by Harper Bliss
Quinn’s eyes fell shut as her climax rolled through her body. When she opened them again, she witnessed the sweetest smile she had ever seen. It was so kind and heartfelt that it made Quinn wonder if it was that smile and the comfort it offered, that she’d been looking for all along. She wanted to capture and bottle it so she could carry it with her always—turn to it when needed—as she picked her life back up after Rachel.
Quinn could only smile back and enjoy the warmth that ran through her, that penetrated the most unreachable chambers of her heart, and assured her that, in the end, everything would be all right.
Maya gently retracted her fingers and, as she did, her smile changed. “Can you believe I’ve never done anything like this before?”
“Not for a single second,” Quinn replied.
Maya chuckled. “I don’t mean in the sense that I might be a natural at it.” She gave a gentle shake of the head. “I just mean… I don’t know. Before this weekend, I never really gave it much thought. And I certainly never expected it to be so… absolutely amazing.”
“Being with a woman?” Quinn pushed herself up on her elbows. “Trust me, it very much depends on the woman. And you are an utterly divine woman, Maya.”
“Am I?” Her smile changed into one of mischief now, assuring Quinn that this was going to be a long night of satisfying discovery.
“Fuck yes.” Quinn pulled Maya near because she wanted more of her, she wanted more than to just look at her, she wanted to be sure that she wasn’t imagining that this night was far from over.
“Wait,” Maya whispered in her ear. “Tell me about your tattoo first.” She put her head in the crook of Quinn’s shoulder and ran her finger over Quinn’s lower belly again. “What does it mean?”
Quinn curled her arm tightly around Maya—as though, if it were up to her, she wouldn’t let go of her any time soon—and said, “It’s from a Bianca Bankole song that goes, ‘But my darling, always know your secret’s safe with me.’ I figured the whole lyric was too long. I only have so much skin.” She paused. “When someone sees it, it’s usually in an intimate setting like this, and I thought it was a funny idea at the time.” She couldn’t suppress a smile.
Quinn could feel Maya’s body shake softly as she chuckled against her. “Wow.” She craned her neck so she was looking into Quinn’s face. “That’s actually quite beautiful. And I love the way you celebrate your sexuality with such confidence.”
“Thank you.” Quinn was taken aback again. Maybe she would have to rethink her plans for sneaking out of the house to spend the night with Maya again. There was something special about her, and Quinn didn’t want to run the risk of getting hurt again—not so soon after Rachel.
“Thank you, sweetheart,” Maya said, her gaze kind and her tone as sweet as the term of endearment she had just used. “You have no idea what you’ve given me tonight.”
“An orgasm and a great deal of ambivalence.”
“There’s that.” Maya’s finger slid up from Quinn’s belly to her chest. “Speaking of.” Maya’s finger circled Quinn’s nipple. “I think can handle a bit more of both.”
Chapter 9
As soon as Maya woke, she went to war with herself. Part of her wanted to ignore the ambivalence that had increased exponentially throughout the night, throw her arms around Quinn, and do it all over again. But the other, much more prevalent and rational part of her, hoped Quinn wouldn’t be there when she finally dared to open her eyes. The grown-up, wise woman that Maya knew she was, but most decidedly hadn’t been last night, wished that last night had never happened because then she wouldn’t have to deal with the awkward aftermath.
But when Maya opened her eyes, Quinn was there. She was still sleeping. She lay on her back, every inch of her glorious skin exposed to the heat that already hung in the bedroom despite the early hour. It was going to be another sultry hot day.
Maya’s gaze was drawn to Quinn’s tattoo. It was impossible not to look at. But she couldn’t give in to any of that any longer. She had allowed herself to give in last night. Now was the time to face the music.
When had Quinn said Bill and Brooke would be returning? Maya hoped there wasn’t some emergency that made them come home early. Imagine if they arrived while Quinn was still in her bed? The thought was so unbearable, she nearly woke Quinn and asked her to leave there and then. But she wanted to look at her a few moments longer.
She didn’t exactly regret what they had done—it was impossible to regret the avalanche of satisfaction that had engulfed her throughout the night. Even though she was still lying in bed, she could already feel it had changed something in her body. Her limbs felt looser. Her shoulders were less tense. She knew that the next time she danced, her hips would sway a little wilder and the curve of her back would be more pronounced.
Every single second she had spent with Quinn in bed last night had been memorable and exquisite, and Maya was glad for the memories they had created, but that was all they were and could be now. Memories.
As though the intensity of her thoughts created a shift in the air, Quinn stirred. Eyes still closed, she stretched her arms above her, her chest protruding. Maya knew she should look away, but she couldn’t. Her eyes were glued to the triangles of lighter skin around Quinn’s nipples. She had to stop herself reaching for them with her hand or her lips.
No. She had to stop. It was Sunday morning. Bill and Brooke would be home soon. Quinn would return to just being the neighbors’ daughter. There simply was no other choice.
Quinn opened her eyes. “Morning, gorgeous,” she said. Instantly, she broke into a smile and turned on her side. “Did you get some sleep?” Her hand sneaked close to Maya’s belly, but mercifully she didn’t touch her.
Maya had no idea how, despite her very best intentions, she would react to a touch from Quinn.
“You exhausted me.” Maya silently instructed herself to get out of bed, but her body failed to cooperate. “So, yes.”
Maya could see Quinn’s gaze drift from her face to her breasts and it felt as arousing as a touch. Why hadn’t she covered herself properly?
Quinn brought her hand to Maya’s hip. “You don’t look as though you still need your beauty sleep. You already look so beautiful.” Quinn shuffled closer. “It should be illegal this early in the morning.”
“Ever the charmer.” Maya swallowed hard.
“It’s not charm.” Quinn started tracing a fingertip up and down Maya’s hip. “Not with you.”
“Quinn.” Maya put her hand on top of Quinn’s so she could keep it from moving. “We have to stop this now.”
“We have all day. Mom and Dad won’t be back until late tonight.”
“That’s not the point.” Did Quinn really expect them to have a careless day of canoodling by the pool? “I won’t say that last night shouldn’t have happened, but it does need to stop. Now.”
Quinn jutted out her bottom lip and narrowed her eyes into an expression of utter sadness.
“Look…” Maya allowed herself a quick squeeze of Quinn’s hand. “Last night was wonderful. It will always be a wonderful memory for me. But I need to get back to myself now.”
“I believe you were more yourself last night than you’ve been in a long time.”
“Quinn,” Maya said on an exasperated sigh. “One night with me does not equate to you knowing me. The simple truth is that you don’t know me very well at all. You don’t know how I live my life and what my principles are.” Maya let go of Quinn’s hand.
“Fair enough, but…” Quinn put some distance between them. “I don’t have any great or unrealistic expectations of this, Maya. I’ll be out of your life soon enough. But I believe in seizing the moment and this doesn’t necessarily have to end right now. I’ll be around a few more weeks. Maybe we can have some more fun together.”
“We can’t.” Maya was somewhat flattered by Quinn’s desire to do what they’d done last night all over again. “Not when Bill and Brooke are back. That doesn’t work for
me. It’s already such a mind fuck.”
“They won’t know. They will never know.”
“Quinn, I’m serious.” Maya looked at her intently. “Promise me you will never tell anyone about last night.”
“Not anyone? Ever? That seems a bit extreme.” Quinn arched up her eyebrows. “It sounds as if you want to erase what happened.”
Maya shook her head. “I don’t want to erase it, but I also don’t want anyone to know about it. This is a small town and news travels fast. I have a son. I have a business here. I can’t be the woman in her forties who slept with the neighbors’ twenty-something daughter. Can you understand that?”
“Of course, but… no one in this town will ever find out.”
“Promise me, Quinn. No one. Ever. This will be our secret for eternity.”
“I promise I won’t tell a soul. Ever.” Quinn retreated farther.
Deep down, Maya knew it would perhaps be a promise neither one of them could keep because life was long and who knew what the future might bring? But, for now, having Quinn’s reassurance that she would keep quiet about them did assuage her fears—not that she was expecting Quinn to run home and tell her parents.
“I appreciate that.” Maya looked at Quinn, who suddenly seemed a lot less like the brazen woman who had asked for a swim in Maya’s pool. The fact that she was still fully naked made her appear more vulnerable than sexy now that the boundaries between them were redrawn with actual words.
“I was already making plans to throw pebbles at your window after dark.” At least Quinn managed a smile.
Maya couldn’t help herself. She shuffled closer to Quinn and threw an arm around her. “Listen to me, Quinn. We had an amazing time together and we’ll always have that memory.” She kissed her lightly on the cheek. “You are going to have an amazing life because you are a wonderful woman, I know that much. You are a true delight to be around and you made me feel things, well… I think you know how you made me feel.” She held her a little closer. “But this has to end now.” Maya needed to emotionally disentangle herself from their night together and the feelings it had stirred in her as soon as possible, but that was not information she wanted to share with Quinn. “Thank you for understanding that.”
Quinn wrapped her arms around Maya and pulled her close. “You’re one hell of a cougar, Maya,” she whispered in her ear.
They exchanged one final, almost chaste kiss, before Quinn freed herself from Maya’s embrace and exited her house—and Maya’s life.
Chapter 10
Ten Years Later
Acton Academy was one of Quinn’s best-paying clients, so she treated herself to a taxi to the Upper East Side instead of lugging her equipment around on the subway. In the back of the cab, she checked her Instagram account. A satisfying number of likes awaited her on the latest Photoshop creation she had posted online earlier that morning. One of those likes, she couldn’t help but notice, was from Morgan.
Quinn exhaled audibly. Why did Morgan insist on liking every single thing she posted? It was a rhetorical question because Quinn knew the answer. For some absurd reason that Quinn would forever fail to understand, Morgan didn’t want to leave her husband for Quinn, but she did want to remain this unbearable version of online friends.
As usual when faced with a social media like from Morgan, which was basically all she’d been able to offer Quinn, even when they’d still been together, Quinn’s finger hovered over the ‘block’ button. Also as usual, she couldn’t bring herself to tap it. Instead, she put her phone away and gauged the traffic ahead. She should make it on time which, for Acton, meant with at least fifteen minutes to spare.
Quinn didn’t like to keep the people from Acton Academy waiting. They not only paid handsomely for the time she spent taking the actual pictures—a portrait of a new teacher today—but also for the hours she spent turning the picture into a magical work of art on the computer. The hallways of their building, financed mostly by the well-to-do parents of their students, were lined with Quinn’s work and it was always such a treat to go back and have a triumphant stroll through her very own art.
Quinn was not the type to overly prepare for a photo shoot. She had always been more of a woman of action than research. Besides, no amount of research could ever fully prepare her for the kind of person she would find in front of the camera. People acted in all sorts of bizarre ways when a lens was aimed at them. Quinn’s trick to make them feel at ease was to show them some before-and-after shots of previous projects. Because she had worked hard on her skills and could therefore present her subjects with some spectacular pictures, this approach usually worked like a charm. It was a way to relieve the pressure on the person whose picture was being taken, and not many people ever minded that, especially when living in the madness of New York City.
Quinn paid the driver, got her gear out of the trunk, and waltzed into Acton Academy as if she owned it. Appreciation for her work had that effect on her. She also believed that walking into a shoot with not-to-be-ignored confidence enhanced the chances of it being a smoother ride. She was the photographer so she was in charge and it was her job to create a relaxing atmosphere. So many people believed that being a photographer was easy. That all you had to do was push a button on a camera and apply a filter afterward. Maybe for some people, that’s how it was, but for Quinn, it was an art form.
Taking someone’s portrait was an intimate act that required a vibe that couldn’t be created in the blink of an eye—or with the push of a button.
She smiled at the portraits she’d made of the other Acton Academy teachers as she walked through the hallway. Mr. Stephenson flying above his piano, only tethered to it by his fingertips, as if the ecstasy of making music made him float into the air.
“Quinn,” a voice followed by the quick pitter-patter of heels came from behind her. “You’re early. Wonderful.”
Quinn greeted Indira, whom she’d gotten to know well over the years she’d worked with her.
“You know the drill,” Indira said. “We’ll set up in the dance studio.” She led Quinn up the stairs to an obscenely large room with the shiniest polished-wood floor Quinn had ever seen.
A woman stood silhouetted in front of the window. A shape Quinn would, even after all those years, still recognize anywhere.
The woman turned and the face that had haunted her dreams—and fantasies—for much longer than she cared to admit, was now directly in front of Quinn. The woman whose name she’d had to keep to herself for ten long years. Quinn gasped and her body froze.
“This is Maya Mercer, our new dance teacher,” Indira said. “Maya, Quinn will be taking your picture today. She’s a wizard with the camera as well as the computer for post-production so you have nothing to worry about.”
After the initial shock of seeing Maya again had subsided, Quinn studied her face. Maya looked just as stunned as Quinn felt. Clearly, Indira hadn’t given her much detail about who would be photographing her today.
“Quinn and I know each other.” Maya was the first to speak. “Her parents were my neighbors when I lived in Milbury.”
“Well, then,” Indira said. “You’ll get on like a house on fire.” She turned to Quinn. “I know you like to be left alone while you work so I’ll leave you to it.”
Quinn managed a nod. She couldn’t take her eyes off Maya, who was wearing a bright red dress and matching lipstick. Already, a dozen ideas of how she would make Maya look in the final version of her picture popped up in the back of her mind. But Quinn couldn’t grasp any of them. Her brain was too perplexed, too busy processing that Maya was standing in front of her, in the flesh. She might be ten years older, but she still looked as gorgeous as she had done that night.
“Quinn, I—” Maya said, tilting her head slightly. “I had no idea.”
“You’re the new dance teacher at Acton,” Quinn stated the obvious.
Maya huffed out some air. “Didn’t your mom tell you I moved to the city?”
Had her mother
told her? Quinn didn’t think so. She might have, but it could have been one of those things that her mother said that Quinn hadn’t really listened to—although the mere mention of Maya’s name would have perked up her ears. Quinn hadn’t been home in a long time, although she spoke to her parents regularly—her dad still called her every single day, but Quinn didn’t always pick up. She did make sure to always text him back because she didn’t want him to needlessly worry about her.
“You live in New York?” Even though Quinn had absorbed the first shock, she was still having trouble processing what Maya was saying. She blamed the red dress that clung to her body like a second skin.
“Yes.” Maya put her hands on her hips. “I know you can’t tell by looking at me, but I’m a grandmother now. I wanted to be closer to Tommy and his family.”
Quinn chuckled. “Well, fuck me.” She brought her hand to her mouth. “Sorry. That kind of language is not tolerated at this school, nor should it be.” She gave a slight shake of the head. “Maya Mercer.” She sunk her teeth into her bottom lip. “Let me assure you that you really can’t tell by looking at you.”
Maya beamed her a wide smile. “How are you, Quinn? Still, chasing…um…” She made a show of scratching her head. “What was it that you called me back then? A cougar?” She burst out laughing. “Please, tell me you’ve gotten over that phase and you’re with a nice girl your own age these days.”
Quinn believed the best response to that was to simply laugh alongside Maya. “I’m on a job,” she said, after a few beats. “It would be inappropriate to discuss my love life.” She was dying to find out more about the status of Maya’s love life, though.