Disclaimer: I sure do wish I owned these characters because I would do things differently than the show… but alas I don't.
Hi everyone…. Again this is done a little early so I'm posting earlier than planned because Sunday night I will have guests here.
I always like to say a personal thank you to anyone who reviews. Unfortunately I can't reply to guest reviewers. So let me take a moment to say a blanket thank you to everyone for reading and taking the time to review and/or say a few words. It means so much.
Also, a very special thanks to Sophie for her assistance with the French translations.
I have a little surprise for you all at the end of the chapter…. see you down there.
Things are about to get interesting… :-)
Enjoy!
Chapter 3
Emily whisked the raspberry sauce over medium heat, preparing the filling for her Dark Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cake. It was her own version of a dessert she had once in Paris and she wanted to perfect it before she presented it to Pierre.
This was the fourth cake she'd baked this week and she was confident it was finally right this time. All the previous versions had resulted in either the filling making the cake too soggy or the frosting too thick and fudgy.
Fudge was not French so she finally went with a ganache. She coated inside each layer and between each tier, using it as a barrier to keep the raspberry filling from soaking into the cake. Finally a thick coating of ganache would cover the outside of the cake which would then be topped off with whipped cream rosettes and fresh raspberries.
Although, personally, Emily only enjoyed chocolate every once in a while this dark chocolate raspberry truffle cake was to die for. Chocolate was very prevalent in French desserts, and as luck would have it, it seemed to be Emily's specialty. She hadn't meant for it to happen. Sure she liked chocolate well enough, but she wasn't much of a sweet eater in general, and could take it or leave it like most other desserts. Unlike Alison who had once dubbed herself a chocoholic.
If she was honest with herself, Emily would admit she'd originally specialized in chocolate because Alison loved it. But even after she'd resigned herself to the fact that she would probably never see the blonde again, Emily found she loved cooking with it. And she was very good at it. She'd even attended ecole chocolat's Master Chocolatier Program in Paris and learned how to not only use it in recipes but to make it from scratch.
It had been a little over a month since she'd seen Alison and Emily had yet to tell Marielle about it. At first, she just didn't know how to bring it up in a casual manner, not wanting to make it a big deal. Those first few days the universe seemed to be working against her. Each time she intended to tell Marielle, something came up for one of them that made the timing not ideal. Not that it ever would be. Although Marielle had always been accepting of Emily's past with Alison, her girlfriend didn't need the blonde resurfacing in Emily's life thrown in her face.
As the days past it got easier and easier not to bring it up; to make excuses why it wasn't the right time. Emily tried to convince herself she wasn't lying to her girlfriend; she was just omitting information that was irrelevant to their relationship. Surely Marielle didn't tell Emily every person she came in contact with everyday at work. That's all this was. She ran into Alison completely by chance and "forgetting" to tell Marielle about it wasn't the worst thing in the world.
Emily gave a few final turns of the whisk before removing the saucepan from the burner. Her phone rang just as she did. She slid her finger across the screen before hitting the speaker button.
"Hey Han," she greeted, cringing slightly because she was sure she was in for a scolding.
"Why haven't you called me back?" Hanna greeted exactly as the brunette expected.
Emily whisked lemon juice into the sauce before folding in a cup of fresh raspberries. "Nice to talk to you too," Emily replied sarcastically wishing she'd let the call go to voicemail once again.
Emily set the sauce aside to cool and put another saucepan on the stove before she grabbed the glass bowl with the chopped semisweet chocolate she made early this morning.
"If it was nice to talk to me you would have called me back," Hanna retorted quickly.
Emily knew she wasn't going to be let off the hook this time as she poured a cup of cream into the saucepan. "Hanna, I've been crazy busy lately."
"I heard from you more often when you lived in Paris," Hanna pouted through the phone trying to make Emily feel guilty.
"You do remember that in the last three months I moved halfway around the world and started a new job, right?"
Emily lit the burner under the saucepan and stirred the cream slowly as she brought it to a simmer.
"And your point is?" Hanna replied quickly but Emily could hear that the blonde was calming a little.
"My point is I'm still trying to get settled and I barely have time to even see Mari. Our schedules are so different, we're lucky if we get a few minutes in the morning and a few minutes right before bed to spend together," Emily sighed softly because as she said it out loud, the brunette realized again why finding the time to tell Marielle about Alison was always so difficult. "My days off change every week but I always work both days on the weekend so we don't have one completely shared day off unless my day off falls on a Wednesday."
Once the cream was heated through Emily shut off the burner and poured the cream over the chocolate.
"Well, when you put it that way, I guess I can forgive you," the blonde conceded and Emily smiled at the pout in her tone. "I just fucking miss you and I'm still kinda mad you didn't get a job in New York."
"Hanna, we've already talked about this," Emily replied with a sigh as she whisked the melting chocolate pieces and the cream together.
"I know, but that doesn't mean it still doesn't completely suck."
"Why don't you move out here?" Emily suggested. "You don't have to be in New York to be in fashion."
"Bite your tongue miss pâtissier. I will never leave New York."
Emily knew Hanna's teasing of her position was in good fun, but it was starting to annoy her. Or maybe Emily was just annoyed in general these days.
"Then I guess we're at an impasse, aren't we?" Emily said as she added tablespoons of butter one at a time to the chocolate mixture.
"Humph," Hanna replied in her ear before saying. "So whatcha doin'?"
Emily chuckled at Hanna's ability to change gears so quickly. "I'm cooking."
"Whatcha making?"
"Dark chocolate raspberry truffle cake." Emily continued to whisk the chocolate until it was velvety smooth.
Hanna groaned. "Why didn't you ever cook that kind of stuff when we lived in Rosewood?"
"I didn't know how to cook like this then." Emily set the ganache aside to cool slightly. It needed to still be warm to pour smoothly throughout the cake but she needed it a little cooler than it was at the moment.
"You mother is Pam Fields, of course you did," Hanna insisted. "I know I had food issues back then thanks to she who shall not be named, but now that I can eat all that stuff without guilt we live nowhere near each other."
Emily stiffened when Hanna referred to Alison and she wondered for a brief second if Hanna knew she'd seen Alison.
But that was impossible.
"I really need to come out there and visit you," Hanna added with an exaggerated pout. "Or you need to just mail me some treats once in a while."
"You know you're welcome any time," Emily said as she walked over to the breakfast bar where the cake layers were cooling on wire racks.
"Maybe if I do, I'll find out why you're avoiding me?"
"I'm not." Emily slowly leveled each layer of cake to make two halves.
"Liar, liar, pants on fire," Hanna accused.
"Really Hanna?" Emily laughed in response. "How old are you anyway?"
"Emily Fields I know you better than anyone. I know when you're lying to me."
Emily made every effort to keep her voice steady as she replied. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"I really wish I knew your girl better; then I wouldn't feel bad going to her and asking what the hell is up with you."
Emily cut a quarter inch well out of each bottom layer and one top layer of the cake halves. "There's nothing up with me."
"Uh huh," Hanna scoffed. "Is it because I'm blonde?"
"What?" Emily wondered where the hell Hanna's mind was going. Sometimes she just didn't know.
She grabbed the ganache and spread a thin coating of the chocolate inside the wells.
"You heard me," Hanna replied. "You surround yourself with brunettes. You only date brunettes."
Emily laughed despite how precariously close she was to breaking and telling Hanna the truth. "Are you trying to tell me something Han? Are things okay with you and Caleb?"
Once the ganache was spread in each well Emily put the bottom layer on a cake stand.
"I don't want to date you Em," Hanna scoffed affably. "Although if I was gay you would totally be my type."
"Hanna," Emily rolled her eyes as she filled the well with one third of the raspberry sauce.
"I just want to know what the hell is going on with you. Why are you avoiding your only blonde friend?"
Hanna was trying to guilt Emily into telling her what was wrong and the brunette hated how good at it the blonde was.
"You're not my only blonde friend. I don't care what color your hair is."
Emily spread a thin layer of the ganache over the raspberry sauce to create a barrier before placing the next layer of cake on top of it.
"Then just tell me what the problem is."
"Fine," Emily snapped as she slammed her hand on the counter. "You're a real pain in the ass Hanna Marin."
She could practically hear Hanna grinning on the other end of the phone. "But you love me anyway. Now what is it you don't wanna tell me?"
Emily sighed heavily. She really needed to talk to someone about this. Hanna probably wasn't the best choice but if she didn't talk to someone soon she was going to go crazy.
"I saw Alison," Emily said hesitantly as she started repeating the steps with the second layer of cake.
"I'm sorry but what did you just say to me?" Hanna's voice was low and dangerous.
"You heard me," Emily threw Hanna's words back at her.
The blonde was silent for so long, Emily wondered if she hung up.
"Han?" Emily questioned as she grabbed her phone off the counter and moved it closer to her on the breakfast bar. She looked at the face of her phone to make sure the call was still connected but then a string of curses so long and offensive spewed out of Hanna's mouth, Emily had to shake her head when it was over.
"Tell me how you really feel, Han. Jeez. Do you kiss Caleb with that mouth?"
Emily again repeated the same steps on the third layer of the cake slowly building the tower.
"How the fuck do you manage to come across Alison DiLaurentis in a city of over ten million people?"
"Dumb luck?" Emily offered halfheartedly.
"Is that why you moved there?" Hanna asked sternly before the words "fuck" and "diabolical" were muttered.
Emily looked at her phone confused. "Hanna what are you talking about?"
"Is that why you got a job there?" Hanna's tone was full of accusation. "Did you know she was there?"
Once the cake was built, Emily grabbed her phone and walked back to the stove to start another bowl of fresh ganache, this time using more cream to make the concoction thinner.
"Of course I didn't know," Emily said as she stirred the cream. "What kind of question is that?"
"I don't believe you," Hanna replied peevishly.
"I don't care what you believe, Hanna," Emily replied offended by the accusation. "You know how long I looked for her. Do you really think I wouldn't have told you if I'd found her."
"I used to," Hanna said. "But now I don't know."
"That's not fair," Emily replied defensively.
"When did you see her? What the hell happened?"
Emily poured the now simmered cream over another batch of chocolate pieces and let it sit for a minute. "About a month," she admitted. "She's a photographer and was doing a photo shoot at the restaurant."
"Un-fucking-believable," Hanna mused as some of her anger and shock dissipated slightly. "Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world…"
"Tell me about it," Emily agreed with Hanna's reference to Casablanca as she started whisking the ganache.
"Did you talk to her?" Hanna asked a little softer now. This was why Emily loved Hanna so much. She could go from offended and angry on Emily's behalf to sympathetic and gentle when she knew that's what her friends needed from her more.
"Not while she was at the restaurant," Emily admitted as she began pouring the warm ganache over the cake, letting it form a smooth shiny layer of chocolate over the entire cake.
"Where did you see her again?" Hanna asked curiously.
Emily waited a beat before she responded. "I chased her all the way home and then confronted her."
"Of course you fucking did," Hanna groaned in her ear.
"Hanna I don't need your judgment right now," Emily snapped as she stepped back and looked at the cake, making sure the entire thing was coated with the ganache.
"Fine," Hanna conceded. "What happened? What did she say?"
Emily turned the cake to check all the sides. "Nothing satisfactory."
"That's not surprising. Alison never gives satisfactory answers."
"She knew I was looking for her."
"What?" Hanna screeched.
"She knew I was looking for her," Emily repeated as she dropped down into one of the breakfast bar chairs.
"What a bitch," Hanna growled.
"She said she was trying to be unselfish for once." Emily rubbed her temples. Talking about this was giving her a headache.
"Alison only knows how to be selfish," Hanna reiterated basically what Emily herself had told Alison. At the time she meant it but Emily wondered if it were really true. "Did you at least bitch slap her?" Hanna asked. "Please tell me you at least bitch slapped her. You've got to give me something here, Em."
"I didn't know whether to slap her or kiss her Hanna," Emily confessed softly, the truth of those words causing an ache in her chest. "I'm so freaking confused right now."
"We're you even going to tell me at all?"
Emily hesitated and Hanna growled in response. "Emily Fields."
"Eventually," Emily admitted with a heavy sigh before adding, "When I figured out what the hell to do about it."
Hanna sighed just as heavily over the phone. "What did Mari say?"
Emily was quiet.
"Emily Fields," Hanna growled again. "You better have told your girlfriend or I'm going to come out there and kick your chocolate raspberry truffle cake ass all over the place."
"Would you stop using my full name?" Emily growled back as she stood up and started cleaning up, needing to be doing something or she was going to start banging her head against the counter. "And I tried to tell her but what was I supposed to say?"
"How about the psycho bitch that broke my heart so badly I'm still a fucking wreck is here. Let's move," Hanna offered as a suggestion.
"Hanna, stop calling her a bitch," Emily responded sternly as she placed her phone on the counter beside the sink and filled it with soapy water.
"There you go defending her like you always do."
"I'm not defending her," Emily insisted. And she wasn't even though her instincts told her she should. "I just don't like you calling her names."
"Oh my god, you're still in love with her," Hanna screeched and her voice echoed through the kitchen.
"No I'm not." Emily swallowed back the lump that formed in her throat as she said that.
"That's the most insincere fucking thing you've ever said to me," Hanna scoffed. "This is like that fucking church all over again."
"Hanna, we agreed to never talk about that night again," Emily replied dangerously as she started loading the dirty dishes into the dishwasher.
"You're right, I'm sorry," Hanna said contritely before asking more calmly. "You're still in love with her, aren't you?"
"I love Mari," was all Emily could say.
"Yes," Hanna agreed. "And she's a fucking kick ass girlfriend who loves you. Don't you dare get tangled up with Alison. She's only going to fuck you over and break your heart all over again."
Emily violently scrubbed the cake pan before she threw it down into the sink and shut off the water.
"Hanna, I really don't need this from you right now, okay? I love Mari. I'm living with Mari. And I have no intention of getting involved with Alison again." Emily dried her hands and walked out of the kitchen.
"Did she deliberately seek you out? Did Jason tell her you were there?" Hanna asked as Emily sat on the sofa and rested her phone on her boobs.
"What are you talking about? How would Jason have known?"
"Why didn't Spencer warn them so they could avoid you?" Hanna muttered under her breath, clearly without thought.
"What" Emily screeched as she sat forward. Her phone went flying on the floor.
"Oh fuck!" Hanna muttered again before adding. "Oh wow. Look at the time. I gotta run, Em."
"Don't you dare hang up this phone Hanna," Emily demanded angrily as she picked up her phone. "What did you mean about Spencer warning them? I thought Spencer didn't know where they were."
Hanna was quiet.
"Hanna."
Hanna was still quiet.
"Hanna Marin you better answer me right this minute!" Emily glared at the phone wishing they were on FaceTime so her friend could see her right now.
"Oh alright. Jeez. Keep your panties on will ya."
"Spencer told me she had no idea where Jason was."
"She didn't," Hanna admitted rather hesitantly. "Until about two years ago."
"Two years?" Emily choked the words out.
Hanna sighed. "She had her own PI looking for him. He is her half brother after all." Emily was speechless and that rarely happened. "Anyway," Hanna continued. "He found Jason in LA. Spencer flew out and saw him. They both thought it was best that you and Alison didn't know."
"This is why you tried to talk me out of moving to LA wasn't it?" Emily accused as she stood up and stalked down the hallway to the bedroom. She had to take a shower and get to work.
"Yes. Obviously I didn't do a very good job. And it wasn't totally about Alison. I wanted you closer to me." Hanna tried to assure her but it wasn't helping. "When you made up your mind we all figured LA was a big enough city that the chances of you running into her were slim. So much for that fucking assumption."
"We both live in Santa Monica, Hanna. It's not that big of a city."
"She and Jason lived in Venice back then. I think Jason still does."
"I can't believe you kept this from me." Emily grabbed a towel out of the linen closet and walked into the bathroom.
"We did it for your own good, Em. You'd already moved on with Mari. What would have been the point of dragging it all up again?"
"It wasn't your decision to make, Hanna," Emily replied as she turned on the shower. "Why does everyone make these decisions for my own fucking good and not let me do it myself?"
"Em," Hanna started to say but Emily interrupted her.
"No, Hanna. There isn't anything you can say right now that will make this okay." Emily tossed her phone on the counter and started to strip. "Did Aria know?"
By Hanna's hesitation Emily already knew the answer. "Not at first," the blonde eventually said. "But I told her about a year ago."
Everyone had lied to her. Emily wanted to be sick.
"You're supposed to be my friends."
"We are your friends, Em. We love you. Ali is toxic for you. We all know that. Even you know it deep down. You have Mari. Why does Alison matter anymore?"
"I have to go Hanna," Emily said abruptly. "I'm going to be late for work."
"Em, don't be like that," Hanna begged.
"Like what Hanna?" Emily snapped. "Like all my friends have lied to me for years. We all promised after what happened there would be no more lies between us. Guess I was the only one to uphold it."
"You mean like how you told us all about seeing Alison?" the blonde accused.
"I just told you."
"Only after I had to pull it out of you."
Emily knew Hanna was right. But she wasn't about to admit it. She was the one who was wronged, more than any of the others. And she was just done.
"Goodbye, Hanna," Emily said effectively ending the conversation.
"Em," Hanna started but Emily interrupted her again as she added.
"And don't call me. I'll call you when I'm ready to talk."
##############
"Are you really still not talking to me?" Jack asked as he dropped his big body down into the chair next to Alison.
Alison didn't answer him and just continued to review her notes. She'd gotten just about all the shots she wanted. There were only a few more she needed and they'd be done for the day.
It was the first time she was working with Jack since the day she'd seen Emily. If he wasn't the best gaffer she knew she would have hired someone else because she was still pissed at him.
Throughout the entire shoot, she only talked to him when absolutely necessary. That made for an awkward environment because the only other person present on the small static set was the production designer and he had long since disappeared once the set was staged, saying he'd be back when she was done doing her thing.
"You've got to be kidding me," Jack groaned when she continued to ignore him. "How was I supposed to know you didn't want to see her?"
"Maybe because I ran out of there like my ass was on fire," she finally replied tired of his incessant nagging.
"I didn't know you ran off. You were just gone when I turned around. I thought you got tired of waiting and blew me off." He shot her an obvious look. "It wouldn't have been the first time."
"So you just tell a complete stranger where I live?" she asked as she looked at him incredulously.
"I knew she wasn't a complete stranger," he waved his hand. "I recognized her from the picture beside your bed."
Alison growled softly. "This is why I don't let people in my bedroom."
"And I didn't tell her where you lived," Jack said before reluctantly adding. "Just that you lived a couple blocks away."
Alison reached over and punched him in the arm, smiling to herself when she made him flinch.
"Hey, when she started having a meltdown in the dining room because she didn't catch you I figured-"
"Wait, what?" Alison asked all her attention on Jack now.
"Huh?" he said thrown off by being interrupted.
"What do you mean she had a meltdown?"
"Oh," he drawled. "So now you're interested in talking to me."
"Jack I swear to god I'll rip off your balls and feed them to my dog if you don't tell me what happened." Alison shifted in her chair so she could turn the full force of her glare on him.
Jack grinned. "I love it when you get violent."
"Jack," she growled and punched him again.
"Alright, damn." He shook his arm and then stood up and out of her reach. "She tossed that crazy white hat she was wearing and ran out the front door calling your name. When she came back a couple minutes later, she was frantic. Pierre asked her what was wrong and she said you were an old friend so I said you lived nearby," he added innocently. "I think he could tell she was about to lose it so he just handed her the box and told her to go."
Alison pondered Jack's words for a minute. Emily had always been the calm one in their group of friends. That kind of frenetic behavior was uncommon for her.
Alison could feel Jack's eyes on her and she frowned at him. "What?"
"When you told me she was an old friend you didn't say she was that kind of old friend."
"That's because it's none of your business," Alison said as she stood up and put her notes in the camera bag hanging on the back of the chair.
"The girl did a number on you, huh?" he asked in the voice and with the gentle look in his eyes that made Alison adore him. Jack was one of the good guys and if Emily didn't exist, he could have been a contender.
But as long as Emily Fields existed in the world no one else had a fighting chance.
"We did a number on each other," Alison said quietly as she reached for a new zoom to swap with the one on her camera.
"Did you two talk it out?" He asked as he followed her.
"Again none of your business," she replied coolly as she swapped out the lenses.
"Fine." He nudged her with his hip. "At least you're talking to me again."
"For the moment," she added, shoving him away, before she moved put the old zoom in its case. "I need you to adjust those lights a little to the right?"
"Do you want to grab dinner?" Jack asked as he did as he was asked. "I think I owe you for outing your location."
Alison shook her head as she walked around the set and adjusted a few pieces of furniture. "I can't tonight. I have something to do."
"Your loss." He tilted his head as he watched her. "You know it's always weird when you photograph inanimate objects and not people."
"You just like it when I photograph beautiful women."
"Why do you think I work with you so often"? He stopped what he was doing and looked over at her. "By the way, what happened with the Sports Illustrated swimsuit gig? Are you gonna get it or what?"
Alison chuckled. Jack was so predictable. "I haven't heard back yet."
"You know you'll be the first female photographer to shoot that if you get it."
"Yes Jack," she smirked. "I'm the one who told you that, remember?"
"I'll work for free on that shoot. Just sayin'." He grinned turned the last light on.
"I'll remember that if and when the time comes. Now come on, focus," Alison said as she walked over to look in the camera viewfinder before adjusting the camera angle. "Pepe's been inside the house since early this morning. I've got to get back and let him out. If he pisses on the floor one more time I'm gonna lose it."
"Psycho dog," Jack said and just grinned when Alison reached over to punch him again but he managed to dodge her fist. "But I'll even offer to dog sit that psycho anytime you want if you promise to take me on that shoot."
#############
"Oh god, Mari, yes," Emily moaned softly. "Right there. Please, god, don't stop."
Marielle chuckled softly but Emily didn't have it in her to care at the moment. The way her girlfriend was working the knot in her calf felt just too good.
"Didn't you stretch this morning?"
"Yes," Emily yelped as Marielle hit a particularly sore spot. "I always stretch."
"Not enough apparently," Marielle murmured. "I don't know why you run on the weekend. Les week-ends sont faits pour se détendre."
"I don't run on Sundays," Emily replied as she pushed up on her hands so she could look at Marielle where she sat at the foot of the bed.
Her girlfriend was still in her pajamas, had still been sound asleep when Emily returned from her morning run. But just as she walked into the bedroom, the pain shot through her leg and the loud groan that escaped Emily's lips had woken Marielle immediately.
"So what are we doing today?" Emily asked as she wiggled her foot, trying to keep the circulation going.
Marielle looked over her shoulder. "You keep talking about going down to the Venice Ocean Front Walk. I thought we could go walk around and then have lunch before you have to go to work."
"Oh," Emily said in surprise as her lips curved into an excited smile. "I've wanted to do that since we got here."
The boardwalk at Venice State Beach was world famous and Emily had been trying to drag Marielle down there every weekend since she arrived. It was supposed to be an eclectic mix of shops and restaurants as well as a myriad of street performers and artists. It sounded like a great place to just walk around and people watch.
"I know," Marielle stopped massaging Emily's calf and just caressed it softly. "Is that better?"
Emily nodded as she reached over and caressed her girlfriend's cheek. "Yes. Thank you."
"Tout le plaisir était pour moi." Marielle said as she smiled.
Emily looked at her girlfriend and wondered once again what she'd done to get so lucky. Marielle truly was one of the sweetest and most considerate and loving woman she'd ever met.
Emily had been very moody and short tempered with Marielle for over a week, ever since her phone call with Hanna. She hadn't initially told Marielle about the conversation because then she would have had to tell her the topic. She needed time to brood about her friends' lies. Spencer and Aria had both been trying to call her constantly but at least Hanna had respected her wishes and hadn't called again.
Marielle knew something was wrong and asked her about it but Emily blamed it on PMS, something they both knew Marielle suffered from more than Emily. But her girlfriend let it go, gave Emily space and tried not to engage her when Emily would snap.
At least until Wednesday.
Wednesdays were Marielle's "mental health" days so she was at home in the morning before Emily left for work. The two of them got into an awful fight, Marielle finally reaching her limit with Emily's moodiness. By the time Emily got home after an equally bad night at the restaurant, Marielle was waiting up wanting to have it out. Her French temper had been suppressed long enough.
While their fights were rare, they were always explosive. Emily was never much of a screamer but Marielle's voice could rise quite a bit when she was angry. When finally confronted Emily apologized and told Marielle about her argument with Hanna, about her friends' lying and keeping secrets from her, but she left out the part that it was about Alison. And Marielle had always respected Emily's privacy so she didn't press when Emily said it wasn't important what they were lying about but it was the principal of it.
Emily was still angry with her friends, almost more than Alison. Yes, Alison broke promises to her and abandoned her and hid from her. But at least Alison didn't pretend to be anything or anyone but who she was when Emily confronted her. She had the same excuse, that she was trying to protect Emily, but Alison hadn't looked her in the face for the last six years and blatantly lied to her.
Emily scooted down the bed. "Let me jump in the shower and then I'll make us strawberry crepes while you shower."
"My favorite," Marielle smiled softly.
"I know," Emily replied as she grinned. Then she kissed Marielle quickly before she jumped up and headed toward the bathroom to get ready for their excursion.
###############
"Not another store?" Emily whined as Marielle tugged on her hand, pulling her toward yet another shop on the Venice Ocean Front Walk. Marielle had already dragged into several shops on Abbott Kinney Blvd before they even headed down to the boardwalk. All Emily wanted to do was watch the street performers and skateboarders, not go in and out of stores she had no intention of buying anything in anyway. "Everything down here is so tacky."
Marielle just laughed at Emily's overdramatic response. "American Apparel isn't tacky."
"That's the only one. You promised if I went into that lamp store that we could come down here and people watch," Emily tried to pout but Marielle was having none of it.
She laughed again and shook her head. "I don't understand how you don't like shopping. Are you sure you're a woman?"
"Last time I checked I had all the right parts," Emily replied as she looked down at her chest.
"Behave," Marielle pinched Emily in the side gently.
"It's almost noon. I do have to go to work in a few hours and you promised to buy me lunch you know.
"I just want to go into the gift shop over there," Marielle pointed a little ways down the boardwalk. "Then we can eat wherever you want."
"I want to try that Peruvian place we saw." They passed a tattoo shop and Emily's eyes took on a mischievous glint. "Or we could always get matching tattoos," Emily suggested playfully.
Marielle narrowed her eyes. "That would be a no."
Emily smirked. "So you wouldn't love me if I had a tattoo of a snake across my back."
Marielle didn't answer her. She just rolled her eyes and waved Emily away. "Go watch your people and I'll come get you when I'm done."
Emily snickered. "I'll be at the skate park watching the skateboarders. Unless I can find that guy I heard about who walks on broken glass."
"Have fun," Marielle said absently, as she browsed through a rack of vintage t-shirts.
Emily headed toward the skate park, taking in the vendors that lined the west side of the walk. She walked by a mime and shuddered as memories flooded her of the last mime she saw in Ravenswood. Maybe all the characters down here on the boardwalk weren't so interesting.
Emily approached the concrete bowl at the skate park. She found a bench at the edge and sat down. It afforded her a view of the skaters, the main boardwalk and the shop that Marielle was currently perusing in the distance. She settled back on the bench and slipped her ear buds in so she could listen to music while she watched.
Emily looked down when she felt something bump into her calf only to find Pepe standing beside her wagging his tail. He barked and bumped her leg again demanding a pat.
"Hey, Pepe," she said surprised. She stroked his back before looking up to see Alison coming to a stop a few feet from the bench. She felt her stomach drop. What were the chances of her running into Alison in Santa Monica and then again in Venice?
Clearly the universe was conspiring against her. Emily quickly looked in the direction of the boardwalk where Marielle was shopping. She scanned the area for any sign of her girlfriend, her momentary panic vanishing as she saw Marielle was still browsing the racks of t-shirts in front of the shop. The last thing she wanted was for Marielle and Alison to meet.
"Pepe, come on. Leave her alone," Alison said as she tugged on the leash. "I didn't see you there, otherwise I wouldn't have let him get so far ahead of me and come over to you."
"It's okay," Emily said as she removed her ear buds and lifted her sunglasses onto the top of her head.
Both women were distracted by the sound of the crowd cheering and Emily looked over and saw one of the skaters finishing a hard flip.
Alison took the momentary disruption as an opportunity to look at Emily. The brunette was dressed casually in jean cutoff shorts and a t-shirt. Her hair was long and loose and Alison wanted to bury her face in it and just inhale. Emily was so fucking beautiful it left the blonde breathless.
Alison's perusal was interrupted when Emily's eyes returned to her. Alison quickly looked away and watched the skaters but she could feel Emily's eyes on her and it made her tremble.
Despite the fact that this was probably a disaster waiting to happen, Emily let her eyes rake over Alison for as long as she could indulge. She couldn't help herself. Even though she was still angry at the blonde, she was starved for the sight of her.
She and Pepe had clearly been jogging. Alison was in running shorts and a tank top and her hair was pulled up into a ponytail. She had on a sunglasses and Emily could see the slight sheen of sweat on her skin. The sight gave Emily that tingle low in her belly again and she shifted on the bench restlessly. The handle of Pepe's leash was in one of Alison's hands and Emily was surprised to see the other hand was in a brace.
"Funny seeing you here," Emily said even though it was the farthest thing from funny.
Alison's lips curved up in a wry smile. "LA is a lot smaller than people realize."
An awkward silence stretched between them.
"I didn't know you liked to jog," Emily finally said in an effort to fill the silence.
Alison snorted. "Yeah, well, I don't really but I've been told my dog is fat so he's now on an exercise regimen that requires me to be on one too."
Emily reached over and rubbed Pepe behind the ears. "He's a little chunky but most of that is all fur."
"That's what I said," Alison threw her hands up in the air dramatically. Finally someone agreed with her.
Emily chuckled and the blonde had to once again hold herself back from throwing herself at the brunette and kissing her senseless. God, how could just a smile and a laugh do that to her?
"What happened?" Emily asked as she motioned to Alison's injured hand.
Alison looked down at the brace on her wrist and frowned. "Just a little accident. It's no big deal."
There was another awkward silence, neither woman knowing what to say to the other. But Emily finally had to ask because it had been gnawing at her since her fight with Hanna.
"Can I ask you something?"
Alison looked hesitant but she said, "Yes."
"Did you know I was here in LA?"
Alison was surprised by the question. She shook her head and answered honestly. "No. The last I knew you were in Paris."
Emily nodded slowly but her relief was palpable.
There was another awkward silence, despite all the noise around them.
"Can I ask you something now?" Alison finally spoke.
Emily nodded cautiously.
"How did you find me so fast that day?"
"Alison, I-" Emily started with a sigh but Alison shook her head.
"I don't want to fight with you again, Em. I don't have it in me. I just can't figure out how you made it to my place so quickly."
"I grabbed my bike," Emily said with a shrug. "And rode up and down every street until I saw the car you drove off in."
"You rode your bike?" Alison asked as her brow arched.
"After everything that happened that day, you find that surprising?"
Alison's lips curved despite her effort to remain stoic. "I'm just wondering what you have against cars."
"I don't have anything against them," Emily frowned. "I live close enough to the restaurant that I can ride a bike. I don't have to worry about finding parking or gas or-"
"You don't have to justify anything to me." Alison's eyes crinkled in the corners as she tried to hold back a chuckle.
"Then why are you making it sound like I'm crazy."
Alison's face fell and her lips curled down into a frown. "We both know only one of us is crazy."
As much as her instinct was to try to reassure the blonde that wasn't the case, Emily stayed quiet so another awkward silence between them followed until Alison's phone rang. She pulled it out of her shorts and lifted it to her ear.
"Hey, Nicole, what's up?" Emily looked over at the skaters and pretended not to listen to Alison's phone call, But she was instantly intrigued because she knew nothing about Alison's life. Who was Nicole?
"Pepe and I took a jog down to the boardwalk." She was silent for a minute. "Yes I do exercise sometimes."
Emily snickered to herself but Alison heard her and scowled at her before she sighed. "Why?" Alison was quiet for a minute and then replied. "I'll head back now."
The blonde ended her call just as Pepe barked and tugged on his leash.
"I have to go," she said regretfully. Even though it was awkward and neither of them knew what to say Alison didn't want to leave Emily's presence. "Come on Pepe," she added and the dog immediately walked over to her.
"Okay," Emily said, both relieved and disappointed as Alison turned to walk away.
"Oh, Em?" Alison stopped and turned back as Emily's eyes met hers. "Did you make that chocolate dessert?" Emily looked at her a bit confused so she clarified. "The one that you left at my house."
Emily nodded. "Yes."
Alison's lips curved into a bright smile. And Emily thought she'd never seen anything more beautiful.
"Did you like it?" Emily asked. She always loved to hear someone enjoyed her desserts but she wasn't a woman who sought gratuitous praise. But for some reason she needed to know Alison liked it.
"It was orgasmic," Alison sighed breathlessly.
Emily felt the rush of warmth run through her at Alison's words, for multiple reasons, but she forced herself to ignore it. "Thanks," she replied with a smile.
"Bye, Em," Alison said as the smile slipped from her lips and she turned again. She and Pepe jogged away and Alison inhaled a shuddering breath. Walking away from Emily was always so painful.
And it only got more painful each time she did it.
Emily watched Alison and Pepe vanish into the swarm of people on the boardwalk. She swallowed back a lump in her throat. Watching Alison walk away from her always caused something inside her to die a little.
##############
Marielle slipped her hand into Emily's and they continued to walk down the boardwalk. This was the perfect time for Emily to bring up that she'd seen Alison but her tongue was tied once again.
She didn't want to tell Marielle because by doing so felt like she was letting Alison back into her life. She couldn't afford to do that because, if she did, Emily knew her life, as she knew it, would come crashing down around her.
As they approached the Peruvian restaurant, they passed another café where the food smelled delicious. Emily looked over, thinking maybe they should eat there instead. Her eyes widened and she did a double take.
Sitting on the patio of a cafe was Alison, Pepe snoozing at her feet. She was seated across from a man Emily recognized at Detective Holbrook. They were in a heated conversation even though it was obvious they were trying to keep their voices down. Holbrook grabbed her injured hand and she yanked it away angrily as her lips moved rapidly. Emily cursed herself for never learning to read lips but she'd known Alison long enough to recognize the signs. Alison was tearing Holbrook a new asshole, but he just sat back and shook his head, his eyes flashing as angrily at her as the blonde's were at him.
Emily desperately wanted to move closer, wanted to hear what they were saying, but she couldn't without alerting Marielle of Alison's presence.
"Emily?" she heard Marielle say her name and she looked over. Her girlfriend was looking at her curiously. "Am I boring you?"
"No," Emily insisted as she shook her head and focused back on the woman beside her, not the one sitting less than fifty feet away. "Sorry I just spaced for a second."
Emily quickly guided Marielle past the café, not wanting her to see Alison.
"À quoi penses-tu ma belle?"
"Nothing. I'm right here with you," Emily assured as she leaned over and kissed Marielle softly, sufficiently distracting her.
As they reached the entrance to the Peruvian restaurant, Emily looked back only to see that Alison and Holbrook were gone.
##############
Emily knocked on the door to Pierre's office, still unsure if this was a good idea, but she had to do it.
"Entre," he called and Emily opened the door and peeked in.
"Hi," She said as she stepped inside the small office.
"Bonjour," Pierre smiled as he put down his pen and sat back.
"Do you have a minute?" Emily asked.
He nodded and waved his arm toward the chair. "Of course. Have a seat."
Emily shook her head. "Thanks but I'll only take a minute of your time. En Français ou en Anglais?" she asked as a courtesy because Pierre sometimes preferred to speak in his native tongue.
He smiled. "English is fine."
Emily took a breath. "First I feel like I should apologize again for acting like a crazy person and running out that day Alison was here."
"I told you that was fine Emily," he said kindly. "We all have those moments."
Emily shook her head. "But still it was completely unprofessional and I assure you it will never happen again."
He tilted his head as he looked at her. "Okay. I appreciate the assurance but it's unnecessary. I know the kind of person you are, the kind of employee you are and the brilliant pâtissier you are," he finished as he smiled.
Emily appreciated Pierre's words. He was such a wonderful man and an amazing boss. And in the few months she worked for him, the brunette learned that he considered everyone who worked for him family.
"Thank you," Emily replied sincerely.
"So now that's settled. It's your day off. Tell me what are you doing here?"
Emily shifted from one foot to the other. "Well, that's the thing. It's about Alison. I know I didn't tell you much about what caused me to freak out that day."
"You don't owe me any explanations about your personal life Emily, as long as it doesn't affect your work." Emily looked sheepish and Pierre laughed. "Well anymore."
Emily sighed softly. "It's a long complicated story, but anyway, that's not why I'm here. I need to speak to her again and I've tried stopping by her house but she's never there when I do. I was hoping maybe you had a number for her."
Pierre looked at her for a long moment before he pulled open the drawer to his right. "She gave me a card that day. I think it had a phone number and an address of a studio." He rummaged through the stack of business cards. "I think it was on Main Street."
Emily palms began to sweat as she waited.
"Ah, here it is." He held the card out to her.
"I don't want to take your card. I can just write down the information," she said.
"I don't need it," he assured her so she took it from him.
Emily looked down at the card and read the address before tucking it into the front pocket of her pants. "Thank you Pierre," she said again.
"Good luck," he said and she could tell he was curious, but also polite enough not to ask.
"I'm probably going to need it," Emily replied and she shrugged as she stepped back and opened the office door. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"On se voit demain."
################
Alison was tweaking the color saturation of a photo on her computer when Cece came around the wall into the alcove of the studio where she kept her desk and printer.
"So you are alive," Cece said sarcastically as she tossed her purse onto the chair across from the desk.
Alison didn't flinch or even look up. "Nice to see you too."
"You really have to fire that guy you have helping you. He's a moron," Cece said as she walked around the side of the desk and hiked herself up on the edge.
"Tim's nice. Leave him alone," Alison said as she continued to work on the photo in front of her.
"He's a moron," she repeated. "He didn't even remember me."
"Maybe you're just forgettable," Alison suggested as she smirked.
Cece kicked the side of Alison's chair. "Bitch, I'm unforgettable. And don't you forget it."
Alison laughed. "Is there a reason why you're here?"
Cece scowled. "You fucking forgot our spa day today didn't you?"
Alison closed her eyes before dropping her head. "Dammit," she muttered under her breath before looking up. Cece was glaring at her. "I'm sorry. I thought that was on Tuesday."
"Today is Tuesday, bitch." Cece's glare turned into a smirk. "You know you're completely off your game since your saw Americano," Cece said using her old nickname for Emily.
Alison sat back in her chair. "She has nothing to do with this."
Cece snorted softly. "Yeah, right. And I'm not a mega bitch."
"Why didn't you call me earlier and remind me."
"I'm not your fucking keeper."
Alison rolled her eyes. "What's with you lately? You swear like a sailor. More than usual that is."
Cece's smirk widened as she shifted to look at Alison more fully. "I decided that I love the word fuck so much that I'm going to use it as often as possible."
Alison arched her brow inquisitively. "Is there a reason for that?"
"Nope. Just feel like it. Oh, and it gets Jason really hot when I say it," Cece's lips curved into a seductive grin. "So that's incentive enough."
"Eww," Alison shuddered. "I don't need to know things like that about you and my brother thank you very much."
Cece just chuckled lowly before she tilted her head. "What are you doing that's so fucking important that you blew me off and why are you doing it here and not at your home office?"
"I had a last minute photo shoot for that article for Natalie. That's why Tim," Alison emphasized his name. "Is cleaning up out there."
Cece scoffed sarcastically. "That's all he's good for because did I mention he's a moron? This is what happens when you use free help, you know."
"He's an intern for school credit. Give him a break."
"Where's your new assistant anyway? Why didn't she help you?"
"Regan can't start until Monday. She's moving down from Oregon this week."
"Boring," Cece yawned. "So let's get back on the subject at hand."
Alison just shook her head used to Cece's propensity to ask things and then not really want to hear the answer. "What subject is that?"
"You and Americano."
Alison's brow furrowed as she looked back toward the computer screen. "There's nothing to say. But if you insist on talking about her can you at least call her by her real name?"
"No. I'll call her what I want. And fuck yes, there's more to say. It's been over a month, Ali. The fact that you haven't mentioned her at least a thousand times is freaking both me and Jason out."
Alison sighed and folded her arms over her chest. "There's no reason to mention her. I saw her. It was a fucking disaster. End of story."
"There is no end of story with you and Emily." Cece used Emily's real name so Alison knew she was serious about this conversation and wasn't going to be deterred.
"Well there has to be. She has a girlfriend."
"Since when did something like that stop you?"
"I'm not that person anymore," Alison said as she frowned. "I won't fuck up her life if she's happy."
"But you still fucking love her," Cece stated the obvious.
"I'll always love her. It doesn't mean I'm right for her."
Cece released an aggravated sigh. "I can't believe I'm fucking saying this but there is no one more right for her, for either of you."
"Well it doesn't matter." Alison nibbled on her bottom lip before she spoke again. "And I might have seen her again since that first time."
"Excuse me?" Cece shrieked. "When the fuck did that happen?"
Alison just rolled her eyes as she went back to focusing on the computer screen. Cece's new obsession with the word "fuck" was going to get old real quick.
"I saw her at the boardwalk last weekend," Alison said casually, hoping Cece would let it drop.
She didn't. The blonde stood up, walked around the desk and turned the computer screen around.
"What the hell, Cec," Alison snapped as she glared at her friend.
"Okay, bitch, start at the fucking beginning," Cece demanded as she narrowed her eyes. "Because first you're going to tell me what happened with Emily and then," Cece pointed at Alison's brace. "You're going to tell me what the fuck happened to your hand this time."
################
Emily walked into the studio and up to the young guy folding up the chairs.
"Excuse me. I'm here to see Alison DiLaurentis."
"Who?" he said as he looked at her funny.
"Alison DiLaurentis," Emily said again a little more slowly.
"There's no one here by that name," he replied as he continued to work.
"I know this is her studio."
He stopped and looked at her. "This is Alison's studio but her last name isn't DiLaura… what was it you said again?"
"Di-Laur-en-tis." Emily said even more slowly. She knew it wasn't this guy's fault she was anxious and upset but she had no patience for him today. It had taken all her courage to come down here. This could turn into a disaster of epic proportions but she needed more answers from Alison before she could have any hope of moving on.
"I think you've got the wrong person," he said with a shrug.
"What is her last name then?" Emily asked as she took a calming breath.
"Fields," the guy said and Emily felt like she had the wind knocked out of her.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?"
This time it was the guy's turn to speak slowly. "Her last name is Fields."
Emily's brain couldn't process what he was saying.
He lifted the camera case and put it on the cart with the chairs and other equipment. "She's in the back. Do you want me to get her for you?"
Emily shook her head. "No thanks. You're right; I've got the wrong person."
Emily turned and walked out of the studio, almost walking into the door she was so distracted. She stepped out onto the sidewalk and leaned against the side of the building.
Why would Alison have her last name?
Emily looked up at the sign on the building above the door.
ADF Photography.
The name hadn't registered when Pierre gave her the card. She pulled it out of her pocket again and looked at it more closely. Only the studio name, address and phone number were on the front. She turned the card over and saw a picture of Alison with her name beneath it. The word photographer was off to the right and there were email and social media addresses along the bottom.
Why hadn't she turned the freaking card over and read Alison's name?
The thought of seeing Alison again, confronting her about what she saw at the boardwalk and demanding the answers she deserved distracted her from registering the initials. She was so focused on the address she completely missed the rest of it.
Then again in no universe did Emily ever imagine Alison had changed her name.
Emily couldn't wrap her mind around this Alison, this person she'd encountered after so long. Alison had always been an enigma. She marched to the beat of her own drum. It was one of the things Emily always loved about her. But this woman was even more confusing and frustrating and no one had ever been able to wreak such havoc on her mind and heart as Alison DiLaurentis.
Or Alison Fields as she was now known.
Emily felt a surge of anger rush through her. Who the hell did Alison think she was to take her last name? Did she do it so Emily wouldn't be able to find her? Now that she thought about it, every search she did for Alison DiLaurentis turned up blank beyond the events in Rosewood. It was almost like she'd fallen off the face of the earth.
Never in her wildest imagination would Emily have thought to look for an Alison Fields. Was that all part of her plan to keep Emily from finding her? Was that why the private investigator was never able to find her? Why Alison was able to hide from him so well?
The more she thought about it, the more questions arose, the angrier Emily got. Even apart, Alison was messing with her. She hadn't changed. She never stopped playing games. She was the same old Alison.
Emily knew she should just walk away and forget the blonde. Finally bury Alison for good and move on with Marielle, a girl who loved her, who never played any kind of games with her heart and who would never lie to her, like Alison always had.
She pushed off the wall and started to walk away. But then she stopped and let out a frustrated growl. As much as she wanted to just leave and never look back, she wanted answers more. She deserved answers. She'd never be fully free of Alison if she didn't get them. And once she had them she would turn around and walk away. For good.
Emily strode back into the studio with more purpose. The guy who had been there was gone as was the cart he'd been putting the equipment on. She could hear the faint sound of a female voice behind the wall at the back of the studio. So rather than announce herself she just walked back.
As she approached, the voice became louder and clearer. She could also hear another voice that she instantly recognized at Cece's.
"Alison, this has to fucking stop."
"Chill out Cece. I told you it was an accident."
"It's always an accident."
"I just wasn't quick enough."
"You come back from there more banged up each time. Your need to be a hero is going to get you killed one of these days."
"Cece, it's taken care of."
"I just don't get you. I mean I get what you're doing but I just don't-" Cece sighed. "I've spent too many years keeping your ass alive to let you throw it away out of some sense of-"
"I said I've taken care of it. It won't happen again."
"Until next time," Cece scoffed and Emily decided she'd heard enough.
She was even more confused but she was here for answers and she was done waiting for them so she walked around the wall and announced herself.
"Alison."
Alison's head whipped in her direction and Emily saw panic in her eyes. Cece turned toward her as well and her lips curved from a frown into a smile.
"Hey Americano, long time no see."
"Emily, what are you doing here?" Alison asked as she stepped around the desk.
"You and I need to talk."
Cece made a soft coughing noise behind her. "Busted."
"Shut up, Cece," Alison growled before turning her attention back to Emily.
"How did you find my studio?"
Emily took a few seconds before she responded. "Pierre gave me the address."
"Emily, I don't understand. I thought we said everything we had to say to each other."
"Not by a long shot," Emily replied curtly and Alison could see both hurt and anger in her eyes again. Unlike the last time, anger superseded the hurt.
"How did you get back here?" Cece asked curiously, amusement lacing her voice and Alison wanted to slap her for it.
Emily looked over at Cece for a second and then her eyes slid back to Alison before she answered. "The guy out front said I could come back." It wasn't exactly the truth but Emily didn't care.
Cece looked at Alison and her lips widened into a feral smirk. "Please let me fire him. You know I love it when you let me fire people."
"Cece, knock it off," Alison said as a knot started forming in her stomach. This conversation was not going to go well. Of that she was sure. And that made the blonde want to bolt.
But Alison didn't run from anything or anyone who scared her anymore. Except Emily.
"Whatever," Cece scoffed before she grabbed her purse from the chair. "I'm out of here. It was good to see you Emily."
"Cece," Emily said her name and that was it. It wasn't Cece's fault what Alison had done years ago or that she'd stayed away. Emily knew enough about Alison and Cece's past to know Cece had never been a good influence on the blonde. But while Alison was an adult and responsible for her own actions, Emily couldn't help but project her anger onto Alison's friend.
And she had been with Alison in Paris. There was that too.
Cece shot Alison a look before she said. "Maybe you can talk her into not being such a fucking idiot."
"Cece, shut up," Alison snapped at her. "You can leave now."
Cece just snorted and walked out without saying another word. Neither Alison nor Emily spoke right away. They just continued to look at each other and they could hear Cece briefly giving Tim a hard time before her voice faded away and was gone.
Finally Alison spoke. "I don't know what else we have to say to each other, Em."
"I deserve some answers Alison," Emily said as she crossed her arms.
Alison mimicked her posture. "About what exactly?"
"Everything," Emily replied angrily. "I was too shocked the first time I saw you for my brain to even function properly. And then the other day I didn't have any idea what to say to you. But I'm not leaving here until you give me some answers about why you really left me all those years ago."
"I've told you I'm sorry I hurt you," Alison snapped angrily. "We both have our own lives now. You've moved on, you made that pretty clear. So why do we need to rehash this?"
"Because you owe me," Emily screeched and her voice broke. "Some kind of explanation for why you destroyed me."
Alison looked at the girl across from her, breathing as heavily and angrily as her.
Emily looked so fucking beautiful and so broken, as broken as Alison herself still felt. All she wanted to do was soothe the brunette's tortured soul with words and touches and kisses. She ached to feel Emily again, even if it was only just once more as a final goodbye.
So Alison did the one thing she'd wanted to do since she first saw Emily standing on her doorstep.
She hurled herself at the brunette and pressed her lips against Emily's for the first time in six years.
French Translations:
Les week-ends sont faits pour se détendre. - The weekends are for relaxing.
Tout le plaisir était pour moi. – The pleasure was all mine.
À quoi penses-tu ma belle? – What are you thinking about beautiful?
Entre. – Come in.
En Français ou en Anglais? – French or English?
On se voit demain. – See you tomorrow.
Sneak peek ahead….. stop reading now if that's not your thing…..
First, I know I said I planned to update once a week but I'm not going to be able to update again for two weeks. The next ten or so days are very busy for me work wise so I just won't have the time to edit. So to make up for that, especially after the way this chapter ended, I'm giving you a little sneak peek. This isn't from the next chapter, but a few chapters away.
Everything I write is deliberate. It has a purpose even if it doesn't seem like it and is most often foreshadowing of something to come later in the story.
This sneak peek is dedicated to all of you, my readers, particularly one very special guest reviewer. Hopefully this image of Alison and chocolate can replace the last…..
Thank you again as always for reading and if you're so inclined leave a review. I do appreciate them and love to read them.
Enjoy and see you again in two weeks.
"God, Em," Alison whimpered as she arched her back over the stainless steel counter top.
Emily smiled from where she stood between Alison's spread thighs. She slowly drizzled thin lines of the warm decadent liquid confection over Alison's skin, making a figure eight pattern around and between her breasts; slowly making her way to the middle where the blonde's hard nipples pebbled in the center.
"That feels so good," Alison whimpered again for the fourth time in as many minutes.
"I told you it's all about the temperature," Emily replied breathlessly as she watched Alison's body writhe in pleasure.
"Fuck," Alison groaned and she arched her back deeper as the warm chocolate coated her skin, sending shivers of pleasure through her entire body.
"You're such a potty mouth," Emily chuckled now because Alison used the word fuck almost as much as Cece, even though she always gave her friend a hard time about how much she said it.
Emily finished drizzling the last light line around Alison's nipple then she stepped back to admire her handiwork.
Alison opened her eyes, the blue irises darker and full as she gasped for breath.
"You're so beautiful," Emily whispered reverently before she stepped sideways and turned.
"Where are you going?" Alison pouted hoarsely.
"I need one more thing. Don't move," Emily commanded softly as she stepped over to the refrigerator and pulled open the glass door. "Every class I took at ecolet chocolat I dreamed of doing this to you one day," Emily admitted as she returned with a bowl with freshly whipped cream.
"Did you ever do this with Marielle?" Alison asked quietly, her eyes losing some of their heat.
Emily arched her brow. "Are you really bringing up my ex right now?"
Alison sighed and started to sit up but Emily pressed her hand on the blonde's stomach. "No. You'll ruin my masterpiece if you sit up." Emily looked around. "I need a picture of this. Where's your phone?"
Alison's lips curved into a sultry grin. "In the back pocket of the jeans you tossed across the room a few minutes ago."
Emily walked over and retrieved Alison's phone. Alison remained leaning back on her hands as her heated gaze followed the brunette. Her nipples ached and throbbed in anticipation as did the flesh between her thighs. Alison briefly looked down at her breasts and she swallowed thickly. She was so aroused by what Emily had just done and, as thoughts of what Emily would be doing soon assaulted her mind, she felt another rush of arousal soak her panties.
Emily stepped between her thighs again and snapped a couple of pictures. Alison leaned back, resting on her elbows now. She gasped as the cold steel of the countertop assaulted her warm skin again.
"You don't even really like chocolate," Alison mused as she watched Emily put her phone on the counter and then take a dollop of fresh whipped cream and drop it onto her nipple. "Oh," she moaned softly in response.
Now Emily's lips curved seductively. "I have a feeling I'm going to love the taste of it today."
And the brunette was sure she was. Just the thought of the chocolate mixed with the taste of Alison's skin was making her mouth water.
"Em, baby," Alison whimpered and writhed softly as Emily dropped a dollop of whipped cream on her other nipple before setting the bowl aside.
Emily pushed Alison's thighs wider and tugged her ass to the edge of the counter. Unable to wait a second longer, she leaned down and slowly swirled her tongue around Alison's right nipple, lapping up the sweet cream mixed with chocolate as the blonde's eyes rolled back in her head.
"You could so get fired for this if anyone finds out," Alison choked out softly.
Emily grinned as she lifted her head and licked her lips. "That's the brilliance of stainless steel. The chocolate cleans off easily and quickly."
"There's going to be a lot more than chocolate on this counter if you keep that up," Alison moaned long and low as Emily's tongue once again swirled softly up and over the soft mound of Alison's other breast.
The brunette caressed Alison's thighs, her fingers slowly moving toward the warm wet flesh between.
When she heard Alison gasp, Emily's lips curved again.
She was just getting started.