Chapter Twenty: Hygiene is Important

I followed Clarke into the kitchen to find him with the plates in the sink whilst just standing there and leaning over them, and just looking down. I could tell he was thinking, but I could also tell that thinking was making him upset. I stepped closer to him and he didn't notice so I placed my hand on his back, calmly trying my best to comfort him. I had never seen him distraught or so visually emotional before, it was weird.

"Sorry," Clarke said straightening up immediately. "I...I don't do well when I really think about what I could've have with my father. Especially the more I feel like I'm losing this company."

"You're not losing this company," I told him softly. "Far from it. Henry, he would be proud of you."

"Maybe," Clarke agreed, "but I could've...I could've spent more time with him. Learnt it all from him, but instead I fucked around with my life."

"Hey, yeah okay it wasn't perfect, but you lived your life the way you wanted to. You can't regret that. Even if you did get a bit out of hand," I said to him. "You can't change it. You can make up for it now."

"I can't make up for lost time with my dead father though, can I?"

Clarke slammed his fist down slightly and almost liked a knee jerk reaction I reached out to grab his arm and stood him from causing damage. At first he didn't react to me. I thought he might shake me off or something. Instead of eventually moved his hand to grab hold of me. He fiddled with my fingers a little as he looked them, putting our hands together. It felt extremely personal and I thought about pulling away but I also didn't want to.

"I'm sorry," Clarke said, looking at me. "I get...angry when I think of my Dad sometimes."

"It's okay," I assured him. "I get it. Plus you've had a crap day so that can't help."

"That is very true," Clarke said, now turning his body away from the sink and to completely face me. He took his hand out of mine and then moved both so they were on either side of my body. He immediately pulled me into him so I was nearly up against his body. He then used one hand and brought it to my face to move my hair out of the way, gently tucking it behind my ear.

"I want nothing more than to forget about it," Clarke whispered to me, his face only inches from mine.

"I think I can help with that."

Clarke's lips came down on mine immediately, kissing me passionately. I had grown fond of Clarke's lips and the smoothness of them and the way they knew how to part with mine. Kissing him now felt good, really good, better than I thought it would in this moment. I also enjoyed when he was forceful with him, and if I thought his emotional state may have effected that, I could've been wrong.

He immediately pushed me up against the large marble island kitchen bench in the middle of the room. I felt his hands move down my body, past my hips and then onto my ass. I felt him squeeze it eagerly as we kissed, but what he did next surprised me. Using his strength with his hands on my ass he picked me, forcing me to sit on the bench itself. It mean I had to spread my legs to get him closer enough for me to kiss, but was also still wearing a pencil skirt, making it difficult. Clarke immediately noticed my issue and got his fingers underneath the top of the skirt and started to slide it down my body, breaking out kissing to get it all the way off my body.

I thought he might come back up to my lips but instead he stayed down at my legs, running his fingers gently along them. Then he used his lips, kissing me up my leg towards my thighs and then close to my underwear. He brought his hand up next and curling it inside my underwear, now letting his fingers circle around my entrance. My body immediately responded and I put my hands behind me so I could lean back and even moan slightly in pleasure. I looked back down towards him and realised this was getting hot and heavy in the kitchen.

"Clarke," I breathed out behind my pleasure as he continued to tease me with his fingers. "We should go somewhere... Rosa might walk in on us."

Clarke tilted his head up slightly to look at me and he smiled. "I sent her home after she made dinner. We're all alone....and I've got an idea."

I wanted to ask what exactly his idea was but before I could he moved his hands to pull my underwear off in one quick movement. He moved a little faster than, kissing me all the way up to my right leg. As he got closer to me core, he position himself lower down, grabbing both my legs and then putting them on either side of his head, resting them on his shoulder. In one quick movement he then put his hands behind me and pushed me down on to his face and his tongue immediately set me off.

I wanted to grip to something as his tongue did it's magic. It was driving me wild how quickly and easily he had hit my sweet spot, so much so I didn't even notice how cold the marble bench was on my bare ass. Clarke's hands wrapped around my legs, gripping into my thighs. I moaned loudly as the feeling of pleasure in my stomach started to grow and pulse. I could feel myself getting close and the way Clarke was going, I was going to get there in no time, and Clarke definitely made sure that happened.

Clarke moved back from me, kissing my legs as he moved away, and then stood up to come up back towards my lip but didn't kiss me. Instead he was smiling and I was sure it had to do with me still writhing in pleasure of his ability to give oral sex.

"Did you like my idea?" Clarke whispered to me, moving my hair from my face.

"Ah ha," I nodded softly. "I'm not sure it's so sanitary though."

Clarke chuckled at me. "You're probably right. How about get cleaned up then...we'll come back and clean this later."

Yet again, before I could even get a word in to ask what was going. He wrapped his arms around me and made sure my legs were wrapped around him. He lifted me off the counter and started to carry me down the hall. We went into his room and I thought he was going to put me down on the bed but instead he turned right when we entered his room and to my surprise we ended up in the bathroom and that's when I understood.

He placed me down on the large bathroom vanity, kissing my forehead before he turned around to go in and turn the shower on. I was naked from the waist down but Clarke was still nearly full clothed. I reached out towards him and managed to wrap my hand around his belt. I pulled him back towards me and he watched me closely as I made sure to get him back on my lips. As we kissed I made sure to undress him, undoing the buttons on shirt and pulled it off. I let my hands run over his chest before I moved them to the belt, undoing it and the buttons on his pants. He helped me pull them off, followed by this boxers. We then both made sure to undo my shirt, finally leaving both of us naked.

I climbed off the vanity as we still kissed and Clarke slowly backed us into the shower. I felt the warm streaming water hit my body and even fall between our lips as we kissed, but I could also feel Clarke getting excited too. I felt my back hit the cool tiles and I let myself cling to Clarke. I had never really been sure if I had been a sex in the shower person, but I guess I was about to find out.

Clarke started to take charge, something he was good at for sure. He moved his hands down my waist gripping onto my hips. Effortless he hoisted me up, and forced me to again wrap my legs around him, expect this time I had the advantage of the shower wall to help hold me there. The water drifted effortless through our bodies as Clarke lined his hips up to mine. He was eager I could see it in his eyes. As he entered me I made sure to hold one arm out to keep my grip on the wall and my other completely wrapped around his neck, my hand snaking up to entwine in his hair.

The sounds of my moans and Clarke's grunts echoed in the black tiled bathroom. I could hardly believe Clarke was holding me up in the corner and thrusting so easily at the same time. I had a feeling he couldn't keep the position going for the whole time and I was right. He moved out of me and let my body slide down until my feet hit the ground. We didn't slow down for one second and I felt the urgency still there as he immediately turned me around to face the wall and pushed my legs apart, immediately getting back to things. He left his hands on my hips, pinning me to wall, but at the same time putting his lips to my neck, kissing me, sucking. I almost couldn't believe our long it went on especially after what went on in the kitchen, but boy did it last long and yes it was good.

After, we both showered normally really. We would touch each other's skin gently, kiss at little but we were both done for now. I could see that it at done what Clarke intended it to and it had calmed him down, relaxed him. I could see it in his eyes and the way his shoulders pushed back and his muscles didn't tense. I felt relaxed too, like nothing could really affect me right now.

Clarke lent me a shirt once we were out of the shower. I sat down his bed wondering if the shirt was an invitation to stay the night. It was made pretty clear it was when he put himself in bed without saying anything. I lied down next to him and just looked at him for a bit.

"What?" he asked, when he noticed me looking at him.

"Nothing," I shrugged. "I'm just thinking."

"About what exactly?" he said intrigued.

"Well, I don't think I've known so little about a guy I've slept with," I admitted with a small shrug.

He immediately frowned. "I thought you knew everything about me. The tabloids write about it all, don't they?"

I immediately rolled my eyes at him. "Okay, so I was a bit of a bitch to presume they got it all right. It's becoming more evident that most of that stuff they write about you isn't true."

"Finally," Clarke sighed.

"It means I know even less about you now though," I told him. "Expect I guess what Henry told me about you."

That interested Clarke. He moved his head to look at me and then sat up, propping himself up with elbows.

"What did he say about me?" he asked softly.

"Well, he would often defend you really. He knew some of the stuff you did was stupid but he would always say you were driven and smart, when you applied yourself that is. He said you're passionate, and kind and caring," I told him as he watched me speak. "He'd often joke your mean streak came from your mother."

Clarke immediately laughed at me. "He's probably not wrong."

"That's not a great thing to say about your mother," I frowned at him.

"For my mother, it is," Clarke told me. "Oh, come on. You've seen her, although they were definitely divorced by the time you worked for my Dad. She's fifteen years younger than him and had a daughter when she met him. I think they only reason they stayed together was because she got pregnant with me after only a month. Then my Mum became a money hungry woman...and so did my sister frankly. I'm glad they've both decided to make lives outside of New York."

As much as I hated to talk to ill of anyone, Clarke had provided an accurate description I agreed with. I had only had the pleasure of meeting Melanie Watson once, in passing one day when she came into the office. I didn't remember her leaving the best impression either. I remember large sunglasses and a Channel bag and Prada clothes, her stuff had left more of an impression on me than her. Then there was what they tabloids said about her. When they divorced she got a lot money and boy did she use it and the tabloids covered every extravagant purchase. Then there was the matter of her apparently never being around for her children. The bad mother headlines were common for her.

"So you don't see her often?" I asked him.

"Haven't seen her since the funeral," Clarke shrugged. "She showed up the day before...kind of upset I guess, but left the day after. She makes money as long as I make money, that's all she cares about. I'm kind of over it now. I've had twenty-five years of knowing my mother isn't going to be around, so you get used to it."

"What about your sister, Karly right?" Something told me I shouldn't dig too deep into the mother neglecting topic.

"Half-sister," Clarke corrected me. "Ah, we were close when we were kids, she is five years older than me though. Once she discovered her teens and money, we grew apart. I reckon I see even less of her than Mum. She calls me when she needs something. I usually give it her too. It's not her fault she had our mother as a role model. I think she always wanted the company though, but she was never my father's child and therefore never a Watson by blood..."

"And Henry wanted to keep it in the family," I nodded.

"Exactly."

Henry never talked about his ex-wife or step daughter. Even when Clarke's mother visited we didn't talk about it, Henry pretended like it never happened so it was weird hearing Clarke talk about it now, and so openly.

"What about you?" Clarke said suddenly, catching me slightly off guard. "I think I know even less about you."

"Well, I'd hope so. I mean, my life isn't in the tabloids," I told him.

He rolled his eyes slightly at me. "Something tells me you're trying to avoid the question."

I sighed looking away from him. I could lie and not tell him the truth, but something told me he deserved the truth. "My mother died when I was a kid, drunk driver hit her. I was too young to really remember her. So it was just me, my dad and my older brother. My Dad did his best to support us, pay for our lives, but we lived in a small town with not many jobs and my Dad was a nothing cop really, with no crimes. He's the Sheriff now but not even that doesn't pays much. So my brother, Owen, when he was old enough joined the military, mainly to fund college though. He wants to be a doctor, save lives. I think it's because he couldn't save Mum...I don't know. As for me, well the military was never going to work and I'd always wanted to be a lawyer. It was what my Mum did, how my parents met actually. I knew I wanted to be good at it so I applied to some big colleges and got Columbia...plus I secretly wanted to live in a big city after being in a small town...but obviously I had to get a job to pay for it...you know the rest."

Clarke was silent for a minute as I think he took it all in. I hated telling people my mother died and that I never really knew her. They instantly felt sorry for me and I didn't want them to because I didn't feel sorry for me.

"It's why my father wanted to pay for your college, isn't it?" Clarke said finally. "Why he gave you a chance and hired you in the first place?"

"I mean, he knew where I came from, I told him when he asked," I admitted. "I never wanted a hand out though. I wanted to earn my way, which I did, while I could I guess."

"When I got those instructions to pay for all your school I didn't understand why he cared so much," Clarke muttered, now refusing to look at me as I tried to look at him. "Now I see it was because he just wanted to help."

"He always wanted to help," I nodded. "That was what Henry was like, even if I refused. Hey, I want to see that letter he left by the way."

Clarke paused as he realised what I meant it. "Well, I don't have it on me. My lawyer has it now."

"You'd better get it off him for me then," I said like it was obvious.

"Okay fine, miss bossy," Clarke sighed, now letting himself lie back on the pillow, and sinking into the bed more. "Now, I don't know about you but sharing our personal lives has me worn out."

I laughed slightly as I slid myself down on the bed to curl up near him. "Did this all relax you like you wanted?"

Clarke smiled. "Yes, actually, the sex especially. Thank you."

I smiled humbly back at him. "You're welcome."

Clarke moved his arm to he could wrap it around my body. He turned his head and then gently and surprisingly kissed my forehead before moving his head back and closing his eyes.

He didn't speak after that and neither did I. I instead snuggled myself into Clarke's side as he tightened his grip around me. It was comforting and relaxing, two things I had really hoped to get out of this. I was starting to feel safe though. Safe in his arms, safe knowing so much more about him. Clarke was starting to be comfortable and safe and he was starting to feel like...a friend.