Joss’s stomach was full of nerves when she arrived at Olivia’s the next morning. She wasn’t sure if it was the fact that they’d almost slept together or the fact that they hadn’t. She’d never come so close to such reckless abandon. It had been both exhilarating and unsettling. She’d spent much of the night tossing and turning and replaying it in her mind.
Olivia was already preparing to leave for class, which proved to be both a relief and a disappointment. She greeted Joss with a kiss and smile, making it clear she wasn’t going to bring up what had happened. Joss wasn’t sure what to make of it, except that Olivia seemed set on leaving Joss in charge.
Olivia asked, “Will you be here when I get home?”
Relief replaced nerves. “I think that could be arranged.”
“Will you let me make you dinner again?”
“How about I grab takeout?” After the mess she made of things the day before, Joss wasn’t about to make Olivia cook for her a second night in a row.
Olivia smiled. “I’ll get the takeout. Any requests?”
“I like pretty much everything. Pizza to subs to Thai.”
“Excellent. I’ll see you later then.”
“I’ll be here.”
Olivia gathered her things and headed to campus. Joss’s words played in her mind. When I do, I want to do it right. Would that be tonight? The anticipation of what the evening might hold made the day drag. Only a handful of students came to her office hours. She chatted them up probably more than they wanted. It was good to get to know them better, even if part of her motivation was killing time.
After her late afternoon class, she called in an order of pad Thai and panang gai, along with some spring rolls and satay. By the time she pulled into the driveway, Olivia was more aroused than hungry. She felt a little bit nervous, too, which was strange. Maybe it had something to do with all the buildup.
Joss stood in the kitchen, drying her hands. Olivia took a deep breath and swallowed, trying to calm her skittering pulse. When she opened the door, Joss turned and smiled. “Hi.”
Olivia stepped into the kitchen and set down the bag of food. “Hi, yourself.”
“What did you get?”
“Thai.”
“Yum.”
“Yeah.” Seeing Joss further reduced her desire for food.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I guess I’m not all that hungry now.”
“No?”
“Well, not that kind of hungry.”
“I see.” Joss closed the distance between them. She leaned in and kissed Olivia in a way that made her knees weak.
When Joss eased away, Olivia opened her eyes and searched Joss’s. “I don’t want to presume anything, but I also don’t want you to have any doubts as to what I want.”
Joss nodded. “I appreciate that. Just so we’re one hundred percent clear, what is it you want?”
“You.”
Joss took Olivia’s hand and pulled her slowly to the temporary bedroom.
Once there, Olivia slipped her arms around Joss’s waist. “I’ve wanted you. I’ve wanted you since the day we met.”
Joss smiled. “Even when I was a jerk?”
Olivia nodded. “Even then.”
“I wanted you, too, the moment I laid eyes on you.”
Olivia leaned in and kissed her. “I’m so glad we got that sorted out.”
“Me, too.” Joss trailed a line of kisses down her neck and across her collarbone.
Olivia tilted her head to one side, reveling in the softness of each touch. One of Joss’s hands slid up her back to the zipper of her dress. Joss eased the zipper down, sliding a hand inside. The roughness of Joss’s fingers on her skin sent shivers all the way to her toes. Olivia moaned, unable to contain herself.
Joss eased the dress from her shoulders; it fell to the floor around her feet. She pulled Olivia with her, slowly making her way toward the bed. Olivia slid her hands between them, working at the buttons of Joss’s shirt.
“One second,” Olivia said, easing herself away. She darted around the room to light the candles she’d bought and set out, just in case.
Joss raised an eyebrow. “I’m sorry, did you just pause me for mood lighting?”
Olivia slipped back in front of her and slid the shirt from her shoulders. “Flattering light discourages self-consciousness.”
Joss laughed. “I have a hard time imagining you as self-conscious.”
“Compliments, compliments. I’d think you were trying to get me into bed.”
In one fluid motion, Joss had both of them on the bed. Joss, propped on her elbows, looked down at Olivia and smiled. “I’d say I already have.”
The speed and the smoothness of the move took Olivia by surprise and made her pulse race. She could feel Joss’s weight pressing into her. It was a delicious feeling, one she hadn’t experienced in far too long. “And what are you going to do about it?”
Joss leaned in. The kiss was excruciatingly slow. For all that she’d professed to be old-fashioned, Joss could do things with her mouth that turned Olivia’s insides into a puddle of pure want. When she pulled back, Olivia had to blink several times to bring her vision back into focus. “Oh, well then.”
Joss smiled. “I’m just getting started.”
After running a hand down Olivia’s side and up again, Joss eased behind Olivia and released the clasp of her bra. She pulled it aside and spent a moment studying Olivia’s newly exposed breasts. Olivia watched Joss look at her, felt her skin grow warm and flushed. Just when Olivia felt she might spontaneously combust from the heat of it, Joss bent and took one of Olivia’s nipples into her mouth.
She had no idea if it was because she hadn’t been with anyone in a while or if there was something about Joss, but every nerve ending in her body seemed tied to that one sensitive point. Joss switched from making slow circles with her tongue to a gentle tug with her teeth. When Olivia thought she might not be able to take it any longer, Joss shifted to her other breast, sucking and biting and driving her completely mad.
Without stopping, Joss trailed her fingers down Olivia’s stomach and between her legs. Olivia, aching and wet, opened herself for Joss’s touch. When Joss’s fingers slid across her throbbing center, Olivia arched into Joss and moaned.
“Fuck.”
Olivia barely heard Joss’s whispered expletive. It was such a sexy, unguarded moment, Olivia found herself even more aroused. When Joss’s hand moved lower and she eased one, then two, fingers into her, Olivia had an expletive of her own. Joss’s strokes were long and slow, her callouses creating a delicious friction. Olivia clamped around her fingers, pulling them in deeper.
Joss’s mouth was at her ear, her tongue playing with Olivia’s earlobe. Olivia dug her fingers into Joss’s shoulders, holding on, trying to get even closer to her. She could feel Joss’s muscles bunch and flex in her hands.
“Yes, Joss. God, you feel so good.” Olivia mumbled the words between ragged breaths.
Joss’s thrusts became more forceful. Olivia could feel Joss’s knuckles pressing against her. Olivia pushed back, basking in Joss’s strength and stamina. When Joss’s thumb swept across her clit, an upward stroke for every thrust, Olivia started to come undone. The orgasm pulsed through her, the pressure giving way to a quivering pleasure that she felt in every muscle of her body.
It took Olivia a long time to regain her senses. Even when the tremors stopped, her heart continued to thud in her chest. When she finally caught her breath enough to speak, she opened her eyes. Joss was lying on her side, propped on an elbow and looking at her intently.
“That was fucking amazing,” Olivia said.
Joss’s smile was slow. Olivia couldn’t be sure, but she was pretty sure it was a little bit smug, too. “You’re pretty amazing.”
“If I’d known it was going to be that good, I would have tried to get you into bed sooner.”
Joss chuckled. “Didn’t anyone ever tell you good things come to those who wait?”
Olivia rolled onto her side, surprised by how weak her body felt. “Nope. No one has ever told me that.”
Joss traced Olivia’s collarbone with her finger. “It’s true. That said, if you make me wait much longer, I’m not sure I’ll live to see tomorrow.”
Olivia cupped Joss’s breast in her hand. It was small and firm, a hint of feminine softness on her otherwise muscular form. She brushed her thumb over the nipple, enjoying the way it became erect at her touch. She shifted her gaze, looked into Joss’s eyes. “We can’t have that, can we?”
When Olivia took the hard nipple into her mouth, Joss groaned. Olivia lifted her hand to the other breast, rolling the nipple between her finger and thumb. Joss’s hands bunched in her hair, holding her close. Olivia relished the way Joss’s body responded to her, moved against her.
As much as she would have liked to worship Joss’s breasts for the rest of the night, Olivia was desperate to feel Joss in her mouth, to taste her. She made a line of kisses down Joss’s torso, admiring the defined ridges of her abs. She brushed her cheek across the patch of dark curls before easing her tongue into the soft folds. Joss’s hips bucked and she gasped.
“Mmm…” Olivia was intoxicated by her taste. She made slow circles with her tongue, giving Joss a chance to settle in. When Joss’s hips began a steady, rhythmic thrust, Olivia shifted slightly, stroking Joss’s hard center. She wrapped her lips around it, sucking gently while flicking her tongue back and forth.
Joss’s hands were in her hair again, a sensation Olivia adored. Joss was saying her name over and over, interspersed with “yeses” and “ohs.” Olivia quickened her pace, matching the urgency of Joss’s words and the movement of her body. When Joss’s whole body went rigid, Olivia stayed with her, sucking and stroking as her muscles twitched and shook. Finally, Joss’s body went limp. Olivia pulled away, resting her head on Joss’s thigh.
After a long minute, she pulled herself up and crawled to curl up next to Joss. “Yeah, that was definitely worth the wait.”
Joss wrapped an arm around her. “I told you.”
Olivia lost track of time. She couldn’t remember feeling so content. She’d just started drifting off to sleep when she felt Joss shift. She lifted her head. “What? What is it?”
Joss kissed her temple. “I know this sounds terrible and I really don’t want you to be upset, but I have to go.”
Yanked back to reality, Olivia sat up. Disappointment gripped her. “What?”
Joss lifted a hand and cupped her cheek. “I don’t want to, I promise. I meant what I said about wanting to have all the time in the world, but I can’t leave Ethel by herself all night and I didn’t make arrangements.”
The letdown became a hard knot in Olivia’s stomach. “Ethel?”
Joss must have seen the look on her face because she shook her head quickly. “My dog. My dog’s name is Ethel.”
Olivia felt a wave of relief. “Oh. Okay. That makes me feel better. I think.”
Joss smiled. “She’s really old and mostly content to sleep her days away, but I can’t leave her overnight.”
Olivia nodded. “Of course not.”
“I should have made plans for her. I don’t know why I didn’t. Maybe I didn’t want to presume things either. I’m really sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
“Thank you for understanding.” Joss kissed her again and climbed out of bed.
Olivia watched her pull on her clothes. Although she still felt a pretty keen disappointment, Olivia couldn’t hold it against her. “What kind of dog?”
“A beagle mix. Ben and I each adopted one of a pair of siblings that had been dumped in the country, about eight years ago now.”
Not that she wasn’t pretty far gone over Joss already, but Olivia’s heart melted just a little bit more. “And you named her Ethel?”
“And Ben has Fred. The SPCA gave them those names when they were brought in. They were starting to respond to them, so it seemed mean to change to something else.”
“That might be the most adorable thing I’ve ever heard. I’ve never had a dog. My mother is allergic. I’d like one, though.”
Joss, now dressed, walked over to the bed and sat next to her. “I’d probably wait until the house is done, but you’ve definitely got a good place. I really am sorry I have to go.”
Olivia smiled. “Given who the other woman is, I think I’ll be okay.”
“Thank you. I’m sorry we didn’t get to dinner.”
“I’m not.”
“Me either, except that you went to the trouble to pick it up.”
“Not a big deal. You can have it for lunch tomorrow.”
“Thanks. Tonight was…great. I hope we can do it again soon.”
“It was, and yes, let’s do it again soon.”
Joss kissed her. “I’ll lock up on my way out. And put the food in the fridge.”
“Thanks.”
After she heard the back door squeak open, then closed, Olivia got up and blew out the candles that were still burning in the room. She climbed back into bed and pulled the covers up to her chin. She’d had women leave after sex before, but never to go home to a dog. At least, never to her knowledge. One more way Joss was full of surprises. Given her track record with women, maybe that wasn’t such a terrible thing.