Next Time (18 page)

Payton’s movements became less controlled as Ryann concentrated on her clit. Her breathing became more erratic, the muscles in her stomach and thighs tensed. Ryann wanted more.

Payton wasn’t really sure what had happened until her back hit the bed and Ryann’s hand was in the center of her chest holding her down. The things Ryann was doing to her made it impossible to protest.

“Don’t close your eyes,” Ryann said shakily.

Payton gripped the sheets, and her shoulders rose off the bed, despite Ryann’s hold. Her head lolled back as her breath caught in her throat. The waves seemed endless as she released a ragged groan.

*******

Payton awoke with a jolt, unused to hearing the shower running in her bathroom. She blinked at the clock and felt sorry for Ryann, who didn’t have the luxury of sleeping in. Memories of what they’d done flashed through her mind. She could almost feel the softness of Ryann’s hair splayed across her thighs, the touch of Ryann’s tongue bringing her to another orgasm.

Every muscle in her body complained as she rolled over and stretched. “She did make me scream her name.” Payton chuckled at the statement and the utter bliss she felt. She got up and put on her robe, then switched on the lamp. Her bed looked like a disaster area. They’d slept wrapped in a blanket, the sheets were no longer on the mattress.

“Coffee, very strong coffee is what she’s gonna need.”

Payton frowned as she padded through the living room. Sometime during the night, they’d taken a break and attacked the Chinese food. Empty containers littered the coffee table. What was left didn’t smell so great.

She went on into the kitchen and had just started the coffee to brew when Ryann joined her dressed in a pair of jeans and a polo shirt with the school’s logo on the breast pocket. “Thank God for sports day,” Ryann said hoarsely. “At least I can dress comfortably. You tried to kill me last night.”

“Me? Did you drink a six-pack of energy drinks before you came over here? Your stamina, woman, where does it come from?”

Ryann smiled tiredly. “I wish I had some right now.” She walked over to Payton, wrapped her arms around her neck, and sagged against her. “I’m so jealous of you because you can go back to bed.”

“I won’t. If you have to suffer, I will, too. Otherwise, I’ll try to seduce you again tonight.” Payton kissed Ryann’s damp hair pulled back in a ponytail. “I still might. This is a stupid question, but are we going to class tonight?”

“Yep…that was stupid.”

Payton inhaled the scent of Ryann’s shampoo and closed her eyes. “Will I see you tonight?”

“Baby…incidentally, that was my first term of endearment directed toward you. We spent the weekend together, of course, I want to see you.”

Payton tried not to act relieved and give away the fact that she was worried. “We could stay at your place if you’d like.”

“That sounds great. Right now, I need you to shove me out the door and lock it behind me in case I try to get back in.”

Payton laughed and kissed the top of her head again. “Let me give you some coffee first, my cuddle bunny snookums.”

Ryann pressed a finger to Payton’s lips. “No.”

Payton kissed it. “Okay, I’ll stick to baby and sweetie.”

Chapter 23

By the grins on their faces, Olivia knew that Ryann and Payton had left out a lot of details on the first time they made love. She smiled at them and said, “So this is where you two began all of your tomorrows together.”

“Well…kind of, but it was a long time before we were intimate again. I was run over in Payton’s front yard. Then she met my mother and other sisters, and that did not go well at all,” Ryann said with a laugh.

Olivia picked up her pen. “What do you mean you were run over, and by whom?”

“Leigh,” the couple said in unison.

“That was a real turning point in our relationship,” Payton said with a smile.

*******

******

***

“Aw, man, are you sick?” Jana asked when Payton opened her front door. She sniffed at the air. “It stinks in there. Do you have a stomach virus? You know how susceptible I am to that kind of thing.”

“I left some food out last night. I’m not sick.” Payton looked at the bag in Jana’s hand. “What’s in there? Please don’t say it’s Chinese.”

“It’s gumbo.” Jana stepped inside, staring at Payton’s face intently. “You look sick.”

Payton left the door open to air out the house. “I worked really hard on something special last night, and I didn’t get much sleep. I would’ve at least showered if I’d known you were going to treat me to lunch. Are you and Melanie all settled in?”

“Yeah, all my stuff is in the garage now.” Jana followed Payton into the kitchen. “I’ve got no sense of decorating style. Plus, it’s my house, and I’m sure it makes it feel more like
our
place to her with it stuffed full of her things.”

Payton set two bowls and two glasses on the counter. “You feel a little displaced, don’t you?”

“Erased.” Jana set the bag down and stared at it. “First, it was food—she changed my diet—then it was the house. We’re going shopping this weekend to
update
my wardrobe. I’m afraid to ask what’s next.”

“You need to talk to her. This is already blossoming into a problem.”

Jana watched as Payton poured the gumbo into the bowls. “I really did need to start eating better, and as far as the house goes, I want her to feel comfortable there. It’s just a lot of change that I need to learn how to deal with.”

“Do you have any soda?” Jana asked as she walked over to the fridge and looked inside. “Oh, Mountain Dew, sweet nectar. You want one?”

Payton felt dehydrated from the night before. “No, I’ll stick with water.”

They took the food and drinks over to the table and were about to sit down when Jana remembered the bread. She went back to the counter and pulled it out of the bag. It was then she noticed two wineglasses in the sink. “So…what did you work on last night for so long?”

“You’re my best friend, so I should be able to tell you anything without judgment, right?”

“Yes.” Jana tossed the packet of bread onto the table and sat down. “You slept with Ryann, didn’t you?”

“After I left your house, I spent the rest of the weekend with her.”

“Are you trying to get yourself killed? Did you miss the contemptuous look in Leigh’s eyes? Do we have to beat the beleaguered horse, which is the fact that Ryann just got out of a long-term relationship?”

Payton picked up her spoon and pointed it at Jana. “All of that sounded like judgment.”

“No, it’s common sense, something you used to have before you met Ryann.”

“How long ago did that happen? When did I meet her?” Payton didn’t wait for an answer. “The same night you met Melanie in person, which was over a year ago. You’re right, I haven’t been the same since. Call me irrational or stupid, but I loved her the night we met. I loved her laugh, the way she looked, the way I felt with her. Every minute we spend together, I fall for her.”

Jana stared at her for a moment. “You know, love at first sight doesn’t compute for me.”

“Yeah, I know.”

Jana pursed her lips and looked at the ceiling. “They broke up in October, so it’s been not quite three months. I’m not sure what the proper time limit is for moving on. If you go with the formula that she needs a month for every year to recover, she should be healed by June.”

“This isn’t something your mathematical mind can figure. Numbers don’t make any sense when it comes to the heart. Please just…hear me.”

“Okay.” Jana picked up her spoon and took a bite of her lunch. “You’re more of a ‘get it out in the open’ type of person than I am. Does Ryann know how you feel?”

Payton stirred her gumbo and sighed. “She knows I’m crazy about her, just not to what extent.”

“Does she say how she feels about you?”

Payton set her spoon aside without eating and folded her hands in her lap. “She’s crazy about me, too. She feels the connection. Don’t try to put that answer on a pie chart or analyze it. Numbers and logic don’t apply here. Let’s just leave it at that.”

Jana sighed. “I wish love and romance were mathematical, numbers don’t lie. They don’t move your things into the garage, either.”

“Tell her how you’re feeling today. Do it before this turns into resentment. Don’t you feel that you can tell her anything?”

Jana smiled wryly. “That we can tell our partners anything is a misconception. It’s all about timing. If I tell her that this move has me shaken, she’ll begin to worry that I’m having second thoughts.”

“Then preface the conversation with that. Assure her that you’re happy, but you’re a little…freaked out by all the change. You can work just about anything out if you’re willing to talk.”

Jana lowered her spoon slowly to her bowl. “She wants to have a couple’s colon cleanse at a clinic. She has a coupon. Payton, she’s up in my shit now…literally.”

*******

“You look like shit! Ryann, I can’t let you in here if you’re sick. Whatever you have will blow through my house like a hurricane.”

“I’m not sick.” Ryann smiled. “My transformer blew, and I’m exhausted.”

Shelly looked confused as she opened her door wider, then it struck her. “You had sex! Payton made sparks!”

“Payton set off a nuclear bomb,” Ryann said with a smile as she stepped inside. “She’s coming over tonight, and I need to feed her, but I’m too tired to cook. I need to raid your freezer.”

“I made that huge roast yesterday. Lucky for you, we have plenty of leftovers.” Shelly grabbed Ryann by the shirt and dragged her into the kitchen. “You want coffee?”

“No thanks, I’ve been drinking it all day.”

She shoved Ryann down into one of the kitchen chairs and took a seat beside her. “So it was good sex?”

“No.” Ryann shook her head and smiled. “It was fantastic—mind-blowing. I think we only slept for two hours. She’s affectionate, sensual, and passionate, every ingredient that makes sex powerful.” She ran a hand through her hair. “I am so…swept away. I feel like I’m floating. This weekend was magic. I felt free and at the same time already joined at her hip if that makes any sense.”

Shelly propped her chin in her hand and smiled. “You have feelings for her.”

“Let me save us some time here. I’m going to say yes, then you’ll counter with it’s just lust, give the whole thing some time. To which I will reply that I have no plans to move in with her this week. I’m not fragile or stupid, don’t treat me like it.”

“I forget how bitchy you are when you’re tired. Baby, I’m not interested in giving advice or lectures, I want lurid details. Was it hot and sweaty sex?”

Ryann sliced a hand through the air. “We straight up tore her bed to pieces. I was dehydrated this morning. I know I left her knees weak.”

“Ooh, momma!” Shelly said with a devilish grin that quickly faded. “Speaking of Mom, she, Joan, and Paula are coming in next weekend. She called me today and told me to pass the news along to you. This would be a good time to stock up on some Prozac, and if you have anything stronger, you should share it with me.”

“Bummer,” Ryann said and folded her arms. “I wanted more time with Payton before she met the trinity of judgment. Mom told me the other day that the reason she behaved the way she did was because she didn’t like or trust Leigh. She doesn’t get along with Evan, either, but that doesn’t stop her from calling you all the time.”

“It’s the lesbian thing, plain and simple, which is why I’m pissed that I’m not one. Evan and I talked about it last night, he’s considering dressing in drag for family visits if it means Mom and the girls won’t want to stay with us anymore. Baby, sometimes, it’s good to be a gay black sheep.”

“Yeah,” Ryann agreed with a sigh. “Aside from great sex, that’s definitely one of the big benefits.”

“I’m sorry,” Shelly said sincerely. “I can only hope that one day she’ll change. Maybe she’ll wake up open-minded and accepting, and somehow that’ll filter down to her clones Paula and Joan. There’s one small positive, though—me. I love you unconditionally.”

Ryann smiled. “I love you, too.”

Shelly shuddered and scowled. “Mushy takes so much energy,” she said and grinned. “So Payton rocked your world.”

Ryann nodded as she stared off into space. “Do you ever just have a knowing about some things? You just know that it’s right, it’s where you’re meant to be.”

“I bitch about my husband and the kids a lot, but I know this is where I belong. If I had refused that blind date and not met Evan that night, I believe I would’ve eventually found him anyway. It’s some sappy shit, but I think there’s some sort of internal homing device in all of us that draws us to the one we’re meant to be with. Sometimes, other people get in the way, but you’re never really satisfied until you find the one that calls to you.”

Ryann stared at Shelly incredulously. “Do you really believe that?”

“Yeah,” Shelly said with disgust. “Who in this world could put up with me besides Evan? I hope Payton can put up with you and you with her for the rest of your lives, or until I have to kill her.”

Ryann cupped Shelly’s cheek and laughed. “You are so sweet.”

*******

Payton’s stomach was full, she was tucked in Ryann’s bed, and the room was dark except for the light coming from the TV. Ryann lay with her head on her shoulder and one leg thrown over her hips. There had been all sorts of love-making promises made before dinner, but none of them was kept after they ate. Instead, they cuddled up together and talked.

“What is sports day?”

“Hmm?” Ryann raised her head to gaze into Payton’s eyes.

“You said this morning that today was sports day.”

“Oh.” Ryann smiled and pecked Payton on the lips. “Once a month, the school dedicates a Monday to a day of physical activities. Regular classes are condensed, so they can spend half of the day burning off energy. It’s good for them mentally, physically, and emotionally. I played softball just so I could remain conscious.”

“I didn’t go back to bed, I promise. However, I did doze off in the shower for a few seconds, but when I dropped the soap on my foot, I woke right back up.”

Ryann kissed her again with a laugh. “I’m so sorry you suffered an injury.”

“You should be sorry, it was all your fault for exhausting me.”

Ryann continued to smile and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “I’m so glad you agreed to see me again after suffering such cruelty. Did you work today?”

“Yes, and I wrote a great song about nutrition.”

“Sing it for me.”

“Let me up, it’ll make more of an impact if I do the dance.”

Ryann laughed and flopped onto her back as Payton scrambled out of the bed wearing only a T-shirt and her underwear. “Go, Payton, go, Payton,” she chanted as Payton began to stamp her foot and clap.

“I’m a giraffe, keep that in mind.” Payton started to move her neck like a chicken, though, as she began to sing.

“Don’t wanna cough and sneeze, you gotta eat your leaves. Spinach, lettuce, and kale will put the wind in your sail. Wanna be strong? Want your legs to grow long? Then don’t eat the things that’re wrong. Give me the green, give me the green, it makes me smart and lean.”

Ryann threw back her head and howled with laughter as Payton executed moves that didn’t go along with a children’s song.

“If I ate only cookies, cakes, and pies, something would be munching on my thighs. Ain’t no such thing as spaghetti on the Serengeti. If I ate that all the time, something would be gnawing my spine. I gotta be fast or a tiger will fly outta the grass and eat my ass. Give me the green, give me the green, it makes me smart and lean. Want the stamina of a rabbit? Then bad eating can’t be a habit,” Payton sang as she dropped onto the bed and humped it at lightning speed.

“The second verse and the choreography need some work, babe,” Ryann said as she wiped her eyes.

“Oh, that wore me out.” Payton flopped onto her back. “I feel like such an old woman tonight.”

Ryann climbed back beneath the covers and held them up for Payton. “We didn’t get much sleep over the weekend, and last night, we spent what energy we had left.”

“It was worth every grueling second. Let’s go to sleep, so the morning will come fast. Get in my spoon.”

Ryann turned her back to Payton and burrowed against her. “I still think we’d sleep better naked.”