Double Dealing: A Menage Romance(29)

"After I get some clothes," I complained. "I feel like I'm going to be exchanging wardrobes on a regular basis with you two.”

"Not quite," Felix replied. "I packed some of your clothes in my bag, and Francois is out right now getting something more appropriate for here. In the meantime, jeans and t-shirts for breakfast?"

"Shower first," I said, stretching again. "It's been a week since I had a proper shower, and while you French guys are supposed to be into it and everything, I need a proper hose down and rinse. I can smell myself, and it's not good."

Felix chuckled and leaned in. We kissed, our lips slowly molding around one another. His tongue traced my lower lip and I opened up to him, pulling him in closer. He was an amazing man, and I felt desire wash through me. I was tempted to pull him further onto the bed when my bladder gave me a warning twinge, and I let go with regret. It seemed my bladder and my libido were in constant conflict over how to start the morning with Felix around because that was twice now. "Sorry. Toilet, then shower, then we'll see what happens."

The shower was small but adequate, with the hot water flowing freely from the shower head, stabbing wonderful needles of heat into my upper back and shoulders. I was just finishing scrubbing my skin when the door to the bathroom opened, and I heard someone come in. "Felix?"

"No, it’s me," Francois said. "I came back from shopping and wanted to leave this on the counter for you. I'll let you finish."

I came out of the shower to find a beautiful skirt and blouse resting on the countertop. Light cotton, the billowy skirt was striped in aquas, light greens and hints of pink that looked like it came from the ocean itself. The blouse was a simple, slightly translucent cotton sleeveless blouse that felt light and airy in my hands. Wrapping my towel around me, I took the outfit into the hotel room, where Francois and Felix were sitting and discussing things quietly in French. Turning to me, Francois's face fell. "You don't like it."

Shaking my head and smiling. "Not at all. I think they're beautiful. But, you forgot something when you put it in the bathroom."

"What?" he asked, his face clearing somewhat.

"Underwear," I teased him lightly. "I don’t plan on walking around all day without a bra and panties on."

"Now that's an image I could enjoy," Felix commented, a light smile on his face. Since taking off from the California desert he seemed more relaxed, less pensive.

Francois laughed and smiled, his eyes haunted by something. I patted his cheek and went over to the bags. "All right Felix, if you went and obviously preplanned this so well, you had to have remembered at least some of my underwear too, right? Or am I wearing that same grungy thing as yesterday until we can get me some more?"

Felix got out of his chair and took things out of his bag until he pulled out the clothes he'd hidden for me in the bottom, one of the pairs of jeans, two t-shirts, socks, and undergarments. "Here you are. Are you hungry? Francois says he found a nice little street stall that offers early lunch."

"What time is it anyway?" I asked. "That hasn't even crossed my mind since waking up."

"Good, you’re on vacation," Francois said. "But it’s nearly eleven."

I changed quickly and we left, finding the street stall that Francois had discovered, enjoying seafood tacos that were fresher than anything I'd ever had before, wrapped in the most delicious corn tortillas. "Okay, I'm going to have to learn how to make this," I commented as I tucked the last one away. "You boys think you can handle that?"

"If you’re willing to learn, we can try," Felix replied. "Where to now?"

"The beach," I said. "This town looks pretty quiet, and I could enjoy running my toes through the waves. Does Albania have beaches?"

"Some of the best in the world," Francois replied immediately. "Vlore has a stretch along the Ionian Sea that is often called the Albanian Riveria. Jale, Dhermi . . . so many beautiful places you could do much more than run your toes through the waves."

"That sounds great,” I said as we headed back toward the hotel. It was near a beach and had direct access to the sand. The beach was narrow, with much of the coastline being rocky, but we found a nice little cove that had some sand. Felix, who was dressed in just a light pair of khaki shorts and a cut-down shirt along with sunglasses, walked beside me. His arms were more muscular than I'd even imagined, and even with the fading from being inside under heavy layers for so long, he still had a natural light tan that probably came from his Romani blood.

Setting down the small tote bag that he'd been carrying that contained a few bottles of water, he looked out at the ocean of the cove and grinned. "Excuse me, you two, but I need some exercise," he said, stripping off the cheap running shoes that he'd taken out of his bag when we all got dressed while leaving his shirt on.

He ran down, splashing through the water until he could dive out, stroking through the cobalt water until he was a good distance out before turning parallel to the shore and swimming. I watched for a bit, grinning at the show, until I noticed that Francois was sitting next to the bag, his elbows on his knees and his head hanging.

I couldn't stand it, and had to see what was going on. I sat down next to him, making sure the long skirt was draped in such a way as to not get sand on my butt. "Talk to me Francois," I said, patting his knee. "You've been in a funk all day. What's wrong? Are you still angry with Felix?"