Lucy's Letters

I didn't believe that she was okay with it. But I totally got where she was coming from. I knew very well how a relationship can impose itself on one's personal goals and ambitions. Throw children into the mix, and it becomes even more difficult. Would I want to be on my own for the next five or ten years? I'd miss the intimacy and the companionship. Even though my husband and I weren't the best fit, there was that sense of being a team.

I suppose it was my training as a journalist, but I asked most of the questions. "Were you always into pottery?"

"No. I started out drawing and painting. Even took up watercolors. I got my art degree from UA, and then started trying to make it on my own. I got into textiles for a while, which I love. And eventually pottery. I have a small kiln in my backyard that I bought off someone who was retiring. Truth is, I actually love sketching most, but the pottery sells best. It's art, but also practical, and I can decorate the objects with classic southwestern images. People love that sort of stuff."

Nice to know she wasn't averse to marketing herself. She stood up and stretched, then took a long drink from her water bottle. As she drank, I found myself admiring her golden skin and the way her sweat glistened in the sunlight, and realized that she was more than a little attractive. And suddenly, I had my first urge to kiss her.

"We should head back."

"I need to pee," which I did pretty badly.

"Be my guest," she said, setting her backpack down on the earth. "Just watch where you crouch. Right behind you is a hedgehog cactus," she said, pointing to a low spiny plant.

I looked at it and made a note to avoid it. As for where to pee, well, there wasn't any nearby cover, so I made sure there weren't any spikey plants underneath me, undid my shorts and pulled them down my legs, taking my underwear along with them. As I mentioned a while back, I was a bit unkempt down there. I'm usually good about keeping the pubes trimmed, but I'd let it go for a while, and it was looking pretty ragged. Oh well, I sighed. This is not the time for modesty.

With my shorts and panties down around my boots, I squatted and let loose with a steady stream. I'd been holding it longer than I should have. I watched the rivulets as they ran down the slope. When my bladder was empty, I looked up to see Stephanie holding out a tissue for me to wipe myself with. I wiped, and then reached up with my other hand for her hoist me up.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it," she smirked. Though my shorts and panties were still down around my ankles, I suddenly felt the need to explain why things were so disorderly down there. "I'm usually much better about how I look down there," I said, blushing like a schoolgirl.

She glanced down at my bushy crotch and then back up. "I think it's sexy," she said to me, smiling very approvingly. "I like a woman who lets her bush go 'naturel'."

Her approval brought a smile to my face. I just stared at her, with my shorts and panties still down around my ankles. I was actually enjoying the feel of the warm desert air caressing my bare bottom. If it weren't for all the rocks and thorns and snakes, I'd have suggested we take off all our clothes and hike back in the nude.

But to my surprise, Stephanie reached down and pulled up my panties for me. She then tugged up my hiking shorts, zipped them up and snapped the front button.

"Ready?" she asked, in an officious tone. I nodded, unable to speak as she turned about, hoisted her pack and started wending her way back down the trail. I grabbed my pack, and followed her down.

It made sense for her to lead, not only because she knew the terrain better than I did, but because I could watch and learn from her. I loved the way she hopped and stepped her way past branches and stones, marking my way. She was so agile, and in tune with her balance. It was fun to see her move, and to admire those flexing muscles.

On our way down, she suddenly stopped and excitedly pointed to a tiny green plant. "Come here, quick! See that powder blue butterfly with the orange spots?" I did see it.

"That's a Sonoran Blue. A very special butterfly. I don't often see them around here." She was very happy with her find.

The butterfly was pretty. And so very tiny. I would have walked right past it, but she saw everything. While for me, the surrounding birdsong was a jumble of sound, to her, it was a tapestry of distinctive voices, each one belonging to a recognizable friend.

That day, she showed me a special part of the world. Her world. And I could see how it energized her spirit, and gave her the inspiration to make another drawing or glaze a terracotta bowl. Back at the car, as she started to pack up our gear, I took hold of her upper arm, the one with the tattooed flower. She stopped what she was doing and turned to me.

"Steph, I can't thank you enough for this wonderful day and for sharing this amazing world of yours with me."

She really smiled at that. "Anytime, Adina. I meant what I said. You can stay for as long as you want. There's lots I can show you. And I'm sure there are some things you could show me, too," she added with a wink.

Damn, she was openly flirting with me again. But before I had time to react or even process, she was already in the driver's seat. Accepting that the moment was lost, I got in and she started up the car. But before putting it in gear, she turned to me.

She gestured to the surrounding hills. "There's this whole beautiful world here, and people barely pay it any mind. I see them every day, in these parks, always on their cell phones, or gabbing with a friend. For most of them, this is a place to catch up on the week, walk the dog, or get in a good run or bike ride. For me, it's my holy time, my refuge. I draw my spiritual strength and inspiration from this landscape, and from the creatures that inhabit it. Right out here, under an open sky. In the desert, like the wandering tribes."

Again, I felt that urge to kiss her. This time I did. I leaned in and place a very gentle kiss on the corner of her mouth. I felt her stiffen briefly as I pulled back and gave her an affectionate smile. After a moment, she grinned at me.

During the ride home, we chatted mostly about our hike and I asked bushels of questions about the plants and the animals, and she answered all that she could, sometimes, saying "I don't know. Have to look into that one."

"So that's not a Cardinal, but a..."

"Pyrrhuloxia," she said, the word rolling smoothly off her tongue. I had to laugh and shake my head. As I did this, I casually placed my hand on her right thigh.

She looked down at my hand, then back up at me. Her eyes let me know that she was fine with it. I'd never been with a woman before, but I was on a journey that seemed strangely destined. Somehow losing my grandma had led me to Tucson and to this fascinating woman who had me thinking about all sorts of stuff I hadn't considered before. All triggered by a friendship that had its beginnings well before we were born.

Back at her house, we began to get out of our gear. "I need to take a shower," I said, having set my boots and socks by the door.

"Hang on, I'll join you," she answered, while busily washing out her mug in the sink.

Her offer took me by surprise, and yet I loved the idea of us showering together. It was a chance for more intimacy with her. I was fairly confident Stephanie knew exactly how to be with me. And that made me consider the possibility of taking things further.

I suppose I could have waited for her to finish washing up, but instead, I started removing my clothes right there in the main room. I felt sticky and hot, and not the least embarrassed to be naked in her presence. I took off my shirt and socks, then got out my hiking shorts, and finally unhooked my bra and tossed it on the pile. The only piece of clothing I still had on were my blue and white cheeky panties.

She turned and stared at my breasts. I liked the way she was looking at them. I reached up with a band and pulled my hair up. The act caused my tits to lift and jiggle for her. I smiled, for I could see I had her full attention.

"You leaving those panties on?" she asked, her head cocked as if she'd just issued me a dare.

I grinned slyly as I jostled my panties down and off. Feeling playful, I twirled them about my finger a couple of times before tossing them on my pile of clothes. I now stood fully naked before her.

I felt a little shy, but not so much as to cover myself from view. She said she liked my bush, so I felt okay showing that off. And I wanted her to really see me. I knew my body wasn't as firm as hers, and my breasts sagged a bit more, but I felt attractive, right then.

Stephanie moved over to the sofa and tossed her shirt onto the back of it. She then unzipped her shorts and tugged them off as well. Her pink panties soon followed. I took a deep breath at the sight of her amazing ass, its creamy white skin much lighter than the rest of her body, which was browned from time in the hot sun.

She then pulled off her sports bra to reveal a pair of full, round breasts that were also creamy white. This was a woman who did not spend any time in a tanning salon or nude sun bathing. Her coral nipples were like two garnets set in the center of two large areolae. And on her pubis was a lovely patch of fine brown hair. It was more manicured than mine, thinner at the bottom, wider at the top.

I don't know if I was still disoriented from too much time in the sun, or if Stephanie Whitmore was simply too attractive to resist, but I was moist between my legs. If I'd been alone, I would have touched myself.

It had been a while since I'd been sexually aroused by anyone, man or woman, and I missed that feeling. But I wasn't prepared for her next statement.

"Okay, time for a tic check."

"A what check?"

"Tics. Nasty little blood suckers. First I'll check you and then you check me." She came over and began running her hands lightly over my naked body, studying my skin carefully.

"What do they look like?" I asked, feeling a bit creeped out by the thought of tiny blood sucking creatures burrowing into my skin.

"Just look for a dark, round spot with teeny legs."

"Ewwww," I groaned, now definitely creeped out.

"Okay, you're good. Now me."

I began studying her nude body, looking for any dark little spots, but I didn't find any, though I enjoyed running my hands over her ass, and up and down her legs. That's when I noticed the tattoo of a bird on her left hip. I'm sure she'd be able to tell me exactly which species it was. "Didn't know about this tattoo," I told her, as I stood up. "I like it."

"It's a thrasher," she told me.

Yep, I knew it. I stood up and was about tell her she was all clear of tics, when my gaze fell on her nipples. I wanted to touch them. And so, I did.

"Oh wait, I think I found a tic," I said, reaching out and pinching her left teat. She chuckled at my brazen move. "Nope, not a tic. But it was nice of you to check. Okay, shower time," she said, bounding fully nude into the bathroom.

I took a deep breath and followed her in. "Here. Use this towel," she said pulling one down from a shelf. She started the water, adjusted the spray and gestured to the stall. "After you."

I stepped in and she immediately followed. She stepped in behind me and pressed her naked body to me. I could feel her firm breasts pressing against my back, and her pubic hair tickling my bare ass. Her hands slid up my torso to cradle the undersides of my breasts. She began to caress them and I leaned back against her. Her fingers brushed over my nipples, causing them to stiffen. And when she took each firm nub between her thumb and forefinger and pinched, them, I released a groan of pleasure, my legs weakening.

"You're very sexy, Adina," she whispered into my ear, before planting light kisses along my neck.

The pleasure of her lips on my skin was exquisite. "I think you're sexy, too," I said, exhaling with a sigh. I felt like clay in her hands.

Her voice stayed soft and low. "You know, I could stay in her with you all day, but water is a precious resource. Hand me the soap and I'll wash you down."

She pulled away, breaking the erotic spell. Rather cruel, I thought, to wind me up and then leave me hanging. But like everything else she did, it was with intention.

She applied soap to the towel and began to briskly wash my body. It was almost business-like the way she went about it, though her sensuous washing of my breasts sent a tingle straight to my pussy. After she washed my butt, I held my breath as she ran the towel up the inside of my thighs, and then between my legs. By the time she finished, I was vibrating with pleasure from head to toe.

"Now do me."

Still in a bit of a daze, I took the towel from her and moved as quickly and efficiently as I could, careful not to linger for I now knew that 'water was a precious resource.' But I found it difficult to relinquish the feel of her creamy white breasts in my hands, and the erotic sight of the water cascading over them as I soaped them up. I did manage to make it to her tummy and then around to her back, but things turned intensely sexual for me once I was on my knees and washing her muscled legs and firm ass. It was a servile position, and one that I liked. There was something about Stephanie that made me want to serve her.

How I would have loved to have lingered. But I patted her thigh and she turned around.

I sucked in my breath at the sight of her thick, fleshy pussy. As I prepared to wash it for her, I marveled at the way the labial folds protruded from her body. I wanted to touch them, but instead, I ran the towel between her legs. My work was done.

She turned off the taps and we exited the tub. "Feel better?" she asked, as we toweled ourselves off.

"Mm, hmm," I nodded, while trying to jump start my brain.

She set the towels aside, and drew me to her. We were almost touching, and I could feel the energy flowing between us. At any moment, I expected sparks. She reached out and took my hand and brought it up to her lips, gently kissing my fingers. That simple, tender gesture made my knees buckle, and I fell into her.

"You, okay?" she whispered. I nodded.

Keeping hold of my hand, she led me toward her bedroom. Once at her bedside, she left me standing there as she tugged back the covers and climbed onto the mattress. Kneeling naked on her bed, she waited for me to join her, which I did. I knelt opposite her, and allowed my eyes to roam over her naked body. I could feel my heart thumping.

Stephanie eased closer to me, and I parted my thighs to allow her knee to slip between them. I moaned when it made contact with my bare sex. She leaned forward so that our foreheads touched. I could feel her warm breath on me, and I tilted my head up until our lips came together for our first real kiss. It was tentative and exploratory, our moist lips lightly brushing against each other.

I took her lower lip between mine and sucked on it. She responded by licking my upper lip with the tip of her tongue. The eroticism of that moment sent a jolt to my pussy. We continued to kiss, our tongues now playfully dueling, until she eased me down, our bodies stretching out alongside each other on the bed. We moved closer so that our breasts pressed together. Soon our legs intertwined.

We began to kiss with more urgency, and I had to remind myself to breathe. No one had ever kissed me in this way. Her mouth was aggressive and yet her lips soft and gentle. I couldn't remember a time when I had been so aroused during foreplay. The sensation of our bodies pressing to each other, the feel of her breasts pushing into mine, our damp pussies rubbing together, her hands on my ass, it was almost too much to take in.

Not to be outdone, I fluttered my fingers down her back, tracing the inward curve of her spine until I reached the swell of her ass. I ran my palm over the curve of her cheek and trailed a finger down the length of her crack. Grabbing a purchase of her butt cheek, I gave it a good squeeze.

She moaned into my mouth. Breaking her kiss, she started to noisily lick and kiss her way along my neck and onto my collar bone. As she kissed her way down my body, I stretched out onto my back in anticipation of the wonderful things she was about to do to me.

She cradled my left breast and took the nipple into her mouth. "Oh god," I cried, as I felt the pressure building between my legs.

As her lips suctioned my teat, her fingers trailed lightly through my hairy mound, parting it so she could tease my labia. The combination of her lips on my nipple and her fingers at my entrance, were bringing me to a boil.

Sensing I was ready, she continued her journey downward. Occasionally, she'd nip or bite my skin, causing me to gasp from the sensation. Past my tummy and onto my mons. As she kissed over the swell of my mound, I elevated my knees and parted my thighs so that my sex was on offer. I didn't want her having any doubts as to whether or not I was fully invested.

I felt her warm breath caress the length of my pussy, followed by her tongue lightly flicking at my ruffled lips. I gasped and arched my hips.

"Mmmm," she hummed.

My body came up off the mattress when her tongue began to lick more vigorously. She cupped my ass and held me to her as she probed deeper. My petals quickly gave way, opening right up for that amazing tongue of hers to enter.

"Oh my god, Steph, that feels so good," I whimpered, my hips arching upward. "You are so good..." Again, she hummed her approval as she began to really eat me. At one point, I felt her take one of my inner petals between her lips and suck on it. Then she did the other.

"Oh, god, yes, oh god, yes, oh god," I chanted, as her lips sucked and tugged on them. I could feel myself oozing moisture.

I was now so close that it wasn't going to take much to push me over the edge. My muscles were taut as wire and when her tongue flicked at my clitoral hood and her mouth encircled my clit, I was done. The first shockwave hit me hard.

"Oh my god," I cried out loudly, as the floodgates opened. I continued to babble and curse as the hot liquid poured out of me and into her mouth. I could no longer think, my brain swamped by wave after wave of intense pleasure.

At some point I must have passed out, for the next thing I remember was her lying alongside me. "Welcome back," she said, grinning like a cat that had eaten the canary.

I turned my head on the pillow and adoringly gazed at this woman who had brought so much joy and pleasure into my life. "That was the best oral sex anyone's ever given me. The job's yours, if you want it," I joked.

"I'll get back to you," she said, flashing me a crafty grin. I then watched her pluck a stray pubic hair from off her tongue.

"Sorry about that," I apologized.

"No worries," she replied, with a smile. She stared at me for a moment, and I could sense her mood growing serious. "Adina, I'm not one to sleep around, but I have been with enough women to know when the chemistry feels right. I'm not just talking about the sex. I look at how we are together and I see the potential," she said, her fingertips stroking my cheek.

"Really? You think we have potential?"

"Yeah, I do. What about you?"

I thought for a moment. I guess I hadn't calculated that far ahead. I was still trying to figure out how I got here in the first place. One thing I knew, our connection was real.

I finally found my voice. "Steph, being with you has made me re-evaluate so many things, like what to look for in a relationship. And what it means to be intimate. Everything we do together—the talking, the hiking, making dinner, making love...it all feels special...and it flows effortlessly. I could very easily fall in love with you. So, yeah, lots of potential."