Chapter 1

Crystal Harris smiled up at Robert as she made herself comfortable on the bed. She hadn't been with him for a couple of weeks. There'd been so much going on with her life that there just hadn't been time.

"Ready?" she asked, smiling. She took his cock and rubbed it up and down her slit. Finally she pressed it down to the right place. "Put it in"

"As the lady wishes," he said in his deep voice.

She started to say something, but went "Oh!" as she felt him press forward.

One of her co-workers liked to write romances. They weren't very good, but they were all hot. Her heroines had a lot of sex, about like here at Hubbard, but the one thing Rhonda never tried to describe were these first few moments when the man put it in.

"God," she breathed when he paused, "that is so good!"

He pulled back just as slowly, and then started his rhythmic thrusting. Crystal pressed her hands against his back, pushing back up on him. Robert felt so big, and he got so deep. It was all she could do to just hold on.

"God, yes. Yes! Oh yes! Sweet fuck, that's good! Oh!"

Robert shifted, and her words were interrupted by a moan as he seemed to get even bigger. She tightened her legs, there was no way she was letting him go.

"God, I'm burning. This is so good!" She pressed up against him as hard as she could. He'd started a fast series of thrusts, but then slowed it down, alternating, a few fast, a few slow, and moving around each time to push into her at different angles.

She slid her hand down to his butt. She could feel the muscles there. She fantasized that she was pushing his cock even deeper into her. She pictured the tip of his cock, pictured it deep inside her, maybe even reaching her tum my, or farther.

Robert speeded up again, and now he dropped a fiery kiss right under her ear. She arched up into him, feeling the tension rising. He was big, he was solid, and she was taking him, but she could feel a ball of ... something tensing down there.

"God! I'm gonna come! Oh fuck! Come for me! God, fuck-come..."

Everything came together in one incredible moment. She tried to hold it, fight it, and it stretched out, higher, tighter, until...

Everything let go. Everything rushed down there, squeezing around his rigid cock. Wave after wave, stretching out until she couldn't hold it any longer, and everything released again.

Robert had been moving fast. Now he plunged deep and held it. "Ah—uh—uh—oh!" He jerked each time, and then relaxed, breathing hard.

Crystal was breathing hard, too, and she brushed the hair over his ear. For the first time all day she felt relaxed. She was charged up, she wanted to go out and do things, but she wanted to just lie here in his arms, too.

Reality began to seep back in. There were so many things: her projects, turnover, the wedding, packing, last minute details, but for right now they were still just out of arm's reach. For now she could put them out of her mind.

Robert had fallen into a light doze, but now he woke up and kissed her. "We should do this more often," he said in a husky voice.

"I know what you mean. That was fantastic.""

He got up and sat on the edge of the cot. Crystal ran her hand up his back and kissed his shoulder. He had such strong shoulders, too.

"You first," he said. "I'm going to gather my wits for a few seconds." He grinned in the dimness of the room. "Girl, you plum drove them out of me."

Crystal laughed. "Why thank you."

She got up, politely ignoring the other couples using the break room beds. She picked up her blouse and made her way to the bathroom.

The showers in the bathroom attached to the break room were large enough to take two people, but guys didn't always share them with whatever girl they'd just been with. They pointed out that washing up like that tended to produce certain male reactions, and walking around with an erection, while not unusual at Hubbard, was uncomfortable.

Crystal thought of a couple of times where a shower had led to a return to one of the beds. That usually happened at lunch when you had more time. The custom was to shower alone after morning and afternoon breaks because of that.

She was just stepping out of the shower when her mother entered from the room with the beds.

"Oh, hi Mom. I thought I recognized your voice."

Her mother hung up her blouse and stepped past Crystal to turn on the water. "All set for tomorrow?"

"I guess so. How about we talk some more in a bit."

Her mother turned on the water. "Sounds good."

Crystal finished drying off and put on her blouse. At first she'd been surprised at the "dress code" at Hubbard: bare from the waist down, but in the two years she'd worked here she'd gotten used to it. It made it easier to have sex during the breaks, and it put the men and women on an equal footing: their privates were all on display.

She was told that at two of the satellite offices they went even farther: you could be totally naked if you wanted. They were rebuilt motels and both had pools, and besides the sex the employees liked to lay out and tan, at least during the summer. In the winter there was a roof over the central area. Employees were still naked, they just didn't get the sun they got during the summer.

Crystal picked up a towel. She'd also learned that you put the towel down on the chair before sitting. It was sanitary, and was so much a part of everyday life at Hubbard it seemed odd to see people without towels when you left the building. Of course those people were fully clothed, too, so that was different.

She dropped behind her desk with a sigh. She'd worked through lunch, getting ready for turning her projects over to her co-workers while she was on her honeymoon. She knew she'd have to take a break, she'd been getting hotter and hotter as the day wore on. That was the thing about Hubbard. She didn't know what it was, but she thought of sex all of the time. She didn't when she was away from the office, but moments after she walked in and took off her slacks or skirt, all she could think about was sex. It didn't help having all of those men exposed in front of her through the day.

She felt better, now. It was like whatever sex drive she'd been feeling, and she felt it more strongly here than anywhere else, was sated for a bit. Now she could get some work done.

Karen was taking over her projects, and stopped in just about 4:00. "Ready for turnover?"

"Pretty much," Crystal said. "I think I've about got everything documented."

"The only two I'm worried about are the big furniture one and Bowman. The others will just be sort of sitting."

"I finished the payment module for Bowman. It's like what we did with McGee & Sons. I can show you the code if you want."

"No, we worked on McGee together, so I should be able to pick it up. What about..."

They settled into the details of her projects, and Karen took page after page of notes. Finally she looked up. "Geeze, it's after 5:00. Don't you have a car pool?"

"Not today," Crystal replied. "I thought I might run late, so I drove in today. How about you?"

"The bus runs until 8:00, so I'm good." She sighed. "Okay, just one more question. Where are you two going for the honeymoon?"

""Jamaica! We're going to a resort there for a week of sun, sand, and romance."

Karen gave her a hug. "Let me know what it's like. I think I'm going to be doing some honeymoon plans soon."

"Oh good for you!" She checked her co-worker's left hand. "He hasn't asked you yet, has he."

"No, but his sister wanted to know my ring size."

"Ah, a dead giveaway! Well congratulations!"

She logged off and shut down everything. She put up a sign: On Vacation and updated her voice-mail. That should about do it.

She put the towel in the bin to be laundered, then went to her locker near the door. Thank goodness her mother and sister both worked here, otherwise she might have to explain why her skirts were never wrinkled and her underwear always looked so fresh and clean.

She normally rode in a carpool so she never had to worry about parking. As she got her car out of the parking garage she reminded herself why that was a good thing. It cost $12 to park all day! She'd take the bus, she might have to after she and Carl got their own apartment, but maybe she'd start up a car pool of her own. The parking garage next to the Macy's store charged only $6 for a car pool. That was practically the same cost as a trip on a bus from the suburbs, and that was with a bus pass.

There were a lot of things she could do, but tonight she'd set aside for packing. The bachelorette party had been Wednesday, and the rehearsal on Thursday. Now, tonight, it was just the last second things.

She had Blue Tooth in her car, and punched the button, calling her mother. "Anything you want me to bring home for dinner?" she asked.

"No, I got everything. Be home soon?"

"Just about to get on the freeway."

"All right, see you soon!"

Crystal put her mind in neutral. She'd once been convinced that taking the surface streets was "better" than the freeway. That had been when she'd been just starting in the work place. Now she knew better. You used whatever way got you there the best. Some days it was surface streets, others it was the freeway. As she accelerated to 60, she nodded slightly. Today it was the freeway.

Normally she parked near the front door. Today she put her car next to the garage. She wouldn't be using it for a week, and her father would park it out of the elements while she was gone.

"I'm home~" she called as she walked in the side door.

She gave her father a quick hug, and her mother another one. She left her sweater, purse, and portfolio case on her bed, and followed her nose to the kitchen. "What can I do to help?"

"Park yourself in the corner," her mother said, opening the oven. "Dinner in five minutes."

"There's got to be something."

"Or you could get your luggage out."

"I'm mostly been packed for a week. I followed your advice. I packed last week, now I've just been adding and subtracting, mostly subtracting. I'm down to one large bag"

"Just one?"

Crystal laughed. "Okay, one large one, a small one, and the carryon."

"Good. I think airlines have a requirement: a woman must have a minimum of two bags."

"How do men get by with only one suitcase?"

"One of the mysteries of life, dear." She took the chicken out of the oven. "Call your father."

She did, and then approached the dining room table with a moment of sadness. This would be the last family dinner for her. After this everything would be different.

It was actually snowing when the plane landed. Crystal looked out the plane's window at the snow on the tarmac. "I'm already missing Jamaica," she told Carl.

"I couldn't believe the weather report," he admitted. "This is the earliest snow in years."

The plane came to a halt and people began to get up. "so much for global warming."

Carl nodded. "Yeah, a few years ago they were afraid it was a new ice age. Strange, it had the same cause, and the same solution."

Crystal laughed and got her carryon from under the seat in front of her. Her Mom had insisted they stash heavy coats in lockers here at the airport, and now she was glad they had. It didn't seem that long ago when she was wearing a very small bikini and lounging around the pool, the most important thing to think about was whether to have a cocktail before dinner. She looked out the window as they entered the jetway. If she wore a bikini of any kind outside she'd freeze solid in a couple of minutes.

Her sister Candace had advised her to take an empty bag for all of those things they'd get on their trip, and now she was glad she had. It seemed hard to believe they'd bought so much stuff in Jamaica, but that Open Market had been wonderful. The resort had even had a tour bus that just went to the market, and now she knew why.

Carl got their bags off the carousel, showed the tickets to the attendant, and they headed for taxis and parking. She and Carl kept bumping shoulders, and when they did, they grinned at each other.

The taxi was warm, and Carl gave the driver the address of his apartment. They had an apartment they were moving in to later this week, but for now his place would do. She didn't think about it. They'd found a place, they'd pick up the keys tomorrow, and start moving on Tuesday. Instead she stared at the swirling snow.

"Been doing this long?" she asked the driver.

"Yesterday and today," the driver said. "The weather forecasters are expecting only a couple of inches, just enough to snarl traffic." He sounded disgusted at the idea.

Crystal slipped her hand into Carl's pocket. Yes, this was a long way from Jamaica.

She texted Candace and her parents while they waited to get on the freeway. "Back. @ Curls"

Candace met them at the door to Carl's apartment. "Welcome home, you two! I put something in the oven when I got your text, Crys. Oh, and I kept both of the Moms from cleaning the apartment while you were gone. They did that when I got married, and I still haven't found some of my things."

Crystal laughed and hugged her sister. "Thank you! I should have expected they'd want to clean. I think it's in a mother's DNA or something."

Carl unlocked the door. "This isn't our place," he said, "so I'm not carrying you over the threshold."

"You two love birds take care," Candace called. "I'm sure both moms are on their way right now. Oh, and there's salad in the refrigerator." She waved, and was gone."

They hauled their luggage into the bedroom. Crystal looked out the window. Snow. She used to like the stuff, but after a week in Jamaica she wasn't sure.

She stopped to check her hair. It was normally light brown, but was a little lighter right now, the effects of sun and salt water. She also had a tan, the result of a couple of days when all they did was lounge around the pool. She sighed. That was definitely another world.

Their mothers arrived together, two bundles of energy that wanted to check up on the newlyweds. Carl played the perfect host, and they shared the large salad Candace had made.

It seemed to take forever to shoo their mothers out of the apartment. "It's like they want to hang around and watch or something," Carl muttered at one point.