Mountains Wanted by Phoebe Alexander

deep that she cried out his name.
    Every weekend James seemed
to pop up on Sarah’s agenda. There wasn’t much communication in the
interim, which Sarah had grown to expect. In many ways, she felt she knew
James’ body much more intimately than his mind. Some days, she felt that
was for the best. Other days, she had pangs of regret, wishing she’d pursued a
more traditional dating relationship rather than rushing into a friends with
benefits arrangement. Here was a man she was wildly physically attracted to,
moderately intrigued about intellectually, and she was finally at a point in
her life where she craved a deeper level of intimacy with someone of the
opposite sex. Everything had converged to a peak and yet conditions didn’t seem
right for climbing it. It’s too late for that now though , she conceded.
  And besides, he is too young. It would never work , she
rationalized.
    Rachel had been a good,
if not cold and detached, sounding board for Sarah regarding her relationship
with James. Rachel was still recovering from her breakup with Mark, and was
extremely vocal in discouraging Sarah from forming an emotional attachment to
James. “He’s military,” she reasoned. “That means he’s not staying.” Sarah
couldn’t disagree, but every time she was with him she felt the pull was a
little stronger. Sometimes so strong that she considered just quitting while
she was ahead, moving on before there was no turning back. But something
compelled her to stay the course and she couldn’t quite put a finger on what it
was beyond the amazing sexual chemistry they had. She was fascinated by a story
yet told. It was only a matter of time before she discovered why it was that
James McAllister had come into her life.
    He was seeming less like
a stranger though as time progressed, as she had learned a great deal more about
him during their pillow talk. Most nights he visited, they’d enjoy two or
three romps before finally collapsing from exhaustion and surrendering to
slumber. Although his recovery time was fairly short, he did seem to enjoy
conversing in between rounds. He was especially fond of totally catching
her off guard with a deeply philosophical or scientific question like “Do you
ever think it’s acceptable to kill a fellow human being?” Or, “Do you believe
in evolution?” They’d have fascinating exchanges on myriad topics which struck
Sarah as odd since it seemed that mediated communication during their time apart
was a huge challenge for him. She’d even teased him about it from time to
time, “So you can communicate,” she remarked one night after he’d
detailed a particularly long story for her. “Do you just save up all your words
for when you see me in person or what?”
    James had given her one
of his trademark smirks in response. “I am not much for phone calls or
texting,” he replied. “I guess I just like the real thing so much better.”
And with that he lifted her chin and pressed his lips against hers, wrapping
his arm around her waist and pulling her down on top of him. “As usual I’m
right!  See how much better this is?” How can I possibly argue with
that logic? she had mused.  
    That particular night as
she nestled into that deliciously comfortable spot in the crevice of his arm
with her cheek against his chest muscles, she started to probe a little more
deeply than she had before about his family and background. “Have you ever done
anything else besides the Army?” she asked.
    “I wanted to,” he
responded. “I always wanted to be an engineer; as a matter of fact, that’s what
my degree is in.”
    Sarah sensed a “but...”
    “My dad really wanted me
to go into the military. There was quite a bit of pressure, to be honest. It’s
kind of family tradition...and well, my family is all about tradition,” he
explained, not seeming to object to the line of questioning.
    “Oh yeah?”  Sarah
smirked. Her family was about the least traditional she’d ever