Author/pseudonym: Mona Carol and Cathy Roberts
Email address: monaCK2@yahoo.com and huntersglenn@yahoo.com
Rating: NC-17
Status: Finished
Pairing: John Carter/Luka Kovac/Dave Malucci, f/f
Date: May 3, 2003
Archive: Please ask first
Series: 4/?
Category: "E.R."
Disclaimer: "ER" and all its characters belong to Warner Bros. No infringement of their copyright is intended. This story was written for the enjoyment of "ER" fans everywhere, and may be downloaded for your own pleasure. The title of the story was inspired by the Jimmy Buffett song of the same name, and no infringement is intended. The story can be found on the following web sites: http://www.heresmona.com/fanfic.html and http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Boutique/7087/
Summary: It's a slashy A/U story about how Season 8 might have been and contains no spoilers for the current season.
"Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes, Part 4"
By MonaCK and Cathy Roberts
It was an incessant buzzing that made John open his eyes again, and when he did he saw that it was morning. The room was full of sunlight and it was his pager, which he had set for seven, going off.
Cruise day, he thought with a smile as he snuggled further against a warm body -- Luka's, he was delighted to see, although another naked body was still pressed up against his own. He couldn't quite believe that he had let Randi and Luka have their way with his body, but he couldn't say that he regretted it any.
The pager finally fell silent, but movement from behind him told John that Randi was awake. "Time to shower and get dressed. We still need to have breakfast before heading for the pier," John said, although his preference would be to stay in bed until the last possible moment. It was just too warm and comfortable where he was for him to even want to think about moving.
"Well, if we each double up in the shower, then we'll be to breakfast quicker, unless you plan to order room service," Randi replied.
"Room service sounds good to me. Then we can just eat in bed...oh, wait, we did *that* last night," came Maggie's voice.
Luka couldn't help but chuckle softly. "Yes, we all did have a rather good meal in bed last night..."
Luka as well was in a bit of a state of disbelief over what had occurred the evening before between the four of them in this very bed, and he knew that they were indeed in for a very good time on the cruise. Any doubts about inviting Randi and Maggie were completely gone from his mind as he stretched an arm over his head. John was still snuggled quite close to him, and Luka had to admit that he was enjoying the feeling.
"I think we should double up on the shower...and then go out to grab something to eat before heading to the piers. There will likely be food for us on board as well," Luka mentioned as his eyes drifted over the motley crew in bed with him. The previous night was really a fantasy come true...for all of them.
"Maybe we should vote on it?" John said. Like Maggie, the idea of just staying in bed as long as possible appealed to him. But then, he wasn't a morning person anyway, and didn't quite function well until he had had his first cup of coffee.
Maggie laughed. "I think it would be a tie, John. Although I guess we could send Randi and Luka in to shower together while we order room service. Then they can go out to eat while we're snug and content here in bed, making a crumb mess as we enjoy our breakfast in bed."
"Huh! No offense to Luka over there, but if I'm going to share my shower with someone, it's going to be you," Randi said. "So, get your lazy ass out of bed, Margaret, and let's get back to our room so we can get ready."
"Don't mind her," Maggie told John and Luka as she got out of bed and stretched, not caring she was naked in front of them. "Randi's a bitch when she hasn't had her morning caffeine rush."
"I know the feeling," John said as he watched Randi get out of bed, but it was more the feeling of Luka's hand softly caressing his body that was making him hard and not the sight of the two naked women in the bedroom.
Maggie and Randi picked up their robes and left, closing the door behind them. John moved until he could look into Luka's eyes. "I hadn't realized just how much I've missed being...taken until last night, so, what are the odds I could talk you into doing that again while we're in the shower?" he asked as he began to fondle Luka's penis.
"Mmm...well...I think that something similar can be arranged," Luka said, as he turned his attention back to the man in bed with him. Though he was still quite attracted to women, his mind was focused on John. Though he would have liked to have gotten some action with Randi as well, she was with Maggie, and he realized that the previous night had been an anomaly of sorts, and it was likely that it would not occur again.
"You think that just me fucking you will be enough?" Luka teased him, as he planted a kiss on top of John's head. "I mean, after all, you've now had two people on you at once...do you think you can go back to just plain, ordinary things?"
Luka had thoroughly enjoyed the treatment the night before. And he knew that John had as well. And he could only imagine what fun was in store for the two of them on the cruise. Somehow a line had been crossed, and though they were still friends...they now seemed to be more than friends. They were going to be having sex for the second time in just a few hours after only having done nothing more than fooling around a handful of times before.
"If I had known that your appetite was insatiable," Luka commented as he looked over to John, "I would have asked you to stay over once or twice while we were at home..."
"And risk having Abby come home early from work?" John shook his head at that scenario. He wasn't quite sure just what he felt for Abby, but he knew he didn't want her walking in while he was with Luka. He wouldn't have cared if she had walked in on him and Dave.
Luka considered this for a moment, and then nodded. "You're right," he mentioned as he mulled things over in his mind. "That would not be good at all. You know, there is some sort of irony to the fact that she couldn't decide between the two of us, and now the two of us are here together like this. And I don't think that Abby is the type to want to join in, huh?" He smiled softly, as he continued to hold John in his arms. And he found himself strangely comfortable. This was his first time really cuddling with John.
"Probably not, although it would have made things a lot more interesting if she had, wouldn't it?" John asked as he began to lick a circle around the nearest nipple on Luka's chest. "I do have to say, that as much as I enjoyed last night, I'm not so sure I'd want to share you on a regular basis." As soon as the words left his lips, John regretted saying them. He and Luka were supposed to be friends. Friends who fooled around, and now friends who had sex, but, friends, nonetheless. And friends didn't mind sharing, right?
Well now. This certainly made the game a little bit more interesting. Luka really wasn't John's to share, and this sent off a series of feelings inside of Luka that he was trying desperately to sort out. He cared about John, a lot. At least enough to make sure that he had a good time while they were away...and to make sure the man was completely satisfied, even if Luka wasn't satisfied himself.
But sharing? If they were only friends, then it should not matter if it was just the two of them or of a friend or two joined in. He had to admit, though, when Randi first began to pleasure John, Luka had felt a twinge of jealousy that he had quickly pushed aside.
"Well...I think that it might be fun to do every once in a while," he finally said, his eyes fluttering closed as he felt John's tongue on his skin. "But...let's just say that...uh...you possess certain...skills...that I don't mind having...completely focused on me."
John grinned, then took the small, but now hard, nipple into his mouth. That was the kind of reaction he always wanted to bring out in his lovers -- pleasing them so much that they never wanted him to go away.
But Dave had gone away.
John suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to have Luka chase away all memories of Dave. He didn't want to be thinking about Dave and remembering how good it had felt when Dave's penis filled him. And the best way to get rid of those memories was to create new ones -- ones where it was Luka bringing him pleasure.
John's hand tightened around Luka's penis as he raised his head. "I really need to have you in me again, Luka." God, that sounded pathetic, he thought. Okay, another tactic. He smiled. "If I can't get my morning coffee first thing, then I need to have *something* to wake me up and get me in a good mood."
A smile twitched on Luka's lips. "The girls are still in the shower," he said, as he brought his own hand down to John's penis. "But there is no reason we can't ... wake each other up and then get clean in the shower, eh? I'm finding that keeping my hands on you is rather addicting."
He brought his lips down to cover John's, probing his tongue inside his lover's mouth without even waiting for an invitation to do so. He was finding both John's touch and kisses intoxicating.
John let Luka plunder his mouth, and he was breathless when the kiss finally ended. "I hate to break this to you, Doc Euro, but there *are* two bathrooms in the suite. Randi and Maggie have a bathroom connected to their bedroom and we get to use the one that opens up off of the sitting room. So, we don't *have* to use them as our excuse, but I do like your idea. Did you bring the condoms in here with you?" John hadn't packed any since he hadn't intended to have *that* kind of sex while on the cruise. Now it looked as if he'd have to find a store between the hotel and the pier to buy some. The ship probably sold them, but he doubted if there would be any left in stock within ten minutes of them boarding the ship.
Luka nodded, a grin forming over his lips. "I have plenty of condoms. I did use one last night while we were together," he said, his voice laced with teasing. "But maybe we should buy some more...it seems that it's going to be a rather active vacation for us if we've already gotten off to this kind of start.."
Luka raised a brow. "If you prefer to do this in the shower, we can...but I kind of like the idea of getting cleaned up afterwards.." He brought his hand to John's penis once again, feeling his smooth skin under his fingers. He was becoming familiar with John's body, and that was an interesting experience. He had never been in an experience like this before, but he liked the direction that things seemed to be taking.
"Luka, if we're in the shower, then we can still get cleaned up, and we won't have to wait." John raised up on one elbow and smiled. "You've never done it in a shower with another guy, have you? Never experienced the feeling of the water beating down on your body while someone is in front of you energetically sucking on your penis, never washed another guy using just your hands and the soap...never made lo...had sex" John quickly corrected, "and never noticed when the hot water ran out...You have been so deprived, Luka. So, very, very deprived." John leaned over and began to nuzzle Luka's neck.
"Hmm...maybe...maybe you're right, John...would you care to...ah...show me the error of my ways?"
Luka's eyes fluttered closed as he felt John's hands and mouth on him. He bit his lip, the sensations overtaking him. "What do you say...we go...to that shower now?"
John stopped his licking. "I say we go." He tossed the covers back, then crawled over Luka's body, taking his time and making sure that their skin touched as much as possible. He grabbed clean underwear from his suitcase, and then opened the door. "I'll go and get the water ready while you get another condom." And then he was on his way to the main bathroom.
****************
After an early breakfast, Dave left Steve with a pat on the arm before taking off for the cruise. He had to admit, talking with Steve about everything that had gone on with Carter, even without mentioning that it had been a guy that he had fallen for, was rather liberating.
Carter. It was always about Carter. Even this damned cruise coming up had him thinking about Carter, probably due to the theme more than anything else. A gay cruise. Huh. He couldn't help but remember the one and only time he had ever been in a gay bar of any kind. Was the cruise gonna be like that? Guys fucking each other in the hallways?
He hoped not. It would only remind him too much of the time he had been with Carter. They had gotten into some sort of a fight earlier in the week, and Carter had called him from a gay bar...drunk off his ass. Dave had gone down there and the two of them had managed to reconcile. But the one taste of the 'gay lifestyle' had been more than enough for Dave -- he preferred to be a little less open -- at least as far as his relationship with Carter had been concerned.
Had been. That was in the past. He and Carter were no more. It was just taking his heart a little longer than he wanted to realize that. Quite a few months longer.
Shaking his head, he forced himself back to the present. It was 9am, and time for him to board the ship, and get ready for this cruise. No matter what the two weeks brought, he knew that nothing would compare to what he had with Carter...
He was just hoping that everything and everyone that he ran into didn't remind him of the guy, or he would likely go insane.
****************
It was close to noon when the rented limousine pulled up at the pier. The four got out of the vehicle, and then went to find the check-in point before getting their luggage from the car. They had spent longer than necessary at the place they had stopped at for condoms -- when Carter had told the driver to stop at a drug store so they could pick up something, the driver had overheard Luka mention condoms and the next thing they knew, the car was pulling to a stop outside of a sex shop instead of a drug store.
The women had gone crazy shopping, and John had felt himself blushing more than once as he looked at things geared toward men. By the time they had all returned to the car, with Randi and Maggie's four full shopping bags, and John's one bag with condoms and a video, and Luka's bag -- which John had no idea what Luka had purchased since he had gone to a different cashier -- they were all horny as hell.
So the driver had ended up taking the long way to the pier so they could have time to *settle down* as Maggie called it, but her definition for that phrase was a lot of oral action. It worked though, and when they arrived at the pier they were all sated and not in any danger of reacting the second they boarded the ship. Well, at least the men weren't.
Chalk up sex in a moving vehicle up on the list of things that Luka had never done before meeting John. And there was something *very* intoxicating about having the women look on, and know that at least one of them was turned on by the show that he and John were doing. Regardless, he was quite happy when the car came to a stop, and they were ready to check in for their cruise.
First they waited in line to get the keys to their cabin. There was a rather motley crew of people in line with them -- couples of all genres, shapes, and sizes. There seemed to be a couple of heterosexual couples in line as well, and Luka couldn't help but wonder if their travel agent had forgotten to warn them exactly what kind of cruise they were scheduled to be on.
The line moved rather quickly, and soon they were in line to board the ship. The agent who had checked them in had given them a schedule of activities for on board ship, as well as a list of services that the ship had to offer.
"Look. There's shuffleboard at 2pm...and a pool tournament at 3. And it looks like there are a bunch of other games as well," Luka quipped, as he looked over the pamphlet.
Maggie snickered. "Shuffleboard, indeed. With a bunch of gay men on board, it'll probably quickly become a game of naked shuffleboard."
"You don't really think that the men will do stuff like that, do you?" John asked as his mind called up the memories from his one and only visit to a gay bar and how some of the men there hadn't cared that others were watching as they messed around with each other. "You're joking, right?"
Luka chuckled. "I would hope that they would have a little more tact than to be walking around naked all the time, John. I think there are straight people on this cruise too, and I'm sure they would not want to offend anybody. I think that Maggie is joking." He then lifted his eyes to look at Maggie, who merely smiled a coy smile, and looked away.
Soon enough, they were on board the ship. The staff, upon seeing that it was someone checking into their most expensive cabin, had someone personally escort the party up to their suite of rooms. The purser unlocked the door in front of them, letting the cabin door swing open to reveal a rather majestic setting around them.
"It looks like this is our home for the next two weeks," Luka commented, looking around approvingly. "I think it's rather comfortable..."
"Damn well better be, " Randi said as she headed for the sliding glass doors of their private balcony. "This is going to be some view when we're out in the ocean."
"There are three bedrooms to choose from, each with their own baths, and I've always been raised to let the ladies have first choice," John said as he closed the door.
"As if we're ladies," Randi joked. "I don't know. I'll need to have a look at each of them. C'mon, Mags." The women went from bedroom to bedroom before returning to announce they were taking the middle room.
"Just to keep the two of you honest," Maggie said with a wink in John's direction. Personally, she was hoping that one of the bedrooms would go unused after what had happened the night before and then in the car -- she thought John and Luka made a cute couple.
"Oh, I don't know...after last night, can we trust the two of you to be staying between us?" Luka teased, as he looked over the top of Maggie's head to John. He was thinking that perhaps they would be spending more nights together than alone, but he did not want to presume anything. After all, they hadn't really talked about anything, and Luka didn't want to be the one to press the issue. The man very obviously still had feelings for Dave, and it would take more than just one time spending the night sleeping together to make those feelings go away. So the ball, as they said, was still very much in John's court.
"So which bedroom do you want, John," Luka asked, smiling over to his friend.
"They're identical rooms, right?" he asked, and Randi nodded. "I guess I'll take the one on the right and you get stuck with the one on the left." He checked his watch. "So when will they bring our luggage to the cabin? Before or after we leave the pier?"
"Why?" Maggie asked with a grin as she took a seat on the couch. "Is there something important you need from your suitcase? Condoms? Lube? Handcuffs?" She teased.
John knew she was just talking, and didn't know anything, but he couldn't keep from blushing when she mentioned the handcuffs, causing images of him secured to Dave's bed to rise up in his mind. "I think I'm going to check out my room now," he said as he quickly left the sitting room.
Luka was momentarily disappointed, but he nodded as John left the room. Smiling back towards the girls, he focused his eyes towards Maggie. "Now, now...you don't want to tease him too much...or he'll be too shy to play any more games," Luka said, chuckling slightly. After the previous evening, it was not like he had much to hide from these two women before him. Besides, maybe if he was lucky enough, Randi would give Luka the same treatment that she had given John the night before. And that was something that he wouldn't complain about in the slightest.
"I do think, though, it's very important that we try to make sure that John has a good time on this vacation. I want to try to get him to meet people...he needs to meet people..." What Luka was really thinking, though, was that John needed to become more acquainted with the inside of Luka's room...but again, he did not want to push the man. His eyes drifted off towards John's room once more, and he sighed.
"I'm going to go to the main deck and wave to everyone as we leave. Anybody want to come with me?" Randi asked as she headed toward the door of their cabin. Her key was in her pocket, and since the luggage wasn't yet there, she didn't have anything to unpack. The only thing each of them had with them were the bags from the adult 'toy' store, and, while she thought Luka would get a kick out of watching a lesbian porn film, she wasn't so sure she was yet in the mood for one.
"I'll come." Maggie got to her feet and slipped her shoes back on, and then she grinned at Luka. "Don't do anything we wouldn't do...well," her grin broadened, "maybe I should be encouraging you to do things? After all, John's good time *should* start now."
Luka just shook his head. "Behave, Maggie," he said, chuckling softly. But his cheeks did redden a bit, which elicited a full-fledged smile from the other woman.
The girls safely gone, Luka hesitated for only a moment before knocking on John's door. "Can I come in?"
After he had escaped to the privacy of his room, John had used the toilet and inaugurated the clean towels. They weren't yet able to take showers or baths -- something to do with the lines connecting the ship to the pier needing to be released and the ship wanting to save water until after that point -- so whiling away the time doing that was out of the question.
He finally ended up sitting on the bed, reading over the list of 'guest services' offered for their suite level. They could eat in the ship's dining rooms or have food brought to their own private dining room. They had CDs to choose from, videos, games -- just about everything. Everything except Dave Malucci, he thought.
John looked up when he heard a knock on the door, not certain that he was up to any more of Maggie's sharp wit. It was with relief when he heard Luka's voice and John didn't hesitate to give him permission to enter. Permission to enter his room, his mouth, his...John quickly chased those thoughts away. It just wasn't right for him to assume that Luka would want to spend all of his time on the cruise with him.
Luka couldn't help but smile as he walked into the room, looking at John reading over the literature that had come with the cabin. "So did you find out anything interesting?" he asked, as he sat on the edge of the bed. "The girls are off to watch the ship take off from port, and hopefully subject their humor to someone else for a little while. I'm kind of glad that it's just the two of us, actually," Luka said, bringing his gaze up to John's eyes.
"I...umm...just want to make sure that you're okay with everything that happened yesterday," Luka started carefully, leaning back slightly on the bed. "It was...a very new thing for me...having other people in the room..."
"Really?" John asked. He couldn't keep from smiling over that admission. "I'd have thought that you...well, you're more experienced and all, and less inhibited, so I thought it would have been something you'd done before."
Luka nodded. "I'm generally...a pretty private person, John, when it comes to matters of intimacy," Luka said, furthering his thoughts. "But even I have to admit that last night was a lot of fun. So,..I guess you can say that you are the first person that I participated in...I guess you call it a...three-way? Is that the term?"
John shrugged. "I think the 'proper' term is 'ménage a trios', but three-way or threesome works for me." He then realized that didn't sound quite right, and his cheeks were immediately heating up. "I mean, that's the right term, or something like that. I've never done anything like that before, either, and it was...interesting." John walked over to the window and gazed out. Their cabin was on the side of the ship facing away from the pier, but the view was more of the port and not yet one of the ocean itself. Still, it was a pretty vista.
"One of the things I was surprised to realize with Dave was just how much I enjoyed being...well, certain things. He used to joke that I was insatiable, and maybe I am, because to tell you the truth, Luka, I *do* like it, and I'd like to do it again with you. But, I know you wanted to come on this cruise to meet other men and enjoy yourself, so I don't want you to feel obligated to stay in the cabin. Go out and have fun. If you reach the point where you desire me again, then I'll be here, okay?"
John kept his gaze firmly planted on a red sailboat the entire time he was talking because he wasn't sure how Luka would react. He didn't want Luka's pity and he didn't want Luka to think he was some kind of a slut or something of that nature. And while he very much wanted to have sex with Luka again and again and again, he didn't want Luka to feel as if he somehow *needed* him. John didn't want to scare Luka away by making the man think he was needy and clingy, even if he was feeling every bit like that at the moment.
Luka stood for a moment, absorbing John's words. And as John finished speaking, he slowly made his way towards the window and wrapped his arms around him, so that he was hugging him from behind. His mouth was positioned against John's ear, so he was able to speak softly.
"Why are you so sure that I don't desire you, John?" he asked, as he planted a soft kiss on his ear lobe. "I wanted us *both* to have fun on this cruise...and I would love it if you were to meet other people as well...but...at the same time...I guess you can say that I am drawn to you, John...what do you say we try to have some fun together on this cruise, huh? I'm not going to push you into having a relationship...I think that you are still too much in love with Dave for us to be able to have that...and I wouldn't want to be second to him...but maybe I can convince you that spending some extra time with me isn't all bad?"
He squeezed him a bit tighter, and then rather abruptly let him go. "What do you say we both go and find something to eat before this ship gets under sail? I understand that they are serving a buffet on the Veranda deck...we can go have a little lunch? Maybe our luggage will be here by the time we get back?"
John quickly nodded before turning around to smile at Luka. "Lunch sounds great. Lead the way and I'll follow." As they headed out of the cabin, John found himself feeling a bit sad that he wasn't able to put Luka first. It wasn't fair to him or to Luka for the feelings he once had for Dave to still be so strong. Maybe the cruise would be the turning point for those feelings, John thought. Maybe they'd return to Chicago with those feelings dead and gone, and new ones -- ones for Luka -- in their place. John liked Luka quite a bit, and he hoped that it wouldn't take all that much to turn that like into love.
To be continued