by Olivia Lucas
“I have some idea.” Chloe whispered, as she gently guided Jenna backwards to the bed, her eyes never leaving hers. They fell back onto the bed, their legs wrapping around each other. Chloe’s thigh was between hers. Exactly where it needed to be. She pushed back against it, creating a slow rhythmic movement between them, that continued to build. Circling, teasing, licking. Chloe kissed her neck, collarbone, breasts and let her tongue trace her nipples.
Jenna knotted her hands in Chloe’s hair, shifting beneath her touch as Chloe stroked her intimately. She rocked against her, needing and wanting, and a moan escaped her lips.
Jenna moved against Chloe’s hand searching for more. Chloe worked her way down her body methodically as she gave into her, kissing her stomach, then running her fingers then thumbs up her inner thighs. The sensation like a trail of tiny electric shocks, each more intense than the previous.
She parted her legs slightly and lowered her mouth to Jenna, teasing and circling with her tongue. She paused briefly to look at Jenna and then entered her with two fingers.
“Oh god,” Jenna moaned.
Chloe continued to lick and suck with her mouth, soft at first then stronger, as she drove her fingers in deeper.
Jenna’s hips moved with her in time as she climbed higher with each movement, her body shivering, until she could hold no more. She gave one last final thrust forward into Chloe, calling out loudly. She came hot and fast like a freight train.
Her body was still quivering, but Jenna could not wait to devour Chloe with the very thought leaving her totally wet again. She pulled her close, tracing a finger beneath the swell of her breasts and watched her nipples harden.
“You don’t have to do much,” Chloe whispered breathlessly. “I’m almost there.”
Jenna saw that as an invitation and slowly ran her tongue between her breasts and over her stomach before coming back up, catching a nipple between her lips and sucking it.
She knew Chloe was watching her every move. She dipped back down and trailed her lips over her panties feeling the throb through the fabric and just how turned on Chloe was. It was hot. She removed them, and moved her mouth lower. Her tongue flickered softly then began lashing with intensity as Chloe’s body trashed around wildly in expectation.
She was moaning, over and over, until it became too much. She pulled Jenna’s mouth closer with her hands, panting louder with every taste before shuddering and calling out loudly. But she wasn’t finished. Her bits still pulsating with pleasure. She came again even harder a few seconds later into Jenna’s mouth, as her body writhed and twisted.
They fell back into each other’s arms, their naked limbs entwining, and their breath heavily laced with lust.
“You have ruined me Jenna,” Chloe said, her breathing ragged, as she stroked Jenna’s face.
Jenna tried to slow her breath, smiling. “Did that just happen?” She kissed Chloe softly on the lips. “I think YOU ruined me.”
“Um yes it did.”
Chloe took a deep breath. “Oh my god. You don’t know how long I have wanted this.”
“Oh, I can guess. I have wanted to tear your clothes off from the moment I saw you.”
Clothes were now scattered throughout the apartment wherever they had forgotten them.
Chloe looked across the pillow she shared with Jenna. Her dark hair was wild, and her perfectly shaped lips begged to be kissed more. She had never looked so beautiful. Their bodies fit perfectly together, like a jigsaw puzzle.
She traced the outside of Jenna’s body as she studied Jenna’s face. “You know, I am in real trouble with you.” She picked up her hand, kissing her fingertips one by one.
“Oh, is that so?” Jenna replied, as she ran her mouth across Chloe’s shoulder then neck.
“I have never met anyone quite like you.”
“I know.” Jenna smiled, as she started to kiss her lips once more, sliding her hands between her thighs.
The teasing and arousal had started again, and Chloe knew exactly what this meant. She pulled her closer feeling the heat of their bodies intensifying. Jenna disappeared beneath the cover, as Chloe inhaled sharply and threw her head back on the pillow, letting out a deep breath.
They made love later again that night, this time it was slower, but with the same intensity. Jenna climaxed even more powerfully than she had before, and was completed exhausted by the time she fell asleep in Chloe’s arms, wondering again at the strange, mysterious forces that had brought them together like this.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
As Jenna woke to birdsongs drifting through the open window, she put out her out arm to touch Chloe, but the space next to her was empty yet still warm. She had mentioned she was leaving extra early to go with Adam to Hudson Dam, as they had to interview the local congressman later that morning.
What an incredible night it had been. The more time she spent with Chloe, the more she craved her. She replayed scenes from the previous night over and over, and found herself getting aroused. She was fucking hot. And fast becoming addictive. She smiled to herself and sat up wrapping the sheets around her. She could smell Chloe, her scent embedded in the air.
“Good morning world and birds,” she yawned, as she stretched her arms above her head and rolled out of the bed.
She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror, and she looked like absolute crap after only four hours of sleep. But she didn’t care. Inside, she was positively beaming. She was all loved up, and still relishing in the sugary rush of hot sex. Her outward appearance was a small price to pay for the happiness she felt.
She finally managed to locate her dress in the kitchen, along with other casually strewn items that had been discarded in the heat of the moment. Smiling as she pieced together the night, she collected the other items and put them on the table.
She wondered into the kitchen, and put a pod in the coffee machine. She needed coffee to wake her from this dreamy haze. As she dressed and straightened herself out, the coffee machine buzzed and her coffee was ready.
She cupped her hands around the mug, as she was momentarily distracted by some papers lying loosely on top of the kitchen bench. She took a sip of her coffee.
Looked like a research paper written by Chloe…..Chloe Farley. The name was typed in bold letters in the header. She realized she did not know her surname. She paused. It took a couple seconds to register. Farley? She scrunched up her brow as her heart skipped a beat. Could not be. Wait, Chloe had mentioned a brother. She wildly scanned the room. Nothing. She put the coffee down.
She spotted Chloe’s distinctive red purse on the table. She must have forgotten it. Her heart was now thumping. She picked it up hesitantly, biting her lip, and looked inside. There was a photo of what she assumed were her parents, her heart rate slowed. She looked like her mom. Wait, there was a small edge protruding from behind it though. She gave a gentle tug. Jenna jumped back. Her face went white, her pulse accelerated. No way. Her heart sank.
The photo was of Chloe with her arm around a dark-haired boy who bore a striking resemblance to Ben. Ben Farley. He was now in the room with her. And he was smiling, and happy. Jenna blinked. She could not move as she froze with panic. She stumbled, and bent over breathing erratically. No, no, no. This could not be happening.
She had called her mom frantically, and in the midst of a panic attack started to hyperventilate. Something she had not experienced in years. Jenna had been hysterical and incoherent over the phone, however her mom was able to work out that she was at the hotel.
Jenna walked outside to the front of the hotel in a trance like state. She sat on the edge of the curb holding her knees, rocking back and forward, whilst looking disheveled and despondent in her little black dress. She was shaking and felt a numbness spreading through her.
Her mom finally arrived a while later, and rushed out of the car. “I’m here darling. You will be okay.”
She carefully lifted her up from the curb and helped her into the car. As they drove, she guided Jenna
through a selection of breathing exercises to calm her down and they arrived home twenty minutes later.
Once inside their home, Jenna collapsed into the couch in the living room. Her head now buried in her hands, and tears streaming down her face. “I just don’t understand,” she cried. “I thought this was all over.”
Jenna told her mom what had transpired. She was hurt. She was angry at Chloe that her brother was Ben. She was angry that she hadn’t told her. She was angry even though she did not really know where should direct her anger.
Chloe and her had briefly discussed family when they were at Joe’s Pizza. Chloe barely touched on her brother, briefly mentioning that he had gone through a tough time and she hadn’t seen him in ages, but that he wasn’t a bad guy. Not a bad guy?! How could she say that after all the pain he had caused her?
She felt nauseated and realized she didn’t know Chloe at all. Chloe had marched into her life uninvited, and in just over a week had turned her life upside down.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Chloe and Adam had spent the morning at the dam, and had now just wrapped up the interview with the local congressman, Owen Wright. They were happy with the content, even though he wasn’t very forthcoming with information.
He looked a little sour when they drilled him about county plans for the expansion of Hudson Dam despite increasing contamination levels. While he indicated that contamination was not a concern as they were able to balance water quality and quantity, he was coy when they pointed out the falling storage levels due to climate change. He did, however, seem open to investigating alternative sources of water supply, such as Fuller’s Dam, and asked them to present their findings at a later stage.
They were both tired from all the long days, the traipsing back and forward from the dam, and all the reporting that came with it, but they could finally see the end in sight. The interview was the cherry on the top.
They still had two more days of testing to go but they had equivocally proved that contamination levels in the dam were worsening. They were hoping that their research paper and the subsequent dissemination of results to the county would prompt community debate about the long-term supply of clean drinking water during droughts.
Chloe could not believe the week she was having. Everything was going swimmingly. Possibly the best week of her life, in fact. Who would ever think that she would say that in this humdrum town. A town she used to despise.
As they walked out of the congressman’s office and onto the main street of Crawley, Adam threw an enquiring look in Chloe’s direction.
“Chloe, you look ridiculously happy,” Adam smiled suspiciously. “I know our research is going great guns, but is there something else you want to tell me?”
“No, no.” Chloe could not wipe the grin from her face.
Adam pushed her with his arm. “Come on, spill the beans.”
“Okay, okay, we may, or may not have had a sleep over last night.” Chloe winced, dropping her head into her hands in an overly dramatic fashion.
“I knew it! And here I was thinking you and I were going to get married one day.” Adam cheekily added. “You girls move fast,” his eyes widened as her eyes narrowed.
“Yeah, the u-haul is next, you know.” Chloe poked her tongue at him. “That reminds me,” she said as she picked up her phone. “We are supposed to catch up later today so I need to message her the details.”
Adam jabbed her with the end of his pen. “You guys are making these catch ups regular.”
“Mmmhmm.” She quickly texted Jenna, as they walked.
After a bit of small talk, Chloe said her goodbyes to Adam, excusing herself when they arrived back at the hotel. She tried in vain to distract herself by typing up her research papers, but found herself staring absently into the glow of her laptop screen. Normally submerging herself in work would distract her from everything, but not this time.
Jenna had gotten underneath her skin, and she was still buzzing from last night. She would check her phone intermittently, however when two hours had passed, she started to worry. Must be busy with her family, she said under her breath.
Tired of her revolving thoughts, she looked to the bed which seemed to be inviting her over. She could use a powernap, and it would kill some time. The decision was made, and when she finally rested her head on the pillow, she tried to flush her mind with absolute nothingness.
◆◆◆
Jenna had been sitting with her mom on the couch watching old reruns of Seinfeld. It was a welcome distraction, apart from the fact that her mom would have fits of laughter every sixty seconds, and reach across, and slap her on the arm like they were having the time of their lives.
She was distracted enough, however, that she jumped when her cell buzzed under a pillow. She saw Chloe’s name flash up on the screen. She couldn’t even open it, so she turned the phone over and hid it back under the pillow.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she rubbed her fingers on her temples. Well that ended as quickly as it had started. Now she had to erase Chloe from her memory like she never existed, and ‘they’ never happened. They had been almost inseparable the past few days and her thoughts had been consumed by her, and by everything that it could be. This was going to be far more difficult than she imagined.
◆◆◆
What the hell? Chloe thought, as she propped herself up on the bed and reached out for her cell. It had been six hours since she had messaged Jenna. Her stomach was now growling and had woken her from her nap.
Was Jenna ghosting her? Did she do something wrong? Was it because she left in the morning before she woke? No, she shook her head, she told her she was leaving early and she would try not to wake her. She scrunched up her forehead and frowned.
How did she mess things up and not even know it? A wave of anxiety rushed through her and she felt instantly sick, before falling back onto the pillow and staring up at the popcorn ceiling. Jenna was in room 202. Maybe she was back from her mom’s now. She could just rock up and knock, and see if all was okay. Or was that too forward. Well she couldn’t lie here all night tossing and turning and wondering.
She hopped up again off the bed, slipped on some shoes and a coat before fixing her hair as she passed the mirror on the way out. Chickening out to some degree, she made a quick detour to the bar. It was only 6pm, but what the hell. She spotted Adam seated on a stool, drinking a beer, and boy, was he a sight for sore eyes.
She wondered over and hugged him from behind. “Hey you.”
He swiveled around and flashed her a big smile. “Chloe. I was hoping a hot woman was hugging me." He winked at her. “Join me?”
She hopped on a stool, and ordered a bourbon on the rocks from the barman.
“That’s a strong drink to start the night.”
Chloe look down at the floor. “Yeah it is.” When her drink arrived, she took a large gulp.
Adam studied her face. “You okay? Hang on, aren’t you supposed to be on a date with Jenna?”
“I thought we were, but I have no idea. It appears she had gone AWOL.”
“Jenna? That’s not like her. Sure, you didn’t get your wires crossed?”
“No, we locked it in last night. And I sent her a message organizing the date, when I was with you, remember? She never answered.”
Adam scrunched up his forehead. “Strange. Let me give her a call now and see." Adam grabbed his phone from inside his coat pocket.
“Oh, don’t do that.” Chloe touched his arm. “She will
think that I am checking up on her.”
“No correction.” Adam smiled. “I am checking up on her.”
Adam rang Jenna’s phone and it rang out. He then rang her mom who answered.
“Hey Susan. Its Adam. Just trying to track Jenna down. Is she around?” There was a brief pause. “Oh right.” Adam was nodding. “I see.” His face began to show concern. “Is she okay?”
Chloe’s ears pricked up. She watched Adam, who was listening intently and sighing empatheti
cally. What on earth was going on. This conversation seemed to go on and on.
Finally, Adam got off the phone, and looked at Chloe.
“Jenna is asleep at her mom’s. Look we need to talk,” Adam said in a soft tone. “Maybe we could sit on the sofa.” He pointed over to the corner of the room. “This could take a while.”
As Adam explained the whole story to Chloe, she shook her head in disbelief, as she could not fathom the words coming out of his mouth. Sadness washed over her at memories of her childhood and she felt overwhelmingly nauseous. Jenna was that girl. That girl who’s life had been turned upside down by her little brother Ben. She was only fourteen when this had happened, and her recollection was fuzzy at best, as her parents had done their best to shelter her from the storm that followed.
The town had hated on them. Eggs were thrown at their home and at their cars. They had been forced to move to protect their family from the outpouring of community anger, the media, the idle gossip and the aftermath of what Ben had done. My god. Jenna must hate her. She felt sick. She should’ve put two and two together. Jenna’s name, her age. She looked vaguely like the young girl, but she couldn’t remember much. And her surname. Her surname was different. How could that be?
She wanted to speak to Jenna desperately, but it was so clear that she didn’t want to speak to her. Even if she was the last person on the planet. Her heart sank. Adam did his best to console her. He even told Chloe to give her some time and talk to her once things had settled. She just wanted to run, run far away. She had hurt Jenna so much. And she had begun to fall for her. All at the same time. She felt utter despair over what had transpired and could only wonder what Jenna was feeling right now.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE