Carnival Ch. 01

"Daniel Fischer, here to check in."

"Okay, give me one second to look up your roo...oh my."

He watched the hostess' expression change and become pale. Her sudden distress made her look tired and it was evident that she was nearing the end of a very long shift; complications with room reservations and an upset guest were the last things she needed.

"I am so sorry sir, but there seems to have been a mix-up with your reservation."

"What!?!" His anticipation turned to intense dismay, "What do you mean a mix-up? I reserved my room, and one other, six months ago!"

"I understand that sir, and I sincerely apologize for the mix up. Let me take a look at your account and see what I can do." she started typing vigorously attempting to find the cause of the problem and a solution that would ease Danny's panic.

"It looks like the other room you reserved has already been checked into..."

"I know that miss, my friend texted me to let me know she was here."

"Okay..."

The awkward pause that followed prompted him to continue.

"I don't know why you have that look on your face but we are just friends!" The moment the words passed from his lips he knew he'd overreacted and was being unnecessarily defensive. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. You're just trying to do your job."

"Sir, I see here that you did in fact reserve two rooms, but for some reason the system cleared the reservation for your second room at the time the first was checked into and another guest has checked into that room already. I sincerely apologize."

"So, are there any other rooms that I can check into?"

"I am truly sorry sir but, no. I can however compensate you for the first room for the first three days of your stay, and I can give you a room key to that room. There is only one bed, but the suite comes fully furnished with a sectional couch..." She let the implication hang without actually stating that perhaps the current occupant would allow him to stay.

Danny stood at the front desk bewildered. This looked bad. There he was, responsible for reserving two rooms on a trip with a married female friend, during which there just happened to be a mix-up with said rooms and now they were stuck sharing a room!

Oh Jesus, she's going to think I'm a total creep. What do I do now? Maybe I can just find another room at a different hotel. You idiot, this is Carnival! Every hotel for miles is fully booked. Maybe a hostel ... or fucking Craigslist...

"Sir," the soft voice of the hostess roused him from his spiraling thoughts.

"Um, I guess that will work," he gulped as he replied.

As she readied the key he pulled out his phone and began texting Lilly.

'Hey! So...funny thing happened,' he began to write.No; that sounds suspicious.

"Here you are, sir. Enjoy your stay."

He took the key with a muted thank you. Then turned and began to walk to the elevator, deep in thought. He began another text 'I am sooooo sorry, but there has been a mix-up with the rooms. My room has been given to someone else, can you believe that! $730 bucks a night you'd think they could keep their reservations straight!'No. Too aggressive; try again.

'Hey Lilly. I am checking into the hotel now. I am so sorry but there has been a mix-up with the rooms and they have given my room to someone else. I am headed up to your room now and we can talk and figure out where to go from here. I will start calling around to the other hotels to find an opening. If nothing else, I can rent a car and sleep there if I can't find another hotel with an available room. Be there in a moment. Danny.' The elevator doors opened just as he sent the message. He stepped inside, his mind filled with frenzied thoughts of how to solve this problem while still leaving his options open with Lilly.

The elevator came to a halt and the doors opened. He took a deep breath. He had played out every possible way this could go, on the ride up, and for each situation he had prepared a response. It was now time to face the issue. Head on. He walked uneasily down the hall, and finally reached the door to Suite 49.

Inside the suite, Lilly's phone beeped at her from the mainroom. Without any hesitation she hopped out of the shower and ran dripping wet around the corner to check her phone; forgetting a towel, and leaving the water running.

Just outside the door, Danny had let his duffle settle onto the floor next to his right-foot and taking a deep breath he slid the room key down the slot, pushing down on the door latch as the green light indicated the door had unlocked. As it pushed open he heard the sound of the shower running.

Oh god, oh god, oh god!Danny panicked. He hadn't thought of this situation! He was left unprepared, realizing he now seemed to be breaking into his friend's room while she was in the shower! The situation could not have been more awkward, or dire, for him.

"Uh, hey Lilly. It's Danny."

What the fuck is going on!?!Lilly stood frozen, dripping on the floor while holding her still locked phone, contemplating the possibilities of what was happening. She immediately recognized the voice as the one from the other end of the mic.But what the fuck is Danny doing in my fucking room?Anger and embarrassment caused her lightly freckled cheeks to blush. She did not yet answer him.

"Hey, it's Danny. Um, Lilly did you get my text?" This time he spoke a little louder.Maybe she didn't hear me the first time.

His text?Lilly snapped out of her stupor and looked down at her phone. Reading it, she at once felt reassured that he had not intentionally broken into her room in order to see her naked. It was suddenly much less creepy, and much more awkward. A few moments passed before she finally piped up,

"You can either get in, or get out but that door's got to close."

"Oh of course!" Danny took a quick step forward without even thinking and closed the door.

At the sound of the door latching shut she breathed a sigh of relief, placed her phone back down on the bed and stepped around the corner to head back to the shower.

"Oh! Oh my god!" She screamed.

She had not expected him to actually step INTO the room! Her hands moved frantically to cover herself and Danny looked wildly from side to side attempting to avoid eye contact but finding it very difficult to redirect his attention. In all of the confusion, his eyes made the decision for him and his gaze settled again on her while he half-turned away.

She faced him the corners of her lips turned up just slightly as she stood there subconsciously allowing him to examine her. He feasted on the vision of her.

Even with his half-look he could see she was of average height, with fair skin, her hair falling just past her creamy shoulders. Little droplets of water trickled down her body in tiny rivulets flowing over her supple breasts; which were poorly hidden by her slender arm. Her sides gently curved and shaped her body down to her hourglass hips. She was by no means overweight, but she wasn't sickly thin either. From beneath her smooth flat stomach her toned core muscles were just barely visible, flexing and twitching with little shivers around the tiny little hole of her belly button. The neatly trimmed, fiery red heart resting just above her slit was the only hair visible on her aside from her head. She had crossed her long legs in her attempt to cover herself, revealing how toned and smooth they were. In most respects her physique fit within the normal aesthetic for that of a healthy young woman; however, she excelled in the matter of her looks by virtue of her shockingly beautiful face. The thumbnail picture in her Guild profile, hadn't done her justice. He gazed at her gently angled jaw, which under the circumstances was currently set rather tensely. As she stood, exposed to Danny, her blush colored lips slightly pursed together, which revealed her delicate dimples just below high rounded cheeks which were flushed a little with embarrassment. The crest of her small nose ran up straight and then curved into finely shaped eyebrows The clarity of her bright blue eyes reminded him of Crater Lake, a place to which he'd traveled years ago. Danny stood breathless as he stared at her for few long seconds.

It was like they'd set a film to freeze on a frame: they both stood motionless. Lilly too had emotions to deal with, as, for the first time since she had left her home, she found herself genuinely considering the real possibility of falling for Nate; the realization of which, hit her like a switch. She now could actually see it happening. The air was rapidly cooling her wet skin and, as goosebumps prickled up across her and shivers coursed through her body, she piped up:

"I'm glad someone likes what they are seeing... but you're staring."

"Oh right, I'm sorry." He jerked his head and looked away stepping into the corner using his hand as a visor to block his peripheral view of her. She stepped hurriedly past him and ran into the bathroom closing the door behind her. The now excited redhead hurried to finish her shower and dry off. She threw on a fresh t-shirt and shorts which she had pulled out of her bags before her shower, and wrapped a towel around her wet hair to wring most of the water out. All the while weighing the possibility of cheating.On the one hand my marriage is a joke and Henry doesn't care about me anyway, so what would it matter? On the other, that would make me a cheater, and I would probably go to hell for it.

Meanwhile Danny had taken a seat on the sectional resting there in a state of semi-shock. Upon hearing the door of the bathroom open, he lurched forward and rested his head on his steepled hands, while adjusting his hips awkwardly out of immediate view. He looked, to Lilly, like a man who was deeply torn on what to do next. She noticed his movements and it filled her with compassion for her friend who was clearly still making a big deal out of something she knew had been merely an innocent accident. She decided to clarify to him that it was all just water under the bridge. Calmly and confidently she stepped over to the couch and sat next to him. Her hand rested on his knee as she began,

"Hey I'm sorry about that, it was so...awkward. It's okay though, I know you didn't mean to burst in here like that..." Her words trailed off as she suddenly noticed the rather impressive tenting of his shorts. His movement hadn't been a shame move, but rather a tactical one intended to hide his rather prominent erection.Oh my!

"Well! I'm glad I can get someone's blood pumping!" she joked lightly. No sooner had the words reached his ears, than she removed her hand from his leg and retreated to her own personal space, slipping her clasped hands between her thighs and tucking her knees.I should not have said that.

Seizing the opportunity given to him to plant a seed for later; he lifted his head looked intently into her eyes,

"Oh, you most certainly do."

She looked up at him and flashed him a shy little smile. Suddenly, she slapped his leg and announced,

"Well, let's go get something to eat, I'm starving." Then and there she had decided to see where this thing would take her; knowing that if he went for it, she would not stop him.

Dinner

The elevator moved down rapidly and then came to a nearly abrupt halt at lobby level. Lilly could feel her stomach churn as if she had been riding a roller-coaster, although she couldn't quite tell if it was entirely because of the elevator or because Danny was standing next to her grinning like a dork. The elevator doors opened, and she gave a playful tug on his shirt as she exited the elevators.

"Come on!"

With a skip in her step she walked toward one of the four gourmet restaurants which the hotel boasted of.

Danny, pursuing her down the hall towards the lobby, was impressed by the gorgeous redhead's ability to move past the awkward moment they'd shared moments ago, with such effortless charm. He watched as her giddy little smile light up her face and her eyes twinkled with excitement as they strode into the restaurant overlooking Copacabana beach.

God, she is unbelievably cute.He reveled in how luck had come through and he was in this amazingly beautiful place with this alluringly adorable woman.

They were quickly seated and then left alone to review the menu. As they did so, their conversation took an uncomfortable turn. Now, sitting face to face they weren't certain how exactly to talk to each other. His thoughts were consumed with an overwhelmingly strong desire to take her away and an equally strong desire not to ruin their friendship. Her thoughts, heavy from the unexpected gravity of her desire to be with him and the consequences of that, monopolized her attention and delayed her responses. For months they had freely talked via the computer now, stripped of that interface and consumed by inner dialogues, each word now labored to pass their lips. Hopelessly afraid to say the wrong thing, their conversation stalled after a few uneasy pleasantries.

It was Danny who finally steered the conversation to their MMO. Gaming was a comfortable and familiar topic and soon they found the effortlessness of their cyber interactions return. As dinner progressed they laughed and playfully teased each other, and before they knew it two hours had passed. The waitress had begun subtly to encourage them to move their conversation to the bar. They reluctantly complied, and moved to perch on stools at a tall table in the nearby bar area.

"Can I get you two anything to drink?"

"Oooh yes please! Umm.." she thumbed through the drink menu " Ooh how about Sex On The Beach," she said turning and giving Danny a playful wink.

"Okay, and how about you sir?"

"I'd gladly take a Blow Job," he looked at Lilly closely examining her reaction. She grinned and lowered her eyes to his chest, her cheeks flushed slightly with embarrassment. "On second thought I better make that a Blue Sidecar."

"Alright, I'll be back in a moment with those."

As the barkeep walked away to fill their order, she turned to him, her playful confidence restored.

"Blow Job huh?"

He grinned and his cheeks warmed, turning a slight pinkish color.Seed two.He could see the idea he had planted, start to grow in Lilly's mind so he quickly changed the subject, knowing better than to be too forward.Patience.

They continued their conversation and with each drink she became more and more friendly, and began taking every opportunity to touch him.

"You're such a ri-tard," she teased and softly pushed his shoulder.

"Hey, I'm not the one who just said riii-tard, instead of retard!" he taunted back.

Her head fell back and she laughed. The sound was like honey on his ears. Sweet and earthy, naturally emanating from deep within her chest, he found himself craving it. To satiate his craving, he continued mocking her flirtatiously and she continued playfully abusing him.

He made another joke hoping to elicit another hearty laugh, but was surprised when her chuckle ended with her hand blithely resting on his. The moment could have been just another brief flirtatious touch, until she paused. His seed had blossomed. Her hand sat gently on his, fingers falling neatly between his thumb and forefinger with her thumb resting on the top of his hand. Applying no pressure and making no attempt to hold his hand, her hand paused for a split second. He looked up to her face as if to ask:Are you sure?

Their eyes met and she answered his question with a glimmering look:Go for it.

He grasped the tips of her fingers in his palm and gazed intently at her, waiting for her to pull back. She did not move, but rather squeezed back. Now, knowing that she had followed his breadcrumbs, he acted. Without another word he smiled, left the money for the tab, got up from the table, and gently pulled her with him. She followed quietly, trailing behind him as if tethered to him by their entwined hands. As they walked out of the bar towards the lobby he pulled her closer into him, closing the distance between them, and his hand moved protectively around her waist. She grinned. He guided her wordlessly towards the elevator where she pushed the button. They looked up and watched the numbers on the display count down...3,2,1,L. The doors opened and they stepped inside. There was no need to talk on the ride up, instead he snuggled her closer and rested his cheek affectionately on her head.

They strode towards their room hand in hand. Once they reached the suite, she watched him pull out his keycard and as the door clicked open, he turned the door handle. The door clicked open and he turned the door handle. Lilly felt him place a hand in the middle of her back gently guiding her chivalrously into the room ahead of him. As the door latched shut behind Danny, she spun around to face him fully expecting him to volley toward her like an animal pouncing on it's next meal.

"It's been a long day. I think I'm going to take a shower."

"Oh." she blurted out; baffled at what was happening.Did I misread his intention?She stood against the couch, rigidly watching him get undressed.What is the appropriate thing to do here?

"Sooo, we going to do this?" Danny's voice chimed out from beneath his shirt as he leaned down pulling it off his shoulders and moving to unfasten his shorts.

"Oh, uh, I already took a shower," she said awkwardly.

"I know." A coy little grin broke across his face. He nodded at her as if to direct her to strip.

He slipped off his shorts and socks and stood up. His broad cock twitched and pulsed as blood rushed into it. It nearly doubled in length and gained at least half an inch in girth while she stood frozen, eyes fixed on him. Her gaze moved upward from his groin along his body, admiring his smooth stomach, broad shoulders and strong arms and finally she found herself looking up at his grinning face. He turned and walked into the bathroom to turn on the shower.

Lilly tore off her clothes, throwing them unceremoniously onto the floor. The running shower was clearly audible along with the sound of shower hooks sliding along the cold metal rod. As she glided into the bathroom toward the shower she heard the little click of a shampoo bottle opening.

Who lathers up for shower sex? Maybe we are just taking a shower together?Her confusion again forced her to feel wrong-footed. She pulled back the curtain and stepped to the rear of the shower. Not sure of the protocols for mutual showers with no sex, she stood at the back of the shower aroused, nipples hard as pebbles, just watching his muscular back ripple and flex as he leaned forward and dipped his head in and out of the running shower head.

"You gonna come over here?"

Confident now that he wanted her to touch him, she moved close to him sliding her hands seductively beneath his arms and up along his chest, resting her cheek against the hollow between his shoulder blades. Her whetted nipples pressed into his back and pressed her pelvis against his muscular ass. He did not reciprocate, but rather continued, with great discipline, to finish washing his hair. Having had enough of the games and losing patience in her excited state, she began to experiment, moving her hands over his chest and across his stomach. She searched for the trigger that would break his restraint and unleash his affections.

Danny closed his eyes, shivers running down his spine, as kisses flickered across his back and soft hands lathered with shampoo suds slid over his torso. Her hands moved lower and lower toward his cock and the overwhelming desire to make love to her built within him, but still he resisted. His veiny shaft throbbed and stood completely erect, almost reaching for her hand. She was going to touch him first, he would make sure of it. There was something powerful in making her come to him, in the subtle control his restraint elicited. So with tremendous effort he held.