When Brooke pulled into the driveway, Riley surveyed the house. A tidy little ranch she’d guess was built in the fifties. She hadn’t paid much attention the night she dropped Brooke off. “You have a cute place.”
Brooke smiled at her. “Thanks.”
“I’m still staying with my sister.” She hoped that would change before winter, but she’d delayed putting her place in Lafayette on the market and wanted that sale to be final before she made the investment here.
“I forget you’re living with her.”
“Not for too much longer, I hope.”
Brooke regarded her with curiosity. “Are you getting a place of your own or going back to Lafayette?”
Riley chuckled. “You trying to get rid of me, Femme?”
“If I was trying to get rid of you, I wouldn’t be trying to get you in my bed.”
“That’s good because I’m not going anywhere. Except, for the moment, your bed.”
Brooke cut the engine and climbed out. Riley followed, standing behind her as she unlocked the front door. She resisted that recurring urge to push Brooke up against it and kiss her but allowed one of her hands to go to Brooke’s hip.
The door opened, and Brooke pulled her inside. She closed it behind them, and then it was Brooke pushing her up against the door and kissing her senseless. An absolutely perfect turn of the tables as far as she was concerned.
When Brooke broke the kiss and leaned back, her eyes were dark with desire. “You’re a really good kisser.”
The playful declaration made Riley smile. “Thanks.”
“This probably sounds weird, but I could really use a shower first.”
Riley let her gaze travel down Brooke’s body and back up: the fishnets, the tight black shorts, the tank top with the Bruisers logo splashed across the front. Her brain needed no other prompting to imagine Brooke’s body naked and wet and slicked with soap. “And if I said I agreed?”
“I’d say we should start there.”
Without another word, Brooke led them through the living room and down a short hall to a surprisingly spacious bathroom. “Nice.”
“Thanks. I had some work done when I bought it. Sacrificed a tiny fourth bedroom to make a bigger bathroom and walk-in closet.”
“It’s funny how losing a bedroom isn’t a cardinal sin anymore.”
“Quality over quantity, right?” Brooke smiled and, without ceremony, pulled her shirt over her head.
Even in the decidedly unsexy sports bra, the sight of her skin kicked Riley’s pulse up a few notches. “You’re really beautiful.”
Brooke rolled her eyes. “I’m a sweaty, smelly mess.”
“Who is absolutely stunning.”
“Stop plying me with compliments and take your clothes off.”
The command did more to her libido than even the sight of Brooke’s body. “Yes, ma’am.”
Brooke turned on the water and glanced over her shoulder. “Don’t ever call me ma’am.”
Riley snickered and followed her into the shower. The second the water hit her, all traces of humor vanished. She let out an expletive. “Damn, woman. You could make it a tiny bit warm.”
“Sorry.” Brooke smirked like she wasn’t the least bit sorry, then reached around and adjusted the handle. “Better?”
The water warmed slightly. “I’ll take it. Do you always take frigid showers?”
Brooke, who’d dunked her head under the spray, opened her eyes and raised a brow. “Usually.”
Riley had a joke about her being frosty on the tip of her tongue, but she swallowed it. They weren’t in teasing territory, at least not yet. “I admire your fortitude.”
Brooke chuckled and picked up a shampoo bottle. She squirted a blob into her hand and lifted it. Riley accepted a smaller sized dollop and worked it into her hair. They took turns washing and rinsing. It should have been weird to be naked and soapy together, but it wasn’t. She couldn’t decide if it was having spent so much time together or the physical nature of a lot of that time. Whatever it was, it worked. In a matter of minutes, they were toweling off. The sexual tension hadn’t abated, yet she’d managed to keep herself in check and not have their first time be in the shower. Not that there was anything wrong with shower sex.
“You know, I think that’s the first time I’ve showered with a woman before sleeping with her.”
Brooke rubbed at her hair with a towel. “Are you complaining?”
She let her gaze travel down to Brooke’s towel-clad body, complete with droplets of water still clinging to her shoulders. “Not in the least.”
“Good, because I’d hate not to have sex at this point.”
Brooke grabbed Riley’s hand and pulled her into the bedroom. Riley opened her mouth to say something clever, but she had no words. And before she could find any, Brooke dropped her towel. With a flick of her finger, she undid Riley’s, too, leaving them both in a pile on the floor.
She’d literally just seen Brooke naked. Touched her, even. But the sight of Brooke’s body—golden skin, the juxtaposition of her muscular arms with the soft swell of her breasts—fogged her brain and left her breathless. She shook her head in an attempt to clear it. Not the time to come across like some gawking idiot who’d never been with a woman before.
“Not changing your mind, are you?”
Riley shook her head again. “Oh, no. I’m just wondering what I did to get so lucky.”
Brooke angled her head like she was contemplating a serious answer to the question. When she smiled, Riley expected a snarky comeback. But then she said, “I’m lucky you didn’t write me off by now.”
Riley shrugged, determined to play it cool. “Well, you’re pretty hot.”
Brooke chuckled, but then she frowned. “I don’t want to kill the mood or anything, but I’m kind of serious. I was pretty horrible to you.”
“What can I say? I like you.” It was Riley’s turn to smile. “And I like a challenge.”
Brooke nodded slowly. It was a perfect answer, really. Not too syrupy, it walked the line between taking her to task and letting her off the hook. And whether Riley meant it that way or not, it hinted at the fact that getting Brooke into bed was a win of sorts. Rather than resenting the implication, she appreciated it. It made her feel like they were evenly matched.
Instead of a verbal reply, she put a hand on either side of Riley’s face and pulled her into a kiss. Like the banter, it wasn’t a matter of her taking charge or ceding control. Riley’s lips covered hers, their tongues danced over each other, a sensuous back and forth that reminded her of the last few months.
Riley broke the kiss and brought her mouth to Brooke’s neck, sucking and nipping and driving Brooke absolutely nuts. “Is there anything you love? Anything you absolutely hate?”
The questions murmured against her ear should have felt jarring, the awkward but obligatory negotiation of being with someone the first time. But rather than pulling her out of the mood, making her self-conscious, it turned her on. Maybe because Riley seemed genuinely interested in her answer, her pleasure. “I like hands,” she said softly, barely pulling her mouth from Riley’s neck. She hesitated for a moment, then added, “I like it a little rough.”
Riley pulled away.
Her cheeks flushed, but she offered a playful shrug. “Don’t tell me you’re surprised.”
The intensity of Riley’s stare raised her temperature several degrees. “Not surprising. Just really fucking sexy.”
If she’d been turned on before, Riley’s comment kicked her arousal into overdrive. Before she could say as much, Riley nudged her onto the bed. Not a shove, exactly, but it was close. And it was sexy as hell.
The next thing she knew, Riley was on top of her, pressing into her. She ran her hands up Riley’s arms, felt the muscles bunch under her hands. “You’re pretty fucking sexy yourself.”
Riley’s answer was to take one of Brooke’s nipples between her teeth. Assertive, confident, and just the right amount of pressure. She could have come from that alone, but where was the fun in that? She raked her fingernails down Riley’s back, eliciting a hiss of pleasure that made her smile.
Riley moved from one breast to the other. Not rushed but not lazy either. Deliberate. Considering the last three months had, in fact, been like extended foreplay, she welcomed the pace. “You should fuck me now.”
Without hesitation, Riley slid two fingers through her wetness and plunged into her. Brooke arched off the bed, pleasure laced with surprise. “Fuck.”
Once again, Riley’s mouth was at her neck. She held her hand still. “Is this not what you had in mind?”
A ragged chuckle escaped Brooke’s lips. “Oh, no. It’s perfect.”
Riley pulled out, then filled her again. “Like this?”
“Yes.” She swallowed. So damned perfect. “Just like that.”
Riley placed a hand on her sternum, not technically holding her down but sort of. Just the right amount of constraint. Brooke raised her hips again, rising to meet each thrust of Riley’s hand. Riley didn’t hold back. She fucked Brooke with confidence and skill. Brooke closed her eyes and gave herself over to the sensations coursing through her body.
“Look at me.” Riley’s command caught her off guard. But much like the assertiveness, a total turn-on.
Brooke complied and looked right into her eyes. Riley’s gaze was intense, possessive. It sent a shiver of ecstasy through her. She didn’t blink, didn’t look away. She continued to rise to meet Riley’s hand, and Riley continued to fuck her like she’d not been fucked in a very long time.
She closed her eyes when the quiver started slow, deep in her belly. But like a fire engulfing a pile of dry kindling, the orgasm tore through her, leaving her singed and sweaty. “Oh my God.”
“Yeah.” Riley mumbled the word with something that felt like reverence.
Brooke opened one eye, then the other, almost afraid of what she might find. But instead of reverent or sentimental, Riley looked at her with a satisfied smile. The smugness should have irritated her, but it didn’t. No, if anything, it turned her on even more. And it absolutely, one hundred percent, made her want to reciprocate.
She sat up and placed a hand on each of Riley’s shoulders. They were even more muscular than she’d have expected, which made her smile. She nipped one of those shoulders, then used her position to nudge Riley onto her back. Again, not a shove, but something close.
She straddled Riley’s thighs, enjoying the groan that escaped her lips, then leaned forward, bringing her own mouth close to Riley’s ear. “And you? Is there anything you don’t like, anything you absolutely love?”
Riley chuckled. “I’m pretty easy.”
Brooke pulled just far enough away to look into her eyes. “Really? You’re going to be coy with me now?”
Riley shook her head. “I’m not being coy.”
Brooke squirmed a little on top of her, taking immense pleasure from the way her eyes rolled back in pleasure. When she stopped, Riley opened her eyes and looked into Brooke’s. “I like it when a woman does what she likes. It really turns me on.”
“A very diplomatic answer.” Brooke leaned in again and kissed Riley’s mouth. Then her jaw. Earlobe and neck were next. She worked her way down, tracing her tongue over the lines of Riley’s body. She relished the way Riley’s skin smelled like her soap but had a taste completely her own.
“See? I wouldn’t have asked for that, but it feels amazing.”
“Mmm-hmm.” Brooke continued to work her way down Riley’s torso. She wasn’t about to protest being told to do whatever she wanted. She settled herself between Riley’s thighs, pausing for just a moment to process just how perfectly she fit, just how right it felt. When she pressed her tongue into Riley, heard her sharp intake of breath, she couldn’t help but smile.
She took her time, enjoying the way Riley tasted, the way she moved. Uninhibited, yes. But also letting Brooke set the pace and the intensity. After taking control a moment ago, it was a sexy shift.
Riley touched her hair, made these incredibly sexy sounds. When they pitched higher and her breathing became irregular, Brooke increased her pace. Riley kept up, moving with Brooke in a way that had her turned on again.
The muscles in Riley’s legs started to tremble. And then she froze, her whole body taut. Brooke opened her eyes and watched her tumble over the edge. She was stunning.
“Holy crap.”
Brooke chuckled at the declaration, delivered in a raspy voice. Riley accompanied it with a feeble pat on Brooke’s head. Knowing she’d put Riley in that state made her smile. “You okay?”
“I am so fucking okay.” Riley lifted her head, looked at her briefly, then let it fall back on the pillow. “That was amazing.”
“Agreed.” She crawled up the bed and draped herself over Riley.
Riley ran fingers through her hair. “That’s what you like, huh?”
Brooke lifted her head. “I really, really do.”
“Then I feel really, really lucky.”
Brooke rested her head on Riley’s chest. Riley resumed playing with her hair. It was sort of hypnotic, something she loved more than she admitted. “I kind of can’t believe we just did that.”
Riley’s hand stilled. “You’re not regretting it, are you?”
“No regret, not even a little.”
“But?”
“But I’m not sure what to make of it, I guess. I’m not sure where it leaves us.”
The fingers stroked through her hair once again. “Do we need to figure that out now?”
She sighed. “No. And I’m sorry for overthinking. It’s kind of my thing.”
Riley’s lips pressed to the top of her head. “Don’t apologize. I sometimes don’t think enough.”
The confession made her smile as much as the sentiment did. “An unlikely pair we are.”
“Or maybe perfectly complementary.”
Huh. She’d not have thought of it that way. Not that they were a couple or contemplating the future, but the idea of being yin and yang proved reassuring. The idea this wasn’t some problem she needed to solve.
“We’ll figure it out, you know. It’ll all be fine.”
Rather than making a comment about famous last words, Brooke let herself believe it. Trouble would make itself known soon enough. She lifted her head again and pressed her lips to Riley’s. “It will.”
Riley’s arms came around her and she rolled over, flipping their positions. “In the meantime, I think you should relax and let me do whatever I want to you.”
She lifted her chin. “Oh, yeah? What did you have in mind?”
Riley kissed her. Just as Brooke had done, she kissed her way down Brooke’s body. “Tell me, if I promise to use my hands, can I put my mouth on you?”
The request sent her arousal racing. “I think you should do whatever you want.”
Riley raised her head and made eye contact. “I like the sound of that very much.”