Chapter 16 - Take Your Time

Grace closed the door behind them slowly, struggling for a way to keep Dani with her. She’d monopolized her for two days, and Dani was probably itching to get away. When she turned around, Dani was within touching distance. “Oh, hi.”

“Grace?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Can I go, please? I’d like to take a long hot shower and clear my head.”

The hurt in Dani’s voice was so evident Grace winced. She wouldn’t meet Grace’s eyes, shifting back and forth ready to bolt. “I’m sorry about the third degree. My friends are a little overprotective.”

“Don’t blame them. I’m the outsider. I have a feeling if I stayed here the rest of my life I’d still be an interloper. Why should they take my word about anything?”

Grace stepped forward, but Dani moved back. She traced the frown lines across her forehead, almost feeling the tension underneath her skin. “Southerners can be skeptical, clannish, and exclusive, but you’re an honorable woman, Dani Wingate. You were there when I needed you in a big way. They understand that now.”

Dani finally looked up, her eyes swirling with pain. “Do they?”

“Yes.” Grace eased forward and entwined their fingers. “Stay with me, Dani, if you want.”

“Your friends are close if you need anything.”

“But they’re not you. I need you in a totally different way.”

Dani moaned when Grace thumbed the inside of her wrist.

“Can I take that as a yes?” Grace brought their joined hands to her lips and kissed the back of Dani’s hand. “Please stay, and not because you think I’m unwell, but because you want to be here…with me.”

Dani was quiet too long, but when she looked up again, her expression was a blend of mischief and hunger. “I need a shower.”

“I’ll wait.” She kissed Dani lightly on the lips before shoving her toward the bathroom. “But be quick or I’ll have to take matters into my own hands.”

“Don’t.”

Dani stripped on her way to the shower, and Grace paced the bedroom floor. She was attracted to Dani, but she’d convinced herself to move on, and now she was going to have sex with her. Had the drugs scrambled her thoughts, confused her about what was best? When Dani cleared her throat, Grace turned and the answer crystallized, as plainly as Dani’s towel-clad body—no matter what happened later, she wanted to be with Dani now. She opened her arms and realized she was opening her heart as well, consequences be damned.

Dani tucked the edge of the towel tighter around her breasts. “Are you sure about this, Grace?” At least one of them should be certain. All Dani could think about was how much she wanted Grace at this moment, like no one before.

“Mostly, but that’s okay with me.”

Dani needed to say one more thing and hated it, but Grace deserved the whole truth. “I don’t know what this means. Yet. You understand, right?”

“Totally. And the good thing is, we don’t have to know. Come here, please.”

Dani trembled as she closed the distance between them. She was never nervous about having sex, until now. The room with its queen-sized bed closed around her, bringing Grace nearer and heating the air surrounding them, the perfect setting for seduction. It also felt intimate.

“Stop.” Grace pressed her forehead to Dani’s and whispered. “I see those wheels turning. You’re scared as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. Let it go and just enjoy whatever happens.”

Dani wanted this so much, but could she stay in the moment? Her whole life had been about planning and execution—escape her horrible family situation, get an education, find a fulfilling job, buy a home, enjoy pleasure when it came along, and keep moving.

Grace stroked Dani’s naked shoulders to the top of the towel and then drifted lower until her hands cupped Dani’s bare ass. When Grace finally kissed her, Dani lost herself in the softness of Grace’s lips, the sweet smell of her perfume, and her own body’s reactions. Grace rolled her tongue against Dani’s, caressing and exploring. Grace was teasing, and Dani was breathless for more.

“Stay right where you are, Doc, while I set the proper mood.”

“Thought we just did that?”

“Patience. It gets better.”

Dani tried to kiss her again, but Grace sidestepped. “I don’t seem to have any patience when it comes to you or any self-control either. Why do you suppose that is?”

Grace gave her a mischievous smile, ripped the covers off the bed, and threw them in front of the fireplace, followed by the bed pillows and others from a nearby chair. “Because I’m just too damn sexy to resist?”

Grace guided Dani onto the quilt, its deep thickness drawing her in and heating her blood almost as much as Grace’s kiss. “Probably.”

Grace joined her, gave a naughty grin, and pinched the tucked edge of the towel between her thumb and forefinger. “What happens if I tug this?”

Dani’s pulse throbbed between her legs. She’d never let anyone tease her before. Now she wondered why. “Find out.” Grace rested her palm on Dani’s breast and plucked the towel loose, letting it fall around her. “God, Grace. You’re killing me.”

“Not my intention at all.” She scanned Dani’s body bringing heat and moisture so quickly that Dani groaned. “Do you like me looking at you?”

Dani struggled for her usual self-restraint, but Grace reduced her to a mass of uncontrollable need. “Y—yes.”

“What do you want?”

“You without these.” Dani pulled at the sweats covering Grace’s body. Since Grace had given the green light, Dani’s hands itched to touch her, to bring her slowly to the edge and then tip her over.

“Do you want to undress me, or should I?”

“You. Slow.”

Grace ran her hands under the garment and cupped her breasts, moaning from the contact as if Dani’s hands touched her. She slid her arms from the sleeves and into the body of the shirt and shifted it up under her neck. She stared at Dani and teased her puckered nipples. “See how much I want you, Dani? I’m already hard.”

Dani squeezed her thighs tight, the image before her too provocative. “More.” She sounded urgent. Grace started to shuck her shirt off. “Don’t. Just the pants.” Dani knee-walked toward her, reaching for her, aching for physical contact.

Grace stuck her arm straight out to stop her. “Not yet.” She hooked her thumbs in the waistband of her sweat pants and tugged slowly, past her navel and lower.

“Damn, Grace.” Dani scrubbed the heel of her palm between her legs, but Grace gave her an evil eye and shook her head. By the time Grace pulled the pants off her legs and threw them across the room, Dani saw the glistening moisture between her legs and felt it between her own. “Now?”

Grace stretched out on the quilt and the early morning sun cast light across her flushed face and full lips. Dani momentarily forgot her physical discomfort and just stared at Grace’s body. She’d never seen anyone more beautiful or wanted anyone as much. “May I touch you?”

Grace seemed taken aback by the serious tone of Dani’s question. Her answer was a whisper of permission layered in need. “I really wish you would.”

Dani stretched out beside Grace and propped up on her elbow to watch Grace as she touched her. Did she feel the charged energy between them, the heat surrounding them as Dani did? She traced the outline of Grace’s bottom lip and felt it quiver. Without realizing it, she’d hoped for this closeness with someone and basked in the feeling, capturing the image in her mind. Only Grace. “In case I forget later, thank you for this.”

Grace’s hooded eyes followed Dani’s hands and she mumbled something that resembled uh-huh.

“What do you want me to do, Grace?” For some reason, Grace’s needs mattered as much as her own, a foreign concept for her until this moment.

“Anything you want.”

Grace’s words were an instant shot of adrenaline. She kissed the side of Grace’s face and down her neck, drawing her own pleasure from the moans they urged from Grace. Dani outlined Grace’s puckered nipples, following the rise and fall of her chest as her body responded. She lightly brushed her hand between Grace’s breasts, down her torso, but stopped shy of her center. Grace jerked in anticipation.

“Dani.”

“Yes, Grace?”

“What are you doing to me?”

“Anything I want, remember?” Dani enjoyed teasing Grace, seeing her pupils dilate and her skin flush as her arousal grew. Nothing was more beautiful.

Grace cupped Dani’s hand and attempted to urge it between her thighs. “Touch me. I need…to feel you.” Her breath came in hot, jagged spurts, and Dani clamped her legs tighter against another rush of heat.

“Soon.”

“Is teasing me…all day…part of your plan?”

“Quite possibly. I love seeing and feeling you respond. Is that okay?”

“As long as you don’t mind a little quid pro quo…and stop when I say uncle.” Grace started to reach between Dani’s legs, but she stopped her. “I need to touch you, Dani.”

“Not yet.” Dani glanced down, and the image of Grace’s hand so close to her crotch ratcheted up the pressure. She wanted Grace to touch her but wasn’t sure she could let her. Allowing anyone emotionally close enough to really pleasure her didn’t come easily.

“I can’t take this anymore. I need skin,” Grace said. “And to be out of this damn sweatshirt. I’m dying from the heat.”

“Sit up.” Grace complied without question, and Dani straddled her legs and skimmed her hands slowly up Grace’s sides. How could skin be this soft, this hot? She brushed the fullness of Grace’s breasts, and Dani’s clit twitched and strained. She cupped both breasts and the tips hardened and teased the center of her hands.

“Suck my breasts, Dani.”

Dani tucked her head under Grace’s sweatshirt and her distinctive fragrance filled Dani and swirled through her. Inhaling deeply, she committed the scent to memory. Dani captured one breast in her mouth and the other nipple between her thumb and forefinger. Cocooned between flesh and fabric, she ached to devour the soft, delicious parts of Grace, to hear her moan and beg for more, and to finally tease her to orgasm and taste her release. She groaned and slid her center along Grace’s leg, the pleasure turning to pain.

Grace pressed Dani’s head tighter to her chest, and her hips rose and fell in time with Dani’s pulls. “Dani, please.”

Dani stripped the shirt over Grace’s head, eased her back down on the quilt, and glided down slowly, savoring the scent of her. “Are you ready for me, Grace?”

“So ready.” Grace breathed deeply and then seemed to stop breathing as Dani worked her way up her body again. “Tease.”

“Definitely.” Dani rotated her center along the length of Grace’s leg, stopped midway, and rubbed their pelvises together. Grace was so open and responsive that Dani wanted to savor her heat and urgency for hours. Grace groaned and tried to pull her up, but Dani lingered, sucked on Grace’s breasts again, and worked their bodies into a heated rhythm.

“Ohhh, Dani.” Grace pumped harder and clung to Dani’s ass. “Faster.”

Dani raised on her hands until only their lower bodies touched and then leaned down to kiss Grace. She poured all her desire into that kiss, trying to convey what she needed and wanted to do next. Her tongue mimicked the rhythm of their bodies as Grace’s thrusts became more urgent.

“I need your mouth, Dani.”

She kissed her way down Grace’s body and spread her legs wider.

Grace squirmed and cupped the back of Dani’s head. “Uncle. I need to come.”

Dani slid her free hand between her own legs and lowered herself to grant Grace’s wish. The first taste of Grace’s sweetness exploded on Dani’s tongue. She thrashed against her hand and almost came but pulled back in time. She teased Grace’s taut flesh back and forth with her tongue and between her teeth until Grace’s nails dug into her scalp.

“Fingers. Now.”

Dani continued the rhythmic pulling on Grace’s clit until she felt her own climax riding her hard. With Grace’s taste on her lips, the minute she plunged her fingers inside, she’d pop and she desperately wanted to ride Grace’s arousal a bit longer. She’d never been with a woman as exciting as Grace.

“Please, Dani.” Grace’s voice was raspy with need. “Finger me…but don’t stop…sucking. Love your mouth…so fucking much.”

Few things turned Dani on as much as a woman who knew what she liked and wasn’t afraid to tell her. She tried to keep from touching herself again but failed, forking her clit between her fingers. Dani easily plunged two fingers into Grace, stroked twice, and gave her a final flick of her tongue.

“Oh, my God. Don’t stop.”

Dani couldn’t stop if she wanted to. Her orgasm broke loose and shot through her in waves and she bit her lip to keep from crying out. Her legs tingled, stiffened, and then went numb. She stroked her sensitive clit one final time and then collapsed between Grace’s thighs as she heard Grace cry out her release. The walls of Grace’s vagina tightened around her fingers, and Dani tumbled into another orgasm.

“Oh fuck. That was awesome,” Dani said as another spasm made her shiver.

“Uh-huh.”

When Dani looked up, Grace’s eyes met hers. Her breasts rose and fell rapidly as she tried to catch her breath, her skin flushed a light shade of pink, and a sheen of perspiration made her glow—so damn perfectly beautiful that Dani’s chest ached. “Damn, I’m in so much trouble.” Dani hoped she’d thought that last sentence, but Grace’s expression told her she hadn’t.

Grace gathered enough strength to scoot another pillow under her head and looked down at Dani still resting between her legs. “Why are you in trouble?” Part of Dani’s face was covered, but her eyes were wide. One of her hands was tucked between Grace’s thighs and the other disappeared between her own. Suddenly, Dani’s statement made sense. “Oh…because you didn’t come.”

“No, not that. I did, Grace. Big time.”

“Then why the trouble?” She prayed Dani wasn’t already regretting having sex, because Grace very much wanted it to happen again. Dani was an excellent lover—soft, sensitive hands; sensuous, talented mouth; and long, tapered fingers. She was magic. She’d handled Grace like they’d been lovers for years, intuitively touching her in just the right spot at exactly the right time to heighten her desire and ultimately drive her to orgasm.

“Because I liked that, a lot.”

“Good.” Grace pulled Dani up across her body, flipped her over, and straddled her. “Then you’re really going to like what comes next.” A look Grace could only describe as panic crossed Dani’s face. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing…I…don’t…I just need a little recovery time.”

Dani couldn’t look at her. Something was wrong. Had she misread a signal? “Never figured you for not being able to get it up again.” She tried teasing, but the worried look on Dani’s face persisted. She stretched out on top of Dani and rolled her pelvis, easing her thigh between Dani’s legs. “But I can help with that.”

“Grace, no.”

“I really don’t mind.” She rose on her hands and knees and started down Dani’s body, but she flipped Grace over and plunged two fingers inside her. “Oh…Dani…”

“Shush, please, Grace. Let me.”

And to her surprise, within a few delicious strokes, Grace came again. The release was just as perfect as the first time. She stilled under Dani, letting her touch and kiss as much as she wanted. When she finally looked up at her, Grace asked, “Will you let me make love to you?”

Dani buried her head between Grace’s breasts, their legs still entwined. “Wasn’t it good for you, Grace?”

“It was perfect, for me.”

“Then what’s wrong?” Dani’s voice was so low Grace barely heard her.

Grace placed her hands on either side of Dani’s face and made eye contact. “Nothing’s wrong. I’d just like to touch you, to taste you.”

“Not sure I can let you.”

“Are you able to tell me why?” Grace ran her fingers through Dani’s short hair, praying something hadn’t happened in her horrible past that scarred her.

Dani tucked her head into Grace’s shoulder. When she spoke again, her words sounded forced, as if they’d been buried too long. “Well…I’m okay giving pleasure, but not so good at receiving. I’m uncomfortable with touch. The whole intimacy thing. Is there a cure?”

She kissed the top of Dani’s head. “Is there a cure for my desire to sit on the floor instead of on perfectly good furniture or for Doreen Divine-Dot’s desire to color her cat with food coloring?”

Dani snickered. “You’re trying to make me feel better.”

“My darling, there’s nothing wrong with you. People’s sexual preferences are varied as their other personal quirks and can shift over time. Find someone whose idiosyncrasies complement yours and experiment. Does that make sense?”

“Intellectually, yes.”

“Just enjoy yourself. You know how to do that, I’m pretty sure. Things will work out as they should.”

Dani finally looked at Grace again. “I think I’d enjoy experimenting with you.”

“That’s very good news indeed.” For the first time since she’d met Dani, Grace felt like they might actually have relationship potential. Her heartbeat trebled, but a small voice inside cautioned her to move slowly.

“How do you know so much about this stuff?” Dani trailed a finger along the side of Grace’s face, down her neck, and to the top of a breast.

“I read tons of books when I wanted to be a social worker. The material was good training and answered some personal questions too.”

“So, you’re not afraid of getting hurt?”

“Everybody is afraid of that, Dani. I gave my heart before and was crushed when she went back to her ex in Savannah, but I’ve decided love is worth the risk. What about you?”

“Never been hurt, not like that. I guess I haven’t really given myself emotionally. And thinking about doing it now, when I might not be here long…” But the thought of leaving Pine Cone and never seeing Grace again made her physically ill. She was in so much trouble. “You’re amazing, Grace, for putting yourself out there again. Very brave.” Dani’s phone rang and she glanced at the screen before returning her attention to Grace.

“Need to get that?”

“It can wait. It’s taken too long for us to get here,” Dani said, kissing Grace again.

“Good answer, Doc. Care to explore just how amazing I can be?” Grace eased her hand down Dani’s torso but stopped near her bellybutton.

“Yes. I believe I would.”