Chapter 19
Stephanie stood in Casey’s bedroom with the words still burning on her tongue.
I want you to kiss me again. And I don’t want to stop.
Heat flooded her face. Who the hell was she right now?
She had never said anything like that in her life.
Not to Gary. Not to anyone. The boldness sat strange and bright in her chest, thrilling and terrifying at the same time.
Her heart hammered so hard she felt it in her throat.
She had spent the last twenty minutes kissing a woman, and her body would not stop reacting.
The taste of Casey’s mouth kept returning.
The heat low in her belly kept building.
Forty-six years of almost nothing, and now this. The contrast left her dizzy.
Casey moved before she could overthink it.
Her hands came up to cup Stephanie’s face, thumbs brushing along her jaw in the lightest caress.
Then her mouth was there again. The kiss started soft but deepened fast, Casey’s lips parting against hers with a hunger that matched the ache building inside her.
A low sound escaped Stephanie’s throat. Her knees actually went weak.
She felt alive. Electric. Every nerve in her body lit up at once.
When Casey pulled back they were both breathing unevenly.
Stephanie’s pulse raced. She reached for Casey’s hand, lacing their fingers together in a touch that felt safer than it should, and guided her toward the bed.
The mattress dipped under their weight as they sat.
Stephanie swung one leg over and straddled Casey’s hips.
Her gray pajama shorts rode up her thighs.
Casey’s hands settled lightly at her waist. The simple contact made her feel exposed in a way that had nothing to do with clothing.
She brushed a strand of Casey’s sun-streaked hair behind her ear, fingers lingering on the warm shell.
“I’m not crazy, right?” Her voice came out quieter than she meant.
“I thought I saw you looking at me tonight like you wanted me, but I wasn’t sure.
I should have asked you instead of just kissing you. ”
Nerves threaded through every word. She waited for Casey to laugh or pull away. The fear sat sharp under her ribs, but the want pushed harder. She had kissed a woman tonight like she meant it. Her mind kept circling back to that fact.
Casey looked up at her, blue eyes wide with disbelief. Then a soft chuckle escaped her. Her hands slid up Stephanie’s sides in a slow caress that stayed respectful.
“Are you asking me if I’m attracted to you?
” Casey smiled, the expression softening her whole face.
“I’ve been trying to stop myself from falling for you since the moment we met.
Of course I’m attracted to you. And not just your looks.
I could listen to you talk for hours. I’ve enjoyed the time we’ve spent together way more than I should, and I hated myself for even suggesting that you should meet Nico, but I was just trying to remind myself that you weren’t interested in me. ”
The words eased something tight in Stephanie’s chest. She traced her fingers down Casey’s neck, feeling the steady pulse there. This was real. Casey wanted her back. The realization sent fresh heat rushing through her until her hands trembled on Casey’s shoulders.
“Well I was,” Stephanie said, voice catching. “Even if I didn’t know it exactly yet. But I definitely was.”
She leaned down slowly, giving Casey every chance to stop her, and kissed her again.
This kiss stayed softer, mouths brushing with careful exploration.
Her fingers trailed along Casey’s collarbone, mapping the warm skin above the halter top in featherlight strokes.
She could feel the rise and fall of Casey’s breathing under her touch, the way it hitched when Stephanie’s thumb grazed the edge of fabric.
It wasn’t about rushing toward anything physical.
It was about this, the way Casey’s hands moved up her back in slow circles, learning the shape of her through the thin tank top without demanding more.
Stephanie’s skin prickled everywhere those palms passed, a gentle awareness that made her want to press closer and stay exactly like this all at once.
Her mind wouldn’t quiet. Every brush of Casey’s hands sent fresh sparks through her, reminding her how new this was.
How her body had simply woken up. She kept expecting the old voice to return, the one that said this was wrong or too late, but it stayed quiet.
There was only the warmth of Casey’s lap under her thighs and the way her own heart kept stuttering with every kiss.
She pulled back enough to rest her forehead against Casey’s. “I keep thinking about how much I’ve felt tonight,” she whispered, voice rough. “More than I ever did before. It’s blowing my mind a little.”
Her fingers kept moving, tracing the line of Casey’s jaw, down to her neck, keeping every caress gentle and wondering.
She didn’t want to stop touching her. Didn’t want this moment to shift into anything that might scare her off.
Just this. The two of them close, learning each other through soft hands and quieter words while the ceiling fan pushed warm air over their skin and the distant hum of the pool filter reminded her where they were.
Casey’s hands stayed at her waist, thumbs drawing small circles against the gray shorts in a rhythm that matched the slow beat of Stephanie’s heart.
The touch felt safe. Wanted. Stephanie leaned in for another kiss, letting it linger without urgency, her body humming with a desire she no longer tried to name or hide.
Casey’s fingers slid into the hair at the back of her neck, warm and sure.
The touch sent a fresh spike of heat down Stephanie’s spine.
She forgot how to breathe for a second. The kiss changed, deepened, Casey’s mouth moving against hers with more intent.
Her own hands stayed curled in the black halter top, knuckles brushing the bare strip of skin above those tan flowing pants.
Everything felt too real. The faint taste of rum still on Casey’s tongue.
The way her own tank top shifted against her with each quick breath.
Her body felt awake in a way she had never experienced, every small movement between them sharpening the ache low in her belly.
Casey pulled her down onto the bed. Stephanie went easily, landing on top with a soft exhale against Casey’s lips.
The sheets were cool against her bare legs at first. She braced one hand beside Casey’s head and kept kissing her.
This was actually happening. She was in bed with a woman, feeling the strong lines of Casey’s athletic body under her own softer one, and instead of panic there was only this warm rush building inside her.
Then Casey rolled them gently until they lay on their sides facing each other. Stephanie’s leg hooked over Casey’s hip without meaning to. Their mouths found each other again, slower now but no less hungry. Casey’s leg slipped between hers.
The pressure landed right at her center, firm muscle pressing up through the thin gray shorts against the ache that had been building since the bar.
Stephanie’s breath left her in a shaky rush.
Heat flooded her face, but she did not pull away.
Her hips rocked forward once before she could stop them.
The friction dragged a low sound from her throat.
“God,” she whispered against Casey’s mouth, voice already wrecked. “That feels… I didn’t know it could feel like that.”
She leaned in and kissed Casey again, slower this time, letting her mouth linger at the corner of Casey’s lips before sliding her tongue along the seam.
Her hand slipped under the edge of the black halter, palm flattening against warm skin.
She traced the dip of waist, the ridges of ribs.
When her thumb brushed the underside of one breast through the bra, Casey moaned, low and surprised.
The sound vibrated against Stephanie’s mouth and went straight between her legs.
The noise hit her hard. Power surged through her chest, warm and heady.
She had done that. With barely any touch.
She was making this confident woman moan, and the realization left her almost drunk on it.
Her own body responded with fresh heat. She pressed closer, chasing the friction of Casey’s thigh, her free hand sliding up to cup the back of Casey’s neck.
They stayed like that for a long time, mouths moving in unhurried kisses that kept changing.
Stephanie sucked gently on Casey’s lower lip, then Casey tilted her head and deepened it.
Every moan Stephanie pulled from her felt like proof that this wanting ran both ways.
Her chest felt tight. Her lungs worked harder than they should for something this gentle.
She had never known her body could feel this tuned to another person.
“God, the sounds you make,” Stephanie whispered against Casey’s mouth, voice rough.
She didn’t pull her hand away. Instead she let her fingers dip lower again, brushing the waistband of those tan flowing pants, feeling the heat radiating from Casey’s skin.
“I like it too much. Makes me want to keep going just to hear more.”
Casey shifted her leg higher between Stephanie’s thighs, the pressure firm against her center.
The move dragged right over her through the gray shorts and Stephanie’s hips jerked forward on instinct.
Heat flooded her face but she didn’t stop.
She kissed Casey harder, tongue sliding against hers while her hand explored under the halter, cupping the soft weight of one breast this time through the bra.