From Friends to Lovers

Beth stirred next to me, opening her eyes then immediately screwing them shut against the light. "Too bright..."

She turned over. "Oh -- where's Francesca?"

I indicated a folded piece of paper in the empty space on the bed. "Looks like she left us a note."

Beth picked it up, reading aloud. "I'm not much for goodbyes, and I know we'll see each other again. Thank you so much for everything, take care. F."

She passed the note to me. "She's put an address, and a phone number."

Beth grinned. "So we have somewhere to send our first wedding invite."

She looked around the room. "'Cesca's left the grappa for us, anyway."

I couldn't help a quiet chuckle, and Beth caught her bottom lip between her teeth. "Was I really terrible last night? It's all a bit fuzzy."

"You were fine," I reassured. "Slightly more uninhibited, maybe."

I grinned. "And definitely funny, and sweet."

Beth leaned over to kiss me, smiling softly. "That's OK, then. Maybe once in a while we can enjoy ourselves the same way, just the two of us."

Her smile turned into a mischievous grin. "Francesca left something else behind, actually."

I looked around the room for some item of clothing, or an overlooked piece of jewellery, and Beth shook her head, her eyes dancing. "Not even warm."

She pulled back the covers. "I love the way you're always hard in the morning -- it's like an invitation, I might not always take advantage but it's nice to know it's there."

She moved down to brush me with her tongue. "Oh, yes, I can definitely taste her. And your stuff too."

She continued to use her tongue on me, then looked up. "Hey -- how am I ever going to finish this if you keep leaking?"

I chuckled. "Well, there are a couple of obvious ways."

"Later," Beth promised. She moved back up to kiss me, and I breathed in, picking up a faint aroma of Francesca. "Mm..."

"So," Beth's voice was more decisive. "It's our last day, too -- what shall we do?"

I glanced at the sliding doors. "I can't believe we've spent so little time in the pool."

I thought for a moment. "Or we could go back to the garden, there might be some more strawberries."

Beth shook her head. "Let's go somewhere we've not been before. Then we can swim before dinner."

"OK."

I pulled out the tourist guide, looking for something not too far from the town. "How about this?"

Beth looked where I was pointing. "Oh, yes, that sounds interesting."

She got to her feet. "If we shower before breakfast, we can get going straight afterwards."

"Want me to help?" I queried.

"Always," Beth smiled softly.

When we were ready, we made our way to the dining room, and Beth looked at the empty chair beside her wistfully. "Maybe we could do this every year, 'Cesca could come over in the summer?"

"Sure."

After breakfast, we walked to the car, and Beth slid into the passenger seat. "OK, let's go."

We left the town, the road continuing past the bluff, then onto the flatter countryside beyond. After a while Beth pointed ahead of us. "That must be it."

A futuristic dome rose high in the air, surrounded by flowering bushes and a few low buildings. I pulled into the car park, and we walked towards the ticket office. "Two, please," I smiled at the girl behind the desk.

She took my card, handing it back with a receipt, and we made our way towards the entrance, the two sets of doors feeling almost like an airlock. "We could imagine this is like an ark ship," Beth suggested. "You remember that old film we saw?"

"Oh, yes -- Silent Running, wasn't it?"

The inside doors closed behind us, the atmosphere suddenly much warmer, moist, droplets of water forming on our skin. I walked to the first display board, reading the description of the huge ferny plant which arched up from the green water.

"Look," pointed Beth, "butterflies."

The delicately-painted creatures flitted from leaf to leaf, one flying low enough to almost brush through Beth's hair, and she looked at me in delight. "So pretty -- thanks, Tim, this was a really good idea."

"Something even more amazing," I pointed. Ahead of us there was a flat shelf fixed to one of the handrails, and on it a dish filled with some clear liquid, teaspoons on a saucer.

"What's it for?" queried Beth.

"Watch."

I picked up a spoon, filling it with liquid and cupping my hand round it, lifting it a little way into the air. After a few seconds there was a hum of wings, and a tiny iridescent bird perched on my fingers, claws gripping with the slightest of pressure as the creature bent to dip its beak. "Oh!" exclaimed Beth, leaning closer. "It has a tiny brush on the end of its tongue."

I nodded. "They really love the sugar water."

Beth hesitated. "Do you think it's OK if I..."

She dipped a finger into the water, and blinked as another bird flew in almost too fast to see, perching and using its brushed tongue to catch the droplet of sweetness from Beth's fingertip. "It feels amazing," Beth breathed.

After a few moments the birds flew off, and Beth smiled. "Definitely we can do that again later. Let's see what else there is."

We strolled through the dome, coming to a doorway leading to a darkened area. "Wonder what's in there?" queried Beth.

We entered, waiting for our eyes to adjust a little. Behind glass panels we could see a simulated habitat, trees and bushes, with flat trays of chopped fruit on low poles. "I don't see any animals?" Beth puzzled.

I stepped closer, looking around the whole enclosure. "Oh!"

"What?" Beth asked, coming to my side.

I pointed upwards. "There they are."

She looked into the shadows. "Oh, yes."

Hanging upside down from the ceiling were several dark shapes, leathery wings folded, dark beady eyes catching what light there was. "I'm glad they're only the fruit-eating ones," Beth whispered. "There are bats that really drink blood, aren't there?"

I nodded. "In America -- they don't usually go after people, though."

I glanced around, seeing no-one else nearby, and moved my hand to cup Beth's bottom through her jeans. She smiled, raising one eyebrow. "Can't keep your hands off me?"

"Well, nobody will see," I murmured. She turned to face me, and I slid my fingers inside the front of her jeans, far enough for my fingertips to touch warm wetness. Beth leaned forward to kiss me hungrily, and I moved my other hand to stroke her breasts, deliberately brushing the pad of my thumb over each nipple in turn. "God, Tim," she gasped. "I can't believe how quickly that gets me wanting you."

"We didn't park near anyone else," I recalled. "Want to go back to the car, behave like a couple of teenagers in the back seat?"

She took a deep breath, and smiled. "Not yet, maybe. But you can tease me a little anytime you want."

"What if someone sees?" I teased. "Not everywhere's as private as this."

Beth grinned, giving a shrug. "Up to you."

I withdrew my hand from her jeans, and Beth tugged at her top to straighten it. "No tell-tale signs," she winked.

"Apart from the colour of your cheeks and the slightly distracted expression," I pointed out with a smile.

"True enough... OK, how about we see what we can get for lunch?"

We made our way back out through the airlock, and Beth shivered a little. "It feels almost cold after the warmth in there."

I glanced down, seeing her nipples pressing visibly through her thin top. "I'd warm those up if I could."

"Later," Beth promised. "We can always go and visit the bats again," she grinned.

There was a small café in one of the wooden buildings, and Beth looked at the menu board. "Maybe soup and a roll? And they have some amazing cake, look."

We took our time over lunch, then walked slowly around the rest of the site looking at the different attractions. "Wow," Beth exclaimed. "I've never seen such huge goats."

"Don't go too close to the llamas," I cautioned. "I hear they spit if they feel like it."

There was a large aviary near the entrance, and Beth walked closer to the wire to look. A grey parrot with bright eyes sidled closer to her on its branch, and Beth glanced at me. "Would it be OK to stroke it?"

"I think they like that," I nodded.

She slid a finger gingerly through the wire, and the parrot submitted to her fingertip pushing into the feathers at its neck, closing its eyes in obvious enjoyment. "That feels really weird," grinned Beth. "Mostly it's really soft, but every so often I feel one of the quills."

The parrot would have accepted Beth's attention all day, but finally she drew her hand back reluctantly. "OK, little one, that's enough."

"Want to go back into the dome?" I queried.

"Sure. Didn't they say there was an ant colony, and then some snakes?"

We returned to the tropical heat, and Beth glanced at me. "We should go somewhere really hot one time," she suggested, her voice giving away that she had more in mind than just sunbathing. "I can imagine us in some jungle lodge, only sheets on the bed, no covers, and a fan turning slowly above us as you thrust into me, both of us dripping with sweat but not caring."

I fanned my face. "That's hot in so many ways."

Beth just chuckled as she walked away, swinging her hips and looking over her shoulder at me. "Come on."

We watched the busy activity of the ants for a while, then moved on to the glass enclosures housing the snakes. "I know it means feathers really, but how would you feel if I had a real boa draped over my shoulders?" Beth wondered.

I grinned. "That would depend on whether you were wearing anything else at all."

Beth managed to look shocked and intrigued at the same time. "OK, that's definitely got me thinking."

Finally we'd seen everything the dome held -- "That plastic skeleton in the piranha tank is a bit creepy," shuddered Beth -- and we made our way back to the car.

"Back to the hotel for dinner?" I queried.

"OK."

We set off, starting to re-trace our route, and after a few minutes Beth said, "Tim? Can we pull over at the next parking spot?"

I slowed down, looking for a blue sign. "OK, one's coming up."

The turn sloped downwards a little into the lay-by, a patch of woodland between us and the road, and Beth grinned. "Perfect."

"You, ah, need to pee?" I queried, wondering why Beth hadn't used the facilities at the café.

She shook her head, but got out of the car anyway, stepping onto the grass. I looked puzzled as she opened the rear passenger door, sliding into the back seat. "Come on," she grinned, rolling her eyes. "You're not usually so slow on the uptake."

The penny dropped. "Oh, I see..." I chuckled, getting in beside her, closing the door.

She tilted her face upwards for a kiss, and as our lips met, she put her hand behind my neck, her body arching to press against mine. "You really got me wanting you while we were out," she murmured. "But I kind of like the frustration when it's too public to do anything. Is that weird of me?"

"I don't think so...? And if you're going to jump on me the moment we can get some privacy, I'll definitely dare those touches, whisper naughty things."

I moved my lips closer to her ear, gently blowing warm air then dabbing my tongue into it, and her reaction was to moan, then feel for my hand, moving it to press against her mound through her jeans. "Oh, yes."

I kissed her again, our tongues tangling, Beth's breathing quickening as I slid my fingers inside her jeans as I'd done in the semi-dark. She was as wet as before, and I brushed her hard nub, getting a gasp. Beth's fingers worked, undoing buttons, zip, and she pushed at her jeans, sliding them down to her knees. Her panties next, the cotton stretched between her thighs, and my fingers had access to her. Her mouth was urgent on mine as I slid first one then two fingers inside, and I blinked in surprise as I felt Beth slide her hand down to touch herself. "Always said we should do this," she whispered, then tilted her head back with a moan. "Oh god, that feels nice."

She slipped the straps of her top, then of her bra, off her shoulders, pulling them down to reveal her breasts. "If I was with anyone else but you, I'd feel like such a slut right now."

I bent to tongue the nearest nipple, then suckled softly, starting to move my fingers in her. She carried on touching herself, and I watched as her fingers sometimes circled, sometimes pressed down to a flex of her hips. "Mm -- oh -- oh god --" her release was obviously close, and I remembered something Francesca had done the previous day, using my teeth to ever-so-carefully nip at her. Beth's response was immediate, tilting her head back with a shuddering gasp, fingertips pressed into herself, her muscles rippling around my penetrating fingers. "Ahhh..."

She barely had time to recover when we both heard the sound of tyres crunching on gravel, another car pulling up a few yards behind us. Beth threw me a delighted grin, quickly sliding up her top and bra, then pulling her panties and jeans back into place. "Perfect timing, and nobody would have any idea."

"We're still in the back seat," I pointed out with a raised eyebrow.

"Pooh -- we're having a picnic or something," Beth riposted with a smile. "Pass me that bottle of water."

She unscrewed the lid, drinking deeply. "Thanks."

The other car pulled away again, and Beth grinned triumphantly. "See, no problem."

She looked at me meaningfully. "So, your turn?"

I shook my head, and her expression turned puzzled. "I'm enjoying the anticipation," I chuckled softly. "And --"

I hesitated, and Beth pinched me teasingly. "What?"

I felt my cheeks warming. "Well, what Francesca said -- the longer I wait, and the more time I spend pleasing you first, the more of my stuff there is when I finally get there."

Beth's eyes widened a little, and she shivered with anticipated pleasure. "When you put it like that," she smiled knowingly. "OK -- I think I hear that pool calling to me."

I watched her get back into the front of the car, the seatbelt crossing her breasts, and wondered if I shouldn't have let her indulge me. But it was too late to change my mind, and I slid behind the wheel, starting the car. We drove the rest of the way back to the hotel, and Beth put on her bikini. "Have you actually used your trunks yet?" she teased.

She watched as I changed, then put her hand lightly on the front of my trunks. "I'll try not to get you excited while we swim," she grinned, "I'm sure people would notice."

I slid back the glass door, letting Beth go ahead of me into the pool area. There were quite a few other guests using the pool, and we slipped into the water where it was shallowest, Beth setting off towards the deep end with a lazy breast stroke.

I propped myself on the edge of the pool, kicking my legs slowly and looking around. There were some other couples enjoying the water together, and I wondered to myself whether their relationships held a similar passion to mine and Beth's.

She swam back towards me. "Come on, lazybones. Race you this time."

I set off using my best front crawl, but Beth beat me easily, and she rolled her eyes. "Maybe we should join a gym, get you a bit more fit."

I pretended a strongman pose, and she pinched the muscles of my arm. "Oh, you're so strong," she simpered, breaking into a fit of giggles. "Humph," I managed, and she quickly glanced around then kissed me. "Only kidding."

We swam back to the shallow end, and I flashed an eyebrow at her. "Want to play a game?"

"Sure."

"Move your feet apart a little," I suggested, and Beth complied. I took a deep breath, and plunged beneath the water, swimming through the arch formed by her legs, then turning without surfacing and swimming back. On both passes I 'accidentally' brushed the place between her thighs, and when I surfaced, Beth's eyes were dancing. "Oh, I could think of so many other games we could play in the water."

"Well, we have tonight, and then first thing tomorrow," I reminded her.

I glanced at the clock on the wall. "You had enough swimming? It's getting towards time for dinner."

We showered together, and I watched Beth put on her pale blue dress -- "What else for our last evening?" she smiled.

"What would you like to eat?"

"Can we go back to the Indian place?" she requested.

"Of course. Another penguin?"

"Well, Percy needs someone to be with too," she grinned.

Our meal was just as delicious as the previous time, and Beth wrapped the sticky plastic toy in a hanky, slipping it into her handbag. "I'll rinse it when we get home."

On the way back to the hotel, we stopped to sit for a minute or two on a bench -- "Somehow I don't want anything to be over too quickly now," mused Beth -- and watched a bat fluttering round the street light, catching flies. "Oo, there's another," Beth pointed, and we watched as the two swooped and dived, circling one another. "Maybe they're mates too," I suggested.

Beth flashed her eyebrows at me. "Hmm -- that makes me think... Mating sounds sort of animal, doesn't it, by instinct, not really thinking, just letting it happen."

She grinned. "Bet we could think of something that felt like that."

I shifted on the bench. "Suddenly I'd quite like to be back in our room," I chuckled softly, and Beth got to her feet, holding out her hands to pull me up. "Me too."

The door of our room closed behind us, and Beth lifted her arms to let me slip her dress over her head, then unhook her bra, slide her panties off. "Now we can do whatever we want."

I felt tears unexpectedly pricking at my eyes. "Beth, I love you. The last few days have been the most incredible of my life -- thank you so much."

I kept my eyes on her face as I shed my own clothes. "Let's just get into bed and cuddle for a little while."

Beth pulled the covers back, lying down on her side. I slid behind her, reaching to turn out the light and covering us both with the duvet. I wrapped my arms around her, cupping her breasts but keeping my hands still, and I heard the smile in her voice. "I know we can both be pretty 'right now' sometimes, can't we, but I love it when you're tender like this, too."

She snuggled back against me, her hair soft against my cheek. "You don't need to do anything, I'm still wet for you whenever you're ready."

Despite my best intentions, her promise stirred me to flex my hips gently against her bottom, and she smiled again, drawing her knees up a little. "Take your time..." she whispered.

I reached down, using my fingers to move my hard tip back and forth just within her entrance, getting a soft murmur of pleasure from Beth. On impulse I moved back a little, pressing my now-slippery tip against her rear opening, and she breathed in, the breath catching slightly in her throat. "Yes, if you want..."

"One time soon," I promised, moving myself back to her warm wetness and pressing in just a little further. I returned my fingers to her breast, remaining still, and Beth relaxed. "Love to feel you in me."

Slowly, gradually, I moved further into her, until finally our bodies were completely joined, and she shifted again, stretching out her legs a little. "Mmm..."

She reached back to hook an arm around my neck, her breasts lifting a little as her back arched, and again my determination to prolong this part of our intimacy was tested, my fingers flexing a little to press my palms against her nipples. The warmth and wetness around me increased, and Beth pushed back ever so slightly into me. I couldn't help myself, beginning to move a little, and I felt Beth's other hand on my hip. "Yes, love."

I started to flex my hips, Beth's breathing still even but her nipples hardening perceptibly against my palms. "Don't worry about taking me along with you," she murmured. "This afternoon was intense enough for me, now all I want is to be in your arms when you get there and to feel you when you finish..."