Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Vanessa closed her laptop when she heard Emma stirring their cups of tea in the kitchen.
She had come into the living room a few moments ago, asking if they could talk, so Vanessa was silently preparing herself for whatever storm was potentially coming.
Emma hadn’t seemed distressed in any way, but her wife was good at masking her feelings when she believed it was required of her.
She pressed her fingers to her temples, exhaled a long, slow breath, and set her laptop aside.
A moment later, Emma crept in, two steaming mugs in hand. She passed one over before curling herself into the far corner of the couch. She wore one of her oversized hoodies that Vanessa adored, and right now, Vanessa was contemplating stealing it from her.
Vanessa smiled. “Thank you.”
Emma nodded, but her eyes were fixed on the swirling steam rising from her drink.
“You’ve…got that face,” Vanessa said, her eyes narrowed.
“What face?”
“The one you get when you’re about to drop something big and you don’t know if I’m going to like it or not.”
Emma let out a quiet laugh, then sipped her tea. “It’s not bad, I just…I need to ask you something, and I don’t really know how to word it without sounding—” She cut herself off and set her mug down on the table. “How much am I allowed with Freya?”
Vanessa frowned. “Allowed?”
“Yeah.” Emma nodded as she chewed her lip.
“I mean, this wasn’t what you signed up for.
None of it. We were living our lives, and then all of a sudden, I have a sister.
And she’s only twelve, and she’s…mine. Even though she’s not.
” Emma took a breath. “So, I’m trying to figure out what that means for us. ”
Vanessa sat back, surprised by the direction this had taken. “Emma, where is this coming from?”
“I don’t know.” Emma dragged a hand down her face.
“It’s something I’ve been thinking about lately.
Maybe it’s because of how fast this has all happened, I don’t know.
” Emma looked back at Vanessa and swallowed.
“But what I do know is that you married me with zero expectation that there would be a kid involved in the mix. And now I’m talking about emails, and meetings, and maybe one day having her over here often.
For dinner, or to spend the night…the weekend.
” Emma shook her head and sighed. “I’m scared that if I start pulling her into our life, it’s going to take something away from us. ”
Vanessa’s heart ached. Not with anger, but with seeing Emma so tangled up in her own head. “You think having a relationship with your sister is going to damage our marriage?”
Emma shrugged. “I’m scared it could. I don’t want to make her a priority at the cost of what we have. And I don’t want you to resent me if I start pouring time and energy into her.”
“Listen to me very carefully.” Vanessa reached for Emma, curling her fingers under her chin as she gazed into her eyes.
“I’m not going to resent you for loving your sister.
You’ve spent your entire life without her.
Of course you want to make up for that. I’m not going to stand in your way, and I’m certainly not going to give you rules about how much you’re allowed. ”
Emma’s lips twitched into a faint smile. “You make it sound like I’m asking for a permission slip.”
“Well, I’m not signing anything,” Vanessa said as she held up her hands and smiled. “You don’t need my permission to show up for her. All you need to do is keep talking to me about how you’re feeling, and trust that I’ll tell you if I ever feel pushed out. Which I know is never going to happen.”
“You’re really okay with all of this?”
“I’m okay if you’re okay.” Vanessa trailed her hand from Emma’s chin down to her neck, her thumb brushing against her jaw. “And right now, you’re clearly not okay. So my priority is you.”
Emma gave her a look that was equal parts grateful and guilty. “I don’t deserve you.”
Vanessa smiled slowly. “But you’ve got me.
” She leaned forward, pressing her lips to Emma’s in a kiss that was meant to reassure, but which deepened the second Emma fisted her hand in Vanessa’s jumper.
Perhaps they would discuss where the hell her line of questioning had come from at some point—Vanessa didn’t particularly like knowing her wife was worried about bringing Freya into their life together—but right now, she just wanted a quiet night in, loving Emma.
Vanessa shifted closer, one hand sliding to Emma’s thigh, palming it in a silent promise.
“Babe,” Emma murmured, “I really love you, you know that, don’t you?”
“I do.” Vanessa brushed her lips against the corner of Emma’s mouth. “And I’m about to remind you how much I love you, too.”
The way Emma’s eyes darkened at that made Vanessa’s pulse quicken. She set her mug aside and eased closer again, closing the slight distance between them.
The conversation could wait. The world could wait.
Right now, she was going to make sure Emma knew beyond all doubt that nothing, and no one, could take away what they had.
Even though every part of Vanessa was screaming to strip her wife bare and take what she wanted, she let her fingertips wander instead, tracing the familiar slope of Emma’s thigh through the fabric of her joggers, her nails catching lightly on the seam.
Emma’s eyes followed her hand, her breath already shifting to that slow, uneven rhythm Vanessa knew so well.
“You’re so easy to read.” Vanessa dragged her knuckles higher until her fingers found the dip of her hip.
Emma’s lips parted as she whimpered. “Then stop reading and start doing.”
Vanessa smiled and leaned in, brushing her lips up the outside of Emma’s ear. “So needy.” She nipped gently at her earlobe before catching Emma’s mouth in a kiss that was all tongues and heat, the kind that left them both breathless far too quickly. “Don’t test me, Emma. You never win.”
Emma gripped Vanessa’s jumper and pulled her down until their chests were pressed together. Vanessa drifted fully into the moment, and then she shifted quickly, sliding Emma’s joggers and underwear down her legs.
The first brush of her fingers over bare skin had Emma’s hips lifting from the couch. “B-babe.”
“Shh.” Vanessa kissed Emma, her fingertips circling lazily over her swollen clit. “I’ve got you.”
Emma’s head tipped back against the cushions, her breath catching when Vanessa’s fingers slipped lower.
She was already soaking wet, so wet that Vanessa could feel it coating her fingertips before she’d even really touched her.
That familiar rush of wanting to devour her wife whole hit hard, and Vanessa’s own breathing grew ragged.
“You can’t help yourself, can you?” Vanessa murmured as she eased two fingers inside Emma. “You’re this wet already?”
Emma gasped and bucked against Vanessa’s fingers. “It’s your own fault. You shouldn’t be as hot as you are.”
“Oh, I think you deserve a little more for that.” Vanessa curled her fingers, and Emma’s thighs trembled around her. Her other hand slid beneath Emma’s hoodie, splayed across her stomach, holding her still. “Mm. Maybe I’ll make you come real hard tonight.”
The little sounds Emma made—the breathy whimpers and moans—hit Vanessa low in her gut. She worked her fingers deeper, brought her other hand up Emma’s thigh, and pressed in teasing circles against Emma’s throbbing clit.
Emma’s hips rocked in a rhythm that was almost desperate, her hands gripping at Vanessa’s arms. “Vanessa, I’m—”
“Not yet.” Vanessa slowed, her fingers dragging deliberately over that spot inside her that made Emma’s whole body jolt. “I want to really feel you come apart for me.”
Emma let out something between a groan and a plea, her eyes locking on Vanessa’s with a heat that almost made her lose her own control. But she wouldn’t. She’d mastered her control around Emma.
“Look at me,” Vanessa said as she picked up her pace again. “Don’t look away. I want to watch you fall apart.”
Emma held Vanessa’s gaze even as her body tightened and her thighs clamped around her hand. Vanessa locked her wrist, angled her fingers inside Emma, and rubbed vigorously against her clit.
“I-it’s, I…fuckkkkk.” Emma came hard. The shudder, the breathless cry, the way Emma’s whole body bowed up off the couch as she came, gushing over her thighs and Vanessa’s hand.
Vanessa kept fucking her, adoring it all play out in front of her, drawing every last pulse from her wife until Emma was panting and swatting weakly at her arm. “S-shit, babe. N-no more. Please.”
Vanessa eased out of Emma and leaned down, pressing a slow, almost chaste kiss to her lips. “You okay?”
Emma let out a shaky laugh. “You could have warned me.”
“Now, where exactly is the fun in that?” Vanessa grinned as she sat back on her knees, aware that they’d potentially ruined the couch. “God, I could watch you unravel like that every minute of the day.”
“You certainly know how to take my mind off things.”
Vanessa curled around Emma, needing five minutes before round two. “Just remember that I’m in this with you forever, baby. No matter what, I’ll always stand right by your side.”
The duvet was still warm from the heat of their bodies, the faint trace of sweat cooling on Emma’s skin as she shifted against the pillows. Her pulse had finally started to slow, though she could still feel the ache in her thighs from where Vanessa had been between them only minutes ago.
Vanessa lay on her side, head propped up in one hand, her fingers trailing idle shapes against Emma’s stomach. It was lazy, almost absent-minded, but each brush of her manicured nails still sent tiny sparks skittering through Emma’s body.
Emma smiled faintly, tilting her head to look at her wife. “You’re staring.”
“Just making sure you’re still breathing,” Vanessa teased, though her gaze softened almost immediately. “And because you’re even more beautiful when you’ve just been loved thoroughly and properly.”