The Kaleidoscope Album Box Set

by Bryce Oakley

  A knock on the door startled her. Had Elena come to check up on her? Elena, of all people, should know that she was in no mood to have a conversation.

  Instead, she found Billie, staring back at her with wide eyes full of concern.

  “I don't think either song can win,” Billie said slowly, as if the courage it took to speak was almost too much. “We wrote the same damn song.”

  Vero didn’t say anything. She wanted to say, “It wasn’t autobiographical” or argue that they weren’t the same, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

  She blinked quickly, holding back the tears that were threatening to fall down her cheeks.

  “Are you okay?” Billie asked. She hadn't moved to come in. She was standing perfectly still, her hands clasped in front of her as though she didn’t know what to do with them.

  Strong, know-it-all, indie darling Billie had become so vulnerable.

  “It’s just a lot,” Vero admitted.

  “What is?” Billie asked.

  “I didn’t even want to like you,” Vero said. “Much less…”

  Billie tilted her head. “Much less…” She repeated.

  “Was your song about me?” Vero asked bluntly, leaning on the open door.

  “Can I maybe come in before you start grilling me like that?” Billie said, arching a brow.

  Vero stepped back, gesturing for Billie to come in.

  Billie moved to walk past her, but at the last second paused right in front of her.

  Vero held her breath, feeling how close Billie was. She didn’t dare look up for fear of wrapping her arms around her and never letting go.

  “Vero,” Billie’s voice came in a hushed whisper.

  Vero slowly raised her face, realizing that Billie was leaning down towards her.

  She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the kiss. Her insides swirled in anticipation and excitement, and she tried her best to remember to breathe.

  Instead of lips being pressed against hers, Vero heard the door shut behind her.

  She opened her eyes to see that Billie had taken a step back and was staring at her with an unreadable expression.

  “What…” Billie’s voice trailed off and her brow knit together in concern and confusion.

  Vero’s mind cleared, all confusion and concern out the window.

  She knew what she wanted.

  She wanted Billie. If only for one day.

  She wove her arms around Billie’s neck, and Billie fit her hands against Vero’s sides, digging into her rib cage as if she didn’t know whether to push her away or pull her closer.

  Vero pulled Billie down to her and captured her lips in her own. She kicked the door shut as Billie hungrily kissed her back.

  “I think,” Billie whispered against her mouth.

  Vero shook her head slightly, not breaking the kiss, and Billie went quiet, tangling her fingers in Vero’s hair.

  Billie lifted Vero against her, and Vero wrapped her legs around Billie’s waist, clinging to her as her body hummed with excitement and wanting.

  Billie pressed her into the back of the door, one hand exploring Vero’s body, the other holding onto Vero's ass.

  “I want you so bad,” she murmured, kissing Vero’s neck.

  Vero moaned in response, unable to form words as the sensation of Billie’s mouth on her skin took over her only thought.

  Billie paused, pushing a strand of hair out of Vero’s face. “Do you want this?” She asked, her eyes searching for answers.

  “Very much,” Vero whispered, her heart clenching with appreciation.

  Kind, sweet Billie.

  Billie’s signature cedar wood scent made Vero bold with desire.

  She gripped Billie’s hair in her hands as Billie kissed along her collarbone.

  “Okay, less clothes,” Billie demanded, setting Vero down. “You need way less clothes on right now.”

  Vero laughed, taking Billie by the hand to walk over to the bed. She sat Billie down on the edge of the mattress and stood in front of her, slipping her crop top off slowly.

  She wanted to give Billie a moment to see her. The real her. All of her. Take it in and decide what she would do with it.ll at once.

  Her stomach fluttered in excitement as Billie’s bright green eyes went wide, her hands gripping Vero’s hips.

  “Fuck,” she whispered. “You are so gorgeous.”

  Vero smiled shyly, reaching behind her back to unhook her bra. She let it slowly fall to the ground as Billie’s hands clenched her skin, her nails showing just how affected she was.

  She ran her own hands over Billie’s and down to the waistband of her pants, then turned around between sliding them to the ground. All that she had left was a pair of cheeky-cut underwear, showing almost more than they covered.

  Billie stared at her with wide eyes. She grabbed Vero and pulled her onto the bed, sliding into position over her.

  Billie captured Vero’s mouth in hers again. She raked her teeth against Vero’s bottom lip, making Vero whimper in response.

  Billie pinned Vero’s wrists down above her head.

  Vero strained against the hold.

  Billie held her wrists tightly, then leaned down to place gentle, wet kisses from her collarbone to her nipple. The warmth of Billie’s lips paired with the coolness of her breath on her damp skin made goosebumps raise over Vero’s entire body.

  She closed her eyes, reveling in the sensations coursing through her body at Billie’s touch. Billie continued to nip and kiss and lick Vero’s nipples, until Vero was so turned on that she wondered if someone could orgasm simply from nipple play.

  “Yes,” she whispered, arching into Billie’s mouth.

  Billie slipped off her underwear over one hip, then off the other, and slid it down her legs.

  “Are you sure you want this?” Billie repeated the question, and when Vero opened her eyes, she found Billie’s expression to be much more patient than her own must have been at that moment.

  “Yes,” Vero said firmly, straining her hands against Billie’s tight hold.

  Billie let her go, and continued her exploration of Vero’s body with her mouth. She raked her teeth along Vero’s ribs, then pressed soft kisses into her stomach.

  Billie paused, looking back up at her. “You are just unbelievably beautiful,” she said and Vero grinned, running her fingers through Billie’s long hair.

  Billie nipped at one of Vero’s hip bones, then continued down until she was between Vero's legs.

  Vero stilled her body, aware that it wasn’t exactly polite to arch her hips into Billie, regardless of how badly she wanted to at that moment.

  Billie took her time, building anticipation with long, slow licks and kisses along her inner thighs.

  “Fuck,” Vero whispered, her eyes squeezing shut. Her entire body ached for Billie. For her touch, for her affection.

  And then Billie’s tongue was on her, sending a new wave of pleasure and sensation through her body.

  Vero fisted her hands in the bedsheets, trying not to cry out too loudly as Billie slowly — it painfully slow — licked her.

  The soft bedsheets rustled beneath her as she shifted, unable to hold still any longer.

  Her hips moved of their own accord, syncing to the rhythm of Billie’s tongue.

  Billie’s pushed two fingers inside of her, and she came undone almost instantly, tilting her face to cry out into the pillow as she shattered.

  Billie held down her legs to keep her steady, drawing out the climax until Vero could take no more and pushed her away, curling into a ball of herself.

  “Are you okay?” Billie asked quickly, wiping her mouth on the sheets quickly.

  Vero blinked, trying to float back down to earth, but couldn’t find any words. She smiled, exhaling loudly. “Mmhmm,” she moaned, reaching for Billie.

  Billie moved to lay beside her and Vero fitted her body into Billie’s arms.

  “That was mind-blowingly good,” Vero said, trying to regain her sense
s.

  “I’m glad you liked it,” Billie said lightly, and Vero could feel her smile against her temple.

  Her eyelids were so heavy. She could barely keep her eyes open.

  “It’s okay. Rest,” Billie whispered, holding Vero close.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Billie

  Billie’s eyes opened to the sunlight streaming through the window. Disoriented, she looked around, finding Vero lying on her side facing away.

  The memories of early afternoon came back to her in a rush. Her hands on Vero, her mouth on Vero, her tongue…

  She could still taste Vero’s sweetness in her mouth.

  She squeezed her thighs together at the memory of Vero stripping off her clothes, revealing herself one garment at a time.

  Billie had to have been blind to not see that Vero was gorgeous, but as she slid her clothing layers off, Billie thought her heart might stop in response. Vero, naked before her, was the epitome of a goddess, carved from marble.

  And now, as she lay facing away, the curve of her shoulder and waist and hip in the light… it was almost too much to bear.

  Had it been right to break down the barrier between them? To act on what she had wanted? She was nervous to wake Vero and figure out an entirely new dynamic between them.

  What if Vero wasn’t interested in pursuing anything more?

  What if Vero wanted to pretend it had never happened?

  Billie moved carefully on the bed, reaching to gently touch Vero’s shoulder.

  “Good morning,” she whispered and Vero startled awake.

  “Oh my god, is it morning?” She exclaimed, reaching for her phone to check the time.

  Billie laughed. “No, I’m teasing. We only took about an hour nap,” she said.

  “I can’t believe you let me fall asleep,” Vero said, turning over to press the length of her body against Billie.

  “You were sleepy,” Billie countered, smiling against Vero’s forehead as she pressed a kiss there, her fears relaxing slightly by Vero's affectionate touch.

  “Well, now it’s your turn,” she said, moving first to brush a strand of hair behind Billie’s ear, then trailing her fingertips down over Billie’s shoulder and along her back.

  “Oh, is it?” Billie jested. “Because I was thinking that maybe you’d prefer a round two.” She grinned, her hand running over the small of Vero’s back, touching the two dimples on either side of the base of her spine.

  “Not fair,” Vero said, clumsily shoving at Billie’s shirt.

  “Not fair for whom?” Billie asked, her cheeks beginning to ache from grinning.

  “Ugh, stop being the kind of person who says whom and start being the kind of person who will let me fuck her,” Vero demanded, her voice growing tough and bossy.

  “Strong words, Veronica,” Billie said, leaning down to take Vero’s mouth with her own.

  “Speak for yourself, Wilhelmina,” Vero said, but laughed at the last syllable.

  “Wilhelmina? You think Billie is short for Wilhelmina?” Billie said, pulling back to stare down at Vero in amusement.

  “Well, you know what Vero is short for. I figured I’d just try one out for you,” Vero said with a smirk.

  “Billie isn’t short for Wilhelmina,” she said, rolling her eyes.

  “Are you named after Billie Holiday?” Vero said, her eyes wide as her fingertips continued their exploration of Billie’s body, dipping inside her shirt.

  “I wish my parents were that cool,” Billie admitted. “No, I’m named after my grandfather. But I’d really rather not talk about my—“ she hissed as Vero’s hands slipped under her bra.

  "Suit yourself,” Vero said, leaning in to nibble at Billie’s throat.

  Their hands continued to explore the other, and Billie shed her clothes eventually, until the pair were lying naked in bed, facing one another in the most vulnerable way.

  Billie’s heart pounded as something passed unspoken between them.

  Trust.

  Blind faith.

  She’d do her best to cradle Vero’s trust, to protect it from harm. She’d do anything to continue that feeling forever. She was speechless from the power of it.

  Not that she needed words in that moment. Her body was doing just fine communicating on her behalf as her back arched, Vero’s mouth on her breast, her hand sliding between Billie’s thighs.

  Billie reached for Vero, trying to slip her hand between Vero’s thighs in return, reaching for the wet warmth that she knew still lingered there.

  “It's my turn,” Vero growled, pushing her hand away.

  “Let’s share,” Billie whispered, and in the end, it only took one flick of a finger across her clit to persuade Vero to agree.

  They lay before each other, both in pleasure and pleasuring the other, until Vero’s cries cut through the air, pushing Billie over the edge herself. They came together, clutching at pillows and sheets and each other.

  * * *

  “Stop it,” Billie said through gritted teeth, but she couldn’t help the giggle bubbling up anyway.

  Vero had playfully just reached to touch her ass while they stood in a store together.

  “I just really like your booty,” Vero said with a completely straight face.

  “Booty? That’s what word you chose?” Billie teased her.

  Vero laughed, shrugging her shoulders.

  They had ventured into Telluride the morning after a fairly incredible day and night together. Vero had been in such a good mood that it was her suggestion to get out and enjoy the fresh air.

  They had only left Vero’s room to grab a late-night snack — Elena had very kindly left them labelled Tupperware containers of dinner, since they had been… well, a bit too busy to enjoy it at dinnertime.

  Now, they were in Telluride, walking from shop to shop, trying their best not to touch one another or be too lovey, lest people start to whisper.

  On the car ride down, Vero had explained that people in town typically treated her normally. It was the off-season, and she had grown up around most of the residents.

  She had explained with a grin that though they fawned over her father, she definitely didn’t interest them as much, since they had seen her through her snot-nosed adolescence and awkward teen years.

  Billie stood in the shop, staring at a postcard in confusion. It said: “To Hell You Ride” with a picture of an old-timey bank robber on the front.

  “Uh, what’s this about?” Billie asked, holding up the postcard.

  Vero stood near her in a beanie and sunglasses — sunglasses indoors, Billie noted with the tiniest of eye rolls. She was almost unrecognizable, covered up in a light, oversized jacket and jeans with sneakers. So far from the prissy woman she had always seen in grocery store tabloids.

  “Oh, Telluride had a few wild west types back in the day. Butch Cassidy robbed his first bank here. Technically the ‘To Hell You Ride’ thing was about how hard it was for miners to journey here through the mountains in the beginning of the twentieth century,” Vero said, staring at a glass cat figurine while relating the facts with such confidence, as though she had given thousands of tours in her day.

  “Oh,” Billie said, giving her an impressed eyebrow raise.

  Vero grinned. “Want to know other exciting facts?”

  “Yes,” Billie said, nodding and trying to stifle a smile.

  Vero turned toward her, pitching her voice seductively low. “Telluride was the first city in the world to have electric lights,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows.

  “Only you could make electric lights sound sexy,” Billie whispered with a smirk, shaking her head.

  She resisted the sudden urge to pull Vero to her, especially in public.

  Vero laughed. “I do think the lights are impressive, to be fair,” she admitted, setting the cat figurine back down.

  They walked from shop to shop, eventually finding a music store that sold old and new vinyl.

  Billie’s eyes widened at the collection an
d she nearly leapt across the store towards them.

  “Ugh, don’t tell me you’re one of those hipsters who collects vinyl,” Vero said, crossing her arms as she stared down at the milk crates.

  “Guilty,” Billie said, shrugging.

  The store smelled deliciously musty, like all good stores with used vinyl and books did, and Billie set to sifting through the rock section.

  Vero flicked through the new, nicely wrapped vinyl. “Hey, check it out,” she said, holding up The Shrikes’ first album, Heart’s Content.

  Billie snorted. “You should buy it for your collection. It’s a really good place to start in the realm of good music.”

  “I’m sure,” Vero said, rolling her eyes and setting the vinyl back into the crate.

  “Excuse me, are you…” A man asked behind Vero, and Vero turned with an immediate fake smile. Billie glanced up in time to see Vero begin to go into Full Celebrity Mode, but instead, the stranger was looking at her.

  “You’re one of the Rush sisters, right? Domino?” He asked, blinking quickly.

  “Uh, yeah, hey, I’m Billie,” she said awkwardly, holding out her hand to shake his.

  “I’m such a huge fan of the Shrikes,” he said. “I’m sorry I got you mixed up with Domino.” He wiped his hands on his jeans before reaching out to take hers. “I’m Kyle.”

  “So nice to meet you,” she said, resisting the urge to wipe her own hand on her jeans.

  “Oh, you own this shop, don’t you?” Vero interjected with a polite smile that Billie barely recognized.

  “I do,” he said. “Wait, Vero De Luca?” A sudden look of recognition dawned on him and he looked back and forth between Vero and Billie. “So, the rumors are true? You’re writing a song together?”

  “No, she’s in town to hang out with my dad. Then he found her so annoying that I had to bring her here, just to get her out of his hair,” Vero said, feigning innocence and annoyance.

  Kyle gulped, as if he was suddenly unsure whether or not to stay near them.

  Billie wanted to smack Vero. “She’s just teasing you,” she said, sighing. She pulled her baseball cap lower over her face, feeling the urge to hide.