Something About Vegas

Tension

Once inside the car, Calleigh realized she needed to fix this latest misunderstanding before the atmosphere between them got any worse.

"Tim, " she said softly, "that, really came out wrong. I wasn't trying to imply that there was something wrong with, uh, what happened last night, on the contrary it was, um," she paused, furtively searching for the right thing to say. 'Hmm, the most satisfying night I've ever experienced? No, I can't possibly say that, true as it might be.' She thought some more and finally settled on, "pleasurable. It's just that until we've sorted things out between us, I don't think that we should, uh, repeat it."

"We won't," he said succinctly, his voice flat.

He said no more, but looked like he was seething inside. It appeared to her as if he wanted to say something, but was holding back. She decided it was best if they let the subject drop, but the tension continued to swirl around them. She opened the window, hoping some fresh air might help and put the radio on. He groaned at her choice of station, so she suggested he change it to something he preferred, but he ignored her.

They inched their way out of the airport and into the middle of rush hour traffic. She was thankful he kept his 'I told you so's' to himself. It seemed an eternity until they made their way onto the interstate and were able to finally head out of Denver. 'I'm sure this is a lovely city, but I don't want to revisit it any time soon,' she thought to herself, feeling wiped from the day's events. Tim, meanwhile, continued to research the map as if it held the answers to all of his questions and if it did, then maybe she should look at it as well.

"You know this is going to be an over 30 hour drive," he voiced out of the blue. She was so startled to hear him speak after an hour of silence, that she nearly drove onto the shoulder, but she quickly recovered. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. Let me know when you want me to drive," he said softly.

She nodded. "I'm OK, thanks. How long till the next big city and when do you think we should stop?" she asked, glad they were at least speaking again.

"It's at least 8 hours till Wichita, over 9 to the outskirts of Kansas City, neither of which we're going to make tonight. I say we pull over and eat whenever we see a decent place, then stop for the night before it gets too late. We're both tired and we need to get an early start in the morning in order to make up some miles."

She couldn't help but smile at all the figuring he'd been doing in his head. He likely had the whole trip mapped out. Making miles each day was probably going to be some kind of a competition he had with himself. They drove some more in silence, the country radio station she had chosen, playing softly, filling the air. Dusk was approaching and she realized she was famished, having forgotten to eat and that he must be hungry as well.

"Ok if we stop at the next rest area with food?" she inquired. He nodded.

Grateful it wasn't long before the next rest area appeared, she looked at her watch and realized they hadn't been on the road more than a couple of hours, but it felt much, much longer. They went inside, each grabbing what they wanted from the fast food selections available and found a table. They ate in silence, both hungry and lost in their own thoughts. It was impossible not to notice they still wore their shiny wedding bands. The swelling had gone down in her finger, but she left it on so she wouldn't lose it. She didn't know why he still wore his.

"Do you want to drive a bit?" she asked, mindful of the silence hanging between them, along with the tension.

"Sure. You tired?" he questioned, looking at her for the first time since sitting.

"A bit, I guess. We didn't make much progress. I should've let you take the shortcut you found," she suggested, a peace offering of sorts.

"Doesn't matter." He didn't appear to want it and finished eating silently. He got up and headed to the restroom without a word.

She sighed heavily, cleared up her remains and headed to the restroom herself, surprised to find him waiting by the door to walk out with her when she finished. She gave him the keys and they switched places. They talked a little, mostly about how the physical landscape had changed since Denver, but even a little conversation was a vast improvement over the silence of the earlier ride. Before long the monotony of the drive, as well as fatigue, caught up to her and she closed her eyes.

She woke confused to Tim gently shaking her arm and calling her name. Looking up, she found them parked in front of a dumpy, desolate, circa 1950 motel that must have seen better days decades ago, if ever.

"Tim where are we? This looks like the middle of nowhere," she questioned, confused by the new surroundings.

"It kind of is," he chuckled. "I was getting really tired and you were already asleep, so I figured it was better to stop here than get in an accident," he reasoned. "We're in Goodland, Kansas. I know it doesn't look like much, but it's just for a night."

"This place looks a bit creepy and deserted, are you sure there's nothing better?" she complained.

"You know Calleigh, it's late, it's dark, I'm exhausted and this isn't a highly populated part of Kansas. I'm afraid there are no four star hotels with spas around here. Do you want to sleep in the car, or make the best of it?" He didn't wait for her answer. "Since these rooms open directly to the parking lot and there's only one working light out here, I thought it would be best to share a room rather than have you in a room alone. It'll be safer." He grabbed the bags from the trunk and started ambling towards the door before she could protest.

Glumly, she got out of the car and stretched before following him to their room for the night, the one room located by the lone, flickering parking lot light. She trailed him inside and was overcome, first by the musty smell, then by the stifling, stuffy heat that greeted her. He flicked the lights on and her eyes landed on the queen sized bed, the only bed the room contained. He spoke up before she had a chance to.

"Calleigh I didn't know there would only be one bed in here. Do you honestly think I would put us in a room with only one bed?" he asked, seeing the doubtful look on her face. "You can get your own room if you want."

"Don't bother. I'm too tired to go to the trouble. Just stay on your own side of the bed," she demanded and padded into the bathroom with her bag. She looked around the small room and wondered what kind of filth and body fluids she would find if she examined it closely. Even thinking about that was better than thinking about spending the night sharing a bed with Tim.

She put on a tank top with matching sleep shorts, washed up and made her way to the bed. Tim, she could see, was outside their room on the phone, probably with Horatio, which would save her from making the call. Too bad they didn't have sleeping bags, she thought. They would both probably sleep better if they were separated. His call completed, he came back inside and turned out the light after seeing she was already in bed. He then headed to the bathroom before climbing in himself.

The bed sagged under his weight and that effect shifted her body to the middle, where the mattress sagged even more. He was on his back and she was on her side, facing him, trying hard to not too think about his bare chest and it's proximity to her.

"Tim it's stifling hot in here, did you put the air conditioner on?" she fussed.

"Yeah. I don't think it's working very well and before you ask, the windows don't open," he answered, before rolling on his side and closing his eyes.

"Was Horatio OK with the news that we'd be a few extra days?" she asked, now facing his back. "Thanks for calling him, by the way."

"He was understanding, I guess. You know him, sometimes he doesn't always say what he's thinking. We can talk about this tomorrow. Why don't we go to sleep now," he suggested.

She was beyond exhausted, but sleep wouldn't come to her. The room was close and hot, but making it worse was the heat coming off Tim's body. The awareness of exactly how close he was to her was all she could think about. Her head might be screwed up about him, but her body was not and her body made it quite clear there was no confusion about what it wanted. Restless with frustration and need, she couldn't stay still in any one position. When she turned away from him, the flickering glow from the one working parking lot light shone through her window in the opening between the drapes. If she turned towards him, well, that was somehow worse. She flip flopped from side to side, comfortable nowhere and sighing loudly.

"Calleigh what the hell is wrong with you? You're driving me crazy. Would you please just settle on a position and go to sleep!" he lashed out in frustration.

"It's so hot in here, I feel like I can't breathe and that light is in my eyes. Plus the mattress sags and I keep rolling into the middle," she complained. She couldn't tell him the real cause of her discomfort.

"Then close your eyes and you won't see the light. I'm about ready to go sleep in the car," he said, clearly fed up.

"I'm sorry. I'm trying," she drawled softly. It was no use, she couldn't be still. She felt like she would jump out of her skin if she didn't get relief soon, from the heat, the tension and the desire she couldn't constrain. All day she tried not to think about him and now he was so close she could feel his heat and imagine his touch.

"Do you want to switch sides, will that help you to go to sleep?" he asked, turning to her.

"No, it won't." She was quiet a moment. "Tim did you somehow screw up the air conditioner?" she questioned innocently.

He bolted upright in bed, his eyes blazing and exploded at her, "I have screwed up a lot on this trip, but I did not screw up the fucking air conditioner!"

Despite the heat and the fact that he was irritated, frustrated and now angry with her, her body felt shivery with anticipation and heightened with arousal. The tension was thick around them, punctuating the air with each breath they took. She wanted him and she suspected he felt the same. Her senses were on full alert. The hum and clinking of the broken air conditioner reverberated in her ears. The rivulets of sweat now forming between her breasts, tickled her skin. The scents of Tim, sweat and toothpaste permeated her nostrils. His eyes, with the pupils huge and black, were boring into hers and filled her field of vision. She knew all she needed was his lips on hers, the taste of him and she would go into sensory overload.

It might prove to be a regrettable act, but the urge was too overpowering to resist. She reached up, clasped her hands around his neck and pulled him to her in one swift motion. She grabbed his lips in a heated, searing kiss that released a day's worth of tension and unleashed a torrent of passion. There would be no turning back from that kiss.

tbc