Miranda's convertible was a dream to drive. I had driven it before, but I still gawked when Miranda tossed me the keys. It was just one hour after the long, painful phone call with my parents, and she stood in the doorway to the den, a small carry-on at her feet.
"I took the liberty of packing for you," she said calmly. "Just a few things as there are plenty of leisure wear in the Hamptons."
I looked up from my laptop, blinking. I was just starting to get my speed up when it came to typing and had been focusing on a proposal for a story for Runway—a secret I hadn't even shared with Miranda yet. I was fully prepared to be refused, expected it even.
"The Hamptons?" I knew Miranda had a house there. It had been part of the divorce settlement with James. Were were going there?
"Yes. I thought we'd escape New York until Sunday." Miranda spoke curtly and was clearly annoyed at having to make such a decision. "I would have preferred to go into work as I usually do, but the media is bound to be beyond distractive." She pressed her lips together. "We're going to the house in the Hamptons, and when I'm there, I'll decide if I'll put it on the market or not."
I tried to decipher that last part. Perhaps she didn't want to keep anything of James's…barring her children of course.
"All right," I said and closed my laptop. I rose and found that my joints were quite rigid, and I wondered if all the emotional turmoil could be the reason. "What do the girls think?"
"They love it there. There's an indoor pool and they have friends in the neighborhood. Perhaps you remember they visited with the Craig-Lauritz's when you first stayed here."
I did. I remember when Miranda Skyped with her daughters at the time, and they had a bet going about their mother's feelings for me. Already then.
"What did you pack—I mean, for me, exactly." I eyed the bag.
"Clothes. And everything on and inside your nightstand." Miranda managed to look unphased, but I snapped my head up.
"Everything?" My stomach muscles clenched.
"Yes. You never know what you're going to need of your personal items. There was a book with a dog ear page. Honestly, Andrea. Would it kill you to use a lovely bookmark?" Her eyes glittered at me, and I found myself swallowing hard. I knew very well what was in my nightstand drawer, tucked in at the back. The idea that she decided to bring my little blue vibrator had me literally buzzing.
I drove through the dense traffic of Manhattan and settled in for the three-hour drive. It took the girls about fifteen minutes to fall asleep in the backseat, which I thought was a testament to how current events in our lives took a toll on all of us, as I had once fetched them in the Hamptons and had them chatter the entire way back home.
"They're tired," I said quietly.
"Yes. As are we. This was the right choice." Miranda snapped her cell phone cover closed. "I asked the Andersen's to ready the house for us, but I declined to have them cater to us if that's all right." She tipped her head back with a faint groan.
"Hey, it's me. Who is usually the one doing the catering, so to speak." I winked at her to take the edge of my words. She meant well by asking me and I forgave her for forgetting sometimes that I had lived a very different life from hers until lately. "I look forward to cooking a little. It relaxes me, even if my repertoire is pretty…pedestrian."
"How pedestrian?" Miranda shifted in her seat to face me.
"Regular food. Pasta dishes. Steak. Hamburgers. Salads." I shrugged. "Nothing fancy, but so far I haven't had any complaints, nor have I poisoned anyone."
"So far." Miranda had the gall to stick her tongue out at me.
"Are you crazy?" I gripped the wheel harder, wishing I hadn't glanced at her right that second. "I'm trying to not get us killed in this traffic and you do that."
"You're used to multitasking, darling," Miranda murmured. "I count on it."
I curled my toes, hoping that I would indeed get us to the Hamptons in the evening traffic and that the weather wouldn't change. "Pull up the weather report," I said, secretly enjoying making it an order.
"Oh, you…All right." Miranda tapped at her phone again. "Same as now. All weekend. We should be able to go for walks on the beach at least."
"Good. As long as we're not swallowed by the ocean." I had never told Miranda about my dislike for being around large bodies of water, let alone hating to swim in the ocean where I had no idea what was beneath me in the water. As Miranda's house was on the beach along Gin Ln, I had to just grin and bear it. Good thing it wasn't summer.
"We'll be perfectly safe," Miranda said matter of fact.
We drove in silence for a bit, and occasionally, Miranda checked on the girls, who now had slumped together, Caroline resting her head on Cassidy's shoulder.
"I should perhaps get another dog," Miranda said slowly.
"That's a great idea. I'd love that. Maybe we can visit a few shelters?" I perked up and shot Miranda a smile.
"Shelters?" Miranda sounded as if she never heard the word before. "Patricia had a pedigree."
"I know, and I'm not against that either, but there are so many dogs that need good homes."
"Aren't they riddled with problems?" Miranda sounded hesitant. "Behavioral problems."
"They can have some issues, but the shelters are good at finding that out and they let you know about it beforehand. Reputable shelters are very particular to pair a person with the right dog to set the dog up for success. They do require a lot of patience, to acclimatize. I think the girls would learn a lot, and do well with that, with our support."
"You do." Miranda's expressionless tone made me look quickly at her. To my surprise, her face was anything but blank. The tenderness in her eyes radiated toward me, and I knew if she kept that up, I would melt into a puddle before we were even halfway to the Hamptons.
"We will take this up with them. As such a dog cannot be home alone until it is acclimatized, it is good that Cara was used to Patricia and has a dog of her own."
Cara, Miranda's housekeeper, along with her husband, took care of most things regarding the townhouse, and its backyard.
"I think we should ask her and her husband too, then," I said, and relaxed into the backrest. Talking about a dog, no matter which kind, or from where, seemed to settle me. I never had a dog growing up, but that didn't keep me from begging for one each birthday and Christmas. I couldn't even pinpoint what reason my parents had for not getting one as we lived in the suburbs with a massive garden. Maybe they were cat people. Then again, we didn't have a cat either.
As we drove along I-495 E, where the traffic was dense, but kept going at a decent pace, I reached out my hand and placed on Miranda's knee. She was wearing tan slacks, and the lusciously smooth texture of the fabric made it impossible not to caress her gently.
"Andrea," Miranda said, caution in her voice. She leaned to the side and glanced at the girls. I already knew from looking in the rearview mirror that they were fast asleep. Miranda relaxed marginally and placed her hand on top of mine. At first I thought it was to keep my hands still, but instead, she pulled it toward her a few inches, closing some of the distance between her knee and her hip. "Playing with fire, are we?"
"Just…connecting." I chuckled quietly.
"I will remind you of the importance of this later, Andrea." Miranda's low register always did things to me, but now it was as if I had been electrocuted. All my hair stood up and it was all I could do not to moan way too loudly.
"I look forward to it." I hoped I injected some bravado in my voice, but I had a feeling that Miranda knew exactly the effect she had on me.
A second later, she took my hand and raised it to her mouth. She kissed my fingertips and then sucked my little finger into her mouth. Biting down gently, she made me whimper, which just wasn't right with the girls so close. I gingerly pulled my hand back and kept both hands on the wheel. I wasn't going to play around in the car right now.
When Miranda suddenly ran her fingertips along my thigh, I was better equipped to deal with it, but that didn't stop tremors from reverberating through me.
"Two can play this game, darling." Miranda let her hand move all the way to my crotch and then down to my knee again. She moved it to her lap in an elegant, prim pose and it was all I could do not to growl.
###
The beach house in the Hamptons contained four bedrooms with ensuites, two powder rooms, a mudroom, a living room, a library, a den, a kitchen, and a game room that also led to an indoor pool that could become an outdoor pool in the summer. A tennis court—no house in the Hamptons could be without one—and a boule court, was also available on the property. A three-car garage with an apartment above it had a space for Miranda's convertible, and also for a golf cart, several bicycles, and a moped.
I had seen most of it before and was too tired from the drive to be impressed. I carried Miranda's and my luggage inside while the bleary-eyed twins carried in their things, only to drop them in the open plan kitchen area to be able to open the fridge.
"Girls," Miranda said quietly. "Put your bags away and I'll see what Mrs. Andersen has stocked up for us. What are you in the mood for?"
"Just a sandwich, Mom," Cassidy said and began hauling both their bags toward the room she shared with her sister.
"All right. What kind?" Miranda opened the fridge. "There are homemade meals that Mrs. Andersen cooked for us."
"Maybe tomorrow. Too tired." Caroline walked over to Miranda and leaned against her. "Peanut butter jam will be great."
"Pedestrian," I mouthed at Miranda who glared at me. She made two sandwiches for the girls, and after checking with me, two more for us, which made my jaw drop. I had never seen Miranda Priestly imbibe a peanut butter jam sandwich before. She nearly had me fall off the kitchen stool when she slowly licked her fingers clean from jam where she stood behind the twins. I vowed then and there that I would exact punishment in the sweetest way.
The girls changed into sleepwear and fell into bed, both of them on the bottom bunk bed, and were asleep before Miranda turned off the light and just left a nightlight for them.
I ran the shower in our ensuite, and merely dropped my clothes on the bathroom floor, and stepped under the warm spray. Closing my eyes, I moaned when the water pounded at my back, as I had become tense on and off during the drive.
"We do have a hamper," I heard Miranda mutter, but I ignored it. I knew she was right, but I would deal with my clothes later.
"Should I leave the water running?" I called out when I was done.
"Please do." Miranda waited for me when I stepped out, holding up a towel. "Here you go, darling."
I wrapped it around me, much too busy ogling her naked form before she slipped into the shower. I saw my clothes in the same spot where I dropped them, and I smiled to myself as I placed them in the hamper.
I stepped into the bedroom where Miranda had turned down the bed and looked for any of the well-worn t-shirts that I normally slept in, as both our bags were opened, if not entirely unpacked. I couldn't find them. I opened a few drawers in the dresser, and there they were, neatly folded. Still wrapped in the towel, I walked closer to the bed and felt under the pillow. Nothing. I smiled. Miranda obviously wanted me in bed without a stitch on. I turned to the nightstand and stopped in mid-motion. In the center of the oak nightstand sat my cute, blue vibrator.
I sat down on the side of the bed, my hand over my mouth. Now, this was bold, even for Miranda Priestly. I loved it. And it made me tremble.
Miranda came into the bedroom and stopped at the foot of the bed. She too was wrapped in a soft towel, and water still beaded on her pale, perfect shoulders.
"You look like you have something on your mind," she said cooly.
"There and hopefully some other places." I had to smile, despite my unexpected onset of nerves. I laughed breathlessly and threw my upper body back on the bed.
Miranda moved around the bed to my side, nudging her legs in between mine. Her eyes roved all over my body, and I realized that the towel had dislodged and I was now half on display. Or, entirely, as it were, since Miranda bent and flipped the towel completely open.
"As you know, I like to look at you." She slowly ran her eyes up and down my body, as if we were at work and I was wearing a new outfit. "You are exquisite. I'm a very lucky woman. Don't think I don't know that." She fell to her knees on the floor, between my legs. "And for all kinds of reasons, not just your physical beauty." She smiled ferally. "That said, right now, I possess something of a one-track mind."
"Sounds good to me," I gasped.
"Yes. Well. What should I do with you, Andrea?" she murmured, perhaps mostly to herself. "You tempt me in so many ways." She glanced at me with darkening eyes. And sometimes you do it when it's entirely inconvenient."
Whoops. "Sorry?" I wasn't, but she almost glared at me, and I found that rather titillating.
"Don't be. It's my cross to bear." She ran a finger along my inner thigh, skipped my drenched labia, and tickled me in a straight line up to my belly button.
I arched, but she didn't increase the pattern, no matter how obvious I was.
"Miranda," I whispered. "I'm so…"
She ran her finger back down my stomach again and down my other leg, again skipping the part of me that ached for her. "Horny?" she added helpfully.
"Yes. That. And hungry for you. I want to taste you, devour you," I babbled, tripping over my words. "I want you."
Miranda's eyes glazed over for a moment, and then she smiled. It was a genuine smile, but it was tinged with the devilish grin she occasionally used to offer at work.
I told her. "You used to smile like that at me, but scarier, at work. In the beginning, it scared me to death, but that changed…especially after Paris." I placed my hand above my head and that made my back arch again. She stared at my breasts with their hard, puckered nipples, and licked her lips.
"Changed how?" Miranda asked. She sounded huskier now.
"I went from scared to hot and bothered almost from one day to the next. You would smirk, or smile that toothy, insincere grin, and I had to meditate while I answered the phones…or even, ahem, take care of business." I narrowed my eyes deliberately and studied her.
Miranda pushed my legs apart and pressed her lips against the inside of my right thigh, nipping at me with her teeth. Growing under her breath, she licked upward, until she reached my labia. She pushed them apart with her ghumbs and blew gently at the wetness.
I whimpered and placed a hand over my mouth. "Mm."
"Masturbating when on the clock? Shocking. Tell me more. Where did you go to take care of business?" Her hands were stronger than anyone would think, and she kept me in place as she flickered the very tip of her tongue against my inner folds.
"Bathroom. Mostly." I couldn't stay still. All I wanted was for her to press her tongue firmly against me, but she kept on barely touching me.
"Dangerous." Miranda tsked. "Someone could have overheard."
"Yeah, I know, but if I were going to be in the car with you an entire afternoon, or sit next to you by your desk while you went through a million photos, I had to make sure I didn't go completely nuts and jumped you right then and there."
Her eyes grew wider and her lips parted. "Oh."
"Yes. Exactly. It's not a good look to try and seduce your boss on her glass desk just inside her glass doors." I squirmed beneath her. "Miranda please, you're driving me crazy."
"You're one to talk. You're the one telling me how you got yourself off in the bathroom when all I did was smile at you. That's a lot of wasted opportunities, right there." She flattened her tongue against my clit for a few, amazing seconds. "We have a lot of missed occasions to make up for."
"Uh-huh." I wanted to hold her against me, wrap my legs around her, and have her grind her wetness into mine. And yet, I didn't pull her closer. I let her set the pace.
"You haven't mentioned that I decided to bring your, uhm, little blue friend," Miranda said and placed a hand on my pubic bone. She rested her chin on top of it and regarded me with burning eyes.
"Oh, I saw it sitting there." I nodded in the general vicinity with my chin. "Hard to miss."
"I'll say. It's nearly fluorescent." Miranda rolled her eyes.
"Makes it easier to find in the dark." I winked, which made her scowl.
"Well."
"What are your plans for it? Are you going to drive me more insane than usual?" I was almost afraid to ask. Making love with Miranda was like maneuvering through a minefield, where every orgasm was an explosion. Adding that little blue toy to the mix…I still remembered just how that had sent me into orbit when we were in my apartment.
"No," Miranda said and then confused me by flicking her tongue over my clit.
"What?" I tried to figure out what she was saying, but her tongue created such magic, that I was now losing my train of thought.
"I will take care of you right now, just like this, and then, you will educate me on how to use the little blue thing." She studied me closely while she pressed the pad of a finger against my clit.
I thought back to when she had conquered one fear and allowed me to take her from behind, and now she was curious about the vibrator. She had told me before that she had found the toys she'd been introduced to before, intimidating. My Little Blue was not, but I understood it was still a big step for Miranda.
"I have told you before," I said, my voice soft, "I will do anything you ask of me because I know you'd never ask anything of me that I don't want to do." I reached down and pushed her bangs from her forehead.
"I know." Miranda apparently thought we had talked enough for the moment and pushed my feet up and onto the bed, which spread me wider for her. She bent down and now she wasn't subtle at all. Using her tongue, teeth, and fingers, she caressed every part of me, spread the wetness everywhere, and all I could think was that I had to be quiet. I grabbed one of the smaller pillows and bit into it as the tremors began.
Miranda kept up the caresses with her fingers, when she looked up at me, her eyes wild, making her look ravenous. "Inside?" Her voice was raspy.
"Oh, God, yes. Yes! More... I need to feel you." I wasn't sure if my words came out in the right order, but Miranda seemed to understand.
"Hold on. Four fingers, darling. Tell me if it's too much."
I couldn't keep my eyes open. "Now." My legs trembled so hard against her, that I was afraid of kicking her.
Slowly, slowly, four fingers were enough to burn me, but it didn't hurt. I wailed into the pillow as she began to thrust in and out, curling the fingers and pressing the thumb against my swollen clit. I held on to my knees and pulled them to me, wanting to give her more access, for Miranda to make me hers all over again.
"Andrea." Miranda leaned in over me, and moved her hand faster, twisting her fingers and the pressure was so sweet, so hot, I reached for her while my tears began to run down my temples and into my hair.
"Now," I said and whimpered. "Now, now…" And then my body became taut like a bowstring, and Miranda pressed her lips to mine, swallowing my cry of pleasure as I rode wave after wave against her hand. She slowed her hand but kept a gentle caress going until I slumped back against the bed. She pulled out her fingers and flexed them before she helped me slip further up across the bed. Taking me in her arms, she held me and kissed me again.
"You are like a flame in my arms," she said quietly. "You don't hesitate for a moment. You trust me and let me make love to you and, God when you come. It's magical." She blushed, perhaps at her own words. She was normally not that poetic.
"Just give me a sec," I said, still trying to catch my breath. I cupped her left breast and flicked my thumb over her nipple. The way she winced told me she was too far gone for too much of such play. "Sensitive?"
"And then some." Miranda hid her face in my hair, another sign that she was achingly close.
After a few minutes, I could tell I needed to act as she was starting to squirm next to me, pressing her pubic bone against my hip. I sat up and rolled her onto her back. "Still interested in the little blue toy?" I studied her closely, thinking she may be too sensitive for even the lowest setting.
"Let's see." Miranda reached out her hand for it and I gave it to her. "It's an odd contraption," she said with a trembling voice. "And you used this when you needed release after work?"
"Mainly after sitting next to you on the couch while you wanted me to take notes when I delivered the Book. Our thighs would brush against each other when you pointed something out, or when you wanted to read my notes. There were times when you accidentally slid your arm against my breast. Or that our fingers touched when you poured me a glass of Pellegrino." I blinked as Miranda's cheeks went an obvious pink. "Wait. Were those instances all by happenstance?"
Miranda covered her eyes with her hand. "More than half of them were, I'm sure. I wondered how long it would take you to figure out that you were the first assistant that I ever asked to stay for a glass of wine or Pellegrino. I had no idea how suspicious you were about those evenings, as you never asked me."
I raised my eyebrows as I bent down and brushed my lips against her. "Asked you? And risk being fired since you never ask Miranda Priestly anything? As if." I kissed the tip of her nose, which made her scowl.
"So, when I was back in my bed, using Little Blue to be able to go to sleep at all, what were you doing those nights when you made sure to 'accidentally' touch me?" I took her breasts in my hands and rolled her nipples between my thumbs and index fingers and she went, "Oh, God…like that, yes, like that…" She breathed hard through her nose. "I didn't have a Little Blue, obviously, but I often found myself in the shower where I made good use of the detachable shower head."
"Fuck…" I whispered.
"It has an adjustable spray." Miranda looked at the small vibrator and ran her finger over the little hole in one end. "Will you help me?"
She looked so trusting, and I could tell she was all set on facing another one of her, if not fears, then apprehensions. I didn't think she meant to use Little Blue regularly, but she loathed being limited in any way. Without being conceited, I figured this was especially true around me.
"Of course, I will. If you say stop—we stop."
"All right." Miranda handed Little Blue over to me and I could see goosebumps erupt all over her body.
I placed a small pillow under her head as I wanted her to be comfortable, and able to see. Placing the toy next to her, I began mapping her body with my lips. I avoided her nipples and her swollen folds and clit but licked and kissed everywhere else.
"Andrea. I need to come. Please. Oh, please…I can only be you. Only you...Do any...anything...please..." Miranda was muttering under her breath, and I didn't want her to have to beg. I settled between her legs, and reaching after another small pillow, I shoved it in under her ass. "Oh, God, oh God…" Miranda stared up at me with perspiration beading on her forehead and between her beautiful breasts.
"Soon." I parted her folds, and she was so slick, I knew she was beyond ready. I positioned Little Blue around her clit, and just as I entered her with three fingers, I pressed the button for the gentlest setting. Keeping my eyes moving between her face and the toy between her legs, I curled my fingers inside her and massaged her firmly.
Miranda's half-closed eyes snapped open and she stared up at me with an unreadable expression on her face. Her mouth half-open, she drew several sharp breaths, and then she slapped both hands over her mouth as she cried out. Inside, I felt her come, in one rolling wave after another. I removed the toy, as I knew instinctively that it served its purpose, perhaps forever, and tossed it aside. I bent and pressed my lips and tongue against her, soothing her rather than anything else.
"Andrea," she whimpered and began clawing for me. "Andrea, darling…"
I slid up the length of her body and hugged her close. She clung to me and I could hear small whimpers with every breath she took, and realized that she was still coming in small, aftershocks. I rocked her and she buried her face against me.
"I love you," I said quietly. "I love you so much. You're so wonderful and you belong with me. No matter what, that's the truth. We belong together."
"We do…we do…" Miranda sobbed, and only now did I realize that she was crying.
"It's all right," I said and gave into my tears. "Nothing wrong with crying—it releases tension." I pressed my lips to her temple. "Together."
"Yes. Together."
I couldn't tell how long we lay there wrapped around each other, but eventually, Miranda began to shiver. We stood on wobbly legs on either side of the bed and straightened the duvet enough to be able to crawl back into it. Meeting in the middle, Miranda backed up against me and pulled my arm around her. I managed to worm my other arm under the pillows to get close enough.
"Time for sleep, Andrea," Miranda said. She reached back and placed a hand on my hip. "I love you too."
"Mm." I was already about to doze off. "Good."
Miranda chuckled quietly. "It is. Now sleep." She sighed, and it was a sound from a thoroughly relaxed woman.
I merely nodded as I was too tired to do anything else. Closing my eyes, I inhaled her scent of perfume and sex, all of it just for me.
I hummed from pure pleasure and then I drifted off to sleep.
Continued in part 32.