LipstickLeslee (10 page)

Will shoved open the door and stalked out.

“God, what a number-one asshole.” Melanie plopped onto the
seat of the booth.

I slid in across from her. “Uh, I think Charles is tied with
him for that honorable position. Geez, we sure know how to choose our men,
don’t we?”

Melanie snorted. She picked up her cup and sipped her latte.
“Not me. Not anymore. I’m done with men.”

“Really?” Hope and something warm and fuzzy bloomed in my
groin. “You—”

The waitress set a cup and saucer in front of me and smiled.
She slid the phone into her apron pocket. “Me too. I don’t think there’re any
decent ones left in this world, and
that
one really took the cake.
Speaking of cake, can I get you anything, ma’am? A chocolate-chip scone? Soup?
Coffee? Or would you like to share the pot of latte I made for your friend?”

“Latte. I’ll have the latte with Melanie.”

“All righty then.” She tidied the table, plucking up empty
sugar packets and a plate with a half-eaten cinnamon roll.

I gripped her wrist and held the woman’s bright-blue gaze.
“Thank you. Thank you for intervening. I think I would have killed the bastard
if you hadn’t stepped in.”

She winked. “Not before I got a hold of him, sugar. I had a
husband who couldn’t keep his fists out of my eyes or his fingers from crushing
my windpipe. So I’d just as soon’ve been the one to dump your fellow in the
nearest river first.”

She popped her gum and winked again, then spun on her heels
and returned behind the counter.

“I’m really sorry about all this. I think Will must’ve seen
my car outside and did a U-turn. I was alone one minute, the next there he was
standing at my table like a drooling dog.” Melanie rolled her eyes.

“It’s okay. I’ll admit, at first I wasn’t sure if you’d
invited him or not, but now I get it. I’m sorry, I just didn’t know what this
was all about.”

Melanie swiped her hand over mine. Her touch was
affectionate, almost seductive. “It’s fine. I totally understand.”

“I… So…” I poured a cup of latte and lifted it to my lips to
blow on the steam. The scent of cinnamon and nutmeg filled my nostrils. Mm, I’d
never had a pumpkin latte before, and I loved it that I was sharing this first
with her. My direct gaze finally met Melanie’s over the rim of the cup. She
looked fresh and beautiful. And happy.

Spicy, frothy liquid spilled over my tongue and warmed my
throat. Or maybe it was thick emotions deepening my voice. “You said you’re
done with men. Along with texting me and asking me to meet you here, that makes
two things I’m now curious about. What’s up?”

She placed her cup on the saucer and chewed on her bottom
lip. Oh how that made me crazy with the urge to kiss her. Her eyes rose to meet
mine while she traced the rim of her cup with a fingertip. Her nails were
painted with snow-white polish and decorated with various holiday mini-stickers—wreaths,
stockings, Christmas trees and candy canes. I imagined the long fingernails
scraping down my back in the throes of girl-on-girl passion.

“I’ve really missed you, Leslee. I mean
really
.” She
reached across the table and held out her hand until I set mine in hers. The
squeeze she gave my hand felt as if she’d pumped fire through my bloodstream
and ignited tiny flames to my nipples.

“Really?”

“Yes. And I’m so sorry if it seemed like I’d used you or was
being selfish. It’s just that I needed to…” She swallowed. “I needed to be
sure. But I am now. I want to be with you, Leslee. I want us to give things a
try.”

I got lost in her tear-filled eyes. They sparkled like
golden Christmas lights. The irony was that at that particular moment, her
words entwined with the carol
Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire
, and
the part about “eyes all aglow” came over the speakers. Intense happiness and
love washed over me, and I fought the urge to leap up and shout my joy.

“Things? As in a relationship?”

She nodded and a lone tear trailed down her cheek.

I reached up and wiped the moisture away. To me, it
represented finally erasing the uncertainty of what had stood between us all
along, that roadblock that had been there since I’d hired her at the hotel and
gotten myself entangled in an instant crush.

She closed her eyes, sighed and turned her face into my
palm. The moist kiss she planted there sent tingly heat racing up my arm.

“Leslee. Oh how I’ve missed you.” She gripped my hand and
kissed my fingertips, my wrist, my knuckles. “Please tell me I’m not too late,
that you don’t hate me and…and that you’re not seeing someone else.”

I couldn’t hold back anymore. I rounded the table, dropped
into the booth next to her and took her in my arms. A cloud of musky perfume
and soft hair engulfed me, along with the overwhelming emotions of relief,
elation and a sense of coming home. She clutched me with frantic movements and
burst into sobs that tore at my heart.

I rocked her and let her press her breasts into mine. “Shh,
shh.” Her hair, like strands of silk, caressed my palms as I petted her head.
“It’s okay, baby, it’s not too late. I’ve missed you too, and no, I don’t hate
you and I’m not seeing anyone.”

“R-r-r-really?”

“Are you kidding?” I gripped her shoulders and drew her back
so I could look into her drenched eyes. She looked gorgeous, scrumptious,
entirely edible and loveable even with streaks of mascara smudged beneath her
eyes. “After being with you, no one will ever measure up. You’re all I’ve
wanted ever since you sashayed into my office for your interview.”

She grinned, drawing my gaze to her full, glossy lips. “You
said that same thing the night we made love.”

I chuckled. “And you denied sashaying.”

“All right, all right.” She giggled. “So I sashayed. And
I’ll admit, I did it on purpose because as soon as I saw who my boss was going
to be, my heart went into overdrive and I wanted to hold your attention. Only I
didn’t know why at the time. Now I do.”

Her gaze held mine, mesmerizing me as I waited for more
clarification. “Why?” I finally asked.

“These last few weeks after losing our jobs and being apart,
I had a lot of time to think and make plans.” She licked her lips and my mouth
thirsted to taste her again. “I-I really think I might be—well, all I know is
I’m attracted to women, not men. I don’t like putting tags on myself or us or
anything, but the truth is I’ve never been turned-on by guys. Ever. And all I
have to do is look at you and I’m wet and hot and ready to have sex. That just
says it all to me.”

I held her face in my hands and kissed her with gentleness
and a hunger that nearly had me shoving her back on the seat and devouring her.
“Mmmm, you can say that again.”

She got into the kiss but then pulled back. It was as if she
had to get the words out before she lost her nerve. “So I can only conclude
that that’s what it is. Seriously. Lesbian or not—does it really need a label?
But being with you just felt…normal. Really,
reall
y good and right.
Being with Will and all the other men in my past? I mean, shit, I could only orgasm
if I was fantasizing about a woman, and still to this day I never notice men.
Never. They do nothing for me, nothing. Especially not now after being with
you.

“Leslee, I know it’s a gamble for you, but I really want to
give this a go—you and I. I need a chance to explore this part of me that I
think I’ve suppressed even since Kaydee and I were kids and she confessed her
out-of-the-closet news to me. I think I knew deep down that I felt the same
way, but I wasn’t brave like her. She didn’t give a crap what society or family
or friends thought of her. But being the shallow person I used to be, I did
care.
Did.
Don’t anymore. Do you understand?”

“Completely.”

Melanie squealed and hugged me tight. “Thank you, thank you,
thank you. I feel so blessed.”

I reached for my cup and saucer and dragged it across the
table then I topped off both of our cups with fresh, steaming latte from the
pot. As I lifted the cup to my lips, I groped for her hand under the table and
twined my fingers into hers.

This was all such a relief, and despite the dismal outlook
on my career, I had hope that somehow things would work out for me, her and us.
“We are blessed. Even after being fired.” I snorted. “Did you find a job yet?”

Melanie squeezed my hand and sipped her latte. “Nope.”

“Well aren’t we a pair?” I could only laugh. After all, I
had the woman I was falling in love with sitting right next to me. At this
moment in time, we were tucked nice and cozy near a fireplace in a warm coffee
shop and Christmas was just a couple of days away.

Her cell phone jingled with a text alert. She glanced down
and squealed again. “Oh! Oh, it’s her.”

“Her?”

She framed my face in her hands and gave me a big smacking
kiss on the lips. She tasted of cinnamon, nutmeg and cream, just like the
creamy flavor of her pussy. “I have a Christmas present for you.”

I drew back. “A present? You got me a Christmas present?
Wow.”

“Yes, yes I did. Sort of…” She shoved her cup away and
started gathering up her purse and coat.

Santa Baby
played from the overhead speaker. I
listened to it for a few beats then said, “Melanie.”

She halted her movements and shot a look at me over her
shoulder. “What?”

“I truly appreciate your thoughtfulness, but we can’t afford
gifts right now. Besides, I don’t need any presents.
You
are my present.
Just being here with you, getting the promise of a future with you—that’s all I
need for Christmas. So no presents. Okay?”

“Oh no. You’re gonna want this present, believe me.” She
shooed me out of the booth and stood. Her eyes glittered with mischief as she
pulled me into her arms and whispered in my ear, “And once I show it to you and
we get it all on the table, I’m going to make eye-crossing, toe-curling,
mind-blowing love to you, babe.”

“Whoa.” Other than that one word, I was speechless simply because
her scrumptious threat made my mouth go dry, my lungs deflate and my belly
quicken with sexual need like never before.

She pinched my cheek, shot me a devilish grin and shrugged
on a sporty coat over the top of her football jersey. Then she turned and yes,
sashayed out of the coffeehouse, her nice tight ass swaying from side-to-side
in jeans so snug they could’ve been painted on.

“Holy hotcakes, hold the presses. I do believe just this
once I
am
in the mood to be dominated by one particular smokin’-hot
woman.”

Chapter Nine

Melanie: Coming Home

“What…why are we stopping here?” Leslee’s brow furrowed. God
she looked so damn gorgeous with her eyes all bright and the creaminess of her
skin stark against the dark of her hair. And I really dug the fur-edged collar
of her coat over a blazer and dress pants she’d paired with a holiday-ish green
silk blouse. The entire outfit emphasized her curvy figure and added extra
feminine touches she normally hadn’t worn, even at the hotel.

She must’ve just come from a job interview.

I grinned at that thought. My belly fluttered. I couldn’t
wait to tell her the news, but there was still that faint apprehension that she
wouldn’t go for it.

Leslee glanced around at the fifty or so acres of rolling
hills blanketed by a fresh carpet of snow and tucked behind the long fence that
lined the driveway. The setting sun glinted in bronze streaks off the white
crystals, reminding me of the orange sherbet-and-vanilla ice cream Kaydee and I
used to devour at Dad’s farmhouse as kids. But this was a much larger home—a
craftsman style decades older than Savanah’s place—with a covered porch on
three sides, stone detail and a newer attached four-car garage adjacent to the
main house.

I’d see to it that it would have an even cozier feel than the
home I’d grown up in.

And it would be mine.

Ours.

My tires crunched on snow as we followed the meandering
drive. I pulled in behind Savanah’s high-end sedan, got out and leaned in.
“We’re here for your Christmas present. It’s inside. C’mon.” I shut the door
before she could respond and leaped from imprint to imprint of Savanah’s
footsteps. They followed along the curved walkway and up the half-dozen stairs
to the porch. I smelled smoke—she must have started a fire inside to set the
mood and make the home welcoming.

I reached the top step and studied the covered space. Yes,
this would work fine. The wood flooring would need to be sanded, stained and
repainted, and a few spindles on the railing would have to be replaced. But
already I could tell the place had good bones. I noted the colorful
stained-glass window above the doorframe and the high windows in the
craftsman’s heavy maple front door. I sized up the porch’s square footage. Oh
yeah. Maybe add an outdoor dining table or two, a couple of porch swings, some
hammocks, some flowers in hanging pots and in the flowerbeds…

Leslee followed, her footsteps falling slow and heavy on the
steps. “Is that—that’s Savanah’s car, isn’t it?”

“Yep. She’s the one who texted me at the coffeehouse.” I
turned the ornate iron doorknob and stepped into the foyer. The inside warmth
embraced me, and the scent of cookie-dough candles and burning firewood filled
my nostrils. Ah good, Savanah had lit scented candles as one of her usual
subtle sales tricks. Flames danced in several candles set on the mantle of a
stone fireplace in the dining room and another in the sitting room to the left.
The grand dining room had built-ins and a pass-through to the kitchen, just
perfect for what I had in mind, and the fireplace roared with a cozy fire.

Leslee leaned against the door to close it. Her gaze fell on
the rich-wood staircase straight ahead with the baroque, stained glass window
at the landing halfway up. She whistled. “Oh my
gawd
. This place is
amazing.”

Savanah’s heels clipped on wood floors as she passed through
the dining room and met us in the entryway.

Leslee caught sight of her and said, “Okay, I give.
Savanah’s here, there’s a Savanah Kirtright Real Estate sign perched in the
yard and you’re about to pee your pants you’re so excited. Are you buying this
place, Melanie?”

“No.”

Leslee flicked an annoyed look at me. “Then what the hell
are we doing here?”

“Well…
We
are going to own this place together.”

I waited the long beat for her to blink, dig into one ear
with her pinkie and then clear her throat. “Um, excuse me? We? What are you
talking about?”

I couldn’t contain myself any more. I jumped up and down and
squealed while holding her upper arms. “Don’t you see, Lez?”

“No, I—” Her mouth hung open.

I barreled on. “We’re both experts in the food and beverage
industry, restaurants, hotels, that type thing. You owned Pussycat’s—well,
until that prick tricked you and sold it. Bards Holdings and Charles are buying
up every gay business in the city to run off that market. But…that’s in the
city
with all the under-the-table deals with the mayor and the city council and
brokers and conservative groups and cops and well, you get the idea. Don’t you
see?”

“I—”

“They can’t do a thing about a—wait for it—
gay
bed-and-breakfast outside the city limits
. Do you get it? Huh? Do you?” I
shook her. “Do you, for crying out loud?”

Savanah stood back, holding her clipboard to her chest and
not saying a word. But she was grinning, and I could see the love and pride
shining in her eyes.

Leslee shut her mouth with a grunt of confusion. She pinched
her brow and rubbed her chin. Her eyes narrowed as she swept the foyer and the
stairs with a probing look. I chewed on my lip while she strolled from room to
room on the main level, running her fingers along windowsills, wainscoting and
fireplace mantles. Her high heels clipped on bare wood floors and her leg
muscles flexed beneath her black dress pants as she walked.

Damn, I could just imagine those legs wrapped around my head
while I tasted her pussy and—

“Are you saying you want to run a bed-and-breakfast with me?
And target our business to the gay community?” She finally stopped across the
sitting room, pulled her coat tight around her frame and crossed her arms.

Uh-oh. Her hesitation and poker-faced mannerisms made me
nervous. Had I overstepped my bounds and miscalculated how she would react?

But I wasn’t to be stopped. I knew in my heart
this
was our future.
This
was why we’d met and worked together at the hotel,
why this beautiful thing had blossomed between us. If she didn’t see it now,
she would. I’d make her see my vision as ours.

“Yes.” Even though a knot of dread tugged at my gut because
she didn’t seem excited in the least, my excitement couldn’t be contained. I
clapped and jumped up and down in my sneakers. “Isn’t it a brilliant idea? I’ve
already bought software to build us a website. I have a really cool logo
planned—but of course it’s just preliminary ideas. You’ll have to work on it
with me from here on out. Oh! And I’ve got the metatags embedded in each page
with search-engine-friendly, rich keywords. We should get major traffic to the
site, which means good business.”

She walked toward me but I kept chattering. I had to get it
all out. “I also got in touch this morning with several local and national
newspapers on advertising rates. And I’ve even contacted one of the Louisville
TV networks for ads, and I’ve been searching for a company to build us a sign
for the entrance down by the county road. There’s so much more, but I wanted to
consult you first and see what you thought about my idea to—”

Leslee framed my face and kissed me silly. Her mouth was
warm and wet and tasty, and it took all the willpower I had to remember Savanah
was here. Really awkward, so I broke free and saw that tears streamed down
Leslee’s cheeks. She held my gaze, her hands still cupping my face and
trembling so much, she could barely hang on to me. “You did this for me? For
us?”

I nodded. I wasn’t sure if that tone of hers was positive or
pissed. I held my breath and waited for what seemed eons as panic and doubt
clawed their way from my churning belly to my burning lungs. Again, the
uncertainties echoed in my head. Had I been wrong about her, about us? Had I
taken liberties and made assumptions I shouldn’t have?

Leslee continued to stare deep into my eyes…or was that a
glare? I pressed an unsteady hand to my stomach. Yes, it was a glare. It had to
be, given the long silence and that look in her eyes.

Oh god, I think I
am
going to throw up.

I started to untangle myself from Leslee’s hold on my face
and flee, but Savanah stopped me. She clicked her pen and tapped her perfectly
manicured nails on the papers clipped to the clipboard. “Uh, should I show you
all the rooms? It’s a four-bedroom upstairs, each with en suite baths, plus
there’s living quarters on the main level behind the kitchen and then what
could eventually be renovated into a honeymoon suite above the garage.”

“I would love to see every inch of
our
bed-and-breakfast inn.”

“Really?” I gulped and air whooshed out of my lungs.

She smiled at me, her teeth as white as freshly fallen snow.
My heart turned over in my chest.
I love her.
And I think I fell for her
somewhere in that phase of our coworking relationship at the hotel. I had been
in such denial, dating and sleeping with men I had no interest in whatsoever,
then blaming it on rebounding from my breakup with Will.

What an idiot I’d been.

But no more. It was time to make up for lost time.

Leslee nodded and hugged me. Her perfume filled my senses
and I buried my nose in her thick, silky hair. Our breasts smashed together
like four supple pillows, and her erect nipples brushed mine, sending a zap of
desire through my system.

“Really,” Leslee finally replied. “As you said, I think it’s
a brilliant idea, and I’ll add exciting and amazing. The perfect solution for
both our situations, unemployed, can’t get a bite on a new job because our
reputations are ruined after Charles’ clever sabotaging—yes, he admitted to
setting up the contest to bring Pussycat’s down rather than up. He meant to bring
me down too, of course, so I had no choice but to agree to sell. And wow. This
is uncanny timing. The buyer just threw me out of my upstairs apartment. I have
to be out by January first. I didn’t know what I was going to do.”

“I don’t know how I ever did business with that bastard,”
Savanah snarled.

I held up a finger. “Uh-uh. I’ll go with something more on
the mark—motherfucker.”

Leslee shook her head. “No. I’ll trump that with goddamn
prick, arrogant asshole and bigoted motherfucker.”

We all burst out in giggles. It was a wonderful feeling of
camaraderie and affection to be spending this moment with the woman I adored
and the stepmom who’d never really been a mom to me due to marrying my father
long after I’d left home, but since she’d started a relationship with my best
friend, she’d become my friend as well.

“So. Shall we take a tour of the rest of the place?” Savanah
asked.

Leslee made a face. “I hesitate to ask the list price, but
you won’t be able to stop me from looking. Dying to see it…even though I doubt
I can afford it.”

“Melanie,” Savanah said with a tone that contained bubbles
of nearly bursting anticipation. “You wanna tell her, or should I?”

I took Leslee’s hand, held it to my breastbone and looked
her in the eyes. “I’ll tell her.”

“Oh no, what? Is there a catch?” She shifted a nervous gaze
back and forth between me and Savanah.

“Nope. No catch,” I said, wanting to be wicked and draw out
the anticipation but gushing with the need to tell her too. Gushing won out.
“You see, when I told Savanah my B&B idea earlier this morning, she
revealed that…my father left a large trust fund in her name that was to be used
to invest in property for me as security for my future. This is my dad’s gift
to me from the grave. Savanah’s company put it on the market last month, but
she decided to buy it with the funds set aside for me and present me the keys
just as Daddy instructed.”

Leslee’s mouth fell open. “No. Way.”

“Yes. Way,” Savanah offered with a chuckle. “He was a
generous man with a way larger bank account than even I knew. And I really did
love him.”

I took Leslee’s hand and tugged her toward the stairs. “I
know you did, Savvy, and I totally understand your decisions since his passing.
I love you for loving him. Now.” I shrieked, unable to control my eagerness.
“Show us our house.”

Savanah started across the foyer but halted her steps. “I,
uh… You know what? I don’t think there’s any reason for me to give you a tour
of your own house. I think I’ll leave you two to explore on your own.”

“Oh no,” I replied, hoping she didn’t feel as if she were
intruding. “Come with us. It’ll be fun to share it with you.”

Leslee squeezed my hand and nodded her assent. “Yeah, come
on, Savanah. Don’t you want to see it too?”

“I’ve already seen it. I bought it, remember?” She winked
and started for the door. “You two enjoy. It’s a wonderful idea and I’m sure
it’ll go over big-time. Leslee, Melanie’s got some great theme ideas for each
room. Wait ’til you hear them.”

“But Savanah, please don’t—”

Savanah clicked her tongue and wagged a finger. “Uh-uh-uh.
I’m going and that’s that. Besides, believe me, when you see what I left you in
the private quarters, you’re going to be glad I’m gone.” She giggled with
mischief and slipped out the front door.

“Well that witch,” Leslee said with a laugh just as
mischievous as Savanah’s.

I grinned, unable to contain my excitement. “Let’s go.”

I pulled her up the stairs, pointing out the cool newel
posts, the grand window and the hardwood steps. We entered the first room to
the right at the top of the stairs. It had an alcove with a framed doorway
leading into a large suite with a massive four-poster bed and a wide window
overlooking the gardens. It would need a new mattress, the peeling wallpaper
removed, some fresh paint, and the crown molding, baseboards and floors
refinished, but it would be perfect.

“I thought maybe this could be the BDSM room,” I announced.
“What do you think?”

“BDSM room?” Leslee snorted. “Are you serious?”