Playing in Shadow (18 page)

Ignoring Monica, Scarlet instead set to gently wiping her lipstick off Bryce’s face.

“I came to check if you’d asked Bryce to join us at the concert next weekend. But I see your tongue was too busy down her throat for you to be talking about such mundane matters.”

Bryce had to laugh at Monica’s teasing bluntness.

“Actually, it was her tongue doing scandalous things to my tonsils,” Scarlet retorted. “Thank you for the reminder, Monica.” She turned her attention back to Bryce as if they hadn’t just been interrupted dry humping in the workplace. “I want you to come to a concert being held at our local club.” She again rubbed at Bryce’s face with the pad of her thumb. “You can see me in something other than my work attire.”

“You forget I’ve seen you in your party clothes. You looked out of this world.”

“You called me an angel,” Scarlet said softly.

“You looked like one.”

“Okaaay,” Monica drawled, breaking in on their moment. “My job here is done. Though I recommend if you two are going to continue with your shenanigans you might want to close the door next time.” She backed out of the doorway. “It’s a good thing I didn’t have Juliet to send on this errand. You two would have sent her into premature labor.” She waved at them. “Go get a room. Preferably one that doesn’t smell of wet plaster.”

Bryce listened to the sound of her footsteps disappearing down the stairs. “Shenanigans?” she asked Scarlet who burst into laughter. “So much for us conducting ourselves in a professional manner.”

“You were the one who shoved her leg between mine and started my engine running.” Scarlet shifted in her jeans. “God, you left me so wet—”

“Okay,” Bryce cut in, all too aware of how uncomfortable her own underwear was becoming. She took a deliberate step back. “Fuck, you are dangerous to be around.”

Scarlet stepped forward, deliberately foiling Bryce’s movements. “You love the fact I’m dangerous.”

Bryce was finding she loved
everything
about Scarlet. However, she held up a warning hand. “No more shenanigans on work time.” The pout she received did nothing to calm Bryce’s blood down. It just made her want to kiss it right off Scarlet’s face. She did exactly that. Leaving Scarlet looking dazed, Bryce stepped well away. “Now give me my doughnut.”

Scarlet snorted at her. She deliberately swung her hips as she went to retrieve the bag and held it just out of Bryce’s reach. “Haven’t you tasted enough sugar, Bryce?” She licked her lips and Bryce felt her stomach clench in reaction.

She took the bag from Scarlet and pulled out a doughnut covered in frosting. “You saved me my favorite one.” Bryce took a big bite out of the pastry. She hummed her pleasure at the sweet treat. She hummed even louder when Scarlet’s lips latched on to her own and her tongue flicked out to capture any remaining frosting. The doughnut forgotten, Bryce found it all too easy to succumb to Scarlet’s kisses.

“So, about this concert…” Scarlet finally drew back and brushed her hand down Bryce’s chest. “I know you’re not comfortable with social settings, but this is different. It’s music and dancing and everyone’s eyes are on the stage. You don’t have to dress up for the occasion. You can come straight to my place, and we’ll just walk to the venue. It’s literally just down the block.” Her hand slipped to rest over the zipper of Bryce’s jeans, and she rubbed a little harder. “Monica is spending that weekend at Elton’s so if you’d like to stay over you could. You’d be more than welcome.”

Bryce’s breath stuttered in her chest as Scarlet pressed harder into her crotch. “If you ‘pack’ accordingly, I’m sure we could have a fun weekend together.”

Bryce got that message loud and clear. Excitement jangled through every nerve. “How did you…?”

Scarlet squeezed Bryce gently. “You have a certain swagger to your walk. I can’t help but think you put that to good use when you’re wearing the right kind of gear. We’ll have all weekend to play if you’re open to that.”

Bryce was amazed by how well Scarlet could read her. She loved to use a strap-on but very rarely found someone who was willing to let her use it without it becoming a gender issue. To have Scarlet bring it up was more than Bryce could have ever dreamed of. “How about we just skip the concert altogether?”

“I would love to, but I’m taking the publicity shots for the band that evening. Believe me, I’d be more than happy spending that time in your arms while we make some sweet music all our own.” She squeezed Bryce again one more time.

Her eyes all but rolling into the back of her head, Bryce let out a pained groan and then a disappointed huff as Scarlet pulled her hand away.

“It’s home time, Donovan. Time for you to down tools. If it were up to me, I’d take you home with me now, but I have a nursery to start work on and a standing date with the two mommies-to-be.” She gave Bryce a hopeful look. “Do you want to come with me?”

Bryce nearly said yes, anything to stay near Scarlet and the life she radiated. Instead, she shook her head. “I don’t want to distract you from your work. We’ve just proved that we can’t be trusted in a small room together. You need to get that nursery sorted, otherwise the baby will be here before you’ve done your first brushstroke.” She pressed a kiss to Scarlet’s lips.

“I’ll bring breakfast tomorrow,” Scarlet said with a resigned sigh.

“I like extra frosting on my treats.” She shook her head at the way Scarlet’s eyes lit up.

“I’ll bear that in mind for next weekend too.”

After being informed that the concert didn’t start until late, Bryce had plenty of time that evening to leave work, get home, shower, and change her clothes. She’d chosen a pair of black jeans teamed with a charcoal gray shirt. She’d be the most underdressed there but knew she couldn’t compete with what she expected to see. She was nervous about being out of her comfort zone again. Work was fine; everyone knew her and had seen her scar. Her hair was helping to hide some of the damage now that it was growing back. Bryce really didn’t want to go out, but she wanted to spend time with Scarlet. So that meant being sociable, no matter how difficult that was.

Bryce had packed a small bag for her stay over at Scarlet’s. It consisted of a few T-shirts, clean underwear, toiletries, and a brand new cock and harness she had bought specifically for Scarlet. It had been a long time since Bryce had had the opportunity to use one. She’d lingered sometime over the multitude of toys she’d found online until she felt confident in her choice. Now, making sure it was safely packed away gave Bryce a frisson of excitement that was swiftly turning into need. She needed Scarlet. Bryce hadn’t slept properly again since leaving Scarlet’s bed. The short naps she’d managed to take in the past week had been dream filled and stressful. She wondered if Scarlet would hold her again and chase the nightmares away.

“Maybe I’ll just get lucky and she’ll fuck me into unconsciousness,” Bryce muttered to herself with a grin. She had the feeling Scarlet wasn’t going to be the kind of bed partner to just lie back and take it all.

She honestly couldn’t wait.

Bryce left before the images flashing in her head made her have to do something to take the edge off. The steady thrum of arousal warmed her skin as Bryce waited in line for a bus. The journey didn’t take long with Bryce’s imagination keeping her occupied. Her excitement for the evening added speed to her feet, and she was soon knocking at the apartment door, eager for the weekend to begin.

Monica waved her in. Bryce faltered in her steps when she took in Monica’s striking look.

“What?” Monica asked at Bryce’s silence.

“You look amazing.”

“I forget you’ve only seen me in my landscape gear.” Monica struck a dramatic pose. “This, my dear, is the real me.”

Bryce had never seen Monica like this. Her jet-black hair hung straight, framing her face. Her eye makeup was bold, highlighting her eyes. She wore a black leather corset, the panels brought together in place by crisscrossed laces. Her skirt seemed to be made from endless black lace, heavily patterned with roses. It fell to calf length, revealing Monica’s heavily buckled boots.

“So? What do you think?” Monica asked, giving her a twirl and making her skirt fan out around her.

Bryce smiled. “I think Elton’s an incredibly lucky man. You look fantastic.”

“Reevaluating your vision on Goths, Bryce?” Monica asked.

“I’m recognizing beauty however it’s packaged.”

Monica clapped her hands. “Oh, you’re a keeper!” She grasped Bryce’s shoulders and spun her around to face the bedrooms. “Wait until you feast your eyes on Scarlet.” She turned Bryce back around again. “Keep in mind that she’s needed at the concert in an official photographer capacity so no closing that door and not coming out once you lay eyes on her!” With that warning, Monica spun Bryce around again and pushed her toward Scarlet’s bedroom.

Bryce knocked tentatively, inexplicably nervous as to what Scarlet was going to look like. She remembered all too well how beautiful Scarlet had looked the first time she’d seen her in her finery. Her very own dark angel, a celestial beauty with flaming red hair. Bryce had wanted to touch her then; now she could. Her second knock was more confident.

“Come in.”

Bryce stepped inside and saw Scarlet standing by the bed. Bryce turned back around. “I’m sorry. I thought you were dressed.”

Scarlet’s laughter made her risk a look over her shoulder.

“I am dressed. I’ve just got to get my boots on and I’m ready to roll.”

Bryce turned around and took Scarlet in from the top of her bright red hair flowing around her shoulders to the tip of her black stocking encased toes. Like Monica, she wore a black corset, her ample cleavage blatantly on display. The black material hugged Scarlet’s creamy pale flesh. Bryce looked up to Scarlet’s face and found bright red lips curved in a smile at her distracted gaze.

“Do I meet with your approval?”

The corset clung lovingly to the contours of Scarlet’s curves. Bryce’s gaze dropped lower to where folds of pleated silk fell from Scarlet’s hips to fall into a train behind her. The front was what had caused Bryce’s consternation. There was no front to the skirt. A small ruffle of silk was the only thing that hid the top of Scarlet’s legs. Everything else was unashamedly on show. Black stocking tops flashed a tantalizing strip of Scarlet’s pale thigh. Under Bryce’s silent perusal, Scarlet got into a pair of thigh-high boots. The sound of the zipper was loud in the room as Scarlet added the final touch to her clothing. Lethal heels added even more inches to Scarlet’s height as the shiny black leather hugged her legs like a second skin.

“Bryce?” Scarlet’s voice broke Bryce out of her stunned silence.

“You’re so beautiful,” Bryce said, barely able to take her eyes off her. She stared as Scarlet added ornate silver jewelry around her neck and on her fingers. She sauntered over to Bryce, obviously delighting in the dazed look she was displaying. With nails painted black with stark white tips, Scarlet scored a line down Bryce’s chest.

Bryce shivered at the trail left through the fabric of her shirt. Scarlet’s perfume intoxicated her. All she could see and hear was Scarlet, and it gave her a peace she hadn’t felt in months.

Scarlet groaned from deep inside her chest. “Don’t look at me like that with those bedroom eyes of yours.” She leaned down and stopped tantalizingly short of completing a kiss. “Take your hat off.”

Bryce tossed it aside. She felt Scarlet’s breath tickle across her lips. “I want to fuck you while you wear nothing but those boots,” she said. She reached out to make patterns on the naked flesh between a stocking and the lace-edged panties hidden by the swaths of silk. She could feel Scarlet tremble at each touch.

“You can fuck me any way you wish.” Scarlet leaned in to Bryce and stole a swift kiss. “But you need to stop where your fingers are leading because I need steady hands to operate my camera tonight.”

Reluctantly, Bryce removed her hand and instead reached up to pull Scarlet in for another kiss.

“Break it up in there, you two!” Monica called from outside the door. “Time to go!”

Staring into Bryce’s eyes, Scarlet grabbed her hand and slipped two of her fingers past the lace covering her sex. Wetness saturated Bryce’s fingers. Then just as quickly Scarlet pulled them back out. She held Bryce’s hand up to her mouth. Without hesitation, Bryce licked them clean. The taste of Scarlet on her tongue wasn’t enough to satisfy her need. Concert be damned, Bryce was sorely tempted to fall to her knees and bury her face between Scarlet’s thighs. She was already drunk on the taste of her.

“That’s to tide you over until tonight,” Scarlet whispered as she teased her tongue across Bryce’s lips and then kissed her sweetly. She took a step back and slipped her arm through Bryce’s. Scarlet tugged at Bryce’s shirt gently. “I like this color on you. You look so handsome tonight.”

And you still are that dark angel that brings me forth, blinking into the light.

*

The music vibrated the floor beneath Bryce’s feet. She found herself soaking in the entire experience like a sponge. The music was loud and heavy on guitars. The lead singer could reach a range of notes that impressed Bryce’s more cultured ears. She’d been dragged to enough operas with Gerri to gain an appreciation of what was singing and what was screeching. Admittedly, Bryce could only make out some of the words but recognized an obvious passion behind the performance.

Standing in the crowd, it wasn’t always possible to see the band, but Bryce was more interested in watching Scarlet. She was still taking action shots but managing to dance in between, something that Bryce found fascinating. The flashing lights easily lit up the bright color of Scarlet’s red hair so she was easy to spot as she moved around the floor. Bryce could see Elton and Monica lost in the music. Trent was enjoying the band from Juliet’s side.

Bryce noticed Trent wasn’t as outwardly expressive as Elton who was dancing beside Monica. Monica obviously knew all the right moves to each song and had a stamina Bryce would have killed for. Juliet was leaning into Trent’s side bopping her head to the music and smoothing a hand over her belly. Bryce wondered if the baby was enjoying the music and making itself felt. She admired Trent’s long-tailed suit that made her look incredibly handsome. She couldn’t help but see why Scarlet still harbored the remnants of her crush on her. There was just something about her. Watching her stand so protectively beside Juliet, keeping the energetic audience away from her, was rather endearing.