Back inside, Marin unclipped Ember’s leash and hustled to the bathroom. Once she’d freshened up, she fixed breakfast for herself and her puppy, then put Ember in her crate while she took a quick shower. The hot water felt like heaven on her sore muscles. Marin smiled as she reminisced about her date with Laura. It really couldn’t have gone any better.
Speaking of Laura . . .
Marin shut off the shower, wrapped herself in a towel, and sat on the bed with her reading glasses to check her phone. Sure enough, she had a text from Laura saying how much fun she’d had and asking Marin if she’d like to meet for dinner one night this week.
Marin responded with an enthusiastic yes but with the caveat that she’d have to coordinate with her puppysitter. With her suddenly busy social life, she looked forward to Ember getting bigger so Marin could regain more of her independence, but at the same time she couldn’t imagine wanting to rush her puppyhood.
Already, Ember was so much bigger and more mature than she had been when Marin brought her home three weeks ago. Would it be too forward if she invited Laura to have dinner here at her apartment to accommodate Ember? If only the weather were warmer so they could eat somewhere with an outdoor patio.
Laura texted right back, mentioning a casual restaurant nearby that was dog friendly. How perfect! Marin agreed to a dinner date there on Thursday as excited butterflies flapped around in her belly. She shifted her hips. Maybe it was more than excitement ...
Marin was still sitting on her bed, wearing only a towel. She hadn’t managed much time for herself since Ember came into her life, and now, with all these thoughts of kissing and dates and hopefully much more happening soon ... well, she was feeling a little frustrated. She needed a release, preferably soon.
She glanced at Ember’s crate, relieved to see that the puppy had fallen asleep while she was in the shower. It was Sunday. Marin had no plans. Well, now she had plans for a little self-care before the puppy woke. She closed her eyes, focusing inward. A faint hum of arousal already buzzed through her system. Oh, she needed this so much ...
Marin slipped a hand inside her towel, exhaling as she touched her breasts. She cupped them, enjoying the warmth of her own skin and the ache that built between her thighs as she teased her nipples. Unable to wait, she slid her fingers down her stomach to the part of her that was begging to be touched.
She ghosted her fingers over her neatly trimmed curls, imagining another woman’s hand on her body instead. She always imagined someone else touching her. Marin had an entire mental playlist of the hottest sex scenes from her favorite sapphic romance novels that she used to get herself in the mood.
But this morning, she found herself remembering the way Laura’s lips felt on her cheek. Her lips had been so much softer than any man’s Marin had ever kissed. Everything about sapphic sex would feel soft, she imagined, soft in the very best way.
Soft fingers, soft lips, soft, smooth skin ...
Marin opened her eyes and darted another glance at the crate. Ember was fast asleep. Thank god, because she’d hate to stop now. Marin lay back in bed and removed the towel, but then she felt tooexposed ... like if Ember woke up she might see Marin touching herself, which was ridiculous because the puppy would be clueless.
Silly or not, Marin slid beneath the sheet for privacy. She closed her eyes, circling her clit with her index finger. She inhaled sharply. Already, her core ached for release, and as she brought her fingers down to her entrance, she found that she was wet.
Soon, she would be having sex with a woman instead of lying alone in her bed, fantasizing about it. Just the thought made her throb, and she started to stroke herself. She imagined a lover straddling her, hips pressed against Marin’s, whispering naughty suggestions into her ear. There was only so much Marin could do with her own hand, but her lover could surprise her, try out moves she’d never thought of.
Her lover could put hermouthon her.
Marin gasped, rubbing almost frantically. She couldn’t wait for that. Oh, how she wanted to experience the pleasure of a woman’s mouth. She’d had oral sex before, of course, but Andrew wasn’t very good at it, and she’d never liked the scratchy feel of his facial hair against her inner thighs. It left her feeling chafed afterward.
Soon.She’d have all the pleasure she could handle, whether it was with Laura or someone else. Marin was finished compromising. She wanted love, and affection, and companionship, andpassion. She wanted it all.
Her body tensed, and her breath hitched. Just like that, she was about to come.Wait.She stilled her fingers. She knew from experience that if she rushed herself to a quick orgasm after not masturbating for a while, it would be underwhelming. But if she took her time and really worked herself up, the payoff would besoworth it.
So she ignored the relentless ache in her core, skimming her fingers lightly over herself until the urge to come had passed, until her breathing had slowed and she’d regained control. Ignoring her clit, which wasbeggingfor her attention, she slipped two fingers inside herself. Again, she summoned an imaginary lover.
In her mind’s eye, Marin saw blond curls, so soft beneath her fingers, curls that smelled vaguely of wildflowers. She saw pink lips curved into a vibrant smile and bright-blue eyes that sparkled with laughter. Though she tried to deny it, she had been fantasizing about the same woman for two years now, long before she’d known her name, long before she’d shared that heated moment in her kitchen when Charlotte touched her cheek.
Marin felt the warmth of Charlotte’s fingers as though they were still there. She ached to feel those fingers elsewhere on her body, and she knew she shouldn’t fantasize about Charlotte now, but no matter how hard she tried to replace the images in her mind, to picture Laura or perhaps a hot actress instead, it was no use.
Maybe she needed to indulge in the fantasy to help herself get over it, to get Charlotte out of her system once and for all.Been there, done that,at least in her mind. She was getting close again. Her clit ached fiercely. Her hips pushed against her hand. Her brain chanted an internal chorus ofplease please please...
She replayed the moment when Charlotte had cupped her cheek, but in her fantasy, Charlotte used that hand to draw her in and kiss her. Marin imagined Charlotte’s mouth ravaging hers as her hand slid down to the front of Marin’s pants, then pushed inside. Charlotte’s fingers against her clit, stroking as she took Marin right there in the kitchen.
Marin swallowed a moan as she rolled to her side, grinding her hips against her hand, vaguely aware that her skin was covered in a fine sheen of sweat and she was breathing heavily. Her eyes were closed, lips pressed together to keep herself quiet so as not to wake the puppy. She lingered in that in-between place, so close to coming she was practically there, body tense and shaking, frantic and loving every moment.
She gasped, hips bucking as everything inside her clenched. Almost ... so close ... so fucking close. Marin rolled to her stomach, grinding herself against her fingers. Panting.Desperate.The tension inside her reached its breaking point, andohthis was going to be agood one. She felt the beginnings of a massive orgasm building in her core, hot and tingly. A low groan escaped her throat.
Banging. Something was banging.
Marin froze. From the crate, Ember rustled and whined.
“Marin?” Charlotte’s voice called from the direction of the door.
Fuck.Marin was face down in bed, one hand between her legs, sweaty and breathless and moments from coming. And Charlotte was at the door ...
