Encounter in Atlanta

by Ed Howdershelt

huh?" "Nope. No team sports. Boring. Remember how you said I could speak freely?" Beth's reply sounded rather cautious as she said, "Yes." "How freely?" Still sounding cautious, she said, "'Freely' means freely." Sipping his beer, Cade regarded her for a moment, then said, "I could pretend and play games, but it's getting late. I'd very much like to come back to your room with you, Beth. I'd very much like to make love with you." After a few moments of meeting his gaze, Beth asked, "What about Mandi?" "She moved to my room to avoid dealing with too many people after she went public." Another few moments passed before Beth nodded and quietly asked, "You aren't into anything kinky, are you?" With a small grin, Cade asked, "Would kissing my way up your legs be kinky? Would inhaling the scent of you while I kiss your shoulders be kinky?" Beth pinked a bit and bit her lip, then said, "No." "Would pleasuring you with my tongue be kinky?" Her pink deepened to a near-red, but she said, "No. Of course not." "How about..." Putting her beer down firmly, Beth said, "I get your point," then she picked up her beer again and nearly drained it. "Want another beer?" asked Cade. "Want to give things a little more thought?" "Are you trying to talk me out of it now?" Shaking his head, Cade poured some of his beer in her glass and said, "Oh, no, ma'am. Definitely not. I just thought another beer might be in order before you pounce on me." Her eyes got big in startlement. "Me pounce on you?" Nodding, Cade said, "Yeah. I was kind of hoping you would, you know. It's always nice to feel appreciated." Beth snickered and sipped her beer. The bartender had seen Cade share his beer and looked inquiringly toward their table. Cade nodded. Two fresh beers arrived shortly. "Another one of these," said Beth, "And I may do more than pounce on you, Cade." "Suits me, ma'am. Could you wait until after I've licked you senseless, though? I'd really enjoy making you..." "Cade!" she hissed, glancing at the bartender. Sharing her glance, he nodded knowingly and said, "Ah. Yes, of course, ma'am. Mustn't embarrass the natives." "Screw the natives! We mustn't embarrass me!" Leaning forward, she whispered sharply, "And you won't tell anybody, right? By God, if you do, I'll..." "No need for threats, ma'am. I don't kiss and tell. Or lick and tell. Or..." "Cade, dammit!" Raising a hand in polite protest, he said, "Yes'm. I'll shut up now. No need to get all fuzzed up and rowdy. Yet. I'll try to make it worth your while later, though." Beth looked at the ceiling and let out a soft, exasperated, "Ah, hell!" then grabbed her new beer and finished it. "Enough of this," she said, setting the glass firmly on the table. "Let's go now." Draining his own beer, Cade said, "Yes'm. As you say. By your command, milady." He stood up and went to pay the bill, then held the door for Beth and followed her to the sidewalk. Yup. She had real nice legs and it was going to be a true pleasure to... "You're doing it again," said Beth, without turning around. "What's that, milady?" "Staring at my legs." "Oh. Yup. Sure was. Just planning my route north." That made her turn to face him. "Your what?" "My route north. I intend to memorize you, Beth. I'm gonna taste you from your ankles up. Hope you don't mind." She came to stand a few inches from him and quietly said, "After all this talk, you'd better be worth it, mister." "Money back guarantee, ma'am. I'll be doing my best down there. And everywhere else, too, of course." "And you won't tell a soul? Not anybody? Ever?" "Nope. This is strictly between you and me." Beth held his gaze for a long moment, then nodded and started them walking back to the hotel. "Okay, then," she said, "I'll go in first and leave the door open for you. You'll follow me a few minutes later." "Better synchronize our watches, huh?" Her glance was narrow. "Just do what I tell you, okay?" "Yes'm. You got it. Going into sneaky mode now." She said something nasty and slapped his arm. "Ow! Okay! Sneaky mode later, then. No pain stuff, lady." Beth started giggling, then had to stop and lean on the wall as her giggles turned into laughter. A cop car slowed and looked as if it would stop near them, but Beth laughed even harder as she shook her head and waved them on. The passenger side cop looked at Cade and asked, "Have you people been drinkin'? What's so funny?" "She just realized something, I think." "What?" "Well, I'm not exactly sure. It's business related, I think." Nodding, the cop waved the driver on as he said, "Uh, huh. Well, it's late, so hold the noise down, okay?" "Sure. No problem." Beth suffered another spate of laughter as the cops drove away. Cade went to stand by her and waited for the laughter to abate, thinking she must have been strung pretty tight to be so thoroughly amused by so little. She levered herself off the wall and began walking again as she caught her breath. "You okay?" asked Cade. "Fine. You were right. I realized something." He waited as she took a breath and seemed to collect herself a bit. "Cade, were you trying to make me laugh?" "Nope. Not really. I was just trying to make you feel a little more comfortable about dragging me back to your cave." "I'm not dragging you anywhere. You conned me." Hand over his heart, Cade said, "Never. Not me. No way. Nuh-uh." "Bullshit." "If I don't agree with you, will I still get laid, ma'am?" "Of course you will. I want laid and you've got the duty." "Ah. Well, then, okay. I conned you. Just a little, though." "Just enough." "Oh. Yes. Of course. Just enough, then. Yes, ma'am." She smacked his arm and said, "Stop that." "Yes, ma'am." "That, too." "Yes, ma... Okay. You caught me. Now what?" "Now you'd better be the best lay I've ever had, that's all." "No problem. I'm very motivated, ma'am. Are you still worried about getting caught having a legal good time?" Beth stopped just outside the hotel doors and said, "No. Well, not like I was. I see no reason to advertise our business, but I also see no reason that I can't have you." Giving her a small salute, Cade said, "Roger that, milady. We're both adults and we're on separate teams." "Exactly right." "You betcha." Indicating the doors, he asked, "Ready?" Leading the way, Beth said, "Ready. Let's do it." Pointing at the bar, Cade asked, "Want a another couple of beers for later?" Beth looked toward the bar and said, "You get some beer. See if they have any white wine coolers." "Okay. Why don't you go on up and take a few minutes for yourself before I get there? I'll tap on the door when I come in. Good?" Nodding, Beth said, "Yeah. Good. Don't be all night," and turned to go. A few steps later, she turned and said, "Thanks," without explaining why before getting underway again. Thanks for the laughs? Thanks for setting her up to get laid? Thanks for allowing her some time to herself, or for letting her go on ahead so they wouldn't be seen entering her room together? Mix and match the answers? Whatever. Didn't matter. The idea was to make Beth happy while making himself happy. A sense of being watched caused Cade to rub the goosebumps off his arms. Someone from one of the teams? As likely as not; sometimes they were ordered to follow each other around just to keep skills sharp. Cade drank a beer at the bar and stalled ten minutes, then followed Beth upstairs. The fourth floor hallway looked clear, but that didn't mean anything. It was highly unlikely that Carter hadn't installed some security cams in their floor's hallway. Cade felt Mandi's presence in his room as he passed it, ambling along until he reached Beth's door, which he shouldered open on his way into the tiny hallway beyond. Closing the door, he tapped on it as he'd said he would and Beth answered, "In here, Ed." He found her sitting in the chair by the desk, flipping channels until she found an old movie. She turned the sound up a bit and turned to face him. "Your white wine, milady," he said as he set the bottles on the desk and opened one for her. "I'll get you a glass." Putting a hand on his arm, she said, "No. Don't bother," and stood up. After kissing him soundly, she turned around and said, "Unzip me, please." He did so, then helped her slither out of her dress. As she went to hang it up, he opened a beer and leaned on the desk to watch her. Eyeing her tall form from the ankles up, his eyes met hers and she smiled. Nice. Very nice, indeed. "Cade," said Beth with a