Chapter 16 Falling in the Space Between
falling in the space between
Jaime held Olivia’s burning gaze, her heart pounding and her palms damp, unsure of what she was hoping for.
Oh, she knew what her body craved, and so she’d pushed for it, but a part of her mind sounded an alarm. Yet all these warning chimes morphed into shadowy echoes once she found herself in Olivia’s vicinity.
She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed her. It wasn’t just the broken routines—it was the joy and warmth Olivia had introduced to her life. She had struggled to admit it to herself because it imposed such a stark divergence from the life she led, the life she’d built with a purpose.
Her world might have been small, but she’d lived there in peace.
In the bathroom, Jaime had first felt trapped, even a bit resentful for having her plans derailed—again, a problem of her own making.
Putting on Olivia’s clothes (she noted the lack of underwear and hesitated for a second, choosing to go commando over wearing her damp garments) had been an experience in and of itself. The fabric smelled just like Olivia, and pulling the sweater over her head had left Jaime almost dizzy.
Somehow, it felt more intimate than all their combined hotel encounters, as if there were no more barriers between them, no more protection.
How utterly ridiculous and pathetic.
She still struggled to fathom what was happening to her, to her life. Yet, here she was, unwilling to back down, even though her emotions lacked clarity and direction. Something about Olivia felt inevitable, and her mind’s aghast shouts at the thought grew dimmer by the minute.
Olivia’s stance, her refusal to resume where they’d left off, and the loop of, “I don’t know where you live,” (Jaime could have sworn she’d told her) lapped up the sandcastle Jaime had, without realizing it, built too close to the edge of the tide.
She’d come here with a plan, with a goal, but as always, it was all swept away when confronted with the force of nature that was Olivia Gray.
“Do you?” Jaime asked again when the tension grew unbearable. She felt she’d die if she didn’t push forward, if Olivia cast her away completely.
Instead of answering, Olivia grabbed Jaime’s shirt and yanked her closer, kissing her with a pent-up passion that laid waste to whatever remained of Jaime’s sanity.
Jaime clung to Olivia, barely noticing her hands trembling as she pulled her closer.
Olivia pushed Jaime to lean back against the couch before climbing onto her lap, kissing her senseless.
The heat of their embrace, of finally tasting Olivia again, left Jaime in a mindless fog with nothing but desire at the center.
Olivia deepened their kiss, her hands cupping Jaime’s face and her dark hair shrouding Jaime’s face like a curtain.
Lost in a sea of sensation, a desolate whimper left Jaime when Olivia broke the kiss and climbed off her.
Before Jaime got her vocal cords to function, Olivia rose and held out her hand.
Wordlessly, she grasped Olivia’s warm fingers and stood, following her to the bedroom.
There was no haste, no pushing anyone onto the bed.
Olivia guided her to the bed and pressed a lingering, soft kiss against Jaime’s lips. She drew back with a smile before crawling onto the bed, gazing at Jaime expectantly.
Jaime hesitated, almost as if her next step would change everything, though how could it? They’d had sex plenty of times before.
Not like this.
She couldn’t tell if her mind’s voice represented a warning or a promise, nor could she decide which she’d prefer.
Yet gazing at Olivia sitting calmly on the bed, leaning against the headboard, drew Jaime nearer, and she joined her, crawling closer, once more allowing someone else, no, allowing Olivia to take the reins.
The bright smile on Olivia’s face as she intertwined their fingers and tugged her closer lightened Jaime’s heart, as if she’d chosen right.
Olivia pulled her near, kissing her again.
Jaime sighed, stretching out in Olivia’s arms and losing herself in their kiss, allowing this sea change to sweep her away, at least for now.
They kissed in a leisurely, unhurried way, as if they had all night. The thought of staying the night chased a shiver down Jaime’s back and she pressed closer, escalating the kiss to pure heat and need, something much more familiar, safer.
Olivia groaned, allowing Jaime to shift the pace. She raised her leg and pressed it up high between Jaime’s thighs.
Jaime almost choked, her mind returning to the forever long heated encounter they’d shared after the fair, when they indeed had fucked all night. She rocked her hips, the friction only increasing the need coursing through her.
Olivia bit Jaime’s lower lip, dropping her leg and pushing one hand down Jaime’s pants. She groaned when her fingers pushed past wiry curls into blinding, slick heat.
“I was hoping you’d be naked underneath.”
Jaime trembled, releasing an almost broken-sounding chuckle. “You left me few options.”
Olivia hummed, crooking her fingers and stealing through Jaime’s folds, and meandering back down, she massaged her entrance before pressing two fingers inside.
Her eyes closed, and Jaime clutched the bedspread under her hands, sinking deeper onto Olivia’s fingers. “Yes,” she pressed out, canting her hips.
After a few fast strokes, and right when Jaime found the perfect rhythm, Olivia pulled out, once more connecting their lips in a heated kiss.
She worried Jaime’s lower lip before sucking at her tongue.
Meanwhile, her fingers danced up, finding her clit and rubbing fast circles with the perfect pressure that hurled Jaime toward a rapid, explosive climax.
Jaime shuddered, and, breaking the kiss, collapsed on top of Olivia, overcome by the sudden desire to be as close to her as possible while she ground her hips, chasing the release Olivia’s fingers promised.
“Look at me,” Olivia rumbled.
With some difficulty, Jaime raised her head and caught Olivia’s feverish gaze. Her lips parted, and she panted.
“No, keep your eyes open.”
Jaime groaned. She hadn’t even realized her eyelids had begun to droop.
“Come for me,” Olivia said, not a demand, more a supplication that froze Jaime on the spot.
Her mouth opened, closed, and she tightened her jaw. Yet her body was already too far gone, and after a few more deft and perfectly placed strokes, Jaime quaked in a hard peak, gazing into Olivia’s eyes the entire time, watching her drink her in, almost swallowing her whole.
Jaime collapsed fully on top of Olivia, her breath ragged and her heart resembling a jackhammer.
What was she doing?
Olivia nuzzled her cheek, her breathing hitching, and that sound, the audible confirmation of Olivia’s need, a desire Jaime could and wanted to fulfill, calmed her racing heart, and she raised her head, gazing down at a flushed Olivia, her lips swollen and pupils blown.
“How do you want me?” Jaime asked, her voice low.
Olivia’s hips bucked. “Close, stay close to me.”
Jaime could only nod, once more falling into a kiss. She slid her hand beneath Olivia’s shirt, up her trembling stomach before her fingers touched the soft fabric of Olivia’s bra.
“Maybe we should get undressed? I…” Her brows furrowed.
Olivia nodded rapidly and shifted Jaime off her before sitting up and undressing, pushing her clothes off the bed.
“What are you waiting for?” Olivia’s tone held an edge spurring Jaime on, and she hurried to divest herself of her clothes before once more settling on top of Olivia.
“Kiss me,” Olivia breathed, and Jaime did. They kissed for a while, just kissed, enjoying the intensity of their naked bodies pressing together.
Through the fog of heat swirling all around, Jaime noticed how the storm picked up outside again, the rain pelted against the windows and the wind howled as it funneled through narrow gaps, gaining speed with every gust, pushing through the smallest cracks like a relentless force.
Jaime shivered, remembering the cold of the rain soaking through her clothes earlier, the discomfiting sensation of fabric sticking to her skin.
How she’d been intent on ignoring her state, so focused on talking to Olivia, on finding a solution that would put her world together after it had began to crumble at her feet, yet Olivia wouldn’t let her.
No, she’d chased Jaime into a hot shower before now, huddling with her in bed, sharing herself with her.
Not even fully aware of it, Jaime started a slow-rocking motion against Olivia, who spread her legs, allowing Jaime to fall in the space between.
Their kisses deepened and Jaime trailed her fingers down Olivia’s side before moving inward, seeking the swell of her breasts, brushing her thumb over a pebbled nipple.
Olivia moaned, moving along Jaime’s rhythm, gasping when Jaime broke the kiss. She shuddered as Jaime’s hot mouth encased her nipple, licking the wrinkled skin before grazing the bud with her teeth.
Jaime scratched her nails down Olivia’s side, delighting in the way her lover arched her back.
“Jaime,” Olivia whispered.
She smiled against Olivia’s breast. Jaime pressed her ear against Olivia’s sternum, listening to her fast-thudding heart and enjoying the feel of Olivia combing her fingers through her hair.
Jaime sighed and rose, seeking Olivia’s lips. Heeding her request to remain close, she shifted her arm to seek the wet heat between Olivia’s legs.
Both women groaned when Jaime’s fingers slid between soaked, swollen folds.
Jaime savored the feeling of Olivia’s arousal painting her skin, just exploring the area slowly until Olivia grew ever more restless. She pulled back, suddenly understanding why Olivia had asked her to look at her.
Jaime gazed at Olivia’s face—one that could also launch a thousand ships—the woman who had infused her life with color, so bright, changing the greys and blues and tinging her world scarlet.
Olivia smiled, reaching out and trailing her fingers down Jaime’s arm. As always, the sight of her smile and the feeling of her touch sent Jaime’s mind astray.
Leaning down and kissing Olivia again, Jaime sped up her exploration, drawing her fingers lower, she traced along Olivia’s entrance with a featherlight touch before pushing inside.
Olivia broke the kiss, panting.
Jaime once more sought Olivia, noting the micro expressions of pleasure flitting over her features. She pulled back out and traced her fingers north, drawing circles with increasing pressure and speed on the straining nub she’d been neglecting so far.
Olivia’s hips moved along her ministrations, picking up their pace. She clutched Jaime’s upper arm and pressed her head deeper into the pillow, the sinews of her neck straining.
A fierce yearning to watch Olivia find her release, no, to be the cause of it shot through Jaime, and she increased her efforts, almost struck mute by Olivia’s openness and surrender, by her willingness to lose herself in pleasure, in Jaime.
Olivia’s eyes closed before she seemed to force them open, and their gazes locked.
She stiffened, and her lips parted before her body shuddered in a hard, drawn-out release, never taking her eyes off Jaime, who drank in the sight before her like a starving wanderer who’d never realized she’d been lost.
Jaime released a trembling breath, lost for words as her heart seemed to jump in her throat.
Olivia hummed, stretching and closing her eyes.
How could one person be so beautiful? And it wasn’t just her looks, if it were only that, Jaime could shrug it off easily, return to her hideout and just…carry on.
Then again, she’d tried that before, and the result had been less than satisfying.
Jaime didn’t know what any of it meant or what would happen next. Surely what had just transpired went beyond their previous encounters; in fact, Jaime had never experienced anything like it.
Perhaps it was due to the moment and heightened emotions. Where would they go from here? Could Jaime ever offer more? Olivia was right—she deserved more. But Jaime was just…Jaime.
“Hey, are you OK?” Olivia asked, her brows furrowing.
Jaime nodded, without fully catching Olivia’s gaze.
Olivia shifted. “James.”
Jaime’s eyes widened, and her gaze snapped to Olivia.
“Do you want this? Us?” Olivia worried her lower lip. “Me?” Her voice broke.
All air left Jaime’s body as her heart sped away, desperate to escape, like the coward she usually was.
Olivia sighed, and her eyes, those lovely, beautiful green eyes that would often gaze at Jaime with such warmth and affection, dimmed.
She shifted, trying to get out from under Jaime, pulling away.
Jaime’s heart turned to ice, and she shook herself out of her stupor, reaching out and pulling Olivia back into the cocoon of warmth they’d created. “Yes. I do.”
Olivia’s answering smile washed away the remaining cold still clinging to Jaime, and she smiled, too, before capturing Olivia’s lips in a sweet, lingering kiss.