Legs (5 page)

“
It really is nice. You
never really quite know what to expect, although almost any
waterfall has something going for it.”

Kim swayed in his grasp, her hands
coming up and holding onto his wrists.

“
There’s a trail and some
stairs that go up, if you want to.”

“
No, that’s all right.
Let’s just look at it for a while.”

Brandon buried his face in the
hair.

Birds flitted around in the small
underbrush growing in the boulder garden at the base of the falls,
just down from a deeper pool. They were soundless in the roar of
the water, a unique effect, as their beaks opened and closed and
they looked at the pair of humans just standing there.

“
Hey.”

Kim turned her head and looked
inquiringly, and Brandon, heart surging, as it had been doing quite
a bit of late, spun her a little further.

He pulled her in close, and Kim’s
hands went around him again. They held each other.

“
So...what’s up?” She had
an impish look about her just then and if he didn’t do this, why
then—he might just as well go home and slash up.

That’s what he was thinking right
about then all right.

Do it or slash up, Buddy.
Those are your options.

“
Nothing.” It might not
have been impish, but Brandon had a weird smile on his face when
his hand slid up to the back of Kim’s neck and he pulled her in for
his first kiss in two and a half fucking years.

Her mouth was moist and warm and the
kiss, which went on for some while, was all it should
be.

Finally they pulled away, and just
looked into each other’s soul for a while as white mist fell all
over them but no one cared about that anyways.

Least of all them.

And like a brilliant bolt
out of the blue, it struck someone who was admittedly among the
most stupid of men, that there really
was
a way to ask the
question.

If only he had thought of it
before.

“
Ah, Kim. Do you have a
boyfriend?”

Kim smiled a little, not looking away
or anything.

“
Nope.”

“
Uh…would you like one?” He
waited, cold water trickling down his neck.

She just smiled.

“
Yep.”

He sagged in a kind of relief and her
face came and snuggled into his shoulder.

“
Oh, well. So that’s all
right then.”

“
Come on,
silly.”

She plucked at his jacket
buttons.

“
What?”

“
Let’s get out of
here.”

He could take a hint.

They turned to go.

“
So, uh, Kim. That’s short
for Kimberly, right?”

“
Uh-huh.” She clung to his
hand on the slippery trail.

She smiled nervously, eyes a bit
frightened, as one kiss must lead to another and that was when his
heart well and truly melted.

Shut up, Brandon. Shut up
now and just get on with the moment.

And as for the little voice in my
head: get lost.

End

About the Author

Ian Cooper has written fiction,
non-fiction and worked for newspapers and magazines. He likes to
make people laugh as well as think. His writing has a strong sense
of the dramatic. Out of work and recovering from a life-threatening
illness, someone suggested writing his sexual memoirs, which he
initially rejected for the amount of research involved. He didn’t
want to have to make it all up from scratch. A single dad and
semi-retired from the construction industry, Ian squeezes a little
writing time in between raising a daughter and building a
home-based business.