“Gloves,” I said. “Gloves, gloves, gloves. Unless you want purple hands.” She laughed and said maybe she did. We did the dyeing job in her bathroom and it was hilarious and we had a few mishaps and my mind drifted into “what if we did this all the time?” What if Lacey was my hair-dye helper for more than this one time? I really wished my brain would stop running with this stuff. It made it harder to think about her saying goodbye in a week. Not that I was counting the hours I had left or anything . . .
“And now we wait,” I said as she set the timer and hid the white towels that were now splotched with purple. The inn was totally going to find those and bill her.
“I’ll reimburse you,” I said.
“Don’t worry about it.” She kissed my cheek and put on some music and started doing a goofy dance to keep me entertained. I started laughing so hard that I couldn’t stop and tears streamed down my face.
“Stop it, I’m going to die,” I wheezed as she moon-walked around the bathroom with a goofy smile on her face. My lungs were dying.
“Stop what? This?” She turned and did a dorky little butt wiggle.
“Yes, that! Stop. I can’t breathe.” Lacey started to laugh as I wiped my eyes. The timer went off and she took me over to the sink to wash out the color.
“If this was blue, it would look like Smurf blood.” I snorted and nearly banged my head on the sink.
“You have to stop being so funny or I’m going to injure myself.” She rinsed the color out and then wrapped my head in a towel.
“This is the most fun I’ve had in a bathroom in a long time,” she said and I started giggling again. She’d hit my funny bone and now I couldn’t seem to stop.
“Ugh, I didn’t mean that the way it sounded!” she wailed, but all was lost. We both had a laughing fit until we were rolling around on the floor and gasping.
“I can’t remember the last time I had this much fun with anyone,” she said, reaching out and taking my hand.
“Same,” I said, turning my head to meet her eyes. We were laying on a bathroom floor, but it didn’t matter. My hair was wrapped in a towel, but it didn’t matter. I was right where I wanted to be. With Lacey Cole.
“I really like you, Anna,” she said in a hushed voice.
“I really like you, Lacey.” She took a deep breath.
“That’s kind of a problem.”
Yes, it was.
“You’re leaving in a week,” I said. It was actually six days, not that I was counting.
“I know. But I’ve already pushed leaving by a week. What’s another?” But what would two more weeks do? She’d still be leaving, she’d just be prolonging it and making it worse. Perhaps it was better to end things now. Then my heart would only be a little broken.
I’d recover. Probably.
“I don’t know what to do here,” she said.
“I know. It’s a rock and a hard place.” She groaned and looked at the ceiling.
“If I go, I could come back. I could always come back.” She could, that was true. But what was I supposed to do? Just sit and wait for her? That wasn’t fair to either of us.
“I don’t know,” I said.
“Me either.”
All we could do was enjoy the next few days and see what happened. Six days could change everything.
Eight
Our second day of idleness started with me getting my hair and makeup done by Lacey. Apparently she was good at that as well. She was just good at everything.
Murder twisted himself around my feet, meowing for attention. I fed him treats when Lacey wasn’t looking. I wanted him to love me. By the way he was trying desperately to burrow his way into my lap, I’d succeeded.
Lacey rolled my hair up and pinned it and applied what felt like a ton of makeup to my face, but when she showed me the final product, I just looked like a more polished version of myself. She did an amazing job. My shiny violet hair fell in soft waves over my shoulders. All I needed to do now was put on the bralette and panties and pose. She’d set up a few different scenes and I wasn’t going to admit that I’d practiced in my mirror at home.
Spoiler alert: I was not good at making sexy faces. I hoped that I would discover some hidden skill when Lacey turned her camera on. I didn’t have a whole lot of faith that would happen.
“Okay, beautiful, all you need to do is get changed and then we’re ready to roll.” She’d turned on some music and it turned out to be Adele. Interesting choice.
I scurried toward the bathroom and was pleased to see a robe in there for me. She’d also turned up the heat so I wouldn’t get cold. I slipped into the lingerie and looked at myself in the mirror. I looked like me, but better. Sexy. Or at least as close to being sexy as I was going to get.
“You can do this,” I said to myself and then realized I was talking to myself. Yikes. I shook my head and put the robe on, cinching the tie. Lacey Cole was going to see me in my underwear. I’d spent at least an hour in the shower last night getting rid of every offending hair that I could find. Now I was worried that I’d missed one or two.
Not that it mattered, she could airbrush them out. But still.
“You ready?” Lacey called to me and I turned and opened the door.
“Yeah,” I said, not sounding very confident. I came out to find her fiddling with the lights.
“Hey,” I said, my hands still on the ties of the robe. It just skimmed the top of my thighs, so this was the most unclothed I’d been with her.
The song switched to “Make You Feel My Love” which was a little disconcerting. I wondered if she’d planned that.
“Wow,” she said, staring at me. “You look amazing.” I looked down to make sure I wasn’t falling out anywhere.
“Um, thanks.” I fiddled some more with the robe and then she shook her head as if to clear it.
“Oh, yeah. Right. Pictures.” She was blushing. “So, what I thought we could do is have you start out sitting, to get you comfortable, and then move to standing and then the bed. But only if you’re comfortable. I’m only doing this if you want to, okay? You don’t have to take a single shot if you don’t want to. Or, I could take them all and then you decide that you want to delete them. This is all for you. You’re in charge, Anna.” I held the robe a little closer and nodded.
“Okay,” she said and motioned me over to a red velvet tufted chair that looked like something from a professor’s library.
“If you want to keep the robe on for the first few, that’s more than okay. I’m mostly going to take a few test shots to make sure the lighting is right.” I looked into her eyes and instantly calmed down. Her voice soothed me.
“Uh huh,” I said, sitting down. She arranged me with my hands in my lap and fixed my hair.
“Gorgeous,” she said, winking and stepping back to pick up the camera.
“Here we go,” she said.
“Do you want me to look at you?” I asked, trying not to move too much.
“Just stay right like that,” she said from behind the camera. She crouched down and clicked a few times.
“One, two, three,” she’d say and then there would be the click. I tried not to blink. Sure, I’d had my picture taken before, but not under these circumstances.
“Good, good,” she would interject. I wasn’t sure what, exactly, I was doing that was good, but I guess it was working?
She stopped and moved back.
“Now I want you to think about something warm. Something that makes you happy.” I looked at her.
“Now look away,” she said, but I shook my head.
“I just want to look at you.” She froze.
“I’m sorry,” I said, ducking my head and blushing. I hadn’t meant to say that out loud.
“No, it’s . . . it’s okay. I’m just a little taken aback.” I peeked up at her. She had a stunned look on her face.
“Sorry,” I said again.
“Don’t be. I feel the same way. I was just hoping you weren’t going to find out my ulterio
r motives for wanting you to do this.” I couldn’t hold back a laugh.
“You aren’t as stealthy as you think you are, Lacey Cole.”
“I know. But I was hoping you’d let me get away with it.” I took a breath, stood up and dropped the robe.
“Maybe I will.”
I sat back down and tried not to think about all my flaws that were now on full display.
“Holy shit,” she said in hushed tones. “Holy fucking shit.” I’d never really gotten that reaction before. Lacey sort of tipped over and sat on her ass, holding her camera up so it didn’t hit the floor.
“Are you okay?” I asked, trying not to fidget.
“Yeah, I think so. I’m not really sure.” Her voice had a dreamy quality to it and her eyes were wide.
“Seriously, are you okay?” I was starting to get worried.
Lacey nodded slowly.
“Yup. Just fine. I’m just staring at the most beautiful human I’ve ever seen and I can’t believe you’re real, but sure, totally fine.” I looked down at myself. Just a regular body. A little chunkier than I’d been a few years ago. A few scars. Stretch marks. Uneven boobs. Chunky legs. Nothing special. I wasn’t a radiant beauty. But she was looking at me as if I was a priceless work of art.
“You’re stunning. Absolutely stunning.” She finally got up and aimed her camera again.
“If you say so,” I said.
“I do.” She started clicking again and I followed her instructions, looking in a few different directions, playing with my hair, moving my hands. I got more comfortable as the time ticked on and she actually got me to laugh a few times by making funny faces at me. Things got less serious and I started to have fun and loosen up.
She had me do some standing poses and I felt kind of silly trying to be alluring, but she assured me that I was doing a good job.
And then, we moved to the bed. She had me start off sitting and then resting against a pile of soft white pillows.
The more I’d watched her work, the more turned on I’d become and I seriously wanted her. Everything she did was erotic and she was in her element. I couldn’t stop myself from reaching out and taking the camera from her hands.
“What are you doing?” she asked, but she let go of it.
“Turning the tables,” I said, figuring out which button to push to take the picture. She seemed hesitant at first, but I got a few shots of her and then I stood up.
“Come here.” I patted the bed and she sat down on it. Today she wore a faded t-shirt and jeans and the shirt clung to her body so perfectly. She was a stunner.
“Relax,” I said, brushing my hand through her hair.
“I’m not good at this,” she said nervously.
“You’re doing fine.” I took a few shots and then made a face at her to get her to laugh. I had no idea if I was doing this right, but that didn’t matter.
“Okay, okay,” she finally said, taking the camera back, but it was to set it on the floor.
“I need to kiss you,” she said, reaching for me.
“If you must,” I said, leaning down. She pulled me onto the bed and I squealed a little. Lacey rolled me until she was on top and I was pressed against the bed. Oh.
“Hello,” I said, a little breathless.
“Hello,” she said, her voice low. She braced herself on her arms, but there wasn’t much between us. The scraps of lace I was wearing seemed insubstantial at the moment.
“Fuck, I want you so much,” she said, just barely pressing her hips against mine. Just enough to make me moan.
“I want you, Lacey. So much.” So much I was losing my mind. This was torture. Pure, irritating torture.
“Can I touch you?” she asked, and I nodded. She started at the top of my head, running her fingers through the loopy curls she’d created earlier. Her fingers traced my ears and skipped down my neck to my chest and roamed across my breasts and then down to my navel. Her touch became hesitant.
“It’s okay,” I said and she moved lower, just barely caressing the apex of my thighs. I arched against her hand and I couldn’t stop the moan that came from my mouth.
“You feel incredible,” she said, moving against me again. If she kept this up, I was going to combust.
Combust from lust.
She lowered her head and kissed me, but I pushed against her and deepened the kiss. Her hand continued its slow torture even though I started rhythmically arching against her. She didn’t take it further than that, and I wanted her to. I also wanted to touch her.
I pushed my hand against her shoulder and she reared back.
“I’m sorry.” She thought she’d done something wrong.
“It’s okay! You didn’t do anything. I just want to touch you. Is that okay?” She thought about it a minute.
“You can stop me anytime. For any reason.”
“Sure.” Knowing that she was still shy, I went slow, starting with her face like she’d started with mine. When I got to her chest, I waited, to make sure it was okay with her. I brushed against the soft curves there and I wanted to fill my hands with her. I knew she would look so amazing naked, but that would come with time. I hoped. It would come with trust.
My hand ventured lower, dipped into the curve of her belly button and then rested at the top of her jeans.
I waited again, but she urged me on and I covered her. I hadn’t asked about any surgeries because it hadn’t been the time. I hadn’t had the right to know.
“I haven’t . . . I mean, I’m still,” she said, her face going red. I knew what she meant.
“It’s okay, Lacey. I’ll work with whatever you’re working with.” I smiled and cupped her through her jeans. She moaned and I was pleased when she pushed herself against me. I stroked her again and she let me. I moved so I could use more of my hand and squeezed her gently.
“Fuck,” she said.
“More?” I asked, doing it again.
“Yes.” I wanted more of her, so I unbuttoned her jeans and slid my hand in, palming the outside of her underwear.
“Holy fuck,” she said, her eyelids fluttering.
“You feel so good,” I said, stroking her.
“You feel so good,” she said, her hands gripping the comforter.
She looked incredible like this, all wild and undone. Like a goddess. I started a rhythm, trying to find what she liked. At one point, she asked me to stop.
“Are you okay?” I asked, pulling my hand back.
“Yeah. I just want to touch you, too.” She wiggled her fingers and I laughed.
“Okay, we can do tandem.” We moved so that we could both have full use of our hands and still look at each other. It was hard to maintain composure and keep up a steady rhythm when she was touching me, but I did my best. When she went faster, I went faster and we started building towards the peak together. Sweat broke out on her face and both our breathing took on another pitch. At one point, Murder jumped on the bed and stared at us, but wandered off to lick himself.
“Little pervert,” she panted and then moaned. “I’m close.”
“Me too,” I said and I wondered if we would come at the same time. The combination of touching her and the way she touched me had me building and building until I crested and my hips jerked against her hand. I felt her coming just after I started and that just made it even better. Stars exploded behind my eyes and the storm seemed to go on and on.
When things finally started to calm, I didn’t want to move. My entire body was electric. I hadn’t come that hard in . . . ever, maybe.
“Fuck,” she said, looking at the ceiling. I took my hand back to find it was sticky and wet.
“Sorry about that,” she said, still trying to catch her breath.
“No worries,” I said, getting up and washing off in the bathroom. When I came back, she was a little red.
“Do you need to clean up?” I asked and she nodded. “No worries.” She shuffled off to the bathroom and came back a little while later.
“Well, I wasn?
??t expecting that to happen,” she said, sitting back down on the bed.
“Me neither. But I liked it. Even though it was unexpected. Sometimes the unexpected things in life are the best.” I got up and kissed her softly.
“It was amazing. You felt amazing.”
“So did you.” She caressed the back of my neck. “Can I take a picture of you like this? You’re glowing.” I didn’t see why not. I got back on the bed and she arranged me again and snapped a few shots.
“You really are astonishingly gorgeous.”
“So are you.”
Nine
Once we both came down from orgasm high, we realized we were starving. I put my regular clothes back on and we headed to Zukos for pizza. We both consumed way too much melted cheese and practically had to waddle back to her room at the inn.
“So, I have a question for you,” she said as I lay on the couch and moaned about eating too much.
“Fire away,” I said, putting my hand on my stomach.
“What would you think . . . about me not leaving in a week?” I sat up and stared at her.
“Are you serious?” She bit her lip and nodded.
“I know that we’re not even technically doing anything and I wouldn’t be staying just for you. I like it here. I’ve found a peace that I haven’t witnessed anywhere else. I want to see what it would be like to stay in one place and I’d like this to be the place. Or at least give it a try.” My mouth dropped open.
“Are you serious?” I said again, getting up from the couch and walking toward her.
“Yes.”
I tackled her onto the bed and kissed the shit out of her.
“Yes, I totally want you to say, are you kidding? I was going to try and get up the courage to ask you, but I thought that was totally selfish, but I wanted to give it a shot and I’m rambling and I don’t even care. Yes. I want you to stay, Lacey Cole. I want to find out what we could be. And I want you to be where you feel happy. And if it’s here, then that would be amazing. But I don’t want you to feel obligated.” She put her finger against my lips.
“I’m not obligated. Honored. Stunned that you’d want me to stick around.” I shook my head.