74 of A Haunting at Keystone Manor

“Love you too,” I say and lean in for a kiss. Alex turns to face me and rests a hand on the side of my neck as he kisses me softly.

“Let’s go to the lake, recharge for a bit. I want to be alone with you,” he says when I break the kiss. That sounds perfect.

***

Alex

I set our picnic basket in the grass when we get to the lake. As much as I want this to be a regular date, we need to focus. Work first, then play.

“We’re going to work on meditation."

He nods. We sit cross legged in the grass and close our eyes. Become one with the Earth, I tell myself. I can feel the energy from this soil nourishing me, replenishing my life force. I am the Earth. The Earth is me. I am Jake, we’re entwined. Everything is in balance.

I pop an eye open and look at Jake. Is he charging? I can’t tell. I wish we had little percentage indicators above our heads. He looks like he could be charging. His eyes are still closed, and his face is relaxed. His hands are resting on his knees, and his breathing is even and shallow. He looks like he could be asleep. I want to poke him and ask if it’s working, but I don’t want to interrupt his process.

God, he’s beautiful. I take a minute to study the lines of his face. His perfect, straight nose, the beautiful wavy brown hair that cascades down his shoulders. I love his long hair. More men should have long hair. He looks like an angel. Maybe he is? We’re dead after all. Who says we can’t be angels if we want to? He’d look hot with a pair of wings.

I whine, and he opens his eyes. Oops.

“Why are you staring at me, brat? You’re supposed to be meditating,” he says with a smirk.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt you. I was just… taking in the beauty of the landscape, you know?”

“Oh okay, that’s what that noise was about then?”

“You’re a bit of a narcissist, aren’t you? Not everything is about you, just so you know.” I close my eyes again and try to keep the smile I feel forming from showing on my face. This is serious time!

We get back to our meditation, and after a while I pop my eyes open again.

“Hey, Jake?”

He sighs and opens his eyes. “Yes, Alex?”

“Would you like to try charging in the lake? I was thinking maybe we could go for a swim?” I ask hopefully and squirm a bit in the grass.

“It’s impossible for you to sit still, isn’t it?” He smirks and looks over to the lake. It’s a gorgeous day today and no one else is around. We have it all to ourselves.

“I can sit still! I just want to swim right now. We can have a competition to see who can hold their breath the longest. I want to swim down to the bottom and see if my car is actually down there. What do you say?”

He stands and wipes off his pants. “Okay brat, let’s go swimming.”

I stand and follow him to the edge of the water. It’s the bluest water I’ve ever seen in a lake. There is a narrow beach of sand that wraps around the lake, and I debate asking Jake if he’d like to make a sandcastle. No, Alex. Work, not play.

I watch Jake as he looks out at the water, nudging him with an elbow. “First step to swimming is taking off your clothes.”

“I’m not getting naked out here,” he says.

“You don’t have to get naked, just strip down to your boxers.”

He takes a deep breath and pulls his shirt off. I know he hates feeling exposed, and he's been more guarded since his abduction, but I do love looking at that lean body. I rip my shirt and jeans off before he can finish and run into the water.

My body tenses, trying to adjust to the temperature. “It’s cold! Jump in!” I encourage.

He wades slowly into the water, adjusting bit by bit. Smart man. I swim out a little and he follows.

“This is nice,” he says.

“It really is. I’m gonna swim down and look for my car,” I say before taking a deep breath and plunging below the surface. I swim down for what feels like a mile before heading back up. I should have planned this better, I can’t see anything down there.