Cassidy punched at her pillows again. It had been a long, stressful day, yet sleep wouldn’t come. She still felt restless. Restless because—besides the few stolen moments in the pantry—she hadn’t had a single second alone with Laura. And Laura had left so quickly after dinner, Cassidy hardly had time to say goodbye…a very public goodbye which consisted of nothing more than a smile and a nod. Of course, she had offered to walk Laura out, but Laura had politely declined. And why? Because they both knew that if they were alone…in the dark…with the full moon filtering through the trees…
Cassidy closed her eyes, remembering the scene in the pantry. God, Laura had been so…so ready. Cassidy could feel the wetness between her thighs. She could still hear the quiet moans, the almost desperate hold Laura had on her. Cassidy never meant to take it that far. She had simply been craving a kiss, a touch. She never expected it to turn into all that. Not that quickly.
But it had. And she wanted more of it. Much more.
She rolled over and picked up her phone. It was 12:48. Laura would be asleep. She pictured her in bed, curled on her side, her eyelids fluttering while she dreamed. She held the phone to her chest. She was forty-four years old. How was it that Laura could make her feel like a teenager? So, despite her better judgment, she called her. After three rings, she very nearly hung up but before the fourth, she heard a very sexy, sleepy voice in her ear.
“You better be calling because you miss me. I was in the middle of a very good dream.”
Cassidy grinned. “Was I in your dream?”
“Yes. We were very naked. And we weren’t in the pantry,” Laura murmured.
Cassidy heard the muffled sound of the sheets, and she imagined Laura shifting, perhaps sitting up against pillows. She found herself doing the same.
“Yes…I missed you,” she said. “You left in a hurry.”
“I’m sorry. I couldn’t take it anymore. Your friends hate me.”
“Hate is not the right word, Laura. It’s just that Claudia is their friend, and they wanted a nice, tidy foursome. I think Erica was trying to highlight the differences between all of them and you.”
“And she succeeded.”
“Yeah, she did. She made me see just how shallow they all are. Laura, when I first told Tanya about you, when we were first becoming friends, I told her how different you were from my usual group. Good different. I told her you were…real. Genuine. You don’t hide behind anything. There aren’t any pretenses with you.” She gripped the phone tighter. “I’m a little out of my comfort zone here,” she admitted. “I’m used to being in control. I’m not used to this…the way you make me feel. I’m not used to wanting someone this badly.”
“I want to make love with you.”
Cassidy felt her stomach clench into a tight knot, felt her heart jump into her throat. “You scare me,” she whispered.
“You’re afraid I’m going to steal your heart?”
Cassidy swallowed. “I’m afraid you already have.”
Laura was quiet for a moment, and all Cassidy heard was the sound of her breath. “I’m afraid…I’m afraid I’m going to fall in love with you.”
“I’m afraid that you won’t.”
Again, there was only a slight pause before Laura spoke. “Can you call in sick to work on Monday?”
Cassidy smiled. “Is that what you want?”
“As soon as your friends leave tomorrow, I want to come over. I want to spend the day with you.” A pause. “I want to spend the night with you.”
Cassidy felt her heart hammering in her chest. “Yes.”
“Good. Now get some sleep. You’re going to need your strength.”
And just like that, Cassidy sank back under the covers, a smile plastered on her face. Laura wanted her to stay home tomorrow. Laura wanted to make love with her. She closed her eyes, letting her imagination take her there.