Threads of the Heart

by Jeannie Levig

  “Don’t worry about it. We’re not on any kind of schedule, are we?” Addison settled onto the sofa and leaned back against the cushion. She could use a breather from the long day. “Take your time.”

  Victoria smiled. “Would you like a drink while you wait?” She waved her hand toward a small refrigerator in the corner by the window. “I have a few sodas and some wine.”

  “No, thanks. I’m fine.”

  “Okay. Give me about fifteen minutes, and I’ll be ready.” She pulled the towel from her head and her wet hair tumbled down past her shoulders. She opened a set of louvered doors on the opposite wall and disappeared into a narrow bathroom.

  The door remained slightly ajar.

  Addison glanced out the high, arched window at the front of the suite at a fenced-in courtyard. Tall bushes lined the edges to hide the grounds and the room from the outside world.

  “Did you get all your work done?” Victoria called.

  “Yeah, most of it.” She turned back toward Victoria’s voice. Through the crack of the bathroom door, she saw a side view of Victoria’s naked body. It swayed with her movements as she brushed her hair. Fingers of sensation stroked desire within Addison. Embarrassed, she looked away. Client. Client. Client.

  “That’s what held me up tonight,” Victoria continued. “I was trying to tie up some loose ends, and I kept getting interrupted.”

  “How are your renovations going?” Addison leaned forward and picked up a Chinese takeout menu from the table. She heard the sound of something hitting the counter in the bathroom and glanced up.

  Victoria seemed to be looking at herself in a mirror. She raised her arms and ran her fingers through her hair as if spreading something through it.

  At this angle, Addison could see her profile from her head all the way down to her feet.

  Her breast lifted high with her reach, the nipple soft and relaxed. One leg bent forward in front of the other just enough to keep the lower part of her body a mystery.

  Addison couldn’t look away, no matter that her brain was screaming for her to do so. A throb of arousal began to pulse between her thighs.

  “Everything’s coming along just fine.” Victoria’s attention was still on her reflection. Her voice startled Addison out of her lust-haze.

  She forced her eyes back to the card she held. She cleared her throat. “That’s good,” was all she could manage. It seemed even now, with her gaze averted, Victoria’s nude form ruled her focus. Even her peripheral vision betrayed her desire. She stood and crossed to the refrigerator. “Can I change my mind about that drink?”

  “Of course. Help yourself.” Victoria’s voice sounded clearer.

  With a slight jerk, Addison turned to find her peering out from behind the louvered door, her body hidden. Addison felt a blush rise in her cheeks. “Thanks.”

  Victoria smiled, the glow of her moist skin highlighting her eyes. “I have to dry my hair now, so I won’t be able to hear you.”

  “Oh. No problem.” Relief flooded Addison like a cool bath. She hoped her uneasiness, her guilt, weren’t evident.

  Victoria vanished back into the bathroom.

  Addison sighed and rolled her eyes. What the hell’s the matter with me? It’s not like I’ve never seen a naked woman before. She heard a blow dryer whir to life. She yanked open the fridge.

  There was a partial bottle of white zinfandel and several diet colas, a collection of takeout containers, and an assortment of flavored, low-fat yogurts.

  Addison considered the wine then realized she’d have to actually knock on the now-closed bathroom door and ask Victoria for a glass, since she didn’t see any around. She snatched up a soda and shut the refrigerator. She popped the top and stepped to the window. She stared outside.

  Her thoughts tumbled in her head. How could she have been so rude as to sit and watch someone in the privacy of their own bathroom? Was this more of what she’d experienced the day she’d met Victoria—the day she’d run into that redhead? She’d been thinking so clearly since she and Maggie had talked. She’d been so certain that whatever she’d been feeling was just a need for more closeness with Maggie.

  She took a drink of her cola and found it hard to swallow.

  This was ridiculous. She had been a little confused the other day. She wasn’t used to women hitting on her out of the blue. That was over now, though. Victoria wasn’t hitting on her. Victoria hadn’t even known the bathroom door was open. She was a client of the agency’s, nothing more, nothing less. There was no doubt in Addison’s mind that she loved Maggie, that Maggie excited her. Besides, she’d only looked at Victoria. Victoria was a beautiful woman. You’d have to be a houseplant not to look.

  The blow dryer switched off, and the door to the bathroom opened.

  Addison heard Victoria move across the hardwood floor, but kept her gaze on the courtyard outside.

  “Just one more minute,” Victoria said.

  “Okay.” Addison took another swallow of soda. She caught the faint reflection of Victoria’s once-again robed body on the other side of the bed in the adjoining room.

  She tossed a garment onto the comforter.

  Addison froze. She tried to study the bushes outside closely enough to determine their kind, but even then she saw Victoria reach for the tie at her waist. She saw her slender fingers work the knot.

  Addison went rigid. She couldn’t do this again. It was just wrong. She considered excusing herself and going outside, but she feared making Victoria as uncomfortable as she was. She closed her eyes and raised the soda can to her lips. She took a long, slow drink. She listened to the rustling of clothing behind her. After a few seconds, she swallowed. Was it safe? She opened her eyes just in time to catch a glimpse of a full frontal view of Victoria’s shapely body right before the light fabric of a summer dress slipped over it. A part of her watched as Victoria turned to the chest of drawers and put on some earrings, and then sprayed perfume onto her neck and shoulders, but the image she’d just seen kept the other part of her well occupied.

  “Okay, I think I’m set,” Victoria said as she came into the room.

  With a sigh, though whether of relief or disappointment she couldn’t have said, Addison turned around.

  Victoria slipped her bare feet into a pair of tan sandals that highlighted the amber tones in her haltered sundress, colors that flattered her complexion. Pride rainbow beads dangled on varying lengths of thin gold chain from her ears.

  Addison considered her. The sweet fragrance of the cologne caressed her senses as Victoria closed the distance between them. The fit of her dress, her bare legs, her tantalizing scent all kept the thrum of arousal in Addison’s body from dying out completely, but at least everyone had clothes on. “You look great. I think I should’ve taken the time to run home and change.”

  A smile lifted the corners of Victoria’s full lips and touched her eyes. She adjusted the collar of Addison’s shirt. “I think you look just great, too.”

  Addison laughed. “Shall we go, then?”

  “Absolutely. I’m starving, but can we eat someplace quick? What I really want is to get onto a dance floor.”

  *

  By a quarter to nine, they were heading into Dusty’s favorite hangout, Vibes. Addison had been there a few times in the past and had decided it might be a good place to take Victoria because of its diversity of patrons. If what she wanted was to meet other women, she’d find every type there.

  Vibes held varied appeal partly due to its layout. The split-level arrangement allowed for a lower room, accoutered with an antique, dark wood bar, a gathering of tables, and a number of conversation areas. At the far end, four wide steps with polished brass handrails led to the upper level where more tables and a couple of satellite bars encircled a large dance floor, with a DJ’s booth at the opposite end. Unlike many bars, this one provided for quieter conversation away from the music as well as seating and dancing for those in high-party mode.

  The place wasn’t too crowded, it bei
ng a weeknight, and Addison started to guide Victoria to a vacant table toward the center of the room.

  Victoria broke into a grin and grabbed Addison’s hand. “Come dance with me,” she said. Without waiting for a response, she pulled Addison toward the dance floor.

  Addison chuckled and followed. There was very little sign tonight of the serious, restrained businesswoman that Addison had met the previous Saturday.

  At dinner, Victoria had shared a lot about herself. The professional image had been replaced with a playful and, at times, painfully genuine profile of an open and somewhat vulnerable young woman.

  Addison had learned that Victoria originally came from a small town in Utah, her mother had died when Victoria was young, and her father supported her and her two brothers by running a small grocery store. She’d been Mormon when she was a child but had turned her back on any religion long ago. Her first lesbian experience took place when she was fifteen and had been an affair with her biology teacher. She’d run away later that same year when the town gossips caught up with them, and her father, in his shame and humiliation, had beaten her into unconsciousness.

  Addison’s stomach turned at the thought. She’d never been able to understand the reasoning of violence, especially that between parent and child. She almost felt guilty when she heard stories like Victoria’s. Her own coming out experience with her parents had been easy, quite uneventful. She’d taken them out for dinner and told them she was gay shortly before she introduced them to her first serious girlfriend. All they’d said was that they’d suspected for several years and they were happy she trusted them enough to be open about it. A week later, they’d accepted Donna, and years later had taken Maggie into the family with open arms. No real tale to tell, but she had shared it with Victoria all the same.

  They came to a stop on the dance floor, and Addison found herself staring into Victoria’s eyes. They were no longer distant as they’d been during the conversation at dinner. They were vibrant and alive, her broad smile, infectious. “Come on.” She started moving to the fast beat of the music.

  Addison laughed and joined in. At first, she felt awkward. It’d been so long since she’d been dancing. Her movements seemed stiff and jerky. She felt self-conscious, but before too long, her attention was riveted to Victoria’s movements, not her own.

  In spite of the hard, pounding beat of the song that played, Victoria’s body flowed from side to side with the grace of a silk scarf caught in a breeze. Her hips slid one way while her torso and arms swayed the other. She raised her hands high over her head, her fingers fluttering through the air. Her breasts lifted with the motion, the nipples Addison knew were bare forming soft points beneath the thin fabric of her dress.

  Addison felt her own body respond with stirrings and tingles. She averted her eyes and tried to listen to the music, but Victoria twirled and danced in front of her once again. Finally, the music stopped, and Addison smiled, breathing a little harder than she would’ve hoped. She started to turn and leave the dance floor, but she felt Victoria’s long, slender fingers lace through her own and pull her back around just as another song began to play.

  “Again,” Victoria yelled over the scream of an electric guitar. She held tight to Addison while she slipped her other hand around the back of Addison’s neck and thrust her hips to the beat.

  Their energy mingled even though their bodies weren’t quite touching. Heat rose between them.

  Addison fought the urge to grasp Victoria’s rocking hips and pull her to her. She wanted to feel their bodies pressed together.

  As if reading Addison’s mind, Victoria smiled more broadly and lifted the hand that held Addison’s. Then slowly, inch by inch with each beat of the drum, she closed the space between them until, finally, her breasts pressed into Addison’s and her pelvis lightly rubbed Addison’s thigh.

  Addison tensed, but kept dancing. She lowered her eyelids slightly and inhaled the sweet, alluring scent of Victoria’s perfume.

  Their arms still raised, Victoria shifted and began moving to the side, her body sliding across Addison’s. Their slight difference in height allowed her to duck beneath Addison’s arm without missing a beat, and as she did, she dipped down in a longer stroke of their bodies.

  Addison couldn’t hold back a soft moan and was grateful for the volume of the music. She hoped Victoria hadn’t heard, or noticed her shudder. She felt Victoria step around to her backside.

  In an easy motion, Victoria released her hand and gripped her hips. She pulled Addison to her, pressing her pelvis to her buttocks, her breasts against Addison’s back. The heat of her thighs penetrated the weak barrier of their clothing. Victoria’s grip was strong, and she moved Addison, controlled her, to suit her motions.

  Addison remembered Victoria’s naked form in the bathroom, the sight of her dress sliding down to cover her flesh, and she gave herself over to all thoughts of Victoria.

  When the song finally ended, Addison was on fire.

  They made their way back down the steps to where the conversation tables were arranged and found one toward the back wall. While Victoria rested, Addison went to the bar and bought two cosmopolitans—Victoria’s choice.

  “That was fun,” Victoria said with a laugh as Addison set the drinks on the table and sat across from her. “I love to dance.”

  “I can tell.” Addison smiled, hesitant to say much else until her body and mind calmed down. The trip to the bar had helped, but her thoughts still revolved predominantly around the sight of Victoria’s seductive swaying, the feel of her breasts and thighs, and the imaginings of her moves in even more provocative places than a dance floor.

  “Did you enjoy it?” Victoria asked, running the tip of a finger around the rim of her glass.

  Addison couldn’t tell if the question was truly innocent or if Victoria was deliberately teasing her. “Yeah, it was fun. I haven’t been dancing in a long time.”

  “You and Maggie don’t go dancing?”

  Addison tensed with sudden discomfort from talking about Maggie while her body raged with desire for another woman. She took a swallow of her drink to drown some of the guilt. “Um, we used to. We haven’t been in a while.”

  Victoria broke into the playful grin she’d flashed when they’d first arrived. “When we’re finished with our drinks, we’ll go out there and loosen you up some more.”

  “Well, hey there, buddy. What brings you out into the party world?”

  Addison winced at the sound of Dusty’s voice. Could she get any more uncomfortable? Only if she were naked—and it were Maggie’s voice instead of Dusty’s. Had she seen them dancing? Addison turned and watched Dusty saunter up to the table, holding a bottle of beer. “Hey, Dusty. What’s going on?”

  “Not much with me.” Dusty shifted a quizzical gaze from Addison to Victoria then back to Addison. “But what’s up with you? Out partying with a gorgeous woman? And on a school night no less.”

  Addison felt her already-heated face grow hotter still. She watched helplessly as Victoria’s gaze took in those alluring eyes and the charismatic grin that most women found so irresistible, before it moved down the length of Dusty’s lean build and back up. She felt a jealous anger begin to simmer in her belly. She knew she had no right to feel that way. Victoria and Dusty were both single—both free—and she wasn’t. In truth, the best thing that could happen tonight would be for Victoria and Dusty to go back to Victoria’s room together and for Addison to go home, right now. She drew in a calming breath. “Dusty, this is Victoria Fontaine. She’s a client. Victoria, this is Dusty Gardner, one of our housemates.”

  “Good to meet you,” Dusty said, offering her hand.

  Victoria shook it. “I’m sure,” she said with a smile and a glint in her eyes that seemed more of a challenge than a flirtation.

  Dusty pulled out a chair, flipped it around and straddled it backward. “Where’s Maggie?”

  Addison eased back in her seat. “She had dinner plans with Carolyn, so I offered to sh
ow Victoria around. She’s from the Bay Area.”

  Dusty grinned and turned back to Victoria. “The Bay Area, huh? What do you do there?”

  “I own a restaurant, and I’m opening another one here. Addison’s agency is handling my advertising.”

  “That’s great.” Dusty nodded. “If I can show you around while you’re here, or maybe keep you company, don’t hesitate to get my number from Addison. I’d be glad to show you a good time.” She took a swig of her beer.

  “Oh, thank you. That’s sweet. But Addison has been doing a wonderful job showing me the spots.” Victoria smiled and scooted her chair away from the table. “If you’ll both excuse me, I’m going to run to the restroom.”

  Addison was stunned. She’d never seen any woman just turn away from Dusty so blatantly. Even if someone wasn’t particularly interested, she’d usually be flattered by Dusty’s attention.

  Dusty turned to watch Victoria walk away. She gave a low whistle. “Buddy, watch out for that.”

  Addison stared at Dusty. “What just happened?”

  As the bathroom door swung closed behind Victoria’s swaying hips, Dusty turned back to face Addison. “Recognition just happened here.”

  “What do you mean? You know Victoria?”

  Dusty laughed. “Yeah, buddy, I know Victoria. And she knows I know her. She’s after you for no reason other than you are un-avail-able. She’s playing with you. And she doesn’t play fair. Watch out.”

  Addison felt a surge of that anger again, but this time it wasn’t jealousy, but indignation. “Oh, so she couldn’t just like spending time with me because I’m interesting or easy to talk to?”

  “Of course she could. But she doesn’t. She wants one thing and one thing only—to prove she can have something that she shouldn’t be able to have. And once she gets it, she’ll be done. And then where will you be with Maggie?”