Normally, she didn’t get possessive, even in the few relationships that lasted longer than a month. Neither did she harbor strange anxieties or agonize about the future. Self-torment was not her style. And she never chased women; it was the other way around. What had gone wrong this time?
The moment she saw Kate standing at the baggage claim, it crossed her mind to wonder if she’d finally stumbled on The One. The thought shook her. Worse still, it stayed with her, lurking in the back of her mind as a tempting explanation for all that was strange about their fling so far.
Jules was not prey to flights of fancy or delusions of presentiment, but she could not escape the sense that Kate was significant. At the same time she felt that at any moment she could vanish, and that she’d only allowed Jules into her life because of some mysterious agenda. Jules feared she would still be groping in the dark, trying to fathom the role she’d been assigned, when she was discarded. This possibility had both decimated her peace of mind and heightened her anticipation during the twenty-minute drive to downtown Denver.
Hoping Kate hadn’t noticed her distraction level, she nudged the apartment door closed with a knee and wheeled the luggage out of the way. Kate removed her coat and hung it on the decorative stand just inside the entrance; then she strolled lightly into the living area, her head tilted back so she could take in the full splendor of the room’s central feature. A vast modern chandelier fell from the thirty-foot atrium-style ceiling like a flock of torn crystal ticket stubs, each swaying and pivoting in the faint rush of the air-conditioning.
She executed a slow twirl, her smile radiant. “This is amazing.”
“Yes.” Jules plucked a smile from the chaos of her responses. “I never get used to it.”
All at once, she was frantic with the urge to throw Kate down on the floor, or across a table, or over the back of furniture. The only other time she’d felt like this was back in the days when she snorted coke at parties, before she stamped out every habit that could undermine her career. What was her excuse tonight? She supposed lust could undo common sense, self-control, even self-respect. She had already been keyed up, expecting to see Kate on Saturday. Having her arrive early had somehow unglued her. She felt thrilled but awkward, self-conscious at the thought of their phone call, even worried about their next lovemaking. What would Kate expect of her? Jules didn’t want to disappoint.
She tried to get a read on the woman exploring the room. Would they have to go through the motions of dinner and conversation? No doubt Kate would need to freshen up after her flight. Jules ran through the possibilities. While Kate was showering, she could make a light meal. They could listen to seductive music as they dined, then sit a few feet apart on the sofa occupying that weird fugue state people slid into when it was unseemly just to grab each other.
Did Kate even want to grab her? Jules followed her progress as she moved through the room, brushing her fingers over furnishings and surfaces until she came to the windows. There she paused, seemingly entranced by the city nightscape. Surely, if she felt the same aching need Jules did, she would not be ten feet away, distracting herself by twinkling lights. She would not be fondling inanimate objects when her hands could be occupied with a warm body.
For a few excruciating seconds, Jules was filled with resentment. How could a stranger evoke such messy and inexplicable emotions in her? She felt vulnerable and desperate. Kate’s remoteness was maddening. This whole scenario seemed mirage-like. She was daunted by the sense that she could plunge in with wild abandon, only to find everything evaporating.
Determined to seize control, of at least the situation if not herself, she said, “I’ll show you where things are.”
Kate turned toward her. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Of course.”
“Did you specify the flowers for that bouquet or did the florist just put something together?”
“I chose them myself.” Jules wondered if this was a test.
“I thought so.”
Kate left the window and dawdled toward her, stopping within arm’s reach. Her eyes were bright and more green than brown. A tiny melting smile found its way to her mouth, making it so kissable Jules had to choke back a small animal sound of longing. Heat flooded her face. She could not believe she was giving herself away like this. Where was her sophistication?
“Mostly, I don’t like getting flowers,” Kate said. “But I make exceptions for peonies and irises.” Her smile broadened. “I wonder how you knew that.”
The words were so softly spoken, Jules had to move closer. She could smell mint on Kate’s breath. Scent invaded the air, emanating from both of them. Commercial perfume masked the rougher notes of perspiration, body, and clothing. Jules recognized the salty traces of her own wet arousal in the mix. Her hands trembled and she slid them into her pockets.
She regarded Kate cautiously, seeking some idea of where they stood with each other. None of the usual cues were apparent. Kate offered no long, hot looks. No coy smiles. No “accidental” touch. Where was the woman who had seduced her over the phone just two days ago? Jules wanted her here, now, in the flesh. Was physical proximity a problem? Would Kate only articulate her desires with a thousand miles of desert and mountain between them?
Jules followed her instincts. “I’ve been thinking…”
“Yes?” Kate’s expression was politely attentive, like she was about to hear the recipe for a meal she would never cook.
“I have some urgent work to do. How about if I get that out of the way while you shower and make yourself comfortable?” She indicated the curved stairwell. “My bedroom and office are on the top level along from the balcony. Just come on up when you’re ready.”
No pressure. No demands. Jules intercepted a glimmer of relief in Kate’s eyes and realized she had hit upon the right move at the right time. Although Kate hid her emotions well, she was probably nervous and needed a chance to relax. Jules already knew from Palm Springs and their phone sex that Kate liked to dictate the nature of her encounters. If that’s what it took, Jules could be accommodating.
“The guest room is over there.” She pointed to a door. “I’ll bring your luggage.”
“Thank you.” Kate walked with her through the living room back toward the front entrance. “Jules?”
“Yes?”
“I’m happy to be here.”
“I wasn’t completely sure,” Jules admitted. “I mean, I know it wasn’t your plan to visit with me tonight.”
“It’s probably better this way,” Kate said. “I have a lot to do while I’m in town. Maybe I can stay tonight and tomorrow, instead of Friday or Saturday.”
“Tonight and tomorrow?” Jules repeated. She couldn’t be that ambivalent if she was already thinking they would spend two nights together.
“If it’s not a hassle for you.” A glimpse of teasing danced in Kate’s eyes.
“Are you crazy?” Jules grinned. “I have to work during the day tomorrow, but otherwise I’m all yours.”
Voir dire could drag on into next week until they had twelve acceptable jurors for the Brigham trial, but other than that she was in good shape, workwise. She would have plenty of time on the weekend for the usual last-minute push, especially if Kate wasn’t going to be here. The change in dates sounded good for both of them.
Jules met Kate’s gaze and immediately felt jarred. Something in the shape and set of her eyes triggered a match with another face. She combed through memory, and Rhianna Lamb’s image popped into her mind. Sharpening her recall as best she could, she made an automatic comparison.
There was a superficial similarity, she supposed, but the two faces were actually quite different, even taking hair color out of the equation. Kate’s delicately boned features made for real beauty, whereas Lamb was just a conventionally pretty girl-next-door. Their bodies were very different, too. Kate was almost too slender and moved with the grace of a nymph. Lamb played soccer, and a video of her in a game revealed a shapely, solidly built w
oman whose body language spoke of an outgoing personality. Kate was the complete opposite. Her innate reserve was obvious.
Jules laughed inwardly at herself. Lately she’d seen flashes of Kate in everyone from Sagelblum’s chief defense strategist to television news anchors, to the woman behind the United ticket counter at LAX. She reminded herself that she didn’t need to prowl the faces around her for Kate substitutes. The real thing was standing right in front of her.
“You look beautiful,” she said spontaneously. “I meant to tell you that before.”
Kate reacted with innocent surprise, as though she seldom received compliments. She lifted a hand to Jules’s lapel and let it rest there. Her quiet smile was beguiling.
She said, “I’ll get clean. Then you can get me dirty.”
*
“Let’s fuck, then make love,” Jules said, circling like a hawk.
Rhianna moved out of reach. The backs of her thighs connected with the bed. She said, “Be gentle.”
Jules unbuttoned the pale shirt she was wearing and pulled it free of her low-slung jeans. She had on a tank-style sports bra. Her nipples stood out beneath the thin white knit. Her hand dropped to her belt buckle. She asked, “How gentle?” as she tugged her fly open. “Am I only allowed to use my tongue, or can I get inside you?”
Rhianna sat on the edge of the bed, riveted by the slow, deliberate movements of Jules’s hands. “That depends.”
The jeans fell. Jules stepped out of them. The shirt followed. Her eyes glittered with intent. “What do you have in mind?”
Rhianna hitched herself fully onto the bed and leaned back, propped on her hands. Her thin silk robe fell away from her thighs. She opened her legs slightly more. “I want to take it slowly.”
The double entendre was not lost on Jules. With a small, hungry grin, she said, “I can give it to you any way you need.”
“Make me wait,” Rhianna said. “I want to come in your mouth first.”
Jules’s hands slipped between Rhianna’s knees, easing them apart, making her aware of the pulse that beat at her core. Wetness collected beneath her, gluing her robe to her butt. She felt her knees jerked up and sideways, exposing her fully.
Jules leaned over her. “Slowly, huh? You’re sure about that?” Her voice grew hoarse. “It’s just, you’re so wet. And I’m…not the patient type.”
“Well, that’s not my problem,” Rhianna said. “If you can’t exercise control, I’ll take care of myself and you can do the same.”
“Jesus.” Jules stroked a few dark strands back into the short, stark ponytail at her nape. Her hands were not quite steady, neither was her breathing. Her eyes skated restlessly from Rhianna’s face to the parting of her thighs, revealing her struggle to contain herself.
Rhianna smiled, reveling in the havoc she had caused. At the same time, she was bemused by her own wayward daring. She had never spoken this way to a lover. She had always been happy to kiss and touch and reach mutual satisfaction without the need to tease and control and to feel her own power. She wondered how far she could push before Jules pushed back.
Sagging back onto the bed, she said, “You’re still not naked.”
“Neither are you.” Jules peeled off the sports bra.
Rhianna watched but did not remove her robe. “You work out,” she observed as the briefs went south.
“Uh-huh.”
Jules was tanned, trimmed, and so tense Rhianna could almost feel the pounding of her pulse. “You almost have a six-pack. I like it.”
Jules took a pillow and dropped it on the floor. “Show me where you want my mouth.”
Goose bumps needled Rhianna’s skin. Shivering, she slid both hands down and held herself open. “You know what to do.”
The words were barely out before she was jerked down the bed until her tailbone reached the edge. Jules cupped her ass and stared up at her with flushed cheeks and a dangerous gleam in her eyes.
“After this,” she said, “I’m going to fist you and you’re going to let me.”
“Perhaps,” Rhianna said as she felt the hot, slow glide of a satin tongue.
Jules worked with infinite patience, caressing and stroking her into swollen readiness. She inched so delicately around Rhianna’s clit, the sensation was unbearable. Every tiny slithering nudge, every hint of pressure, the almost imperceptible nibbles made her nerves scream for more. Rhianna arched her back and tilted her hips, whimpering as Jules replied with more of the same feather-light torment.
When her clit was finally enfolded and Jules began to suck, Rhianna groaned, “Yes! Oh, yes. Don’t stop.”
But just as her responses gathered momentum, the intensity ebbed. Jules drifted away, completely breaking contact, leaving Rhianna’s climax out of reach. Then her mouth flowed warmly and her tongue lapped far too daintily. Rhianna felt so tight and hard and empty, she whined in frustration.
“Jules, please. Make me come.”
Another suck carried her closer, but again the pressure subsided before she could climb the steep incline to release. Jules was merely toying with her, and Rhianna needed to come so badly, she couldn’t wait. She reached down, but the tip of her forefinger barely soothed her aching clit before her hand was knocked away.
Jules raised her head and stared lazily over Rhianna’s torso. “Slow and gentle. Isn’t that what you wanted?”
“I need more.”
“Now?”
Frantic with unsatisfied desire, Rhianna mumbled, “Yes.”
Jules planted kisses on Rhianna’s belly, then changed position and dragged her gently up the bed. Kneeling at her side, stroking and kissing her, she worked her way to a nipple. Her mouth slid wetly and tenderly over the tight knot of flesh and she bit softly, just enough to send a small jolt straight to Rhianna’s clit.
In desperation, Rhianna tried to touch herself again. This time Jules covered her hand and bumped it hard against her throbbing crotch, squeezing until she begged, “Please. Just fuck me.”
Jules moved over her. Her voice was low and rough in Rhianna’s ear. “Are you mine?”
“Yes, I’m yours,” Rhianna gasped.
And Jules gave her exactly what she wanted, sliding between her legs, filling her, kissing her, pounding into her. “You feel so good,” she said, “wrapped around me this way.”
She thrust faster, meeting the rise of Rhianna’s hips with deep, hard strokes. Her thumb worked Rhianna’s clit, making her brim with pleasure. Rhianna’s senses spun out of control. Everything seemed to zero in at her core. Sweet tension rose in steadily building waves until she had to let go.
“Now,” she cried, stiffening and squeezing down.
Then she was flooding and opening, pulsing helplessly with each spasm. She gave herself over completely, aware only of the fierce unraveling within. She no longer knew whose pulse she felt, or whose flesh ended where; their bodies were seamlessly fused.
When time slowed, she opened her eyes to find Jules staring down at her with rapt tenderness. Her expression was so unguarded, her longing so naked, something burst into life deep inside, where her spirit had wintered too long. Rhianna’s eyes flooded and she cupped Jules’s cheek and drew her into a long, profound kiss. They rocked together, sweating and shuddering until she felt Jules start to withdraw.
“No,” she said weakly. “You’re not done.”
Jules’s breath rushed out and she shifted position to straddle Rhianna’s thigh. “Are you sure?” she asked, easing her free arm beneath Rhianna’s waist.
“You said I would let you. Remember?”
“Bold words.” Jules laughed softly.
Rhianna moved her muscles, playing along the fingers still buried deep inside. “I’m waiting,” she said.
*
In the thin light of dawn, Jules rolled onto her back and stared across at Kate. Everything hurt. Her jaw. Her nipples. Her back. Her sex. She flopped a hand onto Kate’s chest.
“We should sleep,” Kate murmured foggily.
Jul
es doubted she could. She wanted to spend what was left of the night watching the woman in her bed. Dragging herself closer, she said, “I have to go to work in a few hours. Shall I leave you a key?”
“Yes,” Kate said, heavy-eyed.
“You’ll be here when I get home?”
Another yes.
“Kate, I’m not ready to say good-bye.”
“I don’t think we should.” Kate’s voice was dreamy. She was drifting.
“I feel something for you.” Jules needed to say the words before she could question the emotion.
Kate mumbled, “Let’s talk later.”
“Promise me something.” Jules felt foolish, asking. “Promise me you won’t leave without talking to me.”
Kate forced a few blinks, obviously trying to keep herself awake. “I promise.”
“I want to see where this could take us,” Jules said in a rush.
“Are you proposing we get serious?” Kate’s voice was light, but her eyes were watchful.
“Yes, I think I am.” Jules hesitated, unfamiliar with the emotional terrain she was in. “Kate, have you ever thought about settling down? You know, home and garden. Kids. A couple of dogs. Family vacations. The whole nine yards?”
Kate’s focus sharpened. “Is that what you’re looking for?”
Why pretend? “Ultimately. With the right woman. Yeah, I want it all.”
For a few seconds, Kate seemed lost in thought. “I always expected that’s what I would have in my life by now,” she said softly. “I’ve had girlfriends, but we never got that far.”
“I’ve lived with several women.” Jules stared up at the ceiling, surprised that they were having this conversation and that she was the one who had started it. “I don’t know what I was thinking, really. We were never on the same page.”
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