“Be careful there. You might end up taking my top off in public,” Morgan said and chuckled against Adler’s heated skin.

  “Shit. Sorry.” Adler’s hands stilled.

  “Don’t be sorry.” Morgan sucked Adler’s earlobe into her mouth. “Do you want to take my top off?”

  “Not on a public beach,” Adler replied.

  Morgan laughed softly into Adler’s ear and said, “But you do want to take it off?”

  “Yes,” Adler whispered.

  Morgan smiled through the kiss she applied to Adler’s chest just above her left breast. She kissed the same spot over her right one before looking up and meeting Adler’s eyes. She slid some unruly hair from Adler’s face with one hand as her other placed feather-light touches to Adler’s stomach.

  “This is nice,” Morgan said. “Just being able to touch you like this.”

  “Yes, it is.” Adler lifted herself up on her elbows. “But I’d kind of like to return to the kissing if we can.” She gave Morgan an expression that told the woman she was definitely serious.

  “You don’t think we should slow down and, maybe, talk?”

  “Talk later,” Alder replied, reaching for the back of Morgan’s neck. “I’ve been thinking about kissing you since that night in Jackson Hole.”

  Morgan was pulled down to Adler’s lips. She wasn’t complaining. Those lips felt like her home. They were pliant against her own, without being too giving or too demanding. The kiss ebbed and flowed naturally for several minutes, with Morgan’s lips moving away every so often to taste Adler’s skin. When her tongue licked up the side of Adler’s neck, Morgan felt Adler’s legs open slightly. On instinct, she slipped a thigh between them. Adler gasped but didn’t stop the kiss, begging for more by jutting her tongue deep into Morgan’s mouth. Morgan rocked into her once and then again, testing the waters. Adler gave her back soft sounds. Her hands moved to Morgan’s lower back and stilled.

  Morgan moved her mouth again to the neck she was already growing to love kissing. As she did, she opened her eyes to her right to see the couple, that had been there moments before, had left. She looked sideways into the water to see the three people, that had been standing out there moments before, had climbed into a canoe. She could see them on the water, rowing away from the beach. Morgan’s mouth moved lower then. She kissed those spots above Adler’s breasts. Her thigh pressed into Adler again. When Adler didn’t resist, she rocked into her slowly while her lips lowered still. She kissed the bikini top over the spot where Adler’s nipple would be. She felt it harden beneath her lips. Adler let out a soft, almost imperceptible gasp. Morgan sucked the nipple through the top.

  “Is this okay?” she asked.

  “Yes, but is anyone–”

  “Everyone’s gone,” Morgan interrupted and rolled into her again. “It’s just us here.”

  “Are you sure?” Adler asked.

  Morgan lifted herself up and looked to both sides. Adler lifted up her own head to check the water. Morgan glanced off at the distant parking lot, seeing no cars save her own. Then, she was promptly pulled back down to Adler’s mouth. Her thigh continued to work between Adler’s legs. Her mouth moved away from Adler’s greedy one, back to the woman’s breasts. She sucked on the other nipple in the same way, feeling the wetness pool between her thighs. Her clit had already turned rock hard and swollen from her ministrations against Adler’s covered sex.

  “Addie, we–”

  “If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’ll make me come, Morgan,” Adler said softly.

  Morgan stopped moving immediately, not knowing what to do.

  “Morgan, make me come,” Adler added just as softly. “Like this. Just like this.” She lifted her hips up and into Morgan’s thigh. “This feels really good.”

  “God, Adler.” Morgan rocked slowly again, lowering herself onto Adler’s thigh. “Is this okay?”

  “Are you–” Adler started and stopped. “I mean, are you–”

  “Turned on as hell? Yes.” Morgan kissed her hard. “Are you sure you want to do this here?”

  “I don’t think I can move until you make me come,” Adler answered. “I’m so–”

  Morgan captured her lips. She kissed Adler hard, rocking her center against Adler’s thigh, feeling her own orgasm build as she pressed her hand over Adler’s bikini bottoms. She left it there as she rocked her own thigh rhythmically against Adler’s sex.

  “Addie, this is–”

  “I want it, Morgan.” Adler grunted as she gripped Morgan’s ass, pressing the woman further into herself. “I want you. God, I want you.”

  Morgan’s eyes closed with those remarkable words. Then, she opened them to look down at the woman beneath her. Adler’s chest was heaving. Her breasts were rising and falling as Morgan continued to cup her. Morgan allowed one finger to press slightly harder between Adler’s legs. Adler bucked up to meet it. Morgan felt the wetness against her own skin and her suit bottoms. She knew she’d likely leave some behind on Adler’s bare thigh.

  “Addie, I’m going–”

  “Yes.” Adler held onto Morgan’s ass more tightly. Morgan stared down at her and watched as it happened. “Yes, Morgan. Harder. I’m–”

  Adler came against her hand; her hips were lifting up and down, taking her pleasure. The sight alone was enough to make Morgan climax.

  “Addie, I’m coming. I’m coming.”

  “I can feel it,” Adler said. Morgan wasn’t sure what she was referring to for a moment, until Adler added, “I can feel you on my leg. Wow.”

  “Yes. Yes.” Morgan’s hips rocked hard, pressing her down further into Adler’s thigh.

  When she finally came down, she was still on top of Adler. Their whole bodies pressed together, with Adler running her fingers up and down Morgan’s damp back.

  “I think the people on that canoe are coming back this way,” Adler said after a few minutes. “We should probably move.” Adler patted her on the back as if to ask Morgan to get off her.

  Morgan lifted herself up and asked, “Addie, are you–”

  Adler laughed and said, “Morgan, I’m fine. We are fine. I just think we should get off this beach.” She paused. “And no offense to that yurt, but I’d really like to spend tonight in your house. There’s a very nice bedroom there.”

  “With a very nice bed,” Morgan added.

  “Yes, that’s the idea.”

  Morgan moved to lie beside the woman. She ran her hand over Adler’s still flushed skin.

  “Addie?”

  “Yeah?” Adler turned on her side to face her.

  “How do you feel right now?” Morgan pecked her lips once, just in case whatever followed from Addie’s lips meant she’d never get to do it again.

  “I feel like I need to process what we just did,” she said.

  Morgan gulped.

  “Not like that,” Adler added, cupping Morgan’s cheek and reading her expression. “I kissed you, Morgan.”

  “You did.”

  “And then you kissed me.”

  “Yes.”

  “And then I told you to make me come on a beach where we weren’t technically alone,” Adler said with a laugh. “I can’t believe I did that.”

  “Do you regret it?”

  Adler shook her head and said, “Not even a little bit.” She paused as she ran her thumb over Morgan’s slightly swollen lips. “But tonight, I don’t know if we should–”

  “Go further?” Morgan guessed.

  “I did not plan on what just happened.” She laughed and looked at the sky. “I was just in the moment and knew what I wanted.”

  “But now that your brain is doing the thinking, you’d like to take things a little slower,” Morgan replied.

  “Not too slow,” Adler said with a wink in her direction. “I leave in less than two weeks. I plan to make use of my time in South Lake Tahoe.” She smiled at Morgan, running her thumb over the woman’s top lip this time. “Let’s, maybe, get out of here and hit the showers?”

  Morgan nodded. As they packed, they hardly touched. Morgan knew it was her doing. She hadn’t exactly planned this, either. It was amazing. She wanted more soon, but it was also very fast. Adler hadn’t ever done anything with a woman. That added a layer of complications. But the main reason Morgan was now not entirely happy was that the woman she’d just had sex with on the beach and wanted to spend as much time with as possible, was leaving for Seattle in less than two weeks.

  CHAPTER 14

  Had she just had sex on the beach? Had she just had sex on a beach with a woman? They’d both had an orgasm. Of that, she was certain. She hadn’t touched Morgan. Morgan hadn’t really touched her. God, Morgan hadn’t even really touched her. Adler had come so hard, she worried her cries would be heard by the people on the canoe. She’d never had sex in public. That wasn’t true anymore. She’d come at Morgan’s touch, with Morgan’s eyes boring into her own at one point. Adler hadn’t turned away. Morgan hadn’t turned away. It had been a perfect first time, and she wasn’t even sure if it counted as a first time.

  “Pax?”

  “Hey. What’s up?” Paxton asked a few hours later, when Adler called her from just beyond the tree line while Morgan was inside the yurt, packing their things.

  “I have a question. It’s going to sound ignorant and dumb, and I’m sorry in advance. I don’t mean to offend you or any other lesbians. I–”

  “Adler, I think you’ve given me enough of the PC stuff. What’s going on?” Paxton laughed.

  Adler turned back to the yurt, to ensure Morgan was still inside, and she asked, “What counts as lesbian sex?”

  After Paxton’s loud laughter finally died down enough for the woman to answer her, she replied, “Why do you need to know?”

  “Because I think I might have just had sex with Morgan,” Adler replied, squinting her eyes for no reason.

  “I’m sorry… Did you just say you had sex with a woman?”

  “I don’t know if I had sex with a woman; that’s what I’m saying,” Adler returned.

  “How do you not know if you had sex with a woman, Adler?” Paxton fired back.

  “Because I’ve never done it before. Don’t give me a hard time about this. When you were twelve, you asked me if French kissing could only be done in France.”

  “I was twelve, Adler. You’re an adult. You know how it all works.”

  “Pax, I need my sister right now. Please.”

  “Okay. Okay. Tell me what you two did.”

  “We were on the beach,” Adler said.

  “Hold on… You had sex on a beach in Lake Tahoe? Like, a public beach, where people were around?”

  “Paxton, let me get through this.”

  “Okay. Sorry,” Paxton replied.

  “We were in the water. Actually, I followed her out to the water.” Adler closed her eyes to recall how it felt to hold Morgan from behind. “I wrapped my arms around her, Pax. I just held her, and it was perfect. She said some things. I said some things. I gave her this peck on her lips. She said we should just be friends, but I didn’t want that. I followed her back to the beach, and I kissed her.”

  “You kissed her? Twice?”

  “More than twice, but that part’s later,” she answered. “We had a blanket. We were lying there, making out. And, I guess, the few people that had been there were either gone or far enough away, because, one minute – we were just kissing, and the next – she was on top of me, with her leg between mine, and–”

  “Damn, Adler. Who started tearing off the clothes first?”

  “We didn’t do that,” Adler replied. “We were in our bathing suits; we didn’t take anything off. She didn’t actually touch me.” Adler blushed. “This might be too much information, but she kind of just held me there, over my bottoms, and moved against me.”

  “And did you…”

  “Yes,” Adler answered her sister’s obvious question.

  “Did she?”

  “Yes.”

  “Do you know for sure?”

  “Why? Do you think she’d fake it?”

  “No, Adler. I guess I’m just trying to see where your confusion is here. You two both had orgasms while touching the other person. I mean, did you get naked? No. Did she technically touch your skin? No. None of that matters, though.”

  “Because we both had orgasms?” Adler asked.

  “You’re so dumb sometimes.”

  “Paxton…”

  “Adler, how did it feel when you were with her? When she touched you wherever and however she touched you? When she came because of you and you did because of her?”

  “Amazing,” Adler replied. “It was amazing.”

  “Then, Adler Williams, I am beyond thrilled to tell you that in your younger sister’s very lesbian opinion, you just had sex with a woman.” She sighed. “Adler, I don’t think that’s right, actually.”

  “Wait… What?” Adler turned again to check that Morgan was still inside the yurt. When she turned, though, she caught Morgan’s eye as the woman spotted her and started her way with the brightest eyes and the biggest smile Adler had ever seen. “Beautiful,” she whispered.

  “Oh, Adler. You didn’t just have sex with Morgan. You two made love,” Paxton replied.

  ***

  “Everything okay?” Morgan asked when she approached.

  “I was just talking to my sister,” Adler replied, stuffing the phone into her pocket.

  Morgan stood a few feet away from her. She hadn’t tried to take her hand earlier when they’d driven back to the site or even when they’d walked to the yurt. She hadn’t tried to kiss her again, either. Adler wondered if she was giving off signals that said she didn’t want to be touched. Then, she recalled her statement on the beach about needing time to process.

  “I packed everything into the car. We’re good to go whenever you’re ready,” Morgan said.

  “Can we go on a walk before we go? There’s this spot we passed on our hike yesterday. I’d like to see it again if that’s okay,” she replied.

  “Let’s go, then,” Morgan said with a smile. “You lead the way.”

  They hadn’t hiked more than about ten minutes before Adler stopped them. She moved away from the trail and into the large grouping of massive pine trees. The wind, lightly cascading over their needles, provided that rustling sound and woodsy scent she’d wanted when she’d thought about taking Morgan here. Morgan followed her and stood in front of her as Adler looked up at the trees. She lowered her eyes to Morgan’s, moved into her, and stroked the woman’s cheek.

  “I know what I said earlier about needing time to think about things,” she began. “And I know that’s unfair to you, Morgan.”

  “Addie, it’s–”

  “Morgan, I think the scary part for me isn’t that I don’t know how I feel. It’s that I do know how I feel.” She moved closer to Morgan. “This place is beautiful. Seeing the mountains with you that night, watching the sunset with you, that was beautiful. What you said, about being out there with the right person, was correct, Morgan. I knew it then. I said as much.”

  “And I’m that person?” Morgan asked her.

  “Yes, I think you are.” Adler smiled at her. “And I’d like to go back to your place, cook you dinner, and I want to hold you again. I don’t want you to shy away from touching me because this is all new to me. I don’t want you to think I don’t want this. I do want this. I want to hold your hand, meet your friends while I’m here, and try to figure out with you how this could work with me in Seattle and you here. I want to kiss you. I’d like you to kiss me how you did on that beach.” She leaned in and pressed her lips to Morgan’s as she’d done in the water. “And I’d like us to do other things, too.”

  “Tonight, how about we do that dinner?” Morgan kissed her lips just as gently. “And talk?”

  “How is it possible that I went on a vacation with my boyfriend and met my best friend that was always supposed to be something more?” Adler asked.

  “Life’s crazy that way, I guess,” Morgan said. “I’m going to kiss you how I kissed you on the beach now.”

  Adler smiled as Morgan leaned in and took her lips. She kissed her hard and slow. Then, deep and fast. Adler’s hands moved to Morgan’s waist. She slid them under Morgan’s t-shirt and felt only skin.

  “You’re not wearing a bra,” Adler said, pulling away from the kiss.

  “Nope,” Morgan replied with a smirk. “I thought we were driving home. You decided to take us on a little hike.”

  “Jesus, Morgan.” Adler’s hands moved to Morgan’s abdomen where they rested just below the woman’s breasts. “I want to–”

  “Do it,” Morgan encouraged.

  “If I do, I won’t want to stop. If what happened on the beach is any indication, I can’t just touch you without wanting more.”

  “Keep it in your pants there, Williams. We’ve managed to avoid one arrest today for lewd behavior. I don’t think we should take any chances.” Morgan pulled Adler’s hands out from under her shirt and kissed each palm in turn. “Come on. Let’s go home.”

  Adler took Morgan’s hand. They walked out of the trees and back to the trail hand in hand. When a couple past them headed in the other direction, Adler noticed the man holding the woman’s hand. They were smiling at one another. She looked over to Morgan and smiled at her. They made their way to the trailhead and into the car. Morgan reached immediately for her hand after putting the key in the ignition and starting it up. She moved Adler’s hand to her own lap, holding onto it as she backed them out of the parking lot. A few minutes after they’d gotten on the main road back to Morgan’s house, Morgan used both hands to turn left. Adler seized the moment and ran her hand up and down Morgan’s thigh, noting how hard it was beneath her touch.

  “God, you’re in shape,” Alder said mainly to herself. “Your body is flat in the right places and muscled in the right places.”