“It doesn’t really matter. Maybe they’ve just asked because you’re not married or serious about anyone.”
“Yeah, maybe. But that doesn’t explain Colin.” Nothing explained Colin. That was probably worth thinking about. Some time. Later.
A few seconds passed, and when Laurie didn’t elaborate, Kaatje said, “You didn’t seem surprised when I told you about my girlfriend leaving me. Did you guess I was gay?”
“Yeah, I thought you were. I work with a lot of gay people, and I can usually tell. My friends tell me I’m one of the few straight women who can almost always pick out lesbians.”
“Maybe that’s why people ask about your sexuality. Maybe they think it takes one to know one.” Kaatje grinned, looking so pretty Laurie had pull her close to kiss her seriously.
Their kisses, growing in intensity and fire, continued until their bodies were entwined. “I like this very, very much,” Laurie breathed, her voice heavy with lust. “No wonder men are sex crazed.” She kissed her again. “We should have sex again, don’t you think?”
With a very seductive grin, Kaatje nodded. “Fantastic idea.”
“I’ll do my best to give you an orgasm or two, then we can conk out.”
“I’ve got a few things to do before I can sleep, but I’ve never refused an orgasm.” Her bright eyes were twinkling, and she looked happy, relaxed and expectant.
“Let me see how involved in this lesbian sex-exploration program I can get.”
“That’s a good idea.” Kaatje stroked her hair as Laurie started to move down her body. “This is one of my favorite views. The top of a woman’s head. Better than a perfect sunset.”
Kaatje was obviously trying to lighten the mood by making a joke, but it didn’t cut the tension. Laurie was as nervous as she’d been the first time she’d had sex, and she knew it was blatantly obvious.
She had fourteen years of experience, but she felt like a raw rookie, unsure of how or where to move, what or when to do it. She tried to still her racing heart and concentrate on what Kaatje had done to her, but she was terrified she’d put her mouth on her and gag or pull away. The first time she’d given oral sex to a boy, she’d held her nose under the covers, sure the taste would make her sick. But she reminded herself that she got over that response and eventually became pretty good at giving head. She had to admit she’d never, ever liked it, and was fairly sure this would be more of the same. Bodily fluids and odors weren’t her thing, but you had to be fair. If you loved getting, you had to give in return.
Kaatje had gone down on her with enthusiasm and what seemed like real pleasure. She pushed on, kissing her way down Kaatje’s lean, muscular body, without a sheet to cover her if she were inept. She stopped at her abdomen, amazed at the tight muscles she found there. In a way, it reminded her of her first boyfriend’s body. He’d been a swimmer and she’d loved to tease his hard belly with kisses, always taking her time to get to where he wanted her to go.
But with Kaatje, a few inches below the muscle was a woman’s belly, soft and smooth, with none of the wiry hair most men had. Kaatje encouraged her, stroking her head, keeping a hand on her shoulder. She didn’t push or urge her on. She just touched her, letting her know she wasn’t alone.
As Laurie got closer to her target she could detect the first hint of a scent. It was strangely pleasant—clean and just a little musky. Intrigued, she kept kissing her way further down, now lingering on the remarkably soft skin at the very tops of her thighs. She started to get into it, spurred on by the way Kaatje moved under her, twitching and shivering when Laurie kissed a particularly sensitive spot.
Without thinking, she opened her with her thumbs and delicately touched her pink folds, amazed at their complexity. Kaatje was unable to stay still. She moved her hips around, blindly searching for Laurie’s mouth. Instinctively, Laurie touched her with just the tip of her tongue, amazed at the incredible softness of her skin. It’s just skin, she reminded herself. I can do this. Emboldened, she ran her tongue from bottom to top, ending at the bright pink nub of Kaatje’s clit. The reaction was immediate and intense. Kaatje’s entire body shivered roughly, blatantly showing her need. Laurie had to slake that need, had to show Kaatje that she could adapt. She would be good at this. Steeling herself, she dove in, plunging her tongue right into the small opening that flicked open and nearly closed.
Kaatje grabbed at her shoulders, holding her close while she groaned in pleasure.
Laurie was smiling, proud of her nerve and overwhelmingly pleased at her own reaction. None of the off-color jokes she’d heard over the years were true. There was nothing off-putting about the experience. In fact, she began to feel a heady burst of power when she saw how much control she had over Kaatje’s pleasure. She played with her, keeping one hand on her belly to be better able to feel her twitch and quiver. She ran her tongue over Kaatje’s hot skin, trying to make her groan, make her gasp, make her shiver with need. It was remarkably easy. Kaatje was very responsive and couldn’t seem to stop herself from making near-constant vocalizations. It was like being guided where to pet a cat based on her purring.
Laurie slipped a finger inside and moaned her own sweet pleasure at the sensation. This was the warmest, smoothest, slickest part of a woman she could imagine. She could have grasped Kaatje’s very heart with her hand, and it made her feel incredibly close to her. In awe of how tender and intimate this was, she chided herself for ever thinking that she’d been close to other lovers. This was a whole new level of connection, and she was elated by it. I can be close! Colin was wrong, wrong, wrong!
Buffeted by her feelings, she lost track of Kaatje. But she was brought back to their connection when Kaatje rasped out, “Slow your hand down. Just barely keep it moving.” She followed instructions, but moved her mouth faster and let her tongue flitter across Kaatje’s clit, just as she’d seen her touch herself. It was hard keeping her hand and mouth moving at vastly different paces, but she managed. Her desire to please Kaatje was incredibly strong, and she would have done nearly anything to make her happy.
With a strong thrust of her hips, Kaatje moaned through gritted teeth, “Fast. Harder. Don’t be afraid. Let me have it.”
Laurie pressed into her, moving her tongue as fast as it was capable of going. Then she pursed her lips around Kaatje’s clit and shook her head back and forth until she heard her cry out and felt her body gently push against her mouth, demanding just a little more pressure. Laurie gave it to her, nuzzling her mouth into Kaatje until she finally put her hands on her head and, whimpering softly, pushed her away.
Laurie watched her pussy twitch, her cunt opening and closing rapidly. Completely changed from its initial tint, the pink skin had turned a dark rose. Tentatively, she blew on it, making Kaatje laugh weakly. “No more. I need a minute.”
“I have a stopwatch. Fifty-five more seconds…”
“Come up here. I want to see you.”
“All right, but I want to come back down here as soon as I can.”
Smiling sweetly, Kaatje spent a moment gazing at Laurie questioningly. “Are you good?”
“Very good. I enjoyed the heck out of that.” She lay back and gazed up at the ceiling, unable to stop smiling. “Either you’re the sexiest person alive or I’m definitely bisexual.”
“Maybe both.” Kaatje chuckled when Laurie met her gaze. “Well, don’t rule out a strong possibility.”
Laurie gave her a kiss, lingering on her soft, full lips. “You’re right. You’re the sexiest person alive.” She lay back and mused, “I can’t tell you how much your body turns me on. It’s hard to describe, but the things that men most love…well, they aren’t my favorite things. They’re more like things I have to put up with or tolerate to get to the things I like.”
“Like feet?” Kaatje asked, straight faced.
“Yeah, exactly like feet.” She reached down and tweaked one of Kaatje’s nipples and felt it harden under her touch. “I think you could take a little more now.”
K
aatje put her hands on Laurie’s shoulders and held her still. “In a minute. You’ve fantasized about women. Yes?”
“Uhm…not really. Not much.” She shrugged, embarrassed.
“But my body turned you on. I assume you mean more than men’s bodies did.”
“Yeah. I think that’s true. It was softer and smoother and the whole thing was…gentler. I won’t wake up with bruises where we banged into each other.”
“But were you turned on by men’s bodies? Their big shoulders and things like that?”
“Uhm…sure. I guess. I…I’ve never seriously considered what I like about men.”
“And you’ve also never seriously considered you might be a lesbian.”
Her eyes were full of questions Laurie was sure she was too kind to ask. “Not really. I can’t explain it…” Please don’t make me keep talking about this.
Kaatje’s intent expression turned gentle and she placed a long, slow kiss on Laurie’s lips. “It’s not important.” After another soft, lingering kiss she added, “I’m really glad we’ve had today.”
It was hard not to cry at that empathic gaze. Partially to distance herself, she slid down her body again, keeping her eyes on Kaatje’s, which soon were suffused with desire. “I am too. And I’m gonna stay down here until I learn how to do this right.”
Kaatje laughed softly. “You know how I said you should be less obsessive? Forget that. Compulsivity is a virtue.”
Chapter Seven
THE SUN WAS just coming up when Laurie placed a few soft kisses on Kaatje’s bare back. Awake for almost an hour, she had taken a shower and brushed her teeth while she waited for Kaatje to wake. Now she was going over the astounding events of the previous day.
There was no way to explain this to anyone and have it make sense. The most vexing element was the fact that making love to Kaatje wasn’t a surprise, even though she could honestly swear she’d never had overtly sexual thoughts about a woman. The embarrassing part, the part she wouldn’t even tell her sister, was that she’d never had many overtly sexual thoughts about anyone. Her sex drive had always been mild, and had always been more passive than active. The men she’d been with wanted a lot of sex and she’d gone along, and she’d gotten a pretty good return on her investment. If a guy had been a good lover, she’d always been able to respond. Colin was good—probably very good. But Kaatje had given her more pleasure in a hour than Colin had in a month. There was something there. Something she couldn’t name or even think about in a concrete way. But after Osaka opened, she was going to spend a good, long time figuring it out. It was foolish to assume anything from one night. Perhaps Kaatje was some lesbian superwoman, and she’d never have as good a time with another woman.
The funny part was thinking about her mom. While she wasn’t the only person who’d chided her about the uncharted depths of her personality, she’d been the first. Her mom believed a person needed a great deal of introspection to live a fulfilled life, but Laurie had effectively proven her wrong. Introspection was fine if that worked for you, but you didn’t need to be like that to be happy. She’d gotten along great letting things happen and only thinking about them on an as-needed basis. She wasn’t going to change now. She’d had a great time having sex with a woman, and she hoped to do it again if the opportunity arose. That was enough time spent on the subject until the park opened.
She turned on her side to regard her bedmate. Kaatje seemed like the introspective type. But she obviously had a hedonistic streak that was very appealing. How wonderful must it be to let the tide and the wind be your main guides. No meetings, no committees, no chain of command. You saw a woman you found attractive, you took her out for a sail, and you made a play for her. On a weekday! That kind of freedom boggled the mind.
Kaatje lay there with the morning sun painting golden stripes across her shoulder and back. She looked peaceful, with not a furrow or a wrinkle on her tanned skin. Like she didn’t have a care in the world. That was something to envy. A stress-free life would bore her to death, but the thought of Kaatje’s independence was something she could learn to love. If only she were the owner and sole operator of Luxor, she’d be perfectly happy. All she needed was a few billion in seed money and she could easily have that. Ack! Enough about Luxor!
She reached out and touched the part of Kaatje’s back that the sun was warming. Her skin was ridiculously attractive. Soft as a child’s, but nothing else about her was child-like. She was a woman. A beautiful, sexy, warm woman who might like to rock the bed once more before they had to leave for the airport.
Thinking of the airport made Laurie’s stomach clench. As though the thought of flying frightened her. But that wasn’t true at all. Leaving Kaatje was upsetting her, but that made no sense. She could easily come back and visit her after the park opened. It would be time for another vacation, and this time she would go without Fernando’s help.
It was getting late. She touched Kaatje a little more firmly. Kaatje mumbled a small complaint, then shot up, staring at Laurie as though she were an intruder. “I was about to scream!”
“I’m sorry.” Laurie sat up too, then wrapped her arms around Kaatje and hugged her. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”
Kaatje sat up taller and swiped the hair from her face, settling it over her shoulder. “I guess I’m used to being alone.” She reached for her watch on the shelf by her head. “What time is it?”
“Six thirty. Is that too early for me to wake you?”
She blinked a few times, then rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hands. “How long have you been up?”
“A while.”
Kaatje leaned over and kissed her tenderly. “You should have woken me the minute your eyes opened.” She laughed almost to herself, hopped out of bed and started to leave the room. “Don’t go away.”
A few minutes later, she was back, now clean and happy-looking. “We’ve got an hour to blow. Let’s make good use of it.” She jumped onto the bed and grasped Laurie in her arms, wrestling playfully until she had her pinned. “That didn’t take long. You don’t put up much of a fight.”
“I love to win, but I’d rather not waste time. I haven’t had sex in two years. Every minute counts.”
*
“I want to taste you again,” Kaatje grumbled an hour later as they got out of bed. “Not that I have any right to complain…”
“You know what you’re doing. I’m just learning.” Laurie grinned at her and leaned over to grab the duvet to help neaten up the bed. “I’ve never had sex that was that…easy.”
“Easy? That’s a funny word for sex.”
“Maybe it’s not the right one, but it was great to be able to talk and have you tell me what you liked. I’ve never had a guy do that.”
Kaatje looked adorably confused. “They just let you guess?”
“No…well, yes, but that’s mostly because they’re in charge.”
“Hmm…I don’t think I’d like that.”
“I don’t mind that part, but the men I’ve been with have been pretty serious about the whole thing.”
“Sex is too important to be too serious about it. It’s got to be fun too.”
“Colin was a screenwriter. He saw the drama in everything.”
“I like movies, but only comedies.” Her eyes radiated playfulness when she grinned.
“I like your attitude. I’m not going to have sex with another person who isn’t into having fun.”
Kaatje intercepted her as she started for the main part of the cabin. How could simply being held feel this fantastic? But they had to go! There wasn’t time for getting all mushy.
“You can always come back to St. Maarten.”
“I’ll do that. After Osaka opens I’m going to finally take some planned vacation time. And next time it’ll be where I want to go.” She gave Kaatje a sweet, lingering kiss. “My next cruise will be on a much smaller boat with a much prettier captain.”
Smiling at her, Kaatje looked like she was going to say so
mething, then stopped. She finally said, “If you’re serious, I’d love to take you sailing. We could see five or six islands in a week.”
“Could you afford the time?”
“Yes, of course. High season is November through April, but other than that I can easily take a week…or a month. I don’t have to inform any Teddy Bears of my whereabouts.” She grinned slyly.
“Don’t remind me. We’d better get going. I want to be at the airport to try to get on that noon flight to St. Thomas, or I’m screwed again.”
*
They went out onto the deck and Kaatje started down the ladder at the back of the boat. “Where are we going?” Laurie asked, seeing nothing but pale turquoise water surrounding them.
“We’re swimming to shore.” Kaatje looked completely serious, and Laurie almost believed her until she heard her feet hit something that didn’t splash. She leaned over and saw Kaatje standing in a small, gray inflatable boat.
“Where did you hide that?”
“Here at my mooring.”
Laurie went to the stairs and let Kaatje help her into the boat. “I thought your mooring was at the big, concrete thing.”
“No, that’s where I pick up some of my clients. I dock here in Simpson Bay.” She pulled a cord roughly, with her whole body getting into the movement. The engine roared to life and she sat down and started to guide the boat, while pointing at the dozens of sailboats surrounding them. “Doesn’t this look different?”
“Uhm, I wasn’t paying much attention, but I guess it does. Did we come back here last night?”
“Yeah. You were asleep, but we definitely did.”
She reached over and patted Kaatje’s leg. “Sorry about that. I should have helped you.”
“Not much to do. I just had to grab the mooring ball. I’ve learned to do it alone.”
“I slept through that? You must have been walking around right over my head.”
“I take that as a compliment.”
“You should. I’ve never conked out like that with…someone new.” She was going to say “a stranger,” but realized how cold that would have sounded.
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