Laboratory Love (2 page)

“Corine?”

I
jumped and spun around, heart beating in my throat.

Dark,
shaggy hair. Warm brown eyes.

Simon.

ToC

Chapter 2

Dammit.

Normally,
seeing Simon outside of normal work hours would be a good thing, but this
didn't constitute normal.

My
heart was racing, but I made my face relax. “Simon!” I said. “What are you
doing here so late?”

He
shrugged those rugged shoulders. "I just wanted to take a look at that
lipstick we were working on," he said. "I thought maybe a little
more-"

Simon
stopped and stared at me, his dark eyes thoughtful. At my lips. The attention
would have been gratifying any other time.

“Wow,
Corine,” he said. “I’ve never seen you use that color before. Or any color, for
that matter. Is that the project we were working on earlier?”

“Huh?”
I said.

“Your
lips,” he said. “Is that color for the spring line?”

“Oh!”
I said, my fingers flying instinctively to my mouth. “No! Not at all! I was
just, umm, practicing my pigment mixture. Yeah! Just practicing!”

I
winced internally. My voice sounded strangled even to me.

Simon
looked at me strangely. “Okay,” he said, taking a step back, hands raised
defensively. “No problem. Just checking.”

“Thanks!”
I said, praying my voice didn't sound as high-pitched to Simon as it did to me.
"Anyway, I was just heading out."

He
raised a hand in farewell. "See you tomorrow then, Corine," he said,
his gaze lingering on my bright red lips. Then he turned back toward his workstation.

I
immediately walked toward the exit, heart still pounding. Wow, but that was
close. Simon probably wouldn’t notice me even if I grew a beard, but he had
noticed my lips. If it caught even Simon’s attention, then
everybody
was going to
notice my slut-red lips. I definitely needed to get this stuff off when I got
home.

Even
though I was alone in my car, I felt self-conscious about my red pucker. I
ordered a grilled chicken sandwich at a drive-thru and instinctively covered my
mouth as I paid at the window. At red lights, I was sure the passengers in
other cars were staring at my lips. I felt like I was on display. I had never
been so relieved to get home as I was when I pulled into my apartment parking
lot.

*****

I
breathed a sigh of relief as I entered my apartment. I sat down to eat my
sandwich. The tingling in my lips was slightly stronger than it had been
earlier, but it still wasn't uncomfortable. My belly muscles were strangely
warm and my nipples were surprisingly hard. If I hadn't been distracted by
stress and anxiety, I'd have been tempted to satisfy myself.

Strange
what anxiety could do to you. Still, adolescents went on dates to horror movies
and roller coaster rides because the excitation transfer process often acted as
an aphrodisiac. I had had enough stress today to equal five horror movies, so
no surprise my body was reacting the way it was.

I
finished my dinner and renewed my assault on my offending lip color. I tried a
whole range of home remedies for removing stubborn lipstick. I even resorted to
using olive oil from my pantry. Nothing made a dent in the shiny, lustrous
appearance. It would probably be the perfect lipstick, but only if the wearer
could remove at the end of the night.

I
really
wasn't happy. I was going to have to chemically counter-act my
lipstick tomorrow. Still, the possibilities were there. I just needed to create
a remover for the lipstick.

And
strangely enough, I was still slightly aroused. Nerves, no doubt, but still
odd.

Well,
too bad for my hormones. I was going straight to sleep and getting up early.
That way I could get to the lab before Simon or anyone else and take care of my
embarrassing problem.

Unfortunately,
I overslept.

*****

I
leaped up with a curse. Despite going to bed early, I'd slept through my alarm.
In fact, I still felt groggy and could have gladly gone back to sleep for
another three or four hours. But I had miles to go before I slept again.

I
was really late. No shower for me today. I paused briefly as I passed the
mirror to check my lips. Still bright red, unfortunately. There was no help for
it. I couldn't get it off and I couldn't even tone it down with a less-intense
shade. I was going to have to wear it at work and simply hope nobody noticed.

It
couldn't be
that
difficult. Simon had certainly never noticed me before
now. Why would he start now?

I
dashed into my closet and scrambled into a quick ensemble. I certainly wasn't
winning any fashion awards today, but it would do for the lab. I stepped into a
pair of sensible lab shoes and made my way to the kitchen. I grabbed my travel
mug, already pre-filled with pre-brewed coffee, and headed out the front door.

It
wasn't until I was nearly to my car that I noticed the problem with my lips.
And it was a big problem. A problem that made me pause before getting into my
car, despite my already running late.

My
lips were sensually sensitive. Very sensitive. Erogenous-zone sensitive.

I
ran my tongue along my upper lip and shuddered, accidentally dropping my coffee
and spilling it onto the parking lot. A moan escaped my lips. My nipples
hardened against my bra and my sex lubricated instantly.

This
was crazy! What the hell was happening?!

I
fanned my cheeks with my hands. I had to pull myself together. I was in a
public parking lot and I was tempted to satisfy myself on the spot.

Slowly,
carefully, I got my breathing under control. My heart rate dropped to a more
normal cadence. I unlocked my car and slid behind the wheel.

I
exhaled, hands gripping the steering wheel. Then I ran a finger over my lips,
shuddering as a wave of heat swept over me. The intensity was crazy. What the
hell was in my lipstick to cause this kind of reaction?

I
had no answers yet. But it was time to get to work. Ignoring my wet, overheated
sex, I put my car in gear and left for the lab.

And
tried not to orgasm.

*****

Somehow I made it to work without
crashing.

At
least today was Friday. If I could just make it to the end of the day without
Simon or anyone else asking questions about my illicit experimentation, I’d
have all weekend to get rid of the evidence and get this stuff off my lips. In
fact, it would probably wear off on its own by then. So I just needed to get
through the next couple hours without having a screaming orgasm in the lab and
I was home free.

I
entered the lab and walked straight toward my workstation. Simon was already at
his workplace.

"Good
morning," I said, mumbling as I passed him.

"Good
morning," he said, not looking up from his work.

So
far, so good.

I
made it to my workstation. My panties were soaked. It was time to get this lipstick
off.

I
threw open my spiral notebook. There had to be a clue in there somewhere. What
the hell did I add besides chrystalmic that could be causing these sensations?
I was-

"Corine?"

I
jumped. Simon was standing right in front of me, holding two cups of coffee. I
hadn't even noticed his approach.

"Yes?"
I said, focusing on my notebook, acting casual. Meeting Simon's gaze while in
this aroused state was likely a bad idea, so I made a show of looking over my
notes as I waited for him to speak.

"You
look like you could use some coffee," he said. "We need to- whoa. Are
you feeling all right?"

I
heard the catch in his voice and I looked up. "Am I feeling all right?
What do you mean?"

"You
look a little...flushed. And your lips are swollen," he said. Then he looked
closer. "Isn't that the same lipstick you had on last night? Your practice
pigment?"

Dammit.
He remembered. I needed a distraction. Fast.

“Coffee!
Thank goodness!" I said. "Gimme that!” I grabbed one of the coffees
and took a deep swallow. The sensations of the Styrofoam cup pressing against
my lips made me shudder. I nearly moaned into his coffee.

"Feeling
better?" said Simon, watching me with amusement.

I
tried not to wriggle. My belly muscles were fluttering. My panties were soaked.
Just drinking this coffee, pressing my lips against the rim of cup, was enough
to bring me dangerously close to orgasm.

Through
the haze of sensuous caffeination, I finally realized Simon was waiting for an
answer.

"Oh!"
I said. "Ummm, yes. Thank you. You should drink some of this coffee too.
It's excellent."

"Well,
I would," he said, "except I can't."

"Why
not?"

"Because
you just drank mine."

I
blushed, suddenly realizing the cup I had grabbed and drank from had actually
been partially emptied. Whoops.

"Ummm...sorry,"
I said.

He
shrugged. "Not a big deal," he said. He peered at me again. "Are
you sure you're okay...?"

"Yes!"
I said, louder than I had intended. "I'm fine! Quit asking!"

Simon
took a step back, hands raised defensively. "Of course," he said.
"Sorry. My bad."

He
set the other cup of coffee on my side table. Then he turned and walked toward
the break room.

I
sighed, mentally kicking myself. Nice job, Corine.

I
was going to have to be less abrasive with Simon. Alienating my co-workers
wasn't going to do me any good. And he was trying to help, even if he didn't
know what the problem was.

I
finished the coffee in one swallow and tossed the empty cup in the trash. Then
I walked to the break room. Simon was there, pouring himself another cup of java.

“Sorry
about that,” I said. “I’m just a little cranky.”

“It’s
fine,” he said. “I'm sure you’re stressed.”

"Yeah,"
I said, squirming. "Stressed."

I
pressed my knees together, breathing deep.

"I
know I keep asking," he said, "but
are
you all right?"

"Yes,"
I said, nodding, trying not to press against him. “Sorry I drank your coffee.”

Simon
shrugged. “Not a big deal,” he said. Then he went back to his workstation. And
it took everything I had not to follow him, because suddenly I could smell him.

I
could smell him.

It
was a heady, masculine scent, and it filled my lungs. His smell was doing
something crazy to me. My mouth was lubricating like crazy. I wanted to taste
him. I wanted his cock in my mouth, his sperm in my belly. Something was wrong
with me. With my mouth.

With
my lips.

I
suddenly turned and stalked my way to the bathroom. I looked in the mirror. And
now that I was staring at my reflection, I realized I had another issue. Simon
had pointed it out, but I was so distracted that I had missed the significance
of his observation.

My
lips were swelling. Really swelling. It wasn’t painful- in fact, it was in the
opposite spectrum of sensation from pain- but my lips were thickening. And
thick, plump lips with a color as striking as this was going to attract far
more attention than was good for me right now.

That
and the fact that I was so fucking aroused, I wanted to cry.

Simon
was a brilliant chemist. Part of what made him so good was his ability to focus
on what was in front of him to the exclusion of everything else in the
vicinity. But even Simon couldn’t miss his overheated lab partner running
around with swollen red lips. I needed to get out of here before he started
asking questions. I'd come back tonight after everybody left. Maybe I'd get
lucky and the issue would already be resolved by then. But either way, I needed
to get out of sight.

I
made my way back out to the lab and found Simon at his workstation. As usual.

“Hey,
Simon,” I said. “You're right. I’m not feeling very well. I’m going to leave a
little early today, okay?”

“I’m
sorry to hear that,” he said, his face showing concern. “Are you okay? Do you
need anything?”

“No,
I’m fine,” I said, shaking my head. “Just feeling a little touch of something,
that’s all.”

“Okay,”
he said. “I hope you feel better. See you on Monday.”

Home
free.

“Doctor
Banford shouldn’t be here long anyway, so once he’s gone, you can slip right
out.”

I
stiffened. “Dr. Banford? He’s here?! What’s he doing here?”

Simon
looked at me oddly. Again. “He’s the lab supervisor. He can come by here any
time he wants.”

Whoops.
“I mean, why is he here now? Is he looking for something?”

“Just
a quick, informal end-of-week check on our progress,” said Simon. “It shouldn’t
take long. In fact, he’s right outside the lab in the meeting room.”