“No, stay inside, just a little longer, it feels so good.”
Ann kisses the corner of her lips softly and snuggles into Lina’s body. Lina runs her fingers through Ann’s hair feeling more satisfied and content than she has in quite a while. She kisses the top of Ann’s head and smiles when Ann raises her head to look at her. She kisses her tenderly and moves so that she has access to Ann. She slips two fingers inside of her relishing the deep moan. Ann removes her fingers from Lina and clings to her as she presses her body tight against her. Her fingernails track down Lina’s back her hips move to Lina’s rhythm. Ann closes her eyes tight as her body quivers, she screams out Lina’s name. Lina continues until Ann is gasping for breath and stops her hand from moving. Lina holds her close to her body and smiles as she feels the gentle kiss placed on her chest. They enjoy the feel of each other and the feeling of contentment. Ann lifts her head and looks deep into Lina’s eyes. “Can we go to your bedroom now? I want to sleep in your arms tonight.”
Lina smiles softly, “Follow me.”
They both stand up and hand in hand they walk to Lina’s bedroom through a hallway from the warehouse to the house.
Lina lays down and opens her arms waiting for Ann to slide into them. She kisses the top of her head and whispers, “Tomorrow, we deal with Celine once and for all.”
Ann nods and yawns, “Together, we will do it. I want her out of my life for good.”
She snuggles impossibly closer to Lina and closes her eyes.
Chapter 21
Ann wakes up smiling, feeling Lina so close to her. She turns around and instantly Lina opens her arms allowing Ann to lay her head on her chest holding her close. Ann kisses Lina’s chest and closes her eyes again, “I love this feeling of waking up next to you.”
Lina smiles, “I love you and I love having you in my arms.”
They lay together in quiet contentment, neither one wanting to get up or move from their bed. Lina is stroking Ann’s arm, “I think I want to talk to Celine today.”
She can feel Ann stiffen immediately, “I don’t want to think about her or see her again.”
“I know, but she needs to be put in her place, and I want to be the person to do that.”
Ann lifts her head, “What do you mean? Please don’t hit her, I don’t think I could deal with that again.”
Lina laughs, “As tempting as that is, I’m not going to hit her, I’m going to talk to her.”
Ann isn’t convinced, “I want to be there when you do, I want to make sure to keep the peace.”
“You have to go to work and start mapping out my finished pieces and I am capable of being stern but fair.”
Ann pouts, “Why am I getting a bad feeling about this?”
Lina grins, “I have no idea what you mean. I do want you to talk to Celine and tell her that I want to talk to her for the article and you are to act like we have broken up.”
Ann sits straight up in the bed, “What are you going to do? I’m really not happy about this?”
Lina sits up and guides Ann against her, “I have an idea to send her a message that will be so clear she will leave us both alone for good. Just trust me, I’m not going to hit her, I’m just going to play her game.”
Ann quirks an eyebrow, “You are not coming on to her!”
Lina laughs and makes a vomit face, “Hell no! That’s not what I have in mind at all but honestly, it’s devious. She won’t know what hit her and will get the comeuppance she deserves.”
Ann groans, “I don’t think I want to know anymore. Just, please be careful.”
Lina grins but looks serious, “How good an actress are you?”
Ann mumbles into Lina’s chest before nibbling her skin, “I will be as good as I have to be.”
Lina yelps and laughs at the cocky look on Ann’s face. She rubs the spot she bit and then leaps onto Ann taking her by surprise. They make love again before they finally drag themselves out of bed and start the day. Sophie knocks on the door and grins when she sees Ann answer the door, “Good morning, this is exactly what I was hoping to find and that hair of yours has that just fucked look, I dig it!”
Ann blushes and hugs her tight, “I know you’re teasing me, but I don’t care, thank you for helping us again get back on track.”
Sophie hugs her back, “It’s my pleasure, I just want the two of you to be happy. Honestly, you two being together stops the both of you be miserable grinches.”
Ann laughs heartily and slaps her on the back. Lina comes to see what all the laughter is about and sees her best friend and her girlfriend laughing together. “It’s nice to see you both laughing. I’m glad you stopped by, Sophie, you can give Ann a lift to work, and help her with selling the performance of us being broken up.”
Sophie looks shocked, “You’re broken up?”
Ann laughs, “No, we aren’t broken up, but Lina wants to pay Celine back.”
Sophie quirks her eyebrow, “Oh, I like that can I help, she needs payback for what she put you through. How can I help?”
Lina grins, “Just drop Ann to work and make sure to console her in front of Celine.”
Ann interjects, “How are you so confident that she will be there, for all you know she may lay low and not come by until tomorrow or the day after.”
Lina puts her arm around Ann, “She is like an arsonist, she lit the flame and wants to watch it burn. She will want to see her handy work, and you will pretend you have no idea why or what happened. She will eat it up and won’t have a clue about what I have planned for her.”
Ann shakes her head, “Oh damn, there’s that bad feeling again.”
“It will be fine, and we will have fun, you will see.”
Sophie shepherds Ann out of the door, “She will be okay, and Celine will get burned and learn a valuable lesson.”
Ann bows her head, “Fine, I will see you later.”
Lina smirks and steps in front of Ann, “I don’t get a kiss goodbye? I’m hurt, I tell you that I love you last night and already you are leaving without a kiss. Our honeymoon period didn’t last long.”
She pouts and gives Ann her puppy dog eyes making Sophie snicker watching the two of them. Ann pulls Lina into her, kissing her hard and passionate. She leaves Lina breathless and can tell by the look in her eyes that she wants more. Sophie coughs to get Lina’s attention and reminds her that she is still in the room with them. “I think we should go and Lina, you should go and have a cold shower.”
Lina sticks out her tongue at Sophie and kisses Ann softly, “Hurry back here after work, I miss you already.”
Sophie rolls her eyes, “You don’t miss her already, you’re horny and want to jump her bones.”
Ann laughs out loud, “It’s okay, Sophie, I feel the exact same way.”
Sophie tuts, “Oh jeez, well you can drive with your head out of the window and get those eyes nice and red to show Celine you’ve been up crying all night.”
Ann shakes her head, “Damn, that’s harsh, let’s go.”
She drags Sophie out the front door hearing the cackling laugh of Lina behind her.
∞ ∞ ∞
Ann arrives to work and refuses to get out of Sophie’s car, “I don’t want to go in there, I hate her for what she did, all I want to do is smack her so hard. Ugh! She just drives me so mad.”
Sophie turns in her seat, “She is an obnoxious, callous woman, who takes pleasure in playing with people’s hearts. She deserves to be brought down a peg or two. Trust Lina, whatever she has planned will put her in her place, and both of you will be rid of her for good.”
Ann puffs out her cheeks, “I just hate that she was able to play me again. I thought after all of this time I was smarter and would be able to stand up to her shenanigans.”
“Ann, you did stand up to her, you told her you weren’t interested in her. You shocked her, and the only way she thought she could hurt you was answering your phone behind your back. She knows that you have changed, you would have never said no to he
r before. You have the girl and you are setting up your ex for a fall that has been well past her due date.”
Ann smiles, “I didn’t think about it that way. I am playing a big part in getting her back. I think I like that thought. Okay, let’s do this.”
Sophie gives her a hug, “Now, bring on those waterworks let’s see what you have.”
Ann laughs, and Sophie folds her arms, “I’m sorry do you not know what waterworks are? It involves tears, not laughter.”
Ann rolls her eyes, “Damn, you’re so sarcastic, get out of the car and go inside, let’s see if she is here first.”
They get out of the car and are no sooner inside the door when they spot Celine strutting around as if she owned the place. Ann grinds her teeth, “She’s despicable.”
Sophie spies Celine coming towards them grinning and pulls Ann into her arms, “It will work out, I will talk to her today and hopefully by the time you finish work you will both be back together.”
Ann starts to sob making Sophie giggle but clears her throat in time. Celine looks at them both in concern, “Ann, what’s the matter, why are you crying?”
Ann sobs louder and clings to Sophie, whose eyes widen at her overdramatic performance. “Ann is upset, Lina broke up with her last night.”
Ann starts howling and Celine places her hand on her chest, “Oh my God, that’s awful. Why? What happened?”
Ann lifts her head, “I don’t know, she just said I could have you and slammed the door on my face.”
Celine is shocked and shakes her head, “I’m a happily married woman, where would she get an idea that we were getting together.”
Ann screams and throws her arms up in the air, “Exactly, it makes no sense.”
She hides her head back in Sophie’s shoulder, her body shaking. Sophie is impressed by her performance and soothes her. “Lina is just sleep-deprived, she has been working so hard on this project. She has always been a jealous person and knowing you were having dinner with an ex probably played mind games with her. I will talk to her and it will be okay.”
Celine is trying her best not to smile seeing how broken up Ann is. “Maybe I should go and talk to Lina. I can explain to her that our relationship is one hundred percent professional and that she has nothing to worry about?”
Ann sniffles and turns her head to look at Celine, “You would do that? For me?”
Celine grins, “Of course, I would do anything I can to help you. I hate to see you like this. I will straighten all of this out for you.”
Sophie smiles sweetly and through gritted teeth, “That is so kind of you, Celine.”
“Where can I find her? I will get my purse and go over there right away.”
Ann runs off, “I can’t do this right now, I’m sorry.”
She leaves Sophie with her mouth open staring after her. Celine steps beside her, “Are you sure she is okay to be here? She looks a mess.”
“She will be okay, she is a professional and will have a little cry and then come out and do her job.”
Celine nods not convinced, “So, can I have Lina’s address so I can try and patch up this misunderstanding.”
“You really are a sweet person, you care about Ann, still don’t you?”
“Of course, I do, I feel it’s my duty to help with this after all the hurt I caused when we broke up.”
Sophie nods her head, “Give me your phone and I will put in the address to your GPS map. I will call Lina and let her know you are on the way.”
Celine hands over her phone to Sophie, “I am just going to go and check on Ann, I don’t want to leave without checking on her first.”
Celine walks away leaving Sophie with her phone, “Now this is a mistake, leaving me your phone, should I be nice, or should I be like you?”
She grins to herself and quickly punches in a number to her own phone. She looks up and smiles as she sees Celine coming back. “How is Ann?”
Celine hides her smirk poorly, “She has locked herself in one of the bathroom stalls and begged me to fix this for her.”
Sophie hands Celine back her phone with the route saved into it. “I think I should come with you and get Lina to see you so that you have a chance to talk.”
“That won’t be necessary, I will get her to talk to me, and then we can put this sorry mess behind us, and Ann and Lina will be happy again.”
“You really don’t know Lina, she isn’t one to talk if she isn’t in the mood. I really think you need me.”
Again, Celine refuses, “I will try and if I fail, then I can always get you to grease the wheels the next time. I want to do this.”
She doesn’t give Sophie a chance to say anything else strutting off waving her hand to her. Sophie shakes her head, “I will give it to you, you are definitely full of shit, but let the games begin.”
She looks at her phone and smirks, calls the number and waits for the answer, “Hi, my name is Sophie, I need to talk to you about Celine.”
Chapter 22
Celine stops by her hotel and changes into a very low-cut top and the jeans that barely fit her anymore. She looks in the mirror and fixes her makeup and smiles at herself. “Not bad, Celine, not bad at all. Let’s see how the wonderful Lina reacts to this beautiful woman.”
She leaves the hotel to varying degrees of appreciation, she loves the attention and swings her hips even more. She gets into her car and sets off towards Lina’s workshop. She can’t stop smiling and every so often starts to laugh, “I can’t believe how easy it was to break them up. I thought I would have had to work harder than that. Now, Ann is a snivelling mess just like I left her five years ago. She never changes and is still so easy to manipulate. I made myself queasy acting so sweet and nice and she fell for it. I should have been an actress. I can only imagine how upset Lina is and how much she will need a shoulder to cry on. I will be there for her and console her in the best way I know how.
She laughs again and takes the turn advised from the GPS, as she drives up the driveway she is impressed by the warehouse and the house. She whistles, “Not bad for someone who has never had her work shown. I can change that, I will make Lina a star and she will be on her knees in thanks and appreciation of me. Game face on Celine, let’s go.”
She parks up her car sits a little longer fixing her hair and pushes her breasts so that they are in the best position to be seen and appreciated. She gets out and struts confidently to the warehouse. She bangs on the door and waits for it to be opened. She hears loud music and banging, she huffs and bangs the door again. She still doesn’t get an answer and starts to get agitated. She bangs and kicks the door and finally hears the music being turned off and in seconds the door swings open. Lina glares at Celine, “What the hell do you want?”
Her tone is gruff, and her hair is matted with sweat from her work. Celine’s mouth opens and closes with nothing coming out. Lina asks her again, “Well? What are you doing here?”
Celine shakes herself and puts on her sweetest smile, “I need to talk to you about Ann. You have it all wrong and I can help.”
Lina smirks, “You can help me? Why the hell would I want that when you are the one to blame for all of this?”
Celine isn’t put off by the tone and again tries to wrangle her way inside. “Lina, I know you’re hurting and for that, I am so sorry. All I want is a chance to explain and then if you don’t like what you hear I will leave.”
Lina cocks her head to the side, “You can explain everything? This should be good, come in.”
Celine smiles brightly and walks past Lina into the warehouse. Lina smirks and mumbles to herself, “This is going to be fun.”
She follows Celine and watches as she looks around. She doesn’t speak for a moment or two while Celine walks around. “Okay, you have my attention, what do you want to say?”
Celine’s voice is full of wonder, “These are incredible, you are incredible. Each piece is unique and flawless. I have never seen anything so beautiful. You need to get these seen and have
them appreciated.”
“Yeah, well, that isn’t going to happen now. I’m withdrawing from the project I can’t work with Ann, let alone see her.”
Celine tries to hide the smirk, but Lina catches it. “Lina, Ann doesn’t know how to appreciate the finer things in life…”
Lina’s phone starts to ring much to Celine’s annoyance, “Ignore it, it’s probably Ann.”
Lina cocks her head to the side and looks at her phone, “It’s Sophie, she has been worried about me, I was horrible to her last night. I need to apologise.”
Celine watches as Lina answers the phone and purses her lips and mutters a curse. Lina starts to pace, “Sophie, I’m better, I promise. I’m just in the warehouse working, you know how that relaxes me. Of course, I’ll be here for the rest of the day. No, I don’t want to see her, I told you it’s done…yes…no…really…okay bye, Sophie.”
She hangs up the call and turns to face Celine who has made herself comfortable on the Santa chair that has been completed. “I can’t believe I’m letting you in here, I must have gone soft. Do you want tea or coffee?”
Celine smiles, “Tea, would be lovely and I know I’m the last person you want to see but I really need to talk to you. As I was saying before your call, Ann doesn’t know the finer things when she sees them or has them.”
Lina looks over her shoulder and eyes Celine suspiciously, “Milk or sugar?”
Again, Celine is taken off guard, “Um, milk and two sugars, thank you.”
Lina nods, “You know, Ann came here all guns blazing the first time I met her. She was feisty and knew what she wanted. She didn’t like that I didn’t see things her way, but she never gave up. She fought for the project and she fought for me, I really liked that about her. She has this exterior to fit the role she has at work but underneath it, she is just a woman who loves what she does. She has a huge heart…” She sobs and hides her face from Celine, muffling her words, “I thought she did anyway.”
Celine gets up and rushes over to Lina holding her, “Oh my sweet Lina, you will be okay, I’m here.”
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