by Carsen Taite
As she started to put her hands on the steering wheel, Lily reached for her hand and hooked their fingers together. At the warmth of her touch, the fear fell away and gave her the courage to ask, “Where would you like to go?”
“Someplace safe.”
Peyton wished she knew where that was. Lily’s home was full of deception, and her own brought to mind her father’s illness and Neil’s betrayal. She drove back toward Dallas, hoping fate would guide them to the proper place.
“Do you want to talk about your father?” Peyton asked. Sophia had filled in part of the story on the ride home from the hospital. When Cyrus had found out Sophia was pregnant with his child, he’d been overjoyed. He promised to leave his wife and marry Sophia, but when Arturo and Sergio found out, they forbade Sophia from marrying Cyrus. Instead of being excited about having a niece, they were appalled at the prospect of a mongrel relative binding them to a man they didn’t like. They’d agreed to allow Cyrus to keep the baby if he would agree that he would never let her have contact with her mother. If he broke that promise, they assured him both Sophia and the child would pay.
To hide the truth from Rose, Cyrus had made a generous donation to the church to concoct the adoption, and Sophia completed the information for the birth certificate, leaving the name for Lily’s father blank. However, still groggy from the C-section, she’d filled out the hospital form with Cyrus’s name. No one had had any reason to go looking for that telling piece of paper until Lily hired Skye to find her relatives.
As for Cyrus’s business connections to the Vargases, Sophia didn’t know how or when such a relationship had developed, but based on what Arturo said while he held her and Lily at gunpoint, something had gone sour between them.
“Do you mind if we don’t talk about any of this tonight?” Lily asked. “I think my head might explode if I try to sort through it.”
Peyton squeezed her hand and kept her focus on the road. A few minutes later, she looked over and saw that Lily had fallen asleep. Rest. That’s part of what Lily needed to feel safe. Peace and rest, away from friends and family and their prying questions and demands. And that included her and her own selfish need to recapture the opportunities they’d lost. If she cared about Lily at all, she had to do what was best for her. Suddenly, she knew exactly where to take Lily to guarantee her safety and also give her the peace and rest she needed.
Lily heard the door open and struggled to open her eyes. She glanced around, hazy from her deep sleep. The driver’s side seat was empty. She looked out the window and saw bellmen rushing around, pulling luggage from cars. She recognized this place. They were at the Adolphus, but where was Peyton?
A knock on her window answered the question. Peyton was standing outside the passenger door, a tentative smile on her face. Lily opened the door and asked, “What are we doing here?”
“You asked for someplace safe. This is the best I could come up with. I called ahead. They have a suite all ready for you. Since it’s down the street from the office, I’ll be able to check on you, but you’ll have all the peace and quiet you need. What do you think?”
It sounded perfect, except for one thing. “Where will you stay?”
Peyton looked confused. “I’ll probably go by the office now, but I guess I’ll go to the ranch after that.”
“Do you have to go to the office?”
“What do you want me to do?”
Lily looked at the doors to the hotel. She knew what she wanted. She wanted Peyton to check into the hotel with her. She wanted to order whiskey from room service and then double lock the door and lie in a bed, wrapped in Peyton’s arms, safe and secure. She wanted them both to escape for as long as possible from the complicated realities that threatened to keep them apart.
But as kind and caring as Peyton had been this day, she didn’t know what the future held, or even if she had the right to envision a future with Peyton. She decided to start with baby steps. “I want you to have dinner with me. In my room. Would you do that?”
Peyton smiled. “Absolutely.”
When they reached the suite, Lily surveyed the large four-poster bed, couch, chair, and desk. The couch would be safest. She excused herself to the restroom where she found two robes hanging on the back of the door, and she knew exactly what would feel best. A hot shower would be the perfect solution to wash away the memories of the day. She stuck her head out. “Peyton?”
“Yes?”
“Why don’t you order us something from room service? I’m going to take a quick shower.”
“Okay.” Peyton walked over to the bathroom door with the room service menu in her hand. “You want anything in particular?”
“If I said bourbon is the only thing I really want, would you think less of me?”
Peyton stepped closer and placed a hand on Lily’s cheek. “I think you deserve a barrel of bourbon after what you went through today.”
“A bottle should be sufficient.” Lily leaned forward, kissed her on the cheek, and ducked back into the bathroom. “I’ll be out soon,” she called out as she shut the door.
Peyton stood staring at the door, both confused and aroused. Quit acting like a teenager. She kissed you out of gratitude, and she asked you up here for comfort, nothing more. She started to walk over to the phone on the desk, but the bathroom door opened again.
“Peyton?”
She turned and her breath caught at the sight of Lily in the hotel robe. “Yes?”
“Maybe you could join me and we could order room service together. After.”
She could think of nothing she’d rather do than tug the stark white robe from Lily’s beautiful body, step into the steamy shower, and run her hands over Lily’s wet skin, but she heard the cautious undercurrent in Lily’s voice and forced a more measured reaction. “I’d like that.”
“Me too.” Lily held out a robe. “You’re going to need to get undressed. I’ll wait.”
Peyton didn’t take the robe. Lily might be cautious about taking this step, but she was going ahead full force, and Peyton wanted nothing more than to meet her at every step. She kicked off her boots and reached down to remove her socks. When she stood back up, Lily was at her side and slipped an arm around her waist. “Here, let me help,” Lily murmured as she started unbuttoning her shirt. Between them, they managed to wrestle through the buttons and, while Peyton pulled her arms out of the sleeves, Lily unfastened her fly and slid her hand into Peyton’s briefs. Peyton groaned and pulled Lily into a deep kiss. Her body flooded with arousal.
When Peyton broke the kiss to take a breath, Lily panted, “Shower still?”
Peyton pulled on the tie to Lily’s robe, eased the fluffy fabric from Lily’s shoulders, and let it drop to the floor. She gasped at the beauty of Lily’s naked form. Shaking with anticipation, she stepped out of her jeans and briefs, took Lily’s hand, and led them to the shower.
The water was hot and the pressure was pounding and it only magnified the swell of her desire. As the water cascaded over their bodies, she placed her leg between Lily’s thighs and slid her entire body along the length of Lily’s, savoring the feel of her lean muscles and soft skin and the moans of her mounting arousal.
She bent to take one of Lily’s gorgeous nipples into her mouth and sucked it to a fine point while she rolled her palm over the other, turned on by the feel of it hardening in response to her touch. As she licked and played, Lily bucked against her leg and, even in the wet shower, she could feel the slick rush of her approaching orgasm.
Knowing Lily needed this release, she increased the pressure, but Lily arched away just slightly and slid her hand between Peyton’s legs. Already aroused, Lily’s touch set off a sharp charge to her clit that radiated throughout her entire body. Lily thrust several fingers into Peyton and kept thrusting. In and out, slow and then faster and faster until Peyton feared she’d no longer be able to stand. She placed a hand against the wall and dropped her other hand to stroke the tender folds between Lily’s legs until she cri
ed out and quaked in her arms. As the waves of orgasm roared through Lily, Peyton pulled her tighter and, through her own climax, kissed Lily’s forehead, her eyelids, her cheeks until they were both limp and spent in each other’s arms.
*
Lily watched from the bed as Peyton sorted through the room service tray. “That’s a lot of food.”
“Seems like you might’ve worked up an appetite.” She smiled and the glint in her eyes was impish. “I know I did.”
Lily took a sip from her glass of whiskey. “I’m ravenous and I don’t necessarily mean for food.”
Peyton walked over to the side of the bed and held out a cracker with cheese. “We have plenty of time for that. Eat up. You’re going to need your strength.”
Lily opened her mouth and let Peyton slide the food in. She bit down on the sharp cheese and kissed the tips of Peyton’s fingers. “Umm, I guess I was hungry for something besides you.”
“Look at how quickly you’ve moved on. I’ve been replaced by a decent cheddar.”
“Don’t forget the cracker. It’s divine.” She ducked and laughed as Peyton tossed a pillow at her head. She pointed at the tray. “Don’t worry. There’s plenty for both of us.”
Peyton slipped into the bed and placed an arm around her shoulders. “I’ll eat later. Right now I just want to be close to you.” Her voice was low and husky, and Lily felt the undercurrent of need.
Lily snuggled closer and slipped a hand into Peyton’s robe and traced the plane of her tight stomach. She wanted her again. She wanted to be on top of her, underneath her. She wanted to taste her and she wanted to come against her lips.
She let her eyes slip closed and she imagined riding up to the house in the woods. She reached down to pat her horse and smiled when she saw it was Destiny. As she drew closer, Peyton walked out the front door of the house, and a huge smile spread across her face. “You’re home,” she called out. Lily climbed out of the saddle and dashed up the steps into Peyton’s arms.
“What are you thinking?”
“Hmmm,” Lily opened her eyes, happy to see Peyton next to her, but missing the rest of the scene she’d lost herself in. She gazed into Peyton’s eyes, looking for some sign that what she dreamed could come true. The house, the future, a family. A real family, born out of love not deception. A lover who would be her partner to the end, no matter how much adversity they faced. She might not be wired for these things, but she wanted them more fiercely than she’d ever wanted anything.
Peyton was still watching her, patient and kind. Throughout the last few weeks, Peyton had only been concerned about protecting her, keeping her safe. Looking to her for a sign that they could have something more wasn’t fair. She was ready to take control of her future without regard to what everyone else wanted for her. She knew with crystal clarity if she wanted a future with Peyton, she needed to take the first step. The big one. The one that would let Peyton know she was committed. She took a deep breath.
“I love you.”
Peyton’s eyes grew hazy and she kissed her lips. A slow, lingering kiss that warmed her soul. When Lily gasped for air, Peyton pulled back. “I love you too.”
She bent down as if to deliver another kiss, but Lily pushed her chest. “Wait.”
“Wait?”
“I mean I love you. Like house in the woods, have a pack of children, raise horses, and grow old together kind of love.” She braced for Peyton’s reaction to her abrupt relationship bomb. Would she run? Would she slip out in the night? Were they over before they’d even really begun?
Peyton’s huge smile was just like the one in her wisp of a dream, and her words were pure magic. “Is there any other kind?”
THE END
About the Author
Carsen Taite’s goal as an author is to spin tales with plot lines as interesting as the cases she encountered in her career as a criminal defense lawyer. She is the author of eleven previously released novels, truelesbianlove.com, It Should be a Crime (a Lambda Literary Award finalist), Do Not Disturb, Nothing but the Truth, The Best Defense, Slingshot, Beyond Innocence, Battle Axe, Rush, Switchblade and Courtship. She is currently working on her thirteenth novel, Reasonable Doubt, another tale of romantic intrigue. Learn more at www.carsentaite.com.
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