Just for Show

by Jae

  The clothes dropped from Claire’s fingers, and she clutched Lana against her with both hands. “I’m on to your evil plan,” Claire said breathlessly when the kiss ended.

  “Evil plan?” Lana kissed and nibbled a line down Claire’s throat.

  Claire shivered and writhed beneath her. “Yeah. Making me want to forget about—”

  Lana licked the pulse point of Claire’s throat. “About what?”

  “Um…I forgot.”

  “Good.” Lana’s mission was to make Claire forget about everything but how it felt to be touched by her. She traced the hollow of Claire’s throat with her tongue, tasting the faint aroma of sweat and her perfume.

  One of Claire’s hands came up and threaded through her hair, while the other trailed up and down her back. Every now and then, Claire’s fingers grazed the side of her breast.

  Lana moaned. How could a fleeting touch affect her so much? Her breasts had never been that sensitive. But tonight, everything seemed to be intensified. Every little sound from Claire made Lana shiver with desire.

  Lana nibbled along Claire’s collarbone, raked her teeth gently over the soft skin on her neck, and then sucked on it experimentally. It might have been an adolescent thing to do, but she wanted to leave a mark on Claire’s perfect alabaster skin.

  She started a slow journey down her chest, exploring Claire’s upper body with her hands and her mouth. God, she wanted to devour her, inch by delicious inch.

  Claire’s hands tightened in her hair as Lana wrapped her lips around one hardened nipple and flicked her tongue across it.

  A moan drifted up from Claire’s chest.

  After a while, Lana switched over to the other breast and caressed it with her hands, her lips, and her tongue until the little sounds coming from Claire had become nearly constant. Then she slid lower, planting kisses down Claire’s sides.

  Laughter exploded from Claire.

  Lana looked up and smiled. “Oh yeah, clearly, you aren’t ticklish.”

  “I’m not,” Claire said.

  Lana teasingly ran her tongue along Claire’s side, making her giggle. “Yep, you’re right. Not ticklish at all.”

  When Lana kissed and licked a path down her belly, Claire’s giggles stopped. The muscles beneath Lana’s lips tensed, and Claire’s fingers in her hair tightened, preventing her from moving lower.

  Lana remembered that Claire had stopped her from going down on her when they’d made love in New York too. She felt like a kid that had been forever banned from having her favorite dessert. “Don’t you like oral?” she asked, trying not to let her disappointment show.

  An enticing flush spread along Claire’s body, and since she was naked, Lana’s gaze could follow its path. “No! I like it. Love it. But I need some time to prepare. I mean, I took a shower, but I haven’t shaved, um, down there in a couple of days.” Claire reached between them and ran her hand through the very short curls at the juncture of her thighs.

  The sight made Lana moan out loud. God, seeing Claire touch herself would be incredibly hot. But not this time. Tonight, she was all Lana’s. “Okay. I’ll give you fair warning next time.” The fact that there would be a next time—many next times—filled her chest with a flutter of happiness. “But this time, I’d love to taste you just the way you are.”

  Claire hesitated. “Are you sure you don’t mind?”

  “Mind?” Lana echoed. “On the woman you love, a little bit of stubble can even be sexy.”

  Claire went very still beneath her. She didn’t even seem to be breathing. “Really?”

  Why was that so hard to believe? “Yeah. I’d find you sexy even if—”

  “No, I mean, you…you love me?”

  Now Lana was the one who stopped breathing. Shit, had she said that? It was too soon for saying I love you, wasn’t it? Especially with the unusual way they had met. But she refused to take it back. Honesty, remember? She slid back up Claire’s body and looked into her eyes, which stared up at her as if not wanting to miss a thing. “Um, yes.” She gathered her courage. “I think I do. Love you, I mean.”

  Claire urged her up with her hands framing Lana’s face and kissed her.

  Their kiss started tender, full of wonder, and then quickly escalated into passion. Finally, both breathless, they broke the kiss and stared at each other.

  Lana traced the smile on Claire’s face with her fingertips. “Does that mean you love me too?”

  “Yes.” Claire kissed her again. “I love you.”

  A wave of euphoria swept through Lana. She wanted to shout out her joy but instead settled for returning Claire’s kisses.

  Finally, she leaned over her on one hand while she let her other hand trail down Claire’s body. “So,” she traced the hollow where Claire’s belly met her thigh with her fingertips, evoking a shudder, “does that mean we can ignore the stubble? I’d really like to taste you. Everywhere.”

  With a moan, Claire let her head drop to the pillow. “Far be it from me to deny the woman I love what she wants.”

  “Oh, so you’ll suffer through it for me?” Lana slid down, replaced her hand with her lips, and teasingly nibbled the soft skin on Claire’s inner thigh.

  “Yes.” The word came out more like a drawn-out groan.

  Lana placed a gentle kiss on each thigh and nudged Claire’s legs apart. She deeply breathed in Claire’s enticing scent and glanced up once more to make sure Claire was okay with what she was about to do.

  Their gazes connected, and Lana was blown away not only by the passion in Claire’s eyes but also by the trust. She knew how hard it was for Claire to hand over control, so she was determined to make this good for her.

  Claire reached down and stroked Lana’s face, then shifted her legs farther apart.

  Slowly, Lana dipped her head, breathed her in, and teased Claire with a puff of warm air across her damp curls.

  A shudder of anticipation went through Claire’s body.

  Lana inhaled again. Her mouth watered. She slid her palms up the outside of Claire’s thighs, urging her to bend her knees, and then gently swept her tongue over the glistening folds.

  At the salty-sweet aroma, a moan rose from her chest. When she didn’t hear an answering sound from Claire, she glanced up again.

  Claire’s face was flushed. She lay still, with one hand clutching the sheet, while the other rested in Lana’s hair. Her teeth were clamped around her bottom lip, as if she was struggling to hold back her noises and emotions.

  Oh, no, no, no. This tightly controlled version of Claire wasn’t what Lana wanted. She longed to feel her come apart beneath her lips and her tongue. “Look at me, Claire. Don’t hold back, okay? Stop thinking and feel. I want you to enjoy this.”

  Slowly, Claire loosened her grip on the sheet and caressed Lana’s head instead. “I’ll try,” she said quietly.

  Lana stroked her hip and pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her mound.

  Claire lay beneath her completely exposed, and the trust she showed in her took Lana’s breath away.

  Slowly, Lana lowered her head again and slid her tongue against her.

  Again, Lana moaned, and this time, Claire answered it with a shaky gasp.

  The low sound sent shivers down Lana’s spine. She immediately went back for more. “I love hearing you…and tasting you. Mmm.” She hummed against Claire’s wet heat, knowing that each word would vibrate through her. “This could easily become addictive.”

  “Not sure I want to…God…cure you of…oh!…that addiction,” Claire got out between gasps and groans.

  A teasing reply about a therapist letting an addiction go untreated ghosted through Lana’s mind, but when Claire opened her legs wider, she forgot all about it. She directed Claire to lift one leg over her shoulder so she could press even closer and filled her senses with her.

  Claire’s finge
rs slid restlessly against her scalp, making her shiver, as Lana caressed her with languid strokes. “God. Lana. You are… Yes.”

  Lana circled her clit and then, when Claire’s gasps and moans became more frequent, swiped the flat of her tongue across it.

  The strangled sound that escaped Claire sounded like Lana’s name.

  Heat pooled in Lana’s belly, and she squeezed her thighs together to stave off her own need and focus on Claire. She alternated between quick flicks and sensual strokes.

  Claire arched beneath her and panted through an open mouth. Her other hand joined the one in Lana’s hair guiding her to where she wanted her. “Right there.”

  Lana willingly followed direction. The way Claire showed her what she wanted was so damn hot. She clutched Claire’s hips with both hands to keep her against her mouth, closed her lips around her clit, and sucked gently.

  With a shout, Claire surged against her. Her nails clawed at the back of Lana’s head.

  The tiny pinpoints of pain translated into pleasure that sparked through Lana’s body, urging her to suck harder.

  Guttural sounds came from Claire, words that were impossible to understand, but Lana understood the need in them. She circled Claire’s opening with her tongue, dipped in once, twice, before she went back to sucking.

  One of Claire’s feet dug into the mattress, pressing her up and against Lana, while her other heel ground against Lana’s back. “La-na!”

  Claire started to tremble beneath her. Her breath came in sharp bursts.

  So amazing. Lana’s jaw was beginning to ache, but she ignored it. She held Claire to her mouth with both hands as Claire’s thighs started to quiver.

  Claire arched up once more; then her body went rigid. Her legs tightened around Lana before she collapsed back onto the bed.

  Lana lightened her touch but kept caressing her, carrying her through wave after wave. When Claire’s limp grip on her hair tightened, holding her still, Lana pressed her hot cheek to Claire’s thigh. The ripples running through Claire’s body sent answering quivers through her own.

  When Claire tugged lightly, she lifted her head and wiped her mouth.

  Claire looked down at her. A lovely flush covered her face, and a thin sheen of perspiration made her creamy skin gleam in the soft light from the lamp on the bedside table. Her blonde hair spilled over the pillow in wild tangles, and her eyes held a dazed expression. She looked as if she couldn’t move, not even if Lana strewed the entire contents of her closet all over the floor.

  Knowing she’d put that expression on Claire’s face was like a powerful drug.

  “God,” Lana murmured, “you’re so beautiful when you lose control. So sexy.”

  Claire’s flush intensified. “I…I couldn’t help it. It just felt so good.”

  A giggle rose up Lana’s chest. “You make me feel like a sex goddess.”

  Claire weakly lifted her head off the pillow. “You are a sex goddess.”

  “No. It’s you. All you.” Lana slid up Claire’s sweat-dampened body, covering every inch with kisses until they were face-to-face. Balancing over Claire on her elbows, she cradled Claire’s face in both palms and looked her in the eyes. “Thank you for letting me do that.”

  Then she lowered her head and kissed her.

  Life returned to Claire’s limp body. She wrapped her arms around Lana and surged against her as she returned the kiss. Once they pulled back, both breathing hard, she got out, “You’re thanking me? I should be thanking you. In fact…” She ran her hands down Lana’s back, massaged her ass in a way that sent Lana’s senses reeling, and then lightly scraped her nails down the back of her thighs. “Let me thank you now.”

  A heavy tightness settled low in Lana’s belly. Her breathing was already coming fast, and she tingled all over at the thought of Claire touching her. “Well, as a wise woman recently said: far be it from me to deny the woman I love what she wa…”

  Her last word ended in a strangled gasp as Claire slid her hand down between them and found Lana’s wetness.

  “Oh God.” She pressed herself against Claire’s exploring fingers, then rolled over so Claire was on top and could move more freely.

  Claire immediately took advantage of the new position by lowering her head and placing a burning string of kisses down her throat. After grazing the outer edge of her breast with her lips, she caressed, kissed, and licked a path along Lana’s shoulder and down her arm. When she reached the tattoo and the scar beneath, she paused. “Does it hurt?”

  Lana shook her head. “Not anymore.” The only ache she felt was a lot lower. She strained against Claire, who refused to be hurried and kept her fingers resting against Lana’s swollen folds without moving them.

  Claire licked along the wings of the phoenix, then pressed a tender kiss to the scar. “I wanted to do this in New York, but…”

  Lana nodded. Too intimate. “Now you can kiss and touch it all you want. You can touch me everywhere.”

  “And I will.” Claire cupped one of Lana’s breasts with her free hand and nuzzled against it. “Mmm, so soft. I love your breasts.” She flicked her thumb across it until the nipple hardened and then grazed it with the tip of her tongue.

  Pleasure thrummed through Lana’s body. She tangled her fingers in Claire’s hair, pulling her even closer, and arched her hips against her to get her to move her other hand.

  “Easy,” Claire whispered against her breast. “We’ve got time, and I want to slowly worship every inch of your beautiful—”

  “Next time.” Desire coiled within her. “Now I need you too much to go slow.”

  Claire groaned. She kept her gaze locked with Lana’s as she slid her hand deeper and entered her with one finger.

  Oh yes. Oh please yes. Lana rocked against her, her hips rising and falling against Claire’s hand.

  “Beautiful,” Claire whispered. Her eyes were smoldering as she watched Lana move. “So beautiful.” Her breath bathed Lana’s wet nipple, sending additional shivers through her.

  She dug her fingers into Claire’s shoulders and clung to her. A moan escaped her as Claire eased another finger inside. Her eyes fell half-shut, but she kept watching Claire through heavy lids.

  Every twist of Claire’s fingers drove her higher and higher. A ripple of pleasure curled her toes. Close. So very close. She gave herself up to the rhythm that Claire set and let the sensations engulf her.

  Claire slid up a little and buried her face against her throat, her mouth hot and wet against Lana’s skin.

  Lana panted for breath. She was dimly aware that she was shouting something as she arched up against Claire one last time. Her mind went blank, and her vision blurred. The only thing she could hear was the roar of blood in her ears. All her senses focused inward, on the waves of pleasure pulsing through her.

  Finally, when her brain started working again, she became aware of Claire softly kissing her face, her throat, and her upper chest, gently easing her down from her orgasm high.

  Lana’s body continued to shudder with aftershocks.

  Once the last quivers had ebbed away, Claire carefully withdrew her fingers, evoking another groan from Lana.

  Claire’s skin slid against hers as she cuddled against Lana’s side. It was the most sensual thing Lana had ever experienced. Claire invitingly opened her arms.

  Feeling as if every joint in her body had turned into rubber, Lana sank into them.

  Claire rolled onto her back and pulled Lana with her so she could hold her.

  “I’m too heavy,” Lana protested.

  “Nonsense. You’re perfect.” Claire pulled Lana’s head onto her chest. Her heart was thrumming a rapid rhythm against Lana’s ear.

  It was arousing to know how much touching her had excited Claire too, but for now, she was spent, and all she wanted was to hold Claire close.

  After a while,
she became aware of how dry her throat was. “Was I shouting?” she asked without lifting her head off Claire’s chest.

  “Oh yeah.” The proud grin was obvious in Claire’s voice. “My name. Repeatedly.”

  If she hadn’t still been so dopey with pleasure, Lana would have lifted her hand and playfully slapped her for sounding so smug. But then again, Claire had reason to feel satisfied with herself—just as satisfied as Lana felt.

  Claire kissed the top of her head before sliding out from under her.

  “Hey!” Lana grabbed her arm and pulled her back onto the bed. “Where do you think you’re going?”

  Claire pressed a kiss to her shoulder, and Lana took the opportunity to lick the ridge of her ear. She grinned as Claire’s breath stuttered.

  “Getting you something to drink,” Claire said, her voice husky.

  God, that woman was attentive. Images of how else Claire could be attentive danced in front of her mind’s eye.

  Claire got out of bed again. This time, Lana let her. Claire took two steps on legs that looked a little weak. When she reached the door, she looked back. “I’ll be right back. Don’t move.”

  Lana pulled the covers over her cooling body. “Not going anywhere.”

  Their gazes met across the room, and Lana knew that it was so much more than just a promise not to get out of bed while Claire got them something to drink.

  “Good.” Claire’s voice vibrated with emotion. “Because I like you right where you are.”

  “Me too,” Lana got out through the lump in her throat.

  Claire beamed, and Lana marveled at how much the smile transformed her normally serious face, making it look soft, beautiful, and happy.

  She looks like she’s in love. Lana knew she looked the same.

  With Claire’s scent surrounding her, Lana cuddled beneath the covers and listened to Claire’s footsteps as they hurried down the hall.

  While she waited, her gaze fell to the floor in front of the bed, and a chuckle bubbled up her chest.

  In her haste to get back to her, Claire hadn’t even paused to fold the clothes strewn around the bed.