At The Hotel

By 3am, they were back in the hotel and all piled into the elevator. Jennifer went with Gail to her room to help her pack up her stuff, and they went up to Jennifer’s suite. Gail hip checked her in the hallway. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me that they were staying right up here on the same fucking floor with you.”

They went into Jennifer’s suite, and about a minute after the door shut, there was a light knock. The girls had just kicked off their shoes and sat down. Groaning, Jennifer got up and padded to the door. She looked out the peephole, and smiled. “We’ve got company,” she said over her shoulder, and opened the door. Richie and David were standing there, grinning.

“Hey Gail,” Richie said over Jennifer’s shoulder. “Can I borrow Jennifer for a little while? I brought you a blonde substitute. It’ll be like Jen’s still here.”

“Fuck you man,” David said, laughing.

Gail’s eyes went wide. “Sure,” she said finally. “Ha--Jennifer is coming back, right?”

Richie just smiled. “Possibly,” he said.

As Jennifer was led from the room, she heard David ask Gail, “Why do you call her Hath?”

She groaned. “I certainly hope Gail can make up a good story,” Jennifer said. “Otherwise, I’m gonna have to out her David story, and she won’t be happy with me.”

“Jesus, she writes, too?” Richie shook his head. “No, I don’t want to talk about that,” he said. “I want to talk about this.” He swept Jennifer into his arms and crushed her to him. Just before he captured his mouth with hers, he growled, “I wanted to do this from the second I walked out on stage and saw you. You look delicious.” He took her mouth with a force that had Jennifer weak in the knees. She grabbed for Richie’s shoulders, and he walked them backwards until she was pressed up against the wall.

His kisses clouded her brain, and she couldn’t think. She knew there was some reason she wanted to resist, but for the life of her, she couldn’t figure out what it was. When Richie’s fingers found the twin buttons in the middle of her vest, she pressed back harder against the wall to give him better access to unfasten them. He got the buttons undone and spread open the sides of her vest, pulling back from her mouth to look at her.

“You are so beautiful, Jennifer,” he said, leaning in to kiss her neck. He trailed hard, sucking kisses down her neck to her inked breast. Taking her nipple into his mouth, he groaned, the vibrations making her sigh and gasp. Richie kissed his way across to the other breast, and tasted its peak. Jennifer threaded her fingers into his hair and raised his head so she could kiss him. Her tongue dueling with his, Jennifer fumbled with the few buttons done up on his paisley shirt, but finally got it open. She tentatively touched his skin, fascinated by the warmth and silky smoothness she found there. She pulled him close to her so they were skin-on-skin, and she moaned into Richie’s mouth. He pressed his still-growing erection into her, and she ground against him, purring like a cat.

Richie tore his mouth from hers. “I’ve been dying to make you make that noise since that day in bed when you stretched after your nap.” He was panting, and his eyes had turned the color of midnight. “God, please, do it again,” he said, and ground into her. She purred again and nearly screamed when there was an insistent banging on the door.

“Ignore it,” Richie said. “It’s just one of them being an ass.” He’d just touched his lips to hers again when the pounding came; this time accompanied by a voice. It was David.

“Rich, Gail needs Jennifer,” David’s voice said. “Christ, I’m sorry, but please, man.” He sounded panicked, and Richie stepped back.

Jennifer quickly did up the buttons on her vest and ran to the door. “What did you do?” she accused when she tore the door open. She sprinted the ten steps to her own door and burst in, David and Richie right behind her. Gail was sitting on the balcony, quietly crying.

“I didn’t do anything,” David insisted. “We were talking, getting to know each other, and we touched on our marriages and she looked sad, so I hugged her, and she curled into me and God help me, I kissed her, and she got this look on her face and started to cry.”

Richie would have made some sort of remark to David about driving women to tears if he didn’t see the look on Jennifer’s face. She was sympathetic, and put a hand on David’s arm. “It’s not you. She loved her husband very much,” she told him, “and it nearly did her in when he died. I’ll take care of her. You guys get some sleep.” She looked ruefully at Richie, who smiled sheepishly at her. She mouthed, “Call you later,” to Richie, who nodded, and led his friend from the room.

She stood at the doorway to the balcony, and looked at her friend. “Gail, honey, are you okay?”

“I’m so fucking sorry, Jen,” she said, turning a tear-stained face to face her.

“Don’t be stupid,” Jennifer said. Taking a deep breath, she took a tentative step out onto the balcony. Two more, and she could touch the chaise Gail was sitting on. One more after that, and she could sit on the foot of the chair next to her. Jennifer did that, and gathered her teary-eyed friend into her arms. They sat there for a long time, just looking out over the city, until the first rays of sunlight started to creep over the landscape.

“You think you could sleep?” Jennifer asked her. Gail nodded. They went back inside, changed into long t-shirts, and scrubbed the remaining makeup off their faces. They crawled into the big bed and lay next to each other, staring at the ceiling. After a while, Jennifer heard the steady breathing of a sleeping woman. She looked over at her friend and smiled.

She crept out to the other room and grabbed her blackberry. She pressed a button, and within moments, Richie was on the other end. “She’s sleeping,” Jennifer said. “Please don’t light into David about this, it’s not his fault.”

Richie smiled. “I won’t, but only because you asked me not to. So, what time’s your flight?”

Jennifer looked at the clock and groaned. “Another seven hours. You?”

“Not until later tonight. Can I take you to the airport?”

“Sure,” she said. “Sorry about before.”

“Don’t be. If you were able to ignore a friend in need, I’d’ve lost all respect for you.” He chuckled. “I’d’ve gotten over it once I was buried in you, though.”

Jennifer groaned. “Don’t start, Rich,” she said on a strangled breath. “Gail’s sleeping in the other room, and I don’t know when she’ll wake up.”

Richie laughed. “Okay. You get some sleep, darlin’, and I’ll come for you in a little while.”

“Alright. G’night, Rich.”

“G’night.”