Chapter 10

'Depraved But Not Indifferent'

"Greenlee, I'm ok. Yeah I saw it. Ethan's taking take care of it. Well thanks. All right hunt her down if you like." Simone laughed softly as she listened to her friend talk and glanced at Ethan to make sure he was still sleeping. Whispering even softer into her cell Simone walked to the far end of the room, "Fine, I'll help you stake her to the ground. All right. You know we shouldn't be laughing. Why? Because, that would be a really twisted thing to do." Simone laughed harder her mind wrapped around the image, "Do you know what I think? I think you're going to get me arrested again. I have to admit that just imagining doing that to Lauren has really cheered me up. Thanks Greenlee. I needed that laugh. I'll check in with you later and let you know."

Simone hung up the phone just as it rang again. "Hey Dani…because I am good. No really. I am. I AM! Oh Dani, thanks. It'll be nice not to have to go in today. Yes, of course, I'll call you if I need anything. Oh wait! In fact Dani you can do me a favor," Simone whispered as she glanced over at Ethan, "Please call Greenlee and let her know that I'm shutting off my phone for now but I'll call you guys later on. Uh-huh. All right. Bye."

"Are you really all right?" Ethan asked. At the unexpected sound of his voice Simone jumped.

"I thought you were sleeping!" Simone gasped.

"I was until the phone started ringing." Ethan yawned and tucked an extra pillow behind his head.

"Oh. I'm sorry." Cold, Simone slipped back into bed for a moment to warm up. She pressed her cool face to his chest and Ethan pulled her close to his chest instinctively running his hands along her back and arms to warm them.

"I'm not sorry. It's good to hear you laughing." Ethan whispered into her ear, "If Greenlee and Dani made you feel better I'm glad that they did call. How are you really though?"

"A little annoyed that people keep asking me that." Simone laughed shakily, "But I'd have to say that right now my main complaint is that I'm hungry."

"Ah! Now I know that you're feeling better." Ethan smiled and gave her a tight squeeze, "The only time you aren't hungry is when you're upset. Why don't we just order something in?" Ethan let go of Simone and turned to stretch before breaking into a grin and reaching for Simone once again.

"Oh, no." Simone said quickly scrambling away from him and climbing out of bed. "We're getting out of here."

"Hmmmm… but it's so nice here." Ethan smiled, grabbed for her hand, pulled her back into bed and flicked the covers over her.

"You did say that today was my day to do with what I want." Simone sighed. She was conflicted. It was very nice right where she was but she knew the longer they hid the harder the press would go after them.

"That's true. I did. But I guess I'm just not as fearless as you are. The last place I want to be is here in Pine Valley. Are you sure I can't convince you to run away with me for the day?"

"We have to face our friends eventually."

"Friends to you…to me they are just people that I know that have seen me in a compromising position on more than one occasion."

"Seen us."

"True, sorry. All the more reason I can't believe that you want to do this."

"I don't want to face them." Simone pulled from his embrace and turned to stare at the ceiling. "I just think that we have to do this."

"Well, before we go anywhere I think I should check in with the office and see if Harold's made any headway with staunching the media…" Ethan mused, running out of ways to stall the inevitable.

"Oh, don't bother… it's still pretty bad." Simone groaned. Closing her eyes tightly Simone pulled the pillow from beneath her head covered her face and screamed.

"Feel better?" Ethan asked his eyes crinkling at the corners as he tried to stifle a laugh.

"Don't laugh at me." Simone made a face at him and swatted him with the pillow, "I do feel better."

Ethan laughed, "I do love it when I'm the one making you scream." Smiling he drew her beneath him and kissed her. Simone sighed and forgot everything she had just said until he whispered into her ear, "Are you sure you still want to get out of the suite and go downstairs? If you want to leave the room maybe we should just leave Pine Valley for the day."

"We have to do this Ethan." Simone insisted pushing him away from her, "We can't stay in here. If we stay holding up in your hotel suite we are only going to succeed in making ourselves look like a pair of depraved sexual deviants."

"I don't much care what anyone thinks right now." Ethan replied drawing her back to him.

"That's because right now you are a depraved sexual deviant." Simone remarked between kisses, "Ethan…I think we've made a big enough spectacle of our personal life."

"Oh very well. I see your point. I guess we should let the masses see us doing something normal," Ethan muttered sarcastically. "But why they should care what we are doing is beyond me."

"That's my point. They won't care as long as we're doing boring stuff. But as long as we're hiding up here people are going to be imagining us…." Simone's voice trailed off as she grimaced at the thought. Suddenly angry Simone was determined more than ever to show Lauren that she wasn't going to buckle to the media scrutiny. Simone mentally made a choice. She turned to face Ethan and used her feet to push Ethan off of the bed. "Come on. Get out of bed!"

Laughing out loud Ethan remarked, "Well! I've never been literally kicked out of someone's bed before."

"Does it help that it's your own bed? Or that I love you?" Simone laughed.

"Hardly. What would help is if you would let me back in." Laughing Ethan turned and dove back on to the bed and grabbed for her.

"Stop that! Have you ever heard the saying, 'Too much of a good thing?' You've distracted me long enough. Come on. We have things we have to do today. I can't believe we're still in here."

"Well that isn't my fault. I warned you about that dance." Ethan laughed and held her firmly at the waist.

Right. Simone thought. He did warn her about that dance. One dance led to one kiss and before she knew it they were back in bed and now they'd missed lunch and half the day was lost. Well pleasantly lost, but still. Determined, Simone tried to remove Ethan's hands. "Come on, it's getting late." She finally broke free and turned on the light.

Ethan's eyes widened as he took a good look at Simone's face, "Oh! Uhhhhmmm…. Simone…" Ethan began tentatively.

"Ethan? Why are you looking at me like that?" Simone asked with a growing sense of alarm.

"You look…you do look a bit…"

"What?" Simone demanded her hand instinctively going to her cheek.

"Ummm…you look like you've been…well loved." Ethan grinned sheepishly.

Simone rushed to the mirror and gasped. "Oh! When did that happen?" To Simone the slight burn on her cheeks from Ethan's stubble, her swollen lips and the love bites on her neck were all glaring evidence of their past activities. She turned to look at Ethan, "You have them too! And your lip is bleeding! Did I do that? I don't remember doing that."

"Well I remember it all very vividly." Ethan laughed and absently rubbed his neck, "Are you sure you don't want stay in and call room service?"

"We're going downstairs." Simone glared at him but inwardly her resolve was wavering.

"I didn't know you could be so stubborn." Ethan shook his head and shrugged, "But I told you I'd take you anywhere so if you want to go downstairs I'll muster up the courage and we'll go downstairs."

"Damn it Ethan! I can't put makeup on this!" Simone complained tossing down her compact while still looking in the mirror. She was able to do something about the marks on her neck but her face…

"Good. I think you look beautiful."

"Ethan! I looked branded!" Simone grumbled, "You have a lot of nerve standing there so smug."

Ethan just grinned and pulled on his jeans. "It isn't as if I'm walking out of here unscathed." Ethan turned, "Look at my shoulder."

"Oh my God!" Simone could see her teeth marks on his shoulder. "I'm so sorry."

Ethan laughed, "Well, I wasn't complaining at the time so I'm not going to start complaining now." Simone just shook her head as if to clear it. "Is there a problem?" Ethan asked and raised an eyebrow and turned to look at her.

"No…Yes…you're being pretty nonchalant about all of this…you aren't exactly acting like yourself…do I know you?" Simone stared incredulously at Ethan.

"You should. I'm the man that's going to throw you back on that bed and make love to you if you don't hurry up and get some clothes on." Ethan joked and lunged at her laughing. Simone shrieked and grabbed her clothes from the chair and ran to the bathroom slamming the door behind her and locking it.

"Oh no. I think we've both have had enough of that for now." Simone spoke thru the door as she turned to look in the mirror.

"I have to tell you that it's rather insulting that my offer to make love to you has sent you running and screaming from the room," Ethan laughed shaking his head as he called through the door, but all he heard in response was Simone angrily grumbling. But when Simone came out her eyes were wide and she was visibly shaking. Ethan drew her into his arms. "Darling, we don't have to do this."

"You know we do." Simone spoke softly but she drew her shoulders up defiantly, "Lets go."

Chapter 11

'Roger That'

Simone and Ethan face PV together.