Twisted Up (15 page)

She picked up the phone and pressed the On/Off button at the top. Sliding the lock bar down, she pressed the envelope icon on the screen. Sure enough, the text was from him.

Going to sleep. Miss you, baby.

As the previous messages had done, this one made her smile too. He thought about her, likely as much as she thought about him. She really wasn’t sure what to make of it. No man had ever affected her like Justin. Was this really what love was? She’d thought she’d felt love before, but this was different than anything else.

She typed him back.
Miss you too. Sleep well. Talk soon.

She turned the phone off and dropped it in her purse. She’d shower and head to the conference room. There was a test to give, which she honestly didn’t understand. Only through experience could they actually master the materials and information they were given. Practical application was the key, but corporate wanted written documentation that employees were present and accounted for, that they were paying some sort of attention to what she was saying.

She’d be happier when the new training system she’d been working on could be implemented. The test system would be up and running in a couple of months, just in time for the new property in Houston to open. The front office staff would take tests on the computers and every ninety days they’d have a quality assurance re-test to take for re-evaluation.

The job made her happy, kept her mind sharp, kept her thinking and experiencing. It kept her occupied until night came and she was alone with her thoughts. Television didn’t interest her save for the weather channel so she would know what to pack. She liked to read, and her guilty pleasure was romance novels. However, when she read them, her mind inevitably turned to Justin. She cooked and cleaned and sometimes went out with friends, and the fact that she was alone, that she’d chosen it, wasn’t lost on her.

She was still lonely though. That hadn’t changed. And honestly, she was tired of thinking about it, tired of living it. She just didn’t know exactly what to do about it.

That was a complete lie too. She knew what to do—she just hadn’t decided to do it. He was waiting for her and would welcome her with open arms should she show up on his doorstep, but it was what happened next that she didn’t know and truth be told, that’s what concerned and scared her more than anything.

She’d once heard it said that if you have to choose between two lovers, choose the second one because if you’d really been in love with the first one, you wouldn’t have fallen for the second. She was separated, officially, on her way to divorce when she met Justin. She’d thought long and hard about leaving her marriage. Had tried to stay and make it work. Had tried to change who she was even more to make it work, It was when her ex had chosen watching the NFL draft on television over spending some time with her, over pausing the recording for a few minutes, over the nap he’d claimed to need right before he remembered the show he’d wanted to watch that something inside her head clicked and something inside her heart had shut down.

Justin was different though. He’d chosen her and kept choosing her. She came first. Whenever she said she could see him, he never hesitated. Whenever, wherever, however, he would show up, he would give her his undivided attention. But could weekends of sex and lust and hunger turn into a life spent together? Would he take her for granted? Would she do it to him? Would they end up as roommates? God, she didn’t want to travel that road again. It was painful and alienating and sad. Sh—

Her phone beeped again, dragging her from her thoughts. She couldn’t be happier about that at the moment and pulled her phone from her purse.

You should go without panties today.

Ella’s mouth dropped open. She typed back.
I can’t do that.

Why not?

She’d known he was going to ask that as much as she knew he knew what her response would be.
I’m at work.

So? I’m not saying you have to show anyone.

He had a point. Still, she had planned on wearing a black skirt she’d purchased in a little boutique shop yesterday during lunch, but now she was rethinking that. Would it be best to go without panties if she wore pants instead? She honestly didn’t know. She’d never done anything like it.

It’d be sexy and it’d make me happy.

And there it was, that extra little temptation, that extra little nudge. It would make him happy. How long had it been since anyone had wanted her to make them happy? How long had it been since she
could
make someone happy? She didn’t know if her husband had ever been happy with her or with anything about their life together. He’d never said, at least not while they were married. Now, yes, he seemed.

So did she.

Okay, but only because you think it’ll be sexy.
There was no reason to give him a bigger ego than he already had.

Good. Send me a picture up your skirt.

I didn’t say I was going to wear a skirt.

So? Wear one.

Dictatorial bastard.

Hey, I remember that word.

LOL. I’m sure you do.

One of their early trivia nights at the bar had included a word game that went from table to table. The rules had been to start the next word in a sequence with the last letter of the previous word. He’d used the word bastard, and she’d used the word dictatorial. The memory made her smile. She’d always loved word games and trivia and Jeopardy. Her ex hadn’t been able to stand them, but Justin… He’d made them even more fun for her than usual. He was light and vibrant and quick witted. He could come up with answers or words without thinking too hard and had oftentimes been correct.

Going to sleep. Take me a picture. Call me later.

Okay times three.

Miss you, baby.

Me too.

She turned off the phone and slipped it back in her purse again. The skirt was already laid out on the other bed. The sheer lavender blouse hung in the closet and her black sandals, the new ones with the wedge heel were sitting by the door. She’d bought a new lavender bra and matching panties set, but it appeared she’d been leaving the lacy panties behind.

Another smile flitted across her lips as she wiggled out of her yoga pants and pulled the tank top over her head. Only in private would she wear something like a tank top or such form-fitting pants. She’d lost weight. She’d gained some strength and some definition, but she hadn’t gained the confidence needed to go out in clothes that would cling to her curves..

It had been good for her, though, taking up yoga. Until today that is, when she found she couldn’t stop thinking of the cowboy in Texas waiting for her.
Waiting. For her.
The thought was novel, but she knew it was true. He was waiting to see what she would do.
She
was waiting to see what she would do.

She turned on the shower and grabbed the vanilla body wash off the marble countertop. Taking a whiff of the sweet-smelling soap, she sighed. She should send for some cupcakes for everyone today. It would be a nice treat for them after the long training sessions they’d had the last few days. Perhaps she’d send out for some coffee too. There was a Starbuck’s just two doors down from the hotel.

Her mouth was already watering at the idea of coffee and cupcakes. A quick scrub and washing of her hair, and she was out of the shower in no time, dried and with her teeth brushed before she walked out to get her pan—

“Crap. Not wearing panties today,” she muttered as she turned and headed back to the bathroom. Blow-drying her hair didn’t take long, neither did the application of moisturizer and a little powder. Digging through her make-up bag for the mascara, her fingers brushed against the small light blue bullet vibrator, and without her conscious mind realizing it, she pulled it out and depressed the small button on the bottom.

The little toy buzzed to life in her hand.

She had gotten herself off each night she’d been in New Orleans, sometimes more than once, as she was unable to keep the thoughts of Justin naked, Justin sliding into her, Justin holding her down, Justin spanking her out of her head. Holding the bullet firmly, she touched the top of it to her right nipple. Her eyes connected with her reflection in the mirror and strangely kept watching as she circled the erect tip. It became firmer and sensitive the longer she teased it. She moved the toy over, never breaking eye or skin contact, to the left breast where she repeated the same slow circling around that nipple. Her breasts felt swollen and heavier the longer she teased and manipulated.

A soft moan escaped and brought her gaze up from her mirrored breast to her eyes. Her pupils were darker, dilated. She lowered her gaze to her lower lips and found them to be redder, fuller than she normally thought they were.

Her skin took on a flush that had nothing to do with the residual steam in the room as she trailed the toy between her breasts to her belly. She drew swirls on her skin around her belly button before taking the toy farther to the top of her mound.

She’d shaved last night and sent up a prayer of thanks for the new shaving creams and gels and lotions that allowed her to shave one night and be baby smooth for the next day or so.

With her free hand, she reached and parted the lips of her pussy. The wetness she found there had nothing to do with her recent shower. It was her constant companion now. It was all because of Justin, all because of the awakening that had taken place in his arms.

She touched the toy to her clit for a brief second before pulling it away again. She slid it through her labia, twirling it through her juices before circling it against her clit again, just around the edges for a moment, for such a brief moment before pressing it and holding it to the tight, hard button.

“Oh.”

Her eyes closed and she leaned forward to rest her hand on the counter, bracing herself. The vibrations made her knees weak, the longer she stroked, the longer she pictured Justin in her mind.

He’d like this. He’d like to watch her masturbate for him. He’d like to see her pleasuring herself, getting lost in the sensations. She would like it too, once she got beyond the initial embarrassment of touching herself in front of another person. She didn’t imagine it would take her long to get over it though. His effect on her was that strong.

She imagined him standing behind her, watching in the mirror, maybe standing off to the side just a bit. He’d just let his gaze travel up and down her body, stopping to focus on wherever her hands happened to be at any given time.

Her breasts would swell under his stare as they were swollen now. Her legs would get restless and spread a little wider, exactly as they did now. Her gaze would clash with his and then drop, move away from the intensity only to be drawn back by a rough whisper. Only after he had her complete attention tugged and torn between him and her body humming for release would he bid her to watch herself in the mirror again, to see herself as he saw her. Beautiful. Sensual. Sexy.

“Yes,” she whispered to his imaginary form.

She pressed the button on the bullet again and the speed increased. She jolted forward, thankful to be braced against the counter. Her legs bent at the knees, and she rocked her hips back and forth as she put more pressure on her clit.

The vibrations drove her, and in her mind’s eye, in that place just off to the side of her where he watched from, he lowered his jeans and took his cock in his hand. She loved him in jeans. She never wanted to see him in anything else. Nothing else would look right on those lean hips, cradling his balls, shaping his ass.

He moved his hand up and down the shaft, his thumb and forefinger closing over the head as he pulled up, paused, and then let his fist drift down again. Faster and faster, in time with her own undulations, with her own increased hunger for orgasm, he mimicked her frenzy.

She watched him in her head as she watched her own image through the looking glass. She’d never watched herself masturbate, never watched the changes that came over her as she peaked and fell over the edge into bliss. She’d never seen the pure beauty of her own sexuality until right in that moment. He was the muse for her, the inspiration that tugged her toward the cliff, the voice that urged her to fly over.

“Justin. Justin. Justin.” His name was a litany, a prayer, a pleading on her lips. Her fingers curled into themselves on the counter, and she pushed the button one more time with her thumb. The speed rocketed her higher until her orgasm broke through.

It started in her toes—they tingled. It raced up her legs—they also tingled. It flooded her sex with pulsing vibrations making her inner muscles clench tight and release. She didn’t let up on the pressure. She just moved the end of the bullet all around her clit, its edges and just below where another jolt of pleasure had her groaning low and incoherent.

The man in her mind grunted his own release and she could have sworn she felt it, could have sworn he was right there with her, sharing the erotic moment instead of just being a figment of her aroused imagination.

She lifted up on her toes and felt the trembling in her thighs, the quiver in her stomach, the release of swollen pressure in her breasts. She sighed as the tail end of the orgasm flowed through her and slowly lowered herself back to the floor and turned the toy off.

She smiled softly at the woman staring back at her and waited to return to normal. Although she wasn’t quite sure what normal was anymore. Change was good and she was learning to both like and embrace it, even if that meant she was scared of it at first. Justin was a good example of change. He was young and outgoing. He was a homebody as much as he was a guy who liked to go out and party. He loved his friends, given how much he used to talk about them and he adored his family. He was the life of wherever he was and she was the wallflower.

Maybe opposites really did attract.

Her cheeks were a little rosy, but she needed to get moving. Picking up the toiletries from the counter, Ella went out to the bedroom area of the hotel room and packed up her suitcase. She put some lotion on her legs and arms before she slipped the skirt up her lower body, zipping it on the side. She tried to ignore the fact that it slid over her bare behind with a soft caress and simply focused on the fact that it swished around her knees. It was one of the things that had prompted her to buy it. She loved light, flowing, swishy skirts.