Nina pushed that thought aside. It had no place in this evening. This was one date, one night. She wasn’t going to presume a relationship would follow.
The Uber pulled up outside a modern apartment block on the north shore.
Leigh took Nina’s hand and led her through the glass doors into a lobby that looked more like a gallery of modern art. She nodded at the doorman and summoned the lift, pressing the button for the penthouse.
Nerves made Nina’s eye twitch. Every step she took into Leigh’s world made it more and more obvious that they were satellites of each other’s lives, never a full participant. When the lift deposited them in the hallway and Leigh led the way into her apartment, Nina nearly turned and bolted. This was lavish, even for a partner in a renowned firm. The rich cream walls, recessed lighting, and glowing timber boards spoke of old money, family money. Nina fought the instinct to remove her shoes so the heels didn’t mark the boards.
Leigh led the way into the open-plan living area and over to a kitchen that could be from a showroom. “Water? More wine?”
“Water, please.” Nina’s throat was dry, and the glass in her hands was something familiar and steadying. Sweet baby Jesus, how could she have ever thought for one second that she and Leigh could be something more to each other?
The living area boasted a view that looked south over Sydney Harbour. The streams of traffic were tiny far below. She even caught a glimpse of the opera house.
Leigh waited until Nina had drained her water and then took the glass from her hand. “Are you okay?”
“Yes. Just a bit shell-shocked by all of this.” Nina’s wave took in the apartment. “You must think I live in a hovel.”
Leigh didn’t spare a glance at her apartment. “No. Don’t think that. Your house is a home. It’s lived-in, and it’s full of love and laughter. This is a shell. I didn’t decorate it, and barely any of this is my personal taste. An interior designer did it. This sort of place is expected of a partner in Petersen & Blake. Please don’t hold yourself to this standard, Nina. Nor me either.”
The tightness in her throat eased enough that she could take a deep breath. There was no point comparing. Right now, it was enough that Leigh seemed to want her as badly as she wanted Leigh.
She took the half pace to close the gap between them and cupped Leigh’s cheek with her palm. “You’re right. What we have right now isn’t about real estate.” Her heart thundered. The kiss she and Leigh had shared before had made her head spin and started the pulse of desire. But that kiss was never going to be anything more than just a kiss.
This, though…
She leant in and placed her lips over Leigh’s. Lightly, no pressure, just the touch of their mouths. Just to see if it was as good as she remembered, if the desire was still there to build on.
It was more. It was better.
A beat and then Leigh responded. Her tongue flicked out to trace Nina’s lower lip in a lick of fire.
Nina closed her eyes, and the slow burn of the evening flared to an incandescent heat. She deepened the kiss, sliding her tongue around the smoothness of Leigh’s mouth, absorbing her taste, her small pants of breath. She slid her palms down to Leigh’s neck and rested them on the soft skin there. Leigh’s pulse beat strongly against her fingers. Nina let her fingers drift lower so that first one, then a second stroked under the neck of Leigh’s dress.
Leigh’s mouth stilled in the kiss, and then she resumed, deepening the kiss, bringing a hunger, a need, a yearning.
A tiny part of Nina’s mind marvelled that she was the one instigating this, leading Leigh along. Leigh was surely the more experienced of the two of them, and nothing in Nina’s previous relationships had given her the urgency she felt now.
Then Leigh took a step back and kicked off her high heels. She returned and slipped her hands around Nina’s waist. Without the heels, she was tiny, but her presence was as powerful as ever.
Nina found the clip that secured Leigh’s hair and removed it. The fine blonde strands slipped through her fingers. With her hair down, Leigh looked younger, softer, more vulnerable—or maybe it was the naked desire on her face that made her appear that way. Nina moved her fingers along the drift of hair, down Leigh’s neck, past the delicious warm spot where neck joined shoulder, and over her collarbones to the slight swell of her breasts.
Nina paused and tapped a gentle pattern on the soft skin. It matched the drumbeat of her own heart, the throb of need that gathered deep in her belly.
Leigh’s face was serious, but her teeth worried her lower lip, and her breath came in soft pants. “I think this is where we move to the bedroom.”
Bedroom. Nina managed a short nod, stepped back, and linked her fingers firmly with Leigh’s as if otherwise, somehow in the walk to the bedroom, she would lose her.
Leigh flicked a switch at the bedroom door, and low lighting grew softly like a sunrise. A king bed made up with pristine white linen, neatly turned down, dominated the room. Here the polished boards gave way to soft carpet. A partly open door gave Nina a glimpse of a lavish ensuite. She took a quick glance around the room to orientate herself, then focussed on Leigh.
When Leigh reached behind and tugged at the zip, her powder-blue dress slid forward, away from her shoulders.
Nina stared at the strip of skin, pale, as if it had never been kissed by the sun; smooth, as if it had been burnished and polished by creams and lotions to achieve that impossible evenness. For a second, her own sun-weathered skin gave her a moment of self-doubt. But she pushed it away. She was here now because Leigh wanted her exactly the way she was, not as some pampered beauty-salon client.
Nina closed the gap between them once more. She stroked the dress down Leigh’s arms so it pooled at her waist. Her gaze zeroed in on Leigh’s breasts, covered only by a cream lace bra. “May I?” Her voice was husky, so full of need that Nina barely recognised herself.
At Leigh’s answering nod, she found the front fastening and fumbled with the catch. Her fingers seemed thick, the delicate fastening too small for her to manipulate.
Leigh covered Nina’s hand with her own and undid her own bra.
Nina pulled the cups back, exposing Leigh’s breasts to the warm air. They were small, firm, and perfectly formed, a smooth slope to an upturned rosy nipple and then a soft undercurve. Nina sighed and gave in to the urge to kiss one pink nipple.
It puckered under her lips. Leigh pushed her hands into Nina’s hair, her fingertips digging into her scalp.
Nina straightened and slid her hands over Leigh’s rib cage to her indented waist and pushed the dress over Leigh’s flared hips so it fell to her feet.
Leigh stepped away and stood proud, clad only in her undies and tights.
“I don’t know how you wear these things.” Nina ran a finger over the waistband of the tights.
“Me neither sometimes.” Leigh sat to remove them. The undies came away too, and when she stood again, there was only skin for Nina to feast her gaze upon.
Leigh’s skin was unmarked perfection from head to toe, broken only by the pale fuzz at the juncture of her thighs.
Nina desperately wanted to stroke those pale, puffy lips, to coat her fingers with the moisture she was sure was within, but she resisted. Her own clothes were restrictive. Impatient with the desire to press her skin to Leigh’s, she shucked her blouse, leaving it crumpled in a pile on top of Leigh’s dress, and pushed down her skirt. She would have continued her mad rush for nakedness, but Leigh caught her hands.
“Slow down. Let me savour this.”
Nina stood, awkward under Leigh’s gaze. It meandered from her face, down over her neck, to her fuller breasts in the cotton bra. Nina thanked whatever lucky stars had made her buy new underwear. It had been for confidence when facing Stella and her lawyers, but now it gave her the extra boost that she looked good. The white bra was simple, a chain store cheapie,
but it supported her breasts, gave them a shapeliness she felt was normally lacking.
Leigh’s eyes darkened, and she ran her fingers over the cups, lingering on the hard shape of Nina’s nipple underneath. She traced the silvery lines across Nina’s stomach. They were faded now, but the web of stretch marks would never go away completely.
Nina’s undies matched her bra. Leigh hooked her fingers into the waistband, her knuckles grazing the white cotton and lace. She tugged, and the undies descended before they bunched at the top of Nina’s thighs.
“It’s always easier than this in the movies.” Leigh’s voice was husky. “But it doesn’t matter. You’re beautiful, Nina. Your body is perfect.”
Nina stared at her feet for a second. Compliments on her looks had always embarrassed her. She was comfortable in her own skin, but beautiful didn’t come into it. She was too stocky, too muscular, too tanned, too tomboyish. But she saw the truth in Leigh’s eyes, and she swallowed back the instinctive denial. In Leigh’s eyes, she was beautiful, and that was the only thing that mattered. She worked her undies down over her thighs, then stood confidently under Leigh’s heated look.
Leigh took her hand and urged her over to the bed and down so they lay facing each other on the soft sheets. She took Nina’s hand and put it palm down on Leigh’s breast, even as she took her lips in a heated kiss.
When Leigh moved down and took one of Nina’s nipples in her mouth, Nina couldn’t suppress the gasp as Leigh’s lips teased the point to such an exquisite peak that it was almost unbearable. She dug her fingers into Leigh’s shoulders, and when it became too much, she moved onto her back and urged Leigh over to the other breast.
Leigh slid her hand down Nina’s stomach.
It clenched involuntarily under the hot touch. A chant started in Nina’s head: please, please, please. When Leigh moved her hand down further and rested it on Nina’s mound, she couldn’t help herself. Her hips bucked up, seeking a more intimate touch.
“Tell me what you want.” Leigh lifted her head as she inched her fingers lower. “Do you want me to touch you here?” She dipped one finger down even more and slid it into her sex for a moment before withdrawing.
Nina’s clit throbbed pleasure. “Just touch me.”
Leigh moved down the bed, sliding her hands along the outside of Nina’s thighs. When Leigh’s hands reached Nina’s knees, she reversed direction, and those same soft palms slid with excruciating slowness up the inner surfaces.
Nina grasped the quilt and spread her legs as far as she could. Her pulse juddered as she stared down along her own body to Leigh. Where would Leigh touch her next? Would it be with her fingers or, sweet baby Jesus, her lips? She swallowed, her mouth dry as anticipation raced through her.
Leigh moved between Nina’s parted thighs, and her fingers caressed up to Nina’s core. When Leigh touched her again, Nina jumped, even though the touch was expected. It was so intense. Weeks of yearning came together in that single touch of a finger.
Leigh added a second, and Nina raised up on her elbows and watched through half-closed eyes. Whatever Leigh was doing felt amazing, her fingers twirled and stroked Nina’s inside walls with exquisite pressure. And then Leigh turned her hand, and her thumb grazed Nina’s clit.
“Oh God.” A wave of pleasure surged through her. Her body was poised on the brink, as if one more tiny move from Leigh would send her freefalling into the abyss, flailing on a tidal wave of lust.
And then Leigh moved her thumb again, and Nina’s legs jerked.
Leigh shifted position, and her gaze flicked up to lock with Nina’s.
Nina bit her lip. So close. So very close. When Leigh closed her eyes and dipped her head, her intent obvious, Nina dropped back to the bed, and her eyelids fluttered closed. She clenched down on Leigh’s fingers. Leigh’s tongue touched Nina’s clit once and lifted away, twice and another lift. Then it returned the third time, and Nina couldn’t hold off any longer.
Her body arched into climax as a great gulping crescendo took hold of her and left her gasping on some distant shore.
Leigh raised her head again, her fingers still moving inside Nina.
Nina couldn’t speak. It was as if all coherence, all the words had fled her mind and there were only the echoes of immense pleasure, leaving her utterly and completely sated.
Leigh moved back up by Nina’s side and rested a hand on her belly. “Are you okay?”
Was she? She didn’t know. Maybe, after that, she would never be the same again. The world had somehow tilted on its axis, and there was a jumble of noise in her head. She nodded; it seemed easier somehow than finding the words.
“Good.” Leigh rested her head on the pillow. She stroked a circle on Nina’s belly, fanned out to follow a silvery line, then returned.
Nina turned her head and looked at Leigh.
A faint pink flush coloured her cheeks and down over her chest.
Nina’s heart rate sped up again. Leigh had given so much to her. Not only this particular pleasure but also her expertise and knowledge, her time both as a lawyer and a volunteer.
It was time for Nina to start giving back.
She leant over and fitted her lips to Leigh’s once more. Oh! The taste, the saltiness, the knowledge that she tasted herself, her most intimate part.
Leigh rose up to greet the kiss, her hand in Nina’s hair to hold her close as if to stop her from leaving.
There was no chance of that.
The kiss grew in intensity, and when Nina finally lifted her lips from Leigh’s, she gasped from the loss. She settled her mouth on Leigh’s throat, exploring the soft crook of neck and shoulder. She cupped Leigh’s breast, her thumb caressing Leigh’s nipple.
The pulse in Nina’s own sex beat strongly again. She pressed her legs together, feeling the wetness coating the tops of her thighs. Making love with Leigh. That’s what she was doing, and already it was one of the most incredible experiences of her life.
Nina moved to Leigh’s other breast and caressed that nipple to a rigid peak.
Leigh tightened her grip in Nina’s hair, and her head pressed back onto the pillow.
Nina looked up along the arch of Leigh’s pale throat to the firm chin, the soft lips parted in pleasure. Then down along Leigh’s body, over her flat stomach to the wispy patch of blonde hair between her legs. Nina heaved a breath. This was such perfection, such a magical time.
She propped herself on one elbow so she could see Leigh better and slid her palm from Leigh’s breast, down over her ribs to her waist, then back up again. Slow, so very slow. The anticipation of what was to come buzzed in Nina’s head. This was for Leigh. Did Leigh feel the same long slide to satiation that Nina had?
Leigh’s breath hitched, and her breathing grew shallow. Her rib cage barely rose and fell under Nina’s hand.
Nina repeated the motion, and this time she mapped a little further, down to Leigh’s hipbone and back via her belly, savouring each centimetre of the impossibly soft skin under her palm.
Leigh shifted restlessly under the slow touch.
When Nina looked up, Leigh was watching her face. Oh. Nina’s face burnt under the intense scrutiny.
“I love watching you,” Leigh whispered. “Your face gives you away. You love doing this.”
“I love doing this with you.” Nina’s voice was hoarse, the words pushing past the emotion in her throat. Pieces shifted, tumbling into place, and the words beat a rhythm in her head. I love doing this with you. I love doing this. With you. I love. You.
Was that true, or was it just the emotion of the moment after the day that had been? Nina didn’t know. Tomorrow she would think about it more. Tonight she would go with the flow.
She caressed her way across Leigh’s rib cage once more, up to her breast, and circled her nipple with one finger. Slowly, slowly, she passed down over Leigh’s belly again.
Leigh shivered, and her breathing increased, loud in the quiet room.
Nina let her fingers dip down, feathering through Leigh’s curls. A slow pass over the lower lips, engorged with desire, and then the same slow slide up. Nina’s heart pounded in her ears. She wanted nothing more than to take this to a hot and heady ending, give Leigh the climax that was so obviously close, but she resisted. There was a deep chime of desire low in her own sex, but she would wait. If any of the sapphic goddesses were smiling on her now, she would make this memorable. She would be memorable.
Leigh bit her lip, and her fingers tightened almost painfully in Nina’s hair. “Please… Please…” Her belly was as tight as a drum under Nina’s hand.
Nina kissed her again. She poured everything she had into the kiss, a soft, slow, deep kiss. She set aside the urgency of the moment and kissed as if it would be her last kiss on earth, as if there would be no more perfection than this.
And maybe there wouldn’t be.
Then, when Leigh’s body was so taut underneath her that Nina thought Leigh might snap, she finally let her fingers drift between Leigh’s legs.
Leigh parted her thighs, and Nina stroked up along her folds. They were wet, slick with desire. With a glance at Leigh’s face, Nina slid a finger inside.
Leigh flung her head back on the pillow, and her lips formed a silent O.
Nina added a second finger. Wet, clasping heat surrounded her, and she bit her lip hard, the small pain focussing her on Leigh before the urgency of her own need could overwhelm her. She slipped in and out, a little deeper each time, interspersed with circles around Leigh’s clit. It stood hard and proud, begging to be sucked. Nina resisted—that would be next time. Right now, she wanted to make Leigh come and break the thrumming tension that engulfed her. Nina pressed her fingers inside again and curled them up to press on Leigh’s inner wall, even as her thumb slipped to and fro along the side of Leigh’s clit.
A Heart This Big Page 23