But Tamsyn didn’t waste any time. She turned around, grabbed Isla by the hips, and pushed her against the tree. Then she slid her shorts and panties down with one incredibly effective swoosh and slotted her thigh between Isla’s legs. Isla’s center flattened against her skin, so scrumptiously wet that Tamsyn nearly moaned for the sake of moaning. Then she began fucking Isla with her thigh. Was there anything more intimate than a woman’s pussy riding your leg like a cowboy? Tamsyn thought not.
“Oh my god,” Isla spluttered. Her eyes were closed, head tipped back against the tree while her arms were circled around Tamsyn’s neck. But as much as Tamsyn loved how this was playing out, she couldn’t help but want more and to give more.
Tamsyn stepped back a few inches and dropped to her knees.
“What are you doi—”
But Isla didn’t get the words out before Tamsyn showed her exactly what she was doing. She grabbed Isla’s calf and maneuvered her leg until it was hooked over Tamsyn’s shoulder. Then she pressed a soft kiss against Isla’s mound before she moved her head back to admire the view. And frankly, the view was incredible. Her short curls were soaked. Her folds glistened in the moonlight. The way her legs were trembling slightly only added value.
“Stop staring,” Isla said, her voice breathy. “Just fuck me.”
Tamsyn smiled but wasted no more time. She stuck out her tongue and slid it between Isla’s folds. Then she circled Isla’s clit for a few agonizing seconds and sucked for another few unbearable seconds before she retreated to her entrance. She did this over and over until Isla’s entire body shuddered. But she didn’t stop. On the contrary, she sped up. Her tongue licked and dipped and explored every inch of Isla’s sex until she was sure she had it memorized. Isla’s hands were in her hair, tugging at the braids, and Tamsyn had a brief moment of nostalgia. Her mind flashed an image of that peony powder room where it all began.
She was just about to remind Isla about it when a moan escaped Isla’s throat. When Tamsyn stood up, Isla wrapped one still very naked leg around Tamsyn’s hip. “We really make a great pair.”
“The best,” Tamsyn answered, and then she kissed her. Hard enough to steal the oxygen from her lungs. Hard enough that there wasn’t space for anything else, especially the words I think I might be falling in love with you.
Chapter Seventeen
Isla hadn’t expected camp to feel so empty without Petra and Nadine. They had gone home at last night’s Sending, leaving one less pair around the fire and a strange quiet over camp.
She also hadn’t expected Aggie and Josie to unravel quite so fast. From the moment they’d gotten back to camp after The Sending, Aggie had been replaying the votes out loud, driving everyone mad. Even Petra and Nadine’s customary reflection—everyone collectively agreed they would miss Petra’s dry sense of humor and Nadine’s floral bucket hat that she would wear so low over her eyes it was a wonder she could see where she was going—had felt tainted by Aggie making remarks like, “Petra didn’t deserve to go out like that,” and “We’re not those kinds of players.”
And this morning, over cold rice and beans, she’d launched into a speech about loyalty. Frankie and Kendall had gone off to get firewood. Barra and Dominique had washed up at the creek, leaving only Isla, Tamsyn, and Josie at the shelter.
Isla loved Aggie as a person. She was funny and sweet. She complimented Isla’s hair every morning, even when it looked like she’d fought a tropical storm. But goodness, there was only so much blabbering about loyalty she could take.
This was a game, and everyone was out to win.
Isla and Tamsyn had done what was best for them, and besides, they’d had two votes cast against them last night. She didn’t have to be a rocket scientist to trace those back to the source.
Aggie plopped down beside Isla like a wet sack of potatoes.
It was late afternoon; the sun was hot but not suffocating. It was the level of heat that still pressed on her shoulders and the top of her head, but thankfully didn’t choke her to death.
Today there hadn’t been a reward challenge or a Sending and everyone was kind of lazing around. Barra and Kendall were napping in the shelter. Dominique was off to the watering well with everyone’s bottles, and Josie was meditating under a gum tree.
Isla was sitting a few feet from the creek, watching Tamsyn dip in and out of the water. She had her eye on her the same way a clingy baby with separation anxiety tracked their mother. Still there? Yes. Thank goodness.
“I’m a little disappointed in you,” Aggie said, nudging Isla’s knee. Her blue hair was beginning to grow out at the parting. Isla noticed blonde pushing through, which she hadn’t expected. Aggie’s eyes were deeper than dark chocolate.
“You are?” Isla said, already sighing mentally at the predictable path this conversation was about to take. Enough about loyalty.
“I get why you did it,” Aggie said, folding her arms around her bent knees. “Petra is a strong contender, Nadine too. But you could’ve at least given us some sort of heads-up about the advantage you found.”
“Then it wouldn’t have been a blindside,” Isla replied smoothly, smiling like she was explaining how to use TikTok to her grandmother. Both Petra and Nadine had been unquestionably blindsided.
Aggie clicked her tongue. “You haven’t changed much since Season One.”
For some reason, this was a slap in the face Isla hadn’t expected. She turned toward Aggie with a face that screamedwhat the fuck did you just say and was just about to ask that very question when Tamsyn waded up the bank toward them.
“What are you two hens clucking about?” She flicked her wet braids out of her face and then shook her whole body like a golden retriever fresh from the pond. Isla assumed it was muscle memory from when she grew up with three dogs.
“Isn’t that a country saying? Between the way you speak and those cowboy boots, one would think you grew up on a farm,” Aggie said, raising an eyebrow.
“You’re judging a book by its cover,” Tamsyn said, smiling.
Aggie laughed, which was a surprise. And so did Isla. Whatever tension in the air vanished like water off a duck’s back. Isla couldn’t stay angry with Aggie. Not when Tamsyn was around.
