Shadow Haven

by AJ Schippers

  She didn’t protest when Alexandra removed Julia’s hand and rolled her onto her back, swiftly undressing her. With eyes closed, Julia sucked Alexandra’s finger into her mouth—finally tasting the wetness that had been denied to her so many times before. “Oh my God.” Alexandra had slipped two fingers inside of her. “I want more of that.”

  Alexandra’s lips closed around a hardened nipple. “All in good time.” She left a trail down Julia’s stomach. “We have all the time in the world.” She gave Julia a wicked smile before leaning down and sliding her tongue through the wetness while her lips nipped at Julia’s clit. She grazed her teeth over it. “I will never grow tired of this,” she murmured as her tongue flicked against the nub in a fast pace. It wasn’t long before Julia’s hands burrowed themselves into thick curls, and as Alexandra moved faster, Julia’s eyes rolled to the back of her head. “Alexandra, please…”

  “You don’t have to ask.” Alexandra’s fingers moved faster inside of Julia.

  “I want to,” Julia confessed—surprising even herself. “I need you to tell me it’s okay.” Alexandra’s permission was the thing she was unexpectedly craving as she ground against the tongue that so expertly teased her.

  “Then come for me, my love,” Alexandra whispered as she hovered over Julia’s body, her thumb taking over from her tongue.

  “Fuck,” Julia cried out as her orgasm completely surpassed every ounce of control she had over her body. She was no stranger to orgasms that were intense, but this one—this one felt new, like the grand finale of a well-composed music piece. When her body finally collapsed against the bed, she silently thanked Alexandra for every lingering touch that had led up to this moment.

  Alexandra lay down next to Julia and cradled her close. Her fingers lazily drew circles on her back and she kissed her forehead, her nose, and finally the lips that so eagerly awaited their turn to play.

  “Alexandra…”

  Alexandra smiled. “Yes?”

  “I want to taste you,” Julia ducked her head beneath Alexandra’s chin.

  “You do, hmm?”

  Julia nodded as her fingers playfully traced down Alexandra’s thigh. “I’ve been really good.”

  Alexandra grinned when Julia’s hand moved to cup her ass. “Have you?”

  “I think so. I really deserve it.”

  “I told you before. You don’t need to ask me for permission. You can do whatever you want to do.”

  Julia looked up at that. “Spank you?”

  “Except for that.” Alexandra laughed.

  “Tie you up?”

  “Nor that.”

  “Kiss you?”

  She smiled. “Always.” Alexandra pushed Julia down into the mattress. Hovering over her, she groaned when Julia’s knee placed itself a little too hard against her core. She rolled her eyes at Julia’s smirk. “Don’t get cocky…”

  “I’m not.” Julia settled back on her knees. Alexandra pulled up her left leg and placed a foot against Julia’s chest. Julia wrinkled her nose.

  “What? You don’t like feet?” Alexandra grinned.

  Julia let a finger slide over the toned muscles of Alexandra’s thigh, all the way down her calf and finally to the foot that was placed firmly against her chest. “I don’t know,” she said. “I do like the view, though.” Her eyes focused on the wetness between Alexandra’s legs. God, she wanted it badly.

  “So close, yet so far,” Alexandra teased.

  “I’m not going to kiss your feet,” Julia said as she wrapped her hand around Alexandra’s ankle and pulled it away from her chest. “I can tease too, you know.” She tickled the sole of Alexandra’s foot with her other hand and frowned when she got no reaction whatsoever. “Seriously? You’re not ticklish?”

  “Not even a little bit.” Alexandra laughed as she pulled her foot free and placed it against Julia’s chest again. Her eyes sought out Julia’s, and a devious smile spread on her lips as Alexandra slid her index finger through her own wetness.

  “Oh my God.”

  “Hmm.” Alexandra licked her finger clean and placed her foot on the mattress again. “Come on, then.”

  Julia didn’t need to hear that twice. She got down on her stomach and wrapped her arms around Alexandra’s thighs before her tongue slowly dipped into the wet folds. She moaned at the taste and warmth before lapping at the wetness once more.

  Gripping the mattress with one hand, Alexandra’s back arched as her other hand burrowed itself into Julia’s hair. Her eyes closed as Julia’s tongue explored every last inch of her pussy. She panted hard when Julia sucked her clit into her mouth, flicking her tongue against it. “God, yes,” she moaned as she pressed Julia’s face against her. It wasn’t long before her hips bucked and the vibrations of her orgasm rippled against Julia’s body.

  Her tongue set a relentless pace as she kept lapping at the clit that still twitched under her touch, only pulling away when Alexandra tugged at her hair. She kissed her way up Alexandra’s body, ending with a passionate and a languid kiss on her lips. “You’re amazing,” she whispered finally as she nestled herself against Alexandra. “Absolutely amazing.”

  “As are you,” Alexandra said.

  They lay together, not speaking a word, their breathing the only sound in the room. After a couple of minutes, Alexandra lifted a hand to cup Julia’s face. “Thank you for waiting for me. I know it can’t have been easy for you. I appreciate you giving me time.”

  “Is this the part where I thank you for not letting me run away?” Julia gave her a closemouthed smile.

  “No. That is in the past. We both needed to learn how to trust each other, and I am just thankful that you gave me the time that I needed. I love you very much.”

  Julia’s gaze fell downward. “I—”

  “You don’t have—”

  Julia cleared her throat as she narrowed her eyes. “Hey. Let me say what I want to say, please?”

  “Of course,” Alexandra said.

  “I was so angry when I first came here. Angry that Caroline dumped me here, and angry at life in general. I don’t feel so angry anymore. You have changed me. You’ve changed how I look at the world, and you’ve changed my perspective on myself. I care about you a great deal. It’s hard for me to say it in other words. I’ve never told anyone that. I’ve never felt the need to tell someone that I love them, because people never deserved to hear those words.”

  “Julia…”

  “Please. Just hear me out. I’m not going to say it, but I feel it. And one day, I will be able to say it. But you should know that I feel it, in my heart.”

  Alexandra smiled. “That’s good enough for me.”

  As she woke up, Julia yawned loudly and stretched her arms over her head. A big smile spread on her face when she remembered the previous night. They had made love deep into the night until they’d both fallen asleep, absolutely exhausted. She rolled over and brushed a strand of hair out of Alexandra’s face. Part of her expected to feel panic. Instead, she felt calm, rested and loved. Those were feelings she wasn’t used to, yet Alexandra seemed to bring them out in her at the most unexpected of times. They were feelings that Julia would like to get used to, feelings that she would like to bring out in Alexandra in return, because it felt utterly amazing.

  Julia’s fingers lazily dragged over Alexandra’s back, and she smiled when Alexandra shivered and grabbed the sheets and pulled them higher over the both them. Julia’s lips brushed over Alexandra’s, and when she sleepily stirred, her hand moved to Alexandra’s right nipple. She rolled it between her fingers, until an arched eyebrow greeted her.

  “Good morning, brave girl.”

  “Morning.”

  “What are you doing?”

  “Waking you up.” Julia grabbed Alexandra’s leg and draped it over her own.

  Alexandra yawned and rubbed her eyes, then rolled Julia onto her back. She grabbed Julia’s hands and placed them over her head. Her lips brushed over Julia’s slowly, and when Julia moved to deepen
the kiss, she pulled back. “What time is it?”

  “Don’t know, don’t care,” Julia said as she bucked her hips.

  “You seem cheerful.”

  “I am! That was the best night of my life.”

  “Oh?” Alexandra reached down with her right hand and settled it against Julia’s core. “I see someone’s eager for more.”

  “Please.” As she tried to grind against the hand, she murmured, “I need you.”

  “Then me you shall have,” Alexandra slipped two fingers inside of Julia as she kissed her roughly. Her thumb brushed over Julia’s clit, and she placed her knee against her hand to apply more pressure.

  “Alexandra, please.” But Julia obediently kept her hands in place.

  “How many orgasms did you have last night?” Alexandra moved her knee to the side of Julia’s leg and pushed her fingers deeper inside of her.

  “I don’t remember.”

  “Remember,” Alexandra said sternly as she nipped at Julia’s neck.

  “Three.” Julia moaned. “I think,” she added as Alexandra rubbed over her clit faster.

  “Hmm. Three? I don’t like uneven numbers.” She leaned down lower and took a nipple into her mouth, biting it with her teeth until Julia squirmed.

  “May I have another one?”

  Alexandra chuckled. “Absolutely…not.”

  “Please?”

  “I do like it when you beg and plead, mine.”

  “May I come for you, Miss?”

  “Better.” Alexandra moved to the other nipple. It hardened under her attention as its counterpart had. “But no.”

  Julia groaned. “What will make you say yes?” If Alexandra kept going the way she was now—she was going to come, permission or not.

  “Maybe I lost the ability to say yes.” Alexandra smirked.

  “You just said it.”

  “So I did. Now I can’t say it again.”

  “There are others words you could use.” Julia panted out her reply.

  “Like what?”

  “Proceed,” she said with a grin, making Alexandra laugh as well. “Absolutely, of course, right now…”

  “Keep going,” Alexandra said, her voice husky and low as her fingers pushed faster inside of Julia.

  Julia whimpered and moaned. Surely Alexandra could see how close she was, yet she still chose to torment her, knowing that at any moment, her orgasm would hit without her being able to stop it. “Affirmative, okay, sure thing, yep, all right…”

  “Yep? That’s how you want to come?” Alexandra mocked her. “Miss, may I come? Yep!”

  “Whatever it takes.”

  “Try again.”

  “Aye, by all means, definitely, yea.”

  “None of these are words I remotely want to say before you have your fourth orgasm,” Alexandra whispered.

  “Alexandra, please, may I come?”

  “No.”

  “Fuck me.”

  “Absolutely,” Alexandra slammed her fingers faster inside of Julia. “Who do you belong to?”

  “You,” Julia cried out. “All yours.”

  “Who does your orgasm belong to?”

  “You. Please…”

  “Amen to that.” Alexandra’s thumb rubbed fast circles over Julia’s clit.

  “Alexandra, may I come? Please… I can’t—”

  “Now.” Alexandra captured Julia’s mouth with her own.

  Julia’s toes started to curl. When Alexandra released her mouth, Julia bit her own lip to keep herself from screaming. Julia couldn’t quite understand how Alexandra could always find the perfect pace to make her come, but she did. Every brush of the fingertip against her clit, every little flick, followed by a fast tapping, made her wet and wild with desire. She grunted loudly when her orgasm rippled through her, her breathing ragged before she collapsed against the mattress.

  Her fingers slowed, and her thumb brushed one last time over the hardened nub.

  “I swear to God,” Julia said, “one of these days I’m going to come without permission if you keep teasing me like that.”

  Alexandra grinned. “I can’t wait. You’ll be in so much delicious trouble.”

  Chapter 24

  The thunder announcing its arrival got Julia out of bed to admire the lightning show that came along with it. During the last couple of weeks, the thunder had become her friend, a companion that rarely left her side. And while it still frightened her at times, she now saw the beauty of it as well. She supposed that Alexandra was the one to thank for that. Somehow, the things that used to be utterly terrifying were now the things that she looked forward to.

  She smiled when familiar arms wrapped themselves around her, and a sleepy voice whispered in her ear. “Good morning, beautiful.”

  “It’s barely morning.” Julia suppressed a yawn. “Last time I looked at the clock, it was four a.m.”

  “Did the thunder wake you?”

  “It did. I opened the curtains to watch the storm. I’m sorry if the light show woke you up too.”

  Alexandra pressed a kiss on the bare shoulder. “It didn’t. I woke up because my bed was getting cold. The last thing I remember was being snuggled up next to a pretty girl. But I guess she left.”

  “What an ass. How dare she leave you alone.”

  “My thoughts exactly,” Alexandra murmured. “If I find her, she must be punished.”

  “If? Or when?”

  “When works.” Alexandra grinned. “It was quite rude of her to leave the way she did. No good-bye kiss, no parting words. It’s made me quite sad.” She pouted when Julia looked up at her and lightly shook her head.

  “You’re ridiculous.”

  “Adding insults to the list, hmm? Oh dear. What am I going to do with you?”

  “Hopefully everything.”

  “I don’t think you deserve it.”

  “I think I deserve nothing but good things. If I remember correctly, you were very pleased with me last night. As a matter of fact, I haven’t heard you complain about my actions once in the past week.”

  “That was last night. This is a new morning. A clean slate. And so far, it’s one strike against you,” Alexandra huskily whispered into her ear and nipped at Julia’s lobe.

  “Let me make it up to you.” Julia turned around in Alexandra’s arms. Her hands disappeared beneath Alexandra’s shirt, and she smiled at the raised eyebrow when she covered a nipple with her palm.

  “Bold move, Ms. Quinn.”

  Julia grimaced. “Really?”

  “Quite so.” She hissed sharply when a thumb brushed over the hardened peak. “I don’t remember giving you permission to turn me on.”

  “Permission to touch you?”

  “You can do better than that.” She groaned when Julia pushed her against the wall behind her. “Cheeky girl.” She caught her bottom lip between her teeth as Julia’s hand slowly trailed down her stomach. “Are you on a mission?”

  “Maybe. Do I have your permission?”

  A soft moan escaped from Alexandra’s throat as Julia pushed her legs apart with a foot. “You’re being extremely bold here.” She rested her head against the wall when Julia moved in closer and pressed an eager kiss on the smooth skin of her neck. “What’s gotten into you?”

  Julia didn’t respond when hands burrowed themselves into her hair. Her index finger trailed over the fabric of Alexandra’s panties, and when she slipped her hand inside, Alexandra yanked hard on her hair. She moaned loudly at the action and sought out Alexandra’s eyes with her own. “Please?”

  Alexandra grabbed Julia’s hand with her own and pulled it up to her mouth. She stared straight into her eyes before sucking a finger into her mouth and releasing it with a popping sound. “You know how to ask me properly. I like it when you’re brave, but you’d do well to remember who’s in charge here, little one.”

  Julia blushed furiously at the nickname. She was still in the process of trying to figure out how two words made her heart race so much, and when she opened
her mouth to speak, Alexandra pressed her finger against Julia’s lips.

  “I am going to teach you a lesson.”

  “Oh?”

  “It’s called, ‘asking for permission without using words.’”

  Dear God. Alexandra’s silent promises and not-so-silent threats, she ached for them. “How?”

  With a swift movement, Alexandra turned around, pushing Julia hard against the wall. “Safe word, please.”

  “Magic,” Julia breathed out as Alexandra spread her legs apart with her foot. She deliberately looked Alexandra in the eye, and playfully said, “I will use it when I’m not satisfied with you.”

  Alexandra held onto a nipple with two fingers and pinched it hard. “As if. Two strikes, Ms. Quinn.”

  Julia bit her lip as she pondered her next move. Something had changed between them, a shift of some sort. Not in dominance… It wasn’t about that. No, this was something else. There was a sense of pure comfort with each other, a pace that they so easily settled into. And now? Now she craved to find that fine line between being playful and being in delicious trouble. To play on the edge—where with one wrong move, she knew it would be over for her, but if she played her cards right… Well. Who knew what could happen?

  “What happens when I get to three?”

  Alexandra’s lips twisted. “Do you want to find out?” She regarded Julia with a curious look before her lips curled up. “Oh I see! You do…”

  “I’m not sure yet,” Julia confessed. “I’m curious, but cautious.”

  “As you should be. Undress please, while I grab some…supplies.”

  Julia frowned as her gaze followed Alexandra around the bedroom, quickly looking away every time Alexandra caught her looking. She shimmied out of her pants and kicked them across the floor. Act of defiance number one completed, she thought with a smirk. The rest of her clothing followed suit, and she stepped back against the wall—waiting and longing.

  “Turn around.”

  It was a demand that left no room for questions, and she followed it without complaining. A black silk scarf was wrapped tightly around her eyes, the fabric tickling her nose as her world went black. “That’s going to make me sneeze.”