JENNIE

I didn't take any chances. I parked my car in the driveway of the vacant house for sale, then hurried down the sidewalk and into the patch of trees bordering the Manoban property. Was it stupid to hide and sneak around like this? Yeah. But I was too focused right now on getting rid of Felix's voice in my head.

Lisa must have seen me making my way up because the side door to her bedroom swung open and she welcomed me inside. Her gaze drifted down to the tote bag clutched in my hands, and her eyebrows pulled together.

"Felix's stuff you're returning?" she asked.

I tossed the bag onto a side chair and shook my head. "I lied. I don't want to talk about it."

I closed the distance between us, gripped her face in my hands, and pulled her lips down to mine. The evening had been hard on my system. My arousal had been interrupted by anger, and the emotions swirled together, creating aggression I hadn't experienced before. But I liked the combination. I enjoyed the way it launched me into her arms.

Lisa's reaction told me she did too.

Her lips were pliant against mine, and I plunged my tongue into her mouth, eager to pick up where we'd left off. Just the connection to her was enough to quiet thoughts in my head. Maybe it was wrong to use her like that, but I couldn't quench the desire for her any other way.

Our kiss started with passion, but rather than explode, it slowed to a simmer. She eased me back and stared down into my eyes, contemplating whatever she wanted to say.

"You don't want to talk about it," she said softly, "but we should."

I sighed.

Fuck you, Jennie.

I winced at the echo in my memory and tore my gaze away from Lisa, staring over her shoulder to the bed, and beyond to the doorway to her bathroom. I knew I couldn't avoid it forever; I'd eventually deal with the Felix situation and whatever it was Lisa and I were doing, but I didn't want to face it tonight.

"Fine." My shoulders slumped, and I acted every bit the sullen teenager I felt at that moment. "Can I have something to drink first?"

She straightened and nodded. "What do you want? I've got wine, beer—"

Breath cut off along with her words. She'd just remembered I wasn't old enough to legally drink. Yet, this was stupid. She knew college kids drank, and she let us do it at her house as long as we were responsible.

I wanted Lisa to see me as an adult, even if I wasn't exactly acting like one. "Wine would be great," I said. "Thanks."

She hesitated and tried not to look as if she'd been backed into a corner. "Okay. I'll be right back."

Lisa was barely through the door when I snatched up the tote bag and scrambled for the bathroom. Coming here had been crazy. Grabbing her and kissing her was crazier, but I was about to do something so insane, it was likely to blow up in my face. As I stripped off my t-shirt, I refused to look at myself in the large mirror over the double sinks. I was sure I'd look back on this moment with heaps of regret, but I pushed forward anyway.

My hands were unsteady as I undid the button of my shorts, and I fumbled along, hurrying to put the dress on. The thick fabric was the shade of evergreen trees, and I squirmed into the tight bodice. Thank God it still fit.

The back zipper gave a muted vrrrp as I tugged it up, being careful of the beading, and then I couldn't avoid it any longer. I lifted my head and stared at my reflection. My hair wasn't in too bad of shape. I'd pulled it up into a sleek ponytail before coming here, but a few tendrils curled softly at the nape of my neck.

I'd put on makeup too, but I could have skipped the blush. My cheeks were flushed pink, and as I blinked at my feline cat eyed image in the mirror, I saw how quickly my chest was rising and falling. Nerves swirled and rolled in my belly. Was I about to make a huge fool of myself?

Footsteps grew louder beyond the closed bathroom door, and Lisa's voice was concerned. "Jennie?"

"Just a second." Hopefully, she couldn't hear how breathless I sounded.

Had I forgotten how heavy the dress was, or was it what I was about to do that weighed me down? I dug a hand into the plunging neckline and repositioned my boobs into the cups sewn in the dress. I didn't have much cleavage to work with, but I'd flaunt what I had.

I filled my lungs with a deep breath, grabbed the doorknob, and pulled the door open. The skirt of the dress was layers of chiffon and stayed quiet when I stepped into the room. In fact, everything was dead fucking silent when Lisa's deep brown eyes turned toward me.

She didn't blink. She stood motionless, a glass of red wine in each hand. Her gaze was locked on mine, but I somehow felt it all over my body. I sensed it etching over every sparkling green bead that formed the intricate lace on the bodice, splitting into a deep V that showed more skin than I ever had in my life.

The prom dress had made my mother uneasy. She'd worried it was too mature. Too provocative and revealing, she'd said. But it was on clearance in my size, and after I'd tried it on, I hadn't wanted to take it off. Ever. My dress made me feel sexy and powerful.

Maybe too powerful right now. The way Lisa was looking at me, I wondered if I might kill her. My mouth felt like it'd been filled with paste, and I licked my dry lips. "This dress—" I said, my voice wavering, "—is the one you said made you think bad things."

"Jesus, I remember." Her eyes were so wide, it had to hurt.

She just stood there, not saying anything else, and the moment stretched between us until it grew uncomfortable. Oh, God, this train was steaming at eighty miles an hour to wreck over the side of Awkwardsville Cliff.

I clenched and unclenched my fists at my sides, hidden in the layers of my skirt, trying to quell the nervous scream in my mind. I focused on one of the wineglasses in her hand. "Is that, uh, for me?"

"It was," she said.

And finally, she moved, only it was to bring a wineglass to her lips and gulp the entire glass down in five loud swallows. If I wasn't so mortified with the situation, I might have been impressed. She deposited the now-empty glass on the dresser and switched the full one to her right hand.

"I'm sorry," I blurted. "This was so fucking stupid. I'll change."

It was as sharp as a scalpel. "No."

Her eyes darkened and focused with intensity, and . . . shit, she almost looked mad at me, like wearing the prom dress pissed her off. I swallowed thickly.

"What was the plan?" She might have looked pissed, but her voice wasn't cold or angry.

"Plan?"

Lisa stalked over. "Why are you wearing this dress?"

My gaze dropped to my bare feet. "Because of what you said."

"So, you wanted to give me bad thoughts?" She grasped my chin with her thumb and forefinger, forcing my attention up to her face. "Because it's fucking working."

Gone was the slow, smoldering tension between us. It broke into a million pieces when her mouth landed on mine. She took and consumed me with her kiss, owning me like I was a possession. It was punishing and dominating. She claimed me exactly like I wanted. I rose on my toes to get closer, only to find myself stumbling backward, blinking in surprise.

She'd pushed me away so she could sit on the edge of the bed, and her gaze trapped me in place. "Go on, then," she said. "Show me."

I tripped over the confusion in my head. "Show you—?"

"What you're wearing under your dress."

A sound burst from me. It was a mixture of surprise and satisfaction. This was what I wanted, but I was still anxious. Having distance between us was sexy, yet also unnerving. I moved backward until the dresser was at my back, giving me something to lean against for support. As I balled the skirt into my fists, I stared at the woman across from me.

She took a sip of her wine, turning her head to the side so she could hold my gaze. Like she didn't want to break the connection with me, not even for a moment. I dragged the fabric up toward my hips, revealing inch after inch of my bare legs. Her breathing ratcheted up as I cleared my knees. Her Adam's apple bobbed in a swallow when I exposed my thighs.

She'd seen me naked before, but it didn't matter. It was all still new. A different kind of first.

The dresser creaked as I put more weight on it and lifted the skirt to show her the black satin panties. Her eyes heated a thousand degrees, and I melted beneath them.

"Show me." Her command was rushed and uneven. "Show me what you do when you're thinking about me."

My mouth fell open, and I clenched my fists on the fabric, tightening them into hard balls. What was she asking? She wanted to watch me?

"Put your hand between your legs."

I straightened, and embarrassment drove my gaze away from her. No one had seen me do that, and I couldn't with an audience. My skirt fell with a swish to brush my toes and cover my legs. "Uh . . ."

Lisa stood, went to the nightstand, and dropped off her half-full glass of wine. As she moved back to her spot on the edge of the bed, she popped the button on her jeans and dropped her zipper. "This is what I did last time you had that dress on."

Oh my God.

I began to sweat as I watched her dig a hand in the front of her undone pants and begin to stroke herself.

"It's what I do any time I'm thinking about you, Jennie."

She worked the jeans to sit low across her hips and pulled down the waistband of her boxer briefs. The slow, deliberate slide of her hard cock through her closed fist was sexy and hypnotic. I couldn't stop watching.

"Show me," she commanded again. "You put on that dress, so I'm not the only one with bad thoughts."

The wickedness of her order had me trembling against the dresser, and the brass pulls on the drawers rattled quietly. I stared at the glide of her hand over herself, each pass making her harder and bigger. A dull ache inside me burned, and I grew hot and slick between my legs.

The dress was supposed to make me feel powerful, yet I was powerless to stop the sigh from seeping from my lips, or the way my hands clawed at my skirt, hitching it upward.

Lisa's face dripped with lust. Her shoulders lifted in a deep breath as I buried my hand beneath my panties and stroked my sensitive skin. When I was alone, touching myself felt good, but it wasn't close to the same when she watched me do it. Didn't remotely compare. The sensation now was heightened and acute.

Her lips moved, mouthing some sort of profanity, but the word wasn't audible. Or maybe I couldn't hear it over my own ragged breaths. The top edge of the dresser dug into my back. The beads scattered over my skirt bit into my palm where I held the gathered fabric up, out of the way so she could watch my fingers moving behind my satin underwear.

"Look at you." Her voice was like velvet. "Teasing me like this. You're so bad." Her fist stroked faster, pumping on her cock. "You know it, don't you?"

The answer didn't require thought. "Yes."

"You're a bad girl."

"Yes," I gasped. I was.

And I was eager to show her. I propelled myself forward, moving so fast, Lisa didn't have time to react. I dropped to my knees in front of her, putting my hands on her thighs, and smoothed my palms up to join her hand pumping on herself.

There was a quick inhale of breath from her as I licked my lips and made it clear what I planned to do. I wasn't that experienced with sex, but I was familiar with giving a blow job. The action was easier to understand, and Lilith and I had talked about it recently. We were pretty sure you couldn't give a bad BJ unless you were trying to.

Lisa moved her hand out of my way and slipped it gently onto the back of my neck. She didn't force me forward or down. It rested in the hair at the nape of my neck, and her warm fingers felt good. I closed my eyes, parted my lips, and lowered my mouth down over her.

"Fuck."

That word was definitely audible. It resonated through my body.

She was soft, yet strong against my tongue. I moved cautiously, trying to take her deeper, but she was large and thick. So impossibly thick, and the warmth between my legs flared hotter. I'd wanted to go down on her, but as soon as I started, I longed for her to be moving inside me.

She wound her hand around my ponytail, subtly encouraging me to pick up the pace. Her knees spread wider, but since her pants weren't down, her undone zipper scraped over my chin, and I pulled back.

Good lord, her eyes. They were dark and gorgeous.