Temptation's Kiss

"And how did he react to that?" Nicole asked, surprised at her candor.

"In a way that pretty much totally confirmed my conclusion," Miriam replied. "I'll spare you the whole narrative, but it pretty much boiled down to, "Your loss babe."

"Asshole," Nicole decided, realizing only after she'd said it that she had done so out loud. She quickly apologized.

"No, he was an asshole," Miriam said. "It was only at the end that I really realized how much of one he was."

"Well, if that was the case, then you're better off without him," Nicole stated. "And I'm so glad that you still came on your trip, otherwise we'd never have met."

"I had considered canceling it," Miriam replied, "but since I'd already made arrangements to have my apartment painted while I was gone, that would've meant spending at least a week on my sister's couch."

"That doesn't sound very appealing," Nicole commented.

"Also, I thought that maybe a little fling is just what I need right now," Miriam unexpectedly added. "Don't they say that's the quickest way to get a man out of your system?"

"I have heard that," Nicole offered with a sly smile. "How's it been working out far?"

"Well, I'm here having dinner with you, aren't I?" Miriam laughed. "You saw the lineup at the bar this morning. I'd hate to lodge a complaint, but for all its reputation, your hotel seems to leave a bit to be desired in the quality of male guests it draws."

"In all fairness, you did check at the end of the week," Nicole pointed out. "Most people tend to arrive at the beginning, or at least on Saturday. Also, a lot of locals frequent the hotel on the weekends."

"I hope so," Miriam said, "because as far as I could see, Jamie was probably the most appealing prospect, not that I'm interested in seducing a boy not even out of his teens."

"There's nothing wrong with a bit of seduction now and then," Nicole offered, a noticeable bit of suggestion in her tone. "Most times it's enjoyed by both parties involved. But that said, I don't think you and Jamie would be a good fit."

"Let me guess: he doesn't like women," Miriam said, thinking that he did seem a bit too beautiful, whatever that meant.

"Oh, he likes women all right," Nicole laughed, "perhaps a bit too much. It's just that you might be a little, well, a little too young for his tastes."

"Really?" Miriam replied, surprise in her voice. "What are we talking about here, women in their thirties?"

Nicole didn't voice a reply, but her expression said that Miriam's estimate was off the mark.

"Forties?" Miriam offered.

"Yes, although sometimes even older," Nicole finally replied.

"I can't believe that," Miriam said, but even as she did, she knew she could.

Back in Chicago, she'd known a few women in that age category that had Mrs. Robinson fantasies, one of whom she'd known for a fact had even acted on it. Her mind also drifted back to last evening when she'd noted the teenager paying extra careful attention to a fiftyish woman out on the veranda. At the time, she hadn't thought anything of it other than that he was simply doing his job, but now it made her think.

"Not that the hotel condones such things," Nicole continued, "and if such a thing were to come to my attention officially, I certainly would have to do something about it. But, for as long as Jamie had been here, I've never received a single complaint about him, at least not in that regard. Evidently, from what I've been told, most of his, let's call them patrons, give him an impressive post-coital critique."

"Just told?" Miriam inquired.

"Yes, just told," Nicole grinned. "Mind you, I have nothing against a frivolous romp in the sack now and then, but boys like Jamie really don't ring my bell."

Miriam couldn't help but wonder what it was that did, but she didn't have time to ponder the question long, as they were then

interrupted by the reappearance of their waiter.

"Can I get you ladies anything else, Ma'am?" Paul asked Nicole as he began to pick up the dessert dishes.

"No, I think we're pretty much done," Nicole said, glancing toward Miriam to see if there was anything else that she wanted.

She replied with a wave of her hand, signifying that she'd had all she could eat as well.

"Very good, ma'am," he said, adding that he'd return shortly with their bill.

"I have to say, that was fantastic," Miriam said once he was out of earshot, the moment to perhaps ask her question now passed.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Nicole smiled.

"Oh, I did," Miriam replied, "and I still can't get over the service here. I mean they treated the two of us as if we were royalty or something."

"Well, the owner does owe me a few favors," Nicole admitted. "I introduced him to his third wife."

The check arrived and the waiter diplomatically placed it between the two of them before quickly stepping away. Miriam started to reach for it, only to have it snatched away by Nicole.

"Wait a second, I invited you," she said as Nicole opened the small leather billfold.

"And I appreciated that," Nicole said as she checked the total and decided on an appropriate gratuity, "but if I sign the chit, I can put it down as a business expense. After all, we did discuss business, did we not?"

"Yeah, for all of ten minutes," Miriam pointed out.

"The duration doesn't matter," Nicole replied. "It's enough to satisfy the IRS."

Miriam decided that, in her position, Nicole certainly knew more about things like that than she did. Back home in Chicago, a business dinner, at least in the office, usually consisted of Gareth springing for pizza.

The waiter returned and casually removed the folder from where Nicole had laid it, expressing his hope that they would enjoy the rest of their evening.

Nicole said something to him in French that Miriam didn't understand, but the young man certainly seemed to, as his face filled with an appreciative smile. Then he was gone, leaving the two of them alone.

"So, what do you think you'd like to do now?" Nicole asked as, after putting the receipt and credit card into her wallet, she returned the brown leather billfold to her bag.

"I'm not sure. I really hadn't thought that far ahead," Miriam replied.

"Well it's much too early just to go back to the hotel," Nicole noted, "and besides, you're on vacation. That has to mean more than just sitting in your room and watching television."

"What were you planning to do tonight," Miriam asked, "before I asked you to dinner, I mean?"

"I was supposed to have drinks with some friends at a club over in West Hollywood," Nicole replied after a moment's hesitation.

"Oh, and I kept you from spending the night with your friends," Miriam said, a touch of remorse in her tone.

"I have spent the night with a friend," Nicole offered, a smile on her face, one that was reflected on Miriam's.

They exited the restaurant into the warm night air, pleased to discover that it was even nicer now than it had been when they'd first arrived. They crossed the wide boulevard to the edge of the promenade that overlooked the beach, from which they could look down to where the moonlit waves came crashing ashore.

"So, what would you like to do now?" Nicole asked again as she turned from the reflection of the moon in the water back to Miriam.

She paused for a few seconds, then asked Nicole if she thought that her friends would still be at that club she'd mentioned.

"Oh, I'm sure they are, things don't really get going until after ten," Nicole replied, her expression reflecting concern as she realized why Miriam had asked. "But I don't think Pandora's is the kind of place you'd enjoy."

"You don't think your friends would like me?" Miriam asked.

"I think they'd like you fine," Nicole said, "it's just that ... well... Pandora's really isn't the sort of place that you're going to meet men."

"I don't understand; is it some sort of private club?" Miriam asked.

"No, it's very public," Nicole replied. "It's just a place that only women go to."

"You make it sound like a ..." Miriam started to say, then paused in mid-sentence.

"If the phrase you're looking for is 'lesbian bar', then yes," Nicole said, completing her sentence.

"And you go there often?" Miriam asked, the implication obvious.

"Yes, I do," Nicole answered.

"Oh," was all Miriam could manage.

"If that bothers you, we could just call it a night and I'll flag down a cab to take you back to the hotel," Nicole offered.

"Do they have dancing at Pandora's?" Miriam asked, totally ignoring the older blonde's offer.

"Yes, in fact, it's actually a dance club," Nicole said.

"Then I think I'd like to go dancing," Miriam said with a broad smile.

"Are you sure?" Nicole asked.

"Sure - after all, I'm on vacation, right?" Miriam answered. "Isn't that when you're supposed to leave everything behind and have a little fun?

-=-=-=--=-=-=-

Whitney Houston's new song, "I wanna dance with somebody," blared from the speakers as, in a far corner of the dance floor, Nicole and Miriam swayed to the music. The lyrics seemed appropriate as the midwestern girl could almost feel the heat of the older woman's body as it neared her own, coming to within half an inch before pulling away. The same could be said for the softness of her lips as they drew close enough for Miriam to feel her warm breath, but they too quickly withdrew. This was the third song they had danced to in this set, with their bodies growing closer each time.

The music stopped and, if only for a few moments, it was quiet enough for them to hear each other speak. Thinking they needed a chance to catch their breath, Nicole proposed they sit the next one out, a suggestion Miriam agreed to with a nod of her head as the next track, Janet Jackson's "Nasty." filled the air, making further conversation impossible.

"Are you having fun?" Nicole asked once they were far enough away from the speakers to again be heard.

"Absolutely," Miriam replied, grateful not to have to raise her voice to be heard. "I don't think there's any place like this back in Chicago."

Actually, Miriam was sure that there were probably a few places like this in her hometown, but none she had ever been to. There had to be almost a hundred women out on the floor, a mix of all ages, physical types and races. From the outside, the two-story building looked like the large appliance store it once was, but on the inside it had been transformed into a lesbian nirvana.

Shortly after they'd gotten there, they ran into the friends Nicole had mentioned earlier, and when she introduced her, the hotel executive made it clear that Miriam was a work colleague and that she was just here to dance -- and while she didn't exactly say she was straight, the implication was clearly there. One of those women, a short haired black woman, who Nicole had introduced as Shana, didn't seem to get the message, however.

"Damn, Nic," Shana had said, after having been initially perturbed that Nicole had canceled their girls' night in order to have dinner with Miriam. "If I had found a bit of candy as fine as this, I'd have forgotten 'bout all of you in a fuckin' heartbeat too."

The other two women she'd been introduced to were a short, stout brunette named Alice and a slim, long haired Hispanic girl who, despite the driver's license she'd shown to gain admittance, didn't look old enough to be out this late. Her name, Miriam recalled, was Amy. Both women had also looked at the travel agent with admiring eyes, but had kept their accompanying comments a bit more circumspect.

All three women had insisted on sharing a dance with Miriam, but so far only Amy and Alice had taken a turn. That was about to change as they saw Shana waiting for them as they came off the floor.

"Why don't we let Miriam sit this one out?" Nicole suggested after Shana reminded her of their promised twirl.

"No, it's fine," Miriam smiled. "I did promise after all."

A new tune was just starting up as they returned to the dance floor, Jermaine Stewart's "We don't have to take our clothes off." A song that was the converse of what was on Shana's mind and she didn't hesitate making that clear as she bumped and grinded against the younger woman.

"You do remember Nicole saying that I was straight, right?" Miriam asked, after having removed Shana's hand from her ass for the second time in as many minutes.

"A lot of the women here are," Shana laughed, making a reference to the crowd around them with a toss of her head, "but then again, so is spaghetti -- until it gets good and wet."

It took Miriam a long second to get Shana's implication, and once she did, she glanced at the women dancing around them and wondered if that was indeed true. In her own experience, she could recall a few things she once thought unthinkable that had become much less so after a few drinks and, to be honest, the right degree of horniness.

As they continued to dance, Shana caught sight of Alice through the crowd. The brunette had a slim redhead in tow and was leading her off the floor and towards one of the curtained alcoves that lined the walls of the club.

"It looks like Alice got lucky," Shana said, a knowing grin on her face as she drew Miriam's attention to the two women.

Miriam turned her head in the direction her dance partner indicated, just in time to see the two of them disappear behind the heavy drapes. It didn't take much imagination to guess what took place behind them, a presumption that was vindicated moments later with the emergence of two other women from an identical niche a dozen feet further down -- both having a look of satisfaction on their faces as well as a slightly disheveled appearance.

"Our version of seven minutes in heaven," Shana whispered into Miriam's ear, alluding to the popular kissing game played at teenage parties. "Think you'd like to give it a try?"

"I think I'll pass," Miriam said, drawing her head back.

"You don't know what you're missing, girl," Shana commented with a broad suggestive grin.

Despite Miriam's professed disinterest, a warm flush washed across her body, blocking out everything else for a long moment, including the fact that the music had stopped and many of the women around them were already walking off the dance floor. Once she did realize it, however, Miriam wasted no time in thanking Shana for the dance and quickly leaving her behind as she moved off in the direction where she'd left Nicole.

She found the short haired blonde leaning against the bar, an amber colored drink in her hand. As Miriam reached her, Nicole indicated a similar drink resting on the counter, hers if she wanted it. Without hesitation, the brunette lifted it and, in a single gulp, drained nearly half its contents.

"Something wrong?" Nicole asked.

"No," Miriam quickly replied. "I just think I've had enough dancing for the evening."

"Did Shana make a pass at you?" Nicole asked, "She did, didn't she?"

Miriam didn't respond but the expression on her face said she didn't have to.

"I'm sorry, I should've warned you," Nicole apologized. "It's like a reflex action for her, especially here. But don't worry, once you say no, she doesn't ask a second time."

"It's okay," Miriam said, her composure returning.

Placing the rest of her drink back on the bar top, Miriam looked back out onto the dance floor and saw that Shana was already dancing with someone else. A busty thirty-something with curly black hair who didn't seem to mind in the least that the dark-skinned woman had both of her hands tightly pressed against her ass.

"Nicole, can we get out of here?" she asked as she turned back to her new friend.

"Of course," she replied.

-=-=-=--=-=-=-

It was easy to catch a cab back to the hotel and during the short trip, Nicole found Miriam not really in a talkative mood. She wondered if taking her to Pandora's had been a mistake. It wasn't until they exited the car across the street from the Seaside Pacific that the younger woman finally broke her silence.

"Nicole, can I ask you something?" Miriam said as she stood next to the railing that divided the street from the beach beyond.

"Of course," Nicole replied with a warm smile. "You can ask me anything."

"I'm just curious, but how come you haven't made a pass at me?" Miriam asked.

"What?" Nicole replied, surprised by the question, especially in light of how she perceived Miriam's reaction to Shana's having done so.

"I'm not saying that I would've said yes, but I'm wondering ... was it because I'm not your type or..." Miriam said.

"If I have a type, believe me, you're definitely it," Nicole interrupted, stumbling over her answer, "but circumstances being what they are, it wouldn't have been a good idea."

"What do you mean?" Miriam inquired.

"Well, first off, you're a business associate, and it's usually not a good idea to mix business and pleasure," Nicole replied. "After all, you don't expect every man you interact with professionally to make a pass at you, do you?"

The words had barely left Nicole's mouth when, taking another good look at the way Miriam filled out the outfit she was wearing, in addition to how she looked in what she had laughingly referred to as her bikini this morning, she realized that might very well be the case.

"Also, there's the little matter of you being straight," Nicole added, as if it was an even more deciding factor.

"You don't sleep with straight girls?" Miriam asked.

"I don't chase them," Nicole replied, not really answering the question.

"Not even if they're like spaghetti?" Miriam offered.

Nicole wondered for a moment where Miriam could've heard that expression, then remembered that she had danced with Shana and felt a moment of disbelief that her friend still used that line.

"You didn't answer the question," Miriam pointed out before repeating it.

"Sometimes," Nicole finally admitted.

"And in your case, what does a girl have to do to be one of those sometimes?" Miriam asked as she took two large steps forward, cutting the distance between them in half.

It was at that moment that Nicole realized that she had totally misread Miriam's reaction to Shana's proposition. She wasn't averse to the idea of sex with another woman, but simply that the wrong woman had asked.

"She has to really want it," Nicole replied, taking her own step forward, again shortening the space between them. "I've no time for faint-hearted lovers."

"Neither do I," Miriam echoed, moving a half step forward.

"Miriam, are you sure you know what you're doing?" Nicole asked, a rich warmth washing across her body as she felt that decorum she'd mentioned before fading from her thoughts.

"Probably not," Miriam smiled, taking another smaller step closer, "but you know what, I don't really care. Sometimes you just have to give in to temptation's kiss."

Before Nicole could say anything else, Miriam took that last small step, one that covered far more than distance as she threw her arms around Nicole's neck and pulled their bodies together. The press of the older woman's lips against her own ignited a fire that had been slowly building for hours, one that she knew would shatter all preconceptions, even those that had been up to now unknown.

-=-=-=--=-=-=-

They shared the warmth of each other's mouths for a long minute, a second kiss following the first, with a third on the heels of the second. At which point Miriam noticed that they had drawn the attention of curious onlookers.

"Maybe we should take this up to my room," she suggested to Nicole after the last kiss.

"Actually, I have a better idea," Nicole replied, taking Miriam by the hand and leading her across the wide street. "Follow me."

Miriam didn't care if Nicole was leading her to a broom closet, as long as they would be there together. Still, she was surprised when the older woman led her not to the hotel entrance, but instead to a separate entrance off to the left, specifically to the small guard post that restricted entry to the row of luxurious villas usually reserved for more influential guests.