The tea on the nightstand had long since lost its heat and the book Joanna had once so anxiously wanted to read had been tossed aside. Her laptop was quiet atop the tallboy, and Chauncey laid at her feet, his little chest rising and falling as he slumbered away.
She felt so tired, but as she rested against pillows of down, sleep refused to come. Instead, as she had done for most of the week, Joanna stared off into space as if it held the answer.
Jolted from her thoughts when a growl rose in Chauncey’s throat, before Joanna could stop him, he scrambled to his feet and began to bark.
“Chauncey, be quiet,” Joanna whispered, but then she heard a light knock on the door and her heart stopped. Her first thought was not to respond, but when she heard another faint rap against the woodwork, Joanna groaned. “Come in.”
The door swung open, and Addison filled the space. Although she was dressed as if she could return to the office at any minute, her tie was loose and slightly off-kilter.
As soon as Chauncey saw Addison, he ran to the edge of the bed, jumping around like his paws were on hot coals. Yapping, yapping, and yapping again, he didn’t stop until Joanna snapped her fingers.
“Chauncey, go to your bed,” Joanna said.
The pup darted over to Joanna, and clambering up her chest, gave her a few quick licks before jumping down and trotting to the corner of the room. Stepping into his fleece-lined bed, he spun around a half-dozen times before finally snuggling into the softness and closing his eyes.
Joanna let out an exaggerated sigh as she looked toward the door. “It’s late, Addison. What do you want?”
Addison bowed her head and raised her eyes. “I need you,” she said in a breath.
“I’m not in the mood to be manhandled or womanhandled, for that matter.”
“What did I...please tell me...tell me what I did wrong.”
Joanna paused when she saw Addison sway. “Have you been drinking?”
Addison bobbed her head. “Just a little.”
“Then you should get some sleep.”
“I can’t sleep. I can’t...work. I can’t...” Addison stopped and let out a sigh. “Please, just tell me the truth. Tell me...tell me why you’re so distant. Tell me what I did wrong.”
Thoughts flooded Joanna’s mind. Should she speak the truth and fear the agony of being spurned, or remain mute and forever live in a world of what ifs? She took a deep breath and gazed at the woman across the way. “Addison, I’m in love with you. I didn’t plan it. I didn’t want it. It just happened, but what we’ve had earlier this week, that’s not what I want. I feel like a tart. Like something being used just because I’m there and...and if the mood strikes you’re just going to toss me aside.”
“I wouldn’t do that.”
“How do I know that?” Joanna said quietly.
Drawing in a slow breath, Addison came closer and forced the words out. “I care about you. I do, but...but I’ve never known this...this feeling and I can’t say the words if I don’t understand them. I have no reference, no definition or...or connection that makes sense for me, and I need to understand what love is before I say that word to you. I’m not stupid. I know it’s a special word and not one that should be bandied about just because it’s only four letters and easy to say. I just need time to...to get my head around what’s going on in my heart.”
Her eyes glassy with emotion, Addison sat down on the edge of the bed. Slowly reaching out, she gently ran her fingers down Joanna’s face. “You’re so beautiful,” she whispered. “And I miss you.”
It was so simple, just a tender touch, but with one caress, Joanna’s heart melted. She reached over and pulled the knot from Addison’s tie, and slipping it from her shirt, Joanna let it drop to the floor. “I don’t need to hear the words,” she said as she pushed Addison’s jacket from her shoulders. “I just need you to show them to me.”
Addison swallowed the moisture building in her mouth and leaning over, she placed her lips on Joanna’s.
The kiss was like no other they had shared for it was tentative and gentle, and in slow motion, their heads moved this way and that. Neither feeling the need to rush, they caressed each other with their lips and their tongues, drinking in the sweetness they had both missed so much.
Joanna broke out of the kiss. The softest of smiles graced her face as her eyes met Addison’s and a moment later, her fingers found the buttons on Addison’s shirt.
One by one Addison could feel the fasteners giving way, and as her shirt began to gape, her heart began to pound. She had always been the seducer. Never granting anyone control over the act, she had never allowed them to strip her, but as the cool air met her heated skin, Addison couldn’t help but relinquish all control.
Driven by desire and a thirst to experience all that was Addison, locked under sheets and a duvet was not where Joanna wanted to be. Quickly escaping the fortress of down and silk, Joanna wasted no time in removing Addison’s shirt and a shiver of awareness fluttered through Joanna’s body as Addison’s torso finally came into view.
The effect from years of swimming was obvious. Addison’s arms were muscled and her stomach flat and strong, but nothing could have prepared Joanna for the swells of Addison’s breasts rising above a bra of lace and spandex. She couldn’t prevent a low groan from escaping her lips as her center pulsed, and keeping her eyes locked on Addison’s, Joanna slowly reached around and released the clasp of Addison’s bra.
Drawn to what she yearned to see, Joanna fixed her eyes on breasts, creamy and plump. Tipped in rose, beaded and tight, they rose and fell in time with Addison’s breathing, and Joanna didn’t hesitate to reach out and cup them in her hands. Honey smooth and weighty, they filled her palms so perfectly, and for a few seconds, Joanna just held them, amazed at the sensation.
At first, the rosy centers had been taut, but when Joanna saw how hard they had become, the peaks erect and hard as pebbles, she ran her thumbs over them and watched in amazement as they grew even harder. Lowering her head, she pulled one into her mouth and tenderly ran her tongue around it.
Addison arched her spine and tipped back her head as a current of sensual need rushed through her body. Others had been at her breasts, sucking and fondling in the throes of sex, but this was something entirely different. This was something she never wanted to end, and gasping for air, she murmured, “Oh dear God, yes. Yes, Joanna...yes.”
In the darkest recesses of Joanna’s mind, there had been a fragment of worry born from a novice’s concern, but Addison’s raspy whisper dissolved any apprehension Joanna had. Her tender tasting turned hungrier, and sucking hard on the distended peak in front of her, she began tweaking the other with her fingers.
It took every ounce of strength Addison had not to throw Joanna onto the bed and ravage her then and there. Need coursed through Addison’s body and between her legs, nectar now oozed freely, soaking through her knickers and trousers in a current born from passion. Her heart was racing, and her breathing ragged, and feeling as if her heart was going to explode from her chest, Addison tenderly urged Joanna to cease. Their eyes met for an instant before Addison wasted no time in ridding Joanna of her pajama top.
Joanna now understood why Addison had taken her so quickly those three nights because slow seemed impossible. Urged on by a hunger she had never known, while she found herself being stripped of her clothes, Joanna did the same to Addison. Coaxing her to stand, Joanna fumbled for Addison’s belt, and tugging it free, she unzipped her trousers and let them fall to the floor.
Addison pulled Joanna to her feet and freed her from the pajama bottoms, but Addison didn’t stop there. Hooking her fingers in the band of Joanna’s knickers, Addison slowly knelt as she dragged the silk and lace down Joanna’s shapely legs.
All at once, Addison was awash in the scent of Joanna’s arousal. It was heady and earthy, and too enticing to ignore. Cupping Joanna’s bottom in her hands, she urged her forward and then buried her face between Joanna’s legs.
“Oh...Jesus,” Joanna said, and unable to stop herself, she thrust her pelvis against the deliciousness of what Addison was doing. She could feel her lips and tongue greedily nibbling and licking at the juncture between her thighs, and the sensation was driving Joanna mad. Feeling as if her knees were about to give way, she threaded her fingers through Addison’s hair and grabbing hold of the strands, forced Addison to stand up. As soon as she did, Joanna captured Addison in a fierce and probing kiss. Open-mouthed and demanding, Joanna ravaged Addison’s mouth. She could taste her own essence on her lips, the flavor heightening the passion burning in Joanna’s veins. Breaking out of the kiss, she pushed Addison’s knickers over her rounded hips, and they floated silently down her legs.
Unabashedly, Joanna lowered her eyes and her breath caught in her throat. Addison was shaven and smooth, and her thighs were glistening from the wetness seeping from her.
Addison stood there naked and exposed as she gazed at Joanna, and the more she looked, the more erotic the moment became. The scent of her want became thick in the air as her walls pulsed and pushed out nectar from within, and when she felt it drip down her legs, she took a ragged breath and urged Joanna to the bed.
Joanna willingly slid onto sheets of silk and watched as Addison slowly followed her. Skin, heated and smooth, finally came into contact, and when Joanna felt Addison’s knee slip between her legs, she moaned in anticipation. The touch she craved was just seconds away.
Addison claimed Joanna’s mouth in another kiss, her tongue sweeping hungrily over Joanna’s again and again before she began to make her way across Joanna’s neck and shoulder. Her lips blazed a liquid trail of fire as she casually tasted Joanna’s salty skin, but when she reached Joanna’s breasts, casual was no more. Covering an engorged nipple with her lips, Addison sucked and teased, relentless in her pursuit of pleasure, while Joanna helplessly squirmed beneath her.
Joanna combed her fingers through Addison’s hair and held her firmly against her breast. It was the language of lovers, a silent plea for more and Addison answered it in a heartbeat. Pulling on the bud of the other nipple with her fingers, Addison rubbed and tweaked it as she continued to feast on the one between her lips. It was taut and beaded and delicious, and she could have gone on forever, but when she felt a gentle nudge, she obeyed Joanna’s silent command and rolled to her side. Joanna followed her, and as their eyes locked, their hands began to roam.
In awe of texture so incredibly divine, they lazily drew their fingers down each other’s skin. It was all so new, so different than it had been before, and entranced by the touch of the other, time passed ever so slowly. The sound of their breathing was all that could be heard, its volume increasing the more their hands wandered, and when Joanna slipped hers between Addison’s legs, the silence was quickly broken as a lustful moan slipped from Addison’s lips.
Joanna became entranced by the petal-smooth folds slick with desire. Her hand was quickly coated in want, and driven by the arousal pumping through her body Joanna began to explore the folds beneath her fingers...and Addison began to writhe.
Pleasure and pain became one as Joanna slowly drove Addison to the brink of bliss. Unhurried in her discoveries, Joanna stroked Addison’s thickened folds. Dipping between each, she slid her fingers up and down again and again until Addison suddenly rolled to her back. For an instant, Joanna’s brow creased, but when she saw Addison open her legs, Joanna worried no more. Returning her hand to the warmth between Addison’s thighs, Joanna guided her finger into Addison’s entrance.
“Oh...Christ,” Addison said, arching to meet the intrusion. “Oh...yes...”
The feel of Addison’s tight, wet walls around her finger was to die for, and Joanna had to bite down on her lip to squelch her own need for release. At first, she was gentle and slow, but when Addison’s moans turned guttural, and she began pushing hard against her hand, Joanna slipped out one finger and thrust in two. Filling Addison in one quick motion, Joanna wasted no time in increasing the tempo as she drove her fingers into her wife again and again, and it wasn’t long before Addison matched the rhythm she had set.
The restraint Addison had always used with others disintegrated. With nameless women and even with Luce, Addison had always held back just a little, but with Joanna that was impossible. Grabbing for the sheets, Addison clutched the fabric in her hands as she finally allowed herself the freedom to let go.
Spasms of pleasure rippled from within, fluttering and pulsating through her center until they erupted from her core, her nectar flowing thick as garbled sounds of pleasure slipped from Addison’s lips. Wave after wave crashed over her, and squeezing her legs tightly around Joanna’s hand, Addison rode each wave to its crescendo.
Her body heated and her breaths shallow, Joanna waited in silence until she felt Addison’s legs relax. Carefully removing her hand, she rested back on her haunches, softly smiling at the woman she loved.
One minute passed and then another before Addison opened her eyes, and when she did, she momentarily forgot how to breathe. Kneeling beside her was Joanna, her naked breasts heaving as she pulled in air through parted lips. Her skin was flushed and shining with sweat and tendrils of hair clung to her forehead, and Addison couldn’t remember seeing anything more sensual.
She sat up and gently eased Joanna to the mattress. The flavor of the woman was still swirling in her mouth, and Addison licked her lips in anticipation as she inched downward on the bed. Leisurely kissing her way over Joanna’s breasts and belly, when the divine aroma of Joanna’s desire filled her nostrils, Addison breathed deeply as she parted Joanna’s legs.
Earlier, Joanna had been given a hint of what Addison could do with her tongue, so when she felt her breath on her thigh, she knew the hints had ended...and ended they had.
Addison nuzzled her nose into the dark curls, and when she ran the tip of her finger up Joanna’s folds, her wife’s response was immediate. Raising her hips, Joanna offered Addison a sensuous invitation.
Sliding her hands under Joanna’s bottom, Addison held her up as she buried her face into the pink, slippery fissures. She ran her tongue through every crevice, lapping at the need oozing from Joanna’s entrance, and every now and then, she sucked against the tenderest of flesh until Joanna’s squirms became frenzied.
Few words had been spoken, both using their touches, breaths, and sighs to urge the other on, but rapidly spiraling toward the sweetest of deaths, Joanna could take no more. “Please, Addison. Oh...God...please...”
It was Addison’s turn to clamp her legs closed, shutting down the spasms that Joanna’s words had caused. Sheathing two fingers deep inside of Joanna, Addison placed her mouth over Joanna’s clit and allowed her tongue to do the rest. Between her strong, deliberate plunges and the circles she drew with her tongue, within seconds the room was filled with Joanna’s cries of ecstasy.
The power of her climax caused Joanna to sit up for a moment before she fell back to the bed, welcoming spasm after delirious spasm as they rushed through her body and shuddered through her soul.
Awestruck, Addison watched Joanna’s shattering release, and for the first time in her life, she climaxed without ever being touched.
It took several minutes before Joanna found the strength to open her eyes, and lifting her head, she looked down at the woman whose head was now resting on her thigh. Never in her wildest dreams had she expected something so powerful or so gloriously perfect, and even though Addison hadn’t spoken the words, in every touch, in every sigh, and in every kiss...Joanna had just heard them loud and clear.
***
The wearer of thick-soled orthopedic shoes climbed the stairs, making not a sound on the carpet as she reached the top and turned toward the east wing. For the most part, Saturday mornings were like clockwork and Joanna would visit the kitchen for her cup of coffee and toast with jam, but when eight o’clock passed and nine approached, Fiona took it upon herself to load a silver tray with the makings of breakfast. After all, even she enjoyed a lie-in occasionally.
***
Sometime during the night the champagne duvet had slipped from the bed, but the heat it would have provided was not missed by the occupants. Naked and intertwined under a jumble of sheets, they slumbered unaware, warmed by the heat of the other.
Joanna was wrapped in a cocoon of sleep and comfort when a faint knocking awakened her. At first, she was going to ignore it, but when Chauncey began to yap, Joanna groaned. “Come in,” she mumbled into her pillow, but a millisecond later her eyes flew open. She sat up, scrambling to pull the sheet around her as she was about to retract her offer, but before one word formed on her lips, the door swung open and in walked Fiona.
At first, Fiona was confused. Joanna looked frightened as she clutched a sheet to her chest, but when Fiona’s eyes were drawn to something else, the silver tray filled with food and china slipped from her fingers and crashed to the floor.
“What the fuck!” Addison said. Turning over, she quickly sat up and gave Fiona a view neither of them would soon forget. “Jesus Christ,” Addison growled, tugging with all her might to free the sheet trapped under her body to cover herself. “What the hell are you doing?”
Joanna looked at Addison and immediately grinned. She had the worst case of bedhead Joanna had ever seen, and her indignant expression caused Joanna’s eyes to twinkle. “Addison, please,” she whispered. “It’s okay. I was the one who told her to come in. She’s done nothing wrong. I’ll handle it.”
Addison wanted to be angry. Actually, she really wanted to be angry, but the gaiety in Joanna’s eyes had acted like a wet blanket, extinguishing Addison’s temper in an instant. Resigned to once again giving up control, Addison sighed. “All right. She’s all yours.”
“Good,” Joanna said, giving Addison a wink. Turning back to Fiona, who now was busily picking up shattered pieces of china and coffee-soaked slices of bread, Joanna said, “It’s okay, Fiona. I’ll do that.”
“Oh...um...no, miss...I made the mess and—”
“I think in this instance we can forget about decorum, don’t you?”
Fiona raised her eyes and saw Joanna smiling back at her. “Miss?”
Joanna fought the urge to laugh when she saw the depth of the scarlet coloring Fiona’s cheeks. “What I’m saying is I think you’ve seen enough, and since it’s obvious Addison and I aren’t wearing any clothes, perhaps it’s best you return to the kitchen and put on another pot of coffee. And if you don’t mind, please take Chauncey with you. He needs to go out.”
Fiona got to her feet. “Yes, miss. Right away,” she said as she snapped her fingers to get the pup’s attention. Instantly springing to his feet, Chauncey darted past Fiona and scampered down the hall, and as Fiona reached for the door knob, she glanced at Joanna. “Thank you, miss.”
“You’re quite welcome.”
Joanna waited for the door to latch before looking back at Addison, and when she saw the woman’s mortified expression, Joanna began to chuckle. “Are you all right? It’s not like they wouldn’t have found out eventually, you know?”
“Yes, well, it’s one thing for them to figure it out,” Addison said, still tugging at part of the sheet lodged under Joanna’s bum. “But it’s quite another to be found starkers. Don’t you think?”
Joanna’s amusement overflowed immediately, and reduced to a fit of irrepressible giggles, she continued until her sides began to hurt.
Addison’s mouth went slack as she stared at Joanna, but her momentary annoyance was no match for Joanna’s laughter. True and pure, it was frivolity at its best and Addison’s heart smiled. She reached over and pulled Joanna toward her, and a second before their lips met, she whispered, “Now...where were we?”