Chapter 37 Aches and Pains
Aches and Pains
A lazy Sunday morning she hoped they’d spend together.
These last months had left their mark on her, especially Lucia’s accident.
She understood Francesca all too well. Just the thought of how close she’d come to losing Lucia left a hollow ache in her chest.
Penelope trailed a finger down Lucia’s cheek. She couldn’t believe they were here. Not just because of the accident or the entire forgery saga, no.
This—them. She’d allowed this to happen. No, even that was wrong. It had just…happened. And Penelope hadn’t even noticed it.
Maybe that was why it had happened at all.
Lucia twitched, and Penelope withdrew her finger, loath to wake her.
But too late—Lucia’s eyes opened, blinking slowly. She hummed, reaching out for Penelope and pulling her close.
“Good morning,” she breathed, nestling against Penelope’s neck.
Shivering, Penelope entangled their legs. They’d not been intimate since the accident, and even though the doctor had cleared Lucia for sex, Penelope preferred to wait until she was fully healed.
However, the way Lucia pulled her close, the tight grip on Penelope’s waist, her clever tongue dancing along the skin of her neck proved their intentions were not aligned.
Penelope gasped when Lucia added her teeth and rasped along her skin, slotting her thigh between Penelope’s legs.
She forced herself to pull back. “We shouldn’t.”
“Why? Skittish about morning breath? We can make a quick pit stop to the bathroom if you want.”
Lucia’s breath was warm on her skin, and Penelope’s pulse kicked up at the featherlight contact.
Penelope rolled her eyes. “I’m skittish about hurting you.”
“Aww, you’re so sweet.” Lucia drew closer and whispered in her ear. “I missed you terribly, and I had plans for you last night, so please don’t ruin them this morning, too.”
“Ruin them? You fell asleep on the couch!”
A rough chuckle left Lucia’s lips. “True, but that doesn’t change the problem at hand.”
“Which is?”
“I’m aching for you.”
Penelope bit her lower lip, drawn closer by the intense expression in Lucia’s eyes.
“You’re aching for me?”
Lucia nodded, gaze sliding to Penelope’s lips. “I am.”
Despite knowing she probably should, Penelope didn’t pull back, unable to resist Lucia’s magnetic pull.
Smiling, Lucia dipped her head and connected their lips—a soft, lingering press, like a promise. A promise that turned heated when Lucia’s lips parted, and her tongue sought entrance to Penelope’s mouth.
With a groan, Penelope welcomed her in, and at the taste of Lucia, her eyelids fluttered closed.
Lucia deepened the kiss while her fingers dug into Penelope’s sides.
Mindful of Lucia’s ribs, Penelope eased her onto her back, pressing close against her side as their fervent kiss continued.
Heat rushed through Penelope, and she kicked the sheets down, her fingers tracing beneath Lucia’s T-shirt, along her twitching abdomen.
“Are you sure this is OK?”
“Yes.” Lucia’s chest heaved. “You can’t lie on my chest, and maybe don’t bump into my right side, but I’m good.”
Penelope searched her eyes, then nodded. She shifted lower, stretching out between Lucia’s thighs, and kissed her way along the soft plane of her belly. The skin beneath her lips was warm and still carried the faint scent of sleep and shampoo.
Lucia groaned, her eyes squeezing shut as she spread her legs wider, making room for her.
Pulling Lucia’s shirt higher, Penelope trailed her fingertips up her ribs toward the soft weight of her breasts, her nipples pebbling beneath her touch. “Is this still good?”
“Yes, please.”
Penelope rose, shifting to crouch over her, and lowered her mouth to Lucia’s breast, licking and sucking as she traced her teeth along the furrowed skin before drawing her nipple fully in.
“Yes,” Lucia whispered.
Penelope switched to the other breast, then let her tongue trail down Lucia’s torso, dipping into her belly button before hooking her fingers into her waistband. “Can you lift up a bit?”
Lucia canted her hips, and Penelope slid them down her toned thighs and off.
Settling back between the V of Lucia’s legs, Penelope pressed a kiss against the patch of dark curls before licking through Lucia’s folds. Her fingers dug into Lucia’s thighs, anchoring her, as she pushed her tongue inside.
The fitted sheet tightened between Lucia’s fists.
Penelope pulled back a little, licking and nibbling Lucia’s inner thigh before tracing her tongue slowly back down toward her heat.
“Pen, come on.” Lucia panted.
“Stop moving so much.”
Lucia groaned. “I promise you’ll know if something hurts.”
Penelope paused. “The point is to not even let it get that far.”
“Pen, I swear if you don’t…” Lucia released a breathless moan when Penelope licked up her length, drawing her hardened nub between her lips and sucking hard.
She added her fingers to the mix, tracing the rim of her entrance before pushing one, then two fingers inside while keeping her gaze on Lucia, taking in her glistening skin, heaving breasts, and taut neck.
Lucia arched her back, pressing harder into Penelope’s mouth.
Adding more pressure, Penelope traced faster circles around Lucia’s clit while driving a quicker rhythm inside her.
“Pen.” Lucia’s fingers slipped from the sheets and tangled in Penelope’s hair instead.
Lost in Lucia’s heady taste, Penelope continued to draw it out, mixing both speed and pressure to push Lucia to the edge, only to draw back right before she could tumble over the cliff.
But then Lucia whimpered, and the sound tore at Penelope, increasing the ache between her own legs, and so this time, she followed through, never ceasing in her efforts to make Lucia come.
Panting, Lucia’s hips moved along Penelope’s rhythm until she halted in a suspended moment, her entire body stilling before she shuddered in prolonged quakes.
“Penelope,” she gasped, voice breaking over the syllables.
She slowed her ministration and stopped when Lucia pulled at her upper arms. Penelope moved up and hovered over Lucia. “Are you all right?”
A low laugh seemed to rumble straight from Lucia’s chest. “Better than all right.”
“I’m glad.” Penelope sank into a kiss.
Lucia nipped at her lower lip, breaking the kiss. She gazed up at Penelope, her eyes twin coals, so intense, Penelope braced herself.
“Ride me.” Lucia lifted her thigh and slotted it between Penelope’s legs.
Penelope opened her mouth to protest, but the feeling of Lucia’s hot, muscled thigh pressing against her heat, even with her now damp panties on, robbed her of every argument against this most delicious of ideas.
“Yes,” Penelope breathed, bending to kiss Lucia while gyrating her hips, chasing her release.
~ ~ ~
Later, they settled on the couch. Sunlight filtered through the blinds, warming Penelope’s bare legs as she tucked them beneath her. Lucia was drafting in a sketchbook while Penelope read a book. She snapped it shut after a while and observed Lucia, marveling at her utter absorption in her task.
“Remember when we talked about the idea that some things are so essential to us, we’d find our way there no matter what?” Penelope asked.
Lucia looked up, pausing her drawing. “Of course. You thought of something?”
“Yes and no.” Penelope exhaled slowly. “I’ve turned it over in my mind ever since. Searching. But the truth is…I keep coming up empty. Maybe there just isn’t anything like that for me.” She traced a fingertip along the book’s spine.
Lucia tilted her head. “And that bothers you?”
“A little.” Penelope’s mouth curved in a grimace. “People who have that kind of anchor seem…fulfilled. I can’t shake the feeling I’m missing something.”
“Maybe. But it can cut the other way, too.” Lucia’s voice softened. “Obsession eats at you. It chains you to one thing while everything else withers. I’ve lost chances at friendships—seedlings that could’ve grown into something—because I couldn’t tear myself away from a canvas.”
Penelope looked down. “Still. I can’t point to anything that defines me like that.”
“I think you’re wrong.”
“Oh? Enlighten me, Ms. Rossi.”
“You’d always chase truth,” Lucia said simply. “Even if it wrecks you. That’s who you are. You pull at loose threads until you unravel the whole thing. It’s not a choice—it’s who you are. Just like I bleed into paint, you bleed into clarity. Neither of us could stop if we tried.”
Penelope stared at her, speech caught somewhere in her throat. “Isn’t that even worse than nothing? A compulsion instead of a calling?”
“Every gift is double-edged,” Lucia said. “But where would we be without people who can’t help but drag the truth into the light?”
Penelope let out a laugh, surprising herself. “You make it sound noble.”
“You’re rubbing off on me,” Lucia said with a sigh. “It’s a burden, really.”
Penelope nudged her shoulder, smiling despite herself. “Watch it.”
They spent the rest of the day in easy silence, and for once, Penelope allowed herself to simply be.
~ ~ ~
By the end of the following week, Penelope received another summons to Montgomery’s office.
“Please sit down, Dr. Blackwell.”
Penelope sat.
“The audit concluded yesterday, and I wanted to tell you in person.”
Penelope’s stomach tightened. “All right.”
“They verified the Madonna’s provenance as legitimate after rerunning the documentation checks. Whatever anomalies flagged in the metadata didn’t hold up. The anonymous claim appears unfounded. Still, we’ll note the incident for our compliance report.”
Penelope let out a slow breath, tension ebbing—only for Montgomery to continue:
“That said, Young and Sterne noted that while your investigation was well-intentioned, your approach fell outside standard protocol. They recommend a formal reprimand, to ensure you’ll forgo sleuthing in the future.”
Heat crawled up Penelope’s neck.
“You’re one of our most capable curators, which is exactly why we expect better.”
“Of course. It won’t happen again.”
“See to it.”
Penelope rose, stifling the wave of shame washing over her.
As she stepped toward the door, Montgomery spoke again.
“And, Dr. Blackwell, the next time you want to chase ghosts, please give me a heads-up.”
Penelope nodded, offering what felt like an odd mixture of a smile and a grimace before leaving the office.
That could have been so much worse.
She strode back to her office and immediately texted Lucia.
The audit is over. All good.
She closed her eyes and let the tension drain with a long exhale. It was almost funny how people sometimes didn’t register the heavy weight they carried until it was lifted off them.
Yay! I knew you’d be fine.
She smiled at Lucia’s reply.
You’re too optimistic.
It just makes no sense to lose your mind when nothing has happened yet.
I wasn’t losing my mind.
Of course you weren’t.
Lucia added a winking emoji.
The nerve.
I was merely prepared.
Naturally.
You’re being a brat.
Yes, but I’m your brat.
Penelope’s heart skipped a beat, and despite rolling her eyes—at Lucia or herself, she wasn’t sure—she still responded with a heart emoji.
Warmth bloomed in her chest, and, with a smile, she went back to work.