Glancing at the paper, she smiled and reached for Marty’s hand. “Thank you.”
Marty huffed. “Don’t thank me yet. You still have to deal with her.”
Ryan turned and hurried from the shop. Marty glanced down at the cordless phone that lay on the counter next to him. He knew the right thing to do would be to give Leah advance notice that Ryan was coming over. Marty decided his friend needed a little jarring.
***
Ryan stood on the small covered patio outside Leah’s house. Her palms were sweating.
Leah answered the door in her bare feet. She was wearing a pair of faded Levis and a black V-neck t-shirt. “Ryan?”
Ryan swallowed the lump in her throat. Her nerves were threatening to get the better of her. “Hey, can I come in?”
Leah hesitated, and then nodded. “Okay.”
Ryan stepped through the door, and closed it behind her. “What happened?” Instinctively, Ryan reached for the red swollen mark across Leah’s neck. Its edges were a faint black and blue.
Leah stepped away, and covering the mark with her hand, shrugged. “Minor fender bender. The seatbelt did more damage than anything.”
Ryan forced her hands to her side. The need to touch and comfort Leah was nearly overwhelming. “Was the other guy okay?”
Leah looked surprised by the question, her eyes widening. “The other guy? Oh, yes. He was fine. Just a little mistiming at a stop light near Catonsville, and the guy rear-ended me.”
Ryan nodded, unsure what to do with the fact she didn’t altogether believe Leah. “That’s good.”
Leah stood with her hands behind her back, her eyes moving nervously around the room. “Would you like some tea?”
“That would be great.” Ryan decided to make herself at home, and sat on the overstuffed sofa that took up nearly the entire back wall of Leah’s living room. The brown fabric was similar to corduroy, and in spite of the unease between her and Leah, Ryan felt oddly cozy as she sank down into it.
Ryan scanned the room. The house was more akin to a small cabin. The walls, ceiling, and floors were light walnut, with dark maple trim throughout the space. The ceiling was low, and the walls adorned with a variety of primitive style paintings of the region and what looked like antique quilts and tapestries.
The furnishings consisted of the sofa, several country style tables, and a worn leather recliner. Where there weren’t wall coverings, built in bookcases lined the walls, each overflowing. Adjacent to the living room was the walkway through to the kitchen. As Leah walked back into the living room, Ryan could see behind her granite counter tops and dark maple cabinets littered with decorative spice and oil bottles.
“You weren’t kidding about the books.” Ryan commented as she took the mug of tea from Leah.
Leah frowned. “How do you mean?”
Ryan looked at one of the bookcases. “The first time we met you assured me your house was – how did you say it – bursting at the seams with real books.”
“Oh, that.” Leah seemed uninterested in the conversation, and Ryan was struggling to strike the right tone.
“Anyway, I like your house.” Ryan managed to smile even though she felt like she was suffocating from the tension in the room.
“Thanks.” Leah sat in the recliner across from the Ryan. “I bought it about four years ago. It needed some work, but that allowed me to personalize it more than I could have a newer home.” Leah took a tentative sip of her own tea.
Ryan squelched the stab of disappointment that ran through her when Leah chose not to sit next to her. She felt as if she were trapped in the longest, most awkward silence of her life, and was fumbling to find her way out of it.
“Ryan, why are you here?” Leah’s tone wasn’t accusatory, but in its flatness, triggered a new wave of nervousness for Ryan.
Willing herself to take a deep breath before speaking, Ryan leaned forward and placed her mug of tea on the coffee table. Sitting back, Ryan crossed her legs as she plucked nervously at her thumb nail with her index finger.
“We parted on bad terms at the convent, and I don’t want that.” Ryan forced herself to look directly at Leah.
“The parting or the bad terms?” Leah asked.
Ryan’s brow arched. She hadn’t expected the quip, and was having difficulty reading Leah. “Both.”
Leah nodded, and sat her tea down on the table next to the recliner. “I don’t want to be on bad terms with you either, but I do feel the parting is for the best.”
Ryan’s chest tightened, and she felt a faint sense of nausea roll over her, the tea souring in her stomach. Besides what Leah was saying, how she was saying it, flat and flawless, was pushing Ryan toward full-on despair.
Feeling her courage falter, Ryan slid to the edge of the couch. “Then we’re good otherwise?”
Leah opened her mouth as if to speak, but then only nodded.
The two women looked at each other, the sound of a ticking clock somewhere in the house the only thing Ryan could hear. She was utterly bewildered by what was happening. Ryan had imagined a bang and a boom of dialogue. Leah and her talking through what had happened, what must happen. Instead there was this whimper.
“I’m going to go then.” Ryan stood. “Thank you for the tea.”
Leah stood and stepped toward the door. “Thank you for coming over. I’m glad we had some closure.”
Ryan took a tentative step forward and then stopped, a frown having spread across her lips. “Closure?”
Leah nodded. “Yes. I’m happy we didn’t leave it on bad terms.”
A series of clicking sounds echoed in Ryan’s head as a surge of adrenaline shot up her neck, causing her cheeks to flush. “I don’t want to leave it at all!”
Leah’s eyes widened at Ryan’s declaration. “Ryan, we agreed -”
Fervently shaking her head back and forth, Ryan squared her shoulders. “No. This is wrong! This isn’t what I want, and I don’t think it’s what you want either!”
“Ryan, it’s fine. Please.” Leah’s calm demeanor faltered as her tone became pleading. “I need you - I need you to leave.”
Ryan noticed that in spite of the words coming out of Leah’s mouth, the woman had actually moved away from the front door, and was now standing only a few feet from Ryan. Having come through the last moments of despair, Ryan felt elated as a new found courage drove her forward.
“I won’t - I can’t just leave you. You’re not someone I can just forget about.” Ryan closed the space between her and Leah. She took the woman’s hands in hers.
Leah’s eyes brimmed with tears. “Leave. I don’t want you here.” Her voice cracked as she pulled her hands free of Ryan’s.
In a moment of clarity, Ryan knew she needed to say what had been sitting in the center of her chest for the better part of a month. She could take back most anything she said or did, but if she left this house without saying anything, she knew it would be one of those rare mistakes that are built to last.
“I love you.” Ryan was surprised how calm she sounded in spite of the emotional roller coaster her insides were on. “I’ve never said that to anyone, and I’m not telling you that to somehow burden you.” Ryan took a tentative step toward a stunned Leah. “I want you to know there have been people in the past that I could have said it to, and not really meant it. I’m completely joyful that I didn’t, and now it matters more because you’re the first person I’ve said it to.”
Leah took a deep breath, but didn’t speak. Ryan felt the jarring of Leah’s silence through her entire body. They had hit some obstructed crossroads in their relationship, and the past was impeding their way forward. “I’m going to leave now.”
Leah turned her head quickly, her eyes focused on Ryan’s. “I love you, too.” Leah grasped Ryan’s hand, and entwining her fingers with Ryan’s, took another deep breath. “You’re not the first person I’ve ever said that to, but it’s been a very long time since I felt like saying it.”
Ryan’s head was spinni
ng with the revelation that Leah was in love with her. She studied their hands, and how seamlessly they fit together. “I still have questions, but right now I am all full up with the talking.”
Ryan pulled Leah to her. The heat of Leah’s skin enveloped her as she pressed her lips to Leah’s. Ryan felt the floor beneath her shift slightly at the first touch of Leah’s tongue to hers. Grabbing Leah by the shoulders, Ryan pushed her back onto the sofa.
Leaning back, Ryan looked down at Leah. Both women were panting slightly, out of breath. A few skittering heartbeats later and Leah cupped the back of Ryan’s neck and pulled her forward. The intensity of the kiss evoked a low moan from Ryan as she shifted between Leah’s legs.
Ryan ran her hand under the hem of Leah’s shirt, clutching her waist before Ryan’s hand roamed down to her hip. Leah flinched and Ryan pulled her hand back. “What’s wrong?”
Leah shifted, and pulled Ryan back to her. “Bruise from the accident. Don’t stop.”
Ryan quickly removed her hand from Leah’s hip and ran it up the flat plains of her stomach and along the side of Leah’s firm round breast. Then Ryan ran her palm over the silky material of Leah’s bra, her hardened nipple tickling her hand.
Leah simultaneously ran her hands under the back of Ryan’s shirt, her nails lightly scratching at Ryan’s heated skin. Ryan pressed down into Leah. She felt like any space between her and Leah was too much, and she imagined herself disappearing inside Leah.
Ryan pulled back from Leah long enough to unbutton and remove Leah’s jeans. Tossing them on the floor, she then cupped Leah hard through her underwear, causing Leah to gasp as she raised her hips to meet Ryan’s hand.
Ryan felt as if her skin was on fire. Everywhere she touched Leah, shards of heat splintered through her body. Ryan quickly pulled her shirt off, and removed her bra. The haze of lust and longing she saw in Leah’s eyes brought a smile to Ryan’s lips. To know she gave Leah pleasure gave Ryan pleasure.
Kneeling between Leah’s legs, Ryan pulled her white silk panties down to her knees, and then running her hands up Leah’s toned calf, liberated one of her legs from the undergarment. Spreading Leah’s legs wider, Ryan bent over and ran her tongue along the inside of Leah’s thigh. The scent of vanilla wafted over her.
Ryan flattened her hands across the tops of Leah’s thighs, slowly running them along the smooth skin. Opening her mouth, Ryan kissed and licked the soft skin where Leah’s thigh and hip met. She was careful to avoid the bruise near the back of Leah’s hip. “You taste amazing.” Leah entwined her fingers in Ryan’s brown locks, pushing her further into her.
Ryan ran her left hand up Leah’s torso, pushing her bra up. Ryan rubbed and massaged Leah’s breast as she slid two fingers into her.
Leah cried out, her breath catching at the back of her throat. She grabbed and clutched at Ryan’s bare shoulders. Not waiting, Ryan began thrusting the entire length of her fingers into Leah, reveling in how tight and wet she was.
After catching her breath from Ryan’s initial onslaught, Leah began moving her hips in unison with Ryan. “Harder.” Leah panted.
Ryan added a third finger, while squeezing and tweaking Leah’s hardened nipple with her other hand as she felt her tightening around her fingers. Leah’s scent, movement, even the sounds she made, were intoxicating to Ryan. Each second she spent inside Leah was wrecking her through to her core.
Ryan slowly pulled her fingers from Leah, needing the intensity and closeness of this moment to last. Ryan began unbuttoning her jeans, her hands trembling. She was grateful when Leah reached up and finished removing the garment for her. She tossed them and Ryan’s underwear to the floor.
Leah lifted her left leg so it rested along the back of the sofa, and splayed her hands along either side of Ryan’s hips, guiding her down until their clits touched. The contact sent an intense spark of electricity and heat shooting through Ryan, her eyes slamming shut as she cried out.
Leah’s hips undulated, her breath coming in sharp pants. Taking Ryan’s face in between her hands, Leah’s green eyes held Ryan’s blue ones for seconds before she pulled Ryan down, crushing their mouths together in a torrent of desperate kisses.
Ryan clung to Leah as they moved in unison, a thin film of sweat covering her body as shots of heat continued to pulsate through her. Ryan pulled Leah’s leg down from the back of the sofa, holding it against her hip. Both women moaned as Ryan pushed down harder into Leah. Grabbing Ryan’s wrist, Leah’s eyes pleaded as she guided the younger woman’s hand downward.
Ryan shifted to the side. Sliding two fingers into Leah, Ryan gasped as she buried her face in the side of Leah’s neck, elation cascading over her, her body trembling with it.
Leah wrapped her arms around Ryan’s shoulders, and squeezed her legs around Ryan’s hips, the swirling inside her growing as she rushed toward climax. “Ryan, god!”
Gasping for breath, Leah clutched Ryan against her as her body shook. Ryan lifted her head as she slipped her fingers from Leah. Beads of sweat were causing Ryan’s hair to cling to her forehead, and Leah gently brushed the stray strands to the side before finding Ryan’s lips again.
“You’re burning up.” Leah’s breath was hot against Ryan’s face as she spoke, a hint of worry in her tone.
Ryan shook her head. “I’m okay.” Her voice caught, and her body involuntarily shuddered.
Leah cupped Ryan’s flushed cheek with her hand, and a cooling sensation spreading down Ryan’s neck as Leah pulled her toward her. Placing a series of light kisses along Ryan’s chin and jawline, Leah slowly shifted to the side until Ryan was on her stomach next to her.
Leah’s cool lips found the back of Ryan’s neck. She licked and sucked at the supple skin while she slowly ran her fingers along the curve of Ryan’s back. Kneeling between Ryan’s legs, Leah ran the backs of her hands from Ryan’s shoulders to the small of her back. The coolness of her hands was doing little to squelch the exquisite burning that blanketed Ryan’s body.
Leah placed her hands on either side of Ryan’s hips and pulled her up onto all fours. Pushing Ryan’s bent knees apart, Leah reached forward and began running her finger in small circles around Ryan’s clit. A sharp hiss escaped Ryan as she clutched the arm of the sofa. Her body was taut with the intense pleasure coming from Leah’s touch that was branching out through her entire body.
Leah leaned forward, her bare breasts pressing against Ryan’s back as she increased the pressure and movement of her finger. Reaching around Ryan, Leah grasped Ryan’s firm breast with her other hand, and began to slowly rub the hardened nipple with her palm.
Ryan gasped and, barely able to stay upright, clutched the sofa. She pushed back against Leah just as an incredible shock of heat surged through her. Crying out, Ryan felt as if she were melting from the inside out as her orgasm surged through her.
Seconds later, Ryan collapsed on the sofa, Leah curled up behind her, gently kissing Ryan’s ear. “I love you.” Leah whispered.
Ryan turned so she was facing Leah. The woman’s face was flush, and Ryan gently stroked her cheek, then traced her lips with the tip of her finger. “I love you.”
A mischievous glint shot across Leah’s light green eyes, and Ryan couldn’t help but smile. “What are you thinking?”
Leah pinched her lower lip between her teeth. “I’m thinking there’s more room in the bed.”
Ryan chuckled. “I’m game, but I need to hydrate first.”
***
Ryan awoke to the sound of rain. Slowly opening her eyes, it took her a few seconds to remember where she was. Turning her head, she smiled to see Leah lying on her stomach next to her. The sheet was pulled down to the tops of her thighs, providing Ryan a view of her shapely backside.
Leah’s bedroom had the same rustic feel as the rest of the house. The light walnut floor was covered with several dark blue and burgundy area rugs. The queen size bed was a black wrought iron frame, the bedding a goose down mattress topper covered in navy flannel sheets that remin
ded Ryan of a comfortable pair of pajamas.
The bedroom was dimly lit. Its only window was covered with burgundy curtains, making it difficult for Ryan to tell what time it was. Craning her head around, Ryan’s eyes brought the small digital clock on Leah’s nightstand into focus. It was seven thirty in the morning. Turning on her side, Ryan contemplated whether to wake Leah or let her sleep. They had been awake until well after midnight, and Ryan wasn’t sure she wanted to get up at this point herself.
“Are you staring at me?” Leah’s eyes were closed, but a wicked grin was on her full lips.
Ryan leaned over and kissed Leah’s bare shoulder. “Yeah, you’ve drooled everywhere.”
“Liar. I’m way too classy for that.” Leah opened her eyes, and smiled. “Good morning.”
Ryan tucked a loose strand of blonde hair behind Leah’s ear. “Morning.”
Leah rolled over onto her back. The sight of her bare breasts caused Ryan’s heart to race. Ryan had been with incredible lovers over the years, but what she and Leah shared was somehow exponentially more intense. The mere sight of the woman made Ryan’s head spin.
“Now I know you’re staring.” Leah stretched her arms over her head and yawned. “I need coffee, but I don’t want to leave you.” She scooted toward Ryan, and curled up next to her, resting her head in the crook of Ryan’s arm.
Ryan kissed Leah’s forehead, and draped her arm over her shoulder, pulling her closer. “It’s settled - bed day!”
Leah moaned. “You have no idea how badly I want that, but I have to work.”
Ryan leaned back, and looked incredulously at the woman in her arms. “It’s Sunday. Don’t you own the place?”
Sighing, Leah lifted her head so she could look directly at Ryan. “You would think that afforded me some leniency, but Marty is a slave driver.” She rested her hand in the nook of Ryan’s neck. “I have inventory, and I need to prep several orders to go out tomorrow for auction.”
Ryan was disappointed, but the euphoria from the night before and the reality of lying with Leah, naked in her bed, maintained Ryan’s good mood.
Fallen Elements Page 21
