“I don’t think anything there’s gonna be your cup of tea,” she teased.
“I might want to read another Lily Chambers. You don’t know.”
Jenna laughed softly and flopped down onto the couch. “Help yourself. I have them all.” She picked up the little remote and clicked on the fireplace. “It’s chilly out.”
This was when the nerves kicked in. She knew that but still felt it. Butterflies banging around in her stomach. Fluttering lower in her body, beneath her belly button. It was one thing when there was dinner to be made and a table to be set and a meal to eat. It was quite another when it was just her and Sawyer and a couch and a fire and nothing to keep her busy. Nothing to keep her from running her eyes over Sawyer’s body, noting the pleasing curves and dips and imagining how they’d feel under her hands. Nothing to distract her from staring at Sawyer’s mouth, her full bottom lip. Nothing from feeling the warmth of Sawyer’s proximity to her as she sat on the couch not very far away from her.
“What about you?” Sawyer asked. “What are you currently reading? ’Cause I know you’re reading something.” Her blue eyes smiled at Jenna over the rim of her glass as she sipped her wine.
“I’m always reading something. Always. I try to keep up as best I can so I can answer questions for customers, you know?” Sawyer nodded. “I’m currently deep into a story about a witch and a vampire that are sworn enemies.”
“Have they had sex yet?” Sawyer asked with a laugh.
“They’re very close,” Jenna said, laughing with her. “You know, I didn’t expect to like romantasy. Fantasy’s not really my bag. But I’ve really enjoyed most of what I’ve read.”
“That must be fun. Finding out you like something you didn’t think you would.”
“It has been, actually.”
And then there was quiet. Well, almost quiet. The fire crackled.Arnold snored softly from his bed. There was an occasional light thump against the couch—Wallace’s tail swishing as he lay on the back of it, watching out the window. Jenna sat with one leg folded up underneath her, in the corner but facing Sawyer. They looked at each other, and in that moment, Jenna understood what all the books meant, all the ones that said something like “an electric charge ran between them,” because it absolutely did. In fact, she was kind of surprised to not see a line of something akin to lightning running from her body to Sawyer’s, connecting them, threatening to electrocute them both.
Sawyer felt it, too. She could tell just by the look on her face. It was heavy-lidded. Expectant. Resigned. And as Jenna watched, she set her wine glass back on the coffee table, then reached for Jenna’s. Hers joined Sawyer’s, and then Sawyer scooted closer until their knees touched. A warm hand rested on her leg, and Jenna could feel the heat of it through her pants. She swallowed, Sawyer’s face a mere six inches from hers.
“Hi,” Sawyer breathed out.
“Hi,” Jenna whispered back.
“Is this okay?”
Jenna nodded.
“Good.” And she leaned in. Slowly. Giving Jenna time to pull away if she wanted to.
She absolutely didnotwant to.
Sawyer’s mouth was soft and wet and warm and delicious. She tasted like wine and the peach lip balm she must’ve applied when Jenna wasn’t looking, and Jenna sank in. Sawyer’s hand stayed on her knee, the other one cradling her face, fingers in her hair. She grasped the sides of Sawyer’s shirt, using them to hold on so she didn’t get swept away because holy shit, Sawyer could kiss.
Jenna had kissed her share of women. She’d been out since her teens and she was now in her thirties. She’d sampled the lips of enough women to know a good kisser when she came across one. Sawyer Hall? A+ kisser. A++, in fact. Jenna felt her body turning soft, melting under Sawyer’s mouth. Sawyer paused, removed her glasses to set them on the table, and was back in a second, kissing her some more. And when Sawyer’s tongue subtly sought entrance—the gentleness of that was a turn-on all by itself—Jenna didn’t hesitate. She let her in, and the kissing turned deep and intense and her entire body felt it. The wavesthat rolled through her sent a pleasant shiver up her spine, and the throbbing that began between her legs only increased in intensity as they continued to kiss.
Kiss?
Who was she kidding? This wasn’t kissing. This was full-on making out, and it was fucking incredible. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been this turned on this quickly, but Sawyer had something. A key or a code or whatever it was that unlocked intense pleasure in Jenna. Her arms were around Sawyer’s neck now, one hand in her thick, dark hair, holding the back of her head, keeping her mouth fused to Sawyer’s. The only sounds in the room were the artificial crackling sound of the fire and the soft noises of their kisses that included occasional hums and whimpers—Jenna wasn’t sure from which of them. Maybe both? Probably her.
She could take Sawyer upstairs. It would be easy. Stand up, take her hand, lead the way. It would be even easier to simply slide down beneath her right there on the couch. Pull her shirt off over her head so she could see what she was certain would be warm, soft skin that glowed in the dim light. Slide the pants down over the sexy curve of her hips so she could glide her own hand between Sawyer’s thighs, feel the warm wet of her…
And the warmth was gone.
She opened her eyes to see Sawyer had pulled back, her lips kiss-swollen and glistening, her chest rising and falling rapidly, her eyes heavy-lidded. She swallowed hard enough for Jenna to hear it.
“What’s wrong?” Jenna asked softly.
Sawyer shook her head. “Nothing. Nothing at all. I just…I think we should slow down.”
“Oh. Oh, okay.” Trying to hide her disappointment was hard, but maybe Sawyer was right. She struggled to figure out why.
Sawyer’s hand was on her knee again, and she spoke. “Listen. I like you.” She picked up her glasses and slid them onto her face. “Like, a lot.” She cleared her throat, took a sip of her wine, and cleared it again before returning her gaze to Jenna’s. “And I have the bad habit of diving in, headfirst, before I should.”
Jenna nodded. Reluctantly, but she nodded. “I get it.”
