“Do you plan on it?” Aimee pressed.

  “I don’t know, maybe. There is this one woman who I’ve texted back and forth for the past couple of weeks. I might meet up with her.”

  “You should. That’s good. That is so good! You should meet her for like co ee or something. In a public place so there are no worries about her potentially being crazy. If you don’t like her in person you can easily walk away.”

  “Yeah, maybe. I’ll think about it.” Katherine’s eyes gazed into the distance.

  “So what is going on at work? Anything new coming up?”

  Aimee asked, sensing that her sister needed the change in topic.

  “New set of interns are starting next Monday. That’s always entertaining.”

  “Are you going to be nice to any of them?” Aimee asked with a smirk.

  “Only the smart ones that show promise. I’ve yet to discover an intern that I could look at and say, ok this person will be a great doctor one day. Everyone wants to be a surgeon, but the reality is, most will end up switching

  specialties or being just an average surgeon. I don’t want average. If I am going to teach someone everything I know to make room for the next generation after my time has come, then they need to be special. They need to be someone that I know can handle the pressure and has the drive to want it. I haven’t found that yet.”

  “I would have thought lots of people would be interested in cardio.”

  “It’s a specialty that sounds cool, but in actuality there is a lot of pressure involved. Much like neuro. A lot of people will stick with plastic or general surgery. Less risk of death and it’s not as stressful. It takes a lot to cut into someone’s brain and potentially change everything about someone and it takes a lot to hold someone’s heart in your hands.

  Knowing that, with a single wrong cut, you could kill them.

  It can be a lot and as cool as the title sounds, most will never have the skills required for this type of surgery.”

  “Well, maybe someone in this next group will surprise you.” Aimee said with a warm smile.

  In truth, Katherine was always hoping that she would find an intern that held a real interest in cardio and had the potential to be really great. She would love to have someone that she could teach and pass down her own knowledge. The heads of the departments all had their star pupil, but she still had no one special. She knew she could be cold and come across as distant with people. She was confident in her abilities and knew that that sometimes came across as arrogance when it was a quality found in a woman. She was one of only a handful of female surgical heads in the country.

  She didn’t get there by being sweet and easy going. She was tough and demanded the best of the people who worked within her department.

  As a result their department was very well known and had patients coming from all over the country and sometimes the

  world for their chance to have Katherine operate on them.

  Sometimes she did, and sometimes there wasn’t anything even she could do for them. It was those cases that got to her the most. Science had come a long way, but it wasn’t perfect.

  Some hearts she couldn’t repair and trying to repair them would only cost the patient what little time they had left.

  Sometimes she was confident she could fix them and still the patient died. Every time she had to turn a patient away or she lost them on the table, she felt like she was failing Melissa all over again.

  She hadn’t got over the death of her wife and the guilt she still felt over it. She would never stop feeling like she wished she had had the chance to do the surgery herself. Maybe her hands could have saved her wife. It was a decision that still haunted her dreams.

  KATHERINE COULDN’T BELIEVE she was sitting in a bar that Friday evening waiting to meet a stranger from a dating app.

  She had no idea if Sophia even looked like she did in her profile pictures. She had no idea if the intensity of those blue eyes that had drawn her in would be there in person. She had heard about it more than enough just from walking the halls in the hospital about people using fake profile pictures on dating apps. She didn’t understand the point of it, it wasn’t like they weren’t going to notice the di erence when you showed up for the date. Why set yourself up for failure when your date was obviously going to notice that you lied?

  Katherine had decided after her lunch with Aimee that she was going to ask Sophia to meet in person. They had never talked about it before and Katherine had no idea if Sophia would even agree to meet, but she had. Katherine couldn’t help but feel a slight tingle of excitement creep up her spine.

  She was excited to meet her, but also a little nervous at the same time. She hadn’t done something like this before, not even before Melissa. She had never gone on a blind date in her life and she had no idea what it would be like.

  Katherine looked up from her phone to see Sophia walk into the bar. She couldn’t help but smile at the sight of her.

  She was petite, in tight black jeans and a sheer floaty top.

  Katherine could see her black bra through the material and it excited her. Sophia’s dark hair was down and she was wearing a small amount of makeup. Katherine always hated it when beautiful women covered their face with makeup, so she liked that Sophia hadn’t. Sophia easily found Katherine and gave her a warm smile, as she headed over to the table.

  Katherine stood, unsure if she should shake her hand or not, but that was resolved when Sophia pulled her in for a hug as she spoke.

  “It’s great to finally meet you.”

  “You too. Can I get you something to drink?” Katherine asked, as they pulled back.

  “No, I’ll get it. What would you like?” Sophia said with a warm smile. Her blue eyes were just as intense and direct as they had been in her profile pictures.

  “I’ll have another glass of Merlot please.”

  “Sure.” Sophia loved Katherine’s confident response.

  Katherine watched as she headed over to the counter and ordered her drink. After a moment she came back over with the Merlot and a white wine for herself and sat down.

  “So, it is lovely to finally meet you. You look just like your photos.” Sophia admired Katherine’s honey blonde hair and steely grey eyes. Sophia had always had a thing for older women. Katherine wore smart trousers, heels and a blouse.

  She was clearly accomplished and confident in herself. A businesswoman, Sophia thought. A high powered business woman. She wouldn’t ask her about it, ultimately, it didn’t

  matter. But there was something about high profile, confident older women that always had Sophia weak at the knees.

  “Refreshingly, so do you. I have heard all sorts about online dating. It isn’t my usual scene. What is a girl like you doing on there? You are stunning. Surely you can meet women anywhere?” Katherine took a sip of her wine.

  “Ah, you see I don’t want the commitment of women who want to date me. What I love about the apps is I can be completely open from the start in that I just want a casual arrangement. I don’t want to be being pushed to commit. I have other priorities in my life. How has your week been?”

  “Good, thank you. A lot of paperwork, but it goes with the job. I work a lot. So your ‘arrangement’, if it is something you would like to explore with me, is something that intrigues me. It is something I could fit into my life. My work is my priority, I have no need for a relationship that will in any way complicate that.”

  Sophia looked at her intently, glad they were on the same page. “It is something I would like to explore with you, yes.”

  Their eyes met, both intense and straightforward in their desires. Sophia’s mouth on the rim of the wine glass drew Katherine’s gaze.

  Katherine liked this bold, young woman. There was something about her. About her straightforward, confident nature. She reminded Katherine a little of herself, twenty years ago. Katherine looked again at Sophia’s black lace bra under her top.

  “Well, this will be my first ‘arrangement’ of this type. I’m assuming we don’t make polite small talk about each other’s work and families?”

  Sophia smiled. “No, I think we discuss the finer points of our ‘arrangement’. So far, I have: No commitment. No discussing work or family. We call each other when we want

  company and sex and if the other is keen and available, we meet up. No dating. What are your limits?”

  “Sexually?” Katherine raised an eyebrow.

  Sophia laughed. God, Katherine was hot. “I mean, I meant in terms of the ‘arrangement’, but sure, sexually is relevant too!”

  She was enjoying this conversation with Sophia. She was young, but she didn’t act like a normal twenty-four year old.

  She was mature and intelligent, she seemed like someone who would be capable of having a conversation that could stimulate her. She could feel a spark between them, there was chemistry and it surprised Katherine. She didn’t think she would ever have chemistry with another woman again, certainly not one so young.

  “I’m pretty open sexually. I’m not afraid to experiment, although it has actually been quite a while since I had sex, I am not short on desire suddenly since meeting you. Outside of that, I like honesty, openness, and respect. I don't expect you to only sleep with me, but I don’t really want to hear about what else you get up to. Your time with me will be just about the two of us. An escape from real life. If there is ever anything we aren’t comfortable with, sexually or otherwise, we just say ‘arrangement’ and everything stops and we have a chat about it.”

  “Like a safe word?”

  “If you like. I think that is important. Consent is always at the core of everything. Sexually or otherwise. Either of us says ‘arrangement’ and we can re-negotiate.”

  “Sounds fair to me. I have to be honest, I share a house.

  Do you live alone?”

  “I do.”

  “Are you happy to use your home or would you prefer we meet in hotels?”

  “My home will be fine.” Katherine felt desire pooling between her legs.

  “Close by?” Sophia said with a flirty smile.

  “Ten minutes.”

  “Then, what are we still doing here?”

  Katherine hadn’t come here tonight expecting to sleep with Sophia. But in the short time they had been in the dimly lit bar, Katherine had found a lust awaken within her.

  Katherine gave a smile as she spoke. “Let’s go then.”

  Sophia smiled and she got up. They headed out onto the street and hailed a passing taxi. This could be the beginning of something great for the two of them.

  2

  They arrived at Katherine’s house and Sophia couldn’t help but take a moment to look around. Sophia lived in a shared apartment with two roommates and at times it felt very cramped. Her new job wouldn’t pay that much, but she would be able to make more money as her career progressed. In time, she would be able to a ord her own place.

  Katherine’s home was stunning, modern and clean.

  Sophia could tell that Katherine preferred to have things organised and her home clean. Sophia’s place had a more lived in feel to it. None of her roommates cared if they left dishes in the sink overnight, they could simply wash them the next day. They didn’t care if there was a coaster down on the co ee table or if they sat on the couch and ate dinner while watching tv. That was normal to them, that was comfortable. They had a dining table, but it was just covered in books or papers. Katherine’s place was clean of any clutter or slight mess.

  She turned around and gave Katherine a warm smile.

  “Your home is beautiful.”

  Katherine smiled. “Your body is beautiful.”

  Sophia felt weak at the knees.

  Sophia could tell it had been a little while since Katherine had done anything like this. She couldn’t see any photos from where she was standing, but that didn’t mean that Katherine hadn’t been married or wasn’t still. She was older, so it would make sense that she might have been with someone for a while. There was a slight indent in her ring finger, but no ring. It was hard to tell if it was recent or old.

  A wedding ring had this ability to shape the finger of its wearer. A symbol of ownership. An indelible sign. No matter.

  Katherine’s history was irrelevant to her present.

  Sophia could tell she was slightly nervous by the ever so slight crinkle in her forehead. She was clearly a very capable woman, but maybe this was slightly out of her comfort zone.

  Sophia was good with nervous people though, she had been nervous plenty of times in her life and would be many more before it was over. Sophia also knew that the best way to get over being nervous was to get to the task that was making you nervous. Waiting longer never helped and when you started to do that task that was making you nervous eventually you stop being nervous and just focus on what you need to do.

  Sophia walked over the short distance to Katherine and ran her hand down the buttons of her blouse. She met her hard grey eyes. “So, where’s the bedroom?”

  Katherine could see the smirk on the young woman’s face and the light in her eyes and she knew that Sophia wanted this, wanted her. Katherine allowed herself to stop thinking about everything. To stop thinking about the past. To stop thinking about what she should be doing at work right now.

  She allowed herself to just focus on this moment, on this beautiful young woman in front of her. It was time she allowed herself to have some fun and that was exactly what she was going to do.

  Katherine went over and pulled Sophia in for a heated kiss. Sophia easily returned it as he hands moved to Katherine’s jacket, pushing it o from her shoulders.

  Katherine felt it everywhere. She had almost forgotten what passion was. But here it was, overwhelming her. Katherine pushed Sophia back as she continued to kiss her, guiding her over to the hallway. She took her hand and lead her upstairs to her big bedroom.

  Desire overtook Katherine. Everything that had been missing for so many years suddenly felt so real. She kissed Sophia. She liked that Sophia was smaller than her. Delicate, like a bird. Her hands were hungry as they stripped Sophia’s clothes from her. She was wearing a thin black lace bra and black lace panties. She looked like a dark angel standing in front of her and Katherine felt a heated lust she had never known.

  Katherine pulled her own clothes o quickly. She removed Sophia’s bra and pushed her down onto her bed. Katherine then removed Sophia’s thong. God, she wanted her. Her body laid in front of her was perfect. Small breasts pert and small nipples hard. Sophia smiled and spread her legs confidently.

  “Like what you see?” Sophia said.

  “Very much so.” Katherine said smiling. “You look incredible. I can’t wait to taste you.”

  Katherine got down onto her knees and spread Sophia’s legs open further, pulling her to the edge of the bed. Sophia wanted to pull her legs from her body to give Katherine greater access to her burning core. Katherine grabbed her slim thighs and gave a long lick between her folds and Sophia moaned.

  “You taste so sweet.” Katherine said.

  “I taste sweeter the more you do it.” Sophia tipped her head back onto the bed and pulled Katherine closer to her.

  “I’ll be the judge of that.”

  Katherine went back to give Sophia another long lick, loving the taste of her on her tongue. It had been so long since she tasted a woman and she had forgotten the life that it breathed into her. She had forgotten what it felt like to have this type of power over someone. To know that you were the one that made the other feel that level of pleasure.

  Sophia. Sophia. Sophia.

  Katherine moved her tongue to Sophia’s clit and gave it a suck and a little nip, causing Sophia to moan. Gooseflesh appeared across her body.

  “You like that?” Katherine asked with a smirk.

  “I like a little pain, sometimes, done in the right way. I like… er… I like it rough. I want you to be rough with me.”

  Sophia said, suddenly a little shy.

  Katherine could feel herself pulse knowing that she could be rough with her. She had forgotten how alive being dominant made her feel. How naturally it came to her. How much of a rush it gave her.

  “Oh, I can be rough with you. Are you adventurous?”

  Katherine asked, as she slowly inserted one finger, and then another, into her heat.

  “Yes. You can do whatever you want with me…..Oh fuck.”

  Sophia moaned as Katherine started to slowly finger fuck her and lick at her clit.

  Katherine inserted another finger and started to seek Sophia’s g-spot. She knew she hit it when Sophia let out a long moan and arched her back pushing onto the fingers.

  Katherine started to lick and suck more at her clit and she moved her fingers faster inside of Sophia. Sophia was moaning and writhing on the bed very quickly and Katherine knew she was close to orgasm.

  “Come for me. I want to feel your orgasm.”

  Sophia felt heat build inside her and that incomparable feeling. Her world shattered into a million pieces as she

  came for Katherine’s tongue and fingers.

  Sophia lay on the bed in quiet recovery.

  Katherine smiled to herself for a second. She had forgotten this feeling. This indescribable feeling of being able to give this level of pleasure to someone. To take her body and play it like a musical instrument. To have her come alive for her touch.

  Sophia came back to life slightly and Katherine ran a hand lazily up Sophia’s thigh. Sophia shivered with excitement at her touch and felt a need begin to burn again.

  Katherine watched her body begin to respond again as she trailed her fingers almost disinterestedly across Sophia’s body.