From this angle, it was super easy for Kamryn to slide her thumb along Elia’s clit. She touched. She teased. She tried to stare down at Elia’s face to see her reactions, but she couldn’t see over her own body and still reach to touch Elia in the way she wanted. Elia shifted Kamryn, her hands against her back as she moved them closer together.

Kamryn moaned, biting the sound back as best as she could. She needed to make sure that she didn’t let loose entirely in this house. She continued to touch Elia as best she could and wait for any kind of reaction other than the wetness against her fingers and the deepened breathing as Elia sucked in sharp breaths.

They stayed like that, concentrating on each other. Kamryn never wanted to give this up. She knew she’d been right to take the risk on Elia. Maybe not that first night, but definitely after that. There was something about this stunning woman that stole her breath every single day. They were so happy together.

Elia lifted her hips right when Kamryn was struggling to focus. Maybe Elia wasn’t as far behind her as Kamryn originally had thought. But it was getting harder and harder toconcentrate. She continued to move her hand, trying to keep her pussy right where it was, against Elia’s mouth and face.

Elia pulled away sharply, dragging in a deep breath. She eyed Kamryn and closed her eyes. Kamryn continued to touch her, teasing her into the orgasm that she longed for. As soon as Elia could, she pressed her face against Kamryn’s body again, picking up right where she left off. Kamryn moved her hand and pushed up on her knees, changing the angle entirely.

This sent a new wave of pleasure through her. She had to press her hands against the wall to keep herself upright. She bit the inside of her cheek to hold back her moan. She’d essentially promised Elia that she wouldn’t scream or be too noisy, and she would be damn sure to keep that promise. She careened through her orgasm, pushing against the wall to hold herself up so she didn’t collapse on top of Elia’s face.

Kamryn laughed as she finally fell to the side, her legs still entangled with Elia’s arms. She stayed right where she was as she caught her breath. Elia turned on her side and started to move around, and it took Kamryn a while to open her eyes and see what was going on.

“Elia…”

“What?” Elia asked, her tone sharper than she probably intended it, but they were in a much smaller bed than normal, and nothing was quite the same as being at Elia’s house or Kamryn’s apartment.

“You didn’t scream.”

Elia let out a grunt before she finally tapped Kamryn’s hip. “Get up so we can pull the blanket down, would you?”

“Ready for bed already?” Kamryn said, yawning. All that turkey she’d eaten was catching up with her faster than she’d anticipated it would.

“I’ve been up cooking all day. How about you?”

“I drove here,” Kamryn whined lightly and then wrinkled her nose. “Nope, I can’t complain. And dinner was amazing.” She finally got herself together enough to shift so they could move the blanket out from under them.

Turning to face Elia, Kamryn kissed her, softening the moment back to what it had been before. She slowed the embrace, not wanting to incite any more than she already had. “Turn over. Let me hold you.”

“I’d love that,” Elia murmured as she settled into a position.

They lay there, listening to the sounds of the house and each other’s quiet breathing. Kamryn was so lost in the moment that she nearly missed Elia’s words.

“Will you make me a promise?”

“Sure. Anything,” Kamryn answered.

“Promise me that you won’t leave Windermere. The school needs you.”

Kamryn’s heart stuttered. She’d thought about leaving more times than she could count. But it wasn’t just the school drawing her back there now, it was the students she’d made a connection with, the staff and the board and the faculty. But more than anything, it was Elia.

Kissing the back of Elia’s neck, Kamryn closed her eyes. “I promise that I’ll think about it.”

forty-two

“I’ve got wine!” Abagail cheered loudly as she stepped into Elia’s front door.

It had taken two weeks after Thanksgiving for Abagail to call Elia, and it had taken another month before they’d agreed to get together. Elia’s stomach was in knots, but they both needed this. Abagail’s kiss, but more her confession of her feelings, couldn’t ruin a friendship that had been so strong for decades. Elia wouldn’t allow it to happen.

“Perfect,” Elia said, leaning in, pressing a kiss to Abagail’s cheek like she always would, and hugged her. But she hesitated, and she could tell that Abagail could tell. She sighed. They’d get better at this with time. At least that’s what Kamryn kept telling her.

“Kamryn just went to get Greer, so they should be here shortly.” Elia took the two wine bottles that Abagail had brought and headed toward the kitchen. She needed a drink to steady her hands already. She had really wanted Kamryn to be back before Abagail got there, but she was out of luck.

“How is everything going with Kam? You haven’t talked about her much lately.”

Elia had specifically avoided that while on the phone with Abagail, due to circumstances. But she couldn’t avoid it forever, and she needed to work on getting over it so that she could work on her relationship with her best friend.

“It’s going well. Marshall is back, so he’s been my direct supervisor for the last month. It’s been an adjustment, but it’ll be better in the long run I think.” Elia pulled out the sour cream from the fridge and started to scoop it into a bowl.