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Lydia’s hitched, pleased gasp was delicious, and Zann hummed as she dipped her head as if to kiss her once, twice, three times, teasing her with the promise of what they both wanted. She knew the kiss would be incredible. Everything with Lydia had been beyond description, really, but she wanted to savor everything about this moment, this woman. There was something about Lydia that made her want to dive in heedlessly, and yet she was also overcome with the desire to cherish every breath, every whimper, every cracked cry of pleasure.

“Kiss me,” Lydia whined, tugging at Zann’s neck and rolling her hips pleadingly.

A broken moan caught in Zann’s throat as she captured Lydia’s lips in a kiss that was open-mouthed and messy, their tongues stroking and swirling with decadent intent while they clung to each other, fingertips digging into soft skin, begging for more contact, more pressure, more of everything. It was nothing short of heaven, and by the time they broke apart, they were both grinning and gasping for breath.

“My god,” Zann exhaled, touching her forehead to Lydia’s as she willed her racing pulse to settle.

She had no idea how she was going to make it through the rest of the day without dragging Lydia off to somewhere private so she could do that again.

The heat in Lydia’s gaze suggested she’d be fighting the same battle, and Zann swallowed thickly as she lifted her chin to steal one last kiss. “You are fucking addictive; you know that?”

Long fingers tangled in the collar of her tee and dragged her back in. “You are,” Lydia husked. She stole one last kiss of her own, that was more of a clash of teeth than lips because they were both smiling like idiots, and then groaned as she pushed Zann away. “You need to go now. Or we’re never getting to brunch.”

Zann shoved her hands in her pockets so she wouldn’t succumb to temptation and reach for Lydia again. “We are definitely picking this up again later,” she said as she forced herself to take a step back.

Lydia’s eyes crinkled with her smile as she nodded. “I am very much looking forward to that.”

Zann groaned at the way Lydia’s breasts swayed enticingly as she pushed off the door and stepped back into the tiny entryway. She longed to say fuck it and take Lydia back into her arms, but she held firm, her resolve buoyed by the promise of later. “God, me too.”

“I…” Lydia’s smile gentled, and she nodded. “Yeah. I’ll see you soon, then.”

“I can’t wait.” Zann stared, enraptured by the way Lydia’s throat bobbed, and her stomach swooped when, after one final, smoldering look that she swore she could feel like a firm hand between her legs, Lydia closed the door. The click of the lock engaging shattered what remained of the spell Lydia had cast over her, and she blew out a rough breath. “Holy shit.”

Grinning like an idiot, she turned on her heel to start the short trek back to her cottage. When she’d offered to walk Lydia to her door last night, it hadn’t been with any real expectations, just a deep-seated desire to spend as much time as she could with the captivating brunette. And then…

“And then I had the best fucking night of my goddamn life,” she murmured, too blown away by it all to keep it inside. She huffed a laugh, marveling at the turn her life had taken, and dragged a hand through her hair as she rounded the corner of Lydia’s cottage.

And then she pulled up short, her good mood vanishing in an instant as she spotted a gleaming black Range Rover parked in front of the cottage between hers and Lydia’s.

“Oh, fuck me.”

Kit and Jack had arrived.

For as much as she had been looking forward to seeing them, she didn’t want to do it smelling like sex in yesterday’s clothes. She wasn’t ashamed of a single thing she had done with Lydia, but she would very much rather avoid their teasing about her inability to keep her hands to herself.

She’d be the first to admit that it was a fair cop—and one that neither of them could avoid, either, given that she was actually the least slutty of the three of them. But talking about what she and Lydia had shared would cheapen it, and while it had been a fantastically fun romp, it was also more than that.

Because, while the orgasms had been amazing, what stood out to her even more were the moments of quiet conversation while they lazed about, catching their breath between rounds, talking about everything and nothing of consequence. Like everything else with Lydia, those moments had been easy. So incredibly, perfectly easy and natural. She had spoken of things she hadn’t thought about in years and, judging by the hushed, faraway look that clouded Lydia’s expression at times, the same had been true for her.

It would be a lie to say that Lydia’s appearance hadn’t been the first thing that grabbed her attention, but it was Lydia’s warm smile that danced in her eyes, lighting her entire face with her joy, and quick wit that had her absolutely enchanted.

She wasn’t naive; she knew that this was destined to be nothing more than a fling, but she didn’t want to degrade their connection by treating it like one. She wanted to lose herself in this strange, wonderful magic and explore it as deeply and thoroughly as she could.

And that meant avoiding Kit and Jack until she could talk to Lydia about how she would like them to act when they’re around the rest of the group, because the last thing she wanted was to do or say anything that would make her uncomfortable.

Zann gritted her teeth and peered as far down the protected path that led to the duo’s door. If they were on their way to the car, she could duck back down the walk to Lydia’s and wait until they’d disappeared again before hightailing it to her place.

She shook her head.

Hiding was generally beneath her, but right now, it seemed the wisest course of action. And it appeared the gods were on her side because, except for the rustle of the breeze through the palm trees overhead and the squee of seagulls swooping overhead, the world was silent.

She set her jaw as she took off, slipping past Kit and Jack’s place like she was back at Stonebridge and trying to avoid being caught returning to her dormitory after missing curfew. She breathed out a sigh of relief when she made it to her own front door unseen, and wasted no time slipping inside.

Her cottage had a similar layout to Lydia’s, with the front door opening to a cozy sitting area overlooking a private back patio that had a small sitting area, a compact kitchen built against the back wall just beyond the foyer, and the door to the bedroom and en suite opposite the front door. The pale wood floors and furnishings upholstered in varying shades of blue and white paid homage to their proximity to the sea were lovely and relaxing, but Zann didn’t pay attention to any of it as she left her boots by the door, draped her leather jacket on the back of the sofa, and hustled into the bedroom.

Because she had delayed so long in leaving Lydia’s, she had exactly twenty-five minutes to get ready. Which was going to be tight.

Very, very tight.