by Cara Malone
“Was it worth losing a little sleep?” she asked.
“I haven’t lost any sleep yet,” Krys said. “If it wasn’t for the wedding, I’d probably be finishing a late shift at the clinic about now and wouldn’t even get home for another hour and a half.”
“I saw you checking your pager all night, you know,” Darcy said. “Were you hoping Russell or the hospital would call and give you a reason to escape?”
Krys expected to hear judgment in her voice, or disappointment. Instead, Darcy just looked curious and it disarmed Krys.
“Maybe a little bit,” she admitted. The truth was that she’d brought her pager with her even though she wasn’t on call because she found it hard to go anywhere without it, and the possibility of being called away to save lives was like a safety blanket in case things got too intense with Darcy. But sometime between the cake cutting and the bouquet toss, Krys forgot all about the pager in her purse and she started to really enjoy every moment with Darcy. “But now I’m glad they didn’t call.”
“Me, too,” Darcy said.
Krys allowed herself to walk a little closer to Darcy. She smelled faintly of a sweet cologne and when the wind picked it up, Krys inhaled deeply. It was more intoxicating than the glasses of wine she’d had at the reception and it emboldened her.
“What would you be doing right now if it wasn’t for the wedding?” she asked.
“Hmm… well, my dad’s flying somewhere over the Midwest right now, which means I’d be alone in the house,” Darcy said. “It’s about ten-thirty, so I’d probably be doing something horribly exciting like watching late-night talk shows with Harvey curled up on my lap.”
“Aww, he probably misses you,” Krys said. “I’ve been stealing you away from him a lot lately, between the wedding and the clinic hours – not to mention the quarantine.”
“Yeah, he told me while I was getting ready this afternoon that he hates your guts,” Darcy said with a shrug, and Krys bumped her shoulder into Darcy’s.
“No, he doesn’t,” Krys said.
“Yeah, actually – he does,” Darcy said. She was grinning now, unable to conceal her smile as she added, “He said under absolutely no circumstances should I invite you back to the house for a nightcap because he’s liable to knock you down and slobber you into submission.”
Krys glanced at Darcy, her olive skin glowing in the artificial light of the street lamps. She arched an eyebrow and asked, “Is that an invitation?”
“It is, but I don’t see how you could possibly accept it,” Darcy teased. “Between my vicious golden retriever and your ER shift – it would be reckless.”
“And you know I don’t do reckless,” Krys said, nodding in agreement.
They’d reached the spot where her truck was parked against the curb and Darcy opened the door for Krys. She helped her step up into the cabin, then walked around and climbed into the driver’s seat.
“Where to, my lady?” Darcy asked.
For a moment, Krys couldn’t answer. It was such a silly problem to have – the responsible thing would be to go home and get a few hours of sleep before her shift, but everything in her was begging to choose the other path and go on an adventure that would lead her to Darcy. Was this what foolhardy young love felt like? She never knew because she’d always been too busy for it.
“Your place,” she said, excitement bubbling up in her chest as she gave in to impulsivity. “Sounds like I need to meet Harvey and let him know who’s boss.”
“Oh, Harvey is always the boss,” Darcy said. “You better get that right before we get there.”
Krys laughed and slid across the bench seat, using the middle seatbelt so she could sit as close to Darcy as possible and link their hands together as she drove.
Darcy lived in a quiet neighborhood halfway between Evanston and Chicago. It would only be about a fifteen-minute drive to get Krys home in time for a little sleep before her hospital shift. They pulled into the driveway of a cream-colored ranch around eleven o’clock and Krys’s heart skipped a beat as she did a quick calculation of how much time she could afford to spend here and realized there was nothing pulling her away.
“Home sweet home,” Darcy said as she cut the engine.
The lawn was meticulously landscaped and there were large evergreens providing privacy between the evenly spaced houses on the street. Darcy and Krys were the only two people out so late at night and many of the other houses were dark. It was peaceful and the air felt heavy with possibility at the same time.
As Krys got out of the truck, not waiting for Darcy to come around and open her door, she asked, “Is this where you grew up?”
“No,” Darcy said. “My parents split up when I was in high school. My dad, brother and I moved here after the divorce.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Krys said. “That’s sort of unusual, isn’t it? The kids choosing to live with their dad?”
“My mom and I weren’t getting along at all back then,” Darcy said. Then she snorted and said, “We still aren’t. I haven’t spoken to her in close to a decade. So for me, living with Dad was a no-brainer, and my brother is two years older than me. He’d just got accepted to Northwestern at the time and our mother lives on the other side of Chicago, so it just made sense for him to move here – free room and board.”
She held out her hand and Krys took it. The gesture seemed a little more intimate now that they were away from the rest of the wedding crowd.
“Does your brother have a relationship with her now?” Krys asked.
“Yeah,” Darcy said. “But I don’t want to talk about my mom right now. I’d much rather introduce you to my best friend, since you were kind enough to share your friends with me all night.”
Krys slid her arm around Darcy’s waist as they went up the brick walkway to the house. “They all liked you, I think.”
“I liked them, too,” Darcy said. “Now let’s see what Harvey thinks of you. If he’s not a fan, you’ll have to hit the road.”
Krys laughed, and it was silly but she actually felt a little nervous as Darcy slid her key into the lock on the front door. As soon as she pushed it open, though, a golden retriever leaped up and put his paws on Darcy’s stomach. He wagged his tail and stuck his tongue out, obviously eager to see her after a night alone in the house.
When he noticed Krys standing beside her, he let out a friendly bark.
“Shhh, Harvey, you’re going to wake the neighborhood,” Darcy chastised. She pushed him gently back into the living room and Krys followed, closing the door behind her.
Darcy turned on a lamp, lighting the room. It was a little dated, with shag carpeting and orange-toned wood trim around the doors and windows. The living room looked like a blast from the seventies, but it had been cozily decorated.
“Welcome to my dad’s bachelor pad,” Darcy said. “I keep telling him it’s time for new furniture but he’s not here often enough to bother.”
“It’s cozy,” Krys said. “Reminds me of my parents’ house.”
“Sometimes it’s cozy,” Darcy said. “Other times it would feel pretty empty if it wasn’t for Harvey.”
“I understand that,” Krys said. “I feel the same way about my apartment, only without the dog.”
As if on cue, Harvey barked again and made a little jump for Krys. Darcy caught him by the collar and kept him from putting his paws on her dress, but Krys dropped to her knees to pet him.
“Hey there,” she said. “I hear we may need to do battle for Darcy’s attention, and now that I’ve met you, I’m a little nervous. You’re pretty darn cute.”
“He knows it,” Darcy said with a laugh. She crouched down beside Krys and they both pet Harvey for a couple of minutes while she told Krys about how Harvey came to be in the Cosgrove family. “My dad just came home with him one day – the chubbiest little puppy you ever saw. I think he felt guilty that I’d picked him over mom and he couldn’t be here all the time because of his work at the airline, and Harvey was supposed to keep
me company. He’s always done that and he didn’t miss a beat when I came back from my deployment. I was gone for so long, I figured he’d forget about me and just be my dad’s dog by the time I came home.”
“He knows who loves him, though,” Krys said, patting the broadness of Harvey’s head and his soft, floppy ears. Then she smiled and said, “So what’s the verdict? Does he hate my guts?”
“Nah, I think he likes you,” Darcy said. She stood, taking Krys’s hand to help her up as well, then added, “And if Harvey approves, then I know I found a good one.”
She excused herself to go into the kitchen and retrieve a biscuit for him – perhaps a little bit of bribery for being such a good wingman – and Krys stood in the center of the living room with Harvey sitting obediently by her side.
She wondered what came next. It had been a long time since she’d last found herself in another woman’s house late at night, and her mind went habitually back to her pager.
Maybe somebody needs me somewhere. The clinic’s closed, but the ER can get busy at night on the weekends.
Her heart started beating faster as adrenaline began flowing through her veins and Krys knew what she had to do. She silenced the fearful voices in her head and followed Darcy into the kitchen.
She was just coming out with a dog biscuit in her hand, and she stopped abruptly when she saw Krys in the doorway, letting out a little yelp of surprise.
“I’m sorry,” Krys said. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“That’s okay,” Darcy said. She took a few more steps toward Krys, the look in her eyes shifting from surprise to delight as she asked, “Did you need something? A glass of water, a nightcap?”
Krys just shook her head. With her heart pounding in her ears and her stomach in her throat, she asked, “Why did you really invite me here?”
A smile spread across Darcy’s whole face as she said, “I told you – I always put out on the third date. It’s a rule.”
Then, reading the desire in Krys’s eyes, she tossed the dog biscuit onto the counter and wrapped her arms around Krys’s waist. She spun her around and pressed her up against the opposite counter, kissing her with the unrestrained passion that Krys had been craving.
14
Darcy
Krys’s body had such wonderful curves.
They felt amazing when they were pressed up against Darcy’s body. Their hips connected as Darcy pinned Krys against the counter and felt her body reacting to every touch. This was a moment she’d guiltily imagined many times since they first met and a part of her wondered if it would ever happen.
Krys certainly didn’t leave a lot of room in her life for unplanned moments like this, and the whole time she was driving to her dad’s empty house, Darcy kept expecting her to change her mind, or turn into a pumpkin and say it was time to go home.
Now that she had her in her arms, Darcy planned to enjoy every second of it. She groaned and licked Krys’s lower lip, then nibbled it lightly and said, “You taste like honey.”
“And you taste a bit like peach tea,” Krys said, running her finger over Darcy’s lower lip. Every caress of her fingertips made Darcy’s skin tingle. She pressed her body against Krys, wrapping her arms around her and sliding them down her backside to hold her close.
Krys took Darcy’s head in her hands and brought their mouths together again. Their tongues explored each other, and then Darcy slid her hand up the outside of Krys’s thigh. Her fingers found the soft, silky hem of her dress and she hesitated there, waiting to see if Krys would push her away.
To her surprise – and her intense arousal – Krys took Darcy’s hand and brought it around the front of her thigh, then pressed it between her legs. Darcy found warmth there, and wetness through the thin fabric of Krys’s panties. Darcy had to close her eyes against the intensity of the sensation. Fireworks went off behind her eyelids and Krys’s body throbbed against her hand.
“Are you trying to kill me?” Darcy groaned, burying her face momentarily in the crook of Krys’s neck.
“No,” Krys answered breathily into Darcy’s ear. “I am trying to fuck you, though.”
Darcy exhaled loudly, her breath ragged, then sank her teeth into Krys’s neck, resisting the strong urge to bite down. She swirled her tongue over her skin and then ran it up Krys’s neck, nibbling her ear. Krys arched her back and moved her hips against Darcy’s hand.
Krys moaned, straining against Darcy and wanting to give in to the passion of the moment. She obviously wanted to go fast and Darcy wanted it, too, but she was having too much fun enjoying all the different sensations that Krys was awakening in her. She wanted this moment to last.
She took her hand away, sliding it upward and eliciting a visible shudder as her fingertips grazed Krys’s clit on the way up to her pubic bone. Then Darcy slowly peeled Krys’s panties down her thighs. When they got to her knees, Krys let them drop to the floor, stepping out of them but staying in her heels. Darcy ran her hand up Krys’s long leg, sliding it up the back of her dress and cupping her round behind.
Then she spun Krys around to face the cabinets and planted her hands on the counter. She stepped closer so that her body was pressed against Krys, their curves nestled together. Darcy ran her hands up Krys’s arms and whispered into her ear, “You have no idea how many times I imagined doing this while I watched you fly around the clinic like a superhero. You’re incredible.”
“I thought about it, too,” Krys breathed as Darcy’s hands continued their journey over her breasts and then down her flat stomach.
She put one hand between Krys’s legs, touching her through the fabric of her dress. Krys moved against her and Darcy couldn’t resist the urge to roll her hips against the roundness of her behind. She kissed the back of Krys’s neck, then when she felt she’d teased both of them enough, she unzipped the dress and slipped it down Krys’s shoulders.
It felt into a silky pile on the floor and Darcy made short work of the strapless bra she found beneath it, letting that fall away, too.
Then she took Krys’s shoulders and turned her slowly around again. Her breasts were perfect and full, her nipples a soft pink that made Darcy wet just imagining her tongue rolling over them. She allowed Krys to unbutton her vest and undo the first couple buttons on her shirt, but that was as far as she let her go.
She wanted this to be all about Krys, at least for now.
Darcy stepped back to admire her body. Krys’s hips were wide and supple, and a small tuft of dark hair on Krys’s pubic bone made a siren call to her.
“You’re so beautiful,” Darcy breathed. Then before Krys had a chance to respond, she grabbed her by the hips and lifted her onto the counter. Krys opened her legs to beckon her closer and the sight of her glistening perfection was almost too much to take. Darcy felt a powerful desire building in her core, her own body aching for release.
Krys let out a surprised, excited cry when Darcy pulled her to the edge of the counter and their hips connected. Then she wrapped her arms around Darcy’s shoulders and kissed her, their tongues coming together while her hips sought Darcy.
Darcy put her hand on Krys’s cheek, caressing it softly before allowing her fingers to trail downward over her neck and collar bone, and then to the impossible softness of her breast. She wrapped her other arm around Krys’s waist and enjoyed the waves of pleasure that rippled all the way from her core into the back of her head as Krys moved her hips urgently against her.
Finally, Darcy slid her hand into the narrow space between them.
She put her palm against Krys’s wetness, sliding her fingers up and down through it and making her cry out at the touch. She found her clit, hard and wanting, and lingered on it. The moment she found it, Krys melted against her, putting her head in the crook of Darcy’s neck and kissing her as her body moved of its own accord.
“Good?” Darcy asked with a grin.
“Yes,” Krys said, although she could barely get out the word. That alone – watching Krys’s reaction to her t
ouch – was almost enough for her. She just needed one more thing.
Darcy kissed Krys, then slowly went down to her knees. On her way down, she kissed both of Krys’s nipples, vowing to come back and spend a significant amount of time on her breasts in the future, when they weren’t both so desperate for release.
They were small and firm in her mouth and when she swirled her tongue around the first one, Krys reacted so strongly Darcy thought she might fall off the counter. She grabbed the edge of the laminate and Darcy wrapped her arms around Krys’s waist to hold her still, then she gave her a mischievous look and repeated the move on her other nipple.
“Sensitive, huh?” she asked with a smile when she was done and Krys was practically bucking her hips with desire.
“Not usually like this,” Krys said, sounding a little out of breath. “You do things to me, Darcy.”
“And I’ve got a lot more to do,” Darcy answered. She took a quick detour back up to Krys’s mouth for one more kiss, then finally, she came to her knees on the kitchen floor. She parted Krys’s thighs a little wider, taking a moment to admire the beautiful, glistening folds before her. She looked up at Krys, who was looking back at her with desperate anticipation.
Then Darcy brought her mouth to Krys, wrapping her arms around her hips as she licked and sucked on her clit and her wetness. It tasted even better than her lips and the scent of her desire drove Darcy mad with urgency. She stroked her tongue all the way up the length of her, swirling around her clit and feeling her own body react as she observed the first spasms of Krys’s pleasure.
She did it again, and then again, as slowly as she could bear it. Krys was so wet and Darcy lapped at her eagerly, utterly failing to take things slowly. Krys was leaning against the upper cabinets, her hand going to the back of Darcy’s head to guide her where she needed her the most. She put her mouth on Krys’s clit, sucking and licking in turns while Krys squirmed beneath her mouth and heightened Darcy’s own desire until she couldn’t take it anymore.