Taste

by Kris Bryant

  “Wait, wait.” I manage to pull away for a brief second. “Let’s go to my room.” She licks her lips and stares at mine. I reach up and tuck her hair behind her ears before kissing her swiftly. “There’s no room on the couch.”

  She nods and leans back so I can slip out from beneath her. My legs are wobbly when I stand up, and I don’t even care that she sees how much she affects me. I reach out for her. She slips her hand into mine, and follows me to the bedroom. I can sense her nearness just from her heat. We barely make it to the bed before she crashes into me.

  At least now, I can touch her everywhere. She slides down my body until she is off the bed and on her knees in front of me. For a moment, I’m confused until I feel her hands run up my thighs and reach the waistband of my shorts. I don’t hesitate and lift my hips up so she can slip them off. I feel a little exposed, but my shyness is quickly replaced by need when I feel her lips trailing all the way from my knee to my inner thigh. I spread myself wider with greed and scoot closer to her warm, wet mouth. I can feel her smile against my skin. But I forget everything the moment her tongue brushes my clit. I moan. Her hands grab the inside of my thighs and spread me even wider. I’m not going to last long at this delicious onslaught. She runs her tongue softly up and down my folds, and I can’t help but lift my hips and try to get closer to her mouth.

  “We have all night,” she says.

  I know she is trying to calm me down, but I don’t care. This might be our only night and I’m going to take as much of her as I can. She might be the type to regret it in the morning and never talk to me again because guilt is eating her up. No, I’m going to pretend tonight is our one and only night and find pleasure every possible moment. I mumble something incoherent, but I’m too far into this moment to actually make sense.

  Much to my disappointment, her mouth leaves my body and she crawls back up to me. I lean into her when her lips find mine. I can taste myself on her tongue, which fuels my inner fire for more. I roll her onto her back and straddle her, sliding her arms up over her head. Damn, she’s beautiful. I lean down and softly kiss the side of her neck. She smells like vanilla and tastes sweet and slightly salty. I nip at her earlobe and feel her rock against me. Apparently, I have found one of her sweet spots by chance. I feel her moan against me. Her hands wiggle out of my hold. Her fingers slip under my shirt and slide up to cup my breasts. I waste no time in taking my shirt off so that I’m completely naked against her. Her lacy bra and panties feel rough against my skin. Even though she is sexy as hell in her black bra and panties, I want her naked, too. I want to feel her smooth, pale skin against mine. I stretch out across her, and slip my hand between us, stroking her stomach and hips until I reach her panties. Before I take them off, I gently run my hands over them, wanting to feel her heat and her slickness through the lace. She is deliciously wet. I gently massage her until she breaks our kiss to moan freely, passionately. She presses my hand harder against her, moving her hips up and down.

  “I won’t break,” she says.

  Apparently, she likes it a little bit rough. I reach down to not so gently strip off her panties. She smells heavenly. I push two fingers into her wet pussy as far as I can go. She cries out with pleasure and I can feel her nails digging into my back. I move slowly at first, thrusting hard and deep until she starts moving her hips against me, wanting more. I stare down at her and place tiny kisses at the corner of her mouth, my tongue teasing her lips as she breathes heavily against me. I find her swollen clit with my thumb and massage it up and down with every thrust.

  “Don’t stop, Ki. Please, don’t stop.” She explodes beautifully beneath me, crying out in pleasure. I hold her while she rides out each wave until I feel her shakes subside. “That was fantastic.” Her accent is even more pronounced and I smile. Her breathing is still heavy, and she starts laughing. Eventually, she stops and holds me close. “I’m sorry, but I’m laughing because I’m happy.” I kiss her hard and am surprised when her body reacts to me again so quickly. Before I have a chance to continue, she rolls on top of me. She taps her fingertip on my lips. “You have an incredible mouth. I’m looking forward to seeing what else you can do with it.” Christ, when Taryn makes up her mind to do something, she’s all in.

  “Well, then why did you climb on top of me?” I reach up and unhook her bra, pulling it off. She kisses me hard.

  “Because I want to taste you again. But all of you this time.” She leans down and kisses me slowly, softly. She brushes her lips over my face, down my neck and shoulders. I tell myself to relax even though I’m shaking inside. Tonight seems like a dream. She runs her fingertips down my neck, over my breasts, and back up my side. It should tickle, but my body is so wound up that the sensation is erotic. I close my eyes and enjoy her touch. Her incredible hands that I have admired so much and the magic she creates with them, is building me up. She leans over and runs her tongue over my breast, twirling my nipple inside of her mouth. I gasp at the intimacy of it, at the nearness of her. She is not gentle, but not rough either. She is sure of herself. She is making love to me as if we have been lovers for years. I wrap my fingers into her long chestnut hair, and enjoy the silky softness as it flows down my body as she kisses, licks, and sucks a trail to the junction of my thighs. Knowing that she is in complete control of me, I surrender. Her mouth is wet and hot against my clit. She licks me greedily, and I tense up, trying not to come immediately. She slides two fingers inside of me and I grit my teeth at the intensity. She is all around me, inside of me, and I’m overwhelmed with emotions. This is supposed to be uncomplicated. Simple. She runs her free hand over my thighs. I know I’m not going to last. She’s a fantastic lover. She’s touching me in all the right places with the exact amount of pressure, and as much as I want to continue enjoying this, I have to give in to the pleasure. I explode. She doesn’t stop and I come again. After the second orgasm, I stop her because I feel like I am one quiver away from dying. She rests her head on my thighs while my body slowly floats down from the ultimate high. My fingers weave and play with her hair as we both lie there in silence. This is a big step for us. I just hope she isn’t regretting her decision.

  “Are you okay?” I ask.

  She runs her hands up my stomach and rests them right under my breasts. She looks up at me and smiles. “Completely okay. How about you?”

  I push back an errant lock of hair from her face. “Wonderful, actually.” I’m not sure how much I should open up. We both have different reasons for tonight, and as casual as I wanted it to be, I’m starting to doubt the lack of commitment I’ve offered. I’ve never felt this connected to another woman this quickly before. “Come up here.”

  She crawls up my body, sprinkling tiny kisses all the way. When her lips find mine, the kiss is fierce at first, but settles into a slow, deep joining, and one of us whimpers. I love the taste of myself on her mouth. It’s an instant aphrodisiac. I run my hands down her sides, over her slim hips, and slip between her thighs. She moans, her raspy voice encouraging me to continue.

  I break the kiss and wiggle down until my head is between her thighs. I grab her hips and bring her pussy down to my mouth. I lick everywhere, tasting her, feasting on her. Her clit is swollen and I can feel her heartbeat throb inside the thin, smooth membrane. She pushes down against me. I oblige and open my mouth wide, sucking as much of her inside as I can. I want to touch her, slip my fingers inside of her, but her hips are pressed so tightly against my mouth that there isn’t any room. I know she is enjoying this and is close to coming again. Her moans are getting louder, deeper. When her legs start shaking, I keep steady, constant pressure on her clit until she orgasms. I hold her hips against me, riding each wave with her. Her wetness is all over my face, down my chin. That’s a first for me. She lifts herself off me and gingerly stretches out, her entire body quivering. I discreetly wipe my chin on the comforter and stretch out next to her. She rolls into me, her head on my arm, leg curled over mine. I smile because we’re barely on the bed, but too tired
to care. She puts her hand on my stomach and we lie there in silence for a few minutes.

  “I’m glad I came by,” she says. We laugh.

  “I am, too.” I lift her hand to my lips and quickly kiss her fingertips. I’m tired, but I’ve never felt more alive. It’s too soon to ask what this means for us, so I reach out and grab a corner of the covers and do my best to spread it across us. I’m not cold, but I’m feeling very exposed right now. “Do you need anything?”

  “A kiss would be nice.”

  I oblige. I lift her chin up toward my mouth and kiss her. It’s a different kind of kiss. It’s softer, longer, sweeter. Before it turns emotional, I slip out of our embrace.

  “I’m going to get something to drink.” I need distance to think. Distance to get ahold of my swirling emotions. I find my long T-shirt and quickly slip that on before I leave the bedroom. Taryn looks at me and lifts her eyebrow.

  “Sophia doesn’t like to see me naked.” She smiles. “And I don’t think I locked the door. I would hate to stumble out there naked while Jess is camped out on my couch.” I walk out of the room and nearly sag against the wall. What a crazy, emotional night. Taryn seems surprisingly calm for somebody who struggled with this decision. I’m a hot mess.

  I head for the kitchen after locking the front door and grab a cold water bottle from the refrigerator. I splash cold water on my face and lean over the sink thinking about the last two hours of my life. One minute, I’m asleep on my couch, the next minute I’m in bed with my teacher having hot, steamy sex. She’s the most passionate woman I’ve ever been with. I wonder why I’ve been wasting my time with younger, less experienced women. I grab a bowl of grapes, an extra bottle of water, and head back to the bedroom. Taryn has moved to the middle of the bed and is comfortably under the covers. I stumble around, lighting the candles in my room. I can feel Taryn watching me and I try my best to act like the last two hours didn’t change my life. I slip into bed and curl up next to her. “Are you tired?”

  “Surprisingly, no.”

  “What would you like to do?” I ask. I run my fingertips over her smooth neck.

  “I’m sure we can come up with something.” Her voice is playful. The sheet falls away from her breasts as she reaches for a grape. I can’t help myself so I reach down and touch her beautiful, pink nipple. It hardens immediately. She closes her eyes for a long moment and sighs against me. I lick my thumb and rub it across her nipple until she starts making little gasping noises. “You know exactly how to touch me.” I slip out of my T-shirt and pull her close to me. If this is our one and only night, I’m going to get to know her likes and dislikes before morning.

  *

  I wake up with a heavy feeling on my chest. I can’t move my left side. For a second, I think Sophia is sitting on me. It’s time to cut back on her food. Suddenly, the night rushes back. I look down at the top of Taryn’s head resting on my shoulder, her arm around my waist. I hate sleeping on my back, but right now I don’t mind it so much. A sensuous, beautiful woman is in my bed, something that hasn’t happened in a long time. Ever actually. I look at the clock. It’s just after five a.m. After a few more rounds of getting to know one another, we finally fell asleep around midnight. I’m deliciously sore everywhere. I bring a handful of her gorgeous hair up to my face and bury my nose in it. It’s soft, silky, and smells like honey.

  “You have an insatiable appetite.” Her voice is sleepy and deep.

  “Go back to sleep. I’m just touching.”

  “It’s something I’m not used to.” Her confession surprises me. I wonder about the last time she was with somebody, but I’m polite enough not to ask. It doesn’t matter. This is supposed to be a day by day thing with no strings attached.

  “You’re too beautiful not to touch.”

  We both are quiet. Her breathing evens out and I know she has fallen back to sleep. I don’t know what time she needs to be home, but it can’t possibly be this early. I slip out from beneath her and head to the kitchen. I’m almost always up this early. I usually have to be at the diner at six, but not today.

  Under normal sleepover situations, I cook breakfast in bed. I’m completely intimidated cooking for Taryn, especially given our circumstances. I pray that the grocery elves have secretly stocked my refrigerator, but after perusing its contents, I’m crushed to find so little available. I can make an omelet with mushrooms and cheese. I have grapes and watermelon and coffee. In all fairness, it’s not as if I knew she was going to be spending the night. I’m just going to have to do the best I can under these circumstances. I could make pancakes from scratch, but I’m low on vanilla and that’s one of my secret ingredients. I turn on the early morning news and watch it until six, giving Taryn extra time to sleep in. When the new broadcast starts, I head back into the kitchen and quietly start making breakfast.

  “Would you like some help?” Taryn asks. She’s wearing the long T-shirt I wore last night. Even though it’s large for her, I can still see her curves. I lean over and kiss her soundly. She seems surprised, but covers it up well.

  “If you want to start the coffee, that would be great.” I really want her to make the omelet, but I’m embarrassed by my lack of ingredients. “I don’t have a lot of food in the house so breakfast might be scarce.” She waves me off.

  “I don’t eat a lot for breakfast so no worries. If you want, we can just eat the fruit.”

  “Absolutely not. We both need protein, especially after last night, and this morning.” She blushes. Now she’s shy? I’m nervous that she’s watching me, but I’m able to get into my zone, and I manage to whip up a fluffy omelet that I’m actually proud of. I fix us plates and we sit down at the breakfast bar to eat.

  “So, how did you get the nickname Ki? I’ve never heard that as short for Katherine.”

  “It’s actually my initials. My full name is Katherine Ilyssa Blake, but I’ve been Ki my entire life. My Irish family has too many Katies already, so my dad shortened it the day I was born.”

  “You look like a Katie.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, you have the thick, reddish-brown hair and full lips like all Irish lassies do.” She says it with an Irish accent, and it’s cute since her accent is already similar. She reaches out and pulls on my hair playfully. “It’s too bad I can’t see it down every day.”

  “How about every time I see you outside of school, I’ll wear it down.” This insinuates that we will have more than just last night. I can almost see her mind working. She drops her smile, but nods. I want to whoop with joy. Instead, I lean over and kiss her softly. “What happens here, stays here, Taryn. Nobody will know you were here.”

  “I just hope I can pull it off in school.”

  I pull her into a long hug. “I won’t even look at you.” We both know I’m lying.

  “Your stares completely derail me.”

  “I’ve been staring at you since day one.”

  She leans back and stares into my eyes. “I know.”

  I smile. We finish breakfast and share cooking stories. I’m fascinated with her history. She has done so much and I’m in awe of her career. Her personal life has suffered because of her career path, and becoming a single mom.

  “My relationships weren’t the greatest. The last serious one I had was before Olivia,” she says.

  I’m completely surprised at that confession. “You haven’t had sex in six years?” I can’t help it.

  She laughs. “No. I just haven’t been in a serious relationship since then.”

  “So, nobody’s met Olivia before?”

  “Nobody I’ve dated.”

  “Is this going to be awkward then?”

  “No. It’s different. We were friends before this happened.” She moves her finger back and forth between us.

  “I’m just surprised. I mean you’re beautiful, smart, and successful. The fact that you’re single just blows me away.”

  She looks down shyly. “I’m not as perfect as you seem to think I
am.”

  I want to snort in disbelief. She’s everything I said times a thousand. “You’ve told me that before. What are your flaws then?”

  “Everybody is different. What one person considers a flaw, might not be something bad for somebody else.”

  “You aren’t answering the question.”

  Her smile is tight. “Okay, then. I’m opinionated and I’m a hot head.”

  “That just means you’re passionate. This I know for sure.” I take a deep breath as I recall everything we did last night. I can’t help but lean into her for a hard kiss. Our lips are perfect together. She likes to kiss as much as I do. After regretfully pulling away, I steal a glance at the clock. It’s seven thirty. “What time do you have to be home?” I ask her between long and short kisses. She still smells like sex and I need to take advantage of every minute we are given.

  “By ten.” I pull her even closer to me. “But I also need time to get cleaned up.”

  “We can shower together. That will save time.”

  She smiles before kissing me. “Let’s go back to bed.” She pulls me off the barstool and playfully drags me back to the bed. I don’t hesitate at all.

  Chapter Fourteen

  I know Taryn is going to be here. Not only is it a beautiful day, but last night we texted for a few hours and she told me her plans for the day. I just need to casually walk around the market until I run into her. It’s Sunday so the River Plaza isn’t as busy. Not my favorite day to shop because everything’s been picked through, but I’m sure I’ll find something.

  “Hi, Ki,” I turn to find Mary digging through the plums. Shit. Now she’s going to see me, Taryn, and Olivia together like Scott did. If they show up.

  “Mary, hi.” I give her a small wave and walk over to her. “What are you finding?”

  “Plums are in season so I’m going to make German plum cake.”

  “I’m sure it will be delicious.” I mean it. She never disappoints. We walk down the aisle picking up fruits and vegetables and talking about the semester.