Her fingers dug into Lauren’s back. Grace lost herself in the kiss and restlessly moved against Lauren. A faint throbbing was already starting low in her belly.
Gasping, Lauren broke the kiss. “Tell me what you like,” she said, her voice husky.
“Everything,” Grace answered, a catch in her voice. “I like everything you’re doing.”
Lauren groaned. “I wanted to take my time and worship every part of you, but… God, you’re driving me crazy.”
“I don’t need to be worshipped. I just want to be”—she gasped as Lauren cupped her breast with one hand, leaned down, and sucked part of it into her mouth—“Loved. Oh!”
“You are,” Lauren whispered against her breast. She trailed her fingers down Grace’s side, over her hip, and along the outer side of her thigh. Then, with a very light touch, she stroked up the inside of her thigh.
Grace stopped breathing in expectation of where that hand would end up. At the first touch of Lauren’s finger against her, she sucked in a shuddery breath. Moaning, she opened her legs wider.
Lauren took the unspoken invitation. Her finger skimmed Grace’s clit.
Grace moved against her.
More. Harder.
Her nails skated down and then dug into Lauren’s back when that finger moved over her again.
“Like this?” Lauren asked.
Grace was beyond speech. She reached down and pressed Lauren’s hand more firmly against herself.
A moan drifted through the loft. Had that been her or Lauren? Grace was no longer sure. She didn’t care. All she cared about was Lauren—Lauren moving against her, then slipping into her with one finger, withdrawing, and finally coming back with two.
“Oh God. Yes.” Grace rocked against her, meeting each of her thrusts. Her hands trailed up and down Lauren’s sweat-dampened back.
Lauren curved her fingers and hit another area inside Grace.
A strangled shout escaped Grace’s raw throat. Her hips jerked against Lauren as a throbbing started deep in her belly, quickly spreading outward.
“That’s it,” Lauren whispered against her lips. “Come for me.”
And as she flicked her thumb over Grace’s clit, Grace did. Her muscles contracted sharply around Lauren’s fingers. She surged upward, clutching Lauren to her, and then fell back.
Before Grace had fully recovered, Lauren moved down and lifted one of Grace’s legs over her shoulder. Her hot breath washed over Grace’s swollen sex.
Through a fog of pleasure, Grace stared down at her. “What…?” It took her a moment to realize what was happening. She was about to pull Lauren back up and tell her she couldn’t come twice in a row, but before her foggy brain could find the right words, Lauren lightly swept her tongue over her still-throbbing clit.
“Oh God!” Grace arched up as another wave of pleasure rushed through her.
“So good,” Lauren murmured against her. “You taste so good.”
Grace tangled her fingers in Lauren’s hair and pulled her closer. Looking down at Lauren, she got out, “Don’t…don’t stop.”
Lauren flattened her tongue, still keeping her touches light and then gradually making them firmer until Grace’s entire body seemed to be throbbing. Gently, she nudged Grace’s legs open wider.
Grace’s breath came in ragged gasps. The muscles of her abdomen clenched. Her legs convulsed around Lauren, drawing her closer.
When Lauren closed her lips over Grace’s clit and sucked gently, another orgasm hit her.
“Lauren!” She arched off the bed as shockwaves of pleasure swept through her.
Lauren crawled up Grace’s body, trailing kisses over every inch of her skin.
Grace lay limply beneath her. Every muscle in her body had turned to mush. She blinked, trying to get her eyes to focus.
Lauren’s flushed face appeared in her line of sight. “I hope that was okay. Maybe I should have asked first, but I just couldn’t help myself.”
Unable to form a coherent sentence, Grace merely nodded and drew her down for a kiss. She moaned when she tasted herself on Lauren’s lips.
They lay in a sweaty tangle of arms and legs until Grace became aware of Lauren’s wetness against her thigh. Her hands shook with a mix of desire and nervousness as she slid them down Lauren’s body. She just hoped she’d be able to please Lauren at least half as much as Lauren had pleased her.
Lauren shivered as Grace slid her hand down her sweat-dampened side.
“Show me,” Grace whispered against her neck and then gave it a little nip. “Show me how to please you.”
“You do already.” Making love to Grace had been a dream come true. God, the way Grace had responded to her touch… She had almost come with Grace the second time.
Grace pushed one leg between Lauren’s to maneuver her around, onto her back.
Lauren groaned at the pressure and moved her hips against Grace’s thigh. “Jesus, I’m so close already. It won’t take much.”
“Oh, no.” Grace rolled off Lauren and lay next to her. “I don’t want this to be over so fast. I want to touch every part of you.”
Another groan escaped Lauren as Grace’s words pushed her even closer to release.
Grace paused, leaning over her on one elbow, and swept her gaze down Lauren’s body as if she couldn’t decide where to touch her first. She softly caressed the shoulder closest to her, then leaned down and let her lips follow the path of her fingers.
Clutching the sheets with both hands, Lauren lay still and let Grace do whatever she wanted.
Grace stroked and kissed along Lauren’s collarbone and then flicked out her tongue to taste a drop of sweat pooling at the hollow of Lauren’s throat.
Strands of Grace’s long, blonde hair tickled her overly sensitized skin as Grace covered every inch of her upper chest with kisses and careful little nibbles. Shivers ran through Lauren’s body, and she was already breathing hard. She reached up with one hand and gently tried to guide Grace toward her breast, but Grace didn’t seem to be in a hurry.
She explored leisurely, tracing the curve of Lauren’s ribs with her fingertips and then circling one breast. Finally, she cupped it in one palm and looked up at Lauren, an expression of awe on her face. Then her hair fell like a curtain around her, hiding her features, as she bent and pressed a gentle kiss to Lauren’s breast. She rubbed her cheek against it, first one side, then the other. “Oh. Your breasts are so soft.”
The sight of Grace making love to her breasts was almost too much for Lauren. She felt as if she were melting from the inside out. “Not every part of them,” she said, her voice raspy. Her nipples were rock-hard and ached for Grace’s touch.
“Oh, you mean…this?” Grace took one nipple between thumb and index finger and rolled it gently as if trying to test its hardness.
Lauren flung her head back. “Yes! God.”
Leaning down again, Grace took Lauren’s nipple into her mouth and laved it with her tongue. She licked with the same hums of pleasure that had escaped her when Lauren had bought her ice cream. After a while, she tried to switch to the other breast but couldn’t comfortably reach it, so she rolled on top of Lauren and nestled between her legs. Then the sweet torture continued.
Lauren writhed beneath her, holding Grace against her breast with both hands. Having Grace’s curvy body on top of her felt heavenly, and what Grace did with her mouth… She took several shuddering breaths, fighting for some semblance of control. But it was a losing battle. Her control faded quickly under Grace’s slow explorations.
When Grace gently raked her teeth over one nipple, Lauren’s hips arched up. She hooked one leg around Grace and rocked against her abdomen, desperately seeking some pressure against her clit. “God, I need…”
Grace let go of her nipple and looked up. Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes clouded with passion. “What? What do you need?”
“Touch me,” Lauren said. She barely recognized her own voice.
Now looking a little apprehensive for the first time, Grace trailed her fingers down Lauren’s stomach and, after looking back up into Lauren’s eyes for reassurance, ran them through Lauren’s curls.
Both drew in a sharp breath.
Lauren already felt herself hovering on the edge of climax.
“Oh, wow,” Grace whispered as she started to stroke Lauren, her touch first tentative, then increasingly bolder.
Groaning, Lauren pulled her down and kissed her. Her hips rocked against Grace. Sensation built deep inside of her. She gripped Grace’s hip with one hand, urging her on.
Oh God.
This was going to be fast. She broke the kiss to gasp for breath. Incoherent sounds tumbled from her lips.
Grace moved her fingers faster and then dragged them over the very tip of Lauren’s clit with a little more pressure.
Lauren’s stomach tightened. Orgasm hit without any further warning. “Grace!” She surged up against her. Her entire body shook and quivered as waves of pleasure rolled over her.
Then Grace was there, in her arms, holding her close. Her thigh pressed against Lauren, prolonging the pleasure.
When Lauren’s muscles started working again, she weakly lifted her head and kissed Grace’s lips, her cheek, her temple. Burrowing her face against Grace’s damp neck, she mumbled breathlessly, “I’m not…usually…that…quick.”
Grace guided Lauren’s mouth to hers and kissed her. Her eyes shone with excitement, glowing against her flushed cheeks. “I take it I did okay?”
“Okay?” Lauren dazedly shook her head. “Let me put it in a way you’ll understand best.” She pretended to open an imaginary envelope and pull out a card. “And the Oscar for best performance goes to…Grace Durand.”
“You!”
They wrestled playfully until the slide of skin against skin ignited their passion again.
Definitely Oscar-worthy,
was Lauren’s last coherent thought for quite some time.
Night had fallen while they’d made love, so now the cottage lay in darkness except for the soft glow coming from the loft. Lauren, who had gone to get them something to drink, climbed back up the ladder, two small bottles of water clutched in one hand. On the last rung, she paused to take in Grace.
She lay stretched out on her belly, the covers pooling at her waist. The smooth skin of her back called to Lauren, and she almost couldn’t believe that she would get to crawl back into bed with this wonderful woman. A rush of love swept through her. Giddiness bubbled up, and she let out a laugh, amazed at her good fortune.
Grace turned onto her side and lifted up on her elbow. A slow smile spread over her face and lit up her eyes. “What are you doing down there? Come back to bed.”
Lauren didn’t have to be told twice. She climbed the last rung and slipped under the covers.
They sat side by side, leaning against the headboard, and emptied the bottles of water before sliding down in bed and cuddling close.
Grace settled half on top of Lauren, with her head on Lauren’s upper chest and one leg across her thighs. Her eyes were closed, and she looked more relaxed and at peace than Lauren had ever seen her. “This is wonderful,” Grace whispered. She opened her eyes and looked at Lauren. “I love you.”
They had repeatedly whispered it to each other earlier, but Lauren’s breath still caught. “I love you too.” She smiled and let her fingers drift through Grace’s soft hair. “What happens now?” she asked after a while of just enjoying the closeness.
“Well, as a very wise friend of mine once pointed out, we’re women and can have multiple orgasms, so…more of the same.” Grace grinned and trailed her hand down Lauren’s belly.
“Oh God.” Lauren trapped Grace’s hand beneath hers, stopping it from sliding any lower. “I think I created a monster.”
“Are you complaining?”
“Hell, no!” But for the moment, they were sated, so they just lay in each other’s arms. Lauren craned her neck so she could place a kiss on Grace’s head. “I meant, what happens in the future? Do you really think you’re ready to make our relationship public?”
Grace lifted her head off Lauren’s chest and looked into her eyes. “I don’t know if I’m ready. But I want this. I want us. I want to go to sleep with you and wake up with you and spend as much time as I can in between with you. And that’s not going to happen unless we make it official.”
Lauren’s heart ached with longing. She wanted the same things. It would have been so easy to be selfish and say yes to everything, but she wanted Grace’s happiness even more than her own. “I’d love to do that, but is this really the best time for you…for your career?”
A sigh fluttered across Lauren’s bare chest as Grace laid her head back down. “I don’t know. I don’t even know if there
is
a best time. So we might as well do it now.”
“I’d need to media-train you first, teach you what to say and what not to say. Jill forced my hand, but with most of my LGBT clients, I prepare their coming out for months.”
“I thought you resigned as my publicist?”
Lauren grinned ruefully. “Right. I did. But if you hire Marlene—and I would recommend it—she will tell you the same.”
“Months,” Grace murmured. She peeked up at Lauren. “Can you wait that long? I know you’re out and proud. Stepping back into the closet with me would be awful for you.”