By the time they had reached the Peaches & Palms Motel, it was already getting dark and Nikki was fast asleep in the back seat.
While Julian was carefully extracting his daughter from the back of the car, Marti went to the reception to get their keys. When she came back out, she gestured to the upper level of the two-story building.
"You still need to sign at the front desk. For some reason, they didn't believe I was authorized to use your credit card." Marti leaned against the door frame to her room after she had unlocked the adjacent room and Julian had put Nikki to bed.
"So this is respectable place after all." Julian pulled the door shut behind him, breaching the gap between them.
She smirked at him. "There is a pay-by-the-hour place down the street, if that's more to your liking."
He matched her expression. "I'll be fine, thank you."
A beat passed between them, tension lingering in the air.
"I'll go..." He gestured at the vague direction of the reception.
"You better."
He pushed past her closer than he needed to, letting her feel the warmth of his body. "What are you going to do?" he asked, his tone ever so slightly suggestive.
Marti scoffed as if the answer was oh so clear. "I'm going swimming." She bit her lip, batting her eyes at him. "Care to join me?"
His eyes darkened instantly, nostrils flaring. Without a reply but with a little leer, he turned and headed down the stairs.
#
The water was cold and it took Marti a good amount of her willpower to dive in. But she didn't demand a gated pool and wouldn't use it. The sign at the gate said that swimming wasn't allowed after 7pm but she couldn't care less. As the manager had told her, there were only two other guests at the motel and they probably wouldn't mind if she took a late-evening dive. That she was naked would certainly add to their entertainment.
"Artie says hi." Julian leaned on the gate, a beer can in hand.
Marti turned in the water, swimming on her back. "Good ol' Artie. Nice guy. Bit of a slob, though."
He grinned around the rim of the can, shaking his head at the ridiculousness of the conversation.
"So... are you coming in?" she asked seductively, twirling in the pool.
"Unfortunately, I didn't bring my bikini."
Marti look down her body. "What a coincidence. Neither did I."
Julian stopped dead with the can raised halfway up to his mouth. He closed his eyes against the obvious sensation, then took a long sip from his beverage.
"There are other people here," he said lamely and even in the dim light, she could see the glint in his eyes.
"No, there are not." She shrugged. "And even if somebody takes offense, I have a lawyer who can bail me out."
He rolled his eyes at her. "Nothing but benefits for you, I gather."
"So far, I can't complain." She crooked a finger, beckoning. "Come on. I promise, I won't look." More to herself then to him, she added: "Not that I haven't seen it before."
He pursed his lips, squinted at her. Then he couldn't help but grin. "Your powers of persuasion are remarkable, Miss Perkins."
She beamed as he gallantly swung his legs over the gaze. "It's part of my charm."
His grin widened. "I am aware of that." He reached up to the top button of his shirt, then stopped. "Turn around."
Her jaw dropped, surprised that he actually took her up on that. Then she rolled her eyes, turning away from him. "You're making me miss a damn good show."
He chuckled that impossibly low chuckle. "Now you're just kissing my ass."
Marti bit her lips, trying to hold back a comment. To herself, she murmured: "Among other things, I hope."
For a long moment, there was not a sound to be heard and she wondered if he had secretly left (not that she would actually blame him) when she heard a splash in the water behind her. A triumphant grin spread on her face.
"You are trying to freeze me to death, aren't you?" Julian protested.
She turned around again when she felt his presence behind her. "You grown men and your complaints."
He smirked at her. "We're entitled to complain about cold water. It doesn't shed the best light on us." He raised an eyebrow, knowingly.
"Trust me, you've got nothing to worry about." While she was already used to this sort of banter with him, Marti felt a blush creep on her face.
He didn't respond but duck in the water. When he surfaced again, he shook out his hair, droplet flying everywhere.
Marti did a breaststroke towards him. "What's with you, shaggy dog?" She ran a hand through his hair from where it curled into his forehead, brushing it out of his face.
He looked at her, a slow little smile curving his mouth. "You enjoy this, don't you?"
She grinned, withdrew her hand and swam past him. "Tremendously."
"Thought so." He matched her expression and brought a few feet of distance between them with a few backstrokes. When he faced her again, his mood had sobered. "I'm glad you decided to come with us."
Marti nodded, smiling. "Me, too."
"You are?"
She could swear she spotted a touch of... if not fear, then insecurity in his voice. "Yeah."
He held her gaze for a long moment before ducking under again, diving a few strokes under water, coming up right in front of her.
A cheeky smile curled her lips. "Tell me, you're not enjoying this, too? Getting away from the files and the paragraphs and that stuffy herd of paralegals."
"Skinny dipping in a pool?" He came even closer, only a couple of inches between them now. "With you?"
She lingered in his immediate personal space for a moment longer before she pushed herself off the edge of the pool and past him, diving back into the middle of the pool.
Briefly, he glanced over his shoulder at her, then shook his head and ran a hand through his hair as if that would help making him believe what was happening just now.
"The things you make me do...," he muttered to himself.
"What was that?"
Marti took a good amount of pride in his reaction as he flinched when her hands closed on his shoulders. She could feel the warmth of his body even in the cool water. And she wanted more of it.
"Nothing." Using his advantage of actually being able to stand in the pool (if only on tiptoes), he twisted out of her grip and turned around, the expression on his face unreadable.
When he tried to reach for her, she back-paddled away from him.
He smirked at her. "So this is was we're playing, then?"
Marti kept her expression as neutral as possible, shrugging with one shoulders. "Who's playing?"
His grin widened as he followed her, obviously not making much of an effort to get to her. He could have gotten a hold of her arm quite easily, they both knew that, but whenever he was close enough, he let her back away again.
"You know what this reminds me of?" she asked when she let him come teasingly close again.
"The Swimming Pool?" He raised an eyebrow curiously.
She grinning, swimming backwards when she already felt the water stirring against her stomach as he came up to her. "Jaws."
His brow arched even higher. "We need a bigger boat?"
"Why, professor, you do know your pop culture references."
Julian looked at her with a mixture of amusement and indignation. "If it wouldn't make me feel old, I'd say I loved that movie when I was a kid."
Marti's laugh echoed off the building walls around them. "If it helps you at all... so did I. Even though it scared the crap out of me the first time. Wanda literally had to drag me to the pool after I watched it."
With one stroke, he swam up to her, dark eyes glittering in the dim light illuminating the pool. "Are you scared now?"
She twisted away from him, circling halfway around him. "Terrified." Much to her own surprise, she meant it.
This time, she let him get to her. And she let him kiss her, slow and deep, tasting of beer, chlorine and more.
Her hand went into the back of his neck so she wouldn't float away again. She gasped against his mouth when his arm snaked around her waist, pulling her against him, the contrast of the warmth of his body and the cold of the water all too enticing.
On its own accord, her hand traveled down the plains of his stomach and between their bodies.
He broke away from her, eyes screwed shut against the sensation when her hand closed around him. "What are you doing?" he breathed, voice heavy.
She leaned into him, bringing her mouth closer to his ear. "Wanna get drunk and fool around?"
He laughed against the crook of her neck and tried to respond but his words trailed off when she slowly started to stroke him. "You want to take this upstairs?" he finally managed, his hand closing around her wrist.
She looked at him for a long moment, then shook her head. "No." She had to swallow before she could continue. "Right here."
Before Julian could protest, she had sealed his mouth with a long kiss, gently pushing him backwards until his back hit the edge of the pool. When they broke apart, a devious smile crooked her mouth and she disappeared beneath the surface.
A hushed little "What..." was all he could say before she wrapped her lips around him, rendering all thought incoherent.
When she came up again, her hair veiled her face and she sputtered.
He brushed the most rebellious curl behind her ear, his hand snaking into the back of her neck. "You better be careful what you swallow."
She grinned. "I've missed this."
He arched an eyebrow. "Us making out in a pool?"
For a second, her mood sobered a little. "When you get cheeky with me."
"But it's only been that one time we..."
She placed her fingers against his lips. "I know." She wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, drawing him into a long kiss.
"Are you sure?" he asked when she pulled back.
As a reply, her hand encircled him again, guiding him to her entrance.
She gasped as he pushed into her, her head rolling forward and against his shoulder. For a good minute, she stayed perfectly still, letting her body and mind adjust. Only slowly did she begin to move.
She had never done it in a pool before. Where her body was pressed against his, she felt his warmth, while the rest of her was exposed to the cold of the water, the sensation strange and enticing at the same time.
With one hand, she held on to the edge of the pool, while the other went to the back of his neck, nails gently raking at the sensitive skin there.
He moaned into her mouth, into the kiss, wrapping his arm tighter around her waist. His free hand slipped between their bodies, his fingers expertly seeking out her center.
She rocked against him, finding friction against his body, his hand. Her mouth fell open as he hit just the right spot inside her and for a second, she felt almost dizzy. She wanted to move quicker, give in to the urgency, but the water slowed her motions to an almost painfully slow pace.
"Somehow this works better on dry land," she heard herself say before she could think better of it, being aware of how it must have sounded.
"Oh yeah?" Julian looked at her with a languid little smile, his eyes sparkling dark. He pulled her flush against him, pushing deeper into her than he had before.
"Oh...," was all she managed, fingers clawing into his shoulder.
As much as he could without loosing his footing on the slippery floor of the pool, he met her thrusts, accentuating each with a light tap of his fingers against her clit.
A tiny wave of pleasure rolled down her spine, promising more. Even though they had only done it that one time (or three times in one night, if one were keen on details), she now realized how much she had missed this. Missed him.
It was different than with any other guy she had been with. He knew what he was doing, where he had to touch and tease her. He didn't have to ask whether she liked something or not. He didn't ask for not did he need her approval. He just... did and it always felt good.
"You are driving me absolutely crazy. You know that, right?" Julian's words only slowly filtered into her brain.
When Marti opened her eyes to look at him, the breath all but hitched in her throat. His dark eyes shone with something... lust... and something else she had never seen before.
"I hope that's a compliment," she replied.
His hand crawled up her back between her shoulder blades, drawing her closer. "Yes, it is."
Their kiss started slow, gentle but quickly became deeper, more heated and passionate. She matched her pace, rocking against him, his hand, feeling him push in a little deeper with each thrust.
"Please...", she whimpered against his ear, letting him know exactly how close she was.
He increased the pressure of his fingers against her clit, running quick circles about the sensitive little pearl. If it was at all possible, he changed the angle of his thrust ever so slightly, hitting just the right spot inside her.
The orgasm almost hit her surprise and she had to bury her face the crook of his neck to keep herself from crying out loud. She bucked against him, letting the cold water splash between her thighs, adding a whole new sensation to the mix.
She rode her height out against him, seeking friction in every way possible. Her muscles clenched about him, drawing him over the edge as well.
He went perfectly still against her, the only indication being his hand clawing into her hair and his hot, ragged breath against the side of her neck. That deep, almost guttural growl rumbling into her ear was probably the sexiest thing she had ever heard and it almost made her come again.
They stayed like that for a few minutes until Marti was able to use her vocal chords again. "That was..." Vocal chords, yes. Coherence, not so much.
"Yes, it was," he provided equally eloquent.
She chuckled. "Maybe we should take this upstairs after all."
He nodded. "God know when's the last time this pool has been cleaned."
Eyebrows raised, she pulled back from him. "You really know how to spoil a mood."
"Sorry." Even in the dim light, she could see him blush.
She planted a quick kiss to this mouth. "Don't worry. It's kinda sexy."
He frowned at her. "You have a very weird taste."
"Very much to your advantage, don't you think?"
This time, he kissed her. "How do we get out of here?"
Marti looked around, trying to find the best escape route. "You take your pants, I take your shirt. And then we hurry." Slowly, she pulled away from him, shuddering as the water completely engulfed her again.
She got out of the pool first, reached for her top to towel herself off with it then slipped into his shirt. He followed her example, although he seemed less comfortable being stark naked for the world to see.
"Hey missy, how much are you chargin'?"
They turned in unison to see a guy in a dirty wifebeater standing on the balcony in front of his room on at the upper level.
"Excuse me?" Julian made a step forward, hands on his hips, shoulders squared in defiance.
"More than you could ever pay," Marti injected. How long had the guy been standing their? Had he witnessed their little... encounter?
"Whatcha doin' with him then? He's got a kid."
Marti made a mental note not to ever a) book into a motel when road-tripping, no matter how Kerouacian it may be and b) not to ever have sex in a public pool again. "Oh, I'm doing him for free." She grabbed Julian by the elbow and pulled him into a long, showy kiss.
The guy snorted indelicately, then disappeared in his room.
"Unbelievable." Julian's gaze was still fixed on the door, brows furrowed in anger.
"It's just some guy."
He turned to her. "He thought you were a hooker. Doesn't that bother you?"
Marti frowned, a bit confused. "Does it bother you?"
He hesitated and she could almost see his anger dissipating. "A little, yeah."
She smiled. "Listen, if I cared what other people thought or said about me, I sure as hell wouldn't have become a cheerleader. And I wouldn't be here." She paused, making sure he heard her right. "Yesterday, you said you were in this. So am I."
For a long moment, he just looked at her, then reached for collar of her... his shirt and kissed her.
"I think I need a shower," she murmured against his mouth when they slowly pulled apart.
"And I need some food."
She laughed at his confession. "Sounds like a plan." She stepped away from him, making sure his shirt covered her naked butt.
"You hungry, too?"
Marti grinned from ear to ear, recalling one of their previous conversations. "No."
