3 Crushes and a Wedding Ch. 03

I'd spent the past thirty minutes dancing with Megan, Kay, Em, Dave, and a few other guests. No touching was involved, unless you count my eyes remotely caressing every curve on Megan's body, stroking her hair, and grazing the soft exposed skin of her legs. She glanced at me a few times, but otherwise abandoned herself to the music and spent most of the time swaying, entranced and glazing over.

I'd lost track of Scarlett at some point and was still unable to find her. Valentina, on the other hand, was impossible to miss. She had remained away from us, swayed sexily and sensually to every beat, but had very rarely looked at me, which made this entire evening way more frustrating than necessary.

"Hey," Scarlett scooted on the bar stool near me. I didn't know where she'd resurfaced from, but I was certainly digging the recent removal of the blue jeans shorts.

"Hey. Are you back for more of our tenders?" The funky question came out of nowhere, but I applauded myself for thinking of it and daring say it.

She eyed the plate of stale chicken on the bar top then raised her eyes. "Obviously. Couldn't resist another handful."

I'd been caught in my own joke. I tried to think of an answer but failed. The memory of our jacuzzi moment and her leg squeezed between mine kept playing in my mind, nerfing every shred of wit I had and paralyzing my throat.

She chuckled at my silence. "This is a first. I've never seen you tongue-tied before. I know a good remedy for that." She winked at me and motioned the bartender over. "Two buttery nipple shots, please." She laughed at my shocked reaction. "What? I know for a fact that a buttery nipple makes your tongue run round and round."

"Only if it's creamy and sweet." I smirked and looked down at her chest.

"Ahahaha, see, even the mention of it worked."

"I just have a vivid memory and imagination."

She chuckled again. My eyes instinctively dropped to her bikini top. It hid the object of our discussion quite well, but my brain was already busy overlaying the morning's jacuzzi imagery on top of it.

I was taken out of my trance by the sound of the two shots being placed in front of us. She reached out for one and handed me the other.

"Am I supposed to gulp it down in one go, or slurp slowly and enjoy the buttery nipple?"

She locked eyes with me and just smiled, with a veil of nostalgia in her eyes. "I miss this," she barely whispered.

My own smile faded a little as I was reminded of how close and in sync we used to be. Now, we were stealing seconds here and there, when we could've had days, months, maybe years of this. "To bittersweet drinks and moments!" I forced a smile and clinked my shot to hers.

"To those, and to your buttery nipple!" She replied and winked.

I laughed and drank the shot, leaving some of the cocktail in my mouth a bit longer to encapsulate its flavor, then swallowed. After a loud exhale, I noticed her stern face.

"Zoe, lots of people here know me and my husband. I don't want to draw their attention. But I also want a few more private moments with you and sooooo... I don't think they'd notice if, at some point tonight, I went to the ladies room and stayed there for a while."

I didn't have time to raise my eyebrow in response. She just spun around and walked away. She joined Dave's work colleagues near the pool deck. I still had no idea how she knew all of them or why her husband didn't come with her, but it was becoming clear that she had a strong and respected position in the group.

I grabbed my red cocktail again and downed a substantial part of it. Her words kept ringing in my ears like a continuous alarm. I couldn't take her up on her offer, could I? There was no telling what would happen if we were both left alone again. I had to be wiser and stronger than my carnal desires.

I was still deep in thought when I noticed Valentina's mesmerizing stare and my body was flung over another cliff. She always managed to make my heart beat faster and louder, even if it had already received its fair share of excitement for the day. She seemed a bit fiercer than usual, though, making me wonder if she'd observed my chat with Scarlett or guessed anything based on our body language.

I was so taken by the predatory look in her eyes that I didn't notice she'd already left the deck and was walking in my direction until she was halfway through. She reminded me of a tigress sizing up her lunch and slowly approaching it. I couldn't run away even if I wanted to. Luckily, I didn't even want to.

The domme thoughts I'd had earlier flashed back in my head, but I swatted them away. No need to incapacitate myself further. She was already doing a fabulous job of that on her own.

She stopped at the bar near me, way closer than necessary. Territorial, that's the best word to describe her attitude. She was asserting dominance over her empire, and I happened to be part of it.

Her powerful spicy perfume, likely part of her ploy to subdue everyone around her, enveloped me. No one could think straight when the oxygen going into their lungs and blood came scented with her.

"Hola!" She relaxed her face and smiled, then ordered a vodka lime. "It's getting hot in here."

"So take off all your clothes..." The famous Nelly song lyrics flew off my tongue. "Not that you're wearing much to begin with." I winked and gave her an appreciative once over.

I was as surprised as her by my brazen approach. Maybe something about kissing her the previous night and feeling her melt in my arms had given me confidence and helped me bring out my playful vibe. As a teenager, I was unable to string together four words in front of her, so this felt like sweet revenge over my mumbling days.

She chuckled. "I was thinking more along the lines of going into the pool. It's looking very appealing now."

I glanced back at the pool. The lights were on now, making the water shimmer more vividly. It was still empty, but probably not for long. Everyone was getting sweatier and drunker, the perfect combo for a massive pool dive. "Give it five to ten minutes and people will start jumping in. Unless you want to be the first."

She got her vodka and took a sip. "Uh, I don't think I'll go in."

"Why not?"

"Have you seen what I'm wearing?" She said cheekily, while glancing down at her swimsuit.

"E-ve-ry-one," I spun my index around and dropped each syllable separately, "saw what you're wearing, Valentina."

"Awww, I didn't mean it like that, but gracias!" Her fake modesty was both charming and ridiculous.

"So let me get this straight. You wore this white..." I gestured toward her swimsuit, "bikini, I think it's only fair we call it a bikini," she nodded, "to a pool party, knowing fully well what would happen to said bikini if it got wet, and now you're somehow blaming the poor bikini for your poor decision?" My cheekiness and confidence were improving by the second.

She chuckled. "I wasn't expecting to get... wet."

"You weren't expecting to get... wet... at a pool party?!" I raised an eyebrow and sipped some of my cocktail. This whole conversation was proving to be more lightweight than I expected, and just what I needed to get my mind off Scarlett's indecent proposal and stop those thoughts from festering in my head.

"When you say it like that, it does sound silly. I just thought I'd stay on the deck and dance. But it's really hot and humid tonight, I'm regretting my decision."

No, not common sense! I needed more of that ridiculous lighthearted exchange. Quick, rectify the conversation's tone!

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll go into the pool and cool down soon enough."

"I just said I can't."

"But you will."

"What makes you think so?"

I smirked. Would I dare say it? Oh, heck, why not?

"Because you want everyone to see you. You crave attention, you always have." She frowned. I quickly added, "It's not a bad thing, just who you are. Even back at school, the way you dressed and walked and talked. There'd be twenty teachers around you, and somehow you managed to get all eyes glued on you. Nothing about that has changed."

I looked down at her body and all of my teenage feelings came rushing back: the pull of her eyes, the urge to touch her, the appeal of her tanned skin, the admiration of her full chest. My throat started drying up and my mind went racing back and forward through time, collecting emotions from my younger self and analyzing them with the maturity of my older self. It had taken me years to understand my body's reactions to her and to realize I wasn't just 'platonically' in love with her but also undeniably attracted to her. Now I knew how much.

"Did I mention how much I enjoy the way you look at me?" She beamed. I shook my head no. "Because I do. It's quite flattering to see someone still appreciating me with this same intensidad, after all these years. You make me feel young again."

Intensidad. So was I that transparent? A nervous chuckle escaped me. This conversation was taking another serious turn and I couldn't afford that. Back to the light flirtatious vibe I went.

"I just realized something." I grinned mysteriously.

"Que?"

I laughed some more. "No, I can't."

"Dime." Her voice shifted when she talked in Spanish, its lower register wrangled me to my bones.

Would I dare again? Oh, shit, I was going for broke, wasn't I?

"Ok, ok,... I just realized that at least half the boys at school probably had their first hard-ons looking at you and their first orgasms thinking about you. You helped raise," I lifted my hand, palm up, "a whole generation of men. Probably some women too." I wiggled my eyebrows and laughed again.

I had never dared be this forward with her. Never in my wildest dreams I'd considered voicing that thought out loud in front of her. But between yesterday's kiss and this quirky conversation, I felt I could just say anything.

Something had shifted in our intrinsic dynamic. We both knew the effect she had on me -- and perhaps the one I had on her -- but we understood there was no emotional component to it. Since it could lead nowhere, it created an honest and open atmosphere between us. She could openly tease me and I could reciprocate without any scruples, and none of it would mean anything beyond that: a fun exchange between two adults who were fully aware of their boundaries.

She stifled a chuckle and feigned offense. "Oh my God."

"You insisted."

"Are you done?"

Not even close. Did she know how many dirty thoughts ran rampant in my brain and how much fun my grey matter would have now that it had no boundaries?

"Nope. I'm now seeing how I had no choice but to fall for you and your swaying hair and sexy clothes and heady perfumes. I was nothing but a poor teenager with raging hormones and zero control."

"So it's all my fault?"

"Si." I gave a firm nod.

"What was I supposed to do? Dress and walk and talk like a nun?" She was still smiling, but pretending to be oh-so-insulted by my words.

"Yesss... No, oh God no. That would be an insult to that body. Plus, you'd even look sexy as a nun. And that would be very confusing on a whole other level."

She finally caved in and laughed. "See, I have no choice. Soy lo que soy."

Indeed, she was who she was. Nothing could change her, but that was an advantage in this moment. I could guide the conversation in the exact direction I wanted.

"Well, you could've worn a slightly darker bikini tonight, one that wouldn't turn into a nearly useless transparent fabric at the slightest contact with water, but that just wasn't an option, was it?"

She shook her head and smiled naughtily.

"This is why I'm sure. You'll go in the water, because you always knew you'd go in the water wearing this, even if you tried to convince yourself that you wouldn't."

She clapped slowly while smiling. "I forgot how smart you were. There's one flaw in your logic though: Now that I know your whole premise, I can avoid going in the pool, just to prove you wrong and shut you up." She sipped a bit of her vodka and grinned proudly.

Unfazed, I retorted, "Won't work."

"And what's your theory for that?"

I put my cocktail glass down on the bar top and mimicked a weighing scale. "Showing everyone how fucking sexy your body is when wet and how delicious your nipples are when hard" in my right hand, "versus proving a point to me," in my left hand. This was another next-level honesty, but she seemed to relish it. I wiggled the virtual scale's balance a few times then tipped heavily in the right hand's direction. "There's no contest. Plus, either way, you'll get me to shut up."

"I just can't win. Or can I?" She chuckled.

"All you have to do is go in the pool," I shrugged. "I'll win the argument, but I'll be a babbling buffoon in no time."

"Huh, if that's all it takes..." I felt the gears spin in her head, then she winked and set in motion a tantalizing display.

She tilted her glass toward her chest and waited until the clear vodka poured out onto the right side of her bikini top. Even though her face was feigning innocence, the stream's perfect aim proved she absolutely knew what she was doing. It fell straight on the fabric covering her chest, which got wet, turned partly see-through, and revealed her tanned skin with a much darker round patch in the middle. Whether spurred by the cold drink or the moment's naughtiness, her nipple puckered up and pushed underneath the fabric, stretching it further, revealing a monstrous, perfectly squeezable, deliciously biteable, lusciously suckable, and gorgeously long nub.

She made sure this private show was for my enjoyment only by keeping her back to the party and facing only me and the wooden bar. I felt privileged watching the slow reveal of that nipple; my mouth went dry and, as predicted, I couldn't speak. All my tongue wanted to do was lick and bite her.

She smiled, satisfied with the effect she had on me, then put her glass on the bar top and started walking back toward the pool. The path was clear, and even if it wasn't, it would have cleared for her. She glided back without stopping or turning until her feet hit the surrounding wet tiles. She gave me one more second to appreciate the view with her half wet bikini top, then turned around and graciously dove in, head first.

She emerged a couple of feet away, laughing, and started swaying with the music. Underneath the water, I could see the object of my desire and the reason I'd remained silent for the past minute peak out, now joined by its mirrored twin.

This perfect specimen of a woman... How could anyone keep their wits and self-control around her?

Another ladies room break had become absolutely necessary. I needed to splash my face with some cold water and calm my emotions down. So I finished my cocktail and headed over to the hotel's lobby.

Only when I reached the restroom's door did I realize the footsteps behind me were still following me and had closed in on me.

Oh, I'd forgotten about Scarlett!

I couldn't walk away now, right? I pushed the squeaky door open and heard her walk in right behind me. All five stalls seemed unoccupied. Shit.

"You came," her nasal voice still stirred me from within.

I turned around and saw her smiling cautiously. Maybe I didn't head here inadvertently, I realized. After everything that'd happened over the past twenty four hours, after all the heightened emotions and tensions, after her sauna confession and the burning disappointment of knowing we could've been together, I definitely did want to take her up on her offer. I felt horny, vulnerable, and was craving a shred of validation. I didn't want to admit it, but I'd hit rock bottom. If being with her helped with all of that, why not? Besides, it was now clear as day that I'd never have a lifetime with her. I could just take a small consolation prize instead. I deserved that.

"Well, not yet." I winked.

She grinned and slowly approached me. "We can do something about that."

I took a step back and raised my hand, pausing her. I wanted her, there was no denying that, but we had to both be aware of what we were doing. "I don't want you to do something you'd regret." I didn't sound too convincing.

She smiled. "I know what I'm doing and I think I'd regret it more if I didn't do it. Come with me." She was more convinced than me.

She took my hand and lead me to the farthest stall, which turned out to be a perfectly clean changing room and not a toilet. A wooden bench sat on the far end and several hooks lined one of the walls. A great place for pool goers to change in or out of clothing, an even better place for horny guests to dabble into some extracurricular fun.

She closed the door behind us and locked it; every thought left my head as my blood rushed lower and lower. She pushed me back toward the bench and stopped there, a few inches away, facing me, eyes unable to leave mine. The intensity of her gaze, which had weakened my knees so many times before, was amplified a thousandfold by the small distance between us.

I dove head first into her soul and surfed through every fear, every strength, every feeling, every memory, every disappointment, and every win. At the same time, I felt her stare rip through me and my defenses, and one by one strip my sensibilities so they stood bare in front of her.

For an intense, if brief, moment, we were joined together by our eyes and consumed by each other. Then I was brought back to reality by the feeling of her hand on my shoulder. She grabbed the bikini's strap and snapped it without looking. "Take this off."

In less than a second, I'd untied the top and let it fall to the bench. She lowered her gaze and directed that same intensity toward my nude chest. It wasn't just hunger or passion that I saw in her look, there was more adoration and more reverence, like she still didn't believe she had me and she was trying to take all of me in before she even touched me. I felt my nipples perk up but I couldn't verify. I was so absorbed by the reaction on her face that I didn't want to miss a second of it.

She slowly pushed her hands towards my tits, erasing in one fell swoop the distance between us, the years that separated us from our first encounter, and the pile of confusion and uncertainty that had plagued our entire relationship. Her index touched the tip of my nipple, sending electricity through my whole body. She grazed her nail on the puckered nub and I shivered more. I didn't know my nipple could grow further, but I felt that it did, as if it wanted to reach more of her hand faster.

"Speaking of buttery nipples..." I whispered, reminding her of our shared shots.

She raised her eyes again and met mine. Darkness. A shy smile floated on her lips as she took away the contact between us and dropped her hands. I nearly leapt to her.

"I want you. I really, really want you." She wet her lips and glanced down at my chest then came back up to my eyes again.

Screw our conscience, I also wanted her, I wanted this. We only had this brief moment where we could enjoy each other and forget the world. There would be enough time to regret and repent later.

Thankfully, she hadn't thrown out all her wits and morals like I had. She took a step back, I mourned the loss of her proximity. "I haven't stopped thinking about you since yesterday." Her deep rumbling voice was back, now a familiar tell-tale sign of her arousal. "Didn't sleep one second. And then this morning... and today... I feel like all these years of attraction and confusion have come crashing at my feet." She took another step back and leaned against the stall's door. "I hadn't admitted my feelings about you before, not even to myself. Now I know. And I can't stop thinking and picturing and regretting." She looked up at the ceiling and sighed, then lowered her eyes and fixed me again. "All the things we could've done, all the moments we could've had, everything we didn't get, because I," she pointed at her chest and sighed again, "took it away from us. Because I," she pointed again, "was stupid and weak and mean and a coward."