by Julie Cannon
“The sun is bringing them out. I like them,” she said honestly. Elizabeth’s hand stopped moving and she was disappointed.
“Really?” Elizabeth asked as a mischievous smile started at the edge of her very kissable lips.
“Yes, I do. You look like you’re twelve.”
Elizabeth rolled on top of her, her mouth inches away, and began grinding her pelvis into her with slow, seductive moves. “Do I feel like I’m twelve?” Elizabeth asked, separating each word with a searing kiss.
She immediately forgot the question as the pounding in her crotch intensified. Her hands instinctively went to Elizabeth’s waist, and when Elizabeth slid her tongue into her mouth, she climaxed. Not expecting the wave, she grabbed Elizabeth’s ass and held her while the spasms ran their course. She had never come so fast from so little. Her head spun, her mind pure mush.
When she opened her eyes, Elizabeth was gazing down at her while straddling her hips, wet and so aroused she could smell her. It wasn’t long before Elizabeth was rocking back and forth, spreading her juices on Colby’s stomach. Putting a hand on either side of Colby’s head, she bent forward just enough for her to catch a swaying breast in her mouth.
“God, that feels good,” Elizabeth whispered. She moaned her pleasure a few times and tightened her legs around her. Colby lightly bit the hard nipple in her mouth.
“Yes, uhh, just like that.” Elizabeth dropped her head, soft blond hair tickling Colby’s face.
The stronger she sucked, the harder Elizabeth rocked against her. She slid her fingers inside Elizabeth, rewarded with another shudder of pleasure and a hoarse command to go deeper. She wanted to please Elizabeth like she had never been pleased before. She wanted her to experience the same thrill and power of orgasm as she had every time they came together. It mattered to her. For the first time in a long, long time, it mattered.
Elizabeth said her name in gasping breaths as she quickened her pace, Colby keeping up with each move. Finally she stiffened and, with one last cry, came hard. Colby watched Elizabeth become even more beautiful as orgasm overtook her. She felt every beat of Elizabeth’s heart in the fingers buried deep inside her. The changes in Elizabeth’s face mesmerized her. She had seen the mask of concentration transforming into the glow of release several times before and knew she would never grow tired of seeing this woman come in her arms. It frightened her that she wouldn’t have the chance.
Elizabeth collapsed on Colby, unable to stay upright any longer. She was breathing way too fast and her head was foggy, but she was aware when Colby slowly removed her fingers. Colby was a fabulous lover, sensing when she needed it fast and hard, and when soft and gentle was the only way to orgasm. They had explored each other’s bodies for hours, and she knew every freckle and scar on the woman holding her.
“Jesus. I don’t know what to say. I’ve never…” she mumbled into Colby’s warm neck.
“What would you like to say?” came the equally breathless voice. Colby’s heart beat rapidly under hers.
“That was absolutely awesome. My God, you’re good.” Good was hardly an adequate adjective to describe Colby’s lovemaking, but it was all she could come up with at the moment.
Colby chuckled. “You did all the work.”
At this comment, Elizabeth lifted her head. Colby smiled, brushing her hair back from her face, and she felt herself blush. She hadn’t been shy in bed, or on the floor, or anywhere else, for that matter, but for some reason this time taking what she wanted slightly embarrassed her. It made absolutely no sense. They had sucked and fucked for hours and in more creative ways than this, but this time it had felt different. Colby had felt different, had touched her differently.
“I guess I did, huh?” she replied, trying to lighten her mood. This was a summer fling and she could not, would not, let herself get swept away in it. In a few weeks she would be back on her own turf, and Colby would move on as well. There was nothing between them but a few good memories. There couldn’t be.
“Feel free to use me like that anytime. I’m here at your service,” Colby said wickedly, a sly smile spreading across her face.
She was breathtaking when she smiled, Elizabeth thought. She hadn’t seen her do that much and she liked it, very much. It made her stomach tingle and her toes curl.
“Is that so?” Colby’s dark eyes grew darker as Elizabeth repeated her movements from a few moments ago. “You liked it?” Colby’s mouth opened but nothing immediately came out. She nodded instead.
Elizabeth moved again. “Did you like this?” Again Colby nodded and her eyes began to glaze over. She was still on top but wanted Colby as Colby had had her. With little effort she switched their positions and felt the familiar weight of Colby’s body on hers. She wasn’t heavy, she just felt right. Smoldering eyes hovered above her as Colby began her own self-satisfying movements.
This time, Elizabeth mimicked exactly what Colby had done to her earlier. The feel of her warmth on her hand and tightening around her fingers was overwhelming. She was giving this spectacular woman pleasure, and it was as simple as that.
She wanted to prolong her own enjoyment of watching Colby. Her breasts heaved and her graceful back arched, giving Elizabeth unimpeded access to her clit. She couldn’t resist when Colby whispered, “Please, now.” She was aware that Colby needed to climax and ran her thumb over the exact place she needed. A quick flick, a little pressure, and Colby exploded and collapsed on her.
Colby might be having the orgasm, but stars were shooting in Elizabeth’s head as well. Her heart pulsed with something she didn’t recognize, and she had an overwhelming need to gather Colby to her and never let her go. She gave in to the first part and ignored the second.
“Didn’t you say something about being hungry? About three hours ago?” Colby asked. She was zipping her shorts, her hair still damp from the shower. It would have been two hours ago if Elizabeth hadn’t slipped in behind her in the streaming hot water.
“Yes. We missed dinner.” Elizabeth buckled the strap on her sandal and looked across the room at her. Her face was glowing, even with the lack of any substantial sleep the night before. She had that just-fucked look, and Colby wanted to take her back to bed.
“Not that you need to, but what a great way to lose weight.” She raised her eyebrows several times and winked.
Elizabeth stood in front of the full-length mirror. “Don’t start or we’ll miss breakfast too,” she warned, but not with any conviction.
She couldn’t help but smile, but inside she was troubled. Like waking in Elizabeth’s bed. She couldn’t remember the last time she had a morning-after conversation. However, though she wasn’t usually good at small talk, with Elizabeth she was downright chatty. After making love they had talked about politics, baseball, and the recent earthquake that had devastated Haiti. Elizabeth told amusing stories about her family, to whom she was clearly close.
Colby suddenly realized how much she missed her family. She used to talk to her sisters at least once a week, her mother filling in anything she might have missed. She hadn’t spoken to them in years and even though she had her monthly call with her mother, it seemed like forever since she’d seen her smile. Elizabeth touched her shoulder.
“Colby, are you all right?”
Concern filled Elizabeth’s green eyes and she almost said no, she wasn’t. She was suddenly very lonely and tired of shouldering her burden alone. Like she had for the past three years she simply said, “Yep, I’m great. Now how about some breakfast?”
Chapter Eleven
The next few weeks flew by. Colby insisted on being Elizabeth’s personal tour guide and entertainment director. They rode bicycles down from Haleakala, went snorkeling off the coast of Molokai, and window-shopped in Lahaina. The more Elizabeth thought about it, the easier it was to agree to whatever Colby suggested. She knew what was at the end of the path she was heading down, but instead of running away she was speeding forward, ignoring every warning sign.
One evening they simply walked th
e shoreline. As the water lapped around their ankles, Colby peppered her with questions about her childhood, her family, and her life in San Diego. When she described the freshman prank she fell for her first night in the dormitory at Columbia and other childhood stories, Colby laughed and poked fun at her. She liked Colby’s laugh—the way her eyes sparkled and the dimples in her cheeks deepened.
On their way back to her hotel they approached the cluster of trees where they’d had their first interlude. Her heartbeat quickened and she slowed their pace.
“You know, I’ve never gone with a woman as easily as I did with you that night.” She nodded in the direction of the trees.
It didn’t take Colby more than a second to follow the conversation. “Really?”
“Yes, really. You must have been proud of yourself.” She softened her statement with a smile. She didn’t intend for it to come out sounding as tacky as it did.
Colby didn’t appear to be offended. “Pride had nothing to do with it.”
She felt the sharp pull of Colby’s eyes boring into her, daring her to divulge her innermost secrets. Desire flooded her. “Then what did?”
Colby closed the distance between them, never taking her dark eyes off her. She felt her warm breath on her face just before Colby kissed her. “I felt you when I was in the water. I was drawn to you. I just had to have you. I had to touch you, feel you, taste you.” Colby accentuated each statement with a gentle yet searing kiss.
Tired of fighting her better judgment, Elizabeth led Colby into the familiar darkness and she was the aggressor. Her hands were quick under Colby’s T-shirt, traveling over not-quite-bare flesh. Impatient, she clawed at the obstructing fabric as she ravished Colby’s hot mouth. Tongues danced, dueled, and tangled until Colby pulled back, gasping for air, her eyes bright with desire. Elizabeth pinched her hard nipples, and Colby’s eyes clouded over with passion.
Slowly she licked her way down Colby’s neck, tossing her top onto the ground. She kneaded Colby’s breasts, paying special attention to the tight nipples until finally her mouth was on them. She felt Colby’s knees buckle and slid her thigh between them to hold her upright. As much as she wanted to lay Colby down on the soft sand and explore every inch of her hard, vibrating body, the need to have her, right there, right now, just like this overwhelmed her.
Too eager to wait, she dropped to her knees, jerked Colby’s shorts to her ankles, and made short work of the tight briefs underneath. She hardly had a chance to savor the sweet aroma of Colby’s arousal before she plunged her tongue into Colby’s warm flesh. The throbbing of her blood in her head muffled the sound of Colby’s moan. Colby had twisted her hands in her hair, urgent and trembling, and Elizabeth slid two fingers into her warm, wet center. In seconds, Colby exploded.
Pulse after pulse Colby emptied herself into Elizabeth’s mouth, coating her face. Colby had barely finished one orgasm before she found Colby’s clitoris again and sucked greedily, making her come a second, then a third time.
In no way had she ever acted so wanton, so thoroughly overcome with desire that all thoughts of propriety and decency fled. Her common sense had disappeared and she wouldn’t stop even if they had an audience like before.
“Enough. Please, Elizabeth. Enough.” Colby shuddered, hearing her own ragged voice but barely recognizing it. No one had ever taken her so quickly and with such abandon as Elizabeth just had. Not only was her body spent but her soul felt invaded, though in a good way. Her limbs were weak as noodles yet she wanted to touch Elizabeth, needed to please her as she had just been pleased. Yet she wasn’t sure she had the strength, and she certainly had no idea how she would be able to walk back to her truck.
Colby pulled Elizabeth into her arms and drew a ragged breath. “If that’s what it would’ve been like that first night, I would have picked up where we left off when those boys left.”
“Why didn’t you?”
At this moment Colby was asking herself the same question and didn’t have an answer. Actually, she did, but she wouldn’t tell Elizabeth because it made absolutely no sense. One minute she couldn’t keep her hands off her, the next she thought the way they were practically fucking was torrid and cheap and Elizabeth deserved better. She wasn’t sure she even wanted to admit it to herself.
Before she had a chance to answer, Elizabeth started rubbing herself on Colby’s thigh. “It doesn’t matter because you’re here now and I want you just like this.” She tightened her grip around Elizabeth’s waist and whispered encouragement in her ear. “That’s it. Take what you want,” she said. Elizabeth quickened her pace and Colby’s clit hardened again. “God, you feel good. Your clit, on my leg, it’s hard.”
“Touch me.” Elizabeth’s voice was barely a whisper.
Colby didn’t have to be told twice. As soon as she slid her hand between Elizabeth’s legs, Elizabeth shuddered. Colby didn’t move. Elizabeth took what she needed and, in less than a minute, came on Colby’s fingers. Before Elizabeth had a chance to catch her breath, Colby slipped deep inside. Elizabeth cried out and came again.
When she wasn’t with Colby, Elizabeth was busy researching for her book and even managed to write a few thousand words every day. The manuscript still needed at least another thirty thousand words and was due to her publisher in October. As much as she hated to, she forced herself to stay away from the beach. The last time she was there she got a raging sunburn because she lost track of time. She had been so absorbed in watching Colby she forgot to apply and reapply her sunscreen. Colby couldn’t touch her for three days. It was agony for both of them, but Colby insisted she stay just in case Elizabeth needed something.
Last night, however, Elizabeth had recovered enough from her sunburn to accompany Colby into Lahaina. Front Street was already bristling with tired shoppers and the early dinner crowd, and Colby was forced to park at the south end of the busy street.
They strolled by the shops lining both sides until she pulled Colby into one particular one. It had caught her attention and her curiosity the first time she saw it, and with Colby next to her, she felt bold enough to venture inside the Painted Lady.
When the door closed behind her, she realized its name was appropriate. Three women were sitting in barber chairs with their back, leg, and, in one case, ass being tattooed.
“Have you ever thought about getting one of these?” she asked over the buzz of the electric needles. She was positive Colby didn’t have one.
“Not really. Have you?”
Elizabeth looked at the walls covered with examples of various designs, lettering, and the obligatory Mother tattoos. Another woman entered and started thumbing through one of the books on the front counter. “I’ve never thought about it. I don’t have anything against them. I’ve seen some beautiful ones and some downright ugly ones, but I guess body art is just that, art.”
“That’s one way to put it, I suppose.” Colby pressed up behind her and looked over her shoulder. Colby’s warm breath on her neck made her lose all interest in the book in front of her, especially when Colby reached around her to touch the laminated page. “That one’s interesting,” she said, pointing to a drawing of two turtles swimming in a coral reef. Colby smelled like salt and sea and the scent she had learned was only Colby’s. It had just been three days, but it felt like weeks since they had touched.
Colby must have felt it too because the nipples pressed against her back were hard. Her knees began to shake and the blood pounded in her ears.
“Unless you’re prepared for me to take you right here, in front of all these people, I’d suggest you step back an inch or two.” She hoped Colby would pay attention to her warning because she was quickly losing control.
“Only if you promise to do just that when we get back to your place.” Colby ended her statement by outlining the rim of her ear with her tongue, and she grabbed the end of the counter for support. When Colby didn’t move, she turned around, the lower half of their bodies touching.
“Cross my heart,” she sai
d, tracing the pattern she’d just verbalized across Colby’s chest. Desire flared in Colby’s eyes when Elizabeth stroked her breast. Her stomach leaped and her panties became drenched.
“Let’s get out of here,” Colby said through clenched teeth. “I’m starving.”
She seemed to mean more than just hunger for food.
From the minute they left the shop Elizabeth could hardly keep her hands off Colby. She managed to restrain herself until they got into Colby’s truck, but when the locks engaged, she did too. By the time they got back to her villa they were both a stroke away from climax and literally ran down the hall to her door. She slid the card key into the lock while Colby awkwardly unbuttoned her shirt from behind.
They threw their clothes in all directions, and she didn’t wait for Colby to be naked before she plunged her fingers into her. She had Colby pressed against the counter, one foot on the bar stool, giving her unimpeded access to Colby’s warm, very wet center. It took only one bite on Colby’s neck and three strokes for her to come. She held her so tight when her orgasm hit, Elizabeth could hardly breathe. Pulse after pulse squeezed her fingers while Colby’s arms tightened around her neck. Colby gave no sign of letting go, and she didn’t want her to.
Chapter Twelve
Colby thought she would never be on the water like this again. It was always too painful, a reminder of her former life, the one she vowed never to return to. But she wanted to show Elizabeth the joy of sailing, and what better way than on a forty-foot Lagoon catamaran. She eased into the slip at the Front Street Pier. Elizabeth hadn’t arrived yet, giving her time to secure the boat and make sure everything was in order.
She had called ahead to the number she still knew by heart, and the boat was prepped, stocked, and ready for her when she’d arrived earlier that morning. As she stepped on the deck, a wave of nostalgia flooded her, causing her to lose her footing and stumble. She banged her knee and scraped her palm.