Title: Rain Fall Down
Author: hbomba
Rating: M
Summary: Sequel to "Once More With Feeling". Bo and Lauren go away to Niagara Falls to make up for lost time but fall into old traps.
A/N: Thanks be to my main squeeze and amazing editor lonejaguar.
Kiss me with rain on your eyelashes,
come on, let us sway together,
under the trees, and to hell with thunder. | Edwin Morgan
The sun did not shine. It was too wet to play. So we sat in the house. All that cold, cold, wet day. | Dr. Seuss
"Told you it was possible…" Bo sat cross-legged on the bed, wrapped in a sheet. She leaned over to the nightstand and refilled a pair of champagne flutes.
"I didn't say it couldn't be done, I said it shouldn't." Lauren stood next to the bed jumping into her jeans as a heavy knock sounded at the door again.
She grabbed the first inside-out shirt she found and put it on en route to the hotel room door. "Your order ma'am." The waiter was impeccably dressed. He pushed the cart into the room and handed Lauren a bill. "Sign here, please."
When Lauren looked up she saw the waiter staring at her chest. She cleared her throat. "That'll be all, thanks." Ushering him out of the room, Lauren closed the door quickly, leaning back against it. She looked down at the top she had picked from the floor: Bo's. "What the hell am I wearing?"
"High fashion…" She sassed. "…on a budget. You don't like it? The waiter sure seemed to."
She took a champagne flute from Bo's extended hand and tapped the matching glass in her other hand with it. Smiling, she sipped the Veuve Clicquot and looked down at the waterfall, a frothy, roaring natural wonder. Bo slinked towards her, still in a sheet, and wrapped Lauren up from behind. Lauren tipped her head back and hummed. "Food's getting cold."
Bo kissed her neck. "You ordered a salad. If anything is happening, it's getting warm."
She chuckled and turned in her arms. "I wanted to go down to the falls."
"Weather's turning," Bo said with a nod at the window.
"We should've left earlier." Lauren sighed.
"Relax, we've got a couple of days to see the sights."
They left late that morning because they were making love, something that Bo noticed was happening a lot lately. Things had picked up where they left off when Lauren invited her back into her life a few weeks ago. There was passion and then there was what Bo felt when she was with Lauren-passion jacked up on amphetamines and liquor-a love cocktail that stole her breath and made her dizzy. They seemed to be clicking on every level and together they were rediscovering and redefining what happiness was for them both. That suited Bo just fine but she wondered about their agreement and if Lauren would tell her before casting her away again when she didn't live up to it.
"You aren't at all upset about not seeing the falls today." Lauren smiled and ran her fingers along Bo's neckline seam. "I can't believe you've never been to Niagara Falls." She kissed her neck.
"Well, there was that one time…"
Lauren froze. "Oh?"
"Yeah, it's nothing." Bo shook her head.
"Was marriage involved?" Lauren joked.
Bo paused. There was no right answer to this question so she tripped and fell into the deep end. She cleared her throat. "Yeah, uh, actually it was."
"How did I not know about this?" It was an honest question, not condemning or accusing, Lauren was honestly shocked that it had never come up.
"You were busy with Nadia." She flinched when she said her name but still tried to make light of the situation. "It was just my blood thrall, amnesia water, an obsessed Dark Fae and Niagara Falls that all culminated into one giant Las Vegas-style-hold the Elvis-wedding."
"You're married," Lauren said seriously.
"God, no. Dodged that runaway train."
Lauren exhaled a sigh of relief. "Life is never boring with you."
"Or you." She said it as a joke but she meant it. Lauren was not an innocent, hurting Bo more than once by pretending her feelings didn't exist anymore. She'd run away not once but twice and for her grand finale, Lauren had sex with Evony to turn her human. Bo thought perhaps it was a crazy train because everything was turned upside down when she disembarked.
But they had found each other again and while Bo still held onto the doubt these things caused her, she was long over them. Well, she thought, maybe not the sex. That was something Bo still needed time with.
Lauren's hand was on her chin, turning Bo to face her. "Earth to Bo…"
Bo blinked. "Sorry."
"What was that about?"
She shook her head. "Nothing." It wasn't worth arguing about so there was no use mentioning it. Bo had made her peace about things and she was sure Lauren had forgotten about these things long ago. The past was done, Bo had to move forward. At least that's what the self-help books kept telling her. "I am feeling underdressed," Bo said with a wicked drawl. "May I?" She tugged the hem of Lauren's borrowed top.
Lauren put her arms up. "It is yours," she conceded.
The lopsided grin on the doctor's face was candy to a babe and Bo's arousal bloomed as her hands ran up Lauren's sides and the top came over her head. She looked at the sequined top in her hand and then to Lauren, very seriously: "I don't think we should share clothes."
"You…" Lauren smirked and Bo chortled. It was a perfect exchange: light and breezy, and full of good humor. Bo had high hopes for the rest of their trip.
"Come on, it's weird. Don't you think it's weird?"
Lauren looked at the sequins shimmering in Bo's hand. "I may not be as…" She cleared her throat and stole a look down Bo's sheet before covering her own breasts with her hands. "…well-endowed as you are but there's no need to be…"
"Be what?" Bo prodded, good naturedly. "Come on, tell me…" She squeezed Lauren's sides and made her jump.
"Hasty." Swatting at Bo's hands, Lauren backed away, smiling. "I'm just saying I have some comfortable yoga pants that you'd look…" She inhaled. "…nice in."
"That would imply that I do yoga, which I do not. Since when do you, you know, yoga?"
"I went looking for a little peace and quiet and I found some."
Bo was sobered by her words. It never occurred to her that Lauren might not always like life at the highest decibel. She had always just been so caught up in the chaos-even with Dyson-that she had never considered that not everyone liked her kink. "You know you don't have to keep those covered, I've seen them before." Bo grinned.
"I'm cold," Lauren groused.
Bo dropped her sheet and Lauren's eyes widened as she gathered it up in her arms. "Here. I was just about to run a bath anyways." Lauren held the sheet against her chest and she could still feel Bo's warmth on it. And her heat signature drove Lauren wild. Bo could feel her watching as she sat on the edge of the large whirlpool tub and started the water running. When Bo looked over her shoulder in Lauren's direction a few minutes later she did not expect Lauren to be wrapped in that same sheet, walking in her direction. If ever Bo thought she had the upper hand with Lauren, all she had to do was wait and soon she'd be kissing her feet or at the very least, behind her knees. Bo grinned and stepped down into the tub, turning to receive Lauren who stood, poised on the precipice, waiting for Bo's hungry gaze to unburden her as she let the sheet fall to the floor. Bo tilted her head, appreciating Lauren's toned body, and her hunger burned in the pit of her belly. Offering Lauren a steadying hand, Bo helped her into the tub. Bo flipped a switch and the water began to roil. As they sunk into the bath, leaning back, Bo settled across from Lauren.
Lauren hummed. "You've outdone yourself," she said with a sigh, sinking deeper into the water.
"Nuh-uh, this is your show," Bo said, running her hands through the water between them.
Lauren reached out and stilled Bo's hand with her own. "I'm just so glad you could make the trip with me."
"Where else would I be?" Bo squeezed her hand.
Lauren smiled and shook her head. "Somewhere else." Lauren's voice betrayed her smile as she released Bo's hand.
"No," she said with a shake of the head. "You're going to have to beat me off with a stick because I'm not leaving you." Exhaling, Lauren watched Bo's hands treading water in the shallow tub move towards hers. Bo smiled and looked into her eyes. "I'm not going anywhere, Lauren."
"It's just this newly invested in love succubus is a lot to get used to."
Bo scooted closer. "In a good way, I hope."
She opened her mouth to say something, but closed it without uttering a word. Lauren swallowed, she blinked and then she finally spoke: "In the best way." She softened and shook off the skepticism that seemed to creep in every few minutes. Bo knew this would happen and she also knew that she was strong enough to hold her own against Lauren's doubts. She would take things as they came to her, and answer those misgivings with kindness and understanding because, after all, Bo had created the situation and she shaped this wild animal with her bad decisions. Unhinged, running amok, and trampling everything with the nerve to stand still in its path, the past was a force to be reckoned with. The silence crackled in Bo's ears. Lauren drew her legs into her chest and dropped her chin to her rest on her knees. "I never thought we'd get here," Lauren said, finally.
Bo smiled because she counted the way their relationship ended among her greatest regrets but somehow she knew-she always knew-that they would be together in time. She foolishly didn't realize that it was in her power to make that change until much time had passed but they were there now. Bo pressed a kiss against Lauren's shoulder, her neck, her cheek and then finally, quietly, she covered Lauren's mouth with her own. Simple and gentle, her kiss was a reminder of all their kisses in the past and a predictor of every kiss in their future. They were timeless, their love as ancient as antiquities hidden in the corner of a museum. In plain view for all the world to see and yet still holding secrets yet to be uncovered.
Bo's breasts pressed against Lauren's side as their kiss grew more insistent. Her finger caressed Lauren's cheek lazily. There was no haste, just languid strokes of a brush that Bo couldn't put down. Slowly, Lauren unfurled, letting her legs sink into the depths of the tub and turning into Bo. Her lips were swollen, her hair mussed as Bo pulled away, but most importantly, Lauren looked disappointed. "Is something wrong? Lauren asked.
"No," Bo shook her head. "Everything is great."
Lauren looked puzzled and Bo hadn't meant to confuse her with her advance, it just sort of happened, but Bo was fast becoming aware of the fact that she had pushed the issue of sex too many times and had broken a promise to herself and Lauren. This wasn't going to be about sex. But it was. It always was. To Bo, Lauren was like a long drink of water after a desert walkabout. She was the last piece of chocolate, a midnight show of her favorite movie, skinny dipping at a secret swimming hole. She was sex on a stick to Bo and while she loved her more than Kenzi loved vodka, Bo couldn't continue to exhaust her. If she wanted this to work, Bo was going to have to up her game.
"You're sure?" Lauren sounded skeptical.
"Yeah." She nodded. " Yeah," she said again as if trying to convince herself. "We can't stay cooped up in this room all week." Bo stood unceremoniously and stepped out of the tub. Lauren watched her, water dripping onto the carpet as Bo toweled off. Her eyes were hungry and Bo began to wonder why she was pushing the issue. Lauren hadn't said anything and they'd been going at it non-stop since their reconciliation. No. She would stay the course. She didn't want to wear out her welcome with Lauren so soon after reconnecting. "C'mon," Bo said over her shoulder. "Let's get some dinner…"
The elevator door dinged and Bo and Lauren stepped out of the car into the dimly lit, revolving restaurant. The tables hugged the outer wall so that every seat was the best in the house. In the center of the room was a sunken conversation area with several club chairs arranged around a fireplace. The lush carpet, an upgrade compared to the rest of the restaurant.
Bo's eyes roamed Lauren's body. She was wearing a dress, backless and low-cut, and Bo's eyes claimed every expanse of exposed skin as her own. When Lauren caught her staring, Bo simply smiled, not trying to hide her desire. Bo was wearing her "can't miss" top and had already been rewarded with Lauren's attention.
The maitre d' greeted them warmly and showed them to a sunken table near the fireplace to wait for their table with a view. The weather had reached a fever pitch that night, wind punishing the hotel with the rain. The restaurant was chilled by all of the windows and the warmth of the fireplace was welcome as Lauren pulled her wrap tighter around her.
Lightning flashed and a chorus of gasps surrounded them. Bo smirked, eyes traveling the length of Lauren's legs, a delightful treat in the half-light.
"I have to ask: why come out in public tonight when you so obviously want to be…" she paused, taking a breath that sounded so delectable that she could barely control herself. "…in private?"
Bo's eyes sparkled blue. "You know how I like a good challenge, especially when it involves panties and self control."
"Then I suppose you may be disappointed tonight."
Bo chuckled. "Oh," she breathed. "You're serious."
The maitre d' approached from behind her. "Ladies, your table is ready." He ushered them to a table by the windows. When the wine had been poured and the waiter departed, Bo fixed her eyes on Lauren again. She swirled the red wine in her glass and sipped it demurely. When her eyes met Bo's again, they sparkled with intent and Bo didn't know if she had the fortitude not to follow her to the bathroom and fuck her in a stall. She took a deep breath and recalculated. She would make it halfway through her meal-something she couldn't pronounce but it tasted amazing-before she felt Lauren's hand on her knee. The grin on her face wasn't even fair-if they were judging fairness, that is-and Bo felt more at her mercy than ever before.
In a night full of comfortable silences, Bo began to feel some discomfort as they dragged on into dessert. Her mouth was full of chocolate mousse, but in her belly, pure lust burned brightly. This was definitely putting a damper on her quest for less sex in their relationship. What the hell am I even doing?
Sipping brandy, Lauren looked Bo over. Bo was familiar with this maneuver of Lauren's, it usually came at the end of a long night drinking at the Dal. She telegraphed her need with long looks and her hand on Bo's as she paid the bill. In the elevator she moved impossibly close and began to kiss Bo's neck. Her hands instinctually went for Lauren's waist. As Lauren tipped her chin up towards Bo's, she resisted the urge to kiss her hard and fast despite being overwhelmed with desire. She closed her eyes and sighed when Lauren's mouth met hers, her back meeting the wood paneling of the elevator car. Lauren's hands were on her face, their kiss escalating and Bo was no longer just along for the ride, her mouth moved along the neckline of Lauren's dress and it took little imagination to know what Bo wanted most.
The elevator dinged and the doors opened onto their floor. She kissed Lauren's neck from behind as she used her keycard to open their room's door. Stumbling inside, Bo unzipped Lauren's dress, letting it drop to the floor by the door, and she left a trail of her own clothing to the bed. Lauren was wanton in Bo's arms, hungry and unabashed. It wasn't as if they had just made love hours earlier when they had arrived or even that morning before they left for the falls. How could she hold back when Lauren was so obviously into her action? The answer was simple, she couldn't. She couldn't have held back if she tried and with Lauren in her arms, she was doomed before she began.
It went fast and for that Bo made no apologies. Her panties were discarded, her bra unfastened when she set her sights on Lauren, lavishing kisses upon her skin as she bent their bodies to her will. There was nothing reckless about the way Bo moved her hips or her hands; she knew the impact her every move would have on Lauren and watching the dominoes fall as Lauren's arousal ratcheted up was almost as good as feeling Lauren's hands on her, almost as good as Lauren's moans in her ear, almost as good as her heaving breasts as her body cools. There wasn't much not to like when it came to sex with Lauren.
Lauren held a hand up to Bo, who slowed her pace but before she could ask what was wrong, Lauren had pushed her onto her back. Her blonde hair cascaded around Bo's face as Lauren leaned over and kissed her. She could always count on Lauren to slow things down-to make her remember what a gift it is to be together-and tonight was no different. There, high above Niagara Falls, amongst the worst weather they'd seen all week, they made love. Bo was never one to call it that, either. Sex was sex was sex was sex, except not with Lauren. With Lauren, it was elevated to another level. Something beyond and out of reach, every cliché ever written was turned on its head, and what was left was an unmatched undercurrent of emotion.
Her hand cupped Bo's cheek as her mouth kissed her neck. How something so simple could make her feel things was a mystery to Bo, but feeling things that had always been just out of reach was the doctor's gift. She was above her now, a steadying hand on Bo's navel as she applied delicious pressure to her core. They kissed-and this was how Lauren truly captured Bo-soft, sweet kisses that left Bo hungry for more.
Lauren's hand pushed into her and Bo pushed her head back into the pillow. "Oh," she whispered, so as not to scare the feeling away. Her tempo was delicious, and Bo was enraptured, pulling at the sheets as Lauren brought her to the pinnacle of their encounter quickly. Thrusting now, her fingers were a blur. She hovered above Bo, kissing her again before settling onto her thigh. Her hips moved slow and calculating at first while her hands wild movements began to set Bo off, but before long she was moving in time with her hand and the undertow began to pull her into its cycle. Bo cried out and Lauren tightened her grip on Bo's hip as her own hips moved faster.
Lauren called out for Bo, wavering above her as she caught her breath. Bo's hands gripped her hips as she sat up and kissed her again. To kiss Lauren was to set herself free. She wasn't the Fae Queen or the One to unite the clans, she wasn't daughter of Hades, she wasn't even a succubus, she was Bo and Bo loved Lauren. That was all there was to it.
The following day room service arrived right on schedule. They ate breakfast together before Bo slinked off to bed again. It was amazing how exhausting Bo found doing nothing to be.
"I took the liberty of signing us up for a wine tour today." Lauren sipped her coffee at the table by the window. "The weather's miserable, but I can't stay in this room any longer."
Bo raised her eyebrows. Her preferred method of passing time had gotten her in trouble again and it was back to the drawing board. Maybe getting out would be just the thing to accomplish her mission. "Sure." Bo tried to sound excited about this turn of events but failed so she tried again. "I mean, that sounds like fun." She smiled from her station on the bed.
"I hired a car," Lauren explained. "We should set out around ten-thirty."
"Sure," Bo said with a smile, not really knowing what she had gotten herself into. "Sounds good." She pulled the sheet up around her neck and sighed happily. She didn't really care where she was going, but it helped that there would be copious amounts of vino and Lauren to keep her company. She wasn't thrilled to be heading out into the rain storm that just wouldn't let up, but that's what you do when you're in love.
Far from the roar of the falls, the first winery was open to them. Drinking before noon seemed delightfully uncharacteristic of Lauren, Bo thought, but right up her alley. They were all wines from the same region so Bo thought it was normal that they'd all taste the same. That was until Lauren started describing it's nose as wet dog and gasoline. Now, Bo had drank a lot of wine in her day but she had never come across the wet dog varietal and she wondered why or how Lauren could continue to drink the wine after declaring it tasted like dirt.
At the tail end of a three course lunch, Bo couldn't take her eyes away from Lauren's fingers and the way they played at the stem of her wine glass. So delicate, her fingers moved, and she groaned, as she imagined those fingers elsewhere. Bo swallowed a mouthful of wine.
"Take it easy," Lauren joked. "We still have two more stops on our tour," she said as her fingers worked the stem of her glass again.
Bo smiled, tightlipped and tipsy. She was meant to be tasting the wine but she had been drinking it and soon Lauren would know the worst of it when Bo tried to stand.
The next two stops on their itinerary were filled with more wine and cheese services. Lauren had given up on trying not to get drunk, instead choosing to enjoy her holiday and the warm feeling in her belly. And for her part, Bo stayed the course, becoming more and more intoxicated as the day went on. Her tolerance was high enough being Fae, but even Fae have their limits. Especially when Bo was ordering glasses of their favorites after they had finished the tasting flight.
It was somewhere around the third round of tasting glasses at the second to the last winery when Bo had her epiphany. She was drunk enough to taste the cherries and to smell the gasoline as Lauren gleefully described another wine. She had kept a detailed wine journal on all the wines they tried and bought and the car was full of cases of wine to populate Lauren's new wine refrigerator. It was all very silly to Bo, but she remained supportive because there were obviously nuances in wine that Bo didn't get and Lauren did. Besides, watching Lauren geek out over food and wine was fast becoming something Bo needed more of.
She took another fig from her plate and lifted it to her mouth. Biting into the fig, the local honey it was drizzled with set Bo's senses on fire. The nuance of the honey, the richness of the fig and the tannins from the wine all married in her mouth. Bo closed her eyes.
"I'm not sure if I should finish," Lauren whispered with a drunken gesture at the last remaining glasses of wine sitting on the table in front of them.
"It's too early to quit. Or too late. Either way, there's no quitting now, doctor."
They were at the last of the wineries on their tour and it was mid-afternoon. Bo looked out the window, hoping to see rainbows, post-soaking, and instead saw more of the same. Heavy rain battered the Chateau as Lauren paid the bill and escorted the porter to their car. Parked under the awning, Bo helped Lauren into the back of the town car. Her back thumped hard against the seat and she began to laugh.
"What'd I miss?" Bo asked, genuinely interested in what could have made Lauren laugh so openly, even if it was only in front of Bo.
"I'm really drunk," she whispered, conspiratorial hand guarding against lip readers. Lauren pursed her lips and began to laugh again.
"Yes, you are," Bo climbed in beside Lauren as the driver shut the door behind her.
"You are, too." Lauren poked Bo in the chest.
Bo looked down at Lauren's finger, squarely on her breast, and began to laugh. Lauren finally noticed where her hand landed and pulled it away, but not before joining Bo in her guffaw. It wasn't often that they laughed together, life was always fraught with danger and it just never seemed appropriate. So today, drunk and loose from a full day of drinking, Lauren was in her lap, laughing against her shoulder. Bo's hands squeezed her sides causing her to erupt again. As the car pulled away, their laughter became infectious and bouncing between the two of them, it grew into something uncontainable. They continued like that until Lauren hushed her, afraid they were disturbing their driver.
Bo pulled away from Lauren. "Driver," she called, patting the roof of the car. "Can you put the partition up, please?"
"Yes ma'am." The divider raised and Bo returned to Lauren's arms.
The nearness, too, was something that Bo and Lauren didn't get a lot of. There was a distance, even in private, as they were still getting used to being a unit. She never thought it would take so much to get reacquainted with someone she loved as much as Lauren, but since the break Bo had been reticent to trust Lauren's intentions completely. But the past was in the past and she was ready to enjoy Lauren and all that she had to offer.
If she were to question herself about project: no sex, Bo would lie and say she was too drunk to know better. She would lie because she couldn't possibly miss out on this. Just this once, she bargained with herself. Bo's mouth was on her neck and Lauren was giggling still as Bo's hand founds its way to the button of Lauren's jeans. Almost immediately the giggles stopped and a hand clamped over hers. "What're you doing?" She whispered.
"I was trying to get in your pants," Bo's voice was silk, smooth and husky in her ear.
"Here?"
"We have time." Bo tried to persuade her with another round of kisses against her neck.
Lauren pulled Bo to face her. Bo watched the indecision play on her features before she kissed her with conviction. Her kiss stole Bo's breath away and she was waylaid from her original mission but only momentarily. Her fingers fumbled with the button on Lauren's jeans again but this time she didn't stop her, instead lifting her hips off the seat so Bo could strip away her jeans.
Bo had to hold back then, to suppress the yelp of victory she felt blooming in her chest, if only to express her rapture accordingly. She climbed onto the floor in front of Lauren and parted her legs. The soft smile that greeted her then, made Bo tremble. Tannins still stained her lips as she covered Lauren with her mouth. The wine tasting had begun to train Bo's palate, giving her a new appreciation of Lauren. Bold notes of honey and spice. Lauren squeezed her shoulder, urging her on, and Bo smiled against her. This was oblivion. It was as good as it gets and Bo was smack dab in the middle of it. And it was this measure of pleasure-of giving without receiving-that was new to her. That's not to say Bo was selfish. Okay, Bo was selfish about a lot of things but about sex Bo preferred to call it greedy. There was always a way to get what she wanted. But today, for the first time, she felt completely okay with being a giver. That for once, it should be about Lauren and Bo would grovel at her feet to be able to give it to her.
Her foot was on Bo's shoulder and she didn't think she'd ever been as turned on as she was then. Lauren bit her lip to avoid making a sound and Bo redoubled her efforts. Her hips lifted off the seat and Bo held her waist as she stroked her center. Her hands were in Bo's hair, fingers toying with her ears as Bo's glacial pace left Lauren teetering on the edge. Bo had lost all sense of time, so absorbed by Lauren had she become that fantasy and reality bridged. They moved together in perfect unison, Lauren's hips rising and falling to maintain contact with Bo. And when she began to unfurl, Bo stayed with her as she murmured her name in the humid back seat of the town car. It was intimacy amplified, the tight quarters of the back seat, the pattering of rain on the roof and the whooshing of water as they drove. Bo had officially lost herself to the act.
When Lauren tensed, Bo held her tightly, not letting up. Whimpering as her body shook, Lauren whispered her name again, eyes squeezed shut in deep concentration. And Bo watched it all, a tantalizing display for her and her alone. Bo sat back on her heels and watched the rise and fall of Lauren's breast as she began to come back to herself. "Bo," she sighed, eyes opening to meet Bo's gaze.
Crawling onto the seat beside Lauren, Bo curled into her side. Her head swam with Lauren's release and the wine still buzzed through her body. She was warmed through and every piece of her felt overwhelmed by Lauren.
The rain picked up again, pounding against the car as they sped towards their hotel. She could hear the static of blood rushing in her ears as her own arousal came to the forefront. That she could want someone as much as she wanted Lauren in that moment was remarkable. A succubus did not want for much, but Lauren, she was the lonely exception. Her body pulsed with the sexual energy Lauren had released and it fed her, even just a little.
Lauren shimmied into her jeans and sat back against the well-worn leather seat. Bo laid on her hip, wrapping her arm around Lauren and exhaling. There was peace then, in the air between them and Bo felt the heartburn of her love beating against her chest. She wasn't ready to let it pass so quickly and enjoyed her closeness. It was an unbreakable moment, an epiphany and a revelation.
When the car slowed, they parted, the magic dispelled. Bo climbed out first and offered a hand to Lauren as she left the car. Lauren tipped their driver handsomely, her good mood spreading as she went. She would take two steps inside their room before she was under siege by Lauren. Sometimes being the giver had its perks.
They would make love well past the dinner hour, ordering in at the day's exchange. And there was wine, so much wine. Bo's education in wine blossomed under Lauren's educated watch.
Bo sat cross-legged on the bed, a sheet pulled over her breasts as she picked at her dinner. She was sloppy drunk and only ate dinner on the off-chance that it might absorb some of the alcohol in her stomach.
"I'm going to miss room service," Bo said wistfully.
"Me too."
Bo smirked, popping a chunk of bread in her mouth. "Come on…" she teased. "Surely being the chief doctor for the Dark would have more than just Evony as a perk." And like a spoiled child, Bo went and ruined her own party. She didn't know why she did it other than the fact that they were just pretending at full disclosure without discussing them.
Lauren stared at her plate. "What do you mean by that?"
"The clinic, the contract." Bo looked at her. "I know what happened, Lauren. When you were with Evony."
"I was never with Evony," she said disdainfully.
"What would you call what you did, then?"
Lauren frowned. "Where is this coming from?"
"Is that what happened with Taft? Did you sleep with him, too?" It was out of her mouth before she knew it. It was something she had always wondered but had never been brave enough to ask about.
Lauren's eyes went steely and her face hardened. Bo was beginning to see there was a good reason she never broached the subject. "That's not fair…" Lauren said.
"We're always talking about me and who I've slept with, what about you, Lauren?" Oh, hell. She pushed it too far. Lauren stood and gathered her clothes from the floor, dressing hastily as she did. "Where are you going?"
"Out."
"That's real mature," Bo goaded. When Lauren reached for the doorknob, Bo sprung out of bed and stood between Lauren and the door. "No. No way. You are not running away from this."
Bo understood that it was in Lauren's DNA to run and getting between a person and their nature was setting oneself up for a rude awakening.
"Are you kidding me, Bo?" Lauren was fuming. "Did I sleep with Taft?"
"Well, why else would you leave me without a word?"
"Why else?" Lauren was horrified. "Because I'm a competent scientist, Bo, did that ever cross your mind? That maybe he saw me and my work as the genius it is?" She threw her hands up. "And I needed space. I had just been attacked, Bo."
Bo got to her knees on the bed, still holding the sheet against her. "I was there for you and you ran away. Why can't we talk about that?"
She folded her arms. "You just always go to that place, Bo."
Bo shook her head. "No way. Don't make this about me."
"Sex is part of everything you do." This was a critical hit. Bo had spent so much time trying to boondoggle Lauren with her Evony tantrum that she expected but she never expected to be fighting over Taft. Taft was a throw in, to take off the obvious anger she felt about Lauren and Evony. Lauren shook her head. She sighed. "Look, I know I've been… quiet about a lot of things. But this is the truth." Bo nodded. "I didn't sleep with Taft. And I only did what I did with Evony to protect us both."
"Lauren… You can't expect me to believe that…"
"Trust me."
"I do, it's just-you couldn't have found a better way of doing it?"
"She was expecting me to do something, Bo."
"You sure showed her," she said petulantly.
"I'll just be over here when you feel like being reasonable."
"Reasonable? I think I'm being beyond reasonable. My girlfriend went down on my mortal enemy to steal her Fae. Did you go first? Did she? How'd you manage that?"
"She didn't need much convincing, if you must know."
Bo folded her arms. "Yep, pretty reasonable."
"I was not your girlfriend then, I'd just like to point out."
"Lauren, on what planet do you think any of this would be okay because we weren't girlfriends?"
"I don't know, Bo. I really was only trying to protect you."
"Do me a favor, never ever protect me like thatagain."
"Bo…" Lauren sighed, pressing her fingers against her temples.
"What?"
"This is silly. We're fighting over something that happened a year or more ago."
"Maybe that's because I was never given the chance to fight over it. You just carry on like this is in the past when it's not, Lauren."
"I've made my peace with it but I honestly didn't know you felt this way."
"How else am I supposed to feel?"
Lauren shook her head. "You're not supposed to feel any way."
"Good. Then you won't mind my moral outrage at the situation we find ourselves in."
"Moral outrage?" Lauren laughed.
"Go on. Say it. I know what you're going to say."
She sighed. "I think we should consider spending some time apart."
"That…" Bo paused. "Is not what I thought you were going to say…"
"It's just that we're so different and we need different things…"
"No, I get it. It's okay. You're a doctor and I'm just some wannabe girlie gumshoe that's always getting into trouble."
"Bo…" Lauren stumbled forward. "I didn't mean to upset you, I just really need some alone time with my medical journals. To decompress."
"Wait, what? Say that again."
"My medical journals; I need to read them."
"So you're not breaking up with me?"
"No? I'm confused."
"You're confused?" Bo exhaled and fell back onto the unmade bed. "Why is this so hard?"
Lauren sat on the edge of the bed and smiled, shaking her head. "It's just going to take some getting used to."
"We are not normal people, Lauren, how is this ever going to be normal?"
"I think normal came off the table after I saw you naked ten minutes after we met."
"Sounds pretty normal for me."
"Actually, me too." Lauren smirked.
Her dry wit never let Bo down. Bo nudged her. "You called yourself a genius."
Lauren eyed her with a lopsided grin. "Yeah, so? You called yourself a gumshoe."
"I did but…" Bo shook her head. "I'm just proud of you."
Lauren smirked. "I'm proud of us. Look, our relationship is far from conventional so let's skip the labels and jealousy. I think we have plenty of other things to celebrate."
"You know what?" Bo scanned the room, spotting a crossword puzzle-half-completed-on the side table. "Don't worry about it. I can read the paper, go ahead and read your journals."
"You're sure?"
"Yeah, it'll be fine," Bo said convincingly.
Lauren nodded, retrieving the journals from her bag and settling in the arm chair by the window. Bo crawled onto the bed and laid across it on her stomach. Twirling a pen in her hand Bo read the clues. Lauren had done the bulk of the puzzle as she drove to the Falls and the clues that were left were tricky to say the least. Bo chewed her lips and looked up at Lauren, the light from the window illuminating her face and casting shadows across her body. Bo caught herself sighing at the sight of her. Even after all this time, Bo could not tire of her face or her body.
She looked up, the weight of Bo's gaze too heavy to hide. "Is there a problem?" Lauren asked over top of the medical journal.
"No." She shook her head. "No problem." She lied because it was easier and safer than admitting Bo wanted her. That she has wanted her since the last time she crawled out of bed. This farce was wearing thin and even Bo was beginning to doubt her own commitment to the idea that she could survive on foreplay and foreplay alone for days at a time because she was already failing miserably or was that miserable and failing?
Bo flipped the page, giving up on the crossword and began to read the comics that were able to make her smile long enough to forget the stars in her eyes as she looked up at Lauren again. She was deeply ensconced in the large armchair and her journals and Bo was staring again. She folded the newspaper noisily.
"You know what? I'm just gonna go downstairs to the gift shop and get something else to read." She stood hastily. "Can I get you anything?"
Lauren shook her head, the confusion apparent on her face again. "No, thank you."
Bo rocked back on her heels. "Okay, be back in a bit." Bo backed away slowly, turning toward the door. Only when she was in the hallway with the door snugly closed behind her, did Bo let herself exhale. Maybe it would be good to get some distance from Lauren. Maybe she might get some relief from her need, from the craving that has been directing her every move since they got back together.
Who was she kidding? Bo had two years to think about Lauren and nothing about that situation got better. The feelings only grew more and more intense until Bo's reckoning came in the form of an all-consuming ache that never quite went away.
The elevator dinged and opened onto the busy lobby. Bo had never been a guest at a hotel quite this fancy, but Lauren had made the arrangements so it didn't surprise her either. She sidestepped an oblivious family of four and made a beeline for the front of the hotel. The rain still poured down, families huddled inside waiting for the passing storm to be chased away with sun. They were going to be waiting a long time by the looks of it.
When she got back to the room the air was significantly lighter. Lauren even hummed when Bo greeted her with a kiss on the cheek.
"The weather's still shit," Bo said.
Lauren smiled. "Par for the course, I guess."
"The kicker is weather is supposed to clear up tomorrow."
"You're kidding me. We have the worst timing…"
Bo rocked back on her heels. "The worst…" She crossed her arms. "Hey, Lauren. I was thinking…have drinks with me downstairs?"
Lauren frowned and then smiled. "Sure." She lifted her hands from her sides and let them drop noisily into her lap. "What's the occasion?"
"Just some unfinished business." Bo's saccharine smile charmed Lauren's doubts.
Lauren nodded. "Okay."
"Meet me in the hotel bar, in twenty minutes." She tossed a smile over her shoulder before leaving Lauren to get ready. Standing in the hall, Bo was unsure of what she was going to do for the next twenty minutes, so she called the elevator. She had wanted to give Lauren time to get ready but also to get under her skin. She knew breaking routine was just one of those things she didn't do and Bo liked pushing her buttons just to prove a point. What that point was now, Bo had sort of lost on the succubus at this stage, but maybe having Lauren off her game was important for this last piece of their conversation.
Killing time in the gift shop, she walked past the condoms and tampons, Tylenol and Advil to the magazine rack. Flipping through a Cosmo and people watching through the large storefront window, she wasn't sure how much time had passed. Looking past the antacids and trial size toiletries for a gift, she spotted a basket of flowers by the refrigerators. Picking a single red rose from the basket, she grabbed something from a nearby shelf, paid and took her place in the bar.
She took a table by the window, the view hadn't changed much since she reported back earlier-sideways rain and overcast skies-but it was about to get immeasurably better. Lauren would be there any second. Bo knew this because she knew that Lauren couldn't stand to be late. Each time the elevator door dinged, Bo stood alert awaiting her. When she was five minutes late, Bo attributed it to not being able to get a elevator. When she was fifteen minutes late, Bo called her cell phone but it was probably still sitting in the room charging, because she didn't answer. When she was twenty minutes late, Bo stood and gathered her things. Now, she was worried. The elevator door dinged and Bo cast a skeptical look in its direction when it opened to reveal Lauren. Dressed in a dress Bo had never seen before, she could only stand and gawk at her approaching figure.
"You're late." Bo's smile softened her words.
Lauren looked down at her dress. "I couldn't decide what to wear." She grinned.
"I'd say you made the right choice." She pulled out a chair for Lauren and sat down across from her.
Lauren looked at the flower and small box in Bo's hands. "Are those for me?" Her voice was husky and Bo was being driven into the ground by Lauren's demeanor.
"Yeah," Bo nodded, still distracted by the beauty refracting in front of her. She offered her the flower first and then the box.
"What is this?" She lifted the flap on the box and removed a snow globe.
"It's glitter." Bo pointed. "It's as close to a rain globe as I could find."
She smiled, a glorious gift imparted on Bo and only Bo. "It's perfect."
Bo leaned on her elbows on the table between them. "So I bet you're wondering why I brought you here…"
"I am curious." The eye contact, her voice, it was all very good. Bo shivered.
"Lauren, I have been trying all weekend not to have sex with you because I thought I was imposing my succubus on you."
"As flattered as I am about that, I must point out that we've had a lot of sex this weekend."
Bo smirked. "Okay, I'm terrible at this." She sighed. "Look, I don't want to overwhelm you again, so I've been trying to hold back."
"Bo…" She ran a hand down Bo's arm. " I can resist you, succubus." Lauren smiled.
"You don't want me to-"
"No," she interrupted. "I want you to be who you are."
"But you said it's always going to be about sex with me…"
"I know what I said and I know what I need but, Bo, you're a succubus and I wouldn't change that for anything." She touched her cheek. "You are incredible."
The spark that she had let wither was more volatile than ever as she pressed her lips against Lauren's. She tore her mouth away suddenly. "C'mon," she said, grabbing her hand and pulling her out of the bar.
"Where are we going?" Lauren was jogging after Bo, who tugged her through the lobby and out toward the valet. Lauren skidded to a stop at the edge of the awning. "Oh, no you don't." She took a step backwards, recoiling from the rain that had besieged their weekend.
"Trust me." Bo smiled.
Lauren looked out at the unseasonable weather and back at Bo who's smile was enough to brighten any day. Chewing her lip, Lauren closed her eyes. "Take it away, succubus."
Bo took her hand and ran into the rain. Despite being summer, the rain was freezing, and they ran down the street, through the driving rain, getting soaked all the way. They ran until they couldn't deny the natural wonder that was in front of them. "You wanted to see the falls," Bo had to shout over the roaring water. The mist in the air clung to their faces.
"I'm going to catch pneumonia-" She said, teeth chattering, as she tried to catch her breath. "You, you can heal, I can't-"
"Shh," she cooed, brushing a water droplet from Lauren's lip with her thumb.
Lauren stilled her hand. "Thank you, it's beautiful."
"The rain couldn't trap us inside, couldn't keep us away from the falls…"
"It probably should have." She shivered.
"It probably should," she repeated. "But we're two shivering idiots in love and we're standing out here in front of mother nature and a small crowd of looky loo's and I'm saying I love you, Lauren. Through the wind and rain and whatever else." She drew her in, but held her at bay. And when Bo kissed her in front of a small throng that had started to form, it was unlike anything she'd ever let herself experience. She was alive. Crackling like a live wire, burning like a fire set a millennia ago. Strong and steady. Bo smiled, smoothing back Lauren's rain soaked hair. "Let's get you out of the cold." Bo threw an arm over Lauren's shoulder and walked through the scattering crowd, who clapped in pockets, for what neither woman could say. The hill they ran down now felt like a mountain on one of Pluto's moons.
Bo kissed her in the elevator, tenderly, soaking wet. And Lauren led her to the room by her hand and slid the keycard into the door, the lock clicking as she opened it. She took one step into the room and gasped. Filled with candles, sparkling in the dim, there was a porter standing at attention by a silver tray of dinner service. The bed had been turned down while they were out and a bottle of champagne on ice sat at the foot of the bed. Bo tipped the porter and ushered him out before Lauren noticed. She turned around, taking it all in, and greeted Bo with a smile.
"What did you do?"
"Mmm…" Bo sidled up to her and wrapped her arms around Lauren's waist. "Made a deal with a porter to do this after you came to meet me. He had to stay on candle watch, if you're wondering why there was a strange man in our room."
She chuckled. "I wasn't worried."
Bo smiled. "Let's get you out of that dress. You're trembling." Bo unzipped her dress and it fell to the floor in a soggy heap. Lauren wore nothing beneath it and stood stark naked before Bo. "Oh my," she swallowed. "I'll run you a bath."
"In this case, body heat would be the preferable course of treatment."
"You're the doctor." Bo grinned when Lauren peeled away her top and pushed her pants down as they approached the bed.
"I'm the doctor." Lauren nodded, grinning as she climbed over Bo on the bed.
"Doctor," she purred, kissing Lauren's neck. "I'm soaked."
She rolled away from Bo and covered them over with the duvet. She laid her head back onto the down pillows. "Oh my god," Lauren sighed as Bo's arm snaked around her waist. "Please don't move ever again."
"I can try, but there's no guarantee what they'll do when housekeeping finds us here tomorrow."
"Ugh," Lauren groaned. "It feels like we just got here."
"Don't worry about it." She shook her head. "I told them to leave us alone until Wednesday."
"Bo, I can't."
"C'mon," Bo urged. "You don't have to be back at the clinic until the weekend. Plus, there's a tiny chance that you might see the Falls without needing to do this again." Bo's hands found her back and held her close. Their skin was cool to the touch, but warmed quickly when they pressed together. "Guess there's only one thing to do…"
"Bring an umbrella?"
Bo laughed. "There is that." She delicately kissed Lauren's shoulder. "I was thinking of something to take the edge off this hunger."
Lauren hummed. "And Goddess said, let there be room service."
Fin.