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Inside him, Ben felt Simon’s cock swell as his thrusts lost their smooth rhythm. He was close, so close.
“Now, Ben!” Simon cried out. He’d gone still inside Ben, his body stiff with tension. Then Simon’s grip on Ben’s cock tightened and he stroked it twice more, pulling Ben over the cliff and down into a dizzying freefall where at the bottom, Ben was sure, Simon would be there waiting to catch him.
28
Simon’s Bath Is Interrupted
Wednesday, December 20
Simon’s bedroom
The Gold Coast
Simon woke by slow degrees, his nose buried in the nape of Ben’s sweet neck, where he smelled warm skin, the shampoo from the salon, and a trace of sweat. Simon wanted to never forget the scent. It was all sex and comfort and belonging. Ben was his, but at the same time, he was Ben’s. The slumbering man in his bed held Simon in the palm of his hand.
The next thing Simon noticed was that he was sticky, and in places, crusty. He usually didn’t fall asleep after sex. He never had sex in his own bed. There was a small, but cozy, spare bedroom on his floor with a bed large enough for sex but small enough to discourage lingering. After sex, Simon was used to ceding the bathroom to the lady in question while he dressed. He’d see the lady out, go to his own bedroom, strip out of his soiled clothes and happily throw them into a hamper, then take a shower and slide, fully clean, into an equally clean bed.
That, however, was before. Now, Simon discovered he loved waking up next to Ben. He also, quite desperately, wanted a shower, not to mention a clean bed, but one thing at a time. He slid carefully out of his bed and found the room was chilled. He shivered as he crossed through his dressing room to the bathroom, where he went right to the large bathtub and started filling it with hot water. He used the toilet while it heated up then adjusted the temperature at the tap when it became too hot. He then went back to his dressing room, pulled on a robe, and went back to the bedroom to see if Ben had awakened.
Ben had cocooned himself into the bedding, the only part of him visible the top of his curly head. Simon adjusted the thermostat in the room then started a fire in the fireplace. By the time it was crackling, Ben had lowered the blanket enough to also show his eyes and nose.
“Good morning, sleepy head. Can I tempt you with a hot bath?”
Ben lowered the blanket a bit more, baring his shoulders, then shivered. “I am never getting out of this bed,” he declared, then burrowed back under the covers.
“Suit yourself. But it’s an exceptionally large tub and I have lots of hot water.” Simon felt a pang of disappointment, but only a small one. Ben would be there to snuggle later. For now, Simon wanted to soak away all the fluids that had dried uncomfortably on his skin. After that, he’d take the world’s longest shower, then make breakfast for the two of them. At some point he’d throw Ben under some hot water as well, but for the moment he was content to let him sleep.
Seeing the tub was full, Simon shut the water off and eased himself inside. It felt absolutely wonderful. He rarely used the tub, and at the moment he thought that had been a huge oversight on his part. It was more than long enough for him to stretch out completely and deep enough to expose only his head, if he so chose. He closed his eyes and let himself soak in the hot water. He’d start washing his skin, but in a minute… or three.
Simon woke to a kiss on his lips. “Hey there, Sleeping Beauty.” Simon opened his eyes and saw Ben looking down at him, a crooked smile on his face. “I don’t think it’s safe to fall asleep in the bathtub. Especially not this one. It’s big enough to need a lifeguard.”
“Come in and keep me safe,” Simon coaxed.
“Safetyisimportant.” Ben lifted one slender leg over the edge of the tub and stepped in gingerly. “Water is going to go everywhere when I sit down.”
Simon closed his eyes and shook his head lazily. “Doesn’t matter. There’s a drain in the floor to catch run-off from the tub. Probably so no one accidentally floods the second floor.”
“Like my apartment,” Ben said gloomily.
Simon sighed. “Sit down, Benny. I promise no flooding of any kind will occur. This isn’t like those old cartoons, where you can flood a house by filling up the tub too much.”
Ben sat down carefully, perhaps not quite believing Simon. The water did rise high, but not quite high enough to overflow. “Like what cartoons?”
“You know,” Simon said sleepily, his eyes still closed. “Like Tom and Jerry or Bugs Bunny. Someone turns on a faucet and doesn’t turn it off and suddenly there’s a man-made flood in the house.”
Ben was silent for a few moments then said, “That sounds awful,” in funeral tones.
Simon let out a snort of laughter. “They’re just cartoons. Physics and reality need not apply. Didn’t you watch them when you were a kid? I mean Tom and Jerry and Looney Tunes are before your time, but they’re before my time, too, and I’ve probably seen all of them. They’ve got to be on cable. And the internet.”
“Momma wasn’t a big believer in TV and the only computer I had was the one I used in high school. Mom would watch me while I did my homework on it then she’d confiscate it until the next morning.”
“Oh. That’s…” Simon tried to think of the right word and came up blank. Nothing seemed to fit perfectly, although depressing and weird came to mind.
“My mom,” Ben concluded.
Simon opened his eyes to see Ben sitting at the other side of the tub, knees drawn up under his chin. He looked sad and alone, and Simon had the urge to grab him and hold him tight, but then he got an even better idea.
Standing up, Simon leaned over to the counter where his phone sat.
