Rocky Mountain High

Houston, Texas

“Honey, I’m home.”  John Koenig shouted as he closed the door and placed his brief case on a small table in the foyer.

“Back here.”  Helena called.

John weaved his way through a mine field of dolls and blocks to find his wife sitting on the floor in his daughter’s nursery playing patty cake with his toddler. Grinning, he lowered his large frame to the floor and sat beside his wife.  Victoria gave him a big grin and crawled into his lap.  He kissed the top of her head pausing for a moment to rub his cheek against the fine soft locks of her dark hair.

“Da Da.”  Victoria called as she placed her tiny hands around his neck gracing him with one of her mother’s smiles. John exchanged a smile with his wife.

“Yes, Daddy’s home.”  He said. He lay back on the carpet and lifted Victoria up in the air.  Her delighted scream filled the room.

“Look at that, Mama.  She’s a natural born flyer.”  John lifted her up and down.

Helena lay next to her husband on the carpet and watched with amusement.  Victoria was most definitely  Daddy’s girl.   “She may be a natural born flyer but she’s just eaten and if I were you, I’d put her down.”

John grinned and lowered Victoria sitting her up on his belly.  He turned his head and bussed his wife on the check.  “So what did you girls do today?”

Helena watch Victoria grabbed John’s tie.  “Nothing out of the ordinary.”

“I saw the den.  It looks like a tornado went through there.”

“Yes, I know.   Your daughter has your insatiable curiosity and she’s into everything.”

John tickled Tori’s  belly.  “Are you into everything?” 

Tori giggled. 

“Helena,  I have some news.”  John didn’t look at his wife, instead he continued to play with his child.

Helena rolled up on her side still amused at the antics of daddy and daughter. “What is it?”

John turned to look at his wife.  She was smiling his smile.  The one that always made his heart beat a little faster than normal. He lifted his hand to her cheek and pulled her close for a slow kiss. 

“How would you like to go to Colorado for a few days?”  He asked when they pulled apart.

“Colorado?”  Helena’s interest was piqued.

“I have to attend a budgetary meeting the first week of December. I thought we might ask Susan to watch Victoria.”  He smiled.

Helena watched him carefully.  After years of being with him she could read him like a book   So she waited for the other shoe to drop .

John grinned.  He had always marveled at her ability to read his mind.

“And…” He began slowly. “I thought we could work on that other little project.”

Helena raised an elegant eyebrow.  “Oh, you did.   John, we’ve already talked about it.  I don’t think so.”

He reached over and felt for her hand.  Lifting it to his lips, he kissed it softly.  “I thought we agreed to talk about it.”

Helena shifted uncomfortably.  “John….”

Sensing her reluctance, John moved her hand from his lips and place it on Victoria. “Please, Helena.  You know she’s not meant to be an only child.”

Helena regarded him seriously. 

They had discussed adding to their family the month before during an overnight in Boston .  That evening, he had taken great care in his attempts to persuade her.  He met her at the door of her hotel room and lead her to a tub filled with scented bubbles.  Small vanilla scented white lights were everywhere a glass of wine sat on the counter by the tub.  He had instructed her to relax and left her to soak in the tub.  When he returned, he  was drawn to her as she lay beneath the bubbling warm waters, head back, eyes closed, wine glass in hand.  He moved a few candles and sat quietly on the edge of the tub.  Sensing his arrival,  she opened her eyes.  Taking her wine glass, he took a slow sip. She watched him and waited.  Finally after several long minutes, she spoke softly

“Hey you.”  She said smiling “What’s on your mind?”

 John returned her smile as he placed  her wine glass on the floor beside the tub   He had told her of his love for her and Victoria.  Then he quietly told her what he wanted.   He wanted a son. He told how he envied Alan when he watched him play with Geoff and now he and Mel were expecting a second son.  Helena had listened with great interest as he told her of his plans. When he was through, she had told him about her reservations and concerns. But he disarmed her with is smile and his enthusiasm. Later after he joined her in the tub and loved her gently, she told him that she would consider the idea. 

Since that night, John had talked non-stop about it.  He wanted a son badly.  With a little work, he was sure that he could convert his wife to a willing participant.

“John?”  She called reaching out to him, pulling him back from his memory of that evening in Boston. “I know how much you want a son.  But I’m still  not sure I’m ready.  Perhaps, we can talk more while we’re in Colorado.”  She gave him a smile and a wink.

He sat up and kissed her lips.  “Oh I hope so.”

 John knew this was his chance.  It was time to call in the big guns.

~~~~

"RING”

“Hello!”

“Melissa?”

“Hey Handsome.  How’s it hanging? Are things really bigger in Texas?”

John smiled.  Melissa always did have a way with words.

“Things here are great.  But I need a little help.  It’s about Helena….”

“I’m listening.”  Melissa said.

“I have some meetings to attend in Breckenridge.  Helena’s coming with me and I need some place very secluded, you know private.”

Melissa chuckled. “What are you doing trying to get her pregnant or something?”

Silence.

“John Koenig, you sneaky little devil.”  Melissa burst out laughing. “Are you looking for some place with a heart shaped bed and gold lamé curtains?”

“I don’t think so.  We aren’t going to Vegas.” John rubbed his hand over his face.

“Okay, Okay. I guess that’s would be more Alan’s taste.  Breckenridge, hmm?  You know, I think I know just the place if it’s available. Let me make a call and I’ll let you know.  What are the dates?”

Melissa took down all the details.  Twenty minutes later, she called John back with the good news.  She wished him luck and blew him a kiss through the phone.  John smiled.  Melissa’s plans sounded wonderful. 

Colorado

The flight into Breckinridge had been uneventful.  Helena napped on John’s shoulder while he read over his budget report.  When they arrived at airport, John retrieved their bags and escorted Helena to their rental car.  As they snaked through the snowy streets, John reached over and took her hand.  Helena smiled.

John navigated the rental car up a long and winding driveway.  Tall snow covered trees stood at attention on both sides of the drive. 

“Do you know where we are going?”  Helena asked.

“Not exactly,  but Melissa emailed me a map when she sent you that info about food.”  He admitted.

They drove down a small gully and up a hill.  As they reached the top of the hill, a large A-framed house appeared.  Already adorned with holiday decorations,  the house glittered like a Christmas jewel.

John looked over at Helena smiling.  “Mel is one amazing sister-in-law.”

“I wonder how she knew about this place.”  Helena stated as the car came to a stop.

“She said it’s her friend’s place.  What’s his name…Reg,  I think.”  John cut the car off.

Helena chucked softly. “I bet this is some place.’

“Let’s go find out.”  John wink as he reached to open the door.

They walked to the front of the house mindful of the freshly fallen snow.  Breckinridge was one of the few places in the country with snow.

They entered the house through the foyer and stopped to take in their surroundings. The stone foyer led into the main room which was massive.  A stone fireplace was in the center of the room capped with a hammered brass hood that reached up to the top of the roof.  The opposite wall was plate glass from floor to cathedral ceiling with a spectacular view of snow-covered mountains through the aspens.  A Christmas tree stood at the center of the window.  It was over twenty feet high and decorated with angels, bird cages and bouquets of silk flowers. Beyond the window was a deck carefully swept of snow.

“It’s beautiful,” Helena said, looking around at the circular sofa surrounding the fireplace, a pair of comfortable armchairs tucked in a corner with reading lights, a fully stocked wet bar across the room.  There seemed to be garlands of evergreen with tiny twinkling lights everywhere.  The room smelled of Christmas.  She turned to the left where a step up led into a formal dining room with seating for a dozen around a massive oak table and a wide pass through to a professionally accoutered kitchen with a screen that could close off the dining room for privacy.  Helena stepped into the kitchen and peered into the brush aluminum refrigerator and smiled.

“Mel gave me an email address to send a grocery list.  It looks like everything I asked for is here.  It’s like magic.”

There was a notebook on the central butcher block.  John looked through it.  It looked like there were menus from every restaurant in town plus info on the front page for ordering a grocery delivery. 

“How about stuffed salmon and tossed salad for supper?”  Helena asked, pulling out two foil tins with plastic lids.

“Sounds great,” John said. “I’m going to get the bags in.”

Helena left the salmon on the counter.  “The master bedroom must be upstairs.”

“I’ll meet you there.”

Stairs led Helena to a balcony.  Above the kitchen, laundry, mudroom and dining room was a hallway with four bedrooms, two on each side of the hall with bathrooms in between.  There was a balcony leading across the living room to the other side of the house.  The door led into the large master bedroom.  This room had it’s own plate glass windows and its own balcony set on the side of the house.  There was a king size bed tucked under the polished cedar beams that rose high overhead.  A fireplace occupied the interior wall with two leather armchairs on either side of it.  A large bathroom was to the left, including a garden tub set under a skylight.  Just outside, through a glass door, was a Jacuzzi on the balcony.

“Wow.”  John said, walking up behind her.

“Definitely.” 

“Where do you want these?”  John asked holding up the suitcases.

“I think there’s a closet over here.”  She led him into the bathroom.  A generous sized closet stood empty.  There was another door behind it.

John set down the suitcases and looked at the door with a keyed lock.  He tried the knob and it didn’t turn.  He looked toward Helena.

“A closet to keep personal things in?  When you’re renting out the house?”  She guessed.

“Very clever.”

“I wonder if the hot tub is actually hot.”  John walked over to the window and looked out. 

Helena walked up behind him and put her arms around him.  “Why don’t you investigate while I put dinner on?”

John patted her hands and turned to kiss her softly.  “I’ll do that.”

What a house!  John could hear Helena moving around in the kitchen below.  It would be getting dark soon and John hoped he could persuade Helena into taking a relaxing soak with him.  The deck had also been swept free of snow.  He opened the glass door and stepped out onto the deck.  There was a glass wall to keep the Jacuzzi out of the wind without blocking the view.  John crossed to the tub and lifted the cover to check the temperature of the water.  It was warm but not hot.  Looking around, he spotted the controls for the hot tub.  He moved over to them and increased the temperature of the water just enough to make it comfortably hot.  Then he pushed the button that would start the jets.  Immediately, the hot tub began to bubble.  John smiled. 

As he turned back toward the hot tub controls,  he noticed another set of buttons.  Beside the tub controls there was another panel labeled “Video”.   The camera panel had 3 buttons and they were marked, “Zoom Out”,  “Zoom In”,  “Mixed.”   Curiously,  he pressed the Zoom Out button.  Nothing happened or so he thought.  John shrugged his shoulders and started back inside to meet his wife. But as he walked by the door, he noticed something flickering on one of the shelves of the wet bar.  He walked back over and crouched down.  It was a small black and white monitor.

“I’ll be damned.” John said under his breath. 

John stood and looked about the deck until he spotted them.  Cameras mounted discretely under the eves.  He turned and looked at the video display again and noticed that one of the cameras was on and focusing in on the hot tub.  Crossing back to the panel, John pressed the second button, “zoom in”.  He watched the monitor as the light from another camera appeared.  Then he pressed the button marked,  “Mixed”.  When he glanced at the video display, he watched with amusement as all the camera came on and began to run a pre-programmed sequence of zooming in and out of the hot tub area.

Turning back to the wet bar,  John opened the cabinets looking for a recording device.  He found none.  Following his sense of curiosity,  John followed the cables back inside.  He found more cameras.  They were in the bedroom.  A circular staircase led him to the game room and the den, both below the master bedroom.  He climbed back upstairs and crossed to the other wing and checked the bedrooms.  Each room had the hidden cameras with control panels.  He noticed that the zoom view of each camera focused on the bed, bath, pool table or hot tub.  John chuckled as he thought about all the wild bashes Reg must have thrown at his mountain hid a way. 

“John.”  Helena called.

“Coming.”  John replied. He grabbed a unopened bottle of bourbon from behind the bar before heading for the kitchen.

Helena noticed his amused look.  “What’s so funny?”

John smiled,  “How well do you know Reg?” He sat the bourbon on the table and  noticed that his wife had set places in the kitchen’s breakfast nook rather than in the large formal dining room.

“Well, he’s one of Mel’s clients that became her very good friend.  He’s quite wealthy, owns houses all around the country…”

“Is he married?”  John spooned some food onto his plate as Helena settled into her chair beside him.

“He has a partner. His name is Trent.  They’ve been together for quite awhile.”

“That’s right.  Alan plays golf with him.”

“From the few times I’ve met him,  he’s been nothing but an angel.  And he watched after Mel after I left Florida.  Daddy doesn’t really care for him but Mother adores him.”   Helena said between bites.

“Susan?”

“Oh yes,  Reg and Mother can sit for hours and talk about dinner party planning.”

John thought about the cameras.  He wondered briefly if the cameras were for security reasons or more private reason.  Then  the image of Reg and Susan sitting on the balcony at the Vero condos talking party planning went through  his mind.  Surely,   Susan never threw the kinds of parties that Reg did.   The image of a naked Robert and Susan popped into his mind.  John cringed. He needed a drink.  He rose from his chair and pulled two hi-ball glasses out of a cabinet.  He opened the bourbon and filled both glasses.

“To us.” He said as he held up his glass.

Helena took her glass and touched it with his. 

“He seems to have cameras all over the place, and there’s a little room off the den that has monitors, taping equipment, even a computer to edit things.  Plus a notebook full of directions, just like the kitchen.”

“You’ll have to show it to me after dinner.”

“I will.  Oh, and the Jacuzzi on the deck with be ready this evening too.”

Helena gave him a sly smile.  “We can try that after dinner as well.”

He took her hand and brought it to his lips.  “I’m looking forward to it.”

Cleanup was quick and they headed to the den first and into the tiny office.  There were monitors and a computer.  Helena looked at a shelf of music disks and found a stereo system with a switch for different speakers around the house, including the master bedroom and upper deck.  She put on an album by Gato Barbieri.

“Look at this,” John said. “You can choose what cameras to use and it records digitally.  Then you can edit it with this.”  He showed her the computer monitor and another notebook with handy instructions.

Helena reached over his shoulder and touched the buttons to choose the upper deck cameras.  “Looks like you can record everything from here.”

John was very aware of her breasts pressed against his shoulder and her warm breath against his ear.  He turned and looked up at her. 

She met his eyes, a mischievous twinkle in her own.  “Why don’t we try them?”  She squeezed his shoulder and slipped out of the room. 

He watched the monitors as she climbed the circular staircase to the master bedroom.  She vanished into the closet, but quickly stepped into view again wearing a large terrycloth bathrobe.  He pressed record and watched with interest as she crossed the bedroom and moved onto the deck.  She stepped carefully up the stairs to the Jacuzzi and turned to look at the camera.  Then with a graceful motion she shed the robe and stepped into the tub.  She leaned forward, giving him a spectacular view of bare breasts, blew him a kiss and crooked her finger in invitation.

He headed upstairs. Pausing only long enough to pick up a bottle of chilled champagne and two champagne flutes.  He shed his clothes, found the matching robe hanging above his suitcase and headed to the deck.  He opened the champagne, attention fixed on his lovely wife relaxing in the warm water.  She smiled and watched him pop the cork and fill the glasses.  He handed her one, set the other on the side of the tub for himself and stepped into the water beside her.

He leaned over and kissed her.  She tasted of the champagne.  It was a heady mix, Helena and champagne.  She opened her mouth, encouraging him, welcoming him and he deepened the kiss, tasting her fully.  He put his arms around her waist ready to pull her onto his lap. 

She pulled back with a laugh.  “No so fast, Commander Koenig.  You just poured the champagne.  And we have all night long,” she purred. 

He was already ready for her, but she was right.  There was no hurry.  She settled beside him and placed her hand on his thigh, rubbing it slowly as she took another sip of champagne. 

“This is very good,” she said.

“The whole thing is very good.”  Her fingernails scraped against his inner thigh, distracting him completely.

“Mmmm, it is,” she said dreamily.  She settled against him and he put his arm around her.  He cupped her breast and squeezed it gently, lifting it just above the water.  The nipple hardened as it surfaced and he reached out a finger to gently stroke it.  He leaned over and kissed her softly just behind the ear.  “That is highly intoxicating, my dear.”

“The drink?” he asked, running his tongue around the edge of her ear.

“Your touch.”

Her fingers stroked his thigh, coming teasingly close to his genitals, but turning and moving away.  He shifted, hoping to move into the path her fingers were weaving.  With a smile she set down her glass and moved both hands below the waterline.  As he kissed her lips she finally moved her fingers lightly across his erection.  He deepened the kiss.  He wanted her now, all of her.  He wanted to taste her and possess her.  He wanted to be inside her.  She pushed off the seat and he moved to protest, but she brought one hand to his neck, continuing the kiss as she moved him into a more reclining position.  She straddled him and continued to stroke him.  This was almost like free fall without any of the pesky problems they had experienced.  She floated over top of him.

He ran his lips down her neck and she pushed out of the water so he could continue down to her breasts.  He massaged one breast with his hand while taking her other nipple into his mouth.  She moaned with pleasure, inspiring him further.

“I want you.”  He breathed, lips brushing her nipple.

“We didn’t bring any condoms out here.”

“Helena, just this once, let’s not worry about them.”  He drew her to him, pressing against her but not into her. 

“If we –“

“If something happens, then maybe it’s just meant to be.  You know I’ll talk you into it eventually,”  he cajoled.

She drew back and looked into his eyes.  He gave her his most pleading look.  “Please, honey.”

His hands were still caressing her breasts, her sides, her back, her bottom.  She loved the way he was making her feel.  She wanted him very much.  And the air was cold around them.  She didn’t want to leave the comfort of the warm water and go in search of condoms.  She gave an almost inaudible sigh and nodded.  “I wish I didn’t find you so irresistible.”

John knew he had won her over and his pleasure knew no bounds.  He determined to spend as much of this week as possible pleasing her, pleasuring her, and cherishing her.  He put her face in his hands and brought it down to his lips.  As he kissed her deeply, reverently, she lowered herself onto him and he entered her.  They held still for a moment, savoring their union.  The she began to move against him.  She seemed to be moving to the beat of the jazz playing softly through the speakers above him.  The song increased in tempo and so did her movements.  As she began to reach her own peak he released with an explosion so great he thought he would explode.  Her back arched, she moaned and called out his name.  She was so beautiful, so wonderful.  He pulled her close to him as she caught her breath and she lay her head against his shoulder.

The timer on the hot tub buzzed and Helena stirred against him.  “Stay.”

“We’ve been in the water long enough.”  Helena took his hand and they climbed out of the tub.  She put on a thick robe and handed him another and they quickly headed inside.  John paused to snatch up the bottle of champagne and the two glasses.  Helena led him to the bed and reached for the glasses.  John filled them up again and they tipped the two flutes against each other.

Helena’s eyes got that mischievous look that always made John melt, although he rarely saw it.  Their lives on Alpha had been too serious and juggling two professions and parenthood back here on Earth meant their lives were still mostly serious.

“Let’s take a look at the movies.”

John grinned.  He’d forgotten all about the cameras.  Helena took his hand and they took their champagne downstairs to the study. 

Everything recorded directly to the computer.  There were two angles of the hot tub, one set for close-up, one for a wider angle.  Helena leaned over John’s shoulder, her breath caressing his ear.

“Oh, yeah, Honey.”  He was becoming aroused again just watching their recent activities.  Helena’s hand reached around and inside his robe, moving in circles over his chest.  She nibbled on his ear.

“I’ll meet you in bed,” she breathed, then slipped away.

He clicked on the correct cameras and followed her eagerly.

Helena was waiting for him on the bed.   He wanted her.  Wanted her badly.  But he wanted to pleasure her even more.  He knew there were several cameras placed around the bedroom that would carry every nuance of her orgasm and his pleasure at watching her would be even more fulfilling for him.   He knelt between her legs, touching her, caressing her, arousing her, with fingertips and tongue.  He knelt above her and reveled in her pleasure.  She pleaded with him to come inside her, to join with her, to bring her over the edge, and as he filled her he brought her to a powerful orgasm that making her scream his name, and triggering his own release.  He gasped for breath, their union so intense he felt as if he had forgotten how to breathe.  She pulled him to her and he rolled off of her, pulling her next to him and enjoying the feel of skin against skin.

“Oh, Helena, that was incredible,” he murmured once his voice was working again. 

“Mmm, it was,” she agreed.  They lay together, eyes closed, listening to each other breathe, enjoying their moment together.

The week moved by in that fashion.  John’s meetings lasted until mid-afternoon.   Helena spent her day in the study with her laptop working on her latest book.  During their time on Alpha, with all new discoveries they had made, Helena and her staff had written them up as if they were pending publication and peer reviewed each others work.  Once they arrived back on Earth all her staff and most of the rest of the science staff had begun publishing the work they had done while away.  But upon her return she had also been asked to write accounts of their travels.  She had written one volume already and her publisher was asking for another.  Helena was going through the log entries she had recorded through the years for interesting incidents.  Some of the stories she enjoyed reviewing, others were harder, times when they had lost good people, good friends.

Shortly after lunch each day she called her mother and spoke to her and Tori, keeping up with things the baby did.  Then she went for a walk and thought, mostly about her book, but also about her family.  John was right, she didn’t want Tori to be an only child.  The relationship she had with her sister was special beyond words, but they were twins.  Most likely Tori and her as-yet-born sibling would never be that close.  But they would still be bound to each other, and share each other’s experiences.  And Helena was not getting any younger.  Two toddlers in the family would be tough enough now, her mother had been in her twenties and Helena was nearly twice that old.  How long did Helena really want to wait before going through the rigors of pregnancy as well as the sleepless nights of a newborn infant? 

And, was it a moot point?  She had already thrown caution to the wind that first night here.  They had no trouble conceiving Tori.  There was no reason to think she would have trouble now.  One thing she would never admit to John, she would rather have another girl than a boy.  A sister would be good for Tori.  But John’s heart was set on a boy.  And she was certain she did not want John pressuring her to have another child if the next one was also a girl.  For most of her life she had never even expected to have one child.  Her career had been her life.  Now that she had Tori, and John, she knew that her family was much more important to her than her career. She understood better why her mother had devoted herself to children and husband rather than continue a research career of her own that would have taken her away from them.

But most of her thoughts on these walks were not so somber.  The woods were beautiful, the mountains glorious, and the fresh air still a wonder after the years on Alpha.  And her week with John was turning into a marvelous second honeymoon, albeit a working one.

The last evening they had, she met him in the foyer with a drink for him in a silky red robe and very little else.  She took his coat and briefcase and sent him to change, asking him to meet her by the fireplace.   She had laid out a robe for him in the bedroom and he returned to the living room in it.  As he sat down next to her she produced a remote control which brought down a large screen that retracted completely into the ceiling.  He hadn’t even noticed it.  A projector lit up the screen and with the touch of another button their video began to play.  The hot tub, the bed, here at the fireplace.  Helena slid her hand inside his robe and caressed him as the music they had chosen for the video played and the erotic images rolled past. 

“Helena, you are so beautiful.”  John whispered, almost overcome with arousal. 

“Glad you think so,” Helena said flippantly.

“Oh, I know so.”  He moaned more from her ministrations here on the sofa, but he was also watching the screen above them.  He pulled her into his lap and kissed her deeply.  She shifted and he entered her.  She was moist and welcoming and as eager as he for their union.  His hands slid under the silky robe she wore, caressing her skin, touching her in all the ways he knew she liked to be touched. 

The music soundtrack almost overpowered their voices on the video, but he could hear her moans of ecstasy echoing her murmurs into his ear.  As they climaxed she clung tightly to him. 

“John.  I love you so.”

“I love you too.”

On the screen above them their image faded into an image of the mountains behind the spa as the music faded into silence.  They clung together, catching their breath.

When Helena lifted her head from his shoulder she smiled at him.  “Hungry?”

“I have been working up an appetite.”

“Dinner will be ready shortly.  I’ve got most of our things packed.  You might want to go up and get your things ready to go.”  She leaned over and opened a door in the coffee table in front of them.  There was a disk player inside and Helena touched a button to eject the disk.  “I’ve already wiped the files from the computer and left all the cameras and equipment just the way we found them.  We can watch this again after supper if you’d like…”

“Oh, I’d like!”

Helena smiled at him. “But then we should destroy it.  We wouldn’t want someone else finding it and watching it.”

John gathered her into his arms.  “Our eyes only.”

“Exactly.”

Helena kissed him quickly and twisted away from his lap, tying her robe together as she headed for the kitchen. 

John took the disk upstairs to pack.  It had been a terrific vacation and he would make sure that disk was safe.