Addison awakened just after dawn, pleased to find the warm body that had remained in her protective embrace through the night. They had gotten dressed again before falling asleep, and though she feared at times that Mary Kate would ask her to leave, Addison’s calming assurances had prevailed.
Mary Kate stirred and then blinked in obvious surprise at finding Addison looking down at her.
“Good morning,” Addison said, unable to mask her delight. “I’ve been waiting for ages for you to wake up so I could tell you about the most remarkable evening I had.”
“Remarkable, huh?” Mary Kate nervously fingered her collar.
“Truly.” She leaned down and stole a morning kiss. “I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did, because I don’t think I could stand it if you didn’t.”
“You took my breath away.”
“I could say the same.”
“Except, I mean really. I had no idea…”
“It was beautiful,” she said, still hoping to reassure. “Your body was so responsive, so ready. All you had to do was let go.”
Mary Kate stroked Addison’s chest with her palm. “It wasn’t the sort of image I’d want a lover to see, especially the first time.”
“Why do you feel you have to project an image? You should always be who you are.”
“Nobody wants to look naïve in bed.”
So she was still embarrassed. “We’ve all been there. Besides, I meant what I said about being glad I was the one who shared that with you.” She kissed her again, this time on the cheek. “So thank you for waiting.” Mary Kate finally smiled, and Addison was flooded with relief.
“Do you think anyone knows about you sneaking down here?”
She shook her head. “It was dark. But I should probably go back and mess up my bed before the housekeeper comes around.”
“You really think they care?”
“It’s possible. Homosexuality is illegal here.”
Mary Kate’s eyes grew wide, but then she tipped her head as if pondering something. “It won’t be an issue tonight because we’ll be sharing a room.”
Yes, but would they share a bed? There was no mistaking Mary Kate’s uneasiness, and no opportunity for exploring its roots until they were alone again tonight. Addison didn’t think she would last all day trying to guess where they stood. “Are you okay about last night?”
Mary Kate stared back at her for several seconds—long seconds, since Addison was waiting anxiously for her reply.
“I just woke up a different person, Addison. It might not be easy for me to understand it all, but I can’t change what I know about myself now.”
Addison was gripped with uncharacteristic insecurity. “I want to be there with you when you figure it all out.”
Mary Kate pulled her down for a gentle kiss. “Good, because I don’t think I can do it without you.”
That was all the confirmation Addison needed that their night together had not been a colossal mistake. They said quiet goodbyes, and she tiptoed back to her room unseen.
Three hours later, they stood in the street in front of the hotel with the others, hoping for a break in the clouds that would grant them one last view of Kilimanjaro. The safari guides arrived before it happened, and they piled into their respective vehicles, vowing to meet up again at the airport.
Addison couldn’t contain her delight at finally being alone again with Mary Kate—alone except for their driver, John, a thin Tanzanian who spoke barely a word of English. They were situated in the backseat of a rugged Toyota Land Cruiser, the apparent vehicle of choice for private safaris. Their drive took them over a familiar route past the airport turnoff, and then onto a narrow two-lane road riddled with potholes.
“Maasai,” John said, pointing at the two red-clad tribesmen amid the small herd of cattle.
“Mei told us on the way into Moshi that the Maasai consider cattle to be sacred,” Mary Kate said.
“I read that too. There was a story not long ago about some tribesmen who were so saddened by what happened at the World Trade Center that they gathered twelve of their best cattle and made a gift to the United States ambassador here in Tanzania.”
“I’m not surprised. Mei said they were noble.”
Addison stepped out of her shoe and trailed her bare foot along the back of Mary Kate’s calf, well out of John’s line of sight. “So how’d you sleep last night?”
“Not bad.” Mary Kate smiled as a faint blush crept up her neck. “You?”
“Okay, I guess. I had a little trouble falling asleep. It was really hot in my room.”
Mary Kate nodded seriously. “Maybe it was something you ate.”
Addison covered a guffaw and felt her own face heat up. It was tempting to push the game a little further, but the sudden appearance of an ostrich in the field next to them reminded her they had come to view the wildlife on the outside of the vehicle.
John seemed to know the secret locations of all the invisible speed bumps and managed to miss the worst ones. Still, they were plentiful, random and not officially marked. In some places, the local warning system was a small stack of rocks on the side of the road. When they turned onto a dirt road, speed bumps were no longer consequential, as the road itself was as rippled as a washboard.
At midday, John pulled into a courtyard of shops and retrieved the three box lunches provided by the View Hotel. He exited the vehicle and opened their door gallantly. Without speaking, he indicated a wide porch that held a half dozen plastic tables and chairs and pointed also in the direction of restrooms and a small bar where they could purchase drinks.
Mary Kate bought Cokes for all three of them while Addison waited at a quiet table in the corner. It was their first opportunity to be truly alone since early this morning.
“Have you been reading my mind all day?”
“Yes, I think I have.” Mary Kate laughed. “And the irony is that I’ve come ten thousand miles to see exotic animals living in their natural habitat, and all I can think about is your foot rubbing my leg.”
“I’ll try to control myself,” Addison said, smiling playfully. “I look forward to spending every minute of the next four days with you, and the fact that we’re going to get to see these fascinating things together will just make them all that much better.”
“I appreciate everything you did last night.”
“Believe me, the pleasure was mine.”
“I don’t mean just the…you know.” She began to blush again. “I mean the way you talked to me. I’m really sorry that I—”
Addison interrupted her with a hand on her arm. “You have nothing to apologize for,” she said sincerely. “I care for you very much, and I hope I showed you that.”
“You certainly did.”
“You’re not the only one sorting things out today.” She smiled at Mary Kate’s quizzical look. “Believe it or not, I woke up a different person too, all because of how you made me feel. I can’t get this silly grin off my face, and it’s all I can do to keep my eyes off you.”
Mary Kate laughed softly and looked away, clearly embarrassed by the sentiment, but also obviously pleased.
“You might as well get used to it, Mary Kate.”
“Then you better hope we don’t get arrested.”
John signaled for them, and they walked back to the vehicle laughing. It was nice to have the air cleared, Addison thought. They seemed to do that regularly, but it always moved them forward.
Before entering the Lake Manyara Game Reserve, John pulled over and climbed onto the roof of the Land Cruiser. After releasing a catch, he folded back two panels, opening the roof of the vehicle so Addison and Mary Kate could stand for a safe and unobstructed view of the wildlife in their natural setting.
Within a few hundred yards of passing the park gate, they came upon three other vehicles stopped in the middle of the road. The party in front had encountered an elephant in the roadway, and following park rules, had to hold their position until the animal moved along. Unfortunately, the creature wasn’t pleased with the motorized challenge to his territory, and after a stubborn standoff, moved to charge the vehicle in front. All of the well-trained drivers responded in unison, reversing gears to back up quickly. Finally, the mighty beast turned into the woods, trampling the bushes and small trees in his path.
“Did you get pictures?” Mary Kate asked excitedly.
“A few, but I couldn’t see him very well from here. Why don’t we use my camera like we did on the mountain and I’ll send them to you on a disc?”
“Or you can take pictures of the animals and I can take pictures of you,” Mary Kate suggested, her voice low enough that John couldn’t hear. She raised her camera to snap a candid of Addison as she stuck out her tongue. “Now that’s what I call a wild animal.”
“I’ll give you more than a picture,” Addison said, feeling certain John couldn’t understand them.
When they cleared the elephant’s path, they stopped again as a family of baboons crossed the road in front of them…and another…and another. After almost half an hour, they had seen more than two hundred of the creatures, all passing within a few feet of the Land Cruiser. In some instances, the younger baboons rode on the backs of their parents.
Winding through the heavily wooded park, they got a close- up view of a small herd of impalas, then a fleeting glimpse of a dozen or so zebras as they rushed shyly into the bush, and eventually a long-distance look at two adult giraffes by the lake. Several trips around the lake yielded no new species, and finally John left the park for their first game lodge.
As its name suggested, the Ngorongoro Wildlife Lodge overlooked the magnificent Ngorongoro Crater, a natural zoo that spanned sixty square miles. The crater was home to hundreds of species, including zebras, wildebeests, hippos, elephants, lions and the very rare rhinoceros. Tomorrow, they would descend into the game reserve. But tonight, they would be treated to a buffet dinner and a traditional African dance program at the lodge.
Mary Kate waited with their bags while Addison checked in and picked up the key to their room.
“Lights out at ten o’clock, back on at six thirty,” she reported. “Our dinner slot is in fifteen minutes, and the show starts an hour later.”
“So we have fifteen minutes to freshen up?”
“Or to make out,” Addison said innocently. She opened the door to their room to find twin beds separated by a nightstand. Candles and matches were placed around the room for after- hours illumination. Since the crater ledge sat at over seven thousand feet amid dry vegetation, there were no mosquito nets. She took the bags from Mary Kate and tossed them aside.
They fell together onto one of the beds, kissing frantically. Addison resisted the urge to let her hands roam, not wanting to start something they couldn’t finish before their scheduled dinner. “I’ve wanted to do this all day, every time I looked at you.”
After several minutes, they tore themselves apart and left the room for dinner. There was a show—dancers, costumes, drums. It was all a blur to Addison.
When they returned to the room, she took a quick shower and slid naked into bed while Mary Kate finished up in the bathroom.
When she emerged, Addison raised the covers and offered the space next to her. By the familiar candlelight, she watched with growing anticipation as Mary Kate dropped her pajamas on the floor and climbed into bed alongside her.
Addison wasted no time in picking up where they had left off the night before, marveling at the easy way they moved together. She could feel Mary Kate respond. Everything she touched or kissed brought a gasp or a tremble, but it was clear she was holding back, as if afraid to let go. “Listen to your body, Mary Kate. It knows what you want. Let go, and I’ll keep you safe,” she whispered.
Little by little, Mary Kate moved with the stroking hand inside her, her breathing hitching each time her clitoris was teased.
“That’s it. I love it when you move with me.” Addison pressed her hips to Mary Kate’s thigh to quell her own need, which grew exponentially with each rise and fall. Then suddenly, the orgasm ripped through Mary Kate, and she bit into Addison’s shoulder to muffle a scream.
“How do you do that?” Mary Kate rasped.
“I told you. Your body knows.”
They lay still for several minutes while Mary Kate caught her breath. “Can I touch you?”
The question surprised her, but set her body aflame. “Of course.” She fell onto her back as Mary Kate rolled onto her side. A tentative hand stroked her stomach and hip before slowly tracking upward to touch her breast. Addison watched as her nipples darkened and formed peaks. “See how excited that gets me.”
Mary Kate explored the shape and feel of her breasts, first one, then the other, before lowering her head to draw a nipple into her mouth.
“And I love that.”
Seemingly confident in this newfound pleasure, Mary Kate devoured her breasts, combining all possible tactics—licking, nibbling, blowing, tugging. Addison was ready to touch herself when finally a hand wandered lower and into the soft curls at the apex of her thighs. When it lingered too long, Addison gently took Mary Kate’s wrist and moved it lower.
“Feel what you do to me.”
She shuddered as Mary Kate’s fingers slid through her slickened folds, and then again as Mary Kate gasped in apparent wonder. In that instant, she realized the magnitude of the moment, her first touch of another woman.
“I want to come for you.”
Mary Kate seemed torn between looking into her eyes and watching what her hand was doing. Addison helped her choose.
“See what you’re doing. You have so much power over me.”
The pressure intensified as she thrust upward into Mary Kate’s rhythmic caress, until she could stand it no more. With her thighs stiffened and high off the bed, her climax ripped through her, the pulsing waves receding in its wake.
“Please tell me you like doing that.”
Mary Kate answered her with a passion-filled kiss that begged for a new round of sensations.