Bouncing Back Ch. 04

"Ow. I was just kidding!" I promised.

"I figured. Doesn't make kicking you less fun," she pointed out.

"Aside from my big tits, what did you like most?" she asked. Our conversation was varying in volume, but I could tell it was important to her, and it was honestly a new experience for me.

"I like that you got off a bit on me ordering you around," I admitted. Carmen smiled and nodded.

"Most guys like you have a problem with that; don't worry if you do. Just remember that I really like it. Not as in like it a lot more than other things, just that I actually enjoy it."

"What did you like?" I asked. She smiled.

"You are really good with your hands and your mouth. Physically, that's probably where I really got into it. And you do know your way around my boobs," she added. "Mentally.. you admitting that I had better tits than Jen sent me through the roof," she acknowledged.

"You do," I pointed out. "But hearing her ex say it has another meaning, huh?"

"It really does," Carmen responded. She checked her watch.

"The grind beckons. Hopefully Britney has opened the library this time."

"Britney?" I asked. I really had been asking about who she was, but I should have expected the reply.

"You wouldn't like her. Skinny, blonde... oh wait," she teased. I flipped her off and she laughed. "She's the senior student worker. They let her open up on Sunday. Librarians are there, but they are trying to pad the resumes a bit."

"I usually take my lunch around 12:30. I get about 30 minutes. What are you going to bring?" She asked. I laughed.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"I wouldn't mind a salad, honestly. I think I'm good on protein, though," she said softly, and her hand found mine.

I noticed her smile and then a blush. I held her hand and sighed when we had to say goodbye.

I did fill my day, running and exercising before getting another shower. I went to a local sandwich place to get a decent salad, and realized halfway through I had no idea what she'd want. I guessed, based on our few meals together, and took a deep breath.

When I went to the library, I was surprised to run into Amy coming out. My surprise must have registered because she rolled her eyes.

"Yes, the hyper sexual pixie girl studies. Big surprise. Don't tell my secret." I couldn't help but glance at her. She was wearing a t-shirt and some sweatpants. Her hair was still pink, and she was wearing glasses.

"Do you check out every girl when you talk to them?" Amy asked, grinning. I started to apologize, and she shook her head.

"I do it, too. I just don't gawk. I'm also a bit more honest about it," she shrugged. "But while I've got you, I have two things to tell you. The first is that Carmen is really into you. I know she didn't come home, and despite my reputation, I'm not going to ask. You seem into her, and you seem a much better guy than the last asshole. It's really fun to see her in such a good mood. She's studying more, she's excited about things she hasn't been for a bit."

"Did you two know each other before?" I asked. Amy grinned.

"Yeah. I'll let her fill you in." I looked curious, but let it go.

"The second thing?" I prompted her.

"Do not mention this to her. But Heather grabbed me after the party. And while we were..." Amy saw the look on my face and rolled her eyes. "Having tea," she continued, shooting me a disappointed look. "She said she was impressed with the way you handled that thing at the party. And I don't know if she just wanted me to enjoy my tea more than I had been, but she indicated she'd like you to join us. For tea." I stood there, kind of dumbfounded.

"Tea is sex." Amy said flatly. I nodded.

"That is not where I was struggling," I said. Amy laughed.

"I kinda figure Heather knows about my predeliction for some unexpected surprises," Amy said. "It's very likely that she wasn't really suggesting it. But I also don't mind the image. I'm telling you this because it is really fun to watch you squirm, but also to let you know we think you're a decent guy. Don't fuck it up, and you might get to see more than my tits at some point. Bye!" With that she walked off, leaving me kind of stunned. I shook my head to clear it, then strode into the library.

Carmen was waiting for me, and walked up quickly. "Can I help you find something?" she asked, beaming.

"I was going to ask to see the most beautiful woman ever, but that's something I can check off," I said, leaning in to kiss her on the cheek.

"It's a good thing you already have me," she said. "That line would not have worked a few days ago."

"And now?" I asked hopefully.

"You have severely lowered the chances of getting any play during this lunch," she said dryly. I nodded.

"So noted." Carmen took some pity on me when we were out of sight, and kissed me, gently playing her tongue on my lower lip.

"Here's your salad. I should have asked what you like," I said apologetically. She laughed it off.

"It's fine. I'm not as picky with my food as I am with my dating life," she responded.

"I'll take that as a compliment," I decided, and Carmen nodded.

"You really should. Despite that line earlier, you have gotten the kinky side of my brain going," she said, teasing me with a sultry look.

"How so?" I asked. She opened her salad bowl, winked, and began eating. As she began digging into the salad, I ate my sandwich. She didn't move anything out of the way, and I tried to remind myself to ask her about her favorite foods. I was already planning a date night, and I realized that I couldn't keep eating out.

"Is the library hiring?" I asked.

"Oh? Is Mr. Moneybags looking for a side hustle?" I rolled my eyes, and she relented.

"Sorry, sorry. No. But I can ask around. You looking just for campus work?"

"Yeah. Something that won't take up my nights," I told her.

"Oh. You find something else to do with your free time?" she teased. I shook my head.

"You are fucking amazing," I told her. Carmen smiled, then let the smile pass from her lips.

"I'm also amazing at fucking," she said.

My eyes caught hers. She smiled. "Are you okay with our... pace?" she asked. I nodded.

"This sounds crass, but I have no reason to complain," I said. Carmen giggled.

"I'm glad to hear that," she said. "And please remember that you can talk to me about.. anything. Including what you want. I do want to know," she insisted.

"I don't have any -- "

"And I'm very happy to hear that. But I don't want you to be content. I don't want to be just content. I want to be happy with my sex life. And I like making my partner happy with theirs. If there's anything you want, we can talk about it. Remember, I can say no." She took a bite of salad. "I just don't usually," she added with a wink. I laughed and she gave a cute shrug.

I finished my sandwich quickly. As Carmen finished her salad, I cleaned up the area in the breakroom we'd been eating at.

"Do you like glasses?" Carmen asked suddenly.

"Sure. I guess. What do you mean?" I asked, finally confused as I though through the question.

"Aesthetically. On a woman." I thought and shrugged.

"Yeah. I'm not sure it's my defining feature, but I think a woman can be pretty sexy in glasses. Why?"

"I'm just bouncing some ideas around about Halloween," she said brightly. "Thanks!"

"What's the idea?" I asked, suddenly very interested. She shook her head.

"If we're still dating when it rolls around, you will probably get a very special preview," she told me. "But if you're going to drop me before then, I don't owe you my costume." I nodded. At first I was a bit hurt, but we'd only been dating four days. As I counted, I felt my mind flash back for a second.

"Now, I've got about ten minutes left in my lunch. Why did my boyfriend ask me not to wear panties at my office?"

"For dessert," I said. I pulled Carmen out of the break room and upstairs. On a Sunday, there were almost no students there. Even graduate students were scarce. "Where's the quietest stacks?" She glanced in a far corner of the room. "Are you up for getting some action in your workplace?" I asked. She grunted, but didn't say yes or no. "Okay," I said. I pulled her behind a stack of shelves and kissed her heatedly. She responded, her arm snaking under mine and moving up my neck. Her other hand landed on my shoulder as my arms cupped her back. I let one hand slip to her waistband and she pulled away.

"Not while I'm at work," she whispered. I nodded, understanding completely. I could tell the idea had gotten her going, though.

"What are you doing after work?" I asked.

"I've got some studying to do. I kinda pushed everything back for yesterday," she told me. I nodded.

"Night off?" I asked.

"That okay?" she responded. I pulled back, almost chagrined that I'd started mauling her in the library.

"Of course. You're in school to study," I responded. "I've got stuff to do, too. Breakfast tomorrow?" She grinned.

"Yes. Sans bra, if I remember the request correctly." I nodded. "I'll try to have some job ideas for you."

I kissed her again, pushing her gently against the stack. She braced herself against it, kissing me back, and when we pulled off, she licked her lips.

"I love it. You are holding back, baby. I can't wait to see what happens." She gave me a sexy wink, and I followed her downstairs. As I left she glanced at me. "Can you tell me why you want a job?"

I shrugged. I saw no reason to be shady about it. "So I can take you out to places other than Barney's," I said. "To a play, or an art show? Maybe a concert?" She smiled at me.

"I really couldn't have asked for a better answer," she whispered. "Does that make me selfish?" I shrugged.

"Does that matter?" I asked. I kissed her again, and heard a loud cough.

"Carmen? Are you done with lunch? Or are you still digging it out of his mouth?" Carmen broke off from me and smiled before turning to the woman who was standing behind the desk.

"I'm done Bonnie. I appreciate you asking so nicely." She waved at me as she walked behind the desk.

Bonnie was about 5'2, and had what would be considered an "elfin" body by a few of my friends and myself. Just the slight curves, very feminine, sleek. She was pretty attractive, but from what I'd just heard, I didn't want anything to do with her. I waited around the library to avoid her. I caught Carmen's eyes a couple of times as I waited until she came over with a stack of books.

"If you don't stop making googly eyes at me, I'm going to call security," she laughed. "Go, be a student. You can be my joyful stalker later," she teased. I nodded, and headed to my room.

As I pulled out my laptop to study, I felt my phone buzz.

I checked the text messages. "You good with me sending you pics?"

"Sure," I responded.

Another buzz. It was a picture of Amy and Heather kissing.

"WTF?" I texted immediately.

Another image, this one of an animated bear laughing.

"She left her phone, dumbass. She'll see it when she gets back. We couldn't resist. I'll let her know you're into it!"

I texted back "Thanks," and never heard more.

Until after dinner. I decided to head to the cafeteria early and get an early night's rest. I realized I had been going pretty steady since Friday. Monday was always a surprise. I told myself I was being more mature, and when I closed the assignment I'd finished, I felt my phone buzz one more time.

"Amy said you liked pics?" Carmen obviously had found the thread. I grinned.

"Did not expect that," I sent back.

"LOL, I know," she said, tagging on a laughing emoji. "Hot though?" she texted right after.

"Won't lie. Hot," I responded.

"Okay," came the text. It went quiet for a moment. Thinking she had just gotten the information she'd needed, I went and pulled out my workout clothes for the next morning

As I pulled the covers off to go to bed, I realized that I should have washed the sheets. I grinned, remembering the night before, and heard the phone buzz another time.

An attachment was on the text.

"Open and play. Sorry," came the text.

I had to wait a second for it to download. Amy and Carmen waved as the video loaded. "This one's for you, Mark," they said in unison. Then Carmen and Amy turned and kissed. Amy giggled as Carmen held her, but they gave each other a few pecks. "Hope you liked it!" I couldn't keep the smile off my face.

As I was texting back, another bing. This one had Amy's mouth glued to Carmen's, in a much more intimate kiss. I saw Amy's tongue and I found myself breathing harder.

I typed what I would have said. "Damn," I sent.

"Sleep well, babe," Carmen texted. "Night."

"Night." The phone went silent.

I muttered "huh" as I fell into bed, realizing I would not be falling asleep as quickly as I had thought.