Chapter Sixteen
Lissa
Lissa unlocked the door to her cottage and nudged it open, flicking on the light switch.
“Come on in,” she told Ria, sweeping a hand out.
“Mi cottage es su cottage.” She tossed her keys on the kitchen counter and made a mental note to retrieve them later from where they slid underneath the microwave.
She had more important things to do first. Hurrying into the living room, she grabbed her favorite knit throw off the back of the couch then returned to Ria who hadn’t strayed past the threshold.
Lissa tucked the blanket around Ria’s shoulders and rubbed her arms.
“Thanks,” Ria said, snuggling into the soft yarn.
It might have been wishful thinking, but Lissa was pretty sure she saw Ria take a quick sniff and smile. Suppressing a grin that the witch apparently liked her scent, Lissa pulled Ria into her living room before the skittish woman could bolt.
Ria perched on the very edge of the couch, her gaze sweeping around the room, taking in the small home.
Lissa kicked herself when she saw a handful of glass blown pieces on her shelf.
She’d remembered to hide the ornaments and most of her large artwork, but in her hurry to get ready, she’d apparently missed a few.
Oh well, maybe Ria wouldn’t even notice.
At this point, she didn’t even know if Ria would take a shower before dashing out of the cottage and out of Lissa’s life.
She didn’t know when things had gone so horribly wrong.
One moment she was telling herself she only wanted the marketing secrets, and the next she was risking frostbite in some very important areas just to keep kissing Ria.
If she wasn’t certain magic was all nonsense, she might have believed the Elixir Enchantress actually had cast a spell on her.
Though, even if Lissa was willing to entertain such an absurd idea, she had been captivated by the woman well before the “spellcasting” ever happened.
The issue now was her emotions had long since escalated from captivated into something more like actual serious feelings.
And that was a huge problem for Lissa and the studio.
“I like your place,” Ria whispered, and Lissa almost missed her tiny voice over the sound of the crashing waves outside.
“Thanks,” Lissa replied, taking a seat on the opposite couch despite the fact she was dripping wet. She lived on the coast; sand and salt water was part of life, and trying to keep either out of her home was an exercise in futility.
“It’s very…white,” Ria commented.
Lissa frowned, unable to discern if the observation was positive or negative. “Um, thanks? I think.”
Ria’s eyes widened. “Oh, I’m sorry if that came off as rude. I only meant that I like how light and open it is. I’m sort of living with my mom for a bit, and her place is like a cave of clutter. This is a nice change of pace.”
Lissa toyed with her lip piercing to hide the wide grin on her face. “Oh, well, in that case you’re welcome to stay as long as you like,” she said, aiming for a casual, “yeah I have buddies hang out here all the time” vibe.
Apparently, she failed.
If possible, Ria scooted even further off the edge of the sofa, her body angled toward the door. “I should probably be going. I’m feeling a lot warmer now. Maybe you could give me a ride home?”
Lissa suppressed a sigh as she moved over to sit near Ria on the other couch. “If you really want that, I will, but I’d rather you took a shower first. Even with my grandma’s blanket wrapped around you, there’s still a tinge of blue to your lips.”
You’d think the blanket was covered in fire ants with how fast Ria yanked it off. “Crap! I don’t want to get sand all over a family heirloom. Why would you give this to me?” She shoved the knit throw at Lissa who just waved a hand.
“Stop. It’s not an heirloom, it’s seen more than its fair share of sand, and more than anyone, my grandma would want you to be comfy and warm.”
Ria gingerly wrapped herself back up, treating the blanket more like a prized possession this time. “Sounds like you have a good relationship with her.”
A tiny arrow of sadness lodged itself in Lissa’s stomach, but she brushed it away like every other time. “Had,” Lissa clarified. “She passed away shortly before I moved to Seacliff. She was actually the one who told me about this place.”
Ria shifted off the edge of the couch to sit down beside Lissa, sympathy filling her large eyes. “I’m so sorry for your loss.”
Lissa briefly debated leaning into the sympathy, but she was already going to hell for the lies she’d told and had to draw the line somewhere.
“It’s okay,” she replied. “Grandma Parker was older, and it was her time. I miss her, but I try to focus on the good memories. I never really got along with my parents, so I used to spend all my time at her place. She never cared I was a lesbian, while my parents always thought there was something wrong with me.”
“That’s awful,” Ria cried, placing an arm around Lissa’s shoulder and making it really hard for Lissa to not lean over and nuzzle the side of Ria’s face.
“I guess I was always lucky my mom was nothing but supportive of me.” Ria paused.
“Well, about my sexual preferences anyway. I got more than enough judgment about other things.”
“Family,” Lissa laughed out. “Can’t live with them, can’t—”
“Live without them?” Ria supplied.
Lissa shrugged. “I was gonna say ‘can’t throw them into the ocean at high tide,’ but I think we already established you had a better relationship than I did.”
They both laughed and leaned back against the couch, their bodies nestled against each other, their heads so close they were practically touching.
Lissa wanted to stay like that forever—in this comfortable moment where she felt like she could tell Ria anything—but she felt her own little shiver slide through her and knew Ria was likely just as cold.
“Come on,” Lissa said, dragging herself up off the couch. “Let me show you to the shower. I’ll even throw your clothes in the dryer for you.”
She watched the hesitation roll over Ria’s face, and Lissa held her breath while she waited to see what would happen.
“Okay,” Ria conceded after a moment. “But after the shower, I really should get going.”
“Not a problem,” Lissa replied, holding out a hand. “Follow me.”
After getting Ria set up in the shower and laying out some towels, Lissa plopped onto her bed, debating how to handle the situation. She’d thrown Ria’s clothes in the dryer, and now she needed to figure out how to get Ria to stay a little longer without pushing too much.
It had stung more than she expected to hear Ria say she didn’t trust Lissa not to hurt her.
Yet at the same time, she couldn’t really blame her, given Lissa’s ulterior motive.
Everything was getting so complicated, and Lissa was starting to feel like she was still in the ocean under that wave, being tossed around to the point she didn’t even know which way was up.
She wanted to abandon the marketing mission and just try to convince Ria they should be together, but that wasn’t an option for so many reasons. Sooner or later Ria would realize who she was and where she worked. Well, if the studio went under in a few weeks, maybe she wouldn’t.
Stop, Lissa’s brain ordered. Do not even think about that happening.
Yeah, her vagina chimed in. Think about the naked witch on the other side of that wall.
Images of Ria soaping up her lithe body infiltrated Lissa’s mind, but she shut that down faster than the time Lexi tried to drink red wine on her white couch. Nothing good would come from it.
She needed to focus. She wasn’t giving up on her studio, and she wasn’t giving up on a chance at a relationship with Ria.
At this point, her only option was to come clean and hope Ria didn’t hate her.
Of course the chances of that happening were about the same as Marge growing a soul and giving up her mission to crush Lissa’s studio.
When the water turned off, Lissa hopped off the bed and yanked open her dresser, searching for a shirt to lend Ria. She dug through the drawers until she found the one she wanted then headed toward the bathroom.
Rapping her knuckles on the door, she called out, “Are you decent? Can I come in?”
There was a long pause, and then Ria said, “Yeah, sure.”
Lissa pushed open the door, to find Ria wrapped in a towel, tucked into the back corner of the already tiny bathroom.
“Here,” Lissa offered, holding out a T-shirt. “I figured you might want something to wear while your clothes finish drying.”
Ria snagged the shirt and unfolded it with one hand, her other hand maintaining a death grip on the towel around her.
Lissa tried not to snicker at the witch’s drive for modesty, given what they’d been doing not long ago. If Ria needed to cover up to feel more comfortable, she’d dig out her damn parka and hand it over.
“Upper Arlington High School Volleyball?” Ria read off the blue T-shirt before giving Lissa a quizzical look. “I didn’t know you played volleyball.”
Lissa shrugged. “I despised growing up in Ohio, but my volleyball team was actually kinda awesome. Pretty much the only happy memories I have from high school.”
“Oh,” Ria replied quietly. “Well, thank you for the shirt.”
“Of course,” Lissa said. “I’ll, um, I’ll let you get dried off.”
Lissa backed out of the bathroom and shut the door behind her.
Returning to the living room, she gathered up the small bits of glasswork she’d missed and tucked them into a kitchen cabinet alongside the mugs—a safe hiding place, given Ria’s disdain for coffee.
Not that the witch would still be there in the morning after Lissa made her confession, but a girl could hope.
“Lissa?” called Ria’s quiet voice, and she slammed the cabinet shut a little harder than intended.
Whipping around, she sucked in a breath when she took in Ria standing in the living room, Lissa’s T-shirt hanging low enough to almost cover the petite witch’s knees.
She’d wanted to see Ria wearing her favorite shirt, but she hadn’t expected it to hit quite so hard.
A bloom of warmth flared through her body at Ria’s still perky nipples poking through the fabric, her face clear of all that makeup she hid behind.
Ria looked perfectly rumpled and adorable, exactly how Lissa expected she would look first thing in the morning, crawling out of bed after an exhausting night.
Swallowing roughly, Lissa gave Ria a small smile.
“Hey, I was just, um, cleaning up in here.” She brushed a few crumbs off the counter in a pathetic confirmation of her excuse, then joined Ria in the living room.
“I’m going to take my own shower while your clothes finish drying, and then I can take you home afterward.
” She paused, then added, “If you still want to leave.”
Ria nodded, sinking down into the cushy couch. “I’d appreciate that. Thank you for understanding.”
“Sure,” Lissa replied, then made a beeline for the bathroom.
The water was still warm from Ria’s shower, but Lissa was tempted to drop it to cold, like, Oregon ocean cold in an attempt to fight the heat pulsing through her.
Some women might prefer lingerie. Some might go for the biker chick vibe.
But Lissa? Give her a woman in an old, comfy T-shirt with a fresh face, and she was a goner.
Stepping into the shower, Lissa let the warm water run over her already too hot skin.
Lissa closed her eyes, and all she saw was Ria wading into the ocean with that sea lion tattoo on her cute ass, completely fearless and confident.
Lissa ran soap over her breasts, and all she felt were Ria’s hands running over that same skin, exploring her body.
Lissa washed her hair, and all she remembered was the caress of Ria’s nails on her scalp, gently tugging her hair as they kissed.
Fuck.
That kiss. There was no way Ria hadn’t experienced at least a little of what Lissa felt. You don’t get a kiss that passionate without something stronger behind it.
Lissa’s hand glided farther down her wet skin at the reminder of the kiss, her fingers sliding lower and lower until they reached the source of the throbbing.
Placing a hand on the shower wall for support, Lissa circled her clit slowly and firmly, imagining what it would be like if it were Ria’s hand instead.
Did the witch like it slow and hard or fast and shallow?
These were the things Lissa was dying to discover.
As images of a naked Ria bathed in moonlight assaulted Lissa’s senses, she slipped a finger inside herself. First one, then a second, her palm rubbing at her aching clit. Faster and faster, she thrust her fingers inside, chasing the release building within.
The pressure intensified, reaching the fever point. Hotter and hotter she burned, imagining Ria lying naked on the beach, legs spread wide, touching herself much in the same way Lissa was doing right then.
As the orgasm exploded, Lissa fought to keep her mouth closed, hoping the tiny moans that escaped were hidden by the sounds of the shower. Her pussy clenched around her fingers, and her hips continued to twitch for a few seconds as the ecstasy faded, leaving her once again wet and alone.
Dropping her head to the wall, she let the pounding water wash away the evidence of her release dripping down her leg.
Feeling slightly looser physically but more tense mentally, Lissa dried off, then pulled on a pair of purple lounge pants and a black tank top. Preparing herself for the impending fallout from her confession, she left the bathroom, hoping Ria hadn’t rabbited while she was in the shower.
Lissa paused in the living room, a grin stretching across her face. Ria hadn’t left, thankfully, but Lissa wouldn’t be confessing tonight. The last thing she wanted to do was wake the beautiful creature snoring softly on her couch.
Grabbing her grandma’s blanket, Lissa shook it gently to knock off most of the sand, then nestled it over Ria. The witch must have been exhausted, because all she did was snuggle into the warmth, her gentle snores not even faltering for a second.
Tracing her fingers down Ria’s cheek, Lissa smiled. In sleep, Ria was even more beautiful, her innocence and natural beauty shining through in a way that was somehow lost in the light of day.
Pressing a soft kiss to Ria’s forehead, Lissa lingered for an extra second, sealing the visual of the sleepy witch into her memory. Once she knew she would never forget that moment, she headed into her bedroom to get some shut-eye of her own.
Her confession could wait till morning.