Casey watched the sheer curtains in Leighton’s bedroom breathe in and out in the semi-darkness. Leighton had let some of the cool night air in to combat the radiant heat they’d generated during their lovemaking. Considering her stance on open windows, Leighton was breaking all her rules tonight.
Right now, however, there were more pressing matters, like the warm body against her back and Leighton’s hand that rested upon her hip. She covered it to keep it there and shifted onto her back. After her last orgasm, she’d said she couldn’t take any more, but here she was, already aroused after a restorative nap, turning to Leighton once again.
Something caught her eye, and she blinked a few times. A painting hung across from Leighton’s bed. Casey sat up. It was an unfinished vignette of a female nude. In the dim light, she discerned a long gash running from one corner to the other, although someone had repaired it from the back. She knew it was there because she’d slashed it.
Leighton had saved her painting.
Her heart swelled, and she turned to her. Leighton had thrown an arm above her head, her hair disheveled. Casey brushed her lips over her cheekbone, and Leighton pulled her closer, but didn’t open her eyes.
Casey placed a kiss on her temple. “You little thief.”
Leighton’s only response was an amused, upturned corner of her mouth like she’d been expecting it. Casey traced the curve of Leighton’s ear with her nose and kissed the corner of her jaw.
“It’s not stealing if it’s in the garbage.” Leighton’s voice was heavy with sleep.
Casey had always enjoyed listening to her, but this sultry version was even better, even more arousing. She lowered her mouth to Leighton’s breast and kissed it.
Leighton pulled Casey atop her.
“Dumpster diver.” Casey grinned against Leighton’s cheek and strummed her nipple.
Leighton opened her eyes, and pushed Casey so she straddled her. Her gaze wandered over Casey’s breasts. “What do they say? Reduce, reuse, recycle?” The corners of her mouth seemed to twitch with mischief as she rolled Casey’s nipple into a hard point. “I care about the environment. What can I say?” She slipped a hand between them.
Casey gasped. Neither spoke for a few moments as Leighton caressed her.
“That’s why…” With her pleasure threatening to consume her, Casey struggled to speak. “You saved it?”
“Is that a problem?” Leighton’s voice sounded calm though her fingers weren’t.
Casey dropped her chin to her chest and her hair fell forward. Her hands remained on Leighton’s breasts, but they’d stilled. “No, I just thought…” She struggled to speak under the barrage of wonderful sensations.
“What did you think?” Leighton touched her chin to lift her head.
Leighton’s piercing eyes made Casey suddenly feel exposed and more than a bit embarrassed. She looked away. “I just thought…” She rocked back and forth, her body thrumming with anticipation. “I thought, maybe…there was another reason.” Her hips moved in erratic, desperate motions, her climax moments away.
“Casey, look at me.”
She did. With her hair a mess and her eye makeup smudged, Leighton was still so beautiful. And she was touching her and gazing at her as if she was the only thing that existed in the universe.
Leighton’s expression softened into the tenderest of smiles. “Of course, there was another reason.”
Casey’s orgasm swept through her.
* * *
Casey didn’t need to turn on the kitchen lights to make coffee. The early morning glow of sunrise washed the room in warm yellows. She pressed the button on the Keurig to heat the water. Based on the empty spaces in the spinning holder beside it, she guessed at Leighton’s favorite brew. She chose a Nantucket Blend for herself.
While she waited, she rubbed her bare legs together and danced in place to stay warm. She’d thrown on one of Leighton’s Oxford shirts to make her foray into the kitchen.
Leighton had been asleep when she’d awakened. At some point, Leighton had wrapped an arm and leg around her. Something pleasant stirred in Casey at the possessiveness of the embrace. The thought of sleeping alone in Florence popped into her head, and she didn’t look forward to it.
They’d been up most of the night, and Casey wasn’t sure she’d even managed to doze for multiple hours. Soft kisses sprinkled between whispered conversations kept turning into something more. For hours, they explored unfamiliar terrain and found as much pleasure in the journey as the destination, or at least she had.
Casey pressed a button, and a hiss of steam and gurgle of hot liquid greeted her.
At first, she hadn’t wanted to move from the bed. Leighton’s warm embrace was too tempting to leave, and being so close, Casey could admire the tiny details of her delicate features. Feathery eyelashes, just a shade lighter than her hair, fluttered now and then. The elegant bones that defined her cheeks and jaw made Casey want to trace them with her finger. Three silver hairs near her temple sprouted like brave weeds in an otherwise immaculate garden. Casey didn’t touch her. She held her breath and admired Leighton like she might the most captivating painting in a museum, with quiet reverence. No complaints would come from her if she woke like this every morning.
Life wouldn’t be like that, though. Casey didn’t know if this was a one-night or umpteen-night stand, but she’d be going to Florence soon, the birthplace of the Renaissance. Who would’ve imagined that Casey Norford, from a small town no one had heard of, would visit Italy?
She’d walk the ancient cobblestone streets that Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Botticelli once walked. Or perhaps she’d rumble over them on a Vespa. Erica had gushed about Via de’ Tornabuoni and the window shops of the upscale designer fashion and jewelry boutiques when she returned from her visit last summer. The more affordable stores on the Ponte Vecchio intrigued Casey, despite Erica’s tales of it being a hot spot for tourists and pickpockets alike. Shops built on a bridge struck her as unusual, but she hoped to buy inexpensive souvenirs there for the special people in her life. Like Leighton. She swayed at the thought of leaving the person who meant the most to her outside of Andy.
The nutty scent of Leighton’s coffee broke her reverie. Casey pressed the brew button on her Nantucket Blend and looked in the refrigerator for milk. Oat milk. So Leighton.
A chime from Leighton’s phone where it charged on the kitchen island drew her attention. A notification filled the screen. Activity Zone 7.
Casey tensed.
While likely a student had arrived and triggered a motion sensor, the possibility of Leighton’s ex-husband gaining entry to the building made her heart race. She loathed how he hovered on the periphery of Leighton’s life. Leighton didn’t seem to have heard it, so she grabbed the phone and dashed to the bedroom.
Casey rubbed her thigh through the sheet. “Leighton.” She shook her a bit. “Leighton, wake up.”
Leighton bolted upright. “What’s wrong?”
“Probably nothing.” Casey handed her the phone. “But you got a notification.”
Leighton played a short video. It looked to be of the studio. “It’s fine. Phoenix is down there.” She flopped against the pillow and pulled Casey to her with a smile. “Good morning.”
Casey’s heart raced, no longer due to the notification but the naked woman beside her. “Morning.” She brushed her lips over Leighton’s.
Minutes later, the simple kiss had evolved into something more significant.
“Is this my shirt?” Leighton undid the button between her breasts and tried to pull Casey on top of her.
Casey grinned and pulled away. “I made coffee.”
Mischief gleamed in Leighton’s eyes. “There’s more where that came from. Lose the shirt.”
Playful, wise, generous, talented, and gorgeous Leighton. Casey could delay a cup of coffee, but her will wasn’t as strong when it came to her.
An idea struck her, and she froze. Why hadn’t it occurred to her before? It was the answer to everything, and it got no more romantic. It’d show Leighton the magnitude of her feelings.
Lines formed on Leighton’s forehead. “What’s going on in that mind of yours?”
Casey’s chest heaved with excited breaths. “Come to Florence with me. Think about it. You, Kalyssa, me, and Andy. Wouldn’t you like to get away since your ex can’t seem to leave you alone? Best of all, you and I don’t have to be apart for six months. It’s the perfect solution. We’d be together.” She brushed Leighton’s messy hair from her eyes and gulped air. “Come with me.” Her heart tried to break through her chest.
Leighton looked at her with wide eyes, then blinked five or six times. “Casey.”
Casey squeezed her hand and grinned.
Leighton shook her head. “No.”
* * *
Feeling self-conscious now when she hadn’t been minutes before, Leighton pulled the sheet over her breasts. How could this be happening after the night they’d shared?
Casey let go of her hand. “No?”
“I can’t. Think about it. Surely, you understand.” She saw the hurt in Casey’s eyes.
“But the stalking seems to be getting worse. Don’t you want to get away from here?” Casey tugged the shirt tails over her thighs.
“Does he worry me? Sure, but I’m not going to abandon my life.” She surveyed the surrounding walls. “I’ve built this. It’s my dream. I haven’t shown what I can do yet, and you want me to walk away in the middle of it.” Leighton wished she’d said yes to the coffee, so she’d have something to do with her hands.
Casey stared at her lap. “Not forever. Just six months. It’s temporary.”
Leighton shook her head and refrained from rolling her eyes. “It’s an entire semester. Whom shall I hire to teach my classes?”
Casey buttoned the one Leighton had undone.
Leighton attempted to make eye contact. “How shall I pay my interim instructor? While we’re on it, how shall I pay for the flights and six months of lodging?”
“You and Kalyssa could stay with Andy and—”
She scoffed. “Have you seen the size of the rooms in Florence? How do you know they’re planning on providing for Andy? Did they even know you had a son before last night? And while we’re traipsing through the Uffizi or fucking one another, who will watch the children?” Leighton motioned for Casey to move so she could stand. “I’m sorry this isn’t the response you expected to what you surely thought was a grand, romantic gesture.”
Wrapped in the sheet, Leighton entered her walk-in closet, then pulled on leggings and a T-shirt. No sound came from the bedroom. She peered around the doorway. Casey still stood in the same spot, holding the tails of the shirt in her hands. “Well, it isn’t romantic. It’s not fair for you to ask something this monumental of me when you consider the short time we’ve…” She gestured between them. It wasn’t a relationship. They’d had sex. Monday morning would once again see them as teacher and student. Christ.
Casey’s chin quivered.
At the sight, Leighton’s resolve wavered slightly, but she had a dream, too. She handed her a pair of sweats and a sweatshirt. “Take these and get dressed. You should go.”