Chapter 22
“What do you think you’re doing?” Erin leaned her shoulder against her father’s where he stood at the bar, wallet in his hand.
“Paying for dinner.”
“I told you I’d get it.” Insisted, in fact, before she’d excused herself to the bathroom—returning to find her father suspiciously missing.
“And I told you I would. It’s my treat, seeing as you didn’t know Isobel and I were coming.” Seeing her mouth open, ready to argue her case further, he settled a hand on Erin’s wrist. “Let me get this. You’ve already taken care of too much the past few years.”
“Because you took care of everything my whole life before then.”
“You were a kid, Erin. You needed taking care of.” He brandished his card to the barman before Erin had the chance to reach for her own. “I’m not struggling anymore.”
“Fine. But I’m getting the next one.”
He laughed, resting his hands on the top of the bar. “So. You got yourself a girlfriend, huh?”
If she’d have known he was coming to visit, she might not have been so candid the last time they’d video chatted. She hadn’t expected to subject Lia to her family so soon. “I did. What do you think of her?”
“I think she’s wonderful, Erin.”
She let out a breath, his approval meaning a lot to her. “She is.”
“Mm. I can see that she makes you happy. That’s all I ever wanted for you. I just thought it would always be football that did that for you, not another woman.”
“Believe me, I was surprised, too.”
“I can imagine.” Together, they turned to look back toward their table.
Isobel and Jessica were chatting, while Lia and Maisie played a game on Maisie’s phone. Lia had fit in, effortlessly, and having all of her favourite people all together in one place made Erin flood with warmth.
“Shall we get going? You and Lia have had an exciting day—I’m sure you’re eager to get back home to rest.”
Erin was eager for a great many things when she got back home, but rest was far from the top of the list. Throughout dinner, Lia’s hand had sat high on her thigh beneath the table, the warm weight of it maddening.
Back at their table, they gathered the others and said their goodbyes, promising to meet up one evening after training. Erin called an Uber, letting out a heavy breath once she and Lia were safely settled in the back seat on their way home.
“How awful was that?” she asked once they were on their way.
“It was fine.” Lia’s hand was back on her thigh, tracing the inseam of her jeans.
“You don’t have to lie to me.”
“I’m not. They were lovely, and I had a good night.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” Lia trailed her finger higher, teasing the zipper of her jeans. “It’s been a good day in general.”
“Has it?” Affected by the press of Lia’s touch, Erin’s voice turned breathy. Her thighs spread automatically. “And why’s that?”
“Well.” She leaned closer, her breath hot on Erin’s neck, but kept a careful few centimetres of space between her lips and Erin’s skin.
“I scored a few goals. I got another player-of-the-match award. And, oh yeah, I won my second trophy of the season. And now I’m going home with the hottest woman on the team, and I’m going to let her take one of the toys out of her bedside table and fuck me with it until I forget my own name. ”
“Fuck.”
Lia’s chuckle was low and dirty and made Erin’s stomach drop. She glanced out of the window, frustrated to see they were still a few minutes away from their building. If they were alone…
“You’re going to pay for this later.”
“Is that a promise?” Lia glanced toward the front seat.
The driver was tapping their fingers on the steering wheel, AirPods in both ears, and having an animated conversation in German. Apparently deciding they were suitably distracted, Lia cupped between Erin’s thighs, the heel of her hand pressing hard against her clit.
Erin’s breath stuttered out of her, her hips rocking forward—she whined when Lia pulled her hand away. “It is now.”
“I look forward to it.” Lia leaned away, adopting an air of nonchalance—but Erin knew her well enough by now to see straight through it. Her eyes were dark, her pupils blown wide, her breaths ragged. The pulse in her neck pounded.
But Erin was hardly in any better shape: Molten fire spread through her veins, growing with each beat of her heart, each throb of her clit, desperate for Lia’s touch. By the time they arrived at their destination, she was aching, seizing Lia’s hand and all but dragging her through the lobby.
“Someone’s eager,” she said as Erin stabbed her thumb on the lift’s call button.
“You have no idea.” The second she’d pressed the button for her floor and the doors to the thankfully empty car closed on them, Erin pounced, backing Lia against the glass and kissing her senseless.
She didn’t care if anyone saw them stumble down the hallway, or glimpsed her pressing Lia against the wall beside her flat door. All she cared about was Lia—the intoxicating heat of her, the taste of her, the needy moans Erin could drag out of her with a single kiss.
Finally, she fumbled open her front door and steered Lia inside, her hands on Lia’s hips. On the way to her bedroom, she paused—briefly—to scratch Gerrard’s head as they passed, before she was distracted by Lia’s wandering hands.
Eager fingers pushed Erin’s jacket from her shoulders and tugged at the hem of her shirt. By the time Erin had closed her bedroom door behind her, both of them were in their underwear, a trail of clothes left behind in their wake.
Lia settled onto the bed, wearing a black lace bra and matching underwear, a set Erin hadn’t seen before. It made her mouth water. “Did you wear those just for me?”
“Yes. Do you like them?”
“I’d be an idiot if I didn’t.” Erin shuffled out of her sports bra and boy shorts—she hadn’t dressed up for Lia—before covering Lia’s body with her own.
She groaned at the feeling of finally being skin-on-skin.
“You were amazing today.” She breathed the words against Lia’s mouth before kissing her, hot and hard, determined to show her how amazing.
Lia’s hands settled in her hair as Erin trailed kisses down the side of her neck. “How does it feel knowing that next weekend you’ll have another winner’s medal to add to your collection?”
“Good.” Erin nipped at Lia’s shoulder, drawing out a hiss. “It’ll be even better when we add the FA Cup, too.”
“Getting ahead of ourselves, are we?”
“I don’t think so.” Bending her head lower, Erin traced her tongue around the lacy cup of Lia’s bra. “Not if you play like you did today.”
“You’re being awfully complimentary tonight.” Lia’s back arched into her mouth as she swirled her tongue around a straining nipple until the lace was damp.
“I think you deserve it.”
“So do you.” With each passing second, Lia’s breath grew more ragged, her chest heaving beneath her lips. “Today was your best game since you came back. Imagine what we’ll be like next season. Together.”
The possibilities made Erin hotter. She sucked a mark into the side of Lia’s breast—the first time she’d dared since they’d started sleeping together.
Judging from the rock of Lia’s hips against her stomach, the heat of her sex beneath her underwear, and the desperate way she fisted her hands in Erin’s hair, she wasn’t against it.
Kissing her way along Lia’s stomach, Erin spent some time teasing the sensitive skin of her hip bones before peeling her underwear off. She could smell the scent of Lia’s arousal, her mouth watering as she settled between her thighs.
She’d never tire of this—the cant of Lia’s hips, the heady taste of her on Erin’s tongue, the way she got so wet that she soaked Erin’s chin. Lia was so responsive to every curl and flick of her tongue, thighs shaking on either side of Erin’s cheeks.
Erin hadn’t planned to let her come yet. She’d wanted to draw it out, tease her until she was begging, and only then tip her over the edge. But she’d waited too long to get her mouth on Lia again, was too hungry, too needy to taste Lia’s release on her lips.
So, she slipped two fingers beneath her chin and curled them deep in time with the swirl of her tongue over Lia’s clit until she cried out, her heel pressing hard into Erin’s back and her nails sharp on Erin’s scalp.
Once Lia’s thighs had stopped shaking, Erin pulled away, taking a moment to admire the sight of her—bra pushed down to bare her breasts, her chest as flushed as her cheeks, her eyes dark and lidded.
Beautiful.
And it was all for her.
Lia made a noise of protest as Erin shifted off the bed. When Erin opened the drawer by the side of the bed, it turned into a groan. With Lia’s eyes on her, so intense it was like a physical touch, Erin tugged on the harness.
She hadn’t used it in a long time, and so her trembling fingers fumbled with the buckles; she hoped Lia didn’t notice. Finally, the harness sat snug on her hips, and all that was left for her to do was to secure the base of the dildo through the ring and climb back onto the bed.
Hungry eyes watched her every move as Erin rubbed lube along its length.
“Where do you want me?” Lia’s voice was low.
A dozen possibilities flashed through Erin’s mind: Lia beneath her, a leg hooked over Erin’s shoulder. Legs spread at the edge of the bed, Erin standing between her thighs. On all fours, Erin curled over her back.
But what she wanted most of all—
“On top.” Erin lay back, nestling her head against the pillows. “I want to watch you take me.”
“Fuck.”
Breathless, Erin watched Lia settle in place, straddling Erin’s hips but hovering a few inches above her. Wrapping her hand around the base of the toy, Erin allowed herself a moment to tease, rubbing the head against Lia’s clit until her hips stuttered in time with her laboured breathing.
“Please.” Lia’s whimper shot straight between Erin’s legs.
And she couldn’t deny her another second.
Positioning the toy at Lia’s core, she stared, transfixed, as Lia’s hips sank to take the full length inside her. Lia’s eyes screwed shut, her back bowing so she could rest her hands on Erin’s shoulders.