Chapter 19: Now You See It....
Two Weeks Later
Natalia sighed, a happy whimper escaping her lips as she stretched, fully enjoying the sensation of her muscles loosening as she arched backwards into the body behind her.
"If you keep doing that we are so not getting out of this bed."
She smiled, delighted by Olivia's playful whisper, as well as the strong arms that wrapped around her and pulled her back against soft skin and gentle curves. She wiggled her backside, snuggling even closer; purring deep in her throat as the older woman's body heat took the chill off the cool morning air. She heard Olivia swallow and grinned as fingertips trailed a feather-like touch across her belly
"You really want us to be late this morning, don't you?" She rasped.
"MMmmm." The brunette couldn't resist stretching again, hungry to feel the sensitive skin of her back brushing across Olivia's breasts. "Have I ever told you how much I love your voice in the morning?"
"No... I don't think so."
"Well I do." Natalia grabbed the arms wrapped around her and pulled them tighter. "It's low and it's deep and I swear sometimes I can feel it..." A gentle blush pinked her cheeks as she turned her head to whisper into her pillow. "...inside me..."
Olivia's eyebrows crawled up her forehead. "Really? You mean..." Her lips curved into a gentle smile as she leaned forward, her nose nuzzling into the younger woman's ear. "Like when my fingers are buried between your legs... the tips curving to reach that little spot that makes your toes curl and your breath catch..."
Natalia shuddered, her thigh muscles clenching involuntarily as her body reacted to Olivia's words. "Oh..!" She turned her head to the side, biting down on her lower lip when Olivia's teeth grazed the skin on her neck.
"Or..." The blond slid her hand down, letting her fingers play across the tightly trimmed hair between her lover's legs. "...is it more like... when you're about to come apart... and I can feel you tighten around my fingers... feel you flutter against my hand..." She swallowed. "...or my tongue..."
"Jesus..." The younger woman twitched, her body moving restlessly against the warmth at her back. "Olivia..." She growled.
"Hey, you started it."
Natalia rolled over, capturing the older woman's face between her palms for a long slow kiss. She had just slid one hand behind Olivia's neck and tucked a knee between her thighs when she heard the bedroom door open. Moving away, she breathed in deeply and closed her eyes for a moment, trying to get herself under control.
"Mommy?" Emma peeked her head into the room. "Momma?"
"Good morning, jellybean!"
She could hear the laughter in Olivia's voice and shot her a dirty look. "Hey baby!" She smiled, tucking the sheets around her body tightly as the little girl jumped on the end of the bed and began to bounce up and down. "What's up?"
"You guys are sleeping too long!" Emma whined. "I don't want to miss the bus!"
"Oh!" Natalia slapped her forehead playfully. "Does camp start today? I totally forgot!" She laughed at the shocked look on her daughter's face. "I'm just playing, baby. We're getting up right now and we'll make sure you get the best seat on the bus, okay?"
Emma's face lit up. "Okay!"
"Hey!" Olivia held the sheet over her chest modestly as she ruffled the little girl's hair. "You're going to be gone all weekend. You gonna miss us?"
"I guess." Emma shrugged, giggling at the look on her mother's face as she ran out of the room.
"You guess??" Olivia called after her, her lips quirking as she stared after her laughing child.
"She gets more and more like you every day." Natalia shook her head, laughing.
"Worried you'll have to deal with two of us?"
Natalia bit her lower lip as she climbed out of bed. "Why should I worry?" She smiled brightly. "I've almost got you completely trained..."
Olivia lunged at her, landing on her stomach when the younger woman successfully dodged her assault. Jumping up, she tried to follow her into the bathroom, frowning when she found the door locked against her. "Hey? What gives?"
"If I let you in here there is no way Emma is making her bus." Natalia called out through the door. "So I am going to shower first. You go make her breakfast and then I'll clean up while you get ready."
"Are you sure that's the way you want to do it?" She leaned against the door, scratching at it lightly with her fingernails. "I could wash your back..."
"You washing my back is not what will make us late!" Natalia laughed. "It's how thoroughly you tend to wash...other areas!"
"It's not my fault you're a dirty girl..." Olivia whispered, smiling when she heard something hit the floor on the other side. "Now let me in... or I'll huff and I'll puff..." She trailed one finger down the center of the door. "You know... in the original story... the Big Bad Wolf ate Little Red Riding Hood..."
"You're mixing your metaphors." The younger woman's voice cracked slightly.
"Let me in and I promise you won't care..."
"Olivia!" She heard Natalia clear her throat and could picture her standing there, naked, her hand against her throat as her body trembled. "Go. Feed. Our. Daughter."
"Okay, okay..." She laughed as she pulled on her robe. "But trust me... an hour from now? You're going to wish you'd let me in..."
Natalia listened to her lover's laughter as it faded away down the stairs. She looked at herself in the mirror, taking in the tightness of her nipples and the light sheen of sweat that covered her chest and arms. "Trust me." She whispered. "I'm not even going to last the hour..."
* * * * * * *
"Emma, you didn't finish your pancakes."
"I can't eat that one, mommy!"
Natalia stopped in the hallway leading into the kitchen, leaning up against the wall as she listened to Olivia and Emma talking.
"What? Why not?"
"Because! It's ugly!"
Natalia bit her lip at Olivia's indignant response. "It is not! You said you wanted it in the shape of a heart!"
"That's not a heart."
"Yes it is, jellybean. It's just... realistic. Here, put some strawberry syrup on it..."
"Eeew! Mommy, that's gross!"
Unable to keep from laughing out loud, the younger woman stepped into the kitchen. She took one look at the plate in front of her daughter and snickered, "That is gross, mommy."
"Ya think?" Olivia grabbed her around the waist and pulled her close. "Well, if you had let me shower first you could have made her a plateful of perfect little hearts." She tapped her on the nose. "Just like yours..."
Natalia melted inside. "Sweet talker." She kissed her lightly. "You just want me to clean up this mess."
"Actually," She handed Natalia a glass of juice and half a bagel while she munched on the other half. "I have some errands to run before work. Why don't you take Emma to meet the bus and then head in? I'll clean up and meet you there when I'm done."
The brunette frowned. "Again? That's the third time this week." She sipped her juice thoughtfully. "Is everything all right, Olivia?"
The older woman smiled, wrapping her up in a warm hug. "Everything's fine. I just need to see Doris about the menu for her luncheon and then meet with some suppliers for the Fourth of July Gala..." She glanced away casually when Natalia tried to meet her eyes. "Nothing big, but I need to take care of it."
"Why don't you get ready and we'll take care of it together?"
"No..." Olivia shook her head. "The suppliers are all over town and there's no point in both of us getting bogged down today. Besides, you have to meet with Greg at ten to go over the convention room scheduling."
Natalia nodded, looking down as she agreed softly. "All right."
"Hey." Olivia tucked one finger under the brunette's chin, using it to pull her face up so that she could look into her eyes. "I love you."
"I know." The younger woman gave her a wan smile. "I love you, too." She accepted the older woman's goodbye kiss then watched her as she walked out of the kitchen. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that when Olivia said she loved her, it was the truth.
The problem was, everything else she had said... was a lie.
She sighed, plastering a bright smile on her face before turning to look at Emma. "You ready, baby?"
"Yes!" The little girl hopped off her chair and ran into the living room, returning with her coat and a small, pink suitcase on wheels.
"Do you have everything?"
"Yes, momma."
"Okay then, let's go!" She held the door open when Emma declined her offer to take the bag, smiling at her daughter affectionately as she struggled to pull it across the gravel driveway to the car.
Olivia watched them from the upstairs window, her eyes following the Nissan until it pulled out of the driveway and disappeared up the street. For a moment, she wanted to call Natalia and tell her to come back. She wanted to break down and explain everything.
But she had come too far for that.
Picking up the phone, she dialed the number she now knew by heart. "Hey, it's me... Yeah, she's gone. How fast can you get here?" She frowned. "No, we don't have that much time. She'll be in the meeting with Greg until eleven; we'll have to be done by then." She nodded. "Did you get everything? Good. I'll be waiting." Olivia hung up the phone and took one last, longing look in the direction her car had gone. She hated lying to Natalia; it was the hardest thing she had ever had to do.
She just hoped that in this case, the younger woman would forgive her.
* * * * * * *
Natalia stepped off the elevator and into the lobby of the Beacon as she glanced at her watch. It was after eleven and she still hadn't heard from Olivia. She stared blankly down at her clipboard, trying to figure out what had changed between them in the last two weeks. It was almost as though she was dealing with two different people. During the day, Olivia was distant, secretive; almost to the point of being unapproachable. But at night, she was attentive and loving; her passion focused on the younger woman so intensely that it was occasionally unnerving.
Like she's trying to make up for something.
The uncharitable thought bounced through Natalia's mind so quickly she had no way to avoid it, and once it was firmly embedded in her thought processes she couldn't seem to stop herself from going back to it. It wasn't like Olivia had been an angel before she came along. She knew how the older woman had lived her life... the appetites she had indulged... Frowning, Natalia shook her head.
No. Olivia loved her. There had to be another explanation.
Of course, it hadn't helped that Mickey, the Beacon's business accountant, had been waiting for her when she walked in earlier that morning. The poor man had looked like he was about to have a heart attack and his anxiety had only increased when he saw that Olivia wasn't with her. After spending a good twenty minutes getting the little Chihuahua of a man to calm down, she had learned that he was there to verify some withdrawals that had been made against the hotel's reserve accounts. She had asked him to show her the drafts and had watched him nearly die from relief when she verified that the signatures on them were in fact Olivia's.
Unfortunately that little piece of news had had the opposite affect on her. Over the past week, Olivia had withdrawn over fifteen thousand dollars in cash without giving any kind of explanation. Of course, the money was hers, and she could do whatever she wanted with it.
Natalia just couldn't help wondering what that might be.
A flash of discordant color drew her thoughts away from Olivia for a moment and she looked up to see the horrendous red, black and white of what was apparently Doris Wolfe's favorite jacket disappear around the corner. At least, she assumed it was the Mayor... who else would wear that thing? But she hadn't actually seen the woman's face; her mind being completely occupied by the flowers she was carrying.
She peeked around the corner, pulling back quickly when she saw the door to Olivia's office open. Setting her back against the wall, she waited quietly and was rewarded when Doris walked by, swinging a key chain in her hand and whistling happily under her breath. Natalia waited until the Mayor had exited the lobby and then hurried to the office door. She tried the knob first, her heart wilting slightly when she discovered it was locked. Deep down, she knew it would be; Olivia was big on privacy.
But now she had to wonder why the only other lesbian in the entire town of Springfield... had a set of keys to her lover's office. Sighing, Natalia pulled out her master and slid it into the lock.
The scent hit her as soon as she opened the door. It was light and sweet, with just a hint of spice underneath and almost as wonderful as the roses themselves. She stood, rooted to the spot, counting the gorgeous purple blossoms one by one.
There were thirty six.
Three dozen perfectly beautiful roses.
Moving closer, she gently traced her fingers over the petals, amazed at the velvet like-texture. That was when she saw it.
The card.
Natalia pursed her lips, blinking as she stared at the blank envelope. It wasn't right; she knew it wasn't right... the flowers were on Olivia's desk; it was obvious who they were for. But the plausible deniability of a blank envelope was too much to resist. She pulled it from its perch and slid her finger inside, frowning as she untucked the flap.
With a sigh, Natalia closed her eyes for a moment, asking forgiveness for what she was about to do.
It wasn't that she didn't trust Olivia. She might have questions about her behavior lately, but she trusted her with her heart and her life.
Doris Wolfe, however.... she didn't trust her as far as she could throw her.
Pulling the small card free, she held it up to read it, her jaw dropping as she recognized the handwriting immediately.
I knew you couldn't resist looking...
Good thing they were for you.
Have dinner with me tonight.
Love,
O
