They were filling gift bags for the donors that would be at the lunch. Keira had already done some herself earlier in the week but still had quite a few to put together. The gift bag items had been donations and had only arrived in the past couple of days. One of the items, an inexpensive step tracker that had been donated by a vendor, had only arrived that day and had to be inserted in the previously prepared bags as well. They’d worked out a system where Emma would open the bag and insert a few of the items before passing it to Keira, who would add the last one and then tie off the bag with the decorative ribbon she’d chosen.
“See? This is stuff I never would have thought to do,” Emma said after finishing her wine and picking up another bag to get started on it. “Maybe I would have thought about giving the donors bags, but I wouldn’t have thought to do all this. I had no idea that this was a part of what you had to do. I would have asked Mason to do this for you or something. He’s always asking me for more things to do.”
“It’s not something I’d do if I were at a big company, but it’s something I’ve never minded doing. Michelle and I used to really enjoy doing it, actually. We’d go shopping together for the supplies and then sit around one night and watch our favorite shows or something while we put them all together. Wine or sometimes harder booze was usually also involved.”
“Tell me more about her?” Emma asked.
Keira finished the bag she was working on and turned to see that Emma was definitely asking and not telling. The question left it up to Keira. Keira found that endearing.
“What do you want to know?”
“What was it like the first time you two met? I know you met at school, but how did it go?”
Keira laughed as she picked up one of the bags that Emma had already finished and placed between them to work on. She’d made sure their assembly line process included Emma placing her completed bags in between the two of them to help force the space Keira needed if she was actually going to get any work done tonight. It had gotten worse the more wine they’d consumed. Emma had always been sexy to her, but somehow, the alcohol in her bloodstream made Emma seem even sexier. Keira felt it in every part of her body, including in a place that was now incredibly uncomfortable. She’d considered going to her bedroom for a moment to change her underwear but hadn’t found the opportunity to make a quick exit and return without Emma getting suspicious. She couldn’t say she was going to the bathroom because the bathroom was off the dining area and not near enough to her bedroom to make it without questions. So, she’d dealt with the wetness that increased every time she saw Emma lean over to pick up more supplies. The t-shirt she’d put on to get more comfortable lowered just enough so that Keira could see the top of the breasts. When she tried to avoid that, she’d catch the small of Emma’s back. That hadn’t been much better.
“It was actually pretty funny. We kind of didn’t like each other that first day, or I guess for part of the day.”
“What happened?” Emma asked.
“We were randomly paired up by the university and only had one phone call before we got there to get things set up because she’d spent most of the summer in Haiti, building houses with Habitat for Humanity. She called me when she got back. It was awkward at best. Picture two eighteen-year-old girls that had never met trying to figure each other out over the phone. They’re about to be shoved into a tiny room for the next nine months.” Keira smiled and recalled that phone call. She’d been so nervous the moment Michelle had identified herself as her new roommate. “She told me she was bringing the mini-fridge. I told her I’d bring the microwave. When we got there, she also brought a microwave and didn’t have that mini-fridge.”
“What’s a college student to do without their mini-fridge? Where do you put all your contraband booze?” Emma joked.
“I was pretty much pissed when I found out. We didn’t need two microwaves. We didn’t have the room for one regular-sized microwave. The one I’d bought was the smaller size because I’d seen the size of the room, and the map the university sent over had the furniture layout indicating the bunk beds, dressers, and desks. I figured out the right size for the other things I’d bring, including the microwave. Michelle couldn’t even be bothered to do the same.”
“That bitch!”
“That’s what I thought.” Keira finished another bag. “Anyway, our parents told us to work it out and basically left us to our own devices. It was the first time I was actually on my own. I realized I had no idea what I was doing. I barely knew how to do my own laundry. I had no clue how to be a real adult.”
“I don’t know that any college freshman does,” Emma comforted.
“I guess not, but I got homesick almost right away. Michelle and I weren’t doing a lot of talking that night. The next morning, I suggested we go to the store and find a fridge. She apologized for the mistake and said she’d pay for it. On the way there, we got to talking over a song we both liked on the radio. She confessed that she was homesick already too. I felt like I wasn’t alone in that anymore. It made a difference, I guess. We both chipped in for the fridge. She gave the other microwave to the girls in a room down the hall that hadn’t brought one for themselves. We bonded after that, and she quickly became one of my best friends.”
“Then, you joined the sorority.”
“Yes, we joined the sorority,” Keira repeated.
“Do you still have any of those tank tops we were talking about earlier?” Emma passed her a bag and lifted an eyebrow.
“If we finish these bags in the next five minutes, you might get a chance to find out,” Keira tossed back.
Emma’s eyes went big. Her hands moved to the last few bags. She moved quicker now that she had a goal and passed the bags to Keira who moved to finish them just as quickly.
By eleven, the wine was gone. The bags were ready and piled neatly into boxes to be carried down to Keira’s car in the morning. Emma was more than exhausted. She knew she had to at least try to get some sleep before tomorrow morning.
“I’m exhausted. Are you ready for sleep?” Keira asked after returning the empty wine glasses to the kitchen and finding Emma on the floor with her head back against the sofa and her eyes closed. “I guess that answers my question.”
“I finished on time. I want to know about the tank top,” Emma stated with her eyes still closed.
She heard Keira laugh and registered that the sound was moving further away from her. She could barely lift her incredibly heavy head. She opened her eyes enough to see that Keira was gone. Emma’s tired brain assumed she’d gone back into the kitchen or maybe the bathroom, and her eyes closed again. A moment later, she felt a weight on her body. Her eyes snapped open and her head lifted up in time to watch Keira clad in a bright green, form-fitting tank top, with three Greek letters in pink and yellow, sit down in her lap with her legs on either side of Emma’s.
“I’m a woman of my word,” Keira whispered.
Emma gulped and stared straight ahead at the letters that covered the breasts beneath. She could see perky nipples peeking out, and realized that Keira was no longer wearing a bra. She’d also changed into incredibly short shorts that were the same shade of pink as the letters. When Emma glanced down, she noticed the same letters were on the shorts in green and yellow this time on one of the thighs in much smaller print. Then, she noticed the soft skin of the thigh and managed to find the words she’d been searching for.
“You look…”
Keira’s arms went around Emma’s neck. Emma looked up to the full lips and the tongue that slid out seductively to meet the bottom one and slowly glide across it before going back into her mouth. Emma wanted it to come out again. She wanted to pull it out herself and suck it into her own mouth. She wanted to take this woman to bed, climb on top of her, and throw the incredibly sexy tank top aside. She wanted the shorts off too. She wanted to touch her everywhere. She settled for her hands on Keira’s waist as their eyes remained locked.
“Is this okay?” Keira asked.<
br />
“I’m suddenly very awake,” Emma admitted and slid her hands to Keira’s back and under the shirt to feel the warm skin beneath.
“Yeah?” Keira leaned down slightly.
“Yeah.” Emma slid her hands up higher onto her back, and she watched as Keira’s eyes closed with the touch and reopened a darker shade of blue.
“I meant what I said today, about wanting to stay up all night talking to you,” Keira stated in a hushed tone that was just above a whisper.
“And has that changed?” Emma risked.
“It has, and it hasn’t,” Keira replied.
“How so?” She ran her hands up and down Keira’s back, pulling her in closer and enjoying the contact of Keira pressing down further into her lap.
“I feel like I need to sleep for a week before tomorrow, which is impossible, I know. I also feel like I want to talk to you about everything until the sun comes up.” She paused and checked Emma’s eyes, which must have matched her own blue ones that were filled with desire because she continued. “And I also want to tear off all of your clothes.”
“Yeah?”
“But I also don’t want to tear off all of your clothes because I’m not ready for that yet,” she added quietly.
“Then, we don’t have to do that yet. We can just sleep tonight, or talk. We don’t have to do anything more than what we’re doing right–”
Emma was interrupted with a warm mouth on her own. The lips were soft and pliant, and at first, slow, but then moving faster with demand. Emma did her best to catch up. Her lips began to move against Keira’s and attempted to match that demand with Emma’s own demand. She wanted Keira’s tongue. She wanted to touch it and have it slide out over her lips so she could capture it between them. She focused all her energy on the kiss, sliding her hands up and into Keira’s hair, pulling the woman down further into her.
Keira must have been reading Emma’s mind. Her tongue peeked out and attempted to skate along Emma’s top lip. Emma captured it between her lips instead and sucked it into her mouth, enjoying the warmth, the velvet of it against her lips. The kiss continued and deepened further as Keira’s hands moved into Emma’s hair and toyed with it. She slid both hands down into Emma’s shirt from the top and pressed her hands into Emma’s back, pushing Emma’s breasts into her own. Emma let out a soft moan at that contact. The bare breasts and erect nipples poked into her own chest, driving her wild. She pulled her lips away and stared into Keira’s hooded eyes for only a moment, reading what she needed to in them, before kissing her chin gently and then her jawline before moving to her throat and bathing it with short, sweet kisses. She licked up Keira’s throat and earned a throaty moan that had her soaked in an instant and craving more. She wouldn’t press for it though. She respected that Keira wanted to wait. Emma wanted to wait too. Well, part of Emma wanted to wait. The other part of her was clenching her right fist at her own side now, to prevent it from sliding into Keira’s shorts and touching her the way she’d been thinking about touching her for days now.
She pulled back, and they resumed a softer, slower, and more purposeful kiss. Their first kiss said how much they wanted it, needed it in that moment. This next kiss said more. This kiss said that they both wanted more than just the kiss, than just one-night together. They wanted everything that came with kissing someone like this. When they pulled apart, Keira’s forehead pressed against Emma’s. Emma felt her rapid breathing and heartbeat.
“Wow!” Keira whispered.
“Wow!” Emma replied.
They remained in that position without saying anything for several moments. Every so often, they’d share a short kiss or a longer one with that same slow pace while Keira played with Emma’s hair and Emma ran her hands up and down Keira’s back. Then, Keira pulled away and stood.
“Bed?” she asked.
Her hair was disheveled in the most adorable way. Her shorts were a little shorter than they had been thanks to Emma’s hands on her thighs moments earlier. Emma stood and held out her hand for Keira to take.
“Sleep sounds really good about now.”
“A cold shower sounds really good about now,” Keira countered, causing Emma to go into a near cackle as she walked her to the bedroom.
When they arrived, Emma got her first look at the room. She’d had no need for the grand tour earlier and hadn’t gotten a look at either Kevin or Keira’s room when she visited the bathroom. Keira’s room was familiar somehow, and it took Emma only a moment to recognize why.
“You frequent that store, don’t you?” Emma asked.
She continued to take in the items of artwork on the walls that were in the same vein as the work in the store they’d visited. There were two vases of fake flowers that also seemed to be reminiscent of the items she’d seen in the store. They adorned either side of a full dresser that had a large mirror attached to the left of the bed. The bed itself was a four-poster bed in a dark wood, maybe cherry if Emma had to guess. The comforter along with accompanying pillows and sheets were of light blue with patterned light green that reminded Emma of argyle without actually being argyle. The lightness offset the dark of the wood, and with the corresponding colors from the flowers, the room looked light and airy, despite the one small window on the right wall opposite the dresser. There was a small flat screen television on a stand opposite the bed, but it had candles and other knick-knacks around and somewhat in front of it. Emma wondered if it was used very often.
“I do,” Keira answered the question. “It’s why I took you there. I like it. It’s affordable and the stuff is unique.”
“It looks nice in here,” Emma complimented. “It’s you.”
“Thanks. I like it enough.” Keira glanced around her own room and then back to Emma. “Do you need to do anything in the bathroom?” Keira seemed to stop herself. “Of course, you do. That was a stupid question. You’re wearing jeans right now.”
Emma smiled, leaned in and pecked Keira’s lips quickly.
“My bag is still in the living room. I’ll grab it, go change, take care of what I need to and come back,” she proposed.
“I’ll go in after you then,” Keira agreed.
◆◆◆
Keira watched Emma leave the bedroom and head in the direction of the living room to grab her things, which Keira had forgotten to bring into the bedroom for her earlier. She’d already changed. There was nothing else for her to do but wait until Emma returned. She sat on the side of the bed with her hands folded neatly in her lap before they began to sweat. She attempted to wipe them on her shorts, but they were much too short and thin to do anything. She stood again and paced back and forth, listening to the water running in the bathroom and assuming Emma was either washing her face or brushing her teeth. She looked to the bed and decided to turn it down for them. She reached for the decorative pillows and placed them on the floor. Normally, she’d just toss them aside. But tonight, she placed them neatly next to her dresser. She pulled back the comforter on both sides with the top sheet and rearranged the pillows for sleep. By the time she’d finished, Emma was standing in the doorway with her arms across her chest and a smirk on her face.
“You really are tired, huh?” she asked.
“We already talked about how I’m feeling,” Keira reminded. “I’m a whole bunch of things right now.” She smiled softly at Emma who returned it. “All done?”
“Yeah.” Emma nodded.
Keira stood in place, unable to move in that moment because Emma dressed in a different t-shirt with a V-neck this time – and a deep one at that – in a shade of pink with gray loose fitting sweat pants. It was even sexier than what she had on before. That was not fair.
“Cold shower,” Keira said to herself, but then almost immediately realized she’d actually said it out loud.
She smacked her palm against her mouth, as if that could take it back, and watched Emma nearly keel over in laughter.
“Oh, my God! I’m not sure what was funnier; you saying that or smacking yourse
lf after.” The laughter continued as she moved to Keira and pulled her into her, pulling Keira’s hand away from her mouth. “And now you know what I felt like when you walked out wearing that,” she added and kissed Keira’s cheek. “Go do whatever you need to in there so we can get some sleep,” she ordered politely, kissed her cheek again and pulled away.
Keira remained speechless but did as she was told. She made her way to the bathroom, wishing she’d brought a spare set of panties in with her. She’d already changed them once when she went to put on her sorority shirt for Emma. She was in need of another pair already. She washed her face with cold water, hoping that would be enough to cool her off entirely, and brushed her teeth. She took care of everything else and then stared at herself in the mirror.
“Okay. I look okay,” she said to her reflection. “God, she looks good though. What am I waiting for? We’re both adults. We’re both into it. She’s sleeping over, and she’s fucking hot as hell in her pajamas.” She tapped her fingers against the bathroom sink. “It’s only our second date, and we have a long day tomorrow. After, we can do this after. She’ll still look just as hot. She might even look hotter. God,” she exclaimed at the thought of Emma looking even hotter than she did at this very moment. “I’ve got to get out of here and stop talking to myself.”
She opened the door and half-expected Emma to be standing there, because that was what would have happened had this been a romantic comedy, but she was alone. She headed back to the bedroom, sliding her clammy hands over her own ass once for good measure before entering the room.
“I didn’t know what to do,” Emma commented the moment Keira entered. “So stupid, huh?” She laughed at herself and stood.
“I’m not sure I know exactly what to do either,” Keira admitted. “I’ve done all this before, obviously, but–”
San Francisco Series- Complete Edition Page 15