I Only Wanted You

Then a jolt of guilt shot through me: Natalie didn't have a car. I was her ride. With me asleep on the couch, she had no way home; at least, no easy way. It was too late for the bus. She could have called a ride service or a taxi, but she didn't know the area, and probably didn't know my address. She also didn't wake me, so I reasoned she probably wasn't mad at me, because if she had woken me up and asked me to take her home, I absolutely would have.

I went into the kitchen to get a drink. I must have disturbed her, because she said, "Hey."

"Hey," I replied. "It's okay. Go back to sleep. I'll move to my bed."

She didn't respond, but I heard her shifting around. It was chilly, so I went over and grabbed the blanket she had put over me and draped it over her. Then I went to my own bed, stripped nude since that's how I normally sleep, thought better of it and put my underwear back on, then thought this is my apartment, damn it, and stripped nude again, then finally climbed in, got comfortable, and quickly fell back asleep.

The next thing I knew, I felt someone sit on my bed. I cracked my eyes open and took a look. Not that I was expecting someone else, but to see that it was Natalie brought a smile to my lips. I had no idea what time it was, but it was light.

"Hey sleepyhead," she said. She reached out and rubbed my shoulder, then seemed to notice that I wasn't wearing a shirt. She froze, just for a split second, but I noticed. "I saw eggs and bacon in your fridge. Want me to cook us some breakfast?"

"Sure," I managed, still groggy, but suddenly very aware of my morning wood. My blanket was thick, so she had no idea, but there it was, doing its thing.

She bounced on the bed and then stood up. "I'll get started. You go ahead and take your time getting up. I'll let you know when it's ready."

She left and I heard her working in the kitchen, searching through my cabinets and drawers. I got up, and checked the time while stretching. Just after eight. Considering how early I'd fallen asleep, I got in a lot of hours. I guess I needed it after a hard week and subsequent jet lag. My morning wood subsided and I got dressed, then hit the bathroom to take care of the usual stuff. While in there, I noticed a second toothbrush resting on the side of the sink.

I headed out to the kitchen and the wonderful smell of bacon cooking.

"Is this the skillet you ate cereal out of?" she asked over her shoulder.

"Yeah, heh. You remember that."

She laughed. "How do you want your eggs?"

"Uh... fried, yolk slightly hard," I said, then, "That is, if you can. I realize I don't know a thing about your cooking skills."

She laughed again. "I'm no chef, but I can do eggs and bacon. Over medium it is. Oh, I found a couple spare toothbrushes under your bathroom sink, still in their packages. I hope you don't mind."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about those. That's fine." While she finished up at the stove, I got a mug and poured coffee, then had a sudden realization as I stared at my coffeemaker. "Did I leave this on the whole time, or did you do this?"

"I figured it out."

"Wait. You drink coffee? I'm honestly surprised."

"I don't, actually. Pour me some, will you? I want to try it."

I grabbed a second mug and filled it. If this was her first time, I assumed she wasn't going to like it. I set both mugs on the table. "I have cream and sugar. Any clue what you'll want?"

"Nope. How do you take yours?"

"Depends on the day. Sometimes black. Sometimes I like cream and sugar."

"Hmm. I'll have it however you have yours, then." She brought two plates to the table, with nicely cooked strips of bacon on each. My plate had two over medium eggs, and her eggs were scrambled. Set also set the salt and pepper shakers on the table, and finally the forks.

"Looks great," I said enthusiastically. We dug in.

After a while, she tried to take a sip of her coffee, but pulled back. "Too hot. How long do you have to wait?"

"A few minutes at least. Depends how you want it."

She wrapped her hands around the hot mug. "Ahh," she sighed. "That feels good." She looked at my shyly. "I can't believe I slept over at your place."

I snorted. "It's not like we did anything. I think I fell asleep as soon as you started the movie. How was it, by the way?"

Her eyes went wide. "Sooo good! I cried when that one guy died. I reached out to you, but you were, like, out. I thought you were watching it with me."

"Heh. Nope. I don't remember a thing. Thanks for putting that blanket on me."

"I had to search around a bit, but you're pretty organized. Fortunately, you had two. I don't think we could have shared."

"Not on opposite sides of the couch, no."

She blushed a bit. "I thought about waking you up to take me home. I told myself, "No, you cannot sleep here," but then I thought, why can't I? You're my boyfriend. It's fine."

I smiled. "Aw, I'm your boyfriend? I like the sound of that."

She grinned, but then her eyes narrowed. "Well, only if I'm your girlfriend. That's the deal."

I raised my mug in a salute. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

"I have a boyfriend," she said to herself. She looked at me. "I have a boyfriend! This is awesome!" She took a sip of her coffee and made a face. "Ugh, how do people drink this?"

Chapter 5: Rated-R for Rob

I had a week of normal work again, followed by the second business trip, this time to Los Angeles.

"L.A. huh," Natalie said unenthusiastically. "Hope you don't run into my parents."

Before the trip, she and I didn't manage to get in a real date, but we hung out at my place three times, where we had dinner and watched movies. Rated-R movies, a fact which definitely still delighted Natalie. I let her choose, since I'd seen plenty, having watched anything I wanted for many years, and she'd seen exactly none prior to meeting me. I found I took a strange delight in being part of her "corruption" as I jokingly thought of it. R-rated movies, holding hands, kissing, sleeping at my place (even if absolutely nothing happened), drinking coffee? How truly naughty of her!

She picked a movie with lots of swearing and violence. She didn't seem to mind the language, but the violence was definitely more than she had expected. Next, we tried a famous horror movie, which I think was her favorite. Not much swearing, not much violence since it wasn't a slasher, and there were even a couple quick shots of some of the actress's bare boobs. Natalie glanced at me when that happened, and I just gave a small shrug. The third movie was definitely more risqué, but I didn't say anything. There was a fair amount of nudity in it, mostly bare breasts, but a couple quick shots of bush (this being an 80's flick). Her face was flushed, though I'm not sure she was aware of it, and I chose not to say anything. I was fine to just let it happen, without commentary. Anything I said might trigger her hang-ups.

That movie ended late. Natalie yawned and stretched and said, "Would it be okay if I just slept here again?"

"Sure," I said. "You can have my bed. I'll sleep on the couch."

"Aww, that's so sweet of you!" She got up and went to the bathroom to get ready for bed. After a few minutes, she came back out, bent down, and gave me a minty-fresh kiss. "That movie was... hot," she said in a low voice.

"Yeah." I took her hand and gently pulled her toward me. She obliged, and we kissed again, this time deeper and longer, our lips exploring one another. I reached down and gripped her upper thigh, pulling her onto the couch with me. She obliged, and we lay face to face, me on my left side, her on her right side, our mouths locked together in a kiss that was growing ever more passionate.

"Oh," she said, though it came out like a little, tiny sigh. I wrapped my arm around her back and she gripped my upper arm in her hand. I pulled her close, pressing our chests together. I could feel her breasts, through her bra, pressing up against me, which further excited me. She was breathing harder, and when I pulled my mouth away to reposition, she followed me with hers, eager for more kissing.

The next thing I knew, my tongue was touching her lips. She shivered and inhaled sharply, then responded with her own tongue, and then we were French kissing. I was completely hard by this point, though I was trapped in my jeans. Our crotches weren't pressed together, so there was no way she could feel my hard-on, but then she did something I wouldn't have expected. She reached around and grabbed my leg just under my ass. She pulled herself to me, and then she was pressing up against my hard cock, though I don't know if she realized it.

I sure did, though, and tried my best not to thrust against her. I didn't want to scare her away, but I definitely wanted this to continue. Then she thrust up against me while giving me a fierce, passionate kiss. Finally, she broke away. "Wow," she panted, then, "Damn," and she was evidently done. She relaxed and leaned back, resting her head on my arm. "We should stop."

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, willing my body to calm down and relax. "If you want to."

She looked at me, her hair disheveled. "I don't want to."

I went straight in for another round of kissing, but she put her finger on my lips. "Hold on there, cowboy. I don't want to stop, but I'm scared to go on. Let me take this at my pace, okay?"

I nodded. "Right, your pace."

She disentangled herself from me and slid off the couch so she could kneel on the floor. She straightened her hair. "Now I get it. The feelings are just so strong. No wonder it's so easy to slip up."

I chuckled. "Yep. That's some self-control you've got there."

She pressed her lips into a line. "I'd say inhibitions, not self-control." She stood up and self-consciously smoothed her clothes. "I'm going to... uh... go to sleep. You need anything in there before I do?"

I got ready for bed, then brought a pillow out and grabbed a blanket. I gave her a quick kiss and settled myself on the couch while she went back to my bedroom. I was too worked up to sleep, so I turned on the TV and watched something until I eventually drifted off.

In the morning, I woke up yawning and stretching, then suddenly remembered that Natalie had slept over again. The apartment was silent, so it sounded like she was still in bed. I needed to pee, so I went down the hall to the bathroom, but before I went in, I peeked into my bedroom. She was asleep under the covers, one thin arm stretched out over her head, one leg sticking out up to the knee. She looked so peaceful, so beautiful, that I couldn't help smiling. As I turned to go, I noticed a pile of her clothes at the side of the bed. Her shirt, her white bra on top of it, and her pants in a heap next to them.

I paused and worked out the logic. That meant she was sleeping in just her panties. In my bed. The idea was pretty thrilling, I had to admit. I was half tempted to go peek under the covers, but at that moment she shifted and the blanket pulled down below her shoulder. She was wearing a t-shirt that I clearly recognized as mine. Slightly disappointed, I quietly retrieved fresh clothes and left, gently closing the bedroom door in hopes that the noise I would make in the bathroom wouldn't wake her.

I went into the bathroom, closed the door, turned on the shower, and stripped down. As soon as the water was hot, I got in and took care of cleaning myself. Thoughts of Natalie danced through my mind the whole time, from watching those movies with her, to last night's hot make out session, to the idea of her sleeping in my bed. All of this combined to make my dick stand up straight. I mean, I was young and healthy, there was a gorgeous woman in the next room, and, if the relationship continued as it was, we'd soon be engaging in some sort of sexual activity.

That last thought set me off. The idea of sex with Natalie was too hot to ignore. My cock was now stiff as a board, so I grabbed it and jacked off in the shower. It had been a long time since I'd done that. Living alone, I could take care of it wherever and whenever I wanted, but images of making out with Natalie played through my mind, and the feeling of her thrusting up against me... she clearly had sexual desires. It was just a lifetime of hang-ups preventing her from going further with me. I came explosively to that thought, thick ropes of cum spurting out into the shower, my knees weak. I let the hot water stream over me for a while, then shut off the shower and dried off.

I finished up at the sink and got dressed, then opened the door and there was Natalie, fist up as if she had been about to knock. She was fully dressed, I noted.

"Morning," she said, smiling. She glanced at her fist, then lowered it sheepishly to her side. "Good timing. I need to go really bad."

"It's yours," I said. "I'm all done."

We ate breakfast together, just a simple thing this time, because I had to get to the airport soon.

"Do you need help packing?" she offered.

"Just some last minute stuff. Toiletries, enough underwear to last the week so I don't have to bother with getting laundry done in the hotel."

"Mm. Let me handle that for you."

"You want to pack my underwear?"

"Sure, why not. Four pairs, right? Since you're already dressed for today?"

With my affirmative nod, she got up and headed for the bedroom. "Top drawer," I called out. I chuckled to myself. My underwear was all just normal black and/or gray stuff. Nothing remotely questionable, and I didn't care if she saw.

"What kind of underwear is this?" she asked from down the hall. I got up and headed for her.

"Boxer briefs," I said.

"I've never seen these before. I thought men's underwear was all boxer shorts, or... what do you call the other kind?"

"Tighty-whities? Yeah, I don't wear those. And boxer shorts bunch up inside my pants. These are perfect."

She took four pairs and put them in the open suitcase. "Well, you learn something every day. I didn't know men had all these choices in underwear."

"Why not? Women have tons. What sort do you wear?"

She blushed. "Underwear. You know... panties."

"Sure, but what kind? There are tons for girls."

She laughed. "This kind." She lifted her shirt a bit, then fished into her jeans and pulled the waistband of her panties up a couple inches to show me. They were plain white. "I'm not showing you more, if that's what you're wanting. Let's get you finished packing."

The two of us took care of everything else, then she helped carry my luggage to the car. As I drove her home, she put her hand on my arm, working her way down to my fingers. "I'm going to miss you."

"Likewise," I said, then an idea occurred to me. "Can you drive?"

"Yeah, I took driver's ed. I drove my parents' cars plenty. I just don't currently own a car."

"I don't know why this didn't occur to me earlier," I said, glancing at her. "Innate selfishness, I suppose. But I can just leave my car with you while I'm in L.A. You can use it, and I don't have to pay for airport parking."

She perked right up. "That would be cool. I don't mind taking the bus to work and back, but grocery shopping and other stuff is a pain."

"And," I said, thinking out loud. "I can give you my house key. You can go over to my place and watch TV or use the internet all you want."

"But that's your only key!"

"No, there's a spare, but it's at home. Besides, when I come back, you'll come pick me up at the airport. It'll be perfect."

"Okay!" she said enthusiastically. "This will be awesome."

I pulled over so we could switch drivers to give her time to get used to my car. I was a bit nervous letting someone else drive my vehicle, but she got it quickly enough and demonstrated that she was competent.

She drove me to the airport just fine, though she needed directions from me. We shared a long kiss before I got out of the car, her hand and fingers lingering on my arm. As I grabbed my luggage and headed into the airport, I glanced back just in time to see her wave as she drove off.

It was another hard week of long hours, but I had Natalie to look forward to. We talked for at least an hour each evening, often about the movies she was watching at my place. She was really taking advantage of the situation, watching at least a couple each night, and sounded downright exuberant about it. She was plowing through a bunch of movies she'd heard all about but had never been allowed to watch, which gave us plenty to talk about.

From things she said, I gathered that she didn't much care for gory violence, which was no surprise. She had a bit of a fascination with swearing, though, which I found interesting. Her upbringing made all swearing taboo, even words that aren't actual swearwords. In that respect, it made sense that it would be interesting, since taboo things often turn out that way. But what most caught her attention was nudity. She mentioned the nude scenes multiple times without prompting, and her attitude definitely wasn't one of disdain. I think she found it fascinating. Or maybe it turned her on. It made her reaction to my calendar make more sense.

The week finally ended and I flew back home. It was delayed into a late flight, landing after ten o'clock. I was eager to see Natalie, and she was right where she should be to pick me up. She ran up to me gleefully and we hugged. She resisted any kisses until we were in the car, but I didn't care because I was really happy to see her. As she drove, I noted her comfort handling my vehicle, and even complimented her on it.

"I drove plenty. Your car is really easy to drive. I like it," she said. She went on to tell me how she had done some second hand shopping at thrift stores, yard sales, and so on, getting various things for her apartment.

When we reached her place, we kissed in the car, but it quickly turned into a make-out session, which was perfectly fine by me. We enjoyed ourselves for several long minutes there in the dark parking lot of her apartment building, before she finally broke away with a huge smile. "I'm so glad you're home. I'll see you tomorrow."

With that, she got out and went into her apartment. I adjusted the driver's seat and drove home. I dragged my luggage in, didn't bother unpacking, stripped down, and crashed in bed.

The next day at work, we did the post-trip debrief, which went better thanks to our feedback, and I made it through the rest of the day without incident. I swung by the food court to pick up Natalie after her shift. We bought food and took it back to my place to eat and finally spend some time together.

"Things went better in L.A. than they did in Seattle," I told her around a mouthful of chicken. "The higher ups are happy. They even mentioned a bonus once the final trip is over."

"Ooh," she said. "How exciting! And you get to go to these fun places, too."

I snorted. "Yeah, but we don't go anywhere or do anything. I spend all the time either in the office working, or in the hotel sleeping. Talking to you is the best part of the day."

"Aw. How flattering." She grinned. "My days aren't so packed, but talking to you is the best part, too."

"So that's the good news," I said, and she picked up the obvious hint.

"And the bad news?"

"The Dallas trip has been moved up. And lengthened."

She grimaced. "How lengthened?"

"We go next week, instead of next month, and it's for two weeks."

"Two weeks," she repeated with a sigh. "That'll feel like forever."

"That's the last one, at least until next year. So at least there's that."

"That's a lot of movie watching," she said morosely.

"Try some TV shows then."

She shrugged. "Maybe."

"What about your friends? Hang out with them. Take my car and go somewhere. Have fun."

She leaned forward, elbows on the table. "They're all gone for now. Brooke and Ashley go to the U, so they stay down there during school. It's a couple hour's drive, so maybe I could go see them. Monica is getting married in a few months, so she's been busy moving in with her boyfriend in Arizona."