[A follow-up to Snapshots Chapter 24: Missing Pieces]

Gradually, Lizzy's breathing returned to normal, her belly heaving less and less under the hand Red had splayed beneath her shirt; her thigh was soft and warm under his cheek, giving tiny trembling aftershocks every now and again.

Sweat trickled down Red's spine, gluing his dress shirt to the small of his back. His chair was askew, urgently pushed away from the table until the rungs were shoved back against the wall behind him so there was more room to move.

This close, Lizzy's scent was all-encompassing. Red let his eyes drift shut for just a moment, savoring the experience. Sometimes, there just wasn't anything better in the world than the fragrance of Lizzy's fulfillment.

Eventually, she started to trace her way up and down the back of his neck and through his short-cropped hair with her nails; his cock throbbed, and he finally raised his head to look at her. Warmth was plain on her face, warmth and fondness and just a little lingering bliss.

"Are you satisfied now?" he asked.

Her lips curved into a slow smile, a clear and shameless yes. "You're not," she countered.

"That's all right."

She shook her head, incredulous. "Out of all the kinks in the world, I wouldn't've pegged orgasm denial as one of yours."

Red leaned back in his chair and adjusted himself; there was no discreet way to do it with her watching, but it had to be done. "We have a case to get back to."

"Red, come on. I can't leave you like that. How are you gonna focus on the case?"

"For some people, it can heighten the ability to focus."

"But not for you. Red, I know you. I can see your mind already wandering to that time last Sunday when I—" Red cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. "See? I leave now and you'll make it fifteen minutes, tops, before you have to jerk off in the bathroom and where's the fun in that?"

Red crossed his arms over his chest, but Lizzy was unmoved.

"You took care of me," she said, "now let me take care of you."

"I'd rather something a little more… equitable."

"That is equitable, otherwise I'd come out on top—" He raised an eyebrow. "Ah. I get it. So what do you think? How do you want me to do this?"

"I'm sure inspiration will strike."

"I'll just clean this up first," she said, gesturing at the mess of puzzle pieces around her on the table. "Wouldn't want any of the pieces to go missing."

Red held Lizzy's hand to steady her as she hopped down onto the floor. She twisted this way and that, peeling puzzle pieces from where they'd stuck to the skin on her thighs and ass. He reached out and traced the pads of his fingers over the indentations in her skin.

He knew she was stalling with a purpose and that purpose wasn't solely to torture him. Sensitivity meant it always took her a few minutes to be ready again after a session like that, minutes that more often than not she took advantage of to focus her attention on driving him wild with anticipation. And by god, she knew how to tease a man… It was a small miracle Red hadn't had a constant hard-on ever since they started sleeping together and all bets were off between them.

Crouching down on all fours, Lizzy reached for an errant puzzle piece under the far side of the table.

"Good god, Elizabeth." She shot Red a sly glance over her shoulder, a silent question in her eyes; he shook his head with regret. "I don't think my knees could handle it, sweetheart."

"That's fine." She climbed to her feet, bent over the table in front of him with her forearms flat against the wood, and looked back at him. "How about this?"

"I don't know." He rand his hands over the fading imprints on her ass cheeks. "Do you want me get an erection every time I sit here to work on a puzzle?"

Lizzy turned around and shrugged. "I don't see a downside to that."

"You wouldn't, would you?" he asked, as she settled onto his lap again and took his mouth. He slid his hand between her legs, gradually working a couple fingers inside her; she was still so slick from her first climax that it was easy to do.

"So… over the table?" she asked again, shifting her hips to give him more room.

"I think I'd rather have you bend me over that table," he said, slowly pumping his fingers in and out.

"This is supposed to be a quickie," she said, with a sound just this side of a moan escaping along with the words.

Red let out a rueful sigh. "You're right," he said, and withdrew his hand.

"OK. How about you stay right there and then I'll just…" Lizzy adjusted herself so she could roll her hips, grinding against Red through his trousers. The sudden shock of pleasure dragged a groan from his lips. After a few moments, he gripped her waist, stopping her movements.

"Elizabeth."

She looked back at him. "Not like this?"

He shook his head. "No," he said, his voice clipped.

"How do you want me?"

"I want to be inside you."

"Is that so?" she asked, running her hands up and down his forearms.

"Yes."

"I'm glad we finally resolved this dilemma."

Lizzy pried Red's fingers from her waist and dropped to the floor, kneeling between his legs. Starting at his knees, she ran her hands up his inner thighs, pressing them apart as much as the chair would allow.

She enjoyed feeling the texture of the fine wool of his trousers, the heat of his flesh under the fabric… She had told him once, in excruciating detail, just how badly she had always wanted to touch him like this, how many times she'd run through it in her head, and all the other things, wonderful, beautiful, filthy things, she'd dreamt of doing. He nearly came from the descriptions alone.

If this was the bigger life Lizzy had hoped for for them, well… Red was all for it.

Bigger didn't have to mean extravagant or more complicated—god knows their lives were complicated enough already. No, bigger could mean deeper, more open, more courageous… Bigger could mean taking chances, making commitments. It could mean family dinners and movie nights and afternoon delights.

Bigger could mean… sneaking around on Lizzy's lunch hour for a quick round of lovemaking in between filling out paperwork. It could mean Lizzy, buried to the hilt, the buckles on her harness digging into his flesh, her hands pressing him tightly into the mattress by the wrists, his cock—hard as steel and leaking—trapped between his body and the sheets. Bigger could mean days like today, stealing a few passionate moments during a case.

Once she reached his fly, Lizzy undid the button and pulled his zipper down tooth by tooth, glancing back and forth between his face and his lap, with her bottom lip caught between her teeth. Slipping her hand beneath the waistband of his underwear, she closed her hand around his shaft and pulled it out. By this point, he was so aroused, her touch was nearly painful.

"Please."

"Please what?"

"I need to be inside you now. Please."

Lizzy met his fevered gaze and could tell in an instant there was no more need to tease; Red was long past the point of no return. She climbed to her feet and lowered herself again into his lap; she reached down between her legs, grasped him around the base, and aligned him so she could sink down.

Red threw his head back as she settled into his lap, his breath coming in harsh, labored pants. He wrapped his fingers around the arms of the chair as his hips began to move in mindless little thrusts.

Lizzy rocked up and sank down again in one quick motion, letting out an obscene groan when she bottomed out.

Red moistened his lips. "You good?" he grumbled.

"God, yes," she said, swiveling her hips, savoring the slippery slide.

She gripped Red's hands on the arms of the chair and drove herself back into his lap, the chair creaking with every thrust. There was no way he could possibly last until she reached her next peak; even if he could under normal circumstances, she would make sure he didn't this time, moving the way she was.

Red managed to free his hands from Lizzy's grasp and snaked his arms around her body, one hand sneaking up under her shirt and beneath her bra to give her breasts some much needed attention while the other found its way back between her legs.

Before long, Red started to spend with a sob that was muffled against the nape of Lizzy's neck. She ground herself into his lap as he twitched and throbbed, buried as deep inside her body as he could ever be. Her stomach muscles spasmed and twitched against his forearm as his fingers moved slickly over her swollen clit, as her inner muscles clamped down on him, fluttering and clenching, wringing every last drop from him.

Little by little, Red came back to himself. Lizzy extricated herself from the chair, which in truth was too small to be well suited to the trials they'd put it through, and climbed to her feet, slow and rather unsteady.

Red watched her as he caught his breath, as she tried to gather her things and put her clothing back in order. Despite their exertion, her eyes seemed to be imbued with a wild glow of exhilaration, of victory of a sort. It was still a heady thing for her, to get what she wanted from him. (It turned out sex was easier to share than secrets.)

Sneaking a hand into Red front pocket, Lizzy snatched up the underwear he'd squirreled away when he undressed her lower half earlier. "I still need these," she said. "I think you might want to clean yourself up."

Bending down, she left him with one last messy, searching kiss.

"See you tonight," she said, running her thumb over his cheekbone.