by Anna Vaughn
Now they were nearly at Laura’s apartment and she still didn’t know what Emma was thinking.
Once again, Laura had been surprised when Emma said that she’d be in town just two months after her last visit.
Each time Emma left, she’d tried not get her hopes up. It could be six months or more before she’d see her again but Emma kept coming back.
That had to mean something, right?
When they opened the door to Laura’s building, the air conditioning hit them giving them instant relief from the warm air outside.
Laura followed Emma into the elevator and pressed the button for the seventh floor. When she turned around, Emma was close to her… Closer than she needed to be.
Laura recognized that look and before she knew it Emma’s hand was wrapped around the back of her neck, pulling her in to a fiery kiss that she’d dreamt of for the last two months.
Emma’s lips parted against hers as she backed Laura up against the elevator wall, her other hand moving underneath Laura’s tank top.
Laura moaned softly into her mouth when their tongues met, both eager to pick up where they left off on Emma’s last visit.
When the elevator doors opened on the seventh floor, both of them were out of breath. Laura grabbed her hand and led her to the door which she swiftly unlocked.
Emma surprised her by backing Laura up against the door once they were both inside.
Laura closed her eyes as Emma leaned in to find her lips again, pressing them hard against hers.
Laura could feel herself getting wet already. Emma seemed to have this hold on her that she’d never experienced with anyone else.
She was falling for her with every kiss and Laura knew that there was nothing she could do about it. If she got her heart broken, so be it.
She moaned into Emma’s mouth as their tongues met. She could feel her clit throbbing against her shorts.
Emma broke the kiss, just for a few seconds, to lift Laura’s tank top over her head. She leaned in to meet Laura’s lips again, their tongues quickly finding one another in a passionate kiss.
In just a few seconds all of their clothes were scattered across the living room and Emma was straddling Laura’s waist as they sat on the couch.
They weren’t as rushed this time, both willing to tease the other more and draw out their pleasure.
Emma’s hands cupped Laura’s breasts as she rocked her hips against Laura’s hand.
Laura’s fingertips were pressed up against Emma’s swollen clit, moving in slow deliberate circles.
Laura could feel herself growing wet and Emma hadn’t even touched her yet. She tilted her head upwards and leaned forward to take one of Emma’s nipples in her mouth, biting down gently.
Emma bent down to find Laura’s lips, her tongue gliding across her bottom lip before meeting Laura’s.
Laura’s tongue danced with Emma’s as she slipped two fingers inside of her. Emma moaned into her mouth as her hips fell in to rhythm with her strokes.
Laura easily added a third. Emma was so wet.
Emma reached down and ran her fingertips along Laura’s slit before pushing three fingers inside while her hips still moved against Laura’s hands.
They both pumped their hands in and out furiously until Emma came first and then Laura’s orgasm pushed her over the edge seconds later.
Emma slumped against her, turning her head to find her lips and kissing her tenderly.
I could get used to this. Laura light ran her fingertips across Emma’s back as they both caught their breath.
Chapter 23
June 24th
Emma opened Laura’s refrigerator and refilled their glasses of orange juice. She was wearing the same clothes that she’d had on yesterday when they’d spent the day together in Malaga.
They’d had a wonderfully lazy morning in bed together and now she was sitting across from Laura finishing off the breakfast that she’d made for them.
Emma had to pinch herself. This was something that she never would have dreamed of and she knew that there was no going back.
Even if Laura didn’t want to get involved with her, this was it. This was the closest that Emma had ever been to really falling in love with someone.
Sitting across from her, Emma felt like they’d been dating for months. They were so comfortable with each other. This all seemed so normal even though it was far from it.
In reality they’d only spent a few days together over the course of three months.
Emma spent the morning running through possible ways of telling Laura how she felt. She had to say something. She needed to know where she stood.
If this was just a fling that happened every few months, she needed to decide if she was okay with that or if she needed to think about ending it and just being friends.
Emma almost laughed out loud at that thought. Friends. That could never happen after the nights they’d spent together.
“So, I’ve been thinking about expanding,” Laura said, interrupting Emma from her thoughts. “I have been for a while now actually.”
“Oh yeah?”
“I don’t want to create a chain of pubs but I’d like to own another bar. I’ve had my place for five years now and it’s been going really well… Better than I had imagined.”
“Do you have a location in mind?” Emma asked her.
“Yeah. There’s a place I’ve had my eye on for a few months in Benalmadena. One of my friends works in real estate and he thinks this place is going to be for sale soon. He said he can’t really give me any more details.”
“That sounds promising.”
“Yeah. He heard a rumour that the owners had been thinking of selling. I want to be ready to pull the trigger when it does come on the market. So, I wanted to ask you if your company could do the marketing,” Laura said.
Emma nodded while she tried to think of a way out of this without offending Laura. She could do it but she didn’t think that it’d be fair on her parents. She’d be helping the competition out.
Emma ran a hand through her hair. She should probably just tell Laura that her parents were in the same business.
“We should be able to work something out,” Emma said as she reached for her glass of orange juice.
“Great. It’s another Irish bar actually. Something with an ‘M.’ Morrison’s or Mulligan’s? I can’t remember the name of it. I have to check my emails.”
Emma almost choked on her drink when she heard what Laura said. She cleared her throat and left the glass down. “Murray’s?”
“Yeah. That’s it.”
Emma took a deep breath. The woman I’m falling for wants to take over my parent’s business. Perfect. “I think I’ve heard of it,” Emma managed to say. “Why does your friend think it’s going to be for sale?”
“I don’t know but he seems pretty confident that I could get it for a steal. I’m already thinking ahead to how I’ll rebrand it. That’s why I want your company’s help.”
Emma nodded. She couldn’t meet Laura’s eyes. “I better get going,” she said as she stood up.
“Really? Okay,” Laura said as she got up. “When did you say you were going back?”
“Next Thursday.”
“So, you’re around for another week?”
“Yeah,” Emma said as she got her bag. “I’ll give you a ring.”
Laura leaned in to kiss her goodbye but Emma turned so that she could only kiss her cheek.
“Bye,” Emma said as she got out of there as fast as she could.
She took the elevator down to the lobby and walked out onto the street. She got into a taxi that she flagged down and pulled out her phone. She hadn’t looked at it since yesterday evening.
There were eight missed calls from her mother this morning. Shit.
She quickly rang her mother back. “Hey,” she said when her mother answered. “Sorry I missed your calls.”
“Your father had a heart attack. We’re at the hospital.”
�
��What?” Emma asked as her heart pounded in her chest. She could hear the panic in her voice. “Is he okay?”
“He’s going to be fine. They put him on blood thinners after doing a few tests.”
“I’ll be right there,” Emma said before she hung up. She shook her head in disbelief. What a morning.
Chapter 24
July 2nd
The rain hit Emma’s office windows hard which wasn’t helping her concentrate. She went straight into work after she got back into Dublin that morning.
Her father had been taking it easy at home for the last week and she’d helped out however she could by cooking dinner or working in the bar.
They were going to have to hire some extra staff. The doctor warned her father that he’d been working too hard and that he had to start taking better care of himself.
Emma had turned her phone back on after her flight when she’d gotten into a taxi that morning and was on her way to the office. She had another missed call from Laura which wasn’t surprising.
She hadn’t returned any of Laura’s other calls or texts since she left her apartment over a week ago.
Emma decided that she was going to try and forget about her. It never would have worked out anyway.
Her life was there. Mine is here.
Hearing Laura talk about buying her parent’s pub upset her even though it shouldn’t have.
How would Laura have known that that was the very reason that she’d been in Spain in the first place, to save her parent’s business?
She should have told her. Even if she had, Laura probably would still be interested in the pub. It was just business and what was Emma to her? They weren’t dating.
It rattled her though… hearing the possibility that Murray’s could be for sale. Things were improving but it could still happen. A few positive months weren’t enough. The pub needed to consistently turn a profit each month if her parents wanted to keep it going.
Murray’s wouldn’t be for sale anytime soon though if Emma had anything to do with it.
Chapter 25
August 5th
“Laura, are you all set for the weekend? Laura?”
She turned to face Vicky, one of her bartenders. “Sorry. I was a million miles away.”
Laura tried not to think about Emma but it wasn’t easy. She’d tried to call her but she never answered. She could handle being dumped but she hated being ignored.
She just hoped that Emma was okay and that nothing had happened to her. She didn’t even know her last name or the name of the company she ran. All Laura had was her phone number and Emma refused to answer her calls.
“What’s this weekend?” she asked Vicky.
“I hope you’re joking.”
Laura continued wiping down one of the wooden tables. She had no idea what Vicky was talking about.
“It’s my hen!” Vicky said after a few seconds.
“Yeah. I haven’t forgotten,” Laura said even though she knew that she was convincing no one.
“Laura, you work too hard. You need to enjoy yourself more. We’re going to have some weekend. I heard Dublin’s nightlife is amazing.”
Laura stopped what she was doing. Dublin. When Vicky was booking the weekend away, Dublin hadn’t been significant. Laura had been there before. Now, her mind was going into overdrive.
Should she try and see Emma?
That would probably be crossing some sort of line…
I don’t want to be a stalker.
Laura went back to cleaning the tables.
But I need to know what happened…
Chapter 26
August 7th
Laura slammed the empty shot glass down on the bar and grimaced as the burning liquor moved down her throat.
“I’m going to get some air,” Laura said to one of the women she worked with. She stopped at the bar to get some water before heading outside.
Laura didn’t know when her vision had become foggy. She wasn’t used to drinking shots and it was catching up to her. The water was helping though.
The cool Irish summer air hit her as she stepped outside and dug her hand into her pocket to find some mints.
She’d be okay in a few minutes. She just couldn’t keep up with those women.
When did I get so old?
Laura glanced down the street to her left. She’d noticed a gay bar a few doors down when they moved pubs almost an hour ago.
Dublin wasn’t that big of a city and there were very few gay bars.
What were the chances of running into Emma?
It was a Friday night and after doing a quick Google search on her phone, Laura knew that this was Dublin’s biggest gay bar.
She took a deep breath. Fuck it.
Laura made the short walk to the bar. The hen party was getting a little crazy anyway and Laura didn’t think any of them would notice that she’d left.
I’m only going in for one drink… and to see if Emma’s there. Then I’ll be back with Vicky and the rest of the hen.
Laura climbed the stairs to the upstairs bar and ordered herself a bottle of beer. She needed something that was easy to drink after those shots.
It was almost midnight and the bar was crowded. She really doubted that she’d see Emma. Even if she did, there was a good chance that she was here with someone else and Laura didn’t think she could handle witnessing that.
She brought her bottle of beer to her lips and hoped that her plan wouldn’t backfire.
Chapter 27
Emma ordered another bottle of Corona as her friend, Liz, continued telling her about the perfect woman that she’d found for her. Emma somehow refrained from rolling her eyes.
No matter how many times she told Liz that she wasn’t interested in being set up, she always seemed to come up with another name and another reason why this woman would be perfect for her.
Her eyes moved across the crowd. They’d come upstairs a few minutes ago because this bar was quieter and they both needed another drink.
Emma’s eyes paused on a brunette. I have to stop doing this. Emma took another drink.
She kept mistaking random people for Laura. Every time she saw a woman that was about 5’5 with chestnut brown hair, her eyes lingered until that woman turned and she knew for sure that it wasn’t Laura.
I’ve lost my mind. Officially.
Then the woman turned and Emma couldn’t look away. She was staring at Laura.
Their eyes locked and Emma’s heart pounded in her chest as Laura started walking towards her. She swallowed hard.
She couldn’t even form any words to tell Liz that she’d be back in a second. She just left her drink on the table beside her and started walking towards Laura, forgetting all of the reasons why she thought that it would never work.
“Hey.” Emma was lost for words when Laura finally stood in front of her. She knew there was a good chance that Laura wouldn’t even give her a chance to explain since she just left without returning her calls.
“Hi…”
“Do you hate me?” Emma asked.
“I should but I don’t… I just don’t understand what happened…”
Emma ran a hand through her hair. “I got scared.”
She still didn’t want to bring up her parent’s bar. If Laura wanted it, she could have it but Emma was confident that it wouldn’t come to that. Things were improving for them and it looked like they wouldn’t need to sell.
Laura nodded and waited for her to continue.
“I was falling for you…” Emma finally confessed what had been on her mind for months. “And I didn’t know how it would work… how it could ever work. Your life is there and mine is here.”
“We could figure something out.”
“Is that what you want?”
“Yes,” Laura said simply.
“Because I thought you might just be interested in a casual thing…”
“That’s not my style.”
“It’s not mine either,” Emma said with a smi
le. “We should have had this conversation months ago.”
“I know. I didn’t want to scare you off though.”
“What are you doing here?” Emma asked.