“You can’t talk to me like that.”
“But your praise kink is so cute.” I stroked her hair and I removed my hands from her boxers.
I started to lift my hands drenched in her cum before she grabbed my wrist.
“If you think I’m about to watch you lick your fingers and we don’t have enough time for me to fuck you, you aresomistaken.”
And then with Nola’s hand still in mine, I called her bluff to put my first two fingers on my lips. Bit by bit, I slid them into my mouth, our gazes heated, our breathing stopped again.
I wanted Nola to keep her end of the promise. I challenged her, and now I wanted to see the consequences. Nola relinquished her grip on my wrist just to slide her own fingers into my mouth. I removed my own and Nola opened her mouth, an invitation for me to return the favor. I opened my mouth slowly and took the time to swirl my tongue around Nola’s digitsas she pushed them farther past my tongue and down toward my throat. I bobbed my head against her fingers pumping along my tongue, my thighs clenched when I felt her sucking my fingers dry in her mouth.
My eyes didn’t leave hers as my esophagus opened more, her fingers reaching farther back, my gag reflex pushed to the brink right before her fingers retreated.
“You’re giving me ideas,” Nola breathed when it was my turn to suck her fingers dry.
“Can’t wait to see what they are,” I responded because I thought about being on my knees again. Her silver strap in my mouth.
I glanced at my phone and saw Poppy’s location approaching the hotel. “But unfortunately that won’t be tonight.”
Nola gripped my waist before pulling me in for a kiss, tender and slow like we had all the time in the world. The type of kisses we gave each other when it was just us.
I had enough sense to pull Nola’s pants up and button them for her, while she put my bra back in place. Before she turned away I grabbed her face. “I love you.” I professed, a smile blooming on my face when I watched what my words did to Nola.
I had known it for a while, and I wasn’t sure what about Kansas City had made me say it, but a long time ago I realized I wanted to keep Nola around. She had a brain that could change the world, and a heart to match. She owed up to her faults and kept her word. Even without my lack of dating experience, I knew Nola was someone I’d be never willing to give up.
“I love you, too.” She smiled before we were kissing again as I pushed her out the door. Our hands and fingers still entangled together, delaying the inevitable moment where we had to stop touching.
But right before we could part, Poppy and Farrah bounded down the hallway, slightly buzzed and trying to be quiet. Farrah’s white minidress had a stain down the front while Poppy looked like she just got done participating in a wet t-shirt contest.
“Nola!” Poppy whisper-yelled.
“Your room isn’t here, silly Nola.” Farrah tilted her head before I could drop my hands from Nola’s—not that she’d let me. She didn’t change anything about her, about us, no matter who was around. Since that night at the Limp Wrist, Nola had continued to touch me for no reason despite who was around. Whether our teammates noticed or not went unknown since no one bothered to ask us directly.
The closet we were hiding our relationship in, was quickly feeling like the closet was glass. And this was a moment that would definitely be revisited later.
My best friend eyed where my girlfriend and I connected, our fingertips frozen, my breath still in my lungs as if we all moved in slow motion.
“I was just leaving.” Nola didn’t rush out, didn’t elaborate, no ounce of anxiety or fear that I was trying to stifle to not further bring attention to ourselves.
“Why didn’t you guys come back?” Poppy moved closer to us, the movement finally allowing us to nonchalantly drop our hands.
“My tummy hurt after barbecue.” I pouted, “This is why I hate mac and cheese that isn’t baked. It’s not natural. Get me back to the South!”
“Eh, I kind of like velveeta.” Farrah shrugged as if she was in perfectly normal attire.
“And on that note, it’s time to go to bed!”
“Bye, y’all,” Nola said to us as a group but managed to only look at me. Poppy stepped past me to go into our room, and Farrah still lingered at her door to the right of us.
“Bye.” I didn’t breathe again until the door was closed and Poppy was snoring on her bed. Marking me safe from having to choose between the truth and a white lie for another night.
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
Bee
The end of May came and went so quickly it turned into the second week of June and my siblings were plotting another Miami trip to celebrate Pride. I told them they were two months late since the city celebrated in April but my text got quickly buried over Amir’s confession he’d been seeing someone he met here.
I didn’t have much time to process though because Nola had been wound like a tight coil all week, the first I had seen of her where self-doubt and anxiety seeped into her otherwise calm demeanor.
