'Twas The Night Before... Ch. 01

Kathryn sighed. "I'm sorry, I don't think I have anything else... Look, this is another one of those 'I know we just met today' things..."

"Yesterday, ho ho ho," Megan interrupted.

"Right, yesterday, sorry I keep doing that." Kathryn couldn't help but grin. "But desperate times... I just checked with Dominion and they've moved the time to restore power back to after seven A.M. now. I think we might need to share body heat to survive. Or at least not catch pneumonia. Want to come and curl up with me?" Megan stood there with a blank face, until Kathryn said, "Or not! Sorry, I don't want to make you uncomfortable."

"No, no, it's fine. I just... I should... Yes, it's probably a good idea. It's freezing in here."

"Okay," Kathryn said and grabbed the blanket from the couch. She led the way back in the bedroom. "Do you want inside or outside?" she asked.

"I'll take... inside." Megan crawled into the cave formed by the two bunks and under the thick comforter. Kathryn slid into the bed next to her and spread the twin blanket over them as well. They laid side-by-side quietly for a few minutes.

"I know this is a weird situation, but I want to say thanks again for the dance party. I'd have been sitting here feeling sorry for myself all night if I hadn't stopped into your bar."

"It was fun for me too," said Megan. They lay there for a while until Kathryn rolled over with her back to Megan, saying in a sleepy voice, "I sleep on my side."

"Me too," Megan said, and rolled the other way, pressing her back up against Kathryn's.

Kathryn stiffened for a moment, then relaxed and snuggled back into Megan. This is so nice and warm, she thought. I haven't slept in the same bed with anyone besides Caitlyn since before she was born. I mean, in a perfect world she'd be a hot guy, but I'll take this. She was asleep moments later.

Kathryn woke in the dark and for a moment couldn't remember why it was so cold in her apartment. Oh right, the power's out. Other than her ears and nose, she was so warm though. And she felt so... safe, for some reason. Then, as she remembered she wasn't alone in her bed, she became aware of the soft hand on her stomach.

Megan had turned over sometime during the night and was snuggled up behind her, knees tight into the back of her legs, soft breasts pressed against her back. Megan's arm was curled over her side, and her hand had slipped up under Kathryn's pajama top and was resting on her stomach. She was surprised at how comfortable, how... comforting it felt.

Kathryn lay frozen, unsure of what to do. Maybe if she laid still, Megan would roll over away from her in a few minutes. It was perfectly innocent, she'd probably gotten cold and just gravitated towards her warmth. Her hand was so warm. She sighed. No one's touched me since Steve, she thought, and I've haven't had another woman touch me... well, except....

She thought back to her life before Caitlyn. When all she'd cared about was having a good time, and a good time had meant more alcohol than she could possibly fathom drinking now. Before Steve, there had been Brian. Before Brian, there had been Drew. Drew had taken full advantage of having a girlfriend who could be counted on to drink too much at every party. That one night, the night she had tried to forget, Drew had talked her into a threesome with some woman whose name she'd never learned. It hadn't been something she'd particularly wanted. It wasn't something she could even remember that clearly. Except... She had vague memories that the unnamed woman had done more for her that night than Drew had their entire 'relationship.' But still... it wasn't an experience she'd ever contemplated repeating.

Megan gave a contented sigh and suddenly her hand slid up to cup Kathryn's breast. Kathryn jumped and muffled a surprised yelp. She could feel Megan's breath on the back of her neck. She gently took hold of Megan's wrist and tried to slide it back down to her stomach, but Megan made a happy sound in her sleep then squeezed her breast tighter. Kathryn felt her nipple involuntarily stiffen. It felt... good to be touched again. But she had to put a stop to this. Didn't she?

"Megan? Megan, are you awake?" she whispered.

Megan made another happy sound, then started rocking her hips against the swell of Kathryn's behind. Kathryn could feel the heat coming through the two layers of flannel between them, and was surprised to feel the stirrings of excitement in herself. But surely it was just because it'd been so long.

"Megan... Megan, wake up."

Megan pulled Kathryn tighter to her body, and whispered against her neck, "M-m-m, Kitty-Kat..."

Kathryn pulled at Megan's wrist a little harder and slid it back down to her stomach. "Megan, wake up," she said louder.

Megan started, jerked her body, then went completely still. A second later she groggily said, "Kat?"

"I'm here Megan."

"What are you... we were... Oh god! I'm so sorry!" She shoved herself away from Kathryn and banged hard against the wall. "I'm so sorry! Do you want me to go?"

"Megan, it's..."

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to... I'm so sorry!"

"Megan, it's okay. S-h-h-h, it's okay, it's alright."

Megan seemed panicked. "I should go. I'm sorry, I should go."

"Megan, s-h-h-h, it's alright. I'm not upset. And it's..." She picked up her phone from the side table and checked the time, "...four in the morning. It's probably still snowing and there's no way your clothes are dry. Where are you going to go?"

"I'm so embarrassed!" Megan wailed. Kathryn could tell she was burying her face in her hands in the darkness from the sound of her muffled voice.

"Megan, don't be embarrassed. I'm not. It's okay."

"I thought maybe I should have told you I was gay when you asked me to share your bed. I should have told you. But I never thought for a second that would happen. Kat, I'm so sorry!"

Kathryn waited a moment to let Megan calm down then reached out to draw her into a hug. She resisted it at first. "It's okay Megs, c'mere. It's still freezing, we still need to keep each other warm."

Megan slowly let Kathryn draw her in close. She laid back and pulled Megan's head onto her shoulder. Megan balled her fists and crossed her arms up against her own chest, obviously trying to avoid contacting Kat with her hands again.

Megan sniffled, then said, "You called me Megs."

"I heard the cook and your customers call you that. I figured it's your nickname."

"And you called me that when you were getting me in the shower."

"Just doing what I had to do to get you moving."

They lay quietly for what seemed like forever, until Megan broke the silence.

"You must be a really good mom, Kat. You're what, twenty-five?"

"Twenty-six."

"How'd you learn to be a good mom at twenty-six? All by yourself?"

"I didn't have a choice. I was a party girl before Cait came along. Her dad, Steve, was the last of a bad bunch. We dated for about three months until I told him I was pregnant and then he vanished. Which was just as well. He's a drunk. And then I was on my own. I had to shape up and get responsible fast. Steve's mother, Amanda, didn't step in and start 'helping' until Cait was two. Both my parents are gone, in a car crash when I was twenty. So, I was well and truly on my own."

"That sucks, Kat."

"It's okay. Another year-and-a-half and I'll have my nursing degree and I can move anywhere I want. Nurses are in demand everywhere. We'll be free."

There was another silence, then Megan said, "I'm really sorry I touched you like that Kat. I swear, I was asleep, I didn't know I was doing it."

"It's fine, really, it's okay," Kathryn said. She hesitated, then whispered, "It was nice to be touched again."

"What?" Megan said, lifting her head off Kathryn's shoulder.

"No one has touched me like that since Caitlyn's dad."

"You're kidding!"

"Nope. No time for dating. No time for anything." She sighed. "When I woke and you were curled up behind me like that, I was so happy for a moment." There was another long silence, and then Kathryn whispered, "Megan?"

"Yeah?"

"Will you cuddle me again?"

Megan said, "Are you sure?"

Kathryn took Megan's hand and pulled it over her so that Megan lay across her shoulder, her arm wrapping around Kathryn. "This feels so nice," she sighed.

Megan rubbed her hand up and down Kat's arm, then gave her a squeeze. "Happy to help."

They laid there in silence again, this time so long that Megan had almost dozed off when she felt Kathryn take her hand and slide it under her shirt onto the heat of her stomach.

"Kat?" she whispered.

"Is this okay?" Kathryn whispered back, uncertainly. "I mean... do you want to?"

"I mean... obviously part of me does. A big part," Megan whispered. "But are you sure?"

"I think so," Kathryn said, then took Megan's hand and slid it up to cup her breast again. Her nipple stiffened into Megan's palm and she sighed. "Yes. I'm sure."

Megan lightly stroked her, taking it slow and giving her plenty of time to change her mind. Kathryn said nothing, just sighed and snuggled her body into Megan's.

Megan slowly caressed Kathryn's breast, delicately catching her nipple between her fingers on each stroke. She whispered in her ear, "Kat, do you know when I knew I wanted to do this?"

"At the bar?" Kathryn asked, her breathing becoming shallow.

"No, at the Christmas Village. This hot MILF showed up and..."

"MILF?!" Kathryn exclaimed with a laugh.

"You are totally a MILF. You were so determined to not disappoint your little girl you made my own mama bear instincts leap out." She switched her hand to Kathryn's other breast. Both her nipples were rock hard now. "When I saw the look on your face when Caitlyn was upset Santa was gone, how much you wanted to make it okay for her, there was no way I was letting you go home without seeing Santa."

"You wanted me then?"

"Absolutely. Then you came into my bar. Then you invited me to your house. Then into your bed." She licked Kathryn's ear and gently nipped her earlobe. Kathryn moaned. "Then, I had the wettest of wet dreams, and found myself horrified to wake up fondling you in my sleep. But now, you're asking me to do it."

"I am asking... do it to me," Kathryn.

"What do you want me to do, Kat?"

"Everything."

"Everything?" Megan asked, sliding her hand down to Kathryn's stomach, stopping at the waistband of her pajama pants.

"Everything!" she whispered, lifting her waistband, pushing Megan's hand downwards and opening her thighs.

Megan wasted no time, declining to tease her for fear of Kathryn losing her nerve, and slipped her fingers between her lips.

She wasn't drenched, but there was definite wetness. She gasped as Megan's finger glided over her clit.

"Still okay?" Megan asked.

"Yes... yes, yes, yes."

Megan smiled then kissed Kathryn's neck. She was worried when the sun came up things would get awkward. She didn't know if Kat would ever want to see her again once the reality of what they'd done together hit her in the light of day. But right at this moment, there was nothing on earth that could stop her.

She stroked Kathryn's clit until she started panting, then reached lower and slowly, ever so slowly, slid her middle finger into her new lover. Kathryn gasped yet again and arched her back. Megan glided her finger in and out, while she lifted herself up on her elbow so she was looking down on Kathryn's face in the dark. She knew the next moment would be when Kathryn would either back out or be all in.

Time to see how much she really means 'everything', Megan thought.

She lowered her head and found Kat's mouth with her own. There was a moment of hesitation, accompanied by Megan's sinking feeling she was getting ready to wake up from a dream, disappointed again. But then Kathryn eagerly kissed her back. Megan was even surprised to feel Kathryn reaching out with her tongue first, licking Megan's lower lip, before she sucked Megan's tongue into her mouth to taste it. Kathryn brought her hand up and tangled it in Megan's shaggy hair, while Megan continued to slowly and steadily stroke her finger in and out, brushing her thumb against Kathryn's clit on every stroke.

Kathryn broke off the kiss and rolled her head back on the pillow. "Megan... Megan..." she panted. Then her muscles tensed. She arched her back and froze, holding her breath.

She held it so long Megan worriedly said "Kat?" just before her lover released it with a long shuddering groan and her entire body started trembling violently. Megan stroked her through her orgasm until finally Kathryn grabbed her wrist and stopped her.

"Oh my God, Megan... oh my God!" Megan could hear tears in her voice and grew concerned.

"Are you okay?"

Kathryn laughed through a sob, then grabbed Megan's face and kissed her hard. "Oh my god, I'm so okay Megan! It's been six years since I came from something besides my own fingers!"

"Seriously? Wait, I thought Caitlyn was four?"

Kathryn laughed again, then sniffed. "Yeah, well, Steve was no magician in the bedroom. Neither were the couple of guys before him.

Megan felt a surge of pride in having given Kathryn this gift. She lifted her hand and sucked her finger clean with a loud smack to make sure Kathryn knew what she'd just done in the darkness. She heard Kathryn take in a breath. Then she felt Kathryn's hand slide under her pajama top.

"Kat, you don't have to if you don't..."

"Hush. It's my turn now." She slowly caressed the swell of Megan's breast, gliding her fingers over her nipple and giving it a small pinch. Megan purred.

"God, I miss having breasts like this. Nurse a baby for six months and you can kiss perky tits like these goodbye," Kat said.

"I think yours are perfect," Megan replied.

Kathryn pushed Megan onto her back and traced her hand down to her stomach.

"Kat... if you aren't comfortable..."

"I want to make you feel like that too," Kathryn replied. Her hand slid gently under Megan's waistband and she kissed her again. Uncertainty crept into her voice. "But you'll tell me? If I'm doing it wrong?"

Megan smiled and kissed her again. "There's no wrong, Kat. It's like having sex with a guy, just do what you imagine would feel good and listen to your partner's body. It'll tell you when you're on the right track!"

The last word came out much louder as Kathryn parted Megan's own lips with a finger. Megan was drenched, and Kathryn's finger slid over her clit like it was dipped in oil.

"This feels so..." Kathryn whispered.

"Weird? Touching another woman there?"

"No, sexy. Sensuous," she said, and slid a finger inside as Megan gasped. Kathryn moved slowly, marveling at feeling another woman for the first time. While sober, anyway.

"You can use another finger if you want," Megan breathed. Kathryn added a second finger to the first, stretching Megan's walls. She quickly learned that Megan liked different spots inside her than she did, but her little barkeep was demonstrative enough that it was obvious what was working and what wasn't.

Much faster than it had taken Kathryn, Megan soon was in the throes of her own orgasm. She grabbed Kat's shoulder and squeezed hard as she came, her nails digging into Kathryn's flesh, making her draw in a breath of her own.

"Okay, okay, stop, stop, stop! Oh God, Kat."

"Did I do okay?" Kathryn asked, but Megan could hear enough of a smile in the voice that she could tell Kathryn was well aware of how well she'd taken care of her lover.

Megan just responded with a whispered, "C'mere, Kitty Kat." She pulled her down to rest on her shoulder then reached down to pull Kathryn's knee over to slide in between her legs. Kathryn couldn't believe how natural it felt. She smiled and made a happy sound against Megan's neck. They were both back asleep within minutes.

~ ~ Christmas Morning ~~

Kathryn woke up sweating. She opened her eyes and was greeted by the sight of Megan's peaceful face on the pillow next to hers, lit up by the soft light from an overcast sky coming through the window. She realized the heat was back on in her apartment. The layers of blankets and their flannel pajamas were too much in the now normal room temperature. She tried to carefully slide the top layers of blankets off to the floor without disturbing Megan, but the dark-haired girl opened her eyes.

"Sorry, I was trying not to wake you."

"Are you getting up?" Megan asked, a worried look in her eyes.

"No. Oh Megan, no, I'm not running away. The heat's back on and I was sweating, that's all."

Megan relaxed and said with a smile, "I'm glad, Kitty Kat. Last night was..." she didn't seem to know how to finish the sentence.

"Last night was amazing, Megan."

Megan ran her hands through Kathryn's hair and pulled her closer for a kiss.

Kathryn stopped her and pulled away before their lips could meet with a serious look on her face. "Listen, I really enjoyed last night. But... I want you to know I'm not a one-night stand kind of girl, or someone who can be 'friends-with-benefits'. I mean, I have Cait to think about... and..."

Megan looked at her seriously. "So, you're saying you don't want to just have casual sex. You want to be with someone. Like, really be with them."

"Yes! That's what I'm trying to say, in my own awkward way. I mean, that used to be me, but it can't be anymore. Not now that I have Caitlyn."

"So, does that mean if I asked you out on a date, you'd say yes?"

"Megan," Kathryn sighed and paused so long Megan opened her mouth to speak, but Kathryn put up a hand to stop her. "Before last night I would have said I was straight. Or maybe ninety-nine percent straight. I'm sure not ready to say I'm one-hundred percent gay." Megan took on her worried look again as Kat continued, "But you need to know that dating a single mom can be a chore. My life isn't fun and games, Caitlyn always has to come first, then school, then whatever is left over is all I can give..."

Megan's smile returned. "Does... does that mean you do want to go on a date with me?"

Kathryn looked uncertain. "I mean, I think... I think I might. If you want to. But you have to jump in with both eyes open. It's not like dating a single twenty-something. You need to know that there's a lot more to it. You wouldn't be just dating me, Cait comes too. I'm a package deal. But... if you want to try, then, I think... I think I'd like to try too."

Megan reached up and touched Kathryn's cheek. "I'd like to try," she whispered

"Okay," Kathryn said, then gave Megan the kiss she'd been seeking. It was long, and full of meaning. "Can you come have dinner with us this weekend? I can make the world's smallest turkey."

Megan grinned and finished the lyrics, "Already in the oven, nice and hot, oh damn! Guess what you forgot?"

Kathryn laughed. "Yes, except I would never forget the cranberries. Caitlyn loves them."

Megan said, "I do too!" Then she laughed with delight, kicking her feet on the bed.

"What's so funny?" Kat asked.

"I'm just thinking that Cait is going to be the only little girl in preschool who can say her mommy is dating one of Santa's elves!"

Kat laughed as Megan sat up. The dark-haired barkeep, elf, paralegal, law student threw the covers off and started tugging at Kat's pajama pants. "Megan, what are you doing?" she said, giggling.

"You gave me my Christmas gift by asking me on a date with you and Cait," Megan said, throwing the pants to the floor and moving between Kat's legs. "Now I'm going to give you yours." She went straight at Kathryn, giving her a long, slow lick, parting her lips with her tongue. Kathryn gasped in shock and pleasure.

"Really? My Christmas gift is you going... oh... going down on... oh... oh God... going down on me?"