Holiday Delights: Volume One - The Escape (3 page)

“
I’ve reserved that one
for you, and that one’s mine,” she said, pointing to the other top
bunk just across. “Top bunks are a pain to go up and down, but it
they do have more privacy.”

Kelsey way slightly apprehensive, but she
supposed that it wasn’t too bad, considering how cheap it was and
by her calculations, her remaining budget for this part of the trip
would last her until she got to her next destination. She put her
backpack in the locker provided for her, climbed up the ladder to
her bunk, laid down and quickly fell into a deep slumber.

*****

The noise of people going in and out of the
dorm woke up Kelsey. For a moment, she was disoriented and forgot
where she was, but she slowly started to remember. She stretched
out, sat up and swung her legs down over the bunk.

“
Yeow!!” she heard a male
voice yelp as her feet collided with something solid.

Kelsey quickly slid down to the floor.

“
Oh my God, I’m so
sorry-“

“
Do you make hitting other
people a habit?” A pair of familiar blue eyes stared back up at
her. It was the same guy she hit with her bag in the plane in New
York.

“
OH- it’s you!” she
exclaimed. “Oh no! I’m so sorry, here—uh” she tried to grab his
head to massage it, but he swatted her hands away. “Look, I’m so
sorry, I’m just new to this.”

“
Oh really? I couldn’t
tell,” he said sarcastically as he rubbed the back of his
head.

“
Listen here, you-” Kelsey
was about to give him a piece of her mind when she heard Alex call
her.

“
Kelsey! You’re up! Good,
it’s time to go!” her best friend bounded over to them.

“
Oh, you’ve met
Ben!”

“
In a manner of speaking,”
Kelsey bit her lip.

“
Yes, Alex, I’m familiar
with your friend,” the man said wryly. “We’ve bumped into each
other before, but have never been introduced.”

The man stood up, and Kelsey realized he was
at least 6’2” and had a lean physique. He was wearing a fitting
white shirt and shorts. She couldn’t help but admire his broad
shoulders and chest, tapering down to a slim waist.

“
Oh, then, Kelsey Truman,
this is Ben Knight, a fellow traveler from London,” Alex motioned
to the young man. “Ben, this is Kelsey, the friend I’ve been
telling you about!”

“
Pleased to meet you,
Ben,” Kelsey held her hand out, which Ben shook with a strong grip,
but said nothing.

Kelsey shrugged. I guess he’s the strong
silent type, she thought.

“
Well then,” said Alex,
sensing some weird vibes between the two, “everyone is waiting for
us! Get dressed so we can get dinner and then we’re hitting up the
hottest club in Bangkok!”

*****

Kelsey quickly got dressed in her nicest
outfit – a strapless yellow and black dress, gold chunky necklace
and strappy sandals. She followed Alex out to the common room where
everyone was waiting. Dinner was uneventful, just at one of the
many Thai restaurants along Khao San Road. The were a big,
international group, about 12 people from the hostel and everyone,
aside from Kelsey, Alex, and Ben, all looked so young, maybe early
20s. Kelsey ignored Ben, just as he ignored her. Afterwards, they
got some drinks at a couple of bars, then grabbed some taxis to
Club Aviva at the Royal Sheraton Orchid Hotel by the Chao Praya
River.

As they walked to the club, Alex and Kelsey
fell behind the group.

“
So….you know Ben?!? Spill
the beans!”

“
What? Oh!” Kelsey said.
“It’s nothing, he was on the flight to Hanoi, and I smacked him
good with my bag!” Kelsey giggled. “I guess you could say I made an
impression and now he probably thinks I’m some klutzy lunatic who
hits strange men on purpose.”

“
But, he’s hot, isn’t he?”
Alex asked.

Kelsey thought for a moment. “Well…I guess,
but I mean…it’s not like he’d go for someone like me!”

Alex stopped walking and stepped in from of
her friend. “Kelsey! Don’t say that!”

Kelsey had self-esteem issues even before
she met Carl, and Alex knew the break-up probably didn’t help.

“
Besides, you look hot in
that dress! I’m sure he noticed! I swear I caught him staring at
your boobs!”

“
No, seriously, Alex,” she
said. “I’m too chubby, too short, too independent, too smart for my
own good. I’m not being humble, just honest. Ben, Carl…guys like
that don’t fall for me.”

“
Honey, you look great!
Seriously, I didn’t have a chance to tell you, but it looks like
travelling agrees with you!”

Kelsey gave her a skeptical look and Alex
sighed.

“
Well, my dear,” she put
her arm around Kelsey and they continued to walk towards the club.
“That’s the purpose of this trip…if jerks like them don’t ‘go’ for
girls like you, then it’s there loss. You will find that there are
literally millions of guys out there and you will find one that
will worship the ground you walk on, or at least, want to screw
your brains out!”

*****

Club Aviva was just like any club in any
major metropolitan city – dark, loud, smokey, and crowded. The
younger “kids” definitely enjoyed it, but Kelsey and Alex mostly
stayed near the bar, sipping their drinks. Ben has disappeared for
a while, but soon, he came next to them, holding his own drink.

“
Not your cup of tea,
ladies?” he seemed to have loosened up, for which Kelsey was glad
because she couldn’t stand the way he was so cold to
her.

“
Well, you’ve been to one
club, you’ve been to all!” screamed Alex, trying to get over the
din of the club.

“
Besides, this is really
not my scene,” admitted Kelsey. “I feel too old for this shit!” she
laughed. “I’m gonna pay for this in the morning!”

Ben smiled, the first time she saw him do
anything but scowl at her. There was some silence, then finally he
asked. “So, Kelsey, what brings you to Bangkok? Adventure?
Excitement?”

“
A broken heart!” Alex
volunteered before she could answer.

Kelsey blushed, “It’s NOT that bad!” she
said. She was definitely getting tipsy after all that drinking.
“And-whoops!” She was gesticulating wildly with her hand, when she
slammed it into one of the drinks sitting on the bar. “Whoa!” she
turned around, and saw that she knocked a tall glass over…right
into some guy’s chest.

“
Oh crap! I’m so sorry!”
she imagined Ben behind her, snickering at her clumsiness and she
felt even more embarrassed. She grabbed a couple of napkins and
started to dab the man’s wet, and surprisingly, muscled
chest.

Strong, yet soft hands grabbed hers. “Don’t
worry miss,” said a gentle voice, as he put his lips near her ear.
“It will come off”

The voice was soft and slightly accented.
She stepped back a bit and looked at the man she spilled the drink
on. He had black hair and brown eyes, but his face was definitely
not full Thai, probably mixed-European. Pink lips upturned in a
smile, a straight nose, high cheekbones. Not tall, but about
Kelsey’s height, maybe an inch taller. His built was slight, almost
slim, but she knew that he worked out and had some lean muscle
underneath. He was wearing a (now-wet) shirt and black pants, and
what looked like very expensive leather shoes. Kelsey didn’t know
how long she was staring at the beautiful man, but Alex nudged her
from behind.

“
Her name is Kelsey!” Alex
cheerfully volunteered.

Kelsey was shook out of her trance. He
smiled, “Nice to meet you, Kelsey. I’m Marcel. Marcel Pradchaphet.”
Kelsey held out her hand, which he promptly kissed. Kelsey blushed
some more.

“
I’m really sorry about
your shirt! You should let me pay you or make it up to
you!”

He smiled. “Well, you can make it up to me
if you and your friends would join me at my table?”

*****

Alex, Kelsey, and Ben followed Marcel to the
VIP section of the club, up a flight of stairs and then into one of
the private rooms. The whole wall was made of glass, so the
occupants had a magnificent view of the club, but the glass
somewhat muffled the loud music. Inside was opulent, rich velvet
couches, mirrored ceilings, a private dance floor, and drinks
flowed freely. There were already a number of people inside, but
one couch was reserved just for Marcel. They plopped down next to
him, with Kelsey on this right and Alex and Ben on his left.

“
Wow!” Kelsey exclaimed.
“I’ve never been to a VIP room like this!”

Marcel smiled, handing her a glass of
premium vodka on the rocks.

“
I’m friends with the
owner and he’s trying to get me to invest into his other
ventures.”

“
What exactly do you do?”
asked Ben skeptically.

Kelsey rolled her eyes, but Marcel answered
directly. “I’m a businessman, my family owns many businesses here
in Thailand and Cambodia,” he explained. “And also a few more
businesses back in Switzerland, where my mother is from.”

Ben didn’t answer, and Kelsey huffed in
approval. Glad someone could shut him down, she thought. She was
liking this Marcel guy.

They stayed for another hour or so, talking
and laughing with Marcel. He stood up at times, mingling with his
other guests, although he always came back and always sat down next
to Kelsey.

“
I think he likes you!”
Alex exclaimed the next time he left. “He’s dreamy too! So exotic!
And nice to boot!”

Ben rolled his eyes. “Well, if you like
pompous show-offs, I suppose he’s ok!”

Kelsey ignored Ben’s remark, but turned to
Alex, “He does not show off!” she giggled. Kelsey was definitely
drunk. “But yeah…so hot!”

Ben seemed annoyed. “I’m going to go find
the others!” he stood up. “Meet you guys in 10, outside? We should
get back to the hostel.” He didn’t wait for an answer and instead
left.

Kelsey felt a little bad, and she didn’t
know why. “Yeah, I guess we should go.”

“
NO WAY!” Alex said. “At
least, not you! You are gonna stay here and you are going to seduce
him!”

“
What?” Kelsey exclaimed.
“I couldn’t possibly-“

“
Hello? Kelsey, you are
truly blind! The guy is just waiting to have you all to himself and
to get into your pants!” Alex finished her drink and stood up.
“Stay here, and whatever you do, don’t come back to the hostel
until you’ve been properly fucked!”

Kelsey stared after her friend as she
retreated out of the room. She supposed she could just leave and
follow Alex. But, Marcel had already spotted her sitting alone and
with Alex lost in the crowd downstairs, she’d never find her and
Kelsey had no idea where their hostel was or even how to tell a
taxi driver where she was.

“
That devious witch!” she
said out loud to no one in particular. She looked up at Marcel, his
beautiful chocolate brown eyes staring down at her, an unfamiliar
look in them. Heat, she thought. She could practically feel the
heat radiating from his gaze as he looked down at the swell of her
breasts, up her neck and lingered for a while on her red lips. He
held out his hand.

“
Dance with me?” he
asked.

Kelsey followed meekly, putting her hand in
his. He walked her over to the dance floor, a slow tune playing in
the background. He put his hands on her waist, and then pulled her
close, touching his cheek to hers. They swayed to the music and
Kelsey could feel his hard chest against her breasts, his strong
arms on her sides. Suddenly, he pulled away slightly and then
leaned in to kiss her.

His lips were surprisingly soft and gentle,
and tasted slightly sweet. His tongue coaxed her lips open and then
slipped in, dancing with her tongue. They kissed some more, not
caring about the other people around them. After what seemed like
forever, he pulled away. He smiled at her and brushed her cheek
with his hand. “I think we should get out of here.”

Kelsey nodded. She was still in shock. It
had been years since she kissed anyone aside from her ex-fiancé.
And she definitely liked it.

*****

Kelsey followed Marcel out of the club via a
private entrance. Outside, a shiny silver Mercedes Benz was
waiting, along with a driver who dutifully opened the door for
them. Kelsey tried to act cool, although it was obvious Marcel was
very well-off. She was still dizzy, from the alcohol and from his
kisses. The Benz sped off and she didn’t quite know how, but they
ended up at the penthouse suite of a luxurious apartment building
in the middle of Bangkok.

“
Wow!” she exclaimed,
looking outside the glass windows overlooking the city. “This is
amazing!”

Marcel came up to her from behind, wrapping
his arms around her waist and nuzzling her neck.

“
Hmmmm cherie,
you
are amazing, so
refreshing, so honest…” he spun her around and then kissed her
again, this time, more urgent and passionate.

Kelsey moaned as his lips savagely attacked
hers. His right hand reached up and cupped a breast, and then
boldly yanked down her dress and bra in one motion. She gasped as a
thumb circled her nipple, making it pucker and harden under his
expert touch.

“
Ahh...Marcel…”

He moaned slightly when he felt her hands
tugging at his pants, pulling out his shirt and tugging at his
zipper. “Ohhhh wait, cherie,” he said.