Love Bite (Just One Bite #1) (5 page)

“I've had two
girlfriends since high school, and they were good relationships. One lasted for
two years, and the other lasted nearly three. I knew in my heart that they
wouldn’t last forever, but I enjoyed them while they lasted,” Lizbeth said with
a small smile. “I cared deeply for the both of them, and I missed the
relationships when they ended, but they both grew tired of life in Delaware and
moved away. There were no hard feelings, but we never attempted to make it into
a long distance deal. I've been single for the last three years, so I
concentrated all my attention on my work. One of my exes moved back here, but
we stopped talking a long time ago. Being single was easier, I guess, than
trying to pick up the pieces and rebuild a relationship that wasn't the
greatest to begin with.”

Lizbeth
covered Diandra's hand with her own. “We've both had a rough time. You spent
your early years alone, and I spent mine preferring to be that way. Maybe
together we could be more. I won't push you, but I would like to give us a
chance and see where this all may lead. You're my best friend and I don't want
that to change, but I think we could build a solid relationship on the basis of
this friendship. What do you think?” Lizbeth sipped from her water glass, the
remainder of her lunch untouched in front of her as she anxiously awaited
Diandra's response.

Diandra took a
deep breath and put her fingers under Lizbeth's chin, patiently waiting for eye
contact. “I think that no matter how things turn out for us, I live in a house
with too many bedrooms. You can have your pick of any of them except for mine
for now. I'm not ready to share a room. I can't make you any promises for the
future, but I can promise I will try. This is entirely new to me and I'm
nervous, but I'm tired of living alone, and this is a start.”

Lizbeth agreed
to pack up her things and move in that night. Diandra paid the bill and they
walked to their respective cars hand in hand. This time they both heard the
growling, but they attributed it to the incoming storm.

The women got
off to a rough start, adjusting both to living together and building a
relationship, but by the time Diandra was 35 weeks pregnant they had settled
into their own routine. They spent most of their time together learning more
about each other's lives, all the little details that shaped them into the
women they were today.

Once some of
the newness wore off and comfort set in, they found new ways to spend their
evenings. They went on fun outings occasionally on the weekends. One weekend
would find them browsing antique shops, searching for some special piece that
might resonate with them and find a home with them. Another weekend they might
drive to Baltimore, Maryland and explore the tourist areas. Wherever they went
they bought some little memento of their trip to remind them of their time
together. They still kept separate bedrooms, and they both felt this was for
the best, at least until they agreed they were ready to take that next step.

Diandra spent
her days organizing charity drives. The money that was accumulated went to
setting up special programs for the homeless, including detox houses and low
income apartments. The homeless could move into these apartments rent-free
until they started earning money. After they found work they would start making
small rent payments until they saved enough to find homes of their own. She
also helped them find job placement facilities so they could get back on their
feet. She went to bed each night feeling tired but fulfilled.

Lizbeth kept
busy working both current and cold cases at the local police station. Alexar
started her on the cold case files culled from other departments. She
successfully helped close every case he gave her, a feat that no one had ever
imagined possible, so he moved her onto active cases. Soon she was the newest
rising star on the force and earned the nickname, “Bulldog” among the rest of
the team- as soon as she sank her teeth into a case, she worried at it until it
was solved. She had a unique way of looking at things, and would twist and turn
a case in her head, imagining it as a puzzle board. Each piece of data she
accumulated was another puzzle piece, and she worked until the whole picture
was visible. She compiled the data- it was the district attorney's office that
had the responsibility of making sure the puzzle wouldn't fall apart.

But, contrary
to what went on during normal working hours, one case still eluded her, and she
spent all her spare time trying to solve it- the case that had gotten her
kicked off the force. She'd uncovered a trail of intrigue leading all the way
up to an assistant district attorney. The problem was she had no actual proof,
only hearsay. Snitches confided in her, but no one would go on the record. They
were terrified at the thought of being forced to testify. Everyone talked about
doing their civic duty, but no one wanted to be the first to make sure the duty
was complete. No one could tell her how the drugs were getting smuggled into
the country, and she still had to identify all the cops in on the corruption.
She needed real evidence to close this case, not just her own gut and a few
snitches who wouldn't even testify if the case made it to court.

Lizbeth knew
her own former chief was in on the drug smuggling up to his bushy gray
eyebrows. The head of Internal Affairs was clean but too easily swayed. He'd
swiftly shifted his focus from Lizbeth's case to compiling false evidence
against her with a gentle push from the head of the Narcotics division. She
still burned with righteous anger when she remembered being called on the
carpet before them both, being reprimanded, fired, and then escorted out of the
precinct by her own colleagues. IAB had a lot to answer for, but it wasn’t
corruption- the real crime there was incompetence.

Lizbeth had
spent her spare time watching the cops she thought were corrupt. She'd narrowed
her list to two men from Narcotics- Detective Ronald Michaels and Sergeant
Miguel Rodriguez. Both men had many years on the job and they had more money
than their positions warranted. Detective Michaels' wife was a neurosurgeon, so
Lizbeth felt pretty confident that her income explained the “extras” in their
lives. Although she was keeping her eye on both men for the moment, Sergeant
Rodriguez was the one she was most concerned with. The man drove a year-old BMW
that his income should not have been able to purchase for him. He shouldn’t be
able to afford loan payments as well as his other bills, and he certainly
couldn’t afford to buy brand new on his income. No, Miguel Rodriguez definitely
stayed on her short list.

After putting
in long days on their respective jobs, both women looked forward to coming
home. Margaret prepared lovely meals that they shared by candlelight in the
dining room. Most evenings the women then curled up in the parlor together,
each with a book in her hand. Other evenings they preferred lying in Diandra's
bed to watch some television before Lizbeth retired to her own bedroom for the
evening. The lingering kisses they exchanged before parting gave them something
sweet to dream on.

The women also
used a few weekends during these last several months to turn the spare bedroom
next to the master suite into a nursery. They decorated the crib in soothing
blues, greens and yellows. Lizbeth took a day off of work and surprised Diandra
by painting jungle scenes on the walls. All the baby clothes were washed,
folded and put away in the oak dresser. The matching changing table was already
stocked with diapers, baby wipes and other necessities. A coordinating oak
rocking chair was in the corner in the room. The cushions matched the jungle-
themed bedroom, and the chair sat waiting for the day Diandra would sit
rocking, nursing her newborn baby.

Lizbeth also
either went in to work late or left work early to make sure she attended every
single prenatal appointment. Diandra had several sonograms done to make sure
the baby was growing properly. Lizbeth held her hand and both women cried when
they saw the image of the baby on the screen for the first time. They talked
about it a few times, and they decided not to find out the sex of the baby.
They agreed that it would be wonderful to be surprised when the big day came.
Over dinner in the evenings they debated over baby names, sometimes choosing
bizarre names just to make the other laugh.

So while they still
slept in separate bedrooms the women grew closer each day. A gentle intimacy
settled between the pair, occasionally spiced with passionate kisses and gentle
caresses over their clothing. Diandra backed away before the encounters between
them could grow any more heated. Part of it was guilt, although Jonah had been
gone nearly six months. The largest hurdle was her own body- she was
embarrassed by the weight she's gained during the pregnancy, no matter how many
times Lizbeth assured her she was both beautiful and radiant. She was already a
plus- sized woman- the pregnancy merely enlarged every part of her body. She
couldn't shake the image in her head, and her self- esteem was at an all- time
low. She knew most pregnant women felt good in their own skin, but that
certainly didn’t apply to her.

Lizbeth got
home promptly at six that night, exhausted from wrapping up a difficult case.
She had visions dancing in her head of an early dinner, a long, hot bubble bath
and a full night's sleep. All her thoughts scattered once she unlocked the
front door and stepped into the foyer. The scent of vanilla hit her first,
wafting up from the fat pillar candles on the floor. She followed the path
through the parlor and up the spiral staircase. At the top there were two paths-
one led to her room and the other to Diandra's. She spotted a note hanging from
a beam a few feet from her own bedroom door.

Lizbeth
reached up to remove the note from the string that secured it to the beam. It
simply read, “Go to your room first.” Curious, she shrugged but opened the
door. On the bed sat a box, another note attached to the top. When she picked
up this note, she noticed it smelled of Diandra's favorite perfume. She inhaled
deeply before reading it, all the tension draining from her body at the
familiar scent. “Use the contents of this box and come to my door.”

Intrigued now,
she opened the box and gasped. Nestled in lavender tissue paper was a lacy
negligee with matching thigh high stockings and garter belts. The outfit was
the same shade of sky blue as her eyes. Lizbeth hastily slipped out of her work
clothes and slid into the soft material, thankful she had shaved her legs that
morning. Considering, she opened her closet and removed the heels she'd bought
on impulse last week. The midnight blue stilettos perfectly complimented the
negligee. She slid her hose-clad feet into the shoes and secured the jeweled
straps around her ankles. Running a brush through her hair, she then hurried
down the hall, not noticing in her haste that the breeze of her passing blew
out a few of the candles along the way.

Lizbeth opened
the door and took in the scene in front of her. The sleigh bed was made up with
black silk sheets, red rose petals decorating them like random drops of blood.
A low, bluesy number drifted through the room from the sound system in the
corner. She heard the bathroom door open behind her. When she turned, Diandra
stood in the middle of the bedroom floor, naked and proud. She tossed back her
flame-colored hair and said, “I decided if I dressed I might back down again.
Instead I decided to wear nothing. Come here.”

Saying
nothing, Lizbeth walked across the room. Reverently she stroked the back of her
hand down Diandra's face all the way to her hip. Leaning in, she kissed the
unpainted lips before her. A little moan escaped her as Diandra nipped her
bottom lip lightly with her teeth. She backed up towards the bed, tugging
Diandra over to stand between her legs in front of her. She whispered
,
“So many months I've waited for this,” before lifting one
of Diandra's full breasts to her mouth and sucking the nipple in. She teased
and taunted the other nipple with nimble fingers, drawing moan after moan from
Diandra, hand clutching the foot board of the bed to keep from falling.

Lizbeth guided
one of Diandra's legs up on the bed and supported her low back with both hands.
The scent of roses filled the air as several of them were crushed in the process.
She slowly slid her lace-clad body down the front of Diandra's, eliciting
another soft cry from those parted lips to blend perfectly with the music
playing largely unnoticed in the background. She delighted in the mingling heat
and scent of arousal before expertly slipping a tongue into Diandra's folds.
Gently she nipped and sucked, listening to the cries of pleasure from above
her. Lizbeth kept the tip of her tongue flicking Diandra's clit over and over
again in quick motions, dragging her over first one orgasm and then another.
Then Lizbeth laid her down gently on the bed and climbed up next to her. She
wondered if perhaps she'd pushed too far too fast, but was afraid to ruin the
moment by asking. She leaned in to kiss her once more, long and lingering,
teasing Diandra's tongue with her own.

Diandra
finally broke the kiss on a gasp. She was amazed and a little flustered to
taste her own juices on Lizbeth's tongue and lips. “That was... there are no
words to describe how incredible that felt. I want to make you feel that good.
I want to learn how to satisfy your body. I want you to tell me exactly how to
please you in return.” Sensing an argument brewing, she put her fingers to
Lizbeth's lips. “Please.”

Lizbeth gasped
as Diandra hesitantly put her hand up under the lace at the bottom of the
negligee to finger the soft, brown curls she found there. She unfastened the
tiny straps of the stilettos and slipped them off. She climbed onto the bed,
standing up and facing the wall, gripping the head board for balance as she
spread her legs.