More Than a Song

by Chris Paynter

  But she couldn’t deny that a part of her secretly hoped that she’d see Dani again... soon.

  Chapter 6

  Frodo sat on the floor beside Dani while she put on her third shirt for the night. He cocked his head when Dani threw it on the floor on top of the other two and dug into the closet again. She returned to the full-length mirror with a red denim shirt. She held it in front of her before putting it on. Smoothing down the tails, she glanced at her reflection. This one seemed to flatter her the most. Someone had once told her that red looked good on her. Who was that, she wondered vaguely. It was... oh, hell. It was her ex. Dani sighed, unbuttoned the shirt, and threw it on the pile. She rifled through the hangers and stopped when she got to a worn denim shirt. This is it. I’m going to be comfortable.

  As she stood there eyeing her baggy blue jeans with scraggly hems, she ran her fingers through her still-damp hair. She had just stepped out of the shower and realized she had a little time to worry about her clothing for the night. She glanced at the clock. Now that time was up. It was nine-thirty.

  “What do you think, Frodo? Does Mommy look like a hot lesbian, or do I look like someone who’s trying too hard?”

  Frodo wagged his tail and jumped up on her leg, gazing at her with his expressive brown eyes. She reached down and rubbed his head.

  “What would I do without you, bud?” she asked. He licked her hand in response. “I know. I love you, too.”

  * * *

  Dani opened the door to Carl’s Cavern. A crowd of women still packed the bar. C.J.’s set had ended for the evening, so the houselights were up. Dani spotted Tina at the bar having a conversation with Barb. Tina waved Dani over.

  “Hey, boss. How’s it going?”

  Dani settled onto a stool beside her. “Good. I’ll take a Bud when you have time, Barb.”

  Barb poured the beer from the tap. She put down a napkin and set the glass in front of Dani. “What’s this I hear about you going out with Ms. Sexpot?”

  Dani was taking a sip of beer and almost spit it out. “C.J.?” She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

  “Who else?”

  “We’re supposed to meet up here. I’m not sure where we’re going.”

  Barb smirked. “I don’t think C.J. has that problem.”

  “What problem?”

  “A sense of direction. She knows exactly where she’s going.”

  Dani turned to Tina. “Did you two rehearse this routine?”

  “Hey, Barb’s got a mind of her own.”

  Dani was about to say something witty when, out of the corner of her eye, she caught C.J. walking over. C.J. had on a blue T-shirt that matched her eyes. She wore a bra this time, but Dani couldn’t help but notice that the T-shirt still accentuated her breasts. Her black jeans hugged her hips just right. She moved close enough to Dani so that her left breast brushed against Dani’s arm. There was that jolt of electricity again. Dani only hoped that she hadn’t outwardly flinched.

  “Ready?” C.J. asked.

  “Yeah.” Dani set a five on the bar.

  Barb handed it back to her. “You know where you can put that.”

  “Keep it for your tip then.” She slid the five across the bar. “I’ll see you Monday, Tina.”

  C.J. and Dani walked out into the cool spring air. “I’m not sure what you had in mind,” Dani said. “Did you know where—” Dani didn’t get to finish her question. C.J. gripped her arm and yanked her into the alley between Carl’s bar and the building next door. She pushed Dani against the brick wall and pressed their bodies together, while placing her hands flat on the bricks beside Dani’s face.

  “What I have in mind,” C.J. whispered in Dani’s ear, “is to do this.” C.J. slid the tip of her tongue across Dani’s lips until Dani felt her mouth open almost involuntarily, inviting C.J. in. C.J. captured Dani’s tongue with her own, and her mouth opened wide. She felt a sensation between her thighs that she hadn’t felt in quite some time. She was on fire.

  C.J. dropped her lips to Dani’s neck and then back up to her ear. “I have an apartment that I’m renting from Carl for the next three weeks. It’s not even a block from here. Come with me.”

  Dani knew the apartment well. All the women who performed at Carl’s Cavern for any lengthy period stayed there. Many a night, after a show, while walking out to the parking lot, Dani would spot the performer pulling another woman along with her as they headed to the upstairs apartment. Their giggles would drift down to the parking lot until the door shut. A cold fear shot through her. Was she one of those women? Was she simply a conquest for C.J.? C.J.’s mouth pressed hard on her neck. Dani’s mind was getting foggier with each flick of her tongue.

  “I don’t kn—”

  “Don’t say no,” C.J. said hoarsely. Her voice penetrated Dani’s last wall of resistance. “God, please don’t say no.”

  C.J. pulled back and Dani could see the raw want in her eyes. The streetlight cast her face in shadow, but there was enough light to see that C.J.’s eyes were now a dark, smoky blue. Dani couldn’t find her voice to speak. She nodded. C.J. took her hand and walked her down the alley to the two-story apartment building behind Carl’s. Dani allowed C.J. to lead her up the stairs. One thought flickered through Dani’s mind when they got to the top—at least I’m not a giggling mess.

  C.J. unlocked the door and tugged Dani inside. As soon as she shut the door, C.J. spun Dani around and slammed her into the door. She gripped Dani’s hair as she dropped her mouth to Dani’s and pressed her tongue inside. Dani became so lost that she didn’t even feel C.J. unbutton her shirt until C.J.’s hand captured Dani’s breast. Her nipple hardened with each stroke of C.J.’s thumb. A moan involuntarily vibrated in her throat.

  C.J. undid the rest of the buttons and pulled the shirt off Dani’s shoulders. She reached behind Dani and unsnapped her bra. Pulling it aside, she leaned over to capture Dani’s nipple with her lips. Dani’s knees began to buckle when C.J.’s tongue flicked back and forth against the very tip. C.J. must have sensed Dani was about to collapse onto the floor. She held onto Dani tighter and stood up again. She grabbed Dani’s hand and pressed it to her own breast.

  “Do you feel what you’re doing to me?”

  C.J.’s nipple hardened against Dani’s palm. Dani yanked off C.J.’s T-shirt and unsnapped the front clasp of her bra. Dani had to catch her breath when she saw C.J.’s breasts in the streetlight streaming through the blinds.

  “Oh, God, C.J.” Dani leaned forward and captured one nipple in her mouth while she enveloped C.J.’s other breast with her hand. It was so full, it barely fit in her palm. C.J. gripped Dani’s hair as Dani continued to flick her tongue back and forth across her nipple. C.J. let out a low moan. She pulled Dani away from her and pushed her back onto the couch. She unzipped Dani’s jeans and slipped her hand inside. Dani wiggled until C.J. had room to press into Dani’s crotch. C.J. moved Dani’s panties aside and plunged her fingers into Dani’s wetness. Dani gasped.

  C.J. dropped her mouth to Dani’s breast as she moved her fingers into Dani’s wet folds. C.J. ran her tongue around one nipple, giving it lavish attention. She trailed her tongue over to the other breast. All the while, her hand moved in rhythm with the flick of her tongue. She licked her way up Dani’s chest to her neck until her mouth reached Dani’s ear.

  “What do you want, Dani?” she whispered. “Tell me.”

  Dani’s breathing was ragged now. She was incapable of speaking.

  “Is it this?” C.J. asked as she pushed hard inside of Dani. “Is this what you want?”

  Dani cried out as the pleasure began to mount. C.J. thrust her fingers deeper inside as she kissed her way down to Dani’s breast and recaptured her nipple. She sucked greedily. C.J.’s hand moved faster and faster, and Dani’s hips bucked wildly. Oh, my God. This has never happened to me before. Dani’s whole world was that one spot on her body. She cried out again as she climaxed.

  C.J. slowly kissed her way up to Dani’s mouth. Dani was br
eathing so hard she felt like she was going to hyperventilate. The veins in her neck throbbed with each heartbeat, but the throbbing between her legs outpaced it.

  Before she knew what was happening, C.J. yanked down her jeans, then her panties. This time, she was gentle and slow. She kissed Dani softly on her neck and began a slow descent. She sucked on Dani’s left nipple then the right. She licked down Dani’s stomach, causing Dani to quiver uncontrollably. C.J. kissed the inside of Dani’s thigh down to her knee and her ankle and back up to her thigh. C.J. looked up to her and smiled before she brought her mouth to Dani’s other thigh. Please don’t make me beg, she thought. Please. She opened her legs to C.J. willingly.

  Dani closed her eyes as she held her breath in anticipation. She wasn’t disappointed. C.J. planted a light kiss onto Dani’s mound, pushed Dani’s legs apart even farther, and spread Dani’s lips with her fingers. Dani felt C.J.’s tongue where she most desired. She pushed herself up to C.J.’s mouth and felt C.J. smile before she plunged her tongue even farther into the wetness. C.J. placed her hands under Dani’s ass and pulled her closer. Once again, Dani moved her hips in a steady motion. C.J. quickly joined her in perfect rhythm. Dani felt her second orgasm building as she gripped C.J.’s hair. C.J. prolonged it as long as possible until she pushed her tongue into Dani’s opening then moved up to suck Dani’s clit fully between her lips. White-hot explosions went off behind Dani’s tightly shut eyelids as her whole body gave into her release. C.J. kissed the inside of Dani’s thighs again. She moved beside Dani on the couch, draped an arm around her, and pulled her close.

  Dani leaned her head against C.J.’s shoulder. She took in a deep breath and let it out as a shiver ran through her body.

  “Cold?” C.J. asked.

  “A little,” Dani whispered.

  C.J. leaned down and tugged a blanket at the foot of the couch over them. She pulled Dani tighter.

  “That’s nice. Soft like you,” Dani murmured as she felt the blanket against her body. C.J. kissed the top of Dani’s head, and Dani sank into a gentle slumber, feeling C.J.’s breath brush against her cheek.

  Dani woke up with a smile on her face. She reached beside her, expecting C.J. to be there but only feeling the cushion of the couch beneath her fingers. She sat up and peered in the darkness. Eventually, her eyes adjusted to the little light in the room. C.J. sat in a chair in the shadows, now clothed again in her shirt.

  “Are you okay, C.J.?”

  “I’m fine.” C.J.’s voice was quiet in the darkened room.

  “How long have I been sleeping?” Dani wanted to add, “And why aren’t you here with me?” but she thought better of it.

  “A little over an hour.”

  Dani wanted to see C.J.’s face. She wanted to understand this mood. She suddenly felt naked—and not just because she was without clothes. She felt raw, like she was revealing too much.

  Dani couldn’t hold back. “Why don’t you come over here?”

  “I’m good, Dani.”

  Dani sat up and covered her body with the blanket that had slipped down while she slept.

  “What? Now you’re shy?” C.J. asked. Dani thought she could detect a sly grin even in the shadows of the room.

  “No, it’s just that—”

  C.J. laughed. “I’m teasing you.”

  Dani wanted to shout, “This isn’t the time!” What Dani needed was some warmth, some affection. Something that she shouldn’t have to ask for. Instead of speaking, she stood up and walked over to grab her clothes. She was self-conscious as she began to dress.

  “I’d better get home,” she said.

  “You don’t have to go.” But there was no passion in C.J.’s voice. It sounded like something she’d said to other women before, never meaning the words, only trying to appease the feelings of her lover.

  “No, I need to go. My dog has been alone long enough.”

  “I’ll see you again soon, right?”

  “Right,” Dani said a little too quickly. She turned to leave.

  “I enjoyed this.” C.J. stood by the chair now.

  Dani only nodded. She opened up the door and almost sprinted down the stairs. She didn’t turn back to see if C.J. was watching her from the window. She made it out to the parking lot behind the bar.

  “What the hell did I just do?” she whispered in the hushed sanctuary of her car.

  Chapter 7

  Dani tossed and turned in bed, so much so that the impossible-to-wake Frodo popped his head up to see what the problem was. Dani glanced at the glowing red numbers of her alarm clock: 3:00 a.m.

  “Shit,” she muttered.

  Her mind kept spinning back to being in C.J.’s arms just hours before. She had felt so alive when C.J. made love to her. It almost frightened her. But then the coldness afterward—it was as if Dani wasn’t even in the same room with her. It was like finding yourself outside in a heavy blizzard seconds after basking in the heat from a cabin fireplace.

  Dani sat up on the side of her bed. With as fast as her mind was racing, she knew sleep was hopeless. She put on her robe and stomped heavily downstairs. Frodo hit the floor behind her. He quickly caught up and joined her on the steps. He walked with her to the back door, and she let him out.

  Dani opened the refrigerator door and ducked her head inside. The only thing that sounded halfway decent at this hour was a glass of milk. Frodo was already banging at the back door. He sprinted into the house straight to his bowl.

  “Little guy, it’s not morning yet.” His ears fell, and his eyes became even sadder than they normally were. “Okay. Okay.” How could she resist that? She set down her glass of milk, scooped out a cup of his dog food, and dropped it into his bowl. “Just don’t tell Dr. Springer.”

  As the words left her lips, a vision of the doctor in her white lab coat planted itself in Dani’s brain. A tingle ran down her body. “What the hell?” She shook her head. Nothing like going from one woman to the next in her mind. While Frodo munched happily on his kibbles, Dani picked up her milk and carried it to the den. She pulled a book from the others tightly stacked together on the bookshelves. She had picked out the fattest non-fiction Civil War book she could find in the hope that it would help her drift off to sleep, even if it was in her favorite overstuffed chair.

  Dani opened the book to the first page and began reading. She only made it to the fourth paragraph before she started thinking about C.J. again. Dani sighed. Not even the Civil War could erase the memories of what had happened.

  She shut the book, leaned her head back, and closed her eyes once again. Frodo licked her hand that rested on the arm of the chair. She didn’t open her eyes but petted his head. With each stroke of her hand, she felt her eyelids getting heavier and heavier. Eventually, she drifted off to sleep.

  She awoke with a stiff neck. Standing and stretching, she tried to work out the kinks. She looked down to see Frodo was doing the same thing. Dani smiled. At least Frodo was a constant in her life, no matter what else was happening.

  “I’ll let you out again and take a shower. Then, why don’t we go for a walk?”

  Frodo’s ears perked up, and he ran over to where his leash hung on the wall by the back door.

  “Not yet, buddy. Shower first, then walk.”

  Dani let him out and trotted up the stairs. As she showered, she allowed herself to think about C.J. again. Had Dani made a terrible mistake in judgment? She wasn’t the type to jump into bed on a first date. Hell, it wasn’t even a date, she thought. It was more like a let’s-make-out-in-the-alley-before-taking-it-to-my-place-where-I-can-fuck-you kind of thing. Did this woman have some kind of spell over her?

  Dani stepped out and dried off. She pulled on some old sweats and her “best” worn sneakers. She hustled back downstairs to get Frodo. He about tore her arm off as they headed to the front door. No matter how many episodes of The Dog Whisperer Dani watched, she could never get Frodo to let her through the door first to show who was the alpha dog. She would shut the door and pull h
im back, but as soon as she opened it again, he’d jump ahead of her. After about the tenth try, with him looking up at her with an expression of “what the hell are you doing?” she gave up. He was, however, much better behaved after they made it outdoors.

  They began their stroll down the tree-lined street. The morning air was brisk, so Dani had put on her jacket. At seven a.m., only a few people were up and out that early on a Sunday. A few typical fitness-nut joggers in their spandex pants ran by and an occasional neighbor was out walking their dog.

  Dani wasn’t paying much attention when Frodo yanked her ahead.

  “Hey! Hey!” Dani yelled as she tried to reel him back in. What the hell had gotten into him? A woman walked toward them with a blonde cocker spaniel. Frodo was doing his best to dislocate Dani’s shoulder and make it over to them. As the woman got closer, Dani recognized her—it was Dr. Liz Springer. Dani stumbled along behind her determined beagle. She instantly was self-conscious about her appearance.

  Dani didn’t think it could be possible, but Liz looked even better out of her white lab coat from the office. She was dressed in a dark-green turtleneck, jeans, and a black leather jacket.

  “Dani, right?” Liz said as she stopped on the sidewalk. Dani nodded.

  Frodo managed to pull Dani close enough so he could do his tail-to-nose inspection of Liz’s dog. Then he jumped on Liz’s leg to get her attention.

  “Frodo! Down!” Dani said in her best “I’m in charge” voice. Of course, Frodo totally ignored her—especially when Liz laughed, leaned over, and rubbed his ears. He looked back at Dani as if to say, “See. She loves me.”

  “He really does like you.”

  Liz kept smiling as she petted him. She rose up, and when Dani looked into her eyes, she felt like she was standing on a hillside overlooking an emerald field of green in Ireland. Without even thinking how sentimental that sounded in her muddled mind, Dani tried to remember where she’d seen those beautiful eyes before. She couldn’t place it the first time she’d met her. Suddenly, it hit her. Scarlett O’Hara. Well, more to the point, Vivien Leigh who brought the character to life. How could Dani miss that?