by Claire Adams
I grinned at her. “No problem. Could we check in, please?”
“Right! Of course.” She tapped away on her computer for a moment and then handed us two room keys, rattling off all the information about the breakfast buffet, the pool hours, and other details. “Just let us know if there's anything that we can help you with,” she concluded.
“We'll do that,” I assured her. Then, I put a hand on Kylie's lower back and steered her toward the elevators.
“I feel like I've got a flashing neon sign on my forehead,” Kylie complained as we got in the elevator and took it to the very top of the building. “'I slept with this man!' Or something like that. Everyone seems to know.”
I raised an eyebrow at her. “Is it a secret that we're sleeping together?” I asked her mildly, catching her hips and pulling her against me. Then, I cocked my head to the side, a slow smile spreading across my lips. “Or have you decided that that was just a one-time thing?”
“Of course not,” Kylie said, already sounding breathless at just that simple contact.
“Okay, then,” I said.
I pulled away from her and eyed the numbers. Our floor couldn't come soon enough. As soon as we got to our room, I was going to press her up against the wall, a leg slotted between hers, as I pillaged her mouth, finding all the sweet spots. I was going to strip her naked right there and have my way with her. It had been a long drive, and she'd spent the whole of it shifting her legs, making sure I kept thinking about them wrapped around my waist.
There was a soft ding as we reached our floor, drawing me out of my reverie.
I followed Kylie down the hall, watching as she sashayed her hips a little more than she normally would. “Minx,” I muttered under my breath.
“Huh?” Kylie asked, turning back to look over her shoulder at me.
“Nothing,” I said, waving my key in front of the lock mechanism.
“I'm so excited to go for a swim,” Kylie said as we walked into the room. “The hot tub has been nice, but a real pool is going to be great.”
I stared at her. “I thought that we could have some quiet time in the room,” I said.
Kylie laughed. “Come on; we're only here for one night. We can do some of that later, but for now, I'd really like to go for a swim.”
I sighed. “Okay,” I agreed.
I watched as she changed into her swimsuit, which she had bought in Vegas, saying that she didn't want to ruin her bra and panties in the chlorinated water of the hot tub. The new swimsuit was sexy as well, though, very strappy as it hugged and accentuated her curves.
Kylie giggled as she looked back at me. “You're going to have an impressive boner under your swim trunks if you don't stop staring at me,” she commented.
I groaned and forced my eyes away from her, knowing that she was right. I tried to think of every unsexy thing that I could, but it didn't help all that much. My mind kept coming back to all the things that I wanted to do to Kylie.
We'd fucked plenty when we were in Vegas. We'd even delayed our checkout that morning so that we could have one last fuck, with Kylie pressed up against the full-length windows leading out to the balcony, staring out over the city and leaving fingerprints on the glass. But it was like, the more I slept with Kylie, the more I wanted to sleep with her. I couldn't seem to slake my lust for her.
Maybe it was because we were still just fucking, and something inside me was still begging for more. Something deeper. Something more intimate.
As I slipped out of my pants, I checked my phone, groaning when I saw that I had two new emails from Mark.
“Work stuff?” Kylie sighed, sitting on the end of the bed.
“Yeah,” I admitted.
Mark and I had traded a few emails over the past couple days, but we were still trying to hash out details of the deal. It was starting to worry me, and I was definitely considering going in person to meet with him.
But I didn't want to leave Kylie, not when we were having such a good time. Who knew if I would ever get to do this again?
With that in mind, I set my phone on the dresser, resolving to come back to it later, after our swim. The work stress had effectively killed my boner, at least.
I smiled tightly at Kylie, and we headed down to the pool.
When we got there, the place was empty, and Kylie giggled gleefully, making a beeline for the light switches and dimming the overheads immediately. I rolled my eyes but couldn't help smiling. It wasn't exactly romantic, with the overpowering scent of chlorine and the buzzing noise coming from the lights. But it brought to mind those nights back in college when we'd gone down to the beach with our friends and drank cheap beer and gone skinny-dipping in the cold ocean.
As though reading my mind, Kylie started stripping off her clothing, not stopping with her T-shirt and jeans but removing everything and hopping into the pool naked.
“Come on, Josh!” she cajoled. “It's not like you've never been skinny-dipping before.”
I grinned and shook my head, but I found myself stripping out of my clothes as well, leaving them in a neat pile on the end of one of the lounge chairs, rather than the untidy mess that Kylie had left her clothes in. I slipped into the water, feeling slightly awkward, despite the fact that, as Kylie had pointed out, this was far from being the first time that I'd gone skinny-dipping.
“Remember, we used to do this all the time in college,” Kylie mused, swimming closer to me. Despite how much she'd dimmed the lights, I could still clearly see her naked body in the water. “Carpe diem, right?”
Carpe diem was right. I swallowed hard, watching her. She and I were sleeping together. I could hardly believe it. I had wanted this for so long, but I didn't think I had ever really believed that this would happen. Yet here we were.
She came closer to me, close enough that I could touch her, and I had to pull her close to me, my hands insistent on her hips. Kylie smiled up at me and trailed a hand up my chest.
“I wasn't a billionaire back then,” I finally said, even though I hated myself for saying it. “I wish I could just relax and seize the day, but back then, I didn't have to worry about someone snapping a picture of me and sending it to some tabloid. Can you imagine how much they'd pay for a picture like that?”
Kylie snorted. “You're full of it,” she said, pushing away from me. “If you're really that worried, go ahead, go put your swim trunks back on. But I don't think you're going to, are you?”
She laid back and floated there, and after a moment, I joined her. We were close enough that our hands brushed in the water, but neither of us spoke. We just stared up at the ceiling, far above us.
“Carpe diem,” I finally murmured. Right there, in that perfect moment, I didn't care if someone snapped a picture of me in there. I just wanted to be there, floating beside Kylie in the water.
Of course, that was when someone else entered the pool room and flicked on the lights.
Kylie and I both jolted and turned to face the newcomer. It was an older lady, clearly another guest who'd come down to swim. Kylie glanced over at me, a panicky look on her face, and I couldn't help grinning.
“Who's worried now?” I asked lowly.
We both swam to the far wall.
“She probably can't see us here,” Kylie whispered. “She looks older.”
“We just have to act normal,” I agreed. I glanced towards the other woman.
“That's not acting normal!” Kylie hissed. “Stop staring at her.”
I quickly turned my gaze back towards Kylie, but looking down at her only made me acutely aware of how close she was and how naked. I felt my horniness from earlier come back full strength, and could only barely stifle a groan as my dick rapidly hardened between us, all my blood flowing into that appendage.
Kylie stared incredulously at me. “You got some sort of exhibitionist kink that I should know about?” she asked teasingly. “Or are you just into older women?”
“Shh,” I hissed, glancing again towards the other woman. I couldn
't help snickering, though.
Kylie giggled as well. “Want to go back to floating?” she asked.
“I'm serious, this could be really bad for my reputation,” I told her. I couldn't help grimacing. “I'm all for being spontaneous, and I'm all for carpe diem. But no one wants to tie their business up with someone who's known to be unprofessional. It could look really bad.”
Kylie sighed. “You used to be so much more fun,” she said.
I pressed my hands against my eyes. “I know,” I admitted. “What if she reports us, though? This is Utah, after all.”
The woman coughed loudly, and we both were startled into looking toward her. When had she gotten so close to us? Not that she was close. There was still half the pool between us, but it felt way too close. Close enough that she might recognize me.
She just gave us a mild look, though. “Now listen here,” she said, pointing a finger at the two of us. “You don't have anything that I didn't have 40 years ago, or that I didn't see 40 years ago. I'm not impressed. So, you two can quit cowering over there.”
Kylie and I stared slack-jawed at her for a long moment and then looked at each other. Then, we both burst out laughing, holding on to one another for balance as the water swirled around us.
“Do you think we should take this someplace more private?” I asked Kylie when we finally caught our breath again.
“That sounds like a good idea,” Kylie agreed.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Kylie
As we were driving out of Salt Lake City the following morning, I spotted a familiar sign. “Turn right!” I demanded.
“What?” Josh asked, startled. He looked at the GPS, but I reached over and grabbed the wheel.
“Turn right,” I said again. I didn't actually pull the wheel because I knew how dangerous that would be, but having my hand there made Josh realize how serious I was, and he made the turn quickly.
“What's up?” he asked.
I pointed towards the fast food sign. “As much as I've been loving the posh places that you've been treating me to, we've got to stop,” I told him.
Josh squinted toward where I was pointing and then groaned. “A Black Fortress Burger?” he asked. “I didn't even know those were still around.”
“I haven't been to one in ages,” I told him. “Come on; we have to stop. It's the true road trip experience.”
“Oh, because all the driving I've been doing hasn't been the 'true road trip experience'?” Josh scoffed, but he pulled into the parking lot anyway.
I could tell he wasn't fully convinced yet, but there was no way we were leaving the state of Utah without this. It had been ages since I'd been to a Black Fortress, but they used to be a staple in our college years.
“We need to get some really greasy sliders,” I said, rubbing my hands together in excitement.
“But we're on a schedule,” Josh reminded me. “We're supposed to get all the way to Denver today, and we got a late start already.”
“We got a late start because of you and your insatiable needs,” I said, rolling my eyes.
Not that I'd minded the start to the morning. Or the finish to the previous night, for that matter. No matter how tenuous and uncertain this thing between Josh and I was, I couldn't deny how much I was enjoying it.
Josh snorted. “My insatiable needs?” he asked. “You're the one who started it.”
That was true, but only because I'd woken up palming his cock, feeling it hot and heavy already in my hand. What was I supposed to do? Just leave him like that?
“This will be a great lunch,” I maintained. “We can go through the drive-through. It'll only add a couple minutes, and then we'll be fed and on our way to Denver.”
“But my car,” Josh said, sounding appalled that I had even suggested that. “We are not eating sloppy Black Fortress sliders in my baby. These are leather seats.”
I laughed. “Josh, you're a billionaire,” I reminded him. “I think you can afford to have someone clean up your car, or replace the seats if that's necessary.” I gave him a pleading look. “This trip was meant to be just like old times. There's been so much that's different, but can't we at least have this?”
“Black Fortress sliders and skinny-dipping,” Josh sighed, but he put his Lamborghini into drive and pulled into the drive-through.
We ordered our burgers, and then Josh pulled into a parking space. “We can eat in here, but I'm not eating in here and driving at the same time,” he told me.
I giggled. “We could have just gone inside, in that case,” I pointed out.
Josh shrugged and took a bite of his burger. He immediately made a face. “Oh man,” he said, taking a big gulp of his drink. “These are horrible.”
I frowned and took a bite of my first slider as well. Then, I burst out laughing. “How did we used to eat these all the time?” I asked, shaking my head.
Josh shook his head as well. “I have no idea,” he said disgustedly.
I looked at my burger and then grinned over at him. “Do you think it's all the weed that we used to smoke?” I asked.
Josh burst out laughing, just like I'd hoped he would. He was so serious lately, and I was glad of any opportunity that I had to make him laugh.
“Probably,” he agreed. “Way too much pot, and way too much booze, for the whole four years of college.”
“Whoever would have thought that we'd end up here?” I asked, sobering somewhat.
Wasn't it strange to think that no matter how fucked up and underachieving we'd been during college, we were now here in Josh's Lamborghini, cruising across the country, staying in the nicest hotels? And that was just because of his success. I had had my own successes with my art, more than I could have dreamed of.
And then there was our newfound friends with benefits situation.
Josh sighed. “I definitely couldn't imagine this,” he said. He held up his burger. “Do we have to finish these or can we get something actually edible in a little while?”
I fixed him with a solemn look. “For old time's sake, I think we have to finish them,” I said, mostly to see what he would do.
He took another bite and swallowed with difficulty. “Unless you're about to pull a joint out of the dashboard, I'm throwing mine out,” he said, shaking his head.
I laughed. “If I pulled a joint out of the dashboard, would you actually smoke it?” I asked.
“To make this palatable? Maybe,” Josh said. Then, he frowned. “Please tell me you don't have a joint in the dashboard, or anywhere else in this car. I don't want to hear that we're smuggling contraband across the country.”
“Afraid that the tabloids will catch wind of that story?” I teased.
Josh shrugged but didn't answer. I could tell that he had something that he wanted to say, but whatever it was, he didn't say it, and I felt like I had pressed him for his thoughts too much lately. I let it lie.
I took another bite of my slider and then chucked it back in the bag. “All right, all right. You're right. These are disgusting. Let's keep driving.”
To my surprise, Josh leaned over and kissed me gently. When he pulled away, he stroked his fingers down my cheek. “We don't have to do everything like we used to,” he told me softly. “In fact, I'm pretty happy right here in the present.”
I blushed and ducked my head. Was that what he was thinking?
“Me too,” I admitted. “I'm pretty happy here.”
“Good,” Josh said, putting the car back into drive.
We chucked our bags out the window into a trash can and then got on the highway, headed towards Denver.
We hadn't gone too far down the road when my phone started buzzing in the center console. I grabbed it and looked down at the screen as Josh turned down the music.
“Hey,” I answered.
“Hey!” Mandy said. “I just wanted to check in and see how things were going.”
Funny that she wanted to check in with me. I hadn't heard anything from her since she'd left, except f
or one short text that had just said that she had made it safely back to LA. But I guess she just didn't want to disturb whatever she thought was happening between Josh and me.
I really wanted to talk things over with her, but I couldn't do that now that she wasn't here, and I definitely couldn't do it over the phone with Josh sitting right next to me.
“Things are going well,” I finally settled on.
That could be my answer to “How's your trip going?” I figured. I glanced over at Josh as I said it, though, and I had a feeling that he knew something was up.
“I always knew you and Josh would end up together!” Mandy exclaimed. “There was always so much chemistry between the two of you.”
“We're just...” I trailed off before I could say that Josh and I were just friends, glancing again at Josh. How did I say this to Mandy without Josh realizing who I was talking to, and about what? “We're just driving to Denver.”
“Oh, you're only now on your way to Denver?” Mandy asked. “I guess Vegas was a lot of fun for you, then.”
“Vegas is a great city,” I said. “We had a lot of fun.”
I hoped that emphasizing the word “fun” would make her realize that that's all Josh and I were doing: having fun. But it didn't seem to carry the same meaning for her.
“Oh yeah, I bet that it was fun,” Mandy said, her tone suggestive. “Not that I want to think about my two best friends getting it on, but I bet you had fun all over that suite.” She sighed. “I don't want to say that I'm jealous of you because you know that I'm really excited for you guys, but you're so lucky to have met your soulmate.”
I practically choked on air. “You know, you can just have fun with a guy and see where it goes,” I said slowly. “Not every relationship has to be 'The One.'”
Mandy was silent at that, and I glanced over at Josh, wondering if that had been a little too obvious. But he was still staring out the window, humming along to the song on the radio. He gave no sign that he was really even listening to me.