Casey paid her driver, and moonlight glinted off the taxi’s rear window as it drove away. Since they hadn’t arrived at the club together, she wasn’t sure if Leighton had driven, taken a cab, or used a ride-sharing service. So, the presence of Leighton’s car in her parking space behind the building wouldn’t tell her if Leighton was home. She looked at the third-floor windows. The back end of Leighton’s apartment was dark, but light shone from the living room area, a good sign.
She texted Mark during the drive. Without going into detail, she let him know she’d left and would explain later.
As she typed her passcode into the building’s front door, it occurred to her that Leighton didn’t have a doorbell. She called her phone. Motion-sensitive lights flickered on in the gallery as she stepped inside. The call went to voice mail, just like the one in the cab. She hadn’t thought her plan through but had simply headed toward the atelier. Leighton had left, and she wanted to be with her. She’d overlooked the logistics.
Casey hung up and wandered through the gallery. It felt eerie at night. She hoped she’d triggered a security notification, and Leighton would come down. After five minutes, boredom forced her to find another plan. She considered throwing pebbles at one of Leighton’s windows, but she didn’t know where she was going to find any small rocks. In addition, her arm wasn’t strong, her aim wasn’t good, the windows were three stories above street level, and this wasn’t a Hallmark movie.
She called the elevator and stepped inside. Everyone had a code, even Leighton. She’d used it the night she took Andy upstairs after leaving Casey her card.
Maybe she could guess it. But what if the elevator locked after so many failed attempts, and she got stuck? Surely someone would come by tomorrow, and being trapped one night wouldn’t kill her. She hoped the software wasn’t finicky and tried the first code she could think of.
One-one-one-one.
She pushed the button for the third floor. A red LED blinked. Nothing. She tried one-two-three-four with no luck. Kalyssa was four, so she tried the few years that might be her birth year. Nope.
Casey tried to think of things that were important to Leighton. What would be a meaningful number to Leighton? Then it hit her. Phi, the divine proportion. She was a goddamned genius! Goose bumps erupted over her skin, and adrenaline coursed through her as she pressed the buttons in rapid succession.
One-six-one-eight.
She stepped back, expecting upward movement, but the elevator remained motionless. The red LED mocked her, and her hope left with her loud sigh.
Then, an idea hit her. In a last-ditch effort that had a fraction-of-a-percentage’s chance of working, she entered her own code and selected the button for the third floor.
The elevator moved.
* * *
With no other sounds to drown it out, Leighton heard the elevator ascending. She tensed as she set the open bottle of wine on the counter. The only people with access to her apartment were Stefan and Maxine—and Casey, though Casey didn’t know it. Stefan wouldn’t be showing up tonight, not when the man he’d been crushing on for months had agreed to attend the event with him. And Maxine had likely been in bed for hours. On instinct, she moved toward the knife block, her body rigid.
The doors opened and Casey burst into the apartment, looking as gorgeous as when Leighton had first seen her tonight. She stalked toward her like a lioness who’d spotted a wounded antelope. Without a sideways glance or break in pace, she tossed her coat and small purse on the sofa.
Leighton’s breath caught in her chest. “I wondered when you’d try.” She let her hand fall from the knife block.
Casey didn’t seem to notice as she strode into the kitchen. “You left!” She raised her hands in obvious anger.
Leighton covered her face with her arms to protect herself and shied away. Her hip bumped into the counter’s edge. When nothing happened, she peeked out. Her response had been instantaneous and unstoppable, and now heat flooded her cheeks. She wished Casey hadn’t witnessed her in such a vulnerable and pathetic state.
Casey stared, eyes wide, lips parted, face pale.
Leighton dropped her hands.
“Leighton.” Casey’s voice came out a whisper. “Did you think I was going to hit you?”
Leighton looked away, unable to face her. “I…no, not when I have time to think. I…It was instinct.” She pressed a palm to her chest and tried to slow her rocketing heart rate.
“I didn’t mean to scare you.” Casey slumped against the opposite counter and shook her head like she wanted to erase what had happened. “Would you like me to leave?”
“No. I’ll be fine in a minute. The fear takes time to overcome, I’m told, if overcoming it occurs at all.” Leighton didn’t want to get into the details of her therapy.
Casey clenched her fists. “I almost wish he’d step over that line.”
The sentiment was sweet, but Leighton didn’t want Jeffrey anywhere near Casey, or anyone else she loved. Loved? Well, had affection for? Cared for? She’d delve into that later.
Casey sighed, and her features softened. She slowly extended her hand. “Would it be okay if I touched you?”
Leighton nodded and reached out in response.
The simple contact eased her tension. Casey brushed her thumb across Leighton’s knuckles.
Leighton tried to slow her breathing for a different reason.
“I’m not him.” Casey’s tenderness came through in her tone and her gentle look. It wasn’t pity, but concern and a lingering bit of anger maybe. Yet her expression held untold affection. “I’d never hurt you.”
Leighton averted her gaze. “I know that.”
“Good.” Casey tucked a lock of Leighton’s hair that had fallen from her styled updo back into place. “Can we talk about why you left the exhibition and why you’re not answering your phone? I thought I might have to climb a drainpipe in this dress.”
Leighton pulled her hand away and crossed her arms. Her actions had been necessary, but now she looked foolish. She also knew Casey would never settle for anything less than an explanation, and when Leighton considered it, she deserved one. That didn’t mean she’d found the courage or knew where to start. “I’m not sure I know how to explain.”
“Begin by telling me why you ignored my calls. I know you didn’t turn off your phone because you use an app to monitor your security systems and Kalyssa was with someone else tonight.”
Leighton debated how to answer and settled on the truth. “I haven’t looked at it because I knew you might try to contact me, and I wasn’t sure what to say.” And her need for a calming drink had been a priority.
“Might? After you disappeared from an event, not to mention one where I accepted the grand prize? The chance I’d want to know what happened to you and whether you were okay was more than might.” Casey inched closer. “Tell me why you left. Did I do something wrong?”
She hated that Casey blamed herself, but how was she supposed to explain? It would make her too vulnerable, and she wasn’t sure she was ready or would ever be.
“What happened after you heard my name called?” Casey’s soft voice didn’t have the soothing effect it should.
“Casey.” Leighton closed her eyes. She needed to stop this like she’d needed to escape from the exhibition. Yet, here she was, cornered in her own kitchen with nowhere to run, being asked questions whose unspoken answers made her hands shake.
Casey stepped closer. Leighton could feel her warmth and smell the champagne she’d been drinking. She opened her eyes to find Casey’s held no sparkle, none of their usual glimmer. Something akin to disappointment or hurt made her beautiful features sag, and that tugged at Leighton’s heart like few things ever had.
“I deserve an answer. I won something, something huge, and the one person I wanted to celebrate with ran from the building like it was on fire. What happened?”
To be accurate, Leighton didn’t run. She’d strode out like the elegant woman she was and hailed the first passing taxi. “I can’t.” She looked away. Seeing Casey’s disappointment in her would break her.
Casey touched her arm. “Please, at least tell me what you felt. I need to know.”
Leighton focused on her again. Casey had moved, so close Leighton could tell she must have just wet her plump lower lip. She tried to keep from looking at the smooth skin under the straps of her dress and to ignore the small triangle of birthmarks along her collarbone. Most of all, she struggled to avoid the allure of the dip of cleavage that was almost as tantalizing as the creamy tops of her breasts. If she dragged her forefinger down the center of Casey’s chest, she could hook the tip beneath the fabric and—
This was no time for distractions. Casey waited for an answer she deserved.
She rested her hands on Leighton’s arms. “What did you feel?”
Could Casey feel her trembling? “I…” Leighton’s throat was too dry to swallow. Even if it hadn’t been, she didn’t think she could force herself to say the words aloud.
Casey handed her the glass of wine, and watched as she raised it to her lips. It coated her throat, though she couldn’t taste it. She offered her some, but Casey declined, so she set it on the counter. This time, Casey didn’t touch her but remained close. Her eyes bored into her like she had a superpower to read minds, and she’d activated it. Leighton wished it was true. It’d save her the difficulty of saying the words. Unfortunately, she didn’t know how to get out of this predicament any other way.
“Something happened at the event.” She grasped the edges of the counter behind her as her insides churned.
“What?” Alarm filled Casey’s features. “Did he show up?”
“No. It has nothing to do with him.” Of course, Casey would leap to that conclusion.
Casey tilted her head. “Then what?”
Leighton fought not to stare at Casey’s parted lips and think how she was in the perfect position to be kissed. Now wasn’t the time.
At the event, they’d stood across from a large, nineteenth-century pastoral scene framed behind protective glass. Leighton hadn’t seen the painting. Instead, she’d been entranced by their reflection. They made a beautiful couple, but that wasn’t what struck her most. For the first time, she saw them as equals, a phenomenon that had never happened despite the attraction between them. As much as she’d wished they weren’t student and teacher, that was how she’d always regarded Casey, as her student. Tonight that had changed, and she’d seen her as a woman. Then the awards ceremony had taken place, and the announcement of the final award’s recipient had shifted her world.
“You want to know what I felt, and I wish I had a simple answer.” She looked at Casey, trying to find courage, searching for some guarantee there’d be no judgment, no shame.
“Take your time. I’m in no hurry.” Casey covered one of Leighton’s hands with hers.
Her determination never seemed to waiver. Inches separated them.
Leighton breathed in and out with deliberation. “First, annoyance.”
“Annoyance?” Casey’s eyebrows shot up, then curved into a confused frown.
Leighton nodded. “I had three students in attendance whose works had been accepted into the exhibition, and not one of them had placed first, second, or third. Of course, I expected it to be a sweep.”
Casey laughed, the merry sound filling the kitchen and sending a pleasant warmth through Leighton. “Go on.”
“Then surprise.” She became somber. “Your painting is exquisite, absolutely breathtaking. I didn’t want to say anything beforehand because I feared my bias colored my ability to view your art objectively. Every one of my students painted the same model, yet none of them looked like yours.”
Casey’s thank you was almost inaudible, and scarlet patches bloomed on her chest.
“That said, I never expected the judges to award Best of Show to someone unknown. These events are often political, even with a blind jury. It doesn’t mean you aren’t talented, but as far as the artistic circle in New York goes, you’re not a name, or style, that anyone knows.” She stroked Casey’s cheek. “Yet.”
Casey smiled and stood taller.
Her pleasure at Leighton’s words and touch buoyed Leighton’s courage, and her trembling subsided. “I was standing beside you when they announced the grand prize winner, and I heard your name.” Her vision went hazy in remembrance of the excitement, the headiness, the way she feared she might go into cardiac arrest when she realized what it meant. Her heart pounded again at the mere thought.
Casey squeezed her hand. “How did that make you feel?”
Was Casey channeling Leighton’s therapist?
“Three things, in this order. I was so proud of you. Not because I’d taught you, but because of what you’d accomplished through the monumental time, effort, and love you poured into that stunning painting.” Leighton took a sip of wine for perseverance. “My second thought was to grab you, hold your sweet face, and kiss you.”
Casey’s eyes bulged, and her grip on Leighton’s hand tightened. “Oh.”
“I couldn’t, especially not there, but I didn’t trust myself.” A lump rose in Leighton’s throat at what she had to say next. “My last thought was that you’d be leaving for Florence soon, and I’d still be here in New York…” She clenched her eyes shut to fight back her tears. “Heartbroken.”
Casey squeezed her fingers so hard her knuckles ached.
When Leighton looked at her, Casey’s cheeks were wet.
“Heartbroken?” she whispered.
Leighton stared at her a moment, then slowly nodded. “Yes, it will break my heart when you leave. So, I came home. I left because you frighten me. You make me afraid of what I want to do.” She never shared her innermost thoughts and emotions like this, not even with her therapist. Casey had a hold on her she couldn’t describe, an uncanny way of finding the cracks in Leighton’s walls. Yet, she didn’t pry them apart with a crowbar but as a tree’s roots split a rock, steady and gently over time, until the stone breaks in two.
“You wanted to kiss me?” Of course, Casey hadn’t missed that part.
Leighton gave a feeble wave. “The tense is irrelevant.”
The glimmer had returned to Casey’s eyes. She moved so their thighs touched. “Yes, I’ll be leaving for Florence soon, and you know what else that means.”
She did. It’d played an enormous role in her running—striding—out of the event.
They were almost at eye level with one another since Leighton had discarded her heels. She shivered as Casey nuzzled her cheek and neck. Her scent invaded Leighton’s senses. It was something different, alluring.
“I won’t be your student.” Casey pressed her lips just beneath Leighton’s ear and began gathering the length of Leighton’s dress in her hand. The fabric slinked up her legs until Casey grasped a ball of the material.
It had a dizzying effect on Leighton, and she struggled to speak amid the building sensations. “Classes continue—” she sucked in a sharp breath when Casey’s fingers brushed her bare thigh, “—for a few more weeks.” Desire pooled at her center.
“Yes, not even a month.” Casey traced the curve of her ear with the tip of her tongue.
Pleasure pulsed between Leighton’s legs, and she whimpered. Was this how generals felt when the battle wasn’t over, but they already knew they’d lost? Leighton tried to regain control. “It’d look bad.”
Casey pulled back and glanced around. “To whom? Who’s going to know? Is Kalyssa here?”
“No, she’s staying at a friend’s tonight.” She could’ve lied, but she didn’t because she’d wanted this for some time. She wanted Casey.
“Mmm.” Casey brushed her lips across Leighton’s collarbone. “Aileen has Andy until tomorrow, but if you want me to stop,” she pressed her leg between Leighton’s thighs, “you should tell me now.”
Leighton gasped at the sublime pressure, as her vision blurred and her defenses crumbled.
“Or we could return to your three things.” Casey’s voice grew husky. “The second one, in particular. The one about how you wanted to kiss me.” She shifted her thigh.
Leighton moaned. Her long pent-up need for Casey broke loose. She backed her into the kitchen island with a thud, cupped her face, and covered her mouth with hers. She kissed her deeply, thoroughly, with the hunger of a starving animal.
Still, somewhere in the recesses of her mind not awash with pleasure, she knew she should stop. But the self-discipline she’d clung to over the last few months had been exhausted.
Casey’s heat made Leighton’s hands wander, and her hot, slick mouth held her captive. Leighton dove her hands into her hair and licked the inside of her lower lip, making Casey moan in her mouth. Leighton’s core went molten. Their tongues stroked and teased, but it didn’t feel like a battle in which a winner needed to claim dominance, not that she wouldn’t submit to anything Casey wanted.
She needed Casey, and yes, she’d be heartbroken when she left, but her heart would mend in time. Right? Leighton was no fool. She’d spent a year in Florence and was no stranger to the ways of Italy’s beautiful women and men. Casey denying their charms for six months seemed too good to be true. Besides, who was she to expect Casey to enjoy any less of Florence’s gorgeous attractions than she had?
She’d done her best to avoid this, but now, Leighton wasn’t about to sacrifice the chance to have Casey, to feel her beneath her, to explore parts of her she’d only dreamed about, and to make her come as many times as she could before morning. She wouldn’t relinquish this night with her, especially when Casey wore one of the sexiest dresses ever conceived. Had Casey chosen her attire knowing what it’d do to her, how it’d make her blood sizzle? Casey wasn’t hers and would likely never be, but Leighton wouldn’t deny herself, not now, not with the opportunity to peel this dress off her. If she couldn’t have Casey, at least they could have tonight.
Casey still held the lower half of Leighton’s gown in one hand. She bit Leighton’s bottom lip.
Leighton gasped. It didn’t hurt, but it shocked her enough that Casey used the opportunity to flip them. Now the edge of the island dug into Leighton’s back, and Casey’s leg slotted snugly between her thighs again. Leighton pulled Casey’s hips against her, and Casey rewarded her with an appreciative moan.
After fumbling at her back, Casey finally let out an annoyed groan.
“It zips on the side.” Leighton threaded her fingers in Casey’s hair and lowered her mouth to the hollow of her throat. She kissed and sucked along Casey’s neck and collarbone where her perfume was stronger. Leighton’s head swam, and a hushed voice of reason whispered a soft warning. She should stop. It wasn’t too late. Except that it was. The only thing that could bring this to a crashing halt was if that’s what Casey wanted, and that didn’t seem likely.
With a quiet curse, Casey lifted Leighton’s arm and peered at her side. “What the…”
Leighton used the opportunity to catch her breath. “Would you like me to undo the little hook at the top for you?”
Casey shot her an obstinate look. Then her features softened. “Thanks, but I’m enjoying undressing you. I’ve imagined it often enough.”
Leighton’s stomach flipflopped as the material covering her breasts went slack.
Casey tugged at the bodice until she found the bra’s clasp. She grazed her fingertips over Leighton’s bare skin while brushing her lips along the tops of her shoulders. She took her time.
Was she savoring or teasing? Leighton gave up all pretense she could, or would, and rocked against Casey’s thigh. She’d never been like this, needing so much, aching to give in return.
“Yes, like that.” Casey pushed back, giving Leighton purchase.
The obvious arousal in Casey’s gravelly voice stoked Leighton’s, and she quickened her pace.
Casey freed Leighton’s breasts, and the cool air stiffened her nipples before Casey claimed them with her warm hands and hot tongue. She caressed and licked them, driving Leighton wild. The sharp draw of one into Casey’s mouth made her tighten her fingers in Casey’s hair and cry out in pleasure.
Casey moaned and did it again.
A tug on her other nipple inflamed Leighton’s desire, and her legs nearly gave out. She pulled Casey to her and kissed her.
“I need to lie down.” Her breath came fast. “Bed.”
Casey panted just as hard. “The couch is closer.” She dragged Leighton to it, shoved her coat and purse to the floor, then turned to her.
A flush covered Casey’s face and chest. Her swollen lips looked rosy, and Leighton’s fingers had made a mess of her hair. So distracted by the beauty of Casey’s wild and wanton appearance, Leighton forgot she wore her own dress around her waist until Casey stepped forward to help her out of it.
In one quick move, she pulled Leighton’s strapless bra from her bodice. She slid the dress down, her fingers grazing Leighton’s skin as she did, and let it fall to the floor. Leighton’s underwear followed, and she trembled at the slow slide of the silky fabric over her legs. With a hand for balance, Casey helped her step out of the pile of material.
Casey licked her bottom lip. “It’s a beautiful dress, but this is as gorgeous as I’ve seen you.”
Leighton watched as Casey raked her gaze over her breasts, the nipples standing stiff and erect with the ache for attention, down her stomach, leaving the heat of a caress in its wake, to the triangle of hair at the apex of her legs. Leighton tried to hold back a shiver. Imagining this scenario, as she’d done on many sleepless nights, hadn’t included the feelings swirling inside her now with Casey studying her. Instead of nerves or self-consciousness, adoration and fondness swept over her. Yes, she desired Casey something fierce, but the emotions she couldn’t get a grasp on seemed so much more powerful. She stepped forward to help her undress, but Casey shook her head.
“That can wait.” She dropped onto the sofa and pulled Leighton down to straddle her lap.
Leighton needed the closeness. She kissed her again as she explored the exposed skin of Casey’s neck with her fingertips.
Casey trailed her hand up Leighton’s leg, stopping at her inner thigh. When Leighton tried to kiss her again, she pulled back. “I enjoy seeing you wanting. I feel like it’s always me in this state.”
“Then you don’t realize what you do to me.” Leighton’s eyelids grew heavy. All she wanted was to close them and lose herself in Casey. She thrust her hips.
Casey ran her fingers through her patch of curls. “Missing my leg? Should we do something about that?” She cupped her, dipping her fingers into her folds.
Leighton gasped, and her desire bloomed in full. She ground against Casey’s hand. At Casey’s sly smile, Leighton gripped the hair at Casey’s nape, tilted her head back, and kissed the smile right off her face.
She fumbled at the back of Casey’s dress. “I want you naked.”
Casey leaned forward, pressing their bodies together even more.
Leighton yanked the zipper’s pull as she sucked Casey’s earlobe. When she’d lowered it as far as she could, she slid her hand inside the bodice and squeezed Casey’s breast.
Jesus Christ. She wasn’t wearing a bra. Her already-erect nipple tightened more at Leighton’s touch.
Casey slumped against the cushions, her lips parted. “That’s so good. Keep doing that.”
Leighton nuzzled and nipped along her neck and shoulder and pushed the dress down with her free hand so she could get to Casey’s other breast. She kneaded it gently, and Casey brought their mouths together again. Leighton’s ability to breathe, let alone kiss, left her as Casey drew small circles between her legs with a firmer touch. She groaned.
“Do you like that?” Casey bit the tender spot where Leighton’s neck met her shoulder, then soothed it with a swipe of her tongue.
“Yes, but…” She needed all of Casey, to feel her inside her, for Casey to push her over this exquisite but torturous edge. Leighton covered her hand and guided her fingers to her entrance.
She stilled, and Casey entered her slowly, without breaking eye contact. A quiet gasp escaped from Leighton’s lips when Casey filled her.
Casey waited, giving her a moment. At Leighton’s small nod, she began to move.
God, it’d been ages. She wouldn’t last long. After all, she’d been fantasizing about this very moment for months.
Casey took her nipple into her mouth and ran her tongue around it.
“Oh, God.” Leighton grasped her shoulders. “Yes, yes.” She rocked harder, lifting and allowing herself to fall, taking Casey deeper.
“That’s it. Keep going.” Casey kissed between her breasts and dug her fingers into the soft flesh of her hip as she helped guide her movements.
While Leighton had feasted on all of Casey’s skin she could reach, now she was single-mindedly focused on her own need for release. Her knees ached, and sweat covered her skin, but she rode Casey’s fingers with abandon.
Casey moaned softly, her eyes dark with obvious lust as she pushed deeper with each of Leighton’s thrusts. “I like you like this.” Her voice was low and husky. “Are you ready?” Before Leighton could process the question, Casey curled her fingers and circled Leighton’s clit with her thumb.
And that changed everything. What Leighton had craved moments before she now wanted to last, but her orgasm blossomed on the horizon like shades of pink announcing a new dawn. She saw something in Casey’s expression. Lust, yes, but something more. Adoration and—no, she couldn’t admit it, couldn’t acknowledge what was so clearly written across Casey’s features. She wouldn’t, not when Casey had a transatlantic flight in her near future. Not when she’d be leaving her. Leighton closed her eyes against it.
Casey caressed her side. “I can feel it. Stop fighting it, and let go.”
Leighton’s core tightened around Casey’s fingers.
Casey moaned and reclaimed Leighton’s nipple with her mouth, and Leighton surrendered. She let her head fall back and gripped Casey’s shoulders. Her body went rigid as the waves of pleasure crested, one after another. She continued to rock as her breaths escaped in small sobs.
Casey stilled but let Leighton take the time she needed.
At length, Leighton collapsed on top of her, her face buried in Casey’s neck. She had a faint awareness of Casey’s rapid breathing and the pounding of her pulse against her cheek.
Casey kissed her shoulder and smoothed a hand down her back. “You feel so good.”
It was Casey who rocked her hips now, slow and lazy. She hadn’t removed her fingers from between Leighton’s legs, and the small movements made Leighton twitch. Casey brushed back damp strands of her hair.
Leighton hadn’t opened her eyes. She focused on enjoying the moment, nothing more.
Casey licked her neck. “Can you do that again?”
“What?” Leighton lifted her head enough to look into the bottomless wells of Casey’s eyes.
“One more time? For me?” Casey raised her eyebrows and curled her fingers again into that sensitive place that made Leighton’s vision waver.
She gasped. Her answer would’ve been no a few seconds ago, based on how her first orgasm had wrecked her, but Casey’s small movements had somehow flipped the switch on her libido. She moaned, the sound guttural and primal.
“So, that’s a yes.” Casey turned them and rolled Leighton onto her back, her fingers still inside her.
Leighton shifted, so the armrest supported her head. How could Casey make her want like this, to be had over and again? Utterly helpless to resist, Leighton took what was offered. She bent one leg and rested it against the back of the couch and planted the other foot on the floor, opening herself fully to anything Casey wanted. She briefly wondered if anyone was in the studio below, if she should check the cameras. The way Casey’s fingers drove her toward the next orgasm, she doubted she could be quiet.
“Yes, spread your legs for me.” She added another finger.
Leighton grabbed the edge of the sofa cushion and jerked her hips upward to take more. “Casey!”
“This.” Casey trailed her mouth across Leighton’s breasts and ribs. “This is what I’ve wanted for months.” She moved lower, sucking and leaving light kisses along her stomach. Then lower still. She licked from her fingers upward, the stroke firm and deliberate.
Leighton lost all thought.
“Mmm. You taste so good. I’ll be gentle.”
Leighton wasn’t sure gentle was what she wanted.
But Casey was tender in a way that brought tears to Leighton’s eyes while still stoking the need that burned inside her. Casey’s lips and tongue stirred and soothed in licks and swirls until Leighton begged. For mercy or for more? Casey gave her neither. The closer Leighton got, the softer and sweeter Casey pleasured her, holding her right on the edge.
“Oh, God. Casey, please.” Leighton raised up and gathered Casey’s hair so she could watch.
Casey gave her a satisfied smile even as her tongue flicked out and made her legs quiver uncontrollably.
“Please.” She ran her fingers through Casey’s hair. “I need you.”
“I know you do, sweetheart.”
Leighton fell back, though she continued to watch. She had to ignore the endearment, especially when uttered during sex. She couldn’t contemplate what it might mean right now. Casey looked so lovely, so flushed and glowing like she was born to do this.
She drew Leighton into her mouth, sucking gently.
And Leighton came. What Casey gave, she took. She arched into the sofa and drove her heel into the floor as her orgasm shot through her, bright and blinding, then morphed into a rhythmic pulse.
Slowly, the world seemed to right itself, and Casey moved to lie beside her.
“No more, no more.” She played with Casey’s hair. “At least not if you have any expectations of me returning the favor.”
Casey curled against her. “I’m in no hurry.” She trailed her fingertips over the swell of Leighton’s breast and entwined their legs. “This is nice.”
It was indeed. So nice Leighton feared it was a dream from which she’d wake, and in some ways it was. What awakened instead was her need for Casey as she rested her hand where her gown had ridden up her thigh. Leighton plucked at the sexy black dress crumpled around her belly. “Get rid of this.”
With a sultry smile, Casey stood and shimmied out of it in a series of movements that had Leighton entranced. Her underwear went with it.
In the dim fluorescent light spilling from the kitchen, Casey looked like one of Prud’hon’s masterful sketches in chalk on blue paper. Leighton admired her pert breasts and small pink nipples, her contrapposto stance, and rounded hips. Hips into which Leighton wanted to press her fingers and lips.
She shot off the sofa. “The bedroom. Now.” She grabbed Casey by the hand and pulled her into the hall.
As they passed the guest room, she saw Casey glance in. Casey was about to see Leighton had been sleeping with the pillow Casey used the night she and Andy had stayed over. It’d held her scent, though it’d faded, but Leighton still found it comforting.
Leighton didn’t bother turning on the lamp. Enough moonlight fell across the bed to make it unnecessary.
Casey touched the pillow and gave Leighton a warm, understanding smile.
Leighton pulled her into her arms and curled her fingers around the back of her neck.
Casey rested her hands on Leighton’s hips as though waiting for her to lead.
It occurred to Leighton she didn’t know how to do this, how to separate her sexual desire for Casey from the feelings she’d developed. Did she need to? She’d already told Casey her heart would be shattered when she went to Florence. Did it matter if she couldn’t conceal all the emotions threatening to overwhelm her?
Tenderly, she brushed Casey’s hair from her face and caressed her cheek with her thumb. Then she kissed her, intending to take it slowly and let the passion between them build again, but her desire had ideas of its own, even after two orgasms. The simple, soft press of their breasts against each other’s, of Casey’s hands caressing her sides, and the sudden heat between them sent her prior intentions spiraling away.
Casey moaned into her mouth.
She’d been waiting long enough. Leighton slid her hands over Casey’s back, feeling her muscles and ribs and the way her breaths came shallow and fast.
An urgency existed between them that Leighton had never experienced. With a soft push, she sent Casey backward onto the bed, then lowered herself onto the full length of her. There could be no doubt of her intention now, for either of them. Leighton claimed her with a slow, deep kiss and groaned when Casey wrapped her legs around her hips and pulled her hard against her center.
Leighton paused to catch her breath. She slid her mouth along Casey’s supple neck where heat emanated from her skin and her pulse jumped under the surface. As she kissed her way down her torso, Leighton drank in the soft slope of her breasts with their hardened peaks. She licked up and over a nipple, then took it in her mouth. She swirled her tongue around it, unable to get enough, and squeezed the other in her hand. At the press of Casey’s hands on her shoulders, she placed quick kisses down her stomach and along her hip.
Casey let her legs fall open.
Leighton had desired Casey for some time, but it didn’t stop at the physical nature of their connection. It’d never been quite so simple for her. She found so many aspects of Casey appealing. Maybe her fate had been determined since that morning she’d stepped off the elevator and spotted Casey looking at her painting. Since then, her estimation and admiration of her had grown with each passing day. No, it certainly wasn’t just sex. Her feelings for Casey, which had begun as a flicker, had become a full-blown conflagration.
“Do you know how hard it’s been to be around you when I’m not able to touch you?” She trailed her fingers up Casey’s thigh. “I’ve often wondered if you could feel me watching you.”
The sound of Casey’s panting filled the room.
“Your easel in front of my office has been a blessing and a curse. I’ve spent way too much time enjoying the gorgeous view and neglecting my work.” She ran her hands up Casey’s thighs until her thumbs brushed through her wet heat.
Casey arched her hips into the touch.
Leighton licked a slow path through her wetness. Casey’s scent made her want in ways she didn’t know she could. “Do you even know the things I’ve imagined doing to you?”
Casey whimpered.
Leighton licked her swollen folds and reveled in her divine taste. “Or the places I’ve imagined doing them?” She pushed her tongue inside her.
Casey gasped. She rested a steady hand on Leighton’s head, but her legs trembled.
Leighton replaced her tongue with two fingers. The sweet sound that emanated from Casey made her do it again. Oh, how she wanted to discover just how many sounds she could draw from her. Desire clouded Leighton’s thinking. One night would never be enough, yet it had to be. They couldn’t continue to have sex until Casey left. Therefore, she’d drag as much pleasure out of this one evening as possible. There was no mistaking the pleasure Casey derived from Leighton’s fingers sliding in and out of her slick warmth.
“Yes, again. Just like that.” Casey rolled her hips to meet her thrusts. “Leighton.” Desire laced her voice. “Leighton, please.”
Leighton had an idea of what she wanted, but she had to hear her say it. “Yes?” And as much as she wanted to see her come undone, she wasn’t quite ready for this moment to end.
Casey seemed to struggle with the question. She writhed on the bed and grasped at the covers. “Leighton.” It came out hoarse.
Leighton kissed where her leg met her body. “Tell me what you want.”
Casey blinked several times, then found Leighton, her eyes glassy and pleading.
She was gorgeous—muscles tense, nipples swollen, her neck and chest flushed with evident arousal. Leighton was certain she looked at Casey with too much wonder, too much adoration, too much lo—
No, she wasn’t going there.
A sheen of perspiration covered Casey’s skin. “Put your mouth on me again. Please.”
She’d made her wait long enough. Leighton slipped her tongue through her folds and took her between her lips. She sucked and lapped with gentle strokes until Casey’s fingers dug into her shoulder.
“Yes. Oh, God, yes.”
Leighton crooked her fingers, and Casey’s moans increased. Then she went silent, her entire body tensing. Leighton increased the pressure of her tongue as she stroked her.
“Oh, God, I’m…”
Leighton didn’t need the announcement. She already knew, could feel. Casey grabbed Leighton’s hand, and her body bowed. She went rigid for a few seconds, then crashed to the bed amidst a chorus of gasps and mumbled words, most of which Leighton couldn’t make out.
Leighton nuzzled her skin and pressed random kisses to her thighs.
Casey sighed and stroked Leighton’s hair. At length, she urged her upward. “Come here, you amazing woman.”
Leighton rested her head on Casey’s chest. Tired and sated, she simply enjoyed the softness of the woman beneath her. Something suffused her, like morning sunlight, its warmth flowing over all it touched. Was this happiness? How long had it been since she’d known the sensation? These days, she found herself dealing with all kinds of emotions she hadn’t experienced in a while, if ever.
Leighton caressed the edge of Casey’s nipple with her thumb. She listened to Casey’s heart thumping beneath her ear. It seemed to be racing. Was a heart supposed to beat that fast?
Leighton had no idea. She’d never been well-versed in the workings of her own heart, let alone someone else’s. And least of all this woman who could make her feel so many things she didn’t understand.