“Come in,” Lee offered, feeling incredibly peculiar about the entire ordeal. Inviting Morgan into an apartment they had shared together only a few days ago felt like offering someone a birthday card and saying thank you instead of waiting to hear it said by the recipient.
Her now ex-girlfriend stepped over the threshold with caution, slowly moving into the apartment with gentle precision. It made Lee’s heart sink, and her extremities feel heavy. The world saw Morgan Finch as nothing more than a predator, and yet predators didn’t walk with such hesitancy into their own space, especially when it was currently being guarded by a lesser prey like Lee Holmes.
A silence lingered for a few moments. Morgan looked over towards the shoe rack, and despite no words being shared between them Lee could tell that she was pondering as to whether or not to take off her boots, debating how long she would be there, and whether it was even necessary. “You got rid of them?” Morgan asked, her eyes diverting away from the shoe rack, instead hovering to the left hand-side of the hallway wall where the hyacinths had once resided.
Lee nodded. “I did,” she said, tapping her fingers against the side of her trousers, awkwardly, unsure as to how to position her body, as if it was the most important thing in the world, as if every last minute detail had to be perfect.Shehad to be perfect. “I didn’t have very long, so I had to improvise, but I got rid of them before the detective showed up at the door. He didn’t stay long, so you don’t need to worry. Our—my—” she corrected, ”drain is clogged, but it should be fixed by tomorrow.”
In true Morgan Finch fashion, she flattened her hair and gazed at the carpet, terrified of looking up. “I don’t know what to say,” she said. “Thank you. But if you did this because you thought Iwould tell anybody that you helped me, I never would have done that. You know that, right?”
Lee Holmes wasn’t sure why she felt compelled to do so, perhaps it was the defeated look on her now ex-girlfriend’s face, but regardless as to why, she found herself edging closer towards her. “I know. That’s not why I did it.”
Those six words, combined with Lee’s steps forward were enough to make Morgan look up now, to stare at the woman she loved directly and show all of herself through eyes that had once been vacant. Silently, she willed Lee to look inside of her, and see what lay underneath. The gulp that made its way down her throat was visible, swallowing down the nerves and anxiety only for new insecurities to form in their place. Morgan Finch didn’t need to ask ‘why’, because out of two possibilities, the one remaining option had been confirmed. Despite it all, she did it anyway. “Why did you do it then?”
Lee pondered how to swallow at that moment, as if even the most remedial task had suddenly become the most complicated act imaginable. She closed her eyes, steadied her breathing, as much as she could, at least, and pushed the anxiety and nerves down her throat as if she could dissolve them in the acid of her stomach.
At the forefront of her mind was Morgan, for it had always been Morgan, and yet to even entertain the idea of what she wanted to do now that Morgan was in front of her was not nonsensical, per se, because it made perfect sense what shewantedto do, but it was foolish nonetheless. Foolish because she had told Morgan only days earlier that she could no longer entertain the absurdity of the situation that had unfolded and evolved their relationship as a result. Her eyes, now open, diverted towards Morgan’s lips, and the way that they sat, slightly open, as if inviting her own lips towards them like a beacon.
It made sense, wanting to kiss her, at least, it did, in Lee’s mind. This was the woman that she risked her safety for, her sanity for, herlifefor. This was the woman she had gone to bat for, as Morgan had put it, time and time again. The game had seemingly ended, but here she was, desperate to keep playing.
Morgan’s body jolted for the briefest of seconds as Lee closed the distance between them and placed a single hand upon her right arm. Morgan decided at that moment that the pair of them were playing an unconventional game of chess whereby it was Lee Holmes’ turn and Lee Holmes’ turn only. Morgan Finch would take this at any pace Lee deemed necessary; she would stand and wait for all of her pieces to be captured.
The confines of their apartment fell away when their lips met. Then, and only then, did Morgan place a hand upon the back of Lee’s neck, urging her closer. Like a rhythmic motion between two dancers, she shifted her head to the right just as Lee’s own head shifted in the opposing direction, deepening the kiss. Morgan’s other hand snaked around Lee’s waist, pushing her body gently against the far wall in the hallway where the flowers had once resided, before positioning her fingers at the side of her face, stroking her cheek cautiously, as if she were made of glass.
The slightest touch had Lee Holmes begging for contact, wishing to mold both of their bodies together permanently. Perhaps if they bothweretruly made of glass, she could. At present time, she was conflicted between the idea that she wanted more than anything to feel Morgan’s bare skin pressed against her own, and at the same time, feeling terrified of scaring her away the moment that the intimacy shifted.
As if reading her mind, Morgan’s hand moved downwards towards the hem of Lee’s shirt, her fingers hovering there in anticipation, waiting for approval. Lee Holmes gave her it with a subtle nod of her head and within seconds, her ex-girlfriend was carefully lifting the shirt over her head, breaking thecontact their lips had shared seconds before. With the contact already broken, Lee extended her own hands to Morgan’s chest, unbuttoning her navy shirt to reveal her olive skin underneath. Without hesitation, Lee shifted the fabric over her broad shoulders, discarding the shirt to the floor alongside her own T-shirt.
Leaning forward, Lee resumed the kiss, pressing their bodies closer together, her breathing quickening upon feeling Morgan’s skin against her own. It was peculiar how the sensation felt incredibly new, despite all of the intimate moments they had shared together in the past, as if the forbidden nature of it made her feel more desperate for Morgan’s touch than ever before. The thought of never having the chance to be close to her again left her body wanting. Positioning Morgan’s thigh between her legs now, pushing herself against her, she attempted to show Morgan just how deep the need was becoming.
Without hesitation, Morgan lifted Lee by the waist, pinning her against the wall as she held her, pressing her thigh closer to where Lee needed it most. Moaning into Morgan’s mouth, Lee twisted her fingers through her hair simultaneously, clutching each strand tighter every time Morgan pushed her thigh against her center. Sensing the escalation of their intimacy, Morgan retracted a hand from Lee’s waist, holding her up with her own body and her other hand as she unbuttoned the fastening on Lee’s jeans. She placed her down upon the ground again for a moment, pulling down her jeans in the process, followed by her underwear.
Pressing a gentle kiss against her neck, followed by her left shoulder, Morgan reached around towards Lee’s back, unclasping her bra with one hand as she stroked the side of her waist with the other, leaving her completely exposed. Gazing back towards Lee, now, Morgan’s eyes adopted a new sense of longing that she was unfamiliar with—a pained glare that took inall of Lee, from her bare body to all of her inner workings behind it.
Watching Morgan gulp back a wave of anxiety, Lee extended a hand forward, stroking Morgan’s own cheek now as a tear escaped her eyes. Placing her forehead against Morgan’s, she whispered “it’s okay,” before leaning back to place a kiss upon her temple. It was only when she looked down towards Morgan’s arms that she noticed the bruising upon her knuckles, the very thing Diana had informed her about prior. Swallowing the pebble that had formed in her throat, she lifted Morgan’s hand up towards her mouth and kissed her knuckles as gently as she possibly could.
Morgan’s newly bruised hand wrapped itself in Lee’s hair, pulling her closer as their mouths became entwined once again. With shaky breaths, Morgan wrapped her other hand around Lee’s waist, breaking apart the kiss as she traced new ones down her chest, her stomach, until she was kneeled against the carpet upon the floor, looking up at Lee with two pleading eyes as she separated Lee’s legs and placed her tongue against her center.
Lee was taken aback by the sound that coursed out of her as Morgan focused her attention on where she needed it most, placing a hand against Morgan’s head as she craned her own head back against the wall. She tried desperately not to think about tomorrow, because at that moment in time, the woman she loved was making her feel things beyond what she thought was possible. In that moment, they were something more than exchanging texts and cautious steps. In that moment, they were something, and something, even the most minute molecule of time with Morgan Finch was better than anything anyone else could ever give her; would ever be able to give her.
Lee Holmes had been with others in the past; had allowed others to explore her body and give them the most vulnerable part of herself, and yet, where others had simply regarded her,Morgan had mastered her. She had learned each intricate detail that was required in order to achieve an inexplicable amount of bliss. She allowed herself to look down for just a moment, and, as if sensing her, Morgan looked up, their eyes locked together as she continued to highlight just how much she had perfected the art of pleasing her.
It didn’t take long before her legs began to tremble, the weight of her body suddenly pushing down upon her, testing the limits of her strength as she did everything in her power to keep herself steady. She felt the warmth in her stomach burn brighter now, her eyes pinched firmly shut as her body tensed suddenly, but only for the briefest of moments before the release became all that she was, enveloping her in the fire from the pit of her stomach as the sounds of her pleasure echoed throughout the hallway.
Morgan Finch removed herself from in between Lee’s legs now, wiping her mouth against her hand as she stood, coating it in Lee’s arousal. Without a word of warning, Morgan wrapped her arms around Lee, holding her in place and more importantly, keeping her upright. She stared at her for just a moment, green eyes facing amber ones, as she leaned forward and whispered into Lee’s ear. “May I take you to bed?”
Lee allowed her body to lean firmly against Morgan, pressing into her partially clothed body where she herself stood bare. It was all she could do to stay upright, but as she regained some of her composure, she nodded into Morgan’s neck, before offering an affirmative “yes,” in nothing but a whisper.
It was then that she felt two callused hands wrap themselves around the back of her legs, lifting her from the ground beneath her as she relied solely on Morgan’s strength to keep her from falling. She wrapped both legs around Morgan now as she expertly carried her towards the bedroom, both of her thumbs stroking her skin in the process.
Lee’s body made contact with the cool sheets upon their bed, followed by her head against the even colder pillow. She watched in awe as she lay across the sheets as Morgan removed her lower items of clothing above the foot of the bed. Her jeans, firstly, followed by a black pair of boxer shorts underneath.
It was only then that she attempted to shelve the notion in her mind that perhaps this bed would never be theirs again. Perhaps only one body would heat these same sheets in future instead of two. If this truly was to be their final time spent together upon this very bed, Lee Holmes wanted to ensure that she remembered every last inch of Morgan Finch if only so that the manifestation of her would exist in the deepest recesses of her mind, known only to her when the lights were low and her body was wanting.
As Morgan Finch closed the gap between them, Lee’s own desires came to light. “I want to touch you,” Lee said, somewhat timidly. Despite having shared moments such as this one numerous times in the past, there was something disparate about it; something offbeat, something that Lee felt intimidated yet excited by at the same time.
Watching Morgan Finch nod just inches away from her face with an equally timid regard made her insides warm. It made the fire inside her stomach engulf her entire being now at earth shattering temperatures, the pressure having the audacity to rise even now, just when she thought she had hit her breaking point prior. It spurred her forward as she maneuvered her body on top of Morgan’s own, snaking her hands across her skin. She tried to ignore the fact that this canvas of flesh had once been hers for the taking, a permanent body for her to set up home in, whereby now it felt like nothing more than a temporary accommodation for her to seek shelter for the night.
And yet, she would seek, and she would find, positioning her body downwards towards Morgan’s thighs as she placed herhead between them. She delayed any form of contact, enjoying the feeling of Morgan growing needy beneath her, pushing her hips forward as she threaded her fingers through Lee’s hair.
