As they entered the elegantly appointed hotel lobby, Lauren had never in her life been more conscious of just how grubby she looked. Her clothes were wrinkled, stained, and had gone so far beyond smelly that she couldn’t think of a word to describe the truly rank odor they gave off. She knew from having peered warily into a restroom mirror that she had dark circles under eyes that were bloodshot and bleary from lack of sleep. Her hair was a greasy, lank mess of tangled curls that had begun to itch two days ago, and she was beginning to fear it would never feel clean again.

But Ben didn’t seem to care a whit about her bedraggled appearance as he kept her tucked firmly against him. He had already checked the four of them in – everyone into a private room, which was another perk that they seldom enjoyed. Lauren, in fact, would be the only one sharing a room, though under the circumstances she was thrilled rather than annoyed with the arrangements.

Ben’s room was on a different floor than the others, and as he ushered Lauren out of the elevator, she caught Chris’s knowing smirk, George’s still-perplexed look, and Karl’s gentle smile.

“See you guys at dinner,” she called out. They had all agreed to shower and then nap for several hours before meeting up for dinner later this evening at one of the hotel’s restaurants.

“Unless,” Ben told them with a wink, “we decide to make it dinner for two and order room service instead. We, ah, have a lot of catching up to do.”

The elevator door closed on three startled male faces while Ben and Lauren shared a laugh as they walked down the hall to his room.

Once he’d locked the door behind them, she held up a hand as he would have reached for her again.

“Wait.” The question had been foremost in her thoughts ever since she’d seen him waiting for her in the airport terminal. And she needed an answer before things progressed any further.

“What’s going on with – with Elle?” she asked hesitantly. “Because if she’s still in the picture, then I don’t - ”

Ben yanked her against his chest, shaking his head firmly. “She’s not. It’s over with her, should have never really begun. I’m not sure what - ”

Lauren placed a finger over his lips. “Shh. That’s all I need to know for now. You can fill me in on all the other details later. Much later. Because right now you need to help me decide what I need most – a shower or you.”

Ben grinned, and then elicited a squeal of surprise from her as he swung her up into his arms. “Well, that’s an easy choice. You can have both at the same time.”

He carried her into the bathroom before setting her on her feet. Clothes and shoes were swiftly discarded until they were both naked. Lauren turned on the shower taps while Ben grabbed several oversized bath towels from the racks.

And then the next decision she had to make was what sensation made her feel more like weeping with pleasure – that of the hot, steamy water on her bare skin, or the way her lover’s arms felt as they wrapped around her waist.

“Let me,” he whispered, his chest pressed up against her back as his soap-slicked hands cupped her full, aching breasts. “Let me take care of you, sweetheart.”

She emitted a long, low groan as he washed her thoroughly, his hands traveling a sensual path from her shoulders to her belly and buttocks, before slipping between her legs.

“Yes,” she breathed roughly. “Oh, God, yes. Please. I need - ”

“I know what you need, baby,” rasped Ben. “And I’m going to give it to you. Again and again and again. Let’s see if we can maybe take the edge off a little for you, hmm?”

The slick, soapy slide of his fingers as they penetrated her body was the most exquisite sensation she could remember feeling in a very long time. She braced her palms against the cool granite wall of the shower, her legs spreading further apart to allow him deeper access to her body. Her breasts were crushed up against the wall, the hard points of her nipples being abraded by the granite, as her hips moved in perfect synchronization with the steady pump of his fingers and the rub of his thumb over her clit.

It had been years – six long, lonely years – since she’d experienced this sort of release, since her entire body had quivered in orgasm, and she’d cried out his name. The water was still sluicing over their bodies as he took her into his arms, holding her close, stroking her back soothingly as she continued to shudder in reaction.

He washed her hair as he continued to tend to her, take care of her, lavish her with attention. And for once she not only allowed herself to be pampered but reveled in the experience.

And then it was her turn to tend to him, her palm slipping down the broad expanse of his chest to where his cock was now standing at full, glorious attention, thrusting out as though begging to be touched. Ben’s breath escaped in a low, almost painful moan, his fingers gripping her shoulders fiercely as she began to stroke him slowly, deliberately.

“That feels – fuck. You’re the only one who’s ever made me feel this way, Lauren,” he panted. “The only one who’s ever been able to make me feel so damned much.”

She continued to stroke him with long, slow pulls, her hand sliding back to squeeze his swollen balls. “Do we need a -”

“No.” He bit down gently on her earlobe as her thumb whisked over the slit at the tip of his penis. “So long as you’re still protected we don’t. You’re the only woman I’ve ever been inside bare.”

She retaliated by sinking her teeth into his shoulder, smiling when she heard his grunt of pain. “Good,” was all she murmured as she guided the thick, throbbing length of him inside of her.

For the second time that day her legs were wrapped around his waist, his brawny, muscular arms supporting her, lifting her higher to meet his deep thrusts. They were frantic, wild, in their coupling, grabbing and clawing at each other like animals in heat. Their bodies were slippery from the steam and soap, their mouths fused together wetly as the hot water continued to pour over them.

Ben’s whole body shook when he came, immediately after she did, and Lauren clung to him tightly, half-afraid that his legs would give out from under him and topple them both to the floor. Their bodies were still joined, limbs tightly entwined, and his semi-hard cock still buried deep inside of her, when they did eventually sink slowly to the floor of the shower. They were both breathing unevenly, exhausted from the effort of their out of control lovemaking, and they could only sit there stupefied for several minutes.

Ben finally turned the taps off and helped her to stand before reaching for a towel. Despite her protests, he insisted on drying her off, wrapping one towel around her body and a second around her wet hair. By the time he’d dried himself off, Lauren was nearly comatose with exhaustion, and offered up only a token protest when he carried her out to the sumptuous king sized bed. He laid her down gently, and began to pull the covers up over her nude body.

“Wait.” She placed a hand on his chest, smiling a little to feel how rapidly his heart was still beating. “Aren’t we going to talk?”

Ben smiled as he pulled the towel off her head, finger combing the long, damp strands of her hair. “Oh, we are definitely going to talk, sweetheart,” he assured her. “For a very long time. But not right now. You’re about ready to pass out from exhaustion. Sleep now, baby. And know that I’ll be here when you wake up. I’ll always be here from now on.”

***

His face was the first thing she saw when she woke a few hours later. He was smiling down at her tenderly, his hand softly stroking her cheek, and it was only when she turned and pressed a kiss to his palm and felt the warm flesh beneath her lips that she knew he was really here, and not just another of the many dreams she’d had about him over the years.