Chapter 18 #3
“Okay. Let’s do it,” Sarah said, after another minute. “Just you and me doing our thing, our way.” They turned onto the street where they had parked earlier. “But no more power games. If we’re going to do this, we’re doing it as equals.”
“But I like games,” Nell said, pouting, which caused Sarah to smile.
“And you’re very good at them.” Sarah’s tone slipped into flirtation as her words glided to her. “But I’m a little bored playing by all your rules.” Sarah’s shoulder bumped hers gently. “They were cute, by the way, but I think it’s time we make some new rules together.”
They stopped on the sidewalk in front of Sarah’s car, standing face-to-face now, close enough that Nell had to tilt her chin up slightly to meet Sarah’s gaze.
“New rules?” she asked.
Sarah’s expression shifted, the playfulness dropping from her voice.
“Yeah. Our rules.” She hesitated, like she was measuring the importance of getting whatever rule she had up her sleeve right.
“Rule number one: when in doubt, overcommunicate. If we’re doing this together—our version of a relationship—I want to make sure we’re on the same page as much as possible.
” Sarah held her gaze, confidence replacing the sadness that had been there earlier.
“Silence leads to assumptions, and assumptions turn into mistakes. I already learned what it’s like to lose someone I care about because I didn’t say the hard things soon enough.
I don’t want that with you, not ever. If this thing is going to work, we need to be communicating clearly and honestly with each other. ”
Nell could only nod and smile as Sarah continued.
“Rule number two: we’re physically exclusive. I feel like that one goes without saying, but as per rule number one, when in doubt, overcommunicate. If we’re doing this, exclusivity is a nonnegotiable for me. Is that agreeable to you?”
Nell felt it—that surge of warmth through her body that made her feel like she was glowing from within.
“Our rules,” she repeated, liking the sound of it more and more.
“I love it.” Her hand cupped Sarah’s cheek, heat spreading from the tips of her fingers down her arm.
She pushed up onto her tiptoes and pressed her lips to Sarah’s in a chaste kiss that was soft, gentle, and exactly what she needed. “It’s perfect. Just like you.”
“I think you mean just like us.” Sarah slipped her arm around Nell’s waist, pulling her closer, lips finding hers again as she deepened the kiss. “Now, what was that you were saying about getting back to having fun?” Sarah murmured against her lips, her own curving into a smile.
“That we should do it.”
Sarah wiggled the keys in her hand. “Let’s go.”
Nell opened the passenger door, but something made her glance back over her shoulder at the coffee shop.
Beth was still sitting in the window with Jamie, and for just a moment, their eyes met.
Nell didn’t react; instead, a quiet heat flared in her chest. Not quite anger—more like a mix of overwhelming protectiveness and pettiness.
She gave a small wave accompanied by her signature smirk before sliding into the passenger seat.
The drive back to Sarah’s was filled with flirty banter they easily slipped into.
Wordplay as foreplay had always been their specialty.
Sarah’s hand rested comfortably on Nell’s thigh, fingers skimming up and down the denim fabric, filling Nell with that warmth of contentment as she let herself settle into the new boundaries of their relationship.
She had gone into this weekend certain that clarity would come at a cost. In her mind, and in the numerous ways she had predicted their conversation going, losing Sarah was the only possible outcome.
She didn’t even prepare for—or even dared to let herself consider—that they might land somewhere different.
The sun was beginning to break through the fog as they wound their way down damp pine-lined roads.
Light caught the curve of Sarah’s profile as she looked both ways at the intersection before crossing.
Her cheeks were still faintly tinged pink from their walk, and loose strands of hair framed her face, but there was a new calmness to her, like Sarah had found a quiet peace. It looked good on her.
When they pulled into the driveway, Sarah made a big show out of running around to her side of the car to open the door before pressing her up against the frame of the vehicle, lips finding Nell’s, sending an exciting thrill right through her.
It felt good to be with Sarah without any of the rules or the command she typically tried to exercise.
And, to her genuine surprise, she didn’t feel out of control.
Sarah led her inside, where they kicked off their shoes, leaving them by the door before moving deeper into the house.
They barely made it down the front hall before Sarah slipped her hands over Nell’s ass, down the backs of her thighs, and scooped her up.
Nell’s legs instinctively wrapped around Sarah’s waist, her fingers weaving through Sarah’s honey-brown waves as her back met the wall with a thud, rattling the framed family photos.
She let out a groan when Sarah’s lips found her neck, kissing and sucking and nibbling her most sensitive places like she had done it a thousand times before.
“Sar—ah . . .” She sighed into the feeling of Sarah’s lips as they delivered reassurances she craved.
She unwrapped her legs, and Sarah lowered her back to the ground but still kept her pressed firmly against the wall.
She stepped back enough to look at her, her eyes darkened with the want she was so clearly feeling—the same want pulsing through Nell at that moment.
“Bedroom,” Sarah said, already threading her fingers through Nell’s to lead her up the stairs.
They moved as fast as they could in a hurry of tangled limbs and bodies, stopping only long enough to steal kisses, nearly tripping over each other in their eagerness.
When they reached the bedroom, Sarah didn’t waste a second before she pushed Nell gently onto the bed and crawled up after her, bracing one knee between her thighs.
Sarah caught her mouth in a kiss that was messy and hungry and full of unbridled desire. It was all teeth and tongue as their hands pulled at each other’s clothes, eager to remove them.
“Off,” Sarah demanded, tugging at Nell’s sweater.
Nell grinned against Sarah’s lips as she pulled her sweater over her head before tossing it unceremoniously onto the floor. “God, you’re bossy when you’re turned on,” she said, removing Sarah’s next.
Sarah’s laugh was low and hot. “You love it,” she said, a sharp intake of breath following her words as Nell ran her nails lightly down Sarah’s back.
She was right; Nell did love it. She loved it so fucking much.
Jeans, socks, and underwear hit the floor.
Sarah leaned back on her elbows, her eyes sweeping over Nell purposefully and deliberately, taking in all of her in a way that should have made her blush but didn’t because this was Sarah—her Sarah—and there had never been anything to be nervous about with her.
“On top,” Sarah said, tugging Nell’s hand, urging her to move to exactly where Sarah wanted her.
There was no hesitation on her end as she swung one leg over Sarah to straddle her face, positioning herself so she was facing down the length of Sarah’s body.
Sarah’s capable hands gripped her hips before sliding lower, nails grazing the backs of her thighs, her breath so hot and close to where Nell wanted it most.
Hands roamed greedily over her body, squeezing, kneading, pulling her down until her knees sank deeper into the mattress on either side of Sarah’s head.
“God, I’ve missed having you like this,” Sarah murmured, her breath hot against Nell’s sensitive skin. “Let me taste you,” she growled.
The first flick of Sarah’s tongue made Nell’s hips jolt as she braced herself with her hands on Sarah’s thighs. A long moan escaped her lips—one she didn’t bother to stifle as she bent forward to slide her tongue through Sarah’s folds, delighted at how wet she already was for her.
“Fuck, Nell . . .” Sarah’s hips rolled up instinctively, but Nell pulled back enough to make her groan in frustration.
“Patience,” she hissed, letting her fingers trace delicate circles around Sarah’s clit. “Don’t want to make this too easy on you. Where’s the fun in that?” she purred, as Sarah gave her a sharp swipe of her tongue. Fuck. The things Sarah could do to her with that tongue.
She bent low again, moving with focused slowness, noticing how Sarah matched her pace, mirroring her movements. She felt her thighs trembling against Sarah’s touch and tongue as she groaned against her, the vibration shooting right through Nell.
They moved together, building their rhythm, each chasing pleasure, each savoring the push and pull of their new dynamic in the way one would speed up just to hear the other gasp, neither willing to let the other win too easily.
Nell flattened her tongue, pressing harder against Sarah’s clit, smiling when Sarah’s hips rolled forward, begging her for more. “You taste so fucking good,” she hummed against Sarah, before taking her clit between her lips, sucking hard enough to draw a perfect, needy cry from Sarah.
Sarah retaliated, her fingers digging into Nell’s ass to hold her exactly where she wanted her.
“You’re shaking,” Sarah said smugly, between long, languid strokes of her tongue that were driving Nell crazy.
“So are you.”
Sarah gave a low laugh that turned into a muffled whimper, pulling a curse from her lips as she dug her nails into the soft flesh of Nell’s hips, quietly chanting, “Don’t stop, just like that, fuck.”
The faster Nell moved her tongue, the deeper Sarah buried her mouth against her, until her thighs shook with the effort of holding herself up.
Together, they were hungry, determined, and needy. Laughter punctuated breathless moans and curses of pleasure, and the sounds of their mouths working.
“Fuck—Sarah,” Nell gasped, her own breathing hitching.
“Don’t you dare stop—” Sarah managed, but her words dissolved into a low, guttural sound when Nell slid two fingers into her, curling them in the way she knew Sarah liked. The noise Sarah made was enough to make Nell’s body clench, her hips rocking against Sarah’s mouth.
“Say it,” Nell demanded, and she alternated the thrust of her fingers with the swipe of her tongue against Sarah’s clit. Sarah’s nails sent a slight, sharp pain through her as she dug them into the back of her thighs once more.
“Fuck—I’m—right—there,” Sarah panted.
Nell didn’t let up, every movement calculated to bring maximum pleasure, pushing Sarah to her edge and holding her there until she could feel her breaking apart in her hands.
Sarah came hard, her whole body tensing, her breaths ragged, but she didn’t let Nell off the hook. Sarah’s hands held her in place, her mouth working faster now, her tongue and lips dragging every last bit of control from Nell.
“Oh, fu—Sarah . . .” Nell whined her name, the pleasure that had been building snapped, her thighs closing involuntarily around Sarah’s head as she rode wave after wave, her muscles trembling.
They collapsed together in a heap of tangled limbs, their skin flushed, breathing like they had run a marathon.
Sarah’s laugh came first, starting low in her chest before it spilled out in waves. Nell couldn’t help herself as her laughter followed.
“God, we’re good at that,” Sarah said, as she turned to face Nell, her eyes sparkling in the midday light.
The tug of her own grin pulled at her lips as Sarah’s mouth curved into a lazy smirk.
“Don’t get me wrong. What we were doing before was hot, but this?
” She laced their fingers together. “This beats the hell out of that any day.”