Killing Me Softly

It was beautiful. It must have cost a fortune and Erica was about to comment as such, when she thought better of it. Maybe all the overtime Chris had been putting in had actually been for a good reason. She decided to just enjoy the moment -- it seemed churlish to criticise his apparent thoughtfulness.

"If you want to go and soak in the bath, we can go down for dinner at eight o'clock. Is that alright?" Chris asked as he began to unpack his own bag.

"Yeah, fine." Erica pulled out her wash bag and disappeared into the bathroom to run a bath. Before long the fragrant scented water beckoned her in and she lay relaxing in the hot steam while Chris watched the television in their living room. It was absolute bliss and gradually all the stresses and strains began to ebb away.

She was almost asleep when Chris came in and reminded her that it was nearly eight o'clock. Yawning heavily, she clambered out and dried herself on a thick towel. The big problem now was what the hell she going to wear. If she had had any idea that they were coming to a hotel of this calibre, she might have taken more care with her packing.

Her dress thankfully looked semi okay when she examined her reflection critically in the mirror. Her hair badly needed cutting, but a haircut was a luxury she did not have the time for these days. With a sigh, she pinned the unruly waves back in a chignon and stepped into her shoes.

"Ready now?" Chris asked patiently.

"I guess so," she said, adding a touch of lipstick. "Do I look okay?" she asked suddenly, not sure what prompted the question.

"Always," he said.

For a moment they looked at each other, both remembering the infinitesimal things that had kept them together in the years since they had met and fallen in love.

Chris looked away and glanced at his watch, breaking the spell. "Come on," he said briskly. "I'm starving..." He opened the door and held it while Erica passed him, her dress swirling around her legs.

He watched her as she walked away down the corridor. Her dress reminded him of one she had worn many moons ago. That had been crimson red, cut low at the front and clingy in all the right places. He recalled how he had spent the entire evening of their date struggling to control a hard-on. He smiled fondly as he followed her down towards the staircase.

* * *

Erica silently undressed and climbed into the huge bed. She was almost dead on her feet; the large meal and several glasses of wine were having a soporific effect. She had also been up since before five this morning and the thought of sleep was blissful.

Chris finished in the bathroom and came to bed, switching off the lamp on his side. As soon as he climbed under the covers, Erica felt herself tense up, expecting him to pounce on her.

Much to her surprise he kissed her lightly and rolled away from her. She was left feeling slightly rejected and despite her best efforts, almost disappointed. But she was too tired to really care, so she curled up and shut her eyes. Within seconds, she was fast asleep.

Chris listened to her rhythmic breathing and turned onto his back. He had made a deliberate decision to not try and rush things -- and that included sex. If he tried to force the issue, he knew she would feel he had only brought her away for one reason only.

And that simply wasn't the case. Sex was important, but not as important as his wife being happy. If she needed time, then he was happy to let her take that time. He could wait a while longer -- although it was not easy when she lay next to him, sexy as hell.

It took a long time for him to fall asleep.

* * *

"I have booked you in for a few things," announced Chris over breakfast.

"Such as?" said Erica warily, before eating another delicious croissant. It was amazing how good the food was -- and how lovely it was to actually have the opportunity to eat it without having to jump up and down every two seconds.

"You said you needed a haircut -- so you have an appointment in the salon at eleven o'clock. Then after lunch, I thought you might like a spell in the beautician's. They said you could have whatever treatments you fancy.

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah -- don't you want it?" Chris said nonchalantly. "Hey if you don't -- I'll go instead. I rather fancy a massage..." his voice trailed off when he saw the glare she threw him.

"Just kidding!" he laughed. "Anyway, I'll be busy having a golf lesson while you are busy being pampered."

Once she thought about it, Erica decided that she might enjoy all this pampering. It would be nice to have someone else fussing over her for a change.

* * *

By five o'clock, Erica was trimmed, primped and waxed to her hearts content. She wandered back up to their suite feeling a million dollars. For the first time in ages she felt relaxed and almost inclined to think about sex. There was a spring to her step as she waltzed down the corridor towards their room.

A tall gentleman walking in the opposite direction threw her a quick assessing smile, blatantly checking her out. She gave him a small flirty smile in return, enjoying the brief attention. His hungry look made her feel sexy and desirable. This was something that had been conspicuously absent for a long time.

Chris was stretched out on the bed when she let herself into the room. His eyes were closed and for a moment Erica thought he was asleep, but then he sat up slightly and said, "Hey, had fun?"

"I think so," she replied with a faint smile. Quickly she turned towards the tall mirror and examined her reflection. The stylist had chopped a fair amount off the length of her hair, but she had cut layers into the thickness and it actually looked a lot better. The natural wave lent body to her style and Erica was immensely pleased with it.

Her skin felt smooth and soft and she reached down to stroke the curve of her calf, enjoying the unfamiliar sensation of hairless skin. She watched her hand sliding up the smooth skin, enjoying the sensual feeling of bare flesh beneath her fingertips. As she lifted her eyes back to her reflection, she realised Chris was watching her.

The expression on his face was taut and she suddenly sensed the unmistakable sexual tension in the air. For a moment they watched each other, eyes locked via the mirror. It was strangely erotic and Erica felt her body reacting to the voyeuristic aspect.

She slowly ran her hand up her bare leg, lifting the skirt she was wearing to reveal the top of her thigh. It was a thrill to expose her body like this. Suddenly she felt in control; the power of her femininity giving her a boldness she'd not known for a long time.

Licking her lips, she continued to watch Chris watching her. He had moved so that he sat on the edge of the bed, still watching her, his eyes dark and unfathomable. Desire sent sharp spikes of pleasure through her veins. She suddenly realised how much she had missed this. It had been far too long since they enjoyed sex.

Not sex -- making love.

The intimacy had been missing for months, lost in a whirl of domesticity and drudgery. The sheer hard work of having a baby had sent everything else into the background. Erica began to see just how much she craved Chris's touch. She remembered how he used to caress her body, how he would spend hours building the tension until she was literally at screaming point.

She wanted him now. Oh how badly she needed his touch. Knowing he was watching every little thing she did, she reached up to cup her breasts, feeling how hard and aching her nipples were, the heavy flesh still full from the baby.

Teasingly she undid the buttons on her blouse, holding Chris's gaze as she slipped the fabric from her shoulders, revealing her black lace bra. She heard his sharp intake of breath when she rubbed her nipples lightly, enjoying the ripples of pleasure travelling straight to her clit.

Before she even realised it, he had moved behind her, his breath tickling the fine hairs on her neck and his hands cupping her flesh.

"You look gorgeous," he said softly. "I like the new hair style -- it suits you."

"Thanks..." whispered Erica. She half closed her eyes as they stood in front of the mirror. She could see his fingers across her breasts and the sight of this erotic image in conjunction with the physical feeling of his hands, excited her beyond measure.

"Are you hungry?" Chris asked, his fingers rubbing across her nipples lightly.

"Yes, very," replied Erica. She wasn't referring to dinner and they both knew it. He chuckled against her hair and she felt the firm heat of his erection pressing into the curve of her bottom. With a smile she pushed herself back against him and enjoyed the way he groaned in response.

"Tease!" he muttered. He reached into the cup of her bra and pinched her nipples eliciting a gasp from her in retaliation. "Two can play at that game!" he laughed.

Erica didn't want to play games so she turned round and kissed her husband hard, pulling his body firmly against her own. They had the rest of the evening to play slow teasing games. Now was the time to reacquaint her body with his hard cock. She wanted to feel him inside her, hard and urgent. Nothing else would do right at that moment.

"I want you in me," she said harshly, reaching down to grasp his shaft with her small hand. He felt like hot steel, throbbing with blood and ready to take her. She felt her body well up with moisture, readying itself for him; aching feverishly in anticipation.

Chris did not reply; he crushed her mouth to his, threading his hand through her hair roughly. It hurt, but Erica was beyond caring at that moment. She felt her skirt being lifted and her knickers pulled to one side. His fingers pushed through the slick folds of her sex, sliding easily into the dripping wetness.

All of her concentration zeroed in on that centre of sensation. She could hear herself panting and moaning, but she didn't care. All she cared about was this moment. The faint sound of a zipper and then she was lifted slightly and he plunged inside her, right up to the hilt.

For a moment her body protested slightly at the invasion. It had been a while and she was not used to the feeling of fullness. Chris took the few steps back to the edge of the bed, still carrying her. He kissed her neck gently as he lowered her back onto the covers.

Erica reached down and pushed her fingers beneath her knickers to touch her clit. With eyes half closed she gazed up at Chris languidly. "Fuck me," she said softly.

With a growl of assent, he began to move within her, slowly at first, then harder and faster. He bent to kiss her breasts as he fucked her, licking her nipples and biting them gently. "God you feel good," he breathed harshly.

She wrapped her legs around his waist and met each movement with a sharp thrust of her own. Her orgasm built up and hovered on the edge of her consciousness as Chris's cock plunged in and out of her receptive body.

"Harder!" she muttered as the tension grew. Grabbing hold of his hip, she pulled him into her and ground her clit against him. The wave crested and broke, crashing over her in sharp spikes of pleasure. For a moment she was utterly immersed in the bliss, oblivious to everything else.

Dimly she was aware of Chris gasping his own pleasure as he came inside her and she felt the flood of warmth high up in her pussy. Her body shuddered with orgasmic contractions, the feelings melting through her veins like warm treacle.

Chris collapsed on top of her and rolled to one side, breathing hard. For a while they lay across the bed in a tangle of sweaty limbs and sticky juices. Then Chris turned to her, dropped a gentle kiss on her lips and said, "Let's have a bath."

"Okay," agreed Erica sleepily. "You go run it and I'll wait here." She felt like warm marshmallow, all soft and sweet. The thought of falling asleep for an hour was all too tempting, but she knew that would be fatal. She would not sleep later.

She had almost dozed off when Chris dropped down on the bed beside her. "Come on, your bath awaits my dear," he chuckled, pulling some stray strands of hair from where they had drifted on to her face.

Erica opened her eyes sleepily and yawned. "I can't move," she complained. "I'm too comfortable here..."

She soon moved when he slapped her leg, hard. "Get your lazy arse into that bath before I'm forced to throw water on you!" he warned.

Giggling, Erica reluctantly dragged herself from the bed and walked into the bathroom. Clouds of scented steam filled the air and the water was covered with fragrant bubbles. She had to admit it did look inviting.

A sudden pang hit her when she realised it would be Charlotte's bath time now. She had spoken to Clare earlier on that afternoon and her sister had assured her they were coping fine. It still didn't stop Erica feeling like a bad mother for abandoning her daughter.

"She'll be fine, you know." Chris's voice interrupted her thoughts and she jumped slightly.

"How did you know I was thinking about Charlotte?" she asked in surprise.

"I know you," he said simply. "Now get in that bath before I throw you in, clothes and all..."

* * *

The water was deliciously hot and relaxing. Erica lay back against Chris's chest and closed her eyes. It had been a long time since they had had the chance to do something as utterly simple and enjoyable as having a bath together. It was surprising how much she missed the small things like this.

His hands crept up her rib cage and cupped her breasts teasingly. With a small murmur Erica slid against him in the water, feeling his growing erection nudging into her back. This made her smile and it reminded her of their honeymoon in Venice when the bathroom had almost been flooded from their antics in the bath.

How long ago that seemed, she thought wistfully.

They had barely left the room that week in Venice. Despite all her declarations that she wanted to see the sights, when it came down to it, she was more interested in fucking Chris. She laughed when she recalled the strawberries he had bought and subsequently smeared all over her naked body. Oh what a mess the bed had been -- she still felt embarrassed at the memory of the maids face when she came to clean the room.

"What's so funny?" asked Chris curiously.

"I was thinking about Venice and the strawberries," she giggled helplessly.

"Oh yeah!" Chris said with a laugh, "God I had forgotten about that!" He shifted in the water and squeezed her nipple. "It was fun though -- we should do stuff like that more often..."

"Not if I'm washing the sheets we won't be," Erica snorted in response. He was right though; this was half the problem -- they had forgotten how to be a couple and had gotten bogged down in parenting. Or at least she had.

"I'm sorry," she said suddenly, feeling tears pricking her eyes unexpectedly.

"What for exactly?" asked Chris in bemusement.

"Everything," she said sitting up. She needed to talk about things -- remembering all the good times made her see the bad stuff in sharp focus. There was too much love left to risk throwing it all away. "I know things haven't been good recently," she ventured cautiously as she turned to face Chris, hooking her legs over his.

"No they haven't," he agreed. "But that's not just down to you -- I share the blame too." Silently they both considered just where it had all gone wrong.

"It's just been so hard with Charlotte," said Erica. "I feel like I'm all alone some days and you don't help!"

Chris was about to argue that he DID help -- but then he thought about it and he saw that maybe he could have done more. "Maybe I could help more," he admitted. "But you won't let me half the time!"

She considered what he said and part of her knew he was right. It just seemed easier to do things herself, rather than have to bite her tongue when he did it wrong, or not to her exacting standards.

"Okay -- maybe you have a point there..."

"I didn't realise how down you were feeling." He pulled her across his chest and slid down so they were both partially submerged in the warm water. A wave slopped dangerously near the top of the bath but although some water splashed, the floor stayed relatively dry this time.

"Why didn't you talk to me?" he asked gently.

"I couldn't. There never seemed to be time to talk about things." Erica thought about it and then continued, "I suppose I thought I could handle it. Now I've realised I'm not superwoman."

"No, you're not," Chris said, hugging her tightly against his chest. He was silent for a moment. "I've been thinking about things this afternoon, while I was trying to hit a small ball into a small hole -- and not succeeding too well. How about we let Charlotte go to nursery a couple of afternoons a week?"

"Oh I don't know—"

"Please think about it Erica. Clare thought it would do you both the world of good -- Charlotte gets to mix with other babies and you have a break."

Erica rested her head in the hollow of Chris's shoulder. Although the thought of passing her baby to a stranger for a few hours was painful to imagine, the rational part of her brain knew it was probably a good idea. If nothing else it might restore her sanity.

"Can we afford it?" she asked dubiously.

"Yes!"

Erica sat up again and stared at Chris intently. "You've really given this some thought haven't you?" she said in surprise.

"I've thought of nothing else all week," he said. "I love you and I want you to be happy again." He kissed her lingeringly and she felt the flames of desire lick their way through her body once again.

"There's something else we need to do," he told her, stroking her hip in the warm water.

"Oh what's that?" she replied huskily.

"We need to set aside some time for US on a regular basis."

"Okay, agreed." He was right and she knew it. As much as she had felt uncertain about this weekend away, she realised that it had been the best thing they could have done. They had managed to reconnect on an intimate level. Much longer and it might have been too late.

She loved Chris too damn much to want to risk their relationship again. Marriage was something they both had to work at -- they had become complacent over time and had forgotten all the wonderful reasons they were together in the first place.

"The only problem with that plan is that Clare won't be able to baby-sit every time we want a night out."

"She might soon -- she's being relocated down this way. She told me last week."

"WHAT? How come she never mentioned it to me?"

"Well she didn't know for certain when she came to see you. When she told me I said to keep the news secret until after this weekend. I wasn't certain if it would matter -- I was scared we wouldn't be able to mend the bridges..."

Erica looked at him and saw just how worried he had been. That was when she knew how close they had come to a serious rift.

"Have I told you lately I love you?" Chris asked softly.

"No you haven't," Erica replied. "But we have the rest of our lives for you to tell me..."

She kissed him, ignoring the water slopping over the edge of the bath. It didn't matter - nothing did apart from this moment.

* * *

Erica peered in through the glass door and saw Charlotte straight away. She was sat on the carpet playing with some wooden bricks. Her face was screwed up in concentration as she decided which one to pick up.

The other toddlers around her were all engaged in various activities and children were happy and evidently enjoying themselves. Erica pressed the buzzer and Hannah, one of the staff, came to unlock the door.

"Hi Erica!" she smiled. "We've had a great day today - Charlotte has done some painting for you." Hannah pointed to a sheet of paper covered in painted footprints and Erica grinned. She could well imagine the mess that 'foot painting' created and she was just relieved that it wasn't her mess to clear up.