“Oh. Um.” My stomach dropped through back to ground floor, and I let out an awkward, nervous laugh. “So you’re not… too… mad at me?”
“I’m furious,” she said, smiling wider. “Now can I kiss you furiously?”
“Wow. Yeah, you can… I mean, you can kiss me… in whatever way makes you happy. Or angry, if that’s what you want.”
She laughed, and she brushed her thumb over my lips once before she leaned in and kissed me, and I figured she was probably just drunk on sentimental feelings today, being back on track for her dreams, for what she really cared most about, and that her better judgment wasn’t present right now, or…
Or fucking hell, maybe she liked that I came back and risked everything to work with her to build something we both cared about. Maybe she liked me. Could you fucking imagine? I couldn’t. But she was kissing me, so holy shit, I didn’t have to imagine.
I softened into the kiss, slipping my hands to her back, and she guided me towards her, pulling me up into her lap as she kissed me, her lips so perfect and soft and warm against mine, and I wanted to cry because Ireallyreally liked her and I’d been so sure I’d never see her again, and…
She pulled back, her brows furrowed. “Julie?”
“Yeah?” Oh, shit, I was crying, judging by how that sounded. She wiped my tears away.
“What’s wrong? Are you okay? We can stop.”
“No, please don’t. Just… oh my god, I’m going to sound like a fucking loser. I was just thinking how sad I’d been that I wasn’t going to see you again and that I wouldn’t know if youmanaged to make your dreams come true and everything and then I’mhereand you’re kissing me and you’re justperfectand I’mtalkingtoo much but I don’t know how tostopnow that I’vestarted.”
She smiled wider, eyes crinkling, and she laughed through a thin shimmer of tears. “Now you’re making me cry, too, so thanks for that particular magic trick, Houdini.”
“Ah, shit. Well, it’s not like I’m going to judge you for crying. I mean, can you imagine? Kind of hypocritical to judge you for having that one perfect picturesque tear on your cheek while I’m over here ugly wailing like a baby on a plane—”
She kissed me again, crushing her lips against mine, and I guess she didn’t think I was too ugly when I cried. We alternated crying and kissing like a couple of weirdos, wiping our eyes and laughing in between kisses, and she broke off with her forehead against mine to speak softly.
“I don’t think you’re a loser for your feelings,” she said. “So do me a favor and don’t hide things like that.”
“Okay,” I sniffled. “Can I tell you something else, then?”
“Of course.”
“I mean, you just had me straddling you in your lap making out, so I’m kind of horny now too, and crying and horny is a weird combination but I guess here I am.”
She laughed, wiping her face one last time and taking a breath. “Go take a shower,” she said. “Freshen up well. Use some perfume, I have a thousand samples of them in the drawers.”
“Oh. Uh. Do you think I’m gross?”
“No, I’m just going to fuck you and I want my possession to be dolled up nicely for me.”
“Oh. Holy shit. Wow. Okay, yeah, I can do that. Do you want me to wear that, um… underwear you got me again?”
“No. I want you to wear a ribbon so I can unwrap you.”
“You—you don’t think I’m going to look a little silly?”
She shook her head. “No. I think you’re going to look like a perfect little treat I’m going to savor well into the night tonight.”
I swallowed. “You know, it’s, um, it’s really hot when you just like… tell me what to do and how you’re going to… um…”
“Use you?”
“Well, yeah, in so many words.”
“Well, don’t waste any time, then,” she said, pushing me up to my feet. “I’m very impatient.”
I mean, when she put it like that, so was I. My god.
I showered quickly, but I made sure to present myself as well as possible. I wasn’t sure if Helena liked it, um… shaved or not, but there was something about shaving down there that made me feel more like I was prepared for her to fuck me, so I went ahead and shaved, touched up my makeup, and I took one of the million perfume samples that she indeed did have—I guess it made sense she got sent a lot of them—and I wrapped myself up in a towel and let her in the bathroom to take her shower while I took the roll of red ribbon she’d left in the bedroom and felt my whole body blushing while I looked at it.
