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stretched out beneath her, she made a slow, sensual exploration of the gloriously female body

she wanted so badly to know.

Although she expected it this time, Melanie was still astounded by the softness of Taylor's

skin. That was the biggest physical difference between this lover and the few male ones she'd

had in the past. It was like sliding her hands over velvet. She ran her fingertips over Taylor's

arm, her shoulder, the side of her neck, her throat, and down the center of her torso to her

belly, causing goose bumps to erupt in her wake. She watched and listened, fascinated by the

effect she was having. Taylor's breathing quickened at certain times, caught at others.

Melanie smiled at this, then replaced her fingers with her lips and tongue, kissing and nibbling

along the same path. Taylor's skin was slightly salty, a little sweet, and silky against Melanie's

tongue. There was something distinctly Taylor about the taste, and she decided right away

that she liked it immensely.

The heavier Taylor's breathing got, and the more she writhed under Melanie, the bolder

Melanie became. It wasn't long before she ventured to an ample breast with both her fingers

and her mouth. Her fingers discovered that the side of Taylor's breast had the softest skin

yet. She swirled her tongue around the cocoa brown nipple several times, watching with rapt

attention as it stiffened before her eyes, the flesh around it pebbling as it contracted. She

flicked the tip of her tongue over it, then smiled in surprise as Taylor gasped. She felt the

dark-haired woman's hand clutching the back of her neck, trying hard to keep from pressing

her forward.

Excited by the effect she was having on Taylor, she closed her mouth over the protruding

nipple and sucked gently.

Both women groaned at the same time, Taylor arching subtly into Melanie, no longer holding

back, pressing Melanie's head tightly to her own chest. She could tell by the sounds and

shifting of Taylor's body exactly how each movement of Melanie's mouth was making her feel.

She pulled firmly from the nipple and felt Taylor's hips push up into her own. She found such

control intensely arousing, and warmth flooded her center as she sucked again, a little harder,

this time eliciting a soft whimper from the body beneath her. She was surprised to find her

actions strangely comforting as well as stimulating. Something about the suckling of a woman's

breast, especially this woman's breast, made her feel safe. Strange, but true.

Melanie took her time in her explorations, shifting to the other breast only after she was sure

she had given sufficient attention to the first one. Taylor knew this was Melanie's first time

with a woman, and therefore let her find her own way around, trying hard not to direct her in

any way. Melanie was surprisingly adept, expectedly gentle, and amazingly arousing in her

unabashed exploration.

Taylor had a very difficult time keeping herself from taking control. She wanted to flip the

smaller woman onto her back and ravish her repeatedly until the only word she could muster

was Taylor's name. Instead, she held herself in check, allowing Melanie to keep the lead,

repeatedly surprised by how well the redhead seemed to know her and how readily she

responded to Melanie's touch.

Melanie was in heaven. Having Taylor in her bed, beneath her fingers and mouth, was a fantasy

in itself. She could sense that Taylor was making a conscious effort to give her the time she

needed, and it warmed her heart. She was also aware of the effect she was having. Taylor's

hips were moving—subtly, as if Taylor didn't want to scare her—and Melanie could feel the

brunette's wetness against her thigh. The idea that she was the cause of it aroused her even

more, and she felt her own center moisten as a trickle snaked down her leg. She finally, almost

regrettably, moved her lips from the breasts and down the smooth, velvety skin of the

younger woman's stomach. Taylor's abs flinched, and Melanie smiled as she dipped her tongue

playfully into Taylor's bellybutton.

Melanie gently spread Taylor's thighs, inhaling the unfamiliar yet comforting scent that

surrounded her. The folds were glistened with proof of Taylor's arousal, and Melanie settled

herself between the brunette's legs, gently stroking her inner thighs with feather-light

touches of her fingertips. She smiled when she felt the slight quivering of the muscles. She

glanced up and met dark eyes watching her. They were filled with such love and devotion that

Melanie felt her throat constrict with emotion. Taylor reached down to brush her fingers

through the gold-touched red strands, and the two women held one another's gaze for a long,

meaningful moment.

"I love you," Taylor whispered.

The simple honesty of the words warmed Melanie from the inside out, and she smiled widely.

Turning her attention back to the subject before her, she was amazed to find that she felt no

anxiety whatsoever. She wasn't frightened. She wasn't even nervous. She wanted nothing

more than to please this woman she loved, this woman who loved her better than anybody in

her life ever had.

She brought a finger to the wet and swollen flesh in front of her, and stroked it gently. Her

eyes snapped up when Taylor gasped, then she smiled, thinking what a rush it was to be able to

make a woman feel that way. She repeated the move, loving the silky texture of Taylor's skin.

Taylor gasped again, her fingers tangling in Melanie's hair. Melanie touched her finger to her

own tongue, tasting the essence of this beautiful creature. She was salty and sweet at the

same time, with a tang of something...she couldn't narrow it down, but giggled to herself at

the realization that Taylor tasted absolutely nothing like tuna.

Rather than the expected gasp, Taylor moaned from deep in her throat at the first touch of

Melanie's tongue on her, pushing herself up into the redhead's mouth, waves coursing down

her legs, rendering them utterly useless. Melanie explored gently, memorizing every little

curve and dip and what kind of effect it had on Taylor when each was stroked or licked or

sucked on. She filed it all away, as she decided for certain that she wanted to perform this

very act as often as she possibly could. Feeling Taylor gently writhing beneath her, whispering

her name, grasping her hair, was incredibly exhilarating. The taste of her, the sounds of her,

the feel of her, all combined to create an astoundingly erotic potion, drug-like in its intensity.

Melanie had never felt such a sexual rush in her life, and she soaked it in as she stroked and

tasted and teased Taylor until the brunette thought she'd explode. Only after her quiet

begging, did Melanie release her, pushing her to the top, holding her there, teetering, before

giving her one, final nudge to send her over into pure, loving bliss.

"I think I like you this way the best," Melanie commented as she stretched up to give Taylor a peck on the nose.

"Wha—what way?" Taylor asked, trying to steady her breathing. She'd never experienced

such a powerful climax, and she felt weak, ecstatic, sated, and exhausted all at once.

"Naked, breathless, and underneath me," Melanie answered. She closed her lips around a

swollen nipple, causing Taylor's whole body to jerk.

"Uh oh," Taylor said, grinning. "I think I've created a monster."

"Nah. I was already a monster. You've created a nympho."

"Oh no," Taylor protested weakly, purposely allowing no emotion into her voice. "Not a nympho.

How awful for me, to have a girlfriend who's a nympho. My life sucks."

"Funny girl," Melanie said with a smile as she settled herself alongside Taylor's lean body, tucking her head onto the brunette's shoulder. I just made love to a woman, she thought.

Then she smiled, correcting herself. I just made love to the woman I'm in love with.

"I can't feel my legs," Taylor whispered in amusement.

"I think I'll take that as a compliment."

"It is, but...I want to...just give me a minute, okay?" Taylor had never been one for one-sided lovemaking, and she didn't want Melanie to think she had no intention of returning the favor,

but the surprising intensity of her orgasm had left her feeling as though her body was made

of Jel o, and she struggled to lend voice to her thoughts.

Melanie silenced her by laying a finger over her lips. "Shh. Don't worry. We have plenty of

time to explore each other. Besides, I owed you, remember?" She felt Taylor's body move

beneath her as the brunette chuckled. "Just relax, okay?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Taylor tightened her arms around Melanie and took a slow, deep breath, simply absorbing the

other woman's presence. Melanie closed her eyes in contentment when she felt Taylor's

breathing even into sleep. That's a good sign, she congratulated herself. She watched the

sleeping woman for several long minutes, memorizing each angle of her face, mapping each

freckle and mole on her perfectly creamy skin, tracing her dark eyebrows with a fingertip. Try

as she might, she couldn't remember any other time in her life when she had felt so at home.

"I love you," she whispered as she reached down to pull a light blanket up around their

entwined bodies. She snuggled closer to the warm body next to her and allowed sleep to claim

her as well.

Chapter Twenty-nine

THE NEXT FEW days were individual whirlwinds of activity. Taylor had several meetings on

Friday and an appointment with a prospective client on Saturday morning, so she was

unavailable much of that time. Melanie was so busy getting ready for the grand opening of The

Quil is Mightier, that she didn't have a chance to miss Taylor nearly as much as she could

have. Still, their separation was palpable and neither could wait until the evening, when they

would discuss their day with one another over dinner.

They spent the second half of the weekend in Melanie's apartment, or more specifically, in

Melanie's bed, talking, laughing, learning about each other and loving one another.

It was Monday afternoon, and Melanie casually checked her watch. Five-fifteen. The first day

of her new business had gone very well. There were several women milling around among the

shelves. A petite, college-age woman with a nose ring sat comfortably in one of the

overstuffed chairs, reading The Empty Closet and twirling a lock of burgundy hair around her

finger.

Melanie had gotten several compliments on the name of the store, all of them fans of Xena,

just as Lynda had predicted. She smiled happily at the memory of Taylor seeing the sign for

the first time the previous Friday. She had been on her way to an appointment, deciding to

drive past the shop simply to beep—she confided later, feeling somewhat childish, that she

had spent the previous few days purposely avoiding any route that would take her past the

bookstore, in order to save herself the pain of being reminded. She had laughed out loud when

she saw the large, cobalt letters, scripted clearly above the front door, parking and popping

her head in quickly to let Melanie know what she thought.

"The Quil is Mightier? I love it."

Melanie's head had snapped up at the sudden sound of somebody bursting through the front

door, then smiled at the light of her life. "I wanted to surprise you."

"You did. I love it," she'd repeated. She had swooped Melanie up in a big hug, kissed her

soundly on the lips, then turned on her heel. "Gotta run, baby, I'm going to be late. Just

wanted to tell you I love the name. And I love you."

She'd done the same thing again this morning. She'd breezed in, an hour or two into Melanie's

first official day of business, wearing a snappy blue suit and a big grin. She'd quickly set a

large cup of steaming coffee in front of the auburn-haired woman and kissed her lightly on

the forehead. There had been two customers browsing, so she had kept her voice to a whisper.

"Can't stay, sweetheart. I was just driving by, so I thought I'd drop in, bring you some liquid drugs and tel you I love you."

Melanie had smiled in pleasant disbelief. "How did I get you?" This seemed to be her signature question of late.

Taylor had simply smiled and shrugged. "I get a check in the mail every week from an

anonymous source." She winked. "I'll see you tonight."

And she was gone.

Her timing was near perfect. Not five minutes later, another surprise guest had popped in.

"Hi, Mel ie."

Melanie had been bent over a packing slip at the counter. She had recognized the voice

immediately and had taken several seconds to get her bearings before looking up to meet the

blue-eyed, buxom blonde who shared the same bloodline as she did.

"Hi, Sam," she'd replied with controlled neutrality.

Sam had fidgeted slightly, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, making a point to

look around. "It looks great in here," she'd finally commented.

Melanie nodded. "Thanks."

The silence had been awkward at best, but Melanie had been determined not to give in too

easily. She had been sure Sam had come to apologize, or at least to perform the Samantha

Richter version of an apology, and she had been determined not to make it easy for her. Sam's

reaction to last week's situation and the insults flung at Taylor still stung, and Melanie had no

intention of letting her off the hook without a fair bit of groveling.