Lizzie took the towel but didn’t step back. “Are you sure?”
No. Sarah wasn’t sure about anything. But standing here with Lizzie dripping on her floors and looking at her like that, she was tired of being smart.
“I’m sure.”
Lizzie smiled. Small at first, then wider. She reached up and touched Sarah’s face, her fingers cool from the rain.
“Good. Because I’ve wanted to kiss you again all day.”
“Just all day?”
“No. Since the party, actually. Maybe even sooner.” Lizzie’s tongue raced over her lips and Sarah’s heart hammered.
“Well, that’s… good to hear.”
“Yes?” Lizzie smiled and stepped closer. “So. Are you going to kiss me or do I have to do it again?”
Sarah closed the distance. She kissed Lizzie slowly this time. Not desperate like before. Deliberate. A choice she was making with a clear head.
Lizzie gasped and dropped the towel. Her hands found Sarah’s waist, pulling her closer. Sarah’s hands went to Lizzie’s hair, wet and tangled.
They broke apart breathing hard.
“We should get out of these wet clothes,” Lizzie said.
Sarah laughed. “That’s the oldest line in the book.”
“Is it working?”
“Yeah.” Sarah took her hand. “Come on.”
She led Lizzie toward the bedroom, her hands unsteady, knowing this changed everything.
For once, she was doing something just because she wanted to.
***
The bedroom was just ahead but Lizzie pulled Sarah back against the wall and kissed her like she’d been starving for it. Sarah’s breath left her in a rush. This was different from the pool party kiss. Different from the bathroom. This was everything she’d been trying not to want.
Lizzie’s hands found the hem of her wet blouse. “This needs to come off.”
“Bossy.” But Sarah was already helping, fingers fumbling with buttons that suddenly seemed impossibly small.
“You’re the one who dragged me here in the rain.”
“You didn’t exactly resist.”
The blouse finally came free. Sarah shrugged it off and it hit the floor with a wet splat. Lizzie’s t-shirt was next, clinging stubbornly to wet skin. They broke apart laughing, wrestling with it until Lizzie got free.
Sarah stopped. Just looked.
Pale pink bra. Simple cotton. Nothing fancy. But on Lizzie it was perfect. Sweet and unpretentious and so completely her that Sarah had to touch.
She traced the edge of the fabric with her fingertips. Lizzie shivered.
“Cold?”
“No.” Lizzie pulled her close again. “Definitely not cold.”
