Chapter 23 - Never letting it rain

I look at the nurse, eyes wide open. “He is still in surgery and I have to be honest with you, his chances are slim.” She tells me.

Tears are running down my cheeks. Why didn’t Rick just kill me? I can’t live without Ben. But he is not dead yet. I have to have faith.

He is a fighter.

I know he is. He must come back to me.

I look at the clock. It’s 8pm. 3 hours passed since we came home from Seville and got attacked by Rick.

But then I see the date on the calendar. It’s over a day ago. And they are still trying to safe Bens’ life in the ICU?

That is taking too long. I immediately lose all my hope.

‘Don’t lose hope.’ A voice whispers in my head. ‘Don’t lose hope and never ever give in.’

It’s Bens’ voice. Bens’ voice sounds in my head.

I must not lose hope, I need to be strong for Ben. He is a fighter, he can do this. We are not done yet. They can’t just take him away from me.

My nurse is still sitting next to my bed, holding my hand. “Can I get up, I need to go home, take care of the dog and close the Bed and Breakfast for guests.” I say. But the nurse shakes her head.

“No Señorita. You have to stay here, at least for tonight. You had good luck, the knife just missed your vital organs. But you have a big wound in your side and one between your ribs. You have been lucky, but you have to rest.” She explains. All I can think of is going back to the house, sort all things out and wait for Ben to leave the ICU in a healthy state.

“How is Ben?” I ask.

“I am not allowed to tell you anything about the state he is in. I am sorry Señorita. I think you both were very lucky that those people were there at the right time. But I am afraid help was too late for your dog.” The nurse continues.

I am confused. “What people?” I ask. The nurse shrugs. “I have no idea.” She says honestly.

And then it hit me. “Ventura?” I ask. The nurse looks at me. “Ventura?” She asks. “The dog.” I explain.
“No Señorita, I’m sorry. We think he tried to attack your attacker and he stabbed him. He died right away.”

I start crying. Ventura wasn’t my dog, but I deeply loved that little creature. And I survived because of him.

The nurse has to leave and leaves me with tons of questions.

And who were those people who were there? Where is Rick? Will Ben ever get out of the ICU alive?

I stare at the ceiling. Thinking about the past time. I was so lucky with Ben around me. But now I nearly killed him because I wanted to travel along with him. It’s not fair. Not to him, not to his family and his friends. Not to me.

He saves a girl and got stabbed in the back. Which I hope it’s not literally.

After three hours, the doctor finally comes into my room. The look on his face is worried.

“How is Ben?” I ask. The doctor sighs and takes a seat.
I look at him, my eyes are big and I hold my breath.

“He will survive, but he has to fight. The knife perforated one of his lungs and just missed his heart. But he’s a fighter, he is tough. We had to perform CPR three times, but he made it through. You need to rest now. But I will make sure the nurse will take you to him first thing tomorrow.”

I like this doctor, he is nicer than the policemen were. And see what happened because of their stubbornness.
“Gracias.” I say and shake the doctors’ hand.

I lean back in the pillows. Ben will be fine. I want to cheer and be happy. But I can’t.
I can’t put Ben in more danger.

I need to know where Rick is and finish it myself. If he wants me so bad, he can have me. But I don’t want him to hurt Ben again. I sit up straight. I know what to do. I need to get out and find Rick. But how do I do that?

I swing my legs out of the bed and look for my clothes. They are not there. I open the cabinet and I see my shoes. There is no sign of my jeans or my shirt. I walk into the hallway and ask the first nurse I see. “They had to cut them off for surgery.” the nurse replies to my question. “How do I get clothes now? I can’t go home wearing this.” I say, pointing at my hospital gown. “You should ask someone to bring some.” She replies.

I shrug. “I don’t have anyone here.” I say and walk back to my room.

I have to call Erica to see if she knows someone who can help. I had my new phone with me and it’s on my night table. I am lucky that I still have it.

“Erica, it’s me. Rick found us. I am in the hospital now.” I say. My voice starts to tremble as I tell her everything. Erica is shocked about what happened and I ask her if she knows someone who can help me. She gives me the phone number of a friend of hers and she promises me to call her and ask her to bring me some clothes.

Erica calls back within a few minutes to tell me her friend is bringing me some clothes tomorrow.


*Sigh*

There is nothing left to do, than to go to sleep and wait till morning.

I lie down on the bed, careful with my sore side and drift away in a deep, dreamless sleep.

I wake up early the next morning, I look at my phone. It’s not even 6am.

Can I go see Ben yet?

Probably not.

6.30
Can I go to Ben now?

7.30 and the breakfast cart is coming in. “Can I go see Ben?” I ask. But the girl who is handing me my breakfast is not the one to speak to.
I press the red button and a nurse rushes in.

“Can I go see Ben?” I ask. “Can you wait till after breakfast?” She asks. Stupid question. “Of course I can not wait till after breakfast.” I mutter.

“Well let’s go then.”
The nurse helps me out of bed and we slowly walk to the ICU rooms. I slow my steps. I don’t know what he looks like and I am not sure if I want to know. But I need to see him.

The nurse opens the door for me. “I’ll wait here in the hall for you.” she says and lets me in.

I slowly step into the room. It’s a single room. The machines are beeping and making noises.
I look at Ben. He looks pale and there is a tube down his throat, needles in both his hands and his eyes are closed.

My hands tremble when I grab his hand and stroke it softly.

I am so sorry Ben. I am so, so sorry. I wish I had never asked to travel along with you. I promise, I never knew that Rick would find me and do this to you.

I break down and start to cry uncontrollably with my face pressed against Bens’ hand. My waist hurts, but I can’t stop crying.

The nurse comes in to tell me that I have to go. I don’t want to leave and they need three people to drag me away from the bed. I keep reaching out for Bens’ hand.

“I’m sorry, I am so sorry Ben.” I keep repeating it over and over again till I am back in my own room.

There is a girl standing in my room. I look at her. She is beautiful. She has black hair hanging down to her waist and big brown eyes.
I fall silent and look at her. “Hola. I am Carlotta. And I came here to help you. Erica asked me to.” She says.

“Hi, I am Lynn. And I want to go back to my boyfriend.” I cross my arms and glare at the nurse.
“And I am the nurse that has to watch over you and I won’t let you go back.” She says while leaving the room.

I hate it here.

Chapter 22 - That woudn't be right

I look again and there is definitely something moving in the distance. For now I wish there were some guests staying here. Preferably some strong body building type of guys.

“Ben, I see something, there.” He steps next to me and looks too. The only thing that moves are the leaves in the wind.

It must be my imagination.

The days pass by without any thing happening. Ben and I loosen up a bit. I am still not comfortable letting Ventura outside alone, and we walk with him a few times a day, always carrying a cell phone with us.

I will be looking over my shoulder forever, if things continue like this.

Erica keeps us informed with the state her mum is in. It doesn’t look like she’s getting any better.

There are still no new guests and Ben and I enjoy the quietness. Rick disappears to the background and we have a great time.

Ben and I drive to town so I can buy a new cell phone. I never missed mine till the past time. I want to be able to call anyone in case of emergency. I find a cheap new one, and I immediately text Sara and Lea with my new number and let them know where I am right now.

I make them promise not to tell anyone my new number, or where I am. I quickly inform them about Rick and scare them both with the news. Especially Lea is shocked. She never expected him to turn out like this.

We enjoy our time in Seville, walking around the streets and having a great time together.

Rick disappears to the background even more. We have a quick lunch at one of the many little restaurants.
We pay and stroll back to the car, holding hands. We stop occasionally for a kiss.

We arrive back at the house and Ventura starts howling. He needs to go out for a walk. I grab his leash and take him with me. Quickly kissing Ben on his lips. “I’ll be back soon my love.” I whisper and walk off to the olive trees together with Ventura.

I wave at Ben from time to time. He’s sitting on the porch, looking at me. I enjoy the sun on my face and run back and forth with Ventura.
I throw a stick and he runs after it, but he is still on a leash so I have to run along with him.

Pretty useless, but so much fun. I giggle and look up at Ben, he winks at me and I blow him a kiss.

I turn around and grab the stick. Ventura is looking up to me and I smile and look down at the dog. “Want me to throw it again?” I ask.
Ventura barks in agreement. I raise my arm to throw to stick when I hear Ben screaming.

“LYNN!” he shouts. I stop my movement, my arm still raised and I look at Ben. “NOOOOO!” He screams.

I feel a sharp pain in my side.

Ben is running towards me and I hear a familiar voice, close to my ear, say. “If I can’t have you, no-one can.”

Another sharp pain and I fall on my knees. My eyes wide open. I look at Rick. “Why?” I whisper.

Rick turns around and grabs Ben. “I want you to look at her when she dies.” He grunts. “She will never be yours.”
Rick is too strong for Ben and he stops struggling. “Please.” I cry. “Please Rick, don’t.”

“Let him go Rick, please.” My cries are getting softer.

Ben looks at me and I look back at him. I grab my waist and look down. My white top has a big red stain, that’s getting bigger and bigger.

Rick holds the bloody knife against Ben’s throat. “One move and I cut your throat.” he snaps.

Silent tears are running down Ben’s cheeks. Darkness is surrounding me. Ben is moving further and further away from here.

My head feels light and heavy at the same time. All I want is to lie down in the soft grass and sleep.

Sleep forever.

The sound of people screaming wake me up. But all I can see is darkness. “Can someone please turn on the light?” I ask. But no-one seems to hear me.

“Hey, what are you doing?” I feel a sharp pain and I want to roll myself into a ball, to get rid of the pain. But I can’t move.

“Let go of me.” I shout. But still no sound is coming out of my mouth.

Am I dead?

A heavy weight is pressing on my chest. I breath in deeply. “She’s breathing.” A voice says.

Of course I am breathing. I would be dead if I wasn’t breathing.

Or am I dead?

I can’t be dead, I haven’t seen my life flashing before me, or a light at the end of the tunnel. And that’s what they say you’d see if you are nearly dead. I want to see Ben’s face so bad, that it hurts.

Not fair.

There is still darkness around me. And then I realize that my eyes are still closed.
I try to open them but it’s not working. My body is moving. I am flying through the air. Or at least, it seems like it.

A soft sting in my arm, and my head gets foggy. I don’t want to sleep. I want to know where Ben is.

“Where is Ben?” No luck.

“Where is Ben?” I try it again and now I can hear my own weak voice. “Where is Ben?” In my head I am shouting it, but all I can hear is a moan.

“Shhh, que va a estar bien.” The voice says. I have no idea what he’s saying. “Where is Ben?” I ask it again. And this time I manage to whisper what I want to know. A soft hand is stroking my forehead. “He’ll be fine señorita.” A female voice tells me.

I nod slowly.

“But where is he?” I ask again. “No worries, you will see him later.” The woman says.

Still no answer to my question, but I can’t fight the sleep any longer.

I drift away on a dark cloud. I see Ricks’ face in front of me, the evil grin he had when he held the knife against Ben’s throat.
I see Bens’ terrified face when he looked a me.

Darkness is surrounding me again. And I let it take me away.

I blink my eyes. The bright light is hurting me. Where the hell am I? An annoying beeping sound distracts my thought. Can it be gone please? I shake my head and look around.
The room is bright and white. I’m in a hospital. I think back and realize that Rick stabbed me. Nearly killed me. But where is Ben?

I press the red button and wait for the nurse to arrive. “Buenos dias Señorita.” she says. “Where is Ben?” is the first thing I ask.

The nurse grabs a seat, sits down next to me and takes my hand.
“I am sorry to be the one to tell this to you.” She starts.

Chapter 21 - Fearful

I drop the rock, stumble backwards and bump into the sofa. I lose my balance and fall down. He found me, here, in the middle of nowhere. If he’s capable of find me here, he will find me everywhere.

I stare at the rock on the floor, as if it’s a time bomb that can explode anytime. “Everything okay out there?” Ben shouts from the bedroom. I don’t answer and he walks in. “Lynn, what happened?” He asks.

I turn around and look at him.

My face is pale and my eyes are red. A look of fear is visible on Ben’s face when he looks at me.
I point at the rock on the floor. “Rick found me again.” I say.
“He threw that rock? How’d you know?” He asks. “That’s one of my panties. That I left behind in Amsterdam.” I mumble.

Ben is like a statue, he doesn’t move an inch. His face filled with anger and fear. “That’s it, I am going to call the police, this shit has to stop.” He grinds his teeth. I never seen him this angry.

“I’m sorry Ben, for dragging you into this shit. I understand if you want to leave me now.” I say. My shoulders slump forward and I place my hands in my lap. I stare at the floor. Waiting for Ben to leave the room.

Ben doesn’t say a thing and I am afraid to look up. I am not sure if he’s still standing there.

I cry silent tears. My shoulders shock.

Ben is slowly walking towards me, his hands on my shoulders, gently squeezing. That’s all I need to feel better. He is not leaving me because of Rick and together we can win this fight.

We call the police and tell them what happened. I also tell about what happened in Madrid, and that Rick is following me since I left Amsterdam.
I give a description of Rick and the police tells me they will look out for him, but they can’t do anything because there is no proof that it was really Rick who threw the stone.

I shake of anger. I am scared to death, and the police can’t help me. This is bullshit.

I don’t dare to go outside, and I am too restless to stay in.

Ben receives a text from Erica that she arrived in England safely. I wish she comes back, so we can hit the road again.

But I can’t run away forever. He will find me, wherever I will go.

The sun is shining and it’s warm outside. But inside I am cold as ice. I am scared and angry at the same time.

“Let’s go for a walk.” Ben says but I shake my head. “I want to stay inside, and you should too. I have no idea where Rick is, and outside we are easy prey if he wants to do something.

I shiver again. I don’t think I will ever get warm.

“Will you hold me please?” I ask.

Ben takes me in his strong arms and I cling on to him. “Ben, I am afraid.” I whisper. “Me too baby, me too.” He admits.

Ventura starts barking and we both look up. He is staring at the door, his hairs up straight.
I hold my breath.

A soft scratching sound from the outside of the door catches my attention and I stare at the door. A shadow is visible but nothing happens. Ben lets go of me and walks to the door.
He looks through the peephole and takes a step backwards.

“Nothing.” He shrugs.

“Don’t open the door.” I say. But Ben doesn’t listen.

He opens the door a bit and peeks through. He gasps and jump backwards. Shutting the door with a bang.

My eyes widen and I look at him. Ben slowly turns around. His face is pale and his mouth wide open in a silent scream.

“What is it Ben? What is it?” I try my best to stay calm, but inside I am exploding. “Ben, what did you see.” I whimper.

“That Rick is a sick fucker.” Ben manages to say something before throwing up on the floor.

I run up to Ben and try to hold him when he falls on his knees.

“Ben? What happened?” I ask.

“Dead cat.” He says before throwing up again. My eyes widen and I take a peek through the door. I start crying.
There, on the doorstep lies a cat who’s butchered violently. His guts spread out. There is a note on top of the cat which says.

“This could be your monkey next time.”

I grab Bens’ cell phone and call the police again. “NOW can you do something?” I ask. They assure me to stop by soon and take a look. I shout at them. “I am afraid, he is walking around the house somewhere, and he is threatening my boyfriend to kill him.” I nearly cry now.

I hang up the phone and wrap my arms around Ben. “It will all be okay.” He tries to comfort me, but I can hear in the tone of his voice that he is scared too.

An hour passes, and there is still no police man around. I call them again. “Oh, sorry miss, something came up, we will be there soon.” A friendly lady tells me.

Outside a car is entering the drive way and I look at the door with my eyes wide open. Would that be the police. Or Rick? Or a guest?

My eyes are locked at the door. I hear car doors open and close, footsteps coming closer and then a soft knock on the door.

My heart beats quickly and loud. “Who’s there?” Ben asks. “Police.” a male voice sounds from outside. I open the door a bit and take a look. Two men in uniform are looking at me. I look at their feet.

The cat is gone.

I let the police inside and Ben and I start telling. But when we reach the part of the dead cat, the men look at each other. “There was no dead cat there.”

I know that.

But where did it go?

“Well señorita. I think we know enough. I am afraid we can’t do anything for you if there is no proof.” I show him the rock. “This is prove! And check the bloodstains at the porch. Isn’t that proof enough?” I ask.

The tallest policeman shakes his head. “There was no physical contact. So no proof.” He shrugs.
“The only thing we can do is take a look around if we find something. But then again, if we find someone, we can’t take him in.” he says.

I hate this country.

I need to make pictures of everything I see what could have been done by Rick.

The police leaves and I close the door behind them. Ventura starts howling. He needs to go out. But I can’t let him go alone. What if Rick is out there and grabs him. I don’t want Ventura to end up on the porch like the poor dead cat.

But I don’t want Ben to end up there either. There is only one thing I can do. Go outside, together with Ventura.

I grab the leash and tie it to Ventura. He howls quietly, he’s not used to be stuck on a leash.

I take him for a walk. I’m staying in sight of the house, so Ben can keep an eye on me, and I can keep an eye on Ben.

I feel his eyes on me and I look back at him. I wave and smile. I run back to the house with Ventura not even ten minutes later. I shut the door behind me and turn the lock.

Ben cuts a cart board box in pieces to tape it in front of the broken window. He found a glass repair shop but they are closed on this time of day.

I stare outside. Scanning the trees. Do I see something move out there? I narrow my eyes and see a shadow moving in the distance.

Chapter 20 - I love you

“Where?” Ben asks.

“He was just walking behind us.” I say with trembling voice. Ben steps in front of me and waits till Rick passes us. But he isn’t passing at all. Was it an illusion? A thought? Or what he really there?

I step from behind Ben and peek around the corner. The hall is crowded but I don’t see Rick anywhere.

“I think I am afraid to go to public places, afraid that Rick will find me. So afraid that my mind is seeing him everywhere.” I mumble at Ben, while looking at my feet.

“No wonder with all that he put you through.” Ben gives me a kiss on top of my head. “Lets go home.” He says. I smile. “Our home, that sounds good. Even though it’s for a short while.”

I grab Ben’s hand and we walk back to the car. I keep looking around to see if I see Rick. But he’s not there. Thank God.

We step in the car and drive back to the house.

“Well miss, no guests, no owner. What do you want to do?” Ben asks. I smile. “Take a long hot bath with the love of my life. Now where is Ventura?” I call for the dog and he comes running around the corner. Ben laughs and slaps my butt. “You rather take a bath with Ventura than with me?” He asks and I smile.

“Get naked and I might change my mind.” I smile. Ben pushes me backwards to the bedroom which has a bathroom attached to it. “Change your mind my dear.” He laughs while stripping in front of me.
He twirls his shirt and tosses it at me. I catch it and I can’t stop giggling. I grab it from the air, and smell it before I throw it on the bed.

“I think you are winning.” I giggle.

Ben pulls down his pants and rubs it across his back like a professional Chippendale. I can’t stop giggling. And walk up to him to pull down his boxer. But Ben grabs my hand.

“Uh uh.” He says. “You are not allowed to touch. Only look.” and gently pushes me backwards till I fall on the bed. I sit up straight and look at Ben.
“Hey Ben, ever saw American pie? You look like Jim now.” I laugh. “And you know what happened to him.”

“He got married to a sexy chick.” He grins. While tossing the jeans to me. “With a band geek.” I joke.

“I’m a band geek.” Ben smiles. While slowly pulling down his boxer.

“This one time, at band camp….” We laughs simultaneously. I snort and get up off the bed. “This is taking too long.” I say.
Ben is still slowly pulling down his boxer. And I help him take them down. Ben stands up straight and throws his hands in the air. “Tadaa.” He grins. “Now, who’s the lucky one to take that bath with you?” he asks.

I glare at Ben. And from Ben to Ventura. “Hm.” I say, while rubbing my chin. “Tough decision.” I look back and forth one more time and kneel in front of Ventura. “I am sorry buddy, but you lose, now, if you please want to leave the room. I’ve got some fun to make.” I gently push Ventura out of the door and walk up to Ben.

“So, you’re my bitch now.” I laugh. “Whatever you say miss.” He replies. “Now, get the bath ready so I can get naked too.” I say.

Ben does what I ask with a smirk on his face. He walks back into the room and sees me standing there, still with all my clothes on. “Why aren’t you naked yet?” He asks.

I slowly take off my dress, and he looks at my nearly naked body and bites on his lip. I hook my fingers on the sides of my panties and slide it down slowly. A growl escapes Bens’ lips and I smirk. I kick away my panties and stand up straight. Reaching behind my back to open my bra. I toss it at him. “I’m ready.” I say.

Ben growls. “Why are you so damn sexy?” He asks before nearly running up to me. His body crashes against mine and he presses his lips on mine, He sucks on my bottom lip and I let out a soft moan. His hands wander down my body and touches me right there where I want him to touch me.

“The water is getting cold.” I mumble against his lips. “Who cares.” He replies. “I do,” I say. Ben lets go of me and for a moment, I feel sorry that I said that.

Ben steps in the tub and I go in after him.

I sit between his legs, my back against his chest. There is foam all around us and he blows some bubbles in my face.

It’s very quiet in the bathroom and the sandalwood smell of the bath foam is taking over. Bens’ fingers stroke my belly and I rest my head backwards.

“I love you Ben.” I say. “I love you too Lynn.” He replies and he presses a kiss on my head.

If I ever heard someone talking about feeling blissful, I never knew what they were talking about. Now I do.
It feels so good, just being around Ben. Never in need for words. Never the feeling to prove myself and I can be me. He fell in love with the person I am. And he does not want to change me into someone I am not.

A noise from the living room distracts me from my thoughts. “Probably Ventura being jealous.” Ben grins. “I think you are right.” I reply.
There are no guests in the house. Ben continues to caress my naked body with his fingers.

My body is tense and every stroke of Bens’ fingers makes it worse. But I don’t want him to stop. “I want you, right here and now.” I moan.
I never had sex in the bathtub, and I am not even sure if it’s possible to do so. I turn around to sit on his lap with my legs around his waist.
I lift my hips, and help him slide inside me.

I move slowly up and down.
There is not much room to move and the waves of the water speed up my orgasm.

We both laugh. “I never did it like this before.” I say.
I lean back to Ben and he is massaging my shoulders. I am trying to regain my breath. “I don’t think I will do it like this pretty soon though.” I say. “I think I twisted my knee.”
“But you were damn sexy like that.” Ben grins.

The water is getting cold and we step out. We wrap ourselves in the towels and stumble into the bedroom with nothing but towels around us. “Now let me go take a look what Ventura did to the living room. I hope he did not wreck the place.” I open the door and look inside. The big lamp has been kicked over and shattered on the floor. It’s one big mess, and I can’t go inside bare feet. There is glass everywhere.

So much glass for a lamp like that, I think.

But then I take a look at the window. The window next to where the lamp stood, is completely ruined. That’s where the glass comes from. Ventura couldn’t have done that. “Ventura?” I ask. A soft growling sound and Ventura comes running to me from the kitchen. “What happened in here?” I ask, more to myself than to the dog.

I walk back into the bedroom to get dressed and check the window. Ben pulls me into a hug. “Not now Ben, I need to see what happened to the window. It’s completely smashed, and the lamp tipped over.” I quickly tell him what I saw in the living room.

We both get dressed quickly and I slip into my sneakers before heading back to the living room.

There is a big rock right underneath the smashed window and I pick it up. There is some fabric wrapped around the rock. My eyes are widening when I recognize the fabric.

It’s one of my panties.

Panties, that I left in Amsterdam.

Chapter 19 - Shy water

I stroll outside to look for Ben. He’s playing with a dog in the field. He keeps tossing away a little twig, which the dog returns. Ben has so much fun, and I can’t stop looking at him.

Ben kneels to grab the twig, but the dog is quicker and tosses him over. Ben is on his back and the dog licks his face. Ben laughs loudly, trying to push away the dog. I giggle and Ben looks up. “Help” he laughs.

I help him by tossing the twig away. The dog runs off to get it and I offer Ben my hand to pull him back on his feet. “Lets go for a walk.” I say and grab his hand. We stroll through the field, we are surrounded by olive trees. It smells like summer.

“Ben, I think we need to talk.” I say all serious. And Ben’s face darkens. “What about?” He asks.

I tell him about my feelings, and that I don’t want to be apart from him. Not yet. Ben smiles. “I know how you feel, I felt the same ever since we left Madrid.” He says. “And I assume that was why you were so sad earlier.”
I nod. “Yes, I had no idea what to tell you, or what to do. And I still don’t know, but at least we can figure something out, together.” I say.

We arrive at the end of the olive tree field and I spot a little river in the distance “Lets go for a swim.” I say and run away from Ben towards the water. I pull my shirt over my head before I am even close.
I stop in front of the water, pull down my pants and jump in. I shiver. “Damn it’s cold.” I grin. I stand knee deep in the water and look at Ben. “Come in.” I say. “No thanks, I prefer to look.” He grins.

I splash water towards him, but he is out of reach. I let myself fall forward and swim under water for a while. I am starting to get used to the water, and it feels nice to my naked body. I lower my feet and stand back on the rocky bottom. I look at Ben. “Still not coming in?” I ask and he shakes his head. “Nope.” he grins.

I get out of the water and walk over to Ben. He looks at my naked body with a smirk on his face. “Why are you not coming in?” I pout. “Because I don’t like cold water.” He replies.

I jump in his arms and press my naked body against him. “Well you’re all wet now. Come on.”

Ben laughs, wraps his arms around me and carries me to the water. He walks in with all his clothes on and me in his arms. I laugh loudly. Ben falls backwards in the water, dragging me with him. I quickly stand up and look down at Ben who sits up straight. “DUUUUDE.” I say, with my hands on my hips. “Now you’re all wet.” I tease. “I suggest you take off your clothes and let them dry before we go back.” I say. “And I suggest you take some time off. You’ve got a concussion, remember.” Ben says.

I pout. “But daddy, I feel fine.” I say with a childish voice. Ben reaches out but I step away. He gets up and tries to grab me again, but I run away from his reaching hands. I can’t stop giggling. Ben is chasing me, but his wet clothes are too heavy and I am faster than him. I laugh and hide behind a bush.

He finally catches me and lifts me up. I look in his eyes and quickly kiss his lips. “How is your head.” He asks. “My head is doing fine.” I say. I can handle a lot of pain, and my head hurts half as much as it did yesterday.

He gently kisses me on my lips. “Does your mouth still hurt?” He asks. “Hm hm.” I mumble. “Just a little.”

“You should take those wet clothes off, you will get a cold if you don’t.” I say. He does what I say and spreads them out in the sun to let them dry. We lie down on the soft grass in the shadow of a Juniper tree. I’m on my back looking at the leaves waving in the soft breeze. Ben is on his side with his head resting on his hand. He looks at me.

“I wish we could just build a house here, and live happily ever after.” I say. “We can try to find a job close to here, even if it’s only for a short while. We can always continue our road trip when we have more money.” Ben says.

“YOUR road trip.” I reply.

“It’s OUR road trip now. I don’t think I want to continue it without you.” Ben says. I look at him. I see that he means it.
“We took off like a subway train. Quick and heavy. But I don’t think I can live with out you at this point in my life.” I confess. “I need you to feel better. I need you to love me back to life.” I continue.

Ben bends his head and kisses me like only he can kiss me. “I love you Lynn. I really do.” He whispers.

A single tear rolls down my face when he says that. “I love you too Benjamin Graupner. Much too much.” I kiss him softly. “I’ll go wherever you will take me.” I whisper.

Ben rolls on top of me. “Are you sure Lynn?” He asks. “More than sure.” I reply. I want to wake up next to you every day. Whether in a field of poppies, or in a luxury hotel. Together we can do this.” I say with a smile.

Ben leans in to kiss me and I pull him closer.

There on that field in the shadow of the tall old Juniper we make love till the sun goes down.

We freshen ourselves in the cold river and get dressed. Bens’ clothes are still a little damp, but it’s not that cold.

We stroll back to the house, hand in hand.

Erica is sitting on the porch together with her dog and waves at us. “I see you spoke it all through.” She smiles and both Ben and I nod.
“We go see if we can find a job in Seville, like you suggested. For a few weeks till we’ve got more money. We continue our road trip after that.

“That reminds me.’ Erica says. “I need to go back to England for a few weeks. My mother is very ill, and I want to be there for her. If I pay you, can you take care of the bed and breakfast till I’m back?” Erica asks.

I smile spreads across my face and I look at Ben. He smiles back. “But I have no idea what I have to do to keep a business like this running.” Ben replies honestly.

“It’s easy, you’d be nice to the guests, keep them fed, and keep the house and the rooms clean. And I think, that as long as you’d be yourselves, it will all be fine.” Erica continues.

“Why are you asking us to do it? You barely know us.” I ask.

“You seem like the kind of people who don’t mind hard work. And I like to give people a chance to get happy.” She grins.

I wrap my arms around her neck. “Thank you Erica, thank you SO much. I promise we will not disappoint you.” I assure her.

“I know you won’t.” She laughs.

3 days later

It takes Erica three days to get everything ready. She told us everything we need to know about the Bed and Breakfast and is ready to leave. We bring Erica to the airport in Seville and wave till she goes through the customs.

“Ben, we have so much luck that we met Erica.” I sigh and hug him. “I wonder if there will be any guests soon.” Ben asks. “I would love to have some alone time with you.” He wiggles his eyebrows and grins at me. “Ohh, mr Graupner, got any plans?” I ask with a smile.

But my smile fades as I see a familiar face in the distance. It can’t be. I look again, but my eyes were right.
I pull Ben with me. “Wait, Lynn. What are you doing?” he asks, but I don’t answer. I pull Ben around the corner of a car rental booth. My hearth is pounding and it’s hard to breath.

“Rick.” I say with fear in my voice.

Chapter 18 - Thunderdome

We pass olive tree fields, cornflower fields and poppy fields, I look at them without saying a thing.
It’s a long drive over dirty roads. Ben is holding my hand. My other hand loosely out the window. We listen to the radio, softly singing along.

I feel happy and sad at the same time, and I see the kilometers drop by the minute.
560, 550, 540 only 530 km till Seville.

“Ben, can you pull over, please?” I ask. Ben looks at me. “What’s wrong baby?” He asks.

“I think I need to throw up.” I stumble out of the car and sit down on the side of the road with my head between my knees. I really don’t feel good. But I don’t think it’s the concussion, it’s the thought of Ben leaving me within a few days.

I choke back the tears and I want to scream.

Wasn’t it my own decision to stop in Seville.

Is it too late to change my mind?

I must be able to live on my own. I did it for years before Rick. Though this is different. This is so far away from everyone and without Ben around me.

But there must be new nice people to meet. Make some new friends, maybe I will even meet a nice guy.

Lynn, this is what you wanted. Starting a new life in Seville. I say to myself.

What if Rick finds me there. He will find me there. I open my eyes in shock. “Ben, I can’t stay in Seville. Rick will find me and kill me.” I gasp

Ben kneels next to me and strokes the hair from my face. “We will go to the police in Seville, and make sure they’ll get him if he arrives.” Ben wraps his strong arms around me and holds me tight.

“Feeling better yet?” Ben asks. I nod and we continue our way.

“Lynn, you changed because of Rick. Then you turned into your old self. You changed again two days ago, when he beat you up. But, is there any chance that I can make you smile today? Don’t let him get you.” Ben asks.

I scream loudly inside. From the outside my face is a mask. I know I changed. I don’t want to change into a bad version of me again. But, somehow with the shit Rick caused, and Bens’ leaving within a view days. I can’t do anything else but feeling sorry for myself.

I bite my lip. I don’t want to cry.

A lonely tear drips down my face.

Okay, now I am crying.

Ben squeezes my hand and our fingers intertwine. “What do I have to do to make you laugh again?” He asks. I shake my head. “I don’t know. I wish I knew.”

I know. Deep down inside I know the answer. I know how he can make me smile. To ask me to come with him to Portugal. Or to say that he stays with me in Seville.

We drive on a small road through the mountains. The sun is shining bright and I feel like we’re all alone on the earth. We haven’t seen a single soul for hours. We pass a little parking lot. And Ben parks the car. “I need to stretch my legs for a moment.” he says.

I step out too and sit down on the grassy area at the other side of the parking lot. I see the most amazing view and I jump back up to grab my camera. “Ben, come see this.” I say.
Ben walks over to me and stands behind me, his hands around me and his chin rests on my head. “It’s gorgeous out here.” he hums.

I lean back against his chest and he pulls me closer. We both stare in the distance without saying anything.

We stand there for minutes. I drown in the silence and the peacefulness.

I am starting to feel dizzy and we get back in the car. We need to find a town to spend the night.

We pass a town, but only has a few houses, nothing more. We continue our way to find a town big enough to have a hotel.
It takes us nearly an hour drive to find a little city in the middle of nowhere. There is no hotel but there is a little bed and breakfast with available rooms.

“Soñador.” The name on the house says. Ben translates it for me. “Dreamer.” He smiles.

We ring the bell and introduce us to the woman who opens the door. “Hello I am Erica.” she says in perfect English. “Hi, I am Ben, and this is my girlfriend Lynn, we are looking for a place to stay a few nights.” Ben says.

“Be welcome in my humble house.” Erica smiles and opens the door for us. She shows us around. And we come to know that we are only 10 kilometer away from Seville.

That’s when it hit me even harder than before. Ben will nearly leave me. Two days together, maybe a bit more.

I need to make the best of it. So he will remember me forever.

We drop our stuff in the room, and I walk back to Erica, who’s in the kitchen. “Hi Erica, can I do anything to help?” I ask. “Sure, you can cut the peppers if you want. She hands me three bell peppers and a knife and I start to cut them. “Where is your boyfriend.” Erica asks. “He went for a shower and a walk.” I reply. “Is everything okay between you.” She asks while pointing at my bruised face.

“Oh, you think that Ben….no! Ben would never hurt me. I ran into my ex boyfriend.” I say quickly. No one should ever think that Ben would beat me up. “He’s the one he saved me.” I say.

I start rambling, and I tell Erica everything. Even about my love for the band. It’s like I know her for years.
She lets me tell my story, but gently take away the knife away from me when I start to molest the bell peppers with it. When I tell about Rick in Madrid. And she hands me a tissue when I start to tell about my fear of losing Ben when he goes to Portugal and I stay in Seville.

“Now, sit down and have a drink with me.” She says and guides me to a table. She opens the fridge and pulls out a pitcher of Sangria and pours me a glass.

I take a sip and look at her.

“First of all, you should tell Ben what you feel. And it doesn’t matter if you want to stay in Seville or not. You might find out when you talk to him about it. You don’t have anything to lose.” She says.

“I don’t think I have enough money with me to continue the trip with Ben, I really need a job, and save more money, so I can continue traveling. And maybe I will see Ben along the road again.” I shrug.

“How much money do you have left?” Erica asks. “About 1500 Euro.” I reply.

“That’s more than enough to get to Lisbon.” She replies. “But what about working in Seville for a few weeks, and than continue your way to Portugal with Ben.” She asks.

I look thoughtful at her. “I don’t know if Ben has the time to stay at one place for a while.” I shrug.

And besides that, who wants to hire me for only a few weeks.

I let it rest for a while and drink my Sangria. “I think you will find out what you want.” Erica says. “But please talk to Ben about this and see what his thoughts are. You might know you think you know what he want’s but you don’t if you don’t ask him.”

“Thank you Erica.” I hug her and head to the door to go back to my room when I think of something. “Erica, how did you learn English this well?” I ask.

She smiles at me. “I was a teacher in England before I moved here. And made my dream of having a own Bed and Breakfast come true.” She replies.

I smile.

Dreams DO come true.

Now it’s my turn to make them happen.

Chapter 17 - Keep awake

“I knew I would find you here.”

I gasp for breath. “Rick, what are you doing here, how did you find me?” I ask. My legs are trembling.

Where is Ben. Did Rick found him before he found me?

“I always succeed when I want something.” Rick laughs. It’s not the laugh I fell for, this is a mental laugh. “Rick, you need help.” I need to keep talking, hoping that people see me struggling. I don’t dare to shout for help.
Rick drags me with him across the promenade into a little alley. “Where’s Ben?” He asks.

I sigh relieved. He did not get to Ben yet. “I left him in Barcelona.” I lie. “I did not want to spoil his trip.” I continue.

Rick slaps my cheek. “LIAR.” he spits in my face.

Tears are running down my cheeks. “Rick… no…” I stammer. He hits me again and again. “LIAR, where is that son of a bitch. Where is the dick who stole my girl from me?” He shouts with his face close to mine.

“He did not steal me away from you Rick. You owe it all to yourself.” I look up angry at him.

“Do NOT blame anyone else for the things YOU did.” I throw at him.

“I.. Did.. Not.. Do.. Anything!” He hits my face with every word he shouts. My head feels incredibly clear and I look at him.

“You will NEVER get me back Rick, you made this mess YOURSELF. Now let me go.”

A scream leaves my mouth when he hits me again, with his fist. My head hits against the wall behind me and the world turns dark. My knees buckle but Rick is still holding me up. I fight against the darkness but I lose and my chin sinks on my chest. I only want to get some sleep.

“Lynn, hey Lynn.” Someone keeps tapping my cheek and calling my name. Can it stop please? I want to sleep.

I open my eyes a little and have to close them again, the light is too bright. “Lynn, open your eyes. You can do it.” the voice says and the tapping continues.
“Can you stop tapping already.” I mumble. I feel like I’ve got a bad hangover. I open my eyes again and see a face that goes with the voice. “Ah, I knew I recognized the voice, now let me sleep Ben.” I say and close my eyes again.

“Do you know what happened Lynn?” Ben asks. “Let me guess, you gave me a big pitcher of Sangria and I got drunk.” I reply.
But then it hits me and my eyes fly open. “Rick.” I pant. “Rick?” Ben asks.
“Rick is here, you need to get out, run, he’s after you.” I mumble. Ben sees the fear in my eyes. “He’s not gonna get me.” Ben assures me. “Can you stand up?” he asks. I try to sit. The world is spinning and I have to hold Ben. “I am not sure.” I reply and my voice breaks. Ben wraps his arm around my shoulders and shoves his other arm under my knees and lifts me up. I bury my face in his neck and hold him tight. “I’ll bring you back to the hotel.” He says. I drift away again and only wake up for a moment when he gently places me down on the bed.

I wake up from something cold on my face. I open my eyes. Ben is cleaning my face with a wash cloth. “Hi, how are you feeling?” He asks softly.

“Like I’ve got a bad hangover.” I reply. “Everything hurts. How do I look?” I ask. “Like you’ve been hit by a truck.” Ben replies honestly.
“I think you need to go see a doctor.” he continues. “It seems like a concussion to me, but maybe it’s worse.”

He gently cleans my face. And I feel a bit better.

“Did you take care when you walked up here?” I ask worried. “I hope he did not follow you.”

“I had to tell what happened when they saw me walking in with you looking like that, they will be on the lookout for Rick.” he assures me. “They will call the police when they see him.”

My head is pounding and my eyes keep closing. I only want to sleep.

The next hours go by in a blur. I am asleep and awake and I have no idea about place and time.
Every time I open my eyes. I look around to see if Ben is still there. And he is. He lies next to me on the bed.

Someone is opening my eye. I slowly shake my head. “Go away.” I mumble. There is a bright light shining in my eye. “A severe concussion. She has to rest. But you have to wake her up every hour, and ask her questions.” Some man with a bad accent is talking to Ben.

“Who are you?” I mumble. “It’s the doctor honey. Go back to sleep.” Ben assures me. And I drift away again.

Ben does what the doctor told him, and wakes me up every hour, asking me stupid questions.

When I finally wake up and actually realize that I am awake it’s almost a whole day after the meeting with Rick.

Ben is asleep next to me and I gently shake his arm. His eyes fly open and he looks at me all worried. “Are you okay Lynn?” He asks. I slowly nod. “I think so. My head still hurts, but I am not that tired anymore.”
“You want some food?” He asks. I shake my head. “No thanks, I am still nauseous.” I say. “No wonder, you got a severe concussion.” Ben replies. “I do want to take a shower though.” I say.

Ben jumps up from the bed and helps me up. “Why thank you nurse Giant.” I chuckle. And he laughs. “Be careful, I can leave you sitting here all dirty.”

I curl my lips in a smile and my face. My face hurts when I smile. “Well, Rick finally wiped the smile of my face.” I frown.

Ben helps me to the bathroom and I look in the mirror. I look like hell. Both my eyes have a black circle. My nose is purple, my lips swollen and my left cheek has a cut. My mouth falls open, and my lips crack.

I start crying. The salty tears hurt the wound on my cheek, but I can’t stop crying.

Ben undresses me and himself, and steps in the shower with me. He pulls me close to him. Stroking my back.
The hot water and Bens’ arms around me, make me feel better and the tears stop running. I feel anger instead of sadness.

Rick is gonna pay for this. I promise myself.

Ben is the sweetest man I’ve ever met, he helps me out of the shower. Back into my pajamas and holds me close against his chest till I am asleep again.

My dreams are wild but funny.

In my dreams I am chasing Rick with a unicorn. Until the unicorn pins him against a wall with his horn. Revenge has never been sweeter.

I wake up with a smirk on my face. “What are you smirking at?” Ben asks. I tell him about my dream. “And that, my dear. Is why I love unicorns.”

The doctor comes to see me again, he examines me. “Can we travel on?” I ask. “I don’t see a reason why not, just be careful, and take enough rest.” The doctor replies.
“I don’t mind staying here for a while, but I am afraid that Rick will find us here.” I mumble. “I just feel saver when I am on the road I think.” I say.
“If that’s what you want, then we’ll leave today.” Ben replies. “But they will take care of Rick if he arrives here.” Ben assures me again. I shrug. “I rather be safe than sorry.” I say.

We pack our things together. “Promise me we come back here someday.” I ask Ben. “I Promise.” he replies and softly kisses me on my lips.

I pull back. “Ouch.” It hurts when Ben gives me a kiss. “Sorry.” He pouts.

We thank the people from the hotel for all their help the past days and head off to the car.
“Do you want to drive straight to Seville? Or stay on the road for a while?” Ben asks. “Can you take the long route please?” I ask.

The thought that he leaves me in Seville suddenly hits me, and I have to bite my lip not to cry.

Chapter 16 - Funky Desperado

The bar turns up the volume of the music. We are done eating and I look at the people who hit the dance floor. They all know each other and have a great time. I smile at Ben. “Lets go.” I stand up and grab his hand, he follows me to the dance floor and we start dancing, I am not really good at Flamenco or Salsa, but I do my best and I am having a great time.

A gorgeous Spanish guy is eying me and I smile. “Can I have this dance?” he appears next to me and looks at Ben. Ben looks at me and I nod. The guy moves behind me, rest his hand on my belly and we move simultaneously to the music. I look at Ben. His eyes locked in mine, I lick my lips and smirk at him. He narrows his eyes. I grind my butt against the guy and wink at Ben. He smiles, walks up to me and grabs my hips, his leg between my legs. I get sandwiched between two gorgeous guys. The butterflies are going wild and I look in Ben’s eyes. They are dark of lust. The music changes and a wild Flamenco song boast through the speaker. The guy behind me whispers in my ear. “Thank you for the dance.” and disappears into the stomping and clapping crowd.

Ben and I are still holding each other, moving on our own tempo as if we are dancing along to music only WE can hear.

But then a song starts to play where I know the dance from, it’s a song from about two years ago, and I join the ladies when they do the dance. I shake my butt, wiggle my boobs and have the time of my life.

I look at Ben every now and then.

I’m dancing for a while now, and I get thirsty, I walk up to the bar and order a beer for me and Ben. “Here you go my sweet Giant.” I grin. He laughs and takes the beer. “You looked so happy up there.” He smiles. “But, sir, I AM happy.” I reply.

I finish my beer and hop back onto the dance floor.

Three hours later, and I am exhausted. I kept dancing and having fun with unknown people and Ben. I kinda regret that we head to Madrid tomorrow.

I can hardly walk, my feet are sore, and I had too much beers. Ben and I stumble back to the hotel and fall on the bed. “Never knew you could be so funky.” Ben grins and I smile. “Neither did I.”

I rest my back against Ben’s chest, his arms wrapped around me and his face buried in my hair. “Good night sweet lady.” He mumbles in my ear.

“Goodnight my adorable Giant.” I chuckle when he places a wet kiss on my ear. And fall in a dreamless sleep.

We sleep in late the next morning and I wake up by the sound of birds whistling in front of the window. I open the balcony doors to let the sun in. The weather is gorgeous and I can’t wait to be on the road again.

Do I dare to jump on the bed again? Nah, been there, done that. I straddle Ben and start tickling him.
He opens his eyes and grabs my wrist, pulling my arms and I fall on top of him. He kisses me and I grumble. “Why hello morning breath.”
Ben laughs. “Yours doesn’t smell that fresh either.” His lips crash on mine again.

“Did I already tell you that you looked so sexy last night?” He asks. I shake my head.

“You looked so sexy last night.” He says. And I smile. “Not anymore?”
“Always.” he replies before pulling me back for a passionate kiss. I don’t care about the morning breath and we kiss for a while.

His hands slides down my back and grabs my butt with one hand, pulling me closer on top of him. I pull away. “Can we move these blankets please?” I pant. I lift myself up from Ben and pull away the blankets. Ben is naked under there and I can see that he wants me badly.

He turns me around and removes my panties before burying his head between my legs.

“I will never get enough of this.” I whisper. “You turned me into a sex God.” Ben laughs. I moan in agreement.

We pack our stuff together, take a quick shower and head down to the lobby. “Adios Pedro.” I greet the manager and he waves back. “Adios bella dama.” he replies. And I smile.

We hop in the car and turn on the GPS, only 3 more hours to Madrid. I can’t wait to arrive there, but I also regret leaving this small but more than awesome town.

There is a little grocery store at the end of the road. “I need chocolate rolls.” I grin while licking my lips. I never realized I was this hungry. I pull over, run into the store and come back out with bottles of water and chocolate breads. I toss Ben a new pack of cigarettes and jump back in the car.

The landscape is changing, the roads are getting bigger and more crowded, and I can tell we are close to Madrid. Ben’s hand is resting on my leg while he drives into the city. “Well, we reached the first destination of out trip.” He smiles.

I am happy and sad at the same time. That means, the next destination will be my final one. Seville.
But that’s still 6 hours away from here. And I love taking a few detours, and many stops. To make it last as long as possible.

We find good looking hotel close to the center of Madrid, not expensive and they’ve got available rooms. They show us the room. It’s light and big, with a huge kingsize bed.
I grin. “That bed will be hours for the rest of the day.”

“Who’s the bunny now?” Ben asks with a smile, but he doesn’t protest.

We are in Madrid for hours now, and the only thing we saw so far, is the hotel room.

“We seriously need to get out, I want to see more of Madrid than the ceiling of this room.”

“We can use the shower too.” Ben grins and wiggles his eyebrows. I poke his side. “No, I want to see something of the city, outside.” I laugh.

Ben looks at me and strokes the hair out of my face. I am burning up. “It’s too hot outside to have sex.” I pant. Ben blows in my face. “Better?” He asks and I smile. “Just a tad. Let’s have a shower and go out for dinner.” I say.

We take a quick shower and I slip in my new dress with floppy hat. Wearing my sneakers and sunglasses. “I am ready.” I reply. Ben looks at my outfit. “Looking good! Can you take it off?” he grins and I slap his arm. “No, I can’t.”

We stroll through the streets of Madrid, holding hands. And even though it’s late in the afternoon, the sun is still burning. We have a early dinner and continue our way. It’s very touristy and there are souvenir stores everywhere. I find a little shop where they shoes.
“Can I take a look? I really need to change the sneakers for something better.” Ben nods and I let go of his hand. Wander through the store and find a pair of perfect white and red espadrilles to go with my dress. I also buy a pair of flip-flops and head back to Ben.

I don’t see him right away and I look around. “Ben!” I yell.

Where is he?

I can’t see him.

“BEN!” I shout again.

Where did he go? He must be around somewhere, right. I walk back and forth on the sidewalk but there is still no sight of him.

My heart pounds. Did something happen to him? Did he leave me and left me standing here alone?

Strong hands grab my arms and I look up, expecting to see Ben. But it’s not Ben at all.

My heart is pounding, I never been so scared in my life.

Chapter 15 - Sinners dream

We drive for 3 hours, singing loudly along with music on the radio. “You are really a bad singer.” Ben laughs. “I can’t say the same about you though.” I grin. We both know I am a really bad singer, but I don’t care, as long as I have fun, I am okay with making a fool of myself.

“But at least I know how to dance.” I tease him. “I can dance too, but you just never saw me do it yet.” He protests. I would love to see that so I challenge him to go dancing with me tonight. We might not make it to Madrid today. But we will find a nice place to stay for the night.

“We haven’t had a proper meal for days. Want to go to dinner with me tonight?” Ben asks. “Of course I want to, I am always hungry.” I grin.

There is a little town only 10 minutes away from where we are right now, so the GPS tells us and we take the exit.
The town is not that big, but there are many people on the streets and I already saw a few bars and a restaurant. “Let’s see if we can find a hotel here.” I say. We drive around through the small and bright streets. There is a gorgeous hotel in the middle of town. A yellow and brown building, with little balconies. I fall in love with it immediately. “Lets see if they’ve got rooms available here.” I don’t have to try very hard to persuade Ben. “This looks so much better than the hotel last night.” He agrees.

The desk clerk is happy to see us. “Tourists, si?” he asks we both nod. “Americano? Si? “ He asks. Ben nods and I shake my head. “Hollanda.” I reply. “Hollanda, a si.” He claps his hands and smiles. “Amsterdam, si!” I nod. “Americano, Holandés.” He looks from Ben, to me, and back to Ben. “Married? Si?” he asks. We both shake our head. “No, not married.” I say.

He hands us the room key. “I, Pedro, problemas, me.” He holds his hand to his ear, like a phone. I take it that he means we have to call him if there are any problems. “Gracias.” I say.

The first thing I see when I step into the room are the two separate beds. I laugh. “Apparently we are not allowed to sleep in the same bed.”
“Lucky rules are there to break, right?” Ben grins. And walks to the bed. He tries to move it, but the bed is bolted to the floor. “Apparently rules are not the be broken here.” I grin.
Seems like we have to spend our night in separate beds. Or snuggled up in one small bed. Which sounds like the better option to me.

Ben peeks into the bathroom. “At least this is big enough for me.” I sneak in front of him and look inside. A big shower, and even a bathtub. “I think I know what I will do the rest of the afternoon.” I say.
“I know what I want to do too.” Ben growls and twirls me around. He lifts me up and kisses me. I pull back. “Oh no mister. You take a shower first. When you are done, we can discuss your plans, but not now.” I push him into the shower. “You ain’t getting anything if you are sweaty like that.”

Ben pouts but does what I tell him to.

I tell him that I am going to get the bags out of the car. I want to try my new clothes on.

I walk into the lobby and there is Pedro smiling at me. Buenos tardes bonita” He says. I smile. “Buenos tardes Señor.”
Pedro bows a little, grabs my hand and presses a kiss on it. “Bella dama.” He smiles. I have no idea what he says, so I smile and nod and continue my way back outside. I get my bags out of the car and drag them all back inside. I don’t think I will need them all, but I have no idea what is in which bag.

Pedro waves at me and I smile back. Ben is already out of the shower when I return. I step inside and he turns around. I stare at his crotch and smile. “You forgot to put on your clothes.” I tease. I lick my lips, and I realize too late how that must look. I blush and look at the floor. Ben chuckles. “Come here.” He demands but I step back. “Nope, I am going to take a shower first, after that, I’m all yours. At least till dinner.” I laugh and run into the bathroom. I put my bags on the floor and lock the door behind me. I wanted to wear my new dress tonight, but I only have my sneakers, and they don’t match the dress. So I go for the black boot cut jeans with my new silk top I fell in love with.
I take out my new panties and bra, they are bright red and fit the red silk top. I am not even wearing it, and already feeling gorgeous. I wish I brought my black heels with me.

I take a quick shower, dry my hair and slip in my underwear. I don’t bother to put my pants and top on. Coz I know it won’t last long with a naked Ben in the room. I carefully take my clothes outside the bathroom and hang them over a chair. Ben turns around and looks at me. He growls like a lion. “Rawwr!. Estoy loco por ti.”

I smile and must look confused. “I said, I’m crazy for you.” he translates. I blush. He walks up to me and lifts me up. “I love your new underwear. Can it be gone soon?” he asks while playing with the clasp of my bra. “Get naked.” He demands while putting me back on my feet. I grin and salute. “Yes sir.” I undo me from my bra and reach for my panties, but Ben’s quicker than me and kneels in front of me, takes my panties between his teeth and pulls them down.

We make love on the bed for more than two hours. Exploring our bodies with our hands and mouths. He certainly knows what he’s doing.

“Shower together?” Ben asks. “Sounds like a good idea to me.” I reply. We take a shower. He washes my hair. “Damn you’re good with your hands.” I wiggle my eyebrows. “And I don’t only mean washing the hair.”

I kiss him on his lips. He lifts me up and pushes me against the wall. I gasp for breath. “Damn dude, that’s cold.”
I wrap my legs around him and we kiss passionate. I lower my hips a little and I feel him slide inside of me.
We make love in the shower till the water runs cold.

The white fluffy towels are still wet from the shower we took before our afternoon of fun. So we use the blankets of the bed to wrap around us, and lay down on that same bed.
I curl up against him and smile. “4 times. What are you? A bunny?” I tease him. “No, just well trained.” he replies witty. We both chuckle.

I draw imaginary puppets on his chest, and he is stroking my back. My tummy is rumbling. “I guess someone’s hungry.” Ben laughs. “I think so too, shall we get dressed and go?” I ask.

We both get ready for our night out in Monreal del Campo.

The little bar we found on our way to the hotel offers dinner too, so we go in. “Buenas Noches.” Ben says. The bartender nods and continue cleaning the glasses. We find a quiet place in the corner of the bar. I look around. This is a typical Spanish bar, I always imagined when I thought of Spain, and we are not even in Seville yet.
Apparently all Spain except the tourist towns are like this.

I remember my days when I was younger, went to Salou on holiday with friends, every year. Those holidays were only about how much you can drink, party and get laid.
Then I started to read books about Spain, and I always wanted to visit the real Spain. The Seville Spain, not the Salou or Ibiza Spain.

And here I am.

With my Giant.

Can someone pinch me, I must be dreaming.

Ben pokes me. “What?” I ask. “Daydreamer.” he smirks. “You want something to eat?”
I look at the menu. “I’ll go for the paella.” I reply.
“Dos paella por favor.” Ben orders. I take a sip from my beer and lean back in my chair.

Ben reaches across the table and grabs my hand. “I am having the best time. How about you?” He asks.
“Well besides being all sore because of all the sex, I am doing great.” I grin.

Chapter 14 - Beautiful, more so.

I finally calm down and let go of Ben, kissing him on the lips before I walk to the bathroom to freshen up a bit.

I look in the mirror. I look like shit. My face is pale, my eyes are red and swollen. And there are red spots on my cheeks. I splash cold water on my face. I feel so much better now all these tears are washed away.
I walk back into the room and Ben looks up at me. He reaches out his hand. “Come here.” He whispers. I take his hand and he pulls me back on the bed.

His arms wrapped around me and my face only a few inches away from his’. His eyes switching from my eyes to my mouth and back. I bite my lip, looking back at him. We’re in a hotel, with a locked door, together. And I am horny as hell.

I straddle him again, lift myself up on my knees and bend my head to kiss him. He opens his mouth to let me in, but I pull back and suck on his bottom lip. Causing him to groan softly.
His hands slide down to my butt and squeezes it gently. Now it’s my turn to moan. He grabs my hips and pulls me down onto his lap. “Oh my, there is someone awake.” I whisper.
“Shut up and kiss me.” He groans.

The lack of clothes between us makes me even more horny. He’s only wearing his boxers and a thin shirt. My hands slide across his back, his arms and shoulders. His skin is so soft and warm.
The heat between us is unusual. I never felt like this before.

His hands wander off to my thighs. Holding them firmly while kissing me deeply and full of passion. I am about to explode and I grind against him. A growl escapes his lips. “You have no idea what you are doing to me.” He groans and I feel him grow harder beneath me. “Probably the same as what you do to me.” I say with a smile on my face. Lowering my hips a bit more.

We fall silent and continue our kissing and grinding. I am on fire and I want him badly. I pull my shirt over my head and Ben looks down to my naked breasts. “Are you sure?” he asks. I nod

I stand up and slide down my panties. Ben’s eyes widen and a smile appears on his face.
I help him out of his boxers and straddle him. I lower my hips and feel him deep inside me.

“That was awesome.” I pant. I curl up next to Ben and yawn. “You were pretty awesome too.” He grins for a moment before he frowns and looks at me. “Wait, you are on birth control, right?” He asks.
“Usually that’s something you ask BEFORE you stick your dick in a girl without protection.” I tease. “But yes, no worries.. I am on birth control.”

I lay my head down on his chest and listen to his heart beat. “Permission to go to sleep?” I ask. “Permission granted.” Ben replies.

We crawl under the blankets and I curl up against Ben and I fall asleep within seconds.

I wake up very early in the morning with Ben still softly snoring next to me. I turn around on my belly and I look at him. His mouth slightly open, and a little smirk on his face. I bet he is having nice dreams.

I swing my legs out of the bed, get dressed quickly and open the curtains and the window. I gasp when I see the view, I can see miles and miles around, with nothing more than a small road and fields full of cornflowers. I lean my elbows on the windowsill and stare in the distance. It’s quiet and I smell the scent of fresh baked bread, my tummy starts growling.

I jump on the bed. “Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up.” Ben opens his eyes and growls. “Stop it.” He grumbles. “No.” I reply while I keep on jumping. Ben gives me the stink eye and grabs my ankles. “Yes.” He says. I giggle and try to pull my legs from his strong hands. But he won’t let go. “Okay, okay” I raise my hands. “I give up.”
“You quit jumping?” Ben asks. I nod. ‘Yes sir.” I pout. He grins. “Good girl.” He lets go of my ankles and I start jumping again. “Liar.” He laughs. “No I’m not, I had my fingers crossed.” I say while showing him my hand. “Get out! Get out! Get out!” I say while jumping.

Ben grumbles again, but gives in and steps out of the bed. I jump off and smile at him. “I won.”

He lifts me up and throws me on the bed. “Not anymore.” He crawls on top of me and pins me to the bed. “Try to jump again now.” He laughs. But I can’t move at all, he’s too strong for me. “Have mercy.” I pant. “No.” he replies. Ben let’s go of my arms and I am about to wrap them around his neck as he grabs my waist and starts ticking. I squirm and laugh. “Not the waist! Not the waist!” I giggle. But he has no mercy at all and keeps tickling me till I am out of breath. “You promise not to jump on the bed anymore?” he asks. I pant and nod. “I.. promise.”

Ben gets off of me and helps me back on my feet. “Well, good morning.” he grins.

“Check the view dude.” I say while pointing at the window. He walks butt naked to the window and jumps back with a loud ‘FUCK’. “What’s wrong?” I ask.
“A naked me and 2 old ladies on the road looking up. I might have caused a heart attack with my sexiness.” He laughs while shaking his butt. I look outside, and there are two old ladies still looking up with a shocked face. I wave at them and close the curtains.

I can’t stop laughing and I fall on the bed. “You.. They.. Naked.. You.” I stutter. He shakes his head. “Poor little old ladies.” He mumbles.
That causes me to giggle louder. “Stop.. It… Can’t.. Take… Anymore.” I can’t stop laughing. Ben shakes his head and walks into the bathroom. By the time he’s freshened up, I am done laughing and ready to go out, buy food and head to Madrid.

We get our things together, say goodbye to the owner of the hotel. And head to the car. “Wait, Ben. When I leaned out the window this morning, I smelled fresh baked bread, I want to buy some for on the road.”
We walk into the direction where the smell came from and we find a little bakery, just around the corner. We stack up on bread and chocolate rolls and walk back to the car. Ben insist on driving. We are still 7 hours away from Madrid. And that is probably my fault for taking all the side roads. But it’s much more fun. And I like to spend my time with Ben.

We pass a little town with a very tiny and cute boutique. “Ben, can I go look here for a moment, I really need some new clothes.” I ask. “Sure.” He parks the car and I jump out to take a look inside the store.

I immediately fall in love with a long dress, it’s simple white with red flowers on it. And it’s not even that expensive. I try it on and it fits perfectly. I decide to buy it. I also buy a few shorts, a boot cut jeans, the most amazing silk top, and a few cotton tank tops in different colors. A few new bra’s and panties are also needed. I need to look good for my man. I think with a smile. When I head to the pay desk I see a white floppy hat, it would fit perfectly with my new dress.

I pay and ask the lady if I can change. I would love to wear the dress and the floppy hat to surprise Ben.

I step out of the dressing room and look at me. I don’t have shoes that fit this look, but this look needs bare feet.

I walk outside with my hands full of bags, feeling pretty in my new dress. Ben is sitting on the hood of the car, smoking a cigarette. “Hey, giant.” I shout. He looks up and a smile spreads across his face. “Wow! Who are you? And what have you done with Lynn?” he grins.

“You like it?” I ask while spinning around. “Like it? No. I love it. You are beautiful. You are beautiful more so.”

I jump in his arms and hug him tight. “Glad you love it.” I smirk.
“I’ve got something for you.” Ben puts me back on my feet and grabs something from the car, it’s a little bouquet of flowers. “They are wildflowers.” Ben says simply. “I love them Ben, This means so much to me.” I smile. “Wildflower for my favorite wildflower.”
I grin. “Does that mean I have to get you a giant?” We both laugh.

I grab my bags, put them in the car and we continue our way to Madrid.

Chapter 13 - The day the stranger came to Dos Manos

“Are we there yet?” Ben asks. I shake my head. “Not yet, but I have NO idea where to go right now.” I grin.
“Are we there now?” Ben asks again. I smile.
“And now?” he repeats. I start laughing and pats his leg. “Almost Donkey, almost there.”

Ben makes a popping sound with his mouth. “Are we there yet?” I can’t stop laughing. “If you don’t stop it, I pull over and let you walk.” I tease.

*Pop*

“Are we there yet?”

I do my best not to laugh, but I can’t stop giggling. “Seriously Ben, stop it.”

*Pop*

I place my hand on his mouth, before he can ask it again. “Afmweyt” he mumbles against my palm. That tickles and I press my hand harder against his mouth. A wet touch makes me pull my hand away. “Both hands on the wheel.” Ben grins.

“EWWW, you licked my hand!” I rub my hand on Ben’s jeans. He chuckles. “Yup, I did.”

I give him the stink eye but my mouth curls in a smile. “Silly giant you.” I grin.

“I don’t know how hungry you are, but we haven’t seen any house or town for a while now.” I say.
According to the GPS we are somewhere close to Montsant, national park. But I can’t see it yet, and I have no idea if there will be a town, or restaurant close.

I am glad we’ve got enough gas for the next 500 kilometers.

“Want me to drive?” Ben asks, I shake my head. “No, I kinda like it, but I hope we find some place to spend the night before it’s dark.” I reply.

“We can always find a field to sleep in.” Ben says with a smirk.

“Yeah, or the national park, between the bears and wolves.” I mutter. “Are there bears and wolves in Spain?” Ben asks. I shrug. “I have no idea.”

After driving in the middle of nowhere, we finally pass a little town. I drive through it, there are a few houses and a little drugstore. I park the car, step out and look around. There is no one on the streets.
“I almost expect the tumbleweed to pass by.” Ben appears next to me.

“Dude we’re not in Dos Manos right now.” I joke. Ben nudges. “What is this? A ghost town?”

The drug store is still open and I step inside. The air inside is damp, and it’s hard to breath.
There is a guy behind the counter, but he seems to be asleep. I scrape my throat and the guy opens his eyes. “Buenos dias.” The guy curls his lips in a smile, he hardly has any teeth. “Buenos dias señor” I reply.

The man starts to ramble in quick Spanish, and I look helpless at Ben, he shrugs and shakes his head a little. He doesn’t understand the guy either.
I try English. “Sorry, sir, I don’t speak Spanish. Do you by any chance, know a restaurant, or a hotel?” I ask.

The man stops talking and frowns at me. “Ah, Hotel, si, hotel.” He smiles wider and nods. “Donde?” Ben asks the man where the hotel is. I look hopeful at the man when he steps from behind the counter and tells us to follow him. I grab Ben’s hand and follow the man outside.
He points to the right. “There.” he says in his best English. “Muchas Gracias” Ben and I both say. And jump back in the car.

The man waves at us when we drive in the direction he pointed us to. And yes, there, right around the corner is a little hotel. It looks shabby, but I guess it will do for one night only.

Gladly there are rooms available, in fact I don’t think there are any other people besides us.

We buy food at the hotel lobby, and the lady behind the desk shows us our room. The room is tiny, with barely enough room for a small queen sized bed. There is a little bathroom behind a door in the corner. I look inside.
“DUDE, you have to be a kid to fit in here.” I smile, thinking of Ben folded in the little bathroom.
He peeks too and grins. “I think I have to skip the shower.”

“We can always go for a swim tomorrow, I laugh.”

I grab my backpack. And realize that I never went shopping for new clothes. That means I don’t have anything to sleep in besides my sweatpants that I am wearing for 3 days now, or my jeans, which doesn’t sound like a good option to me. So only a shirt it is then. But the shirts I brought are in a desperate need of a wash too.

“Ben, do you have a shirt that I can borrow to sleep in?” I ask. He rummages through his bag, pulls out a black shirt and smells it. “I think this one’s clean.” He tosses it to me and I grab it from the air. “Thanks.”

“I go try to fit myself in the shower.” I laugh. I grab my bag and squeeze myself in the bathroom. It takes some yoga moves, but I am able to take a decent shower, wash my hair and shave my legs.

I slip in my underwear, pull Ben’s shirt over my head and smell it. Well, so much for this shirt being clean. It smells like Ben.

I peek around the corner of the bathroom door and see Ben reading on the bed. “What are you reading?” I ask. He looks up. “Alice in Wonderland.” he replies.

“Really? I love that book, I read it so many times, that I had to buy a new copy twice.” I say. “You still have it?” He asks, and I have to deny that. “No, I left it at Rick’s. just like everything else besides the things I brought with me.” I sit down on the bed, next to Ben and pull my knees up to my chin, with my arms wrapped around them. It’s my protective way of sitting when emotions are about to hit me like a subway train.

“You know, the moments when we are on the road, having fun, laughing and talking, are doable. But the times when I am in a quiet room are hard to deal with. Thinking he will find me, when I stay in one place too long.” I softly speak, more to myself than to Ben.

“You made me smile again, but inside I am still the girl Rick wanted me to be. Afraid to have fun, because grown ups don’t have fun. They don’t dance in public. They don’t skip. They don’t play.” I continue.

Ben wraps his arm around me and I lean against his shoulder.

“Deep inside you ARE the girl you used to be. Not the girl that Rick wanted you to be. That girl is somewhere on the surface, you just have to push that one away, and let the old you be there too. I am there for you when you need me, if you want to laugh, laugh. If you want to cry, cry. If you want to bounce, don’t be afraid.”

I sigh, how come I deserve a guy like Ben? Karma must have loved me to bring Ben back in my life.
Everything happens for a reason, right.

My arms are still tightly folded around my legs. I am afraid to break in a thousand pieces if I let go. Afraid to choke in the emotions that are finding their way outside if I give them the chance to escape.

“Let them out.” Ben knows how I feel. It’s like he is a part of me, feeling what I feel, knowing what I know. And knowing what I need to feel better.

Ben pulls me on his lap and I have to let go of my legs. I straddle Ben, wrap my arms around him and bury my face in his neck. I feel the hot tears finding their way out.
I sob uncontrollably. Ben pulls me close against him and holds me tight. He lets me cry till I am all out of tears. I feel empty and tired but also relieved. My shoulders still shock with every sob I let out, but I have no more tears left to cry.
I sit up straight and look in Ben’s eyes. “Thank you.” I mouth. “No problem.” he replies. He pulls me back against him and hugs me tight. “You are still the best hugger I’ve ever met.” I whisper.

Chapter 12 - Big Blue Sun

“Ben?” I ask

“Hmm?” he replies. “Can we just stay here forever?” I continue. He chuckles. “It would be pretty awesome if we could.’ He replies.

I turn my head to look at him. His eyes are closed, his lips curled in a smirk. I keep looking at him, his chest rises slowly up and down.
“Are you asleep yet?” I ask. “Hm hm” he replies. “Okay.” I giggle.

I sit up straight and Ben opens one eye. “Whatcha doing?” he asks. “Getting a bit more comfortable, Isabella.” I laugh. “Isabella?” Ben asks confused. “Never watched Phineas and Ferb?” I smile.
“Ohhh, Isabella! You are such a big kid.” He laughs. “Says the biggest kid.” I reply.

I snuggle up against him and close my eyes for a moment.

A soft kiss on my lips wakes me up. The sun is already going under.. “Why didn’t you wake me up sooner?” I ask.
“Because I fell asleep too.” Ben grins. “This is the second time we sleep together.” he laughs.

I blush but don’t say anything.

“I wanted to enjoy the sunset with you.” Ben confesses. “Why mr Graupner, I never expected you to be the romantic kind of guy.” I say. I nudge his side and sit up straight.

The grass is tall, and my head barely sticks out of it. “You know, no one can see us in here.” Ben grins and wiggles his eyebrows. I slap his arm. “As if.”

“I’m hungry.” I say. “Gonna get some food from the car.” I jump up and skip through the fields to the car. I grab one of my camera’s, a bottle of wine and some food. And skip back.

“You skipped, I can’t believe you skipped.” Ben grins. “Walking is overrated.” I shrug with a smile, while tossing him a bag of potato chips. “Eat and shut up.” I laugh.

We both eat and drink in silence. The bottle of wine is gone, before I realize that both of us can’t drive the car now.

I nudge Ben. “We can’t go now, we are not allowed to drive.”

“Well, then we have to stay here, in the field. Two wildflowers between the roses.” Ben says simply. I sigh and smile. I can live with that.

The sun sets and the view is gorgeous. I snap pictures of it, knowing it won’t be the same when I ever get to see the pictures.
I snap pictures of Ben, and pictures of Ben and me together.

We kiss, we laugh, we chat and drink another bottle of wine. The July nights are still cold, but Ben and I don’t care we sit close together cuddling and having a great time.

I wake up with the sun on my face. I can’t believe I slept outside, in a field. I am curled up against Ben, almost on top of him. His arms loosely wrapped around me, his chest rising and falling with his slow breaths.

“Good morning sleeping giant.” I say, while kissing him on his soft lips.

He slowly opens his eyes and smiles. “Morning sleeping beauty.” he replies. We both grin. “Let’s go. I feel like exploring Spain a bit more, see if there are more fields like this to spend our nights in.” I grin.

I can’t believe that it took us nearly 24 hours to drive a 2 hour distance.

“Let’s go.” I pull Ben back on his feet. “You drive? I drive?” I ask. “I drive.” he replies.

We hop in the car and continue our way. We pass a little town called Vilabella. I awe at the little white houses and the friendly people who wave at us when we pass by. “If I can’t find a job in Seville, I move back here.” I tell Ben. “With these 10 houses, I am not sure if you manage to find a job.” he laughs. “But I can always build a house in a poppy field. And live of water and grass.” I shrug with a grin.

“So, you gonna live the life of a cow?” he laughs.
I poke him and shake my head. “No, the life of a Unicorn. I only have to find out how to shit rainbows.” I giggle.

Ben looks at me with a grin. “Silly, silly lady.” He squeezes my leg and winks. “Miss Wildflower, I guess you found yourself.”

“And we are not even there yet, can you imagine how I will be like when we are in Seville.” I joke. “I will be an unstoppable bouncing ball.” I continue.

Ben pulls a fearful face. “Oh, God, please no!” he laughs. “Is it too late to drop you off at the side of the road now?” He asks.

“Yup sir Giant, you are stuck with me for the rest of the trip.”

We both laugh. It’s so comfortable being around him, I can be myself. I don’t have to be afraid that he will hate me for being a big kid. He understands me.
I wish this road trip could last forever.

I lean back in my chair, feeling the breeze from the opened windows on my face. We pass fields full of olive trees. The air smells nice. “Can we stop here for a moment please?” I ask Ben. He nods and steers the car to the side of the road.

I step out of the car and walk run towards the first tree. Ben follows me and I run faster, giggling like a little kid.

“Where are you going?” Ben shouts. I stop and turn around, and see Ben approaching me with big steps, too quick to stop all of the sudden and he bumps into me. I fall backwards on the ground. I try to get a hold on Ben but I pull him with me onto the ground

He’s on top of me and I can hardly breath because I’m laughing so hard. His eyes narrow, and he lifts his weight off of me.
I am still giggling and wrap my arms and legs around him, pulling him back on top of me. “You are like a big teddy bear.” I giggle. Ben smiles, his eyes focused on my mouth.

“You are kissable.” He mumbles. I feel the electricity go through my body when he presses his lips on mine. I am still clinging to him and open my mouth to let my tongue play with his’.

We break away after what seems like hours, my lips feel swollen and warm. My body tingles of lust.
I look at Ben. His eyes are dark and I lift my head to kiss him again. He pulls away. “You know how hard it is to keep my hands off of you.” He whispers.

I lift my hips a little. “I can feel that.” I smile. My movement causes a groan and Ben’s eyes narrow. “You mean, mean girl.” He groans. “I am about to take you, right here, right now. But I am a gentleman, I don’t do that.” he mumbles while lightly grinding against me.

“Oh C’mon, we already slept together for two nights.” I grin. But I let go of him. He gets up from the ground and offers me his hand. “Come on, lets go find a town where they’ve got some food. I’m starving.” he says.

He bends a little and offers me his back. I climb on his back and wrap my arms around his neck. Placing a sloppy kiss next to his ear.
“Don’t make me put you down.” He threatens with a grin. “Challenge accepted.” I laugh. I place little butterfly kisses in his neck and Ben moans softly.

I jump off his back “I drive!” I say and jump in the car.

Ben stares at me from the passenger seat. I smile. “What?” I ask. “You are beautiful.” He replies.
I blush. “Why thank you sir.” I grin. “You are pretty much gorgeous yourself.”

My hand is on the gear shift, and he places his hand on mine. I glare at him. He leans in for a quick kiss, and I smile.