Haunted Hearts

by Jenny Bloom

  Lynda hummed as she dove down, searching for a place for her mouth to settle. It was difficult to choose when she felt drawn to every inch of Ruby. She wanted nothing more than to get lost in Ruby's skin, to dive deep and to perhaps never surface again. She plunged into Ruby's cleavage and exhaled hard while her hands fled over the surface of Ruby's arms.

  She trailed her fingers down and left shivers in her wake. As her hands joined Ruby's, she felt Ruby shudder again and nestled into Ruby's breasts, nudging aside the neckline of Ruby's blouse. She drifted over the top of Ruby's bra before slipping her tongue underneath the edge of the cup.

  Ruby bayed and arched her back, pressing her breast further against Lynda's mouth. She seemed receptive to every touch, her body fluidly following all of Lynda's motions. While Lynda decorated her breast with gentle kisses, she groaned long and low, signaling her desire for more.

  Lynda plunged her fingers beneath Ruby's blouse, yanking the fabric up and over Ruby's head. She carefully stripped away each barrier that blocked her path, determined to get them both exposed within seconds. And she accomplished her task easily, finding that Ruby was just as eager as her.

  While admiring Ruby's form, she traced Ruby's hips, circling the protruding bones before dipping between Ruby's thighs. She carefully skimmed Ruby's clit and listened with delight to the soft utterances that were too incoherent to distinguish as words or phrases. She locked eyes with Ruby as she traced Ruby's clit with her thumb.

  Ruby opened up with ease. Her mouth slacked open and her eyes rolled back, her head soon following to rest upon the couch. As her neck came into view, it invited Lynda to strike, to plant a series of lustful kisses from her chin down to her chest.

  The room pulsed with energy. It was as if just by touching Ruby that Lynda could command the air around her. Although she wasn't a true believer of all things magic, she could have sworn that a breeze had picked up in the room—just by thinking of it. She shivered as she adjusted her fingers and traced Ruby's vulva, outlining it with increasing hunger.

  Her breath came in labored waves while she reached again for Ruby's lips. Her heart raced as she extended her tongue, slowly pushing against Ruby's. She dueled gently at first, her thirst for Ruby growing by the kiss. But when she withdrew, she was utterly breathless and she had found a soothing yet desperate rhythm to rub Ruby's clit.

  After circling Ruby's clit once more, Lynda slipped one finger inside, feeling Ruby respond immediately with an uncontrollable buck. Ruby hummed and writhed underneath her, lips parted in a continual moan. Lynda slipped deeper and applied her thumb to Ruby's clit, picking up an urgent pace that inspired her to slither down Ruby's body.

  She parted Ruby's legs eagerly, pressing her tongue to Ruby's clit. She roused each moan from Ruby with her tongue, gleefully lapping as if she were starved. She dragged her tongue in feathery strokes while stimulating Ruby with her fingers. She cocked her head sideways and continued laving, unable to control her breathing or her body.

  She felt overwhelmed by the desire to make Ruby erupt. Her motions didn't feel like enough—she needed to do more. As Ruby tangled her fingers into Lynda's hair, Lynda slurped Ruby's clit, prompting a louder moan than before. Her lips encompassed Ruby's clit and she sucked dutifully, loudly marking Ruby's mound with her mouth.

  Lynda never strayed. She never dared to remove her twitching lips. She persisted to finger Ruby rhythmically, stroking fervently as she suckled on Ruby's clit. Her eyelids fluttered as she delighted in Ruby's taste, finding that the martini could hardly compare to the nectar she was devouring.

  Ruby's hips bucked forward and her hands gripped Lynda's hair, pushing Lynda's face deeper. Her moans shifted from long expressions to short utterances, a soft ode to Lynda's loving touch. Her fingers glided through Lynda's hair and her nails marked all along Lynda's scalp. When her grip tightened again, Lynda doubled her effort.

  Lynda surfaced for a split second. “Tell me what else you want.”

  “Keep doing what you're doing.”

  Lynda returned, eager to bring Ruby to a place of bliss. Ruby tugged at Lynda's hair, muttering incoherently while sighing between each indecipherable word. Her thighs twitched and her legs tightened around Lynda's head. She humped forward as Lynda lapped generously over her clit, arousing a tingling energy between them.

  Lynda grew taut with anticipation as she probed Ruby, her fingers and tongue finding their own pace that she could no longer control. Her hunger had become utterly primal—she was losing control and she was gladly lending herself over to the forces encouraging her to sate her appetite.

  “Could I…?” Ruby paused for a moment, releasing a long sigh. “Could I please you, too?”

  Lynda hummed in agreement. She quickly rose up from the ground and repositioned Ruby on the couch. She carefully positioned herself over Ruby's face and watched with hypnotized eyes as Ruby traced her lips with a curious tongue. A rogue groan escaped her when Ruby's tongue danced over her clit. She bucked and then went back to work, burying her face hungrily into Ruby's muff.

  As she swept her tongue ravenously over Ruby's clit, she felt a quickening inside. Her muscles tensed as she rolled her hips forward, unable to stop them or level out her pace. She was unleashed—and it was all Ruby's doing. Her licking quickened as the coil in her gut unraveled, prompting a steady stream of moans to vibrate her lips—and Ruby's lips, too.

  She felt Ruby tense. There was no stopping the oncoming tide of their eruption and she urged Ruby with her mouth and her fingers, wanting nothing more than to bring about their climax simultaneously. Within seconds, her heart was beating like the wings of a hummingbird as her hips took over.

  She humped furiously, wildly, completely unhinged from the usual mastery of her emotions. She let the floodgates open and cried out as she exploded, feeling Ruby's nectar coating her mouth. Another moan escaped her as she surfaced for air, homing in on the explosion in her gut that trickled from her center to each limb of her body.

  After the electric energy had settled, she collapsed against Ruby's leg, panting to the same tune as Ruby. She cocked her head and rested her cheek against Ruby's thigh.

  “Oh...you're incredible.”

  Ruby giggled. “So are you.”

  “I'd even venture to say that was magical.”

  “I'll make a believer of you yet.”

  Lynda chuckled as she shifted her position, searching for Ruby's lips. She felt compelled to shower Ruby with affection as she wrapped Ruby in a hug, unwilling to let Ruby go. While nuzzling into Ruby's neck, she felt the afterglow of her orgasm shimmering over her skin. She could even see on Ruby's skin and she traced Ruby's arm in an effort to chase it, to capture it, like an elusive ghost.

  She sighed. “Do you want me to stay?”

  “I'd love that.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “As sure as you are logical.”

  Lynda giggled lightly, curling up into Ruby as she pressed her lips to Ruby's neck. “That sounds pretty darn sure.”

  “I will have to wake up early, but I can make you breakfast.”

  “That sounds great.”

  “And maybe we could shoot for date number three.”

  Lynda grinned wide. The swell of bliss in her body had taken over, calming all of her muscles into a state of pure relaxation. She wrapped her arm tight around Ruby while inhaling Ruby's perfume, utterly intoxicated by the scent. Before she lost consciousness, she whispered, “That sounds even better...”

  Chapter Five

  Ruby

  The following day, Ruby found herself in an enamored state while setting up the next witch tour. She was sitting with Ernest as she twisted a rope expertly into a noose.

  She smiled dreamily. “She's just incredible.”

  Ernest nodded as he played with one of the ropes. He fumbled with the loops and messed up the knot, his brow furrowed in heavy concentration. He nodded absently. “Yep.”

  “And she's like the best kisser in Salem, I swear.”<
br />
  “I bet she is.”

  “But she's really shy. I kind of love the fact that she's nervous with me. You should have seen how cute she looked when I asked her to come home with me.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  Ruby raised an annoyed brow in Ernest's direction. “Do you need help over there, partner?”

  “Please,” he groaned while handing over the rope. “I don't know how our ancestors did all this in less than a damn hour.”

  “Hey, nobody can prove the time frame on all that.” Ruby accepted the rope and began making a noose. “It's really simple. Just make sure to follow the pattern on the sheet.”

  “I'm much better at the schooner tour.”

  “Well, you clearly impressed the boss, so I'd say this is a step up.”

  Ernest laughed. “How in the world is showing off nooses a step up from driving a boat? I feel like I took a few steps back.”

  “If Mr. Cloher thinks you can entertain the witch crowd, then he clearly has a lot of confidence in you.”

  “Either way, I'm glad I'm shadowing you today so I can catch all the juicy details of your encounter with Miss University.”

  Ruby rolled her eyes. “As if you were really listening five seconds ago.”

  “You had sex—I gathered that much.”

  “It was so much more than sex, Ernest. It was like we were creating this ritual together. She was so good at reading my body.”

  “You sound like you're in love.”

  Ruby hummed curiously. “It's certainly a possibility.”

  Ernest placed a hand on her shoulder. “Whoa, Ruby. You know how it went the last time you dated a student.”

  “That was different.”

  “Not by much. That girl left the state and then never called you again.”

  “Well, she had plans. I knew all about those plans.”

  Ernest gave her an appraising look. “I remember you drunkenly calling me about how that girl left you high and dry with little to no information about where she went.”

  Ruby shrugged. “So, what? I got burned once by a student. That shouldn't ruin every lesbian student I meet.”

  “I'm just saying you should be cautious. It's only been like, what, two dates? I'm making sure you're taking care of yourself.”

  “Hey, I'm better at that than you are,” she teased as she tousled his messy hair. “You need a damn haircut, Ernest.”

  “We can't all look like we just rolled right out of a funeral parlor.”

  “Are you making fun of my ultimately gorgeous goth look?”

  He chuckled. “Only because it suits you.”

  “I'm glad I can impress.”

  “So, about this noose stuff...should we hang them on the branches?”

  “Yes, go for the low branch. Mr. Cloher wants to give that haunted impression. These ropes are light enough that the breeze should make them sway.”

  He laughed maniacally. “For the ghosts of the burning times past!”

  A group of kids standing at the bottom of the hill squealed and then giggled, inviting Ernest to deepen his evil cackle. Ruby rolled her eyes as she stepped up on the ladder to reach the branch. She swatted his hand when he tried to help and he took a step back, raising his hands as if to surrender.

  “All right, then, Miss Vamp. You're the boss.”

  She smiled smugly and tightened the knot. When she stepped down from the ladder, she smiled at her work, placing her hands on her hips and raising her shoulders with joy. “That's how it's done. Do you want to try?”

  “Well, I tried to try, but you didn't want the help.”

  “That's because I wanted you to watch first.”

  “Is that what you told Lynda?”

  Ruby gasped and swatted his arm playfully, falling into a fit of bashful giggles. “I'm not giving you those details! Don't be weird about it.”

  “I'm just kidding! I would never ask you about that...unless...?”

  She cackled and shook her head as she walked up the sandy path to the edge of the tree line. A group of tourists were patiently waiting with her boss, Mr. Cloher, who was entertaining the crowd with creepy tales about Salem's wicked past.

  “...hunted them relentlessly until every last person accused had been hung or drowned!”

  The crowd murmured with hushed gasps and sudden conversation. As Ruby approached, she gave Mr. Cloher a warm smile and greeted the crowd with a nod.

  “Ah! Here is your guide for the afternoon—Miss Ruby Nixon!” Mr. Cloher announced. “And her co-guide for the day, Mr. Ernest Jacob!”

  A light applause rippled through the crowd. Ruby noted there weren't more than ten people in attendance. They typically booked small tours to give people time to absorb information and ask questions. As Ruby bowed her head humbly, she poked Ernest's arm to get him to do the same.

  “Is everyone ready to see the hanging tree?” she asked in a cheery voice.

  The crowd responded with an affirmative and she waved them toward her, turning to start walking up the path. She turned her head slightly over her shoulder to address the crowd: “This site is considered one of the most haunted in all of Salem, having seen enough death to last for centuries.”

  “The accused people were dragged along this path and up the hill to a tree not far from here,” Ernest added.

  “Imagine being taken out of your home, stripped of your belongings, forced to suffer through an unfair trial only to be taken here for your untimely ending,” Ruby continued.

  “Nineteen people who were falsely accused were hung in this tree just beyond the path.”

  “And some people say they can still hear their cries of opposition.”

  Ruby paused dramatically on the path, turning her ear to the wind as she squinted with concentration. Those in the crowd wore blank faces as they listened to the rustling trees around them.

  “Of course, that's only if you really believe in ghosts,” Ernest teased. “But we here in Salem truly believe—and we always have!”

  He burst with laughter and Ruby smiled, joining him with her own variation of a witch cackle. When she approached the tree, she stood reverently at the base, placing her hand on the trunk while staring up at the branches. The nooses were swaying just as she had anticipated.

  “There are many families in Salem who have felt the loss of their ancestors,” Ruby recounted. “And that includes my own as well.”

  “Were they really witches?” a curious child at the front asked. “Like...did they really do real magic?”

  Ruby smiled and stepped forward, kneeling down to level her gaze with the little girl who couldn't have been more than ten years old.

  She shrugged. “What do you believe?”

  “I think they were witches.”

  The children around her agreed.

  Ruby smiled wider and stood up, letting her gaze fall upon the rest of the crowd. “Whatever you believe, the story is still the same: nineteen lives were taken here. And that sort of impression doesn't go away—even after three-hundred and twenty-six years.”

  She was satisfied by the hushed gasps and the sudden outbreak of conversation. She exchanged a glance with Ernest who gave her a worried look.

  He leaned toward her and whispered, “How am I doing?”

  “Wonderful.”

  “You sure? Is the laugh too much?”

  “You're doing so great, buddy.”

  He nodded happily and returned his attention to the crowd as they began asking questions. Although she hadn't discussed the question portion with Ernest, she felt confident splitting up their responses. The tour soon came to an end and she guided the group back to the bottom of the hill where the next round of tourists waited.

  The afternoon stretched out endlessly with the same questions perpetually asked and the same expressions worn by similar-looking tourists. They almost started running together for Ruby as she felt the exhaustion kicking in. When the last of the tours were settled, she held her head and sat at the bottom of the hill.
/>   “So,” Ernest said while plopping down next to her. “What's for dinner today?”

  “Well, it was supposed to be lunch.”

  “I mean, that's what happens when burning witch tours are so popular.”

  She nodded. “You have a point.”

  As she lazily opened her paper bag to withdraw her sandwich, she felt her phone buzz in the pocket of her lengthy skirt. She withdrew her phone and yipped when she saw the name on the screen.

  “Lynda is calling!” She hopped up and walked a few steps away from Ernest as she answered the phone. “Hey!”

  “Hey there, gorgeous. How's your day going?”

  “It's been excellent so far. I haven't eaten yet, but I'm about to.”

  “Oh, well, don't let me hold you up.”

  Ruby giggled. “Don't worry about it—I'm happy to hear your voice.”

  “I just wanted to check in. I had such a good time last night and this morning.”

  “What did you think of my cooking skills?”

  “They were to die for, Ruby. I swear, I've never had eggs like that in my life.”

  “Do you want to do that again?”

  Lynda giggled. “Sure! When do you want to get together?”

  Ruby hummed. “Tell me what your schedule looks like.”

  “I have another class today and then I'm free for the evening.”

  “Would you like to go for a picnic in the woods?”

  “A picnic? In the woods?”

  Ruby bit her lower lip and shrugged even though Lynda couldn't see it. “Well, I figured I would increase the romance aspect and treat you to something really sweet.”

  “That's so kind of you. What kind of woods?”

  “A very non-haunted set of woods just behind my apartment. I promise that you'll be fully protected with me there.”

  Lynda chuckled. “Well, that's a relief. I mean, I wouldn't be scared or anything. I just didn't want you doing anything you didn't want to do.”

  “I want to spend as much time with you as possible. I think that would make me a very happy girl.”