Selina moaned explosively as her back hit the wall of the bathroom stall.
Aubrey had been true to her word over the past two days since their beachside make-out session—kissing only, but goddamn, each round since that first one left Selina breathless and needing far more time with her vibrator than before.
Aubrey’s lips caressed her neck as the woman pinned her against the cool surface of bathroom stall, and she couldn’t help but surrender. Selina closed her eyes and let the sensations wash over her. Her core throbbed, and her pulse quickened in the wake of the way Aubrey bit, nipped, and sucked at the column of her neck. She wrapped her arms around Aubrey’s shoulders, and the woman’s hands remained on her hips with a settling grip that let her know who was in charge.
She’d always suspected Aubrey Moore would be unforgettable at this sort of thing, but the reality shattered her expectations. The scent of lemon and sage lingered around her like pure sunshine. Aubrey smelled fresh and vibrant, filled with so much life. Aubrey’s lips crashed into hers again. Their mouths tangled in a collision of tongues and teeth. They kissed like this might be their last one, chasing every final sensation together.
Selina’s lips grew swollen, and the taste of sweet rum lingered between them along with the metallic tang from the fierce way they crashed together.
This excursion had been unintended. Selina had gone out to the bar with the girls, but the moment Aubrey and her crew showed up, her former plans got jettisoned into the sea. Ever since they’d kissed the other day, neither of them could get enough. They’d both made every excuse to slip off and find a secluded corner to make out, whether it was behind her rental or in one of their cars. This time was no different.
“God, you’re so fucking hot,” Aubrey moaned against her mouth, pinning Selina in place with her body, her palms settled on her hips like she owned her. If this version of Aubrey was the only one she’d met, Selina would’ve offered herself up in a heartbeat. She’d been waiting ages to feel this zip of attraction again, for her synapses to fire to life like she’d been rebooted.
“Back atcha, gorgeous,” Selina purred between kisses, their breaths coming out like minor explosions. Her shoulders heaved, and sweat beaded on her skin like they were in here for a different reason. Not like she’d indulge in sloppy bathroom sex with anyone. As much as she’d let herself go here—she had her limits. Their lips brushed against each other a few more times, as if they were trying to siphon out any lingering bits of pleasure they could.
Selina’s pussy throbbed to the point of distraction, and the temptation grew fierce to let this go to its natural conclusion. But she’d spent her earlier years indulging in meaningless hookups, and they’d always left her feeling hollower in the aftermath. At least she could draw her line here and hope her heart wouldn’t be aching for too long when the vacation ended and they both went their separate ways.
Their kisses grew slower and more deliberate as they savored each one between breaths. Aubrey tasted gloriously sweet, the heat emanating off her body bringing Selina close to combustion. She could feel how Aubrey restrained herself from going further, and that alone settled her every time they made out. Not like she was absolved from thoughts of Aubrey’s sensual mouth between her legs, her hands on her thighs spreading Selina open. A vicious ache throbbed in her core, and she locked lips with the one woman who could do something about it.
The bathroom door creaked open as someone came in to use one of the stalls. The sound snapped her out of her reverie. Not like anyone was surprised by two women together in a stall at a gay bar. She did her rounds at Renegades when lines began to form, rattling on doors to get any hookups moving along.
Selina forced herself to pull back, even though she could lose herself in those gentle kisses just as much as the desperate ones. Aubrey’s lips were as swollen as hers, strands of her hair plucked out of her ponytail and her slim white shirt rumpled. The red skirt she wore was hiked up her thighs in a way that was far too inviting.
“We should head back before the others suspect something,” Selina murmured, keeping her voice low.
Aubrey snorted. “I’m pretty sure the bathroom excuse didn’t convince anyone, sweetheart.”
Selina gave her a look. “Well, I promised them at least a little time tonight, and I intend on giving my friends that.”
Aubrey’s grin softened. “Sounds like a plan.” She unlocked the door, and they both headed toward the single mirror overtop of a worn sink.
Selina popped on the faucet, splashing some icy water over her face, as if that could even attempt to smother the flames roaring inside her body right now. She took a minute to swipe her relaxed strands into place and straightened the form-fitting tank top she wore so her bra no longer peeked out the top.
Behind her, Aubrey straightened her clothes as well, pulling out her hair to redo her ponytail. Selina couldn’t help the glance back at the gorgeous woman, noticing how even in the sallow bathroom lighting, her tan skin looked bitable, those defined muscles on clear display. Her chestnut hair shone with some visible golden streaks as she gathered it back with a hair band again.
Selina dug into her pocket and found her lipstick. She applied a fresh layer since Aubrey had kissed away all the gloss she’d been wearing. Maybe this shade of plum could hide the fact that her lips were swollen from their intense make-out session.
Not like she’d be able to dismiss it from her mind easily.
Tonight would be long and restless in her lonely bed.
Once Selina finished applying lipstick, Aubrey leaned in beside her so their hips nudged together. “You realize that shade on your lips makes me want to kiss you all over again.”
A flush spread across her cheeks. “You’re insatiable, sunshine.”
To her surprise, Aubrey pulled back, but not before Selina caught the blush staining her cheeks. Something about making this cocky, indomitable woman react felt like a victory, and she couldn’t help the way her heart sang in triumph.
“All right, let’s go mingle,” Aubrey said, grabbing the door and pulling it open.
Selina sauntered out first, scanning the crowd for Cass, Steph, and Zane. They hung on the opposite end of the bar, but she caught sight of Cass’s gaze landing on hers, slight surprise in her umber eyes. Even after taking the time to straighten up, she felt like she wore a blinking sign above her head that pointed out what she’d just been in there doing. Part of her wanted to indulge right now, caught in a vacation spell, but the other part of her, the sensible part, understood she had set herself up for heartbreak.
The first day back at Renegades when Aubrey showed up and whisked some winsome blonde off her barstool would be pit-in-the-stomach misery that would linger for a long time.
Aubrey waved over to where Ky sat at a table alongside Sky and Mia, not too far from Selina’s friends. This was where they should part ways and spend some time with the people they’d arrived here with instead of drowning in each other.
They hadn’t even gotten several paces past the bar when a voice sounded behind them.
“Aubrey? Selina? Is that you?”
Selina turned around, a prickle of discomfort spreading through her. A woman sat at the bar behind them, her blonde hair back in a pin-tight bun and her mauve dress so snug it might as well have been plastered on her. Selina focused for a moment, trying to place where she knew the woman from when the realization hit her like a smack. Renegades, of course.
“Hey, Ria,” Aubrey said, her voice a low, tentative scrape. The woman’s grin widened at the sight of them, her bubblegum pink lips and infectious smile belonging in a Crest commercial.
“Go figure I’d run into the two of you down here, and even in the same room,” she said, a lilt of amusement in her voice. “Don’t you guys hate each other?”
“Ah, yeah, definitely,” Selina attempted, even though her voice sounded fake to her own ears.
Luckily or unluckily, Ria didn’t seem to process that in the slightest. She hopped off her seat and placed a hand on Aubrey’s shoulder. “Must be fate running into you here.”
Selina’s stomach twisted. Jealousy was the exact thing she couldn’t handle, not when zero trust had been built between her and Aubrey. The woman never made any promises of changing, and Selina should’ve known better than to indulge.
“Probably more of the fact that we’re both living in the same state and hitting up the hotspot most lesbians do,” Aubrey commented, her shoulders stiffer than normal. Discomfort radiated off her, which came as a surprise to Selina, who was used to seeing Aubrey descend into slick and charming at the drop of a hat.
Ria stood in front of her and dragged the tip of her pointer finger down Aubrey’s chest. “I know you don’t do repeats, but I hoped you’d make an exception…,” she purred. “Vacation and all.”
Selina swallowed hard. She needed to put some space between them—now. “Great running into you, Ria,” Selina said, taking two steps forward. “I better be getting back to my friends.” Not like she could take standing there and listening to them flirt in front of her. After all, why wouldn’t Aubrey go for Ria? The woman had all but flung herself at Aubrey, and unlike Selina, she was willing to go for the whole sweaty one-night spin in the sheets.
Selina could vaguely hear Aubrey’s voice behind her, but she tuned it out as she quickened her pace, heading toward Cass and the others. Christ, after all of that, she needed to tip back a pint more than ever. Selina forced her gaze forward, refusing to look back as she carved her way through the busy bar. She settled into place at the open seat by Cass. Steph and Zane had already gotten up, making their way to the bar for drink refills.
A quarter of her pint of porter remained, so Selina strode up and tossed back the liquid. Cass’s eyes burned into her, but she didn’t look her way until the pint glass hit the table with a thump. Selina couldn’t bring herself to glance in Aubrey and Ria’s direction. She didn’t want to witness any of their interaction.
“So, care to explain why the woman who avoids players at all costs just stepped out of a bathroom with the biggest one in the state?” Cass asked her, drumming her fingertips on top of the counter.
“Don’t suppose you’d believe a bra malfunction?” Selina tried, her throat drying as she attempted to ignore all the nerves rearing up after the dose of reality. Seeing Ria from Renegades was like a sign from the Goddess that she shouldn’t be pursuing anything with Aubrey, even casual make-out sessions. Truth be told, as much as she’d chalked up everything as casual, none of it had been. She didn’t go for moonlit walks or kiss on the beach with her friends, and the heavy tension between her and Aubrey had grown with every encounter.
“Hey, if you decided to have yourself some fun, you know I’m not going to rag on you about this.” Cass’s voice softened. Her friend had known her ever since she’d arrived in Wilmington, which counted for one of her longest friendships, considering she’d never stayed in a zip code long enough to keep anyone. “I just worry, because I know you.”
“Don’t worry—I set my limits,” Selina murmured. Not like those made a whit of difference when her heart was on the line. “You know I wouldn’t fuck a random girl in the bathroom.”
Cass pursed her lips. “If Aubs was capable of changing her ways, I’d say dive in, but I mean, hell. The girl over there is eyeing her up like the Lucky Dragon Buffet, and she’s not running for the hills.”
Selina forced her gaze to follow, even though her chest already sank. The initial meeting was bad enough, and she didn’t need to see the vision in real life that she kept replaying over and over in her head of Aubrey grabbing Ria by the hand and leading her out the door.
When she glanced up, however, Aubrey patted Ria on the shoulder before she turned in the opposite direction. Ria pouted playfully before she found her seat by the bar again, but Aubrey didn’t look back as she sauntered toward Sky and the others at their table. Before she made it all the way there, Aubrey’s gaze flickered in her direction and held, a flare of accusation there. Selina returned her stare, her chin jutting out since she refused to back down. What was she supposed to think when that had been Aubrey’s MO from the moment they met?
“Well I’ll be damned,” Cass said, taking a sip from her martini. “Apparently hell has frozen over, because for the first time in her life, Aubrey Moore turned a woman down.” Her gaze drifted over to scrutinize her. “I don’t suppose you have anything to do with that change? I’ve noticed how much time you two have been spending together.”
“Who knows,” Selina muttered into her empty glass. “I’m not taking too much stock in it. We’re on vacation, after all.”
Cass opened her mouth as if she might say something, but Steph and Zane wandered over, so she closed it.
“Just in time for drinks,” Steph said, carrying an extra porter over and placing the drink in front of Selina.
“You’re an absolute doll,” she responded, settling back into her seat with the porter in hand. She spared another glance in Aubrey’s direction, but to her continued surprise, the woman sat in the booth with her friends, laughing and cracking jokes rather than swooping through the bar on the hunt for a woman to take home. Selina’s battered heart made a hesitant thump of hope, one she tempered with the reminder that this was temporary.
For the next hour, she sipped at her porter and enjoyed drinks with the others, for once no one rushing off to their own agenda. She got the itch for nicotine however, and once she finished her drink, she got up and headed out front for a smoke break.
Selina sucked in a deep breath of the salty air, unable to help how it transported her mind to just the other night as she’d tumbled around the beach with Aubrey. A full body flush surged through her, and she grabbed the pack of smokes, smacking the flat part against her side before she plucked one. In seconds, Selina had lit her cigarette, and she drew in the first blissful drag, one she needed after the Wild Mouse roller coaster she’d been dragged through tonight.
A moment later, the door creaked open.
Selina caught the scent of lemon before Aubrey settled beside her against the wall.
“For someone who doesn’t smoke, you sure take a lot of smoke breaks,” Selina murmured, trying to settle her nerves. After the way she’d bolted earlier, she didn’t want to dive deep. If anything, she wanted to go running in the opposite direction.
“I’m starting a new thing,” Aubrey commented with a sideways smile that made Selina’s heart thump a little harder. “Fresh air breaks. I’m pretty sure the trend will take off.”
“Going to head out soon? Ria looks like she’s in search of a warm bed,” Selina commented, wishing the words didn’t make it feel like claws were sinking into her chest.
“Think I’m that easy, do you?” Aubrey asked, her voice deepening with an irritation they both felt. “Any bed will do?”
“You tell me,” she challenged back, heat flooding through her.
“I’m interested in locking lips with one woman tonight, and it’s definitely not Ria,” Aubrey growled, stepping in front of her. God, that note of possession just about killed her resistance.
Selina sucked in one more drag from her cigarette before she dropped it to the ground. Aubrey took another step in closer until Selina’s back was flush against the wall. Once Aubrey’s lips slid against hers, she closed her eyes and surrendered to the sensations.
Tonight was proof this could never last, but she’d enjoy every second while it remained.