Chapter Thirty
That night, after a nice and filling dinner, Charlie and Joey headed to bed. In the safety of their room, their lips met. Every time they kissed, it felt powerful. Charlie didn't think she would ever get enough of her. She wasn't sure if, when the time came, she would even cope with sex. Just kissing Joey and the way things had developed with their explorations of the top half of each other's bodies felt so euphoric. Nobody had ever made her feel this way before, either emotionally or physically. Joey excited her in ways she had never experienced before, or expected. Since the night that things had developed that little bit further between them where there had been some actually shedding of clothes, they had continued at the same pace. Charlie now knew what Joey looked like topless and she was stunning. She was even more perfect that Charlie had imagined, and she had imagined her lots of times. With shaky hands, Charlie had allowed herself to explore Joey's body with her hands and her mouth, touching and tasting and offering as much pleasure as she could. The way Joey had responded to her had been both thrilling and encouraging and Charlie felt her confidence growing with every moment. As they kissed, she guided Joey back to the bed. Joey sat down on the edge, still kissing Charlie as she leant over her. She reached for the hem of Charlie's t-shirt. Charlie sank to her knees and stretched her arms up, helping Joey to remove the garment. They resumed kissing as soon as they could. Joey reached behind Charlie and undid the clasp of her bra, releasing her breasts and immediately reaching towards her chest to begin stroking her skin. Charlie kissed her harder and leant in closer. She tugged at Joey's clothes also and Joey shrugged her t-shirt off. Nuzzling into Joey's neck, Charlie fumbled with the clasp of her girlfriend's bra. She was just about getting the hang of it but it wasn't easy. She'd given up a couple of times before now and asked Joey to save her the job.
"Well done!" Joey congratulated with a giggle when Charlie was successful.
Charlie did a triumphant little jig that made both of their chests wobble before closing the gap between their bodies and lying Joey back on the mattress. She enjoyed the feeling of Joey's breasts pressed against her own. It felt natural, like that was how it was always meant to be. Images of social norms where man and woman were supposed to fit together didn't work in Charlie's head anymore. Nothing felt more perfect than her own body curled against Joey's. That was what felt good and normal; that was what made her happy. She kissed her way down Joey's body, settling where she wanted to and focussing on teasing her and joyfully listening to the way Joey gasped and moaned. Joey lay back on the bed in ecstasy, smiling at how confident Charlie was getting with her body. She seemed to know exactly what to do and how to please her. It felt nice not to rush into sex right away. Sometimes when you did that, things like this got lost. She wondered if, when the time game to deepen their intimacy, Charlie and Joey would pay this much attention to her. She hoped so. All she wanted was to make Charlie happy in the same the way that Charlie always made her feel so exhilarated. From sweet gestures such as taking her to that museum, to their kisses, to the way that they could talk all night long, right down to now when they were so shyly but joyfully getting to grips with each other; this was what life was worth living for.
***
"I don't frustrate you, do I?" Charlie asked.
They had curled up together preparing to sleep. Joey looked at her, utterly bewildered by the question.
"Frustrate me?" she asked.
"Because we're taking it slowly," Charlie said.
"I'm not frustrated," Joey told her. "I like the pace we're going at. I'm still a little nervous about… you know."
Charlie nodded.
"Me too. I… I feel like I'd like to take things further," she admitted. "But I'm worried about messing it up."
"Judging by your abilities so far, you will not mess it up!" Joey commented.
Charlie blushed and kissed Joey's cheek. It felt good to have positive feedback. Joey was encouraging and helped her to feel comfortable. Charlie knew what to do with guys. She was used to it. Pleasing a girl was a whole different story but she was glad to hear that she was doing it well. And being touched by Joey was out of this world. She'd never reacted so strongly to somebody's touch before. Just having Joey's hands and mouth on the upper part of her body alone almost drove her to the edge.
"I hope I won't."
They kissed.
"So, you'd like to um…?"
"Would you?" Charlie asked.
"I would," Joey admitted. "I'd love to express my love for you more deeply. But I only want to do it if you're ready."
"I think I am."
"And I'm worried about freaking out or something," Joey said, feeling ashamed.
"Well, if you're not ready, I don't want to pressure you," Charlie said kindly.
"I think I'm ready," Joey said.
She hoped she was. She desperately wanted to be with Charlie.
"Well, why don't we just see how it goes?" Charlie suggested. "Like we have so far?"
Joey nodded. That sounded like the best idea.
