Lena was in her room looking at the big brass bed. It was the same size as the bed in her hotel suite and at her house in the US, but in this bedroom it looked massive. It would have to go as soon as she could get another, smaller one brought in.
Hal came into the room and stood next to her. He contemplated the bed. "I'm waiting for you to invite me into that big bed of yours," he said.
"I don't plan on letting you into my bed."
"No? You've spent a good amount of time in mine, my lady."
"Fully clothed and sound asleep. If that's what you are asking for, be my guest," Lena said. "Pick a side."
"So I take it you will need wooing?" Hal said teasingly as he tried to put his arms around her waist. She caught him at the wrists and stopped him.
"Where is this coming from? Are you drunk? Delirious? Hallucinating?"
Hal pulled away and looked into Lena's eyes as if he were trying to dig into her mind. "Are there any more secrets?" he asked in turn. "Any more grudges you harbor against me? Or is this truly a do-over for us?"
"This is a do-over but I'm no pushover, Hal, and there's one thing you're forgetting."
"What's that?" He broke eye contact as he asked the question. He knew what was coming, and he didn't like it.
"My blood will kill you," she said. "End of. Can you give me your word that my blood has no allure for you? Can you promise me that you will be safe in my bed?" Lena set her hand on the side of his face and forced him to look at her again as she spoke. "Because as much as I want you there, Hal, I want you alive even more."
"The thought of sleeping without you next to me is almost worse than death," Hal said simply. "And no, I cannot give you my word that your blood has no allure for me." He moved away from her and sat in the boudoir chair in the corner, putting space between them so he could think calmly. "The irony of this situation is staggering."
"How so?" Lena sat on the bed, facing him.
"In the past I have had human lovers, women who I cherished, who risked their lives to be with me." Hal looked into nothing, into his own history, as sadness filled his eyes. "Without fail I killed them. The blood won in the end. Now I find myself in their position, willing to risk my life to be with you." He glanced at her. "I don't know if you're aware of those details."
"I know of your deeds," Lena said. "I was unaware that you had developed an attachment to any human woman. That does make this pretty damned ironic."
She thought for a moment. "I won't risk your life like that. We did once, when we were out of control, but it won't happen again. I guess that is the difference between us."
He was stung by her words, but he had to admit that they were true. He had chosen his own happiness over the safety of his consorts. "I still want to sleep with you," he said. "Just sleep, as a start. To see what can be done safely, to take the next step in getting closer to you."
Lena shook her head at the idea. "Sharing a bed when we're both passed out from exhaustion is one thing. Based on what I've read in your dossier, the only way we can safely sleep together for any length of time is for me to wear a turtleneck and a chastity belt. Neither one of which I possess," she added.
Hal felt himself blushing lightly. "Just where, may I ask, did you get this dossier?"
"We keep records, and we have access to other archives," she replied. "Ammon's people put it together for me."
"It's that specific?"
"About your favorite points of attack? Yes it is. It makes frequent reference of your penchant for bringing a woman to orgasm so you can drink her blood after you do." Lena spoke calmly, unemotionally. This was old news for her and part of the reason she had kept herself away from him.
Hal was very uncomfortable with the content of Lena's report and he wasn't pleased to learn of her knowledge of his blood-sex proclivities. She continued in the same clinical tone, as if she were discussing the merits of a business decision.
"Most vampires find it too challenging to feed from that area due to the time-consuming nature of the injuries needed to access her blood. You seem to enjoy devouring a woman's genitals." She was surprised to see Hal redden and wince visibly as she finished her report. "On a personal note, I blame myself to some extent," she added. "I was very encouraging of your activity in that regard when we were together. Oh shit, do-over territory, sorry."
Her comment caught him off-guard and he glanced at her without thinking. She gazed back at him mildly, with a quizzical look. "Did I embarrass you just now? Why?"
"You are completely tactless," he said.
"I think I said that when I introduced myself," she responded dryly.
"The phrase 'devouring a woman's genitals' is not something I want to hear from the woman whose genitals I am interested in accessing," Hal pointed out. "It is unromantic, to say the least."
"Actually, if you could leave the fangs out of it, it sounds like a lot of fun," Lena said. "But, as I said, I am very encouraging of activity in that area."
"Christ, woman, you're not helping!"
She laughed then, a sobbing laugh that carried grief within it. "Oh Hal, if you knew how much I want to make this work! Believe me, I do."
Hal looked at her closely. He believed her, but he also believed that she wouldn't allow him the intimacy that he craved. It was time for desperate measures. "I call a do-over on my dossier," he announced.
"You're kidding."
"I want us to make decisions about us without considering my past activities. I call a do-over on the dossier," he repeated firmly. "If you are unwilling to accept that, please allow me to suggest an alternative. Apply Duck tape to your neck and genitals, because I will be sleeping with you in that bed."
"Dear god, you're serious."
"Yes I am." Hal stood up. "I shall be back shortly, wearing the tasteful pyjamas you purchased for me in London. I prefer the left side of the bed. I have no intention of having sex with you, as I believe it to be too great a risk at this point in time. Please note that I said 'at this point in time.' I will let you know when I am ready to proceed in that direction."
Hal walked calmly out of Lena's room and into his own, where he collapsed into his chair and gasped, "What the bloody hell was I thinking? She's going to kill me." He put his head in his hands and waited tensely for the explosion to come.
Lena sat, stunned by Hal's declaration. "Shit fire and save the matches, the man's got a set of solid brass balls to talk to me like that," she muttered to herself, piling colloquialisms upon each other in her attempt to pull herself together. She walked absently to the bathroom for her nightly routine. She took an extra long time brushing her teeth.
When she returned to her room Lena put on a t-shirt and pyjama bottoms. They matched. She made sure the door to her room was ajar and turned to the bed with a frown.
"Hey, Hal?" she called through the wall.
"Yes?" Lena didn't notice the hint of trepidation in his voice as he spoke.
"Is that left side standing at the foot of the bed, or left side lying at the head of the bed?"
There was a moment of silence from the next room. Hal was flabbergasted by her question.
"I will take the side closer to the door," Hal replied when he was able to steady himself enough to speak. "It will cause you less disturbance when I join you." He hoped that the giddy relief coursing through him didn't transfer into his voice.
"Okay." Lena got in on the far side of the bed, turned her back toward the door, and tried to go to sleep. Her usual sleep-at-the-drop-of-a-hat ability was absent; she'd probably spent too much time lying around in Hal's bed lately.
Hal joined her, wearing simple dark grey pyjamas. They fit him perfectly. She noticed because she had given up trying to sleep and turned over so she could watch for him.
He closed the door firmly behind him, stood next to the bed, and looked down at her. "This is one of the least bizarre things we've done," he pointed out.
"True," she said. "Just so you know, if I wake up next to a pile of dust in the morning I'm going to find you in hell and beat the shit out of your soul."
"Can you do that?"
"I don't know. Never tried it."
"That'll be a 'yes,' then," he said as he got into bed. "You truly are terrifying."
"And yet, I haven't scared you away," she said. "Goodnight, Hal."
"Goodnight, Lena."
She rolled over and was quickly asleep. Hal lay on his back for a few minutes and listened to the little purr in her throat. He'd missed it. He turned his back to her and quickly fell asleep as well.
# # #
Lena was sleeping soundly when she felt something brush against her neck. She instantly flung herself out of bed while flinging whatever it was that touched her in the other direction. She spun around to see Hal struggling to keep from falling off the other side of the bed.
"Shit! What was that for?" he exclaimed as he pulled himself back from the edge of the bed. He had caught hold of one of the brass spindles on the headboard to stop his fall.
Without speaking Lena leaped back onto the bed and pulled him toward her. She knelt over him and shoved open his lips to check for evidence of fangs. There was none. She relaxed and sat back on her heels.
"Sorry. I'm a little jumpy," she said.
"Jumpy? You call that jumpy?" Hal was not pleased to be nearly thrown out of bed before they had managed one full night together. "What do you call mass murder, an exercise in discretion?"
"Low blow, Hal," she said, "and yes, sometimes it is. Sorry, I didn't hurt you, did I?" she asked as she tried to straighten out the tangle of covers she had created.
"No, although not for lack of trying," he grumbled as he turned on the nightstand lamp and got up to deal properly with the covers. He checked his watch. 3:27am.
Lena sat and watched him. The curse no longer fluctuated with Hal's mood or behavior as it had done when she first came to Honolulu Heights, but she didn't need it to tell that he was annoyed.
"What were you doing, anyway?" she asked.
"I was sleeping. What were you doing, wrestling a bear?" he asked as he got back into bed.
"I felt you touch my neck," she said.
"I was unaware of that."
"Shit. I don't know what to do," she said. "I can't just stop my reflexes."
"Not all touch is bad, you know," Hal said. "I don't remember you being this jumpy the last time we were together."
"Do-over."
"Sorry, I take that back. I shall begin again. Not all touch is bad. Perhaps we need to determine what is acceptable and what is not."
"Anything on my neck is bad," she said.
"I disagree," Hal said. "I don't find your neck particularly tempting." Lena looked mildly offended by his statement, so he quickly amended it. "In that way. I don't find your neck tempting in that way. I'll prove it. I will kiss your neck and you watch the curse."
"Nope." She shook her head. "It doesn't change all the time like it used to. It stays pretty much the same now, no matter what."
"That in itself is significant," Hal said. "I don't feel it pulling on me like I used to. I didn't know if you could tell the difference."
"I can. What if it means that it has adjusted to my presence and no longer signals your intent?"
"All the more reason for me to kiss your neck, so you can recognize good touch when you feel it," he replied smoothly.
She shot him the look that had stopped a thousand playboys. "Is that the best you can do? I'm going back to sleep." She settled into bed with her back turned to him.
Hal reached out and brushed her neck with a finger.
"Hal."
He didn't answer. He brushed her neck with his finger again.
"Hal, stop it."
He poked her neck gently, right over a vein. He watched it shift and resettle under her skin.
"Hal, what the hell are you doing?"
He rested two fingers on her carotid artery and felt her pulse. He could hear her blood sluicing through her body. It made him warm and happy, but not particularly hungry. Something had changed.
Lena turned onto her back and looked at him, expecting to see the curse dark and throbbing in time to her pulse. Her eyes widened. Something had changed.
"What do you see?" he asked.
"It is just a little darker," she replied.
"That's what I feel. Just a little hungry," he said. "I'm going to kiss your neck. Keep watching."
"I'm sitting up for this," she said. "It will be easier to throw you out of bed if I need to." She sat next to him and he leaned in and kissed her neck, just below her ear. She rested her hands on his chest in case she needed to push him away. Hal shifted down and kissed again, then again and again. He lingered slightly each time and ended with a delicate, sensual kiss at the base of her throat. He had followed her jugular vein and carotid artery the length of her neck. He drew back and met her look.
"Well?" he said.
"It darkened as you went, but only slightly, and it isn't beating in time to my pulse," she replied.
"I want your blood, but the craving is controllable," he agreed. "We are making progress."
He leaned in and kissed her again, on the lips this time. She didn't stop him so he continued and felt her soften and return his kiss. Hal slid his hands into her hair, cupped her head, and held her lips to his. He lost himself in her as he had on his birthday, in the velvet pressure of her lips moving with his and the slick contact of their tongues.
But something was different this time—the scent of her arousal carried by the heat of her body. Hal's rising passion turned into hunger as the song of her blood overrode the aching drive in the pit of his belly. His heart beat with hers, his blood pumped with hers. Even my cock throbs in time with her blood! he thought as he felt his control slipping away.
Lena was enjoying the kiss just as much as Hal, but when his lips moved from hers and returned to her neck she opened her eyes and saw the telltale sign, the curse beginning to pulse. She shoved him away from her.
Hal controlled the urge to leap at her. He clenched his fists into the sheets and took careful breaths in an effort to calm himself. His fangs had been so close, and just a tiny nick of her delicious skin would have killed him. She'd caught him in time, but they'd learned that intimacy was still very risky.
"I'm sorry," Hal said quietly. "I pushed too far. Thank you for stopping me."
"I guess we have to push until we find your limit," Lena replied calmly. "How else will we make progress?" She looked at the curse throbbing in time to her heartbeat. "Do you want me to take it?" Lena held out a hand to him, offering to draw off the curse.
He shook his head. He didn't want to cause her any more trouble than he already had. He was a selfish, cocksure nuisance and she tolerated him better than he deserved.
"It won't really bother me, it hasn't gotten strong enough yet," she said. She smiled at him as she beckoned for him to give her his hand.
"In that case, yes, please." Hal gave in and held out his hand to meet hers. As she locked hands and drew the curse into herself he continued speaking. "I wouldn't allow you to, but I don't want to take a cold shower this early in the day. I may need one anyway," he added.
"Cold shower, hmm? How long do you think you'll be?" she asked innocently.
"Why, what difference does it—oh no, not that damned gadget!" Hal knew he was right by the look on her face.
There was an awkward silence.
"You said it was none of your business," Lena reminded him.
"I changed my mind. I am going to smash that thing with a hammer," Hal said emphatically. "Where is it?"
"Like I'd tell you," she said. "Anyway, you probably couldn't find a hammer."
Hal went to her bureau and quickly found her gadget in her underwear drawer. She sat in bed and watched as he held it up at her, distastefully, between his thumb and forefinger with as little contact as possible. He walked to the window, glared at her, opened the window, leaned out and threw the gadget as far as he could. Hal shut the window forcefully and turned back to face her with a determined look on his face.
"Never again." Hal stated it as if he were making a new house rule. In fact, he was.
"So what, then?" she asked in frustration. "You can't just show up and kiss all over me and expect me not to react to that. Shit, Hal, I'm only part angel. I've got plenty of human parts too, you know." She unconsciously swallowed as she stared at the bulge in his pyjamas.
"You're talking to a randy dead man," Hal replied sarcastically. He glanced down at the bulge before continuing. "I'm well aware that we both have plenty of functioning human parts."
There was another awkward silence.
"A hand job isn't commingling," Hal said.
"I don't give a shit about commingling, I care about keeping you safe," she snapped. "Oh, hang on," she added as the light bulb in her brain turned on. "No, never mind. You were a second from getting fangy, you can't risk getting worked up again."
"I'll keep my mouth shut. Literally. It will be an interesting challenge," Hal said as he approached the bed with a gleam in his eyes. "I can't be certain, as we aren't acknowledging any former relationship, but I suspect that we may enjoy an interesting challenge."
"That would mean no kissing, no talking, no encouragement, no tongue," Lena reminded him. Her eyes were beginning to gleam also. "That would be an interesting challenge."
"To make it fair, you would have to join me in the challenge," Hal said as he slid back into bed and sat next to her. "You would have to keep your mouth shut also."
"Ooh, that would make it very interesting," she agreed. "But if we agree to that, what's to keep us from just having sex? Your fangs are the only thing stopping us." Lena didn't admit it, even to herself, but she was testing him again, waiting to see if she could trust him to make the right decision.
"There's a limit to my self-control," Hal replied. "This is my limit. Any more questions before you shut your mouth?"
"I should have known sleeping with you would get weird," she teased. She relaxed again. "Clothing?"
"Bottoms off, tops on. That's my limit. Wait, trousers off, pants on. We'll set the limit there."
"You are taking this very seriously," she said, with a sober undertone to her teasing.
Hal spoke simply. "Your trust is the most important thing in the world to me. I'm going to be very careful from this point on." He gave her one final, gentle kiss, then lay down and took off his pyjama bottoms. She did the same.
(Reader be warned: Explicit content ahead.)
"Shit," she whispered.
"What?" he whispered.
"This is going to be harder than I thought," she whispered.
He chuckled as he turned on his side to face her. "Hush woman, or we'll never get started."
Hal propped himself up on one elbow and started to slide his other hand into her plain green cotton pants. She was adamant on some points, in spite of his continuing encouragement to explore the realm of feminine undergarments.
"You left the light on," she whispered.
He stopped moving. "Yes, so you can monitor the curse," he whispered.
"Oh. Good idea," she whispered.
He started moving again. She squeaked. He stopped.
"Tickles," she whispered.
"Why are you bothering to whisper?" he whispered. "It still counts as opening your mouth."
"Give me a minute," she whispered.
Lena got up and went to her desk, pulled a roll of Duck tape out of a drawer, and tore off a strip. She stuck it over her mouth. Hal watched her, the corners of his mouth twitching in silent amusement. She offered him the Duck tape. He shook his head. She held it out again, arching an eyebrow as she did. He gave her a disgusted look but accepted it, tore off a strip, and stuck it over his mouth. He assumed that it would hurt like hell when he had to pull it back off. He put the roll on the nightstand.
Lena came back to bed, but she struggled not to giggle at the sight of her Duck-taped lover and the absurdity of the whole situation. She clapped her hands over her mouth and stifled her laughter until she snorted through her nose, thereby ruining the effect. She rolled over, peeled off her Duck tape, which hurt like hell, and laughed into her pillow while Hal sat shaking his head. He was about to give up on the whole notion of making love with her.
He pulled the piece of used Duck tape out of her hand, rolled it into a ball, and threw it across the room. He tapped her firmly on the shoulder. She took a couple of breaths and turned over to see what he wanted. He handed her the roll of Duck tape, a stern expression on his face.
"Sorry," she whispered. Hal frowned and pointed to the Duck tape.
"Right, I'll just—shit! Sorry," she whispered as she sat up and looked for the end of the tape so she could peel off another piece.
Hal snapped his fingers at her a couple of times to get her attention. She looked up from what she was doing. He calmly lifted his shirt and pulled down his boxers to remind her of what she was supposed to be focusing on. She looked at his erection.
"Wow," she whispered.
She looked at Hal's face, at his beautiful hazel eyes sparkling with silent laughter, at his eyebrows, wickedly arched because he knew he was teasing her, at the tape that twitched from the grin he was hiding. She looked back at his erection. She tossed the roll of Duck tape aside and planted her mouth over his penis before he had a chance to stop her.
Hal jumped like he'd received an electric shock, a move that facilitated her efforts nicely. She slapped a hand over his Duck-taped mouth and pushed him backward. After the first few seconds he lost the will to argue and simply lay back on the bed.
Lena took a few moments to reacquaint herself with Hal's erect penis. It was just as firm, responsive, and delicious as she remembered. Hush woman, my ass, she thought. I'm running this game now. She slowly withdrew her mouth, giving the tip a little extra tickle with her tongue as she left. She kept it firmly gripped in one hand while she leaned up to look at Hal's face, which now had a very different expression.
Hal had nearly jumped out of his skin when her lips touched his cock. He hadn't expected it—why would she give him a favor that he couldn't return? He tried to protest, but the exquisite sensation conspired with his memory of her abilities to quickly overthrow his will. He lay back and surrendered to her. When she moved up to speak to him Hal just looked at her, with the adoration of a peasant for his queen, and agreed to everything she said.
"So," she whispered, "I can't be certain, because we aren't acknowledging any former relationship, but I suspect that you may be enjoying this."
Hal's eyes widened as he nodded vigorously.
"I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing down here until you come or until you open your mouth, whichever happens first. When I'm done here you can attend to me. Does that work for you?"
Hal nodded.
"Does that stay within your limits? Does it put you at risk?"
He nodded 'yes', then shook his head 'no', answering each question as she asked it. She shifted position to get more comfortable and returned her attention to Hal's erection.
"Mmmmm, I've missed this," she said.
Hal grabbed the brass spindles of the headboard with both hands and clenched his jaw to guarantee his silence. It would require greater self-control than he had ever managed as a human. He braced himself for a much more pleasant onslaught than he had demanded a few days earlier.
Lena truly did enjoy Hal's penis. It was her all-time favorite penis, hands' down, bar none. The fact that it was attached to Hal was a delightful added bonus because he had a lot of other fine attributes as a lover. She was disappointed, of course, that she couldn't make use of his penis in her very favorite way, but she was willing to wait until it was safe. In the meantime, she intended to make sure that Hal's penis was well-cared-for. With proper training and attention it should be ready to perform for her on demand by the time she and Hal were ready for it to do so.
First she needed to get his boxers out of the way, which was no problem, as Hal was in great shape and easily able to arch himself off the bed as she engaged appropriate suction and lifted her head. She used her hands to quickly push down his boxers, and then lowered Hal back onto the bed.
Lena spent a few moments fondling Hal's great ass while her hands were in that area because she didn't get the chance very often. He would object to her spending most of her day with a hand down the back of his pants. Not that she had any past history with him to reference on that point.
Lena quickly discovered that vampire Hal enjoyed the same things that human Hal had enjoyed. She knew she was doing well when she saw his toes cross out of the corner of one eye. She monitored the curse as she attended to him, but she saw no sign of change in it, which must mean that his sex drive no longer triggered his bloodlust. They were making progress. The allure of her femininity and her blood in particular were now their only concerns.
As Hal got closer to climax he began to make some very interesting noises behind his Duck tape. Lena paused to check that it was still in place. It looked a bit loose and stretched.
"Hush, man, or we'll never get done with this," she said as she pressed the tape firmly over his mouth. He watched her with a wonderful combination of lust and adoration that sent a tingle right through her. She suspected that she'd be giving him the same look when it was her turn.
Hal managed to keep his tape on but he wasn't able to be completely quiet; Lena decided that moans and deep throaty growls were acceptable under the circumstances. His growls especially turned her on and reminded her that Hal had always held an element of danger, even as a human. It was one of his most exciting qualities. Danger would be part of her relationship with Hal Yorke the vampire as well, no matter how careful they were. His death lay just beneath her skin.
After Hal had come and she had drawn all of his ejaculate from him, she rested her head on his belly and held his softening penis. As she kissed it gently Lena considered once again the contradictions that it held. A penis is such a powerful thing, and yet so fragile, as she had learned during her brief experience with manhood. She no longer cared where Hal's had been or who he may have hurt with it; he had settled that debt in this room when they suffered together through the misery she had brought and he had taken from her.
Hal rested his hand on her head and lightly stroked her hair. "Thank you," he whispered. He had removed the tape from his mouth. It was so badly worn that it didn't hurt nearly as much as he expected.
"You're welcome. My pleasure."
She stirred and sat up. She pulled up his boxers for him and he pulled her into an embrace. They turned on their sides and she snuggled into the hollow of his neck and shoulder.
"I'm sleepy," he murmured into her hair.
"My crotch is soaking wet," she replied pointedly.
He drew back and looked at her. "Perhaps I should investigate," he said. He slid his hand around from her back, over the curve of her hip and down her belly. She shivered with pleasure at his touch.
"Already?" he teased. "I'm not even there yet." He pushed her gently onto her back as he slid his hand down her pants to discover that she was, indeed, soaking wet.
"Wow," he whispered.
Hal planted his mouth over hers in a kiss that felt more like an invasion, but it was a welcome invasion and Lena guessed he was keeping himself occupied and focused in an area that was safe for his attentions. She was right.
Hal wanted badly to plant his mouth on a very dangerous area, so he chose her mouth as a safe alternative. He just had to take care of her before that too became dangerous, as they both knew it could. Happily, Lena had so thoroughly satisfied him that it would take him a little time to recuperate, as it were. He was in no immediate danger of becoming overly aroused by kissing her.
Thanks to his ability to multi-task, his dexterity, and his experience with the female body, vampire Hal was able to please Lena with his hand almost as much as she remembered human Hal pleasing her with his penis. He had her writhing in seconds and exploding with pleasure in less than a minute, beating the time her little gadget took to achieve a less fulfilling release. He kept his hand in her pants and gently played with her as they lay together.
"Do you want another?" he whispered.
She had been watching his darkened curse and knew that he was working to control it for her sake. "I think you've done enough for now," she said.
"You're probably right," he said. "Now my hand is soaking wet. May we use your shirt for cleanup?"
"Of course," she said. Lena sat up, pulled off her t-shirt, and gave it to Hal, then got another shirt and dry panties to put on. He watched her as she stepped out of her pants; this was the first time he had seen her naked in her true form. She was perfect. The smooth strength of her muscles added a nice counterpoint to her luscious curves. There were no protruding bones or harsh angles to mar her graceful lines. Her natural skin tone was a rich, deep gold, a combination of Mesopotamian and angel.
"I could use that shirt if you're done with it," she said.
Hal tossed her the t-shirt and she used it to dry herself before putting on clean panties. She found her pyjama bottoms and put them on also. She got a t-shirt that didn't match, but it no longer mattered. She dropped the dirty t-shirt and panties in the laundry basket and got back into bed.
Hal sat stiffly, with a slight frown on his face. He was in a difficult spot—he had to admit to Lena that the smell of her arousal continued to have a very strong effect on him. He knew that he couldn't sleep next to her safely as long as the scent remained in the room, and washing just himself wouldn't be enough to remove it. He didn't want to offend her by asking her to wash as well, but he saw no way around it. Bugger, he thought. She's going to send me back to my own bed.
He spoke carefully without looking directly at her, and hoped that she would understand. "Please don't take this the wrong way, but I need to wash. Your scent is presenting a challenge."
"I can see that," Lena said as she studied him. "You really do like to devour a woman's genitals, don't you? The lights were out last time so I didn't notice."
"It didn't happen to this extent, but I very carefully avoided your danger zones. You set up excellent restrictions on my access to you, remember? And I left immediately."
"True. Do what you need to, Hal, I'm not fussing," she said. He hesitated as if to say something else. "You need me to wash up too? What about the dirty clothes? Do they need to go?" she offered.
He nodded, clearly relieved that she understood the situation. "I'm sorry to be a bother, but yes, if you don't mind, I would appreciate that as well."
"I'll shower five times a day if it means I can have you safely in my bed," Lena said. "You're worth it."
He relaxed then, and smiled at her as he left the room. Lena pondered the details of their new relationship as she took her clothes downstairs to the laundry. Things had gone to a whole 'nother level of weird and she wasn't sure they would ever find anything resembling normalcy, but she was okay with that.
When Lena returned to her room, Hal was assiduously straightening the covers on the bed. He was also probably making sure the sheets wouldn't present a challenge for him. She quietly got a change of clothes from her bureau and went to the bathroom to wash. She decided that taking extreme measures was better than making him ask her to change again.
When Lena returned to the bedroom he was sitting on the side of the bed, waiting for her. She walked up to him, stood between his knees, and draped her arms around his shoulders. "Am I okay?"
"You are much more than okay," Hal replied as he wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her. He set his ear against her chest and listened to her heartbeat; he felt her kiss the top of his head.
They stayed there quietly for a bit, until Lena pulled away and climbed across the newly-straightened covers to her side of the bed. Hal turned off the light and lay down, and she settled against him with her head on his shoulder. He kissed her forehead as he put an arm around her; this was an old habit being renewed. They fell asleep.
# # #
Later that morning, Alex quietly peeked into Hal's room and looked at his unused bed. "Shite," she muttered, and she quietly peeked next door to see Hal and Lena sleeping together in Lena's room. Alex had lost the bet with Tom. She took £10 to the kitchen and handed it to him without a word. He pocketed it with a grin, but didn't say 'I told you so' because he didn't want to spend the day looking over his shoulder.
Alex had developed the habit of mischievous telekinesis when she was upset. That's what she called it, but Tom called it getting hit in the back of the head with half-eaten biscuits and cleaning rags. He decided that a bouquet of fresh flowers would be the best way to invest his winnings. Not for anyone in particular, just something nice to put on the dining table.