The Woman in 3B - Eliza Lentzski Page 0,49

ear.

My throat tightened. My thighs twitched. My pussy clenched.

“Oh, God,” came my breathy prayer.

I sank back into the couch cushions and released a long breath. My heart pulsed everywhere. I could feel its echo in my chest, in my throat, in my hands, in the arches of my feet.

“Woah,” I breathed out. “That was …”

“I know,” Anissa echoed. “I bet you’re kicking yourself for booting me from your hotel room.” Her tone was smug. This was a self-aware woman who was confident—maybe even arrogant—about the things she did well.

“I didn’t …” I didn’t finish my protest. I didn’t have the energy for a stalwart defense. Not while my thighs were still twitching, at least.

I didn’t know the hour, but it was bright in her living room. I was sticky with sweat under the knitted afghan. The air conditioner was still running, but my naked skin stuck to the leather of the couch. I squeaked with every move and the stubborn leather material restricted my movement with halting starts and stops. I didn’t gracefully slide across the couch cushions; I skid. Under normal circumstances I would have probably felt self-conscious, but these were anything but normal circumstances.

Anissa laid on her stomach beside me. The blanket covered the lower half of her body, which left her long, tan back exposed for me to admire. Her hair-tie had loosened in the night and long locks of black hair framed her heart-shaped face.

“Good morning,” I quietly greeted, long overdue.

She traced lazy figures across the top of my hand with her fingertips. She played with the blonde, baby fine hairs on my arm. “You surprised me,” she said. “Not many people do that.”

My heart was still pounding, but I somehow found the strength to prop myself up on my elbow. “How so?”

“For one, showing up here yesterday with that flimsy excuse,” she reminded me. “But the sex. It surprised me.”

I could feel myself reddening all over. “A good or bad surprise?”

“Definitely good,” she affirmed. “You’re like a skittish little kitten out in the world, but a lioness in bed. Your confidence last night surprised me.”

“I wouldn’t call it confidence,” I refused. “But maybe I was feeling particularly inspired.”

She pursed her bee-stung lips. “Inspired?”

“I’ve never had sex with someone so beautiful.”

I didn’t know from where this honesty and transparency had come. Staring into her golden eyes was like a truth serum.

She didn’t directly respond to my praise. She didn’t deny her beauty or my devaluing of previous sexual partners. Instead, she regarded me in somber silence.

“Do you have to run off?” she finally asked.

I didn’t have a practical reason to stay. Because it was a Golden Day, I didn’t have to report to the airport or even be on call. If someone called in sick, the airline would call in someone on reserve, even if it meant flying them in from a different city.

Days off like this were few since I tried to pick up as many extra shifts as my company allowed. It was typically when I ran errands or cleaned Honey’s tank since I had little energy for either of those tasks after a long day of airport travel. But Anissa looked so hopeful and so beautiful that I couldn’t say no. I needed to spend more time with her.

“No. I can stay,” I decided.

A slow smile spread across her beautiful features. “How do you like your eggs?”

+ + +

Anissa claimed she had an important errand to run and asked me to come along rather than wait for her at her house. It was a rare scheduled day off for me, and I could think of much more interesting—and naked—things we could be doing to pass the time, but I also didn’t want to seem like an ungrateful or lazy houseguest if she already had had plans I was interrupting, so I agreed to tag along.

We sped along the interstate highway in her charcoal grey SUV toward a destination unknown. The day was bright and cloudless, and she’d opened the sunroof. The wind made it too loud for any kind of sustained conversation, much like the constant roar of an airplane’s engines. I didn’t mind the extra noise; if anything, it was a comfort. I ran my hands along the leather interior and chrome finishes that wrapped the passenger seat. I shouldn’t have been surprised that Anissa drove a luxury vehicle considering her oversized home, tailored wardrobe, and First-Class flier status.

I tugged at my low ponytail while I looked out the window. My new