Summary: Good thing Andrea's a terrific cook, because Sharon's had a hell of a day and there's hours' worth of Christmas preparations to be done. She's not sure just what she needs tonight but she's pretty sure it has nothing to do with slaving over a hot stove. A luscious Christmas treat :-)

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The bubbles had little gold sparkles in them. For some reason this struck Sharon as hilarious and just a touch magical. Maybe it was the champagne in the plastic flute on the edge of the tub. There were bubbles there, too, golden and drifting up to the top of the glass.

She should be in the kitchen helping Andrea. That's what a good…girlfriend? Partner? Lover? Anyway, however she thought of her status, she should be in there. Tonight was the calm before the storm of friends and family descending on their condo for Christmas dinner, if you could call the whirlwind of chopping and prepping "calm."

The problem with having a professional colleague as your girlfriend is that when you've had a horrible day at work, they know it. Sharon would have liked to pretend she hadn't had to do a death notification on Christmas Eve, that there wasn't an unsolved murder waiting for her back at the office. But Andrea had been there, and had seen and heard everything.

She'd seen when Sharon went into her office and pulled the door shut, right before she closed the blinds. It only lasted for a few minutes, but Sharon knew she'd looked wan and grim when she finally came out. She'd been planning to forgo her usual wine for a shot of Scotch tonight…until she got home, hours after Andrea had called it a day.

Andrea had met her with a glass of champagne, an incongruous choice until she opened the master bathroom door with a flourish. The oversized infinity-symbol-shaped tub was already filling with hot water and bubbles, and the most heavenly scent of toffee and honey filled the air.

It made sense then, why Andrea has substituted plastic for their usual good crystal.

Now, thirty minutes later, a naked, silky-skinned Sharon Raydor, just a little tipsy from the sparkling champagne, was finally feeling the day melt away, and the Christmas spirit, little by little, was taking its place.

"You look like you're in a better mood." Andrea shut the bathroom door behind her and sat on the edge of the tub…a broad ceramic ledge that provided ample room for a silk flower arrangement, bath oils, and occasionally the bare bottom of one while the other knelt on the thick white bath rug.

"I am, thanks." Sharon sat up and smiled at the elegant blonde, who still had that serene, angelic look even after two hours in the kitchen. Honestly, Sharon thought, rolling her eyes, who makes their own turkey stock these days? Or fussed over making the perfect turkey gravy a day ahead of time, "to let the flavors fully develop?"

Just Andrea. And maybe Rusty, if he hadn't still been on the last day of a winter break ski trip.

Sharon had decided that Andrea had come to urge her to finish her bath and either help out (which she could have done without, frankly) or join her in the bedroom (which sounded infinitely better), when her lover held out a small plastic bowl filled with a satiny golden-brown liquid.

"Could you taste this and tell me what you think? I used white pepper this time, and a little more rosemary."

Glossy gold-spangled bubbles slid down Sharon's shoulder, veiling her rose-tipped breasts for a second before sliding on down her ribs and stomach, finally meeting the water and leaving a faint trace of glitter where they'd been. A glance downward reminded Sharon of burlesque shows and a memorable sparkly night in a disco years ago, and she giggled, sloshing the champagne as she set her glass down.

"Glad to help, sweetheart." She looked at Andrea's other, empty hand. "There's no spoon." A slightly disappointed frown flickered over her features. The gravy did smell wonderful, and the sooner Andrea was happy with the outcome, the sooner the cooking could be over for the night.

"That's not a problem," the younger woman said, leaning forward to meet Sharon's eyes. She held her gaze until Sharon could feel the heat of her thoughts and her nipples tightened. What was Andrea—

Oh.

Oh, my.

Andrea was swirling a refined finger in the little bowl, gathering a healthy taste of turkey gravy and putting Sharon in mind of other finger-swirling, other gatherings.

"Open your mouth."

Andrea's eyes were dancing as Sharon obediently opened her lips and tried to ignore the feelings stirring under the blanket of bubbles. The younger woman didn't issue commands very often, but when she did, it went right to Sharon's clit.

She parted her lips, and her mouth was filled with the taste of rich roasted meat, herbs and spices, and a luscious hint of real butter.

And Andrea's finger, now stroking along her bottom lip. Sharon sucked it deep into her mouth again, lapping her tongue around the flesh of her finger, the slick hardness of the painted nail.

"It's delicious, Andrea. It's almost perfect." She smiled as she let Andrea's finger drop from her lips.

"Almost? What does it need?" Her cute frown, the scrunching of her forehead made Sharon feel guilty for a second.

"It needs some, what do you call it, some developing time, for all the flavors to come together. Isn't that what you always say?" Sharon arched her back as she spoke, letting her full breasts come completely out of the water, framed by the lacy foam. A tendril of her sloppy auburn topknot coiled down to accent one cheek. Andrea reached out to stroke the single long lock, then cupped Sharon's chin and leaned in for a soft kiss that quickly developed into more.

"I wonder if these bubbles will last a little longer," Sharon said, a bit breathless when they broke apart. Andrea had taken her shirt and bra off before she answered, bending to open the cabinet under the sink. Sharon's mouth watered at the sway of her breasts, the curve of her waist flowing down to her ass still covered by a court-worthy suit skirt.

"I picked up some bath melts in the same scent." She turned and her smile had turned wicked. "They don't foam up, but they'll make the water sweet-smelling and slick."

God, this woman was going to kill her before Christmas was over.

In the space of seconds, a gloriously naked DDA Hobbs stood in front of Sharon, creamy skin and golden curls, her own sweet-smelling slickness evident as she climbed gracefully into the tub.

They fit together like a Tetris set, facing each other. They were perfectly framed by the deep tub, the water and oils making them buoyant and slippery as they moved together. Andrea's long legs wrapped around Sharon's hips as the older woman leaned in, knees braced against her lover's sides. Sharon's sex feather-touched against Andrea, letting the water's movement tease them both as they cupped and pinched and probed and slowly lost themselves in each other.

They had just broken from another searing kiss when Sharon had a worrisome thought. Andrea was an excellent cook, but sometimes she became too focused on how everything tasted to attend to more practical matters.

"Andrea, honey, did you turn everything off before you came in here?" The last thing she wanted was their next moments interrupted by the smoke detector.

Andrea gave her that wicked smile again, and it still gave Sharon a little thrill that she was the only one who ever saw it. The blonde ran a leisurely palm over Sharon's right breast, then the left, squeezing the fullness before sliding down, past the waterline, past the auburn curls. The softened water was just enough of a lubricant to enhance the play of Andrea's fingers over Sharon's swelling folds and pulsing clit, enough to ease two fingers deep inside.

"Yes, Sharon, I turned everything off out there—" She broke off as she began a rhythm of stroking that made Sharon's head fall back against Andrea's supporting arm, her hips bucking enough to create tiny waves in the water.

"—before I decided to turn everything on in here," she finished, biting her lip as Sharon's fingers began their own explorations.

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The water was cooling, but neither woman was over post-orgasmic bliss enough to move. Sharon ran a little more hot water in to delay their exit by a few extra minutes. Andrea stirred lazily, her head resting against Sharon's breasts.

"So, do you like the bath treats? When I smelled them, I thought of honey candy…and you."

"Mmm…yes, I do. Very much." She dropped a kiss on top of Andrea's hair. "You smell good enough to eat." She chuckled, deep in her throat. "We both do."

Sharon turned Andrea's head so they could see each other, giving the younger woman a smile as wicked as she could manage.

"And now that you've got tomorrow's feast, including perfect gravy, under control, I think it's time to sample some dessert in the bedroom, don't you?"

Andrea the perfectionist chef apparently thought that was a fine idea, as she helped her toffee-scented lover out of the tub and into her arms.