Chapter 22 #2
Stephanie’s breath came in shaky bursts.
Her hips still twitched, seeking more of that pressure, and Casey gave it to her in small increments, dragging her fingertips up and down the soaked fabric now instead of circling.
The move pulled another visceral sound from Stephanie, half moan half whimper, and Casey felt it vibrate through both their bodies.
Casey pulled her hand free from the waistband of Stephanie’s shorts.
The loss of contact made her fingers feel too empty, too cool, but she needed both hands now.
She hooked her thumbs into the open denim and tugged downward, slow enough that she could watch every inch of skin appear.
The fabric caught briefly at Stephanie’s hips before sliding free, bunching at her thighs.
Casey kept her eyes on the way the white cotton underwear clung, already dark at the center from how wet Stephanie had gotten just from kissing and a little pressure.
The sight lodged somewhere behind her ribs and refused to move.
She dropped the shorts to the floor, then eased onto the bed between Stephanie’s spread legs, settling on her stomach.
The mattress dipped under her weight. Her own faded blue tank top rode up her back but she didn’t fix it.
The air in the rental bedroom felt thicker than it had downstairs, heavy with the faint smell of their breakfast and the salt drifting through the open window.
Her heart beat so hard she could feel it in her throat, in her wrists, everywhere.
This was Stephanie. The woman who had cried on her doorstep two nights ago, the one who had watched her from that upstairs window on her very first evening in Key West without either of them understanding what it meant.
Now Stephanie lay here in gray pajama shorts she’d changed into after breakfast, legs trembling slightly, eyes wide and fixed on Casey like she couldn’t quite believe this was happening.
Casey’s stomach tightened with a fierce tenderness that scared her.
She wanted this to feel safe. She wanted Stephanie to remember every second as something good, something that belonged only to her.
Her palm settled on Stephanie’s thigh first, thumb stroking the soft inner skin there.
The muscle jumped under her touch. Casey kept her other hand on Stephanie’s stomach, feeling the quick rise and fall of breath, the way the skin fluttered when she pressed lightly.
She leaned in and pressed her open mouth against the damp cotton right over Stephanie’s clit.
The reaction hit immediate and visceral.
Stephanie’s hips jerked up so hard Casey had to steady her with both hands.
A sound tore out of her, half gasp half moan, raw in a way that made Casey’s own center clench hard.
She could feel the heat of her through the fabric, the way it soaked against her tongue as she licked a slow stripe upward.
Stephanie’s thighs tried to close around her head but Casey held them open gently, palms warm on smooth skin.
“Oh God,” Stephanie breathed, voice cracking on the second word. Her fingers twisted in the white sheets. “Casey, that’s— I’ve never—”
Casey knew. The knowledge sat huge in her chest. She licked again, firmer this time, tongue pressing the wet cotton right against that swollen bundle of nerves.
The taste of her flooded Casey’s mouth, salty-sweet and so intimate it made her head spin.
She circled slowly, then flicked the tip of her tongue in quick little strokes that had Stephanie’s back arching clean off the bed.
She kept her hands moving, one stroking up and down the soft skin of Stephanie’s stomach, feeling the muscles jump and contract, the other caressing her thigh like she could calm the storm she was creating.
Every sound Stephanie made landed straight between Casey’s legs.
Those little broken whimpers, the way her voice kept climbing higher, the way her hips rolled up seeking more pressure.
Casey had never wanted anything the way she wanted to give this to her.
She sucked gently through the fabric, pulling the soaked cotton between her lips, and Stephanie came apart without any warning at all.
The orgasm crashed through her so fast Casey felt it against her tongue before she heard the cry rip out of Stephanie’s throat.
Her thighs clamped around Casey’s head, trembling violently.
Wet heat flooded the underwear, soaking Casey’s chin.
Stephanie’s stomach fluttered hard under her palm and her whole body bowed tight, hips grinding against Casey’s mouth in short, desperate jerks.
The sounds she made, raw and surprised and overwhelmed, filled the quiet bedroom until Casey thought her own heart might crack open from how much she felt.
She kept licking her through it, slow and gentle now, easing her down from the peak.
Stephanie’s cries softened into shaky little gasps, her thighs loosening their grip.
Casey pressed one last soft kiss to the drenched fabric, then lifted her head.
Her own breathing came ragged. Her lips felt swollen and slick.
She looked up the length of Stephanie’s body and the sight of her wrecked like this, chest heaving, dark hair stuck to her forehead, eyes glassy and stunned, lodged somewhere permanent behind Casey’s ribs.
She sat back on her heels and stripped her own tank top off in one motion, tossing it toward the end of the bed. The warm air hit her bare skin and she shivered once, not from cold. She wanted Stephanie’s hands on her. Wanted her eyes. But first she needed to see all of her.
Her fingers hooked into the waistband of the white underwear.
She tugged them down Stephanie’s legs, careful when they caught at her ankles.
The fabric landed somewhere on the floor with the shorts.
Stephanie lay there completely exposed now except for the white bra, her skin flushed pink across her chest and down her stomach.
Casey’s throat went tight. She had imagined this, late at night when she shouldn’t have, but the reality of it made her feel almost shaky with how much she wanted to get it right.
Stephanie pushed herself up on her elbows, eyes dark, and reached for her.
Their mouths met in the middle, the kiss messy and urgent.
Casey tasted the faint traces of coffee still on her tongue, mixed now with the taste of Stephanie’s own body.
She reached behind Stephanie’s back with both hands and unhooked the bra, sliding the straps down her shoulders.
Stephanie helped, shrugging it off, and then she was naked.
Completely. Casey eased her back down onto the mattress, one hand braced beside her head.
She searched Stephanie’s face, heart hammering so loud she could barely hear her own thoughts. “You okay?”
Stephanie’s smile came slow and a little dazed, her hazel-green eyes soft. “That was amazing. I didn’t know it could feel like that. I’m more than okay.”
The words loosened something tight in Casey’s chest. She leaned down and kissed her again, slower this time, letting it build.
Their mouths moved together easy now, tongues sliding, breaths mingling.
Casey’s hand found Stephanie’s breast, cupping the soft weight, thumb brushing over the nipple until it tightened under her touch.
Stephanie arched into it with a quiet moan that vibrated against Casey’s lips.
She played with the other nipple too, rolling it gently between her fingers while they kissed, learning what made Stephanie’s breath catch hardest.
Then Stephanie’s hands were on her ass, squeezing through the thin fabric of her shorts.
The grip sent a spike of heat straight up Casey’s spine.
Her hips rocked forward without permission, pressing her center against Stephanie’s bare thigh.
The contact dragged a low sound from her throat.
She wanted these shorts off. She wanted everything off.
Stephanie seemed to read her mind. Her fingers tugged at the waistband, insistent.
Casey lifted her hips enough to help, and the shorts slid down her legs along with her underwear.
She reached back and unhooked her own bra, letting it fall away.
Naked now. Both of them. The realization hit her low in the belly, a rush of vulnerability and want so strong it made her dizzy.
She settled over Stephanie again and their eyes met.
Stephanie stared at her like she was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.
Her gaze moved slow over Casey’s tanned shoulders, the curve of her breasts, the flat plane of her stomach, the neat patch of hair between her legs.
Casey felt the look like a physical touch.
“You’re gorgeous,” Stephanie whispered, voice rough with something like awe. Her hands came up to trace Casey’s sides, fingertips light over her ribs. “I can’t believe you’re real.”
The words landed warm and dangerous right in the center of Casey’s chest. She had heard variations of that before, but never from someone who made her feel this exposed.
She leaned down and kissed Stephanie hard, pouring everything she couldn’t say into it.
Their bodies came together fully now, skin to skin, and the sensation punched the air out of Casey’s lungs.
Stephanie’s breasts pressed soft against hers, nipples hard points dragging with every shift.
The heat between Stephanie’s legs slicked against Casey’s thigh.
She moaned into the kiss, the sound raw and helpless.
Nothing had ever felt this good. Nothing had ever felt this terrifying.