Page 38 of Packing for Vacation

I know it’s dangerous to call them that. We’re moving too fast, everything is happening too soon, but I don’t know how to be any other way. I’m not going to hold back, because if this pack is worth pursuing—and it is—then I need to give Matiu and Scott my all.

And at the back of my mind I’m very aware of the ticking clock, counting down the days, because I’m not a resident here, and my tourist visa does have an expiry date.

I can’t find Scott, so I have to presume that he’s gone for a walk with Barry. Matiu, on the other hand, is outside, cleaning out the huge stainless steel outdoor tub that overlooks the ocean. He sets down the sponge he’s been using and leans over the edge, kissing me slowly. “Come back in half an hour, and I’ll have it all ready. In the meantime, go into my room and look on the bed—it’s not much, and it’s secondhand—but I saw it the other day and thought you might enjoy it.”

“You got me a gift?” my level of excitement plays right into omega stereotypes, and I can tell Matiu is thinking the same thing by his amused smile. I kiss him again and practically skip back to the house.

“Seriously,” he calls after me, “temper your expectations!”

I laugh and blow him a kiss from the deck.

The gift is a travel guide, paired with a packet of sticky tabs for bookmarking pages. I love it. I lie down on Matiu’s bed, enjoying the fact that his scent is everywhere, and open the first page, tears immediately rolling down my cheeks at the small note he’s written.

Lizzie,

I hope we have many years of road trips ahead of us.

- Matiu

“Shit.” I wipe at my tears, afraid at how much I want that future too.

I take my time, flicking through the travel guide, focusing on Northland, since we’re already here, adding a tab to all the places I want to visit, feeling only a little silly in picking so many beaches when there’s a beautiful and almost entirely private beach here at the bach.

After booking this vacation on a whim, I really was planning to go with the flow while here in New Zealand, and I’m certainly doing that now. Occasionally I see posts from some of the travel influencers I follow and question whether I’m doing enough on this vacation—I’m not staying in quirky hotels or filling my itinerary to the brim with action and adventure activities—and I have to remind myself that what I’m doing is exactly what I love about travel anyway. I vastly prefer slow travel. Give me all the sleep-ins and days spent at the beach, with good local food thrown in. Matiu and Scott are better than any guide I could have paid for, and I love learning from them.

When my mind starts going down the path of what happens once the vacation is over? I close the travel guide and carry it up to my nest, changing into my bikini on autopilot. There’s a running to-do list in my mind of all the important things I need to sort out, like calling the airline to push my return flight out by another month or two, and actually having a proper conversation with Matiu and Scott about where this is all going, but the mere thought of all of that adulting stresses me out, and for now it’s easy enough to tell myself that I’ll get to it later.

Matiu is already soaking in the tub by the time I head back outside, my towel tucked under my arm. “Thank you for my gift.” I lean over the side of the tub and kiss the back of his neck, getting a shot of his peppery scent direct to my hindbrain, so heady I feel momentarily intoxicated.

“You’re welcome.”

I swish the warm water. “Is it good in there?”

“Amazing. Can’t get much better than this, eh. Good views. Good people. Good views of good people,” he adds with a grin, nodding at me. “That bikini is diabolical. I’m glad we’re not in public, gives me time to desensitise myself to the sight of your tits in that so I’m not popping a boner on a busy beach.”

“Oh my god.” I’m blushing, but his compliments make me feel better when climbing in turns out to be an unglamorous affair. My stomach rolls are on full display as I straddle the side of the tub, one leg in the water, before swinging the other leg over and sliding in. The water is deliciously warm, and I float to his side, sighing happily when he pulls me onto his lap, his erection fitting neatly against my backside. His hands smooth up and down my sides under the water, occasionally gripping me tight, slowly stoking my desire until I’m desperate for more.

“Looks like old Scotty is finally back,” he says conversationally, as if his fingertip isn’t circling around my nipple while the other hand skims up the inside of my thigh. His lips on my neck have me shivering in the best way as we watch Scott emerge from the track to the beach, passing by us without realising we’re here. “Tell me to stop,” he whispers, teeth grazing my earlobe.

I shake my head and spread my legs wider. His chuckle is a deep rumble in my ear, before he raises his head.

“Scott! Over here bro.”

Scott whirls around, his mouth dropping open as he spots us. “You got in without me!”

“We’re just testing it. Come join us.”

“I have to hose Barry down first, he decided today was a good day to roll in sand after going for a swim. I’ll be there soon, don’t have too much fun without me.”

“We’ll just have the right amount of fun, then,” Matiu murmurs as Scott and Barry disappear around the back of the house. His fingers continue to dance along my inner thigh, teasing at the edge of my bikini before slipping beneath the fabric. He grunts, finding me slick and slippery despite the water, the pad of a thick finger ghosting over my core before circling my clit in a way that has me whining for more.

“Shhh, we’re going to try something,” he speaks low, pressing open mouthed kisses to my neck. “Okay?” His finger continues with that slow, even pace that’s enough to stoke a deep and burning need, but not anywhere near fast enough for me to explode. I nod wordlessly.

He lifts me ever so slightly, his hand leaving my pussy for a moment to adjust himself behind me, the heat of his bare cock dragging across my ass a moment later. Above the water it barely looks like we’re moving, but beneath it he’s pushing my bikini bottom to the side and notching himself at my entrance, pausing there to squeeze my hip in a wordless question. I nod once and sink down with a breathless moan as his cock fills me until his knot kisses my flesh.

And then he pauses, one big hand on each of my thighs, fingers drawing lazy circles not anywhere close to where I want them, and it begins to click about what he meant when he said try something. I arch my back further, attempting to fuck myself on his dick, but his grip on me tightens, fingers digging into my soft flesh as he holds me in place. I shiver at his teeth on my neck, his bite gentle, the sound he makes — a desperate, needy groan — only intensifying the ache within me. I know that if we were out of the water my slick would be dripping down my thighs right now. As it is, despite the water, I can feel just how slippery things are between us. It makes the fact that he’s not moving even more infuriatingly good.

“Are you going to fuck me, alpha?” I whisper, grinning at the way his cock jumps within me.