“Good,” she says. “Follow me.”

She walks about a step ahead of me, leading me with her hand around my erection.

We get into her bedroom and she stops and turns around, lifting herself just enough to let me feel how wet she is against my dick.

I bend down and kiss her on the mouth and, wrapping my arms around her lower back, I lift her off the ground and carry her over to the bed.

As I slip one finger into her, curling it to massage her g-spot, she starts rocking her hips, moaning softly.

“That’s it,” she says, “right there. Don’t stop.”

I wasn’t planning on it.

Her legs part a little farther and I kiss her knees to her inner thigh to the sensitive curve at the base of her leg and run my tongue smoothly over her lips, settling on her clit.

She’s breathing so hard already. With my finger still inside of her, I play my tongue over her pink ruby like a paintbrush over canvas.

Her skin is so hot and she grows ever wetter as I continue to pleasure her, her legs moving back and forth against the sides of my head, in a perfect, gentle rhythm.

One hand moves through my hair, her fingers toying with my locks, while with the other, she grasps her breast, her legs starting to quiver and she’s begging me to put myself inside her.

I raise myself up on the bed and I quickly move over her, sliding myself easily between her folds, kissing her mouth and pulling her close.

My mouth is over hers as she comes, shaking beneath me, her fingernails biting into my back and her pleasured screams muffled by the cradle of my mouth.

Her orgasm begins to die down and I move my lips to kiss her forehead and she breathes, “Holy fuck.”

My only response is a smile.

She pulls herself up and kisses me ravenously and puts her ankles against my ass, pushing me deeper and deeper inside of her.

“I want you to come,” she chants, her breath heavy and warm against the side of my face. “I want you to come.”

I work my hands underneath her body and pull her upright, and we both sit cross-legged as she pumps her body over mine, working to bring the warmth out of me.

“Are you close?” she asks.

“Yeah,” I breathe, kissing her neck, and she rides me so fast, so deep.

“Come for me,” she says. “I want you to come hard.”

“Where?” I ask.

“In my mouth,” she moans. “I want to taste you.”

I lift her off of me and set her gently on the bed.

Raising myself to my knees, her mouth is hot, inviting, and my muscles contract in a beautiful release, and I’m reminded of what I’ve been missing for too long.

I brush the hair out of her face as she sucks me down and by the time I’m done, my muscles are gelatin. She laughs as I fall backward onto the bed, saying, “Shit. Holy shit!”

*                    *                    *

Spending the night wasn’t exactly what I had planned, but it was nice, just for a little while, to feel connected to someone else the way I’m finally willing to recognize that I hadn’t been with Amy for a long, long time.

She makes coffee and, filling up two capped mugs, she asks if she can get a ride to work.

“Of course,” I tell her.

“We can’t walk in together, though,” she says. “In fact, you should probably get in there first so you can meet up with your crew. I’ll come in a few minutes later.”

“All right,” I shrug.

I wasn’t particularly looking forward to finding out how news of yesterday, even implied, would go over with Jessica. This sort of thing can make a professional relationship go pear-shaped really fucking fast.

The guys, they might tease me or prod me for details which, as a gentleman, however self-professed that title may be, I’m not going to give. I could handle that part of things, but I can’t very well hold onto my new apartment if I lose this job.

It’s a quiet drive. Linda and I really don’t know what to say to each other now that the heat of passion has started to cool.

We get to the building and I park around the block, telling Linda she can go in first if she wants.

“No,” Linda answers, “I’ve gotten there later than you every day since you’ve been working there. I like to think that in a case like this, it’s best not to do anything to interrupt the normal run of things.”

“All right,” I tell her. “I’ll see you in there.”

“Eric,” she says.

“Yeah?”

“I don’t know what you’re looking for, and I probably should have told you this before we hooked up, but I’m in a place where I’m just looking to have fun right now. I hope that doesn’t disappoint you,” she says.

“I’m in about the same place,” I tell her. “We’re good.”

“Great,” she says. “That being the case, what are you doing tonight?”

I laugh and tell her that I have to finish packing. The statement’s partially true, as I do have to get everything ready to move tomorrow, but everything’s already boxed up. It’s just a matter of getting my clothes and toiletries put away. Really, I’m simply looking forward to a nice night alone before the hassle of getting everything moved tomorrow.

“I’ll see you in a minute, then,” she says.

“See you in there,” I say and get out of the truck.

The morning air is bracing, and I walk with calm and confidence around the corner toward the store.

Ian’s standing outside having a cigarette, and as I walk up, he says, “Mornin’ boss. How’s tricks?”

“Doing all right,” I tell him. “You know, just to stay on the boss’s good side, you might want to smoke in the alleyway away from the front of the store.”

“All right,” he says, “but she isn’t in yet.”

“She’s not?” I ask.

“Nope,” he says. “Nobody’s here. Did she give you a key or what? It’s been open every other day we’ve been here.”

“No, she just told me that she’d be here well before we show up.”

“Maybe you should give her a call and see if we’re going to be working today.”

“I don’t have her number,” I tell him. “All I have is the store’s number.”

“She’s pretty closed-off, isn’t she?” Ian asks. “Why doesn’t she want us to work at night? All the noise we’re making has to be what’s driving away all her customers.”

“I don’t know,” I tell him. “I think it’s a trust thing. If we’re here at night, you and Alec would probably end up stretching out all the lingerie.”

Ian smiles and, in as jovial a way as a person can say it, he says, “Fuck you, boss.”

“Hey guys!” Linda says. “What are you doing out here?”

“The store’s locked,” Ian says. “You got a key?”

“No,” Linda says. “Jessica’s always here, so I never needed one.”

“Does anyone else have a key?” Ian asks.

“I really couldn’t tell you,” she answers. “I’m going to give her a quick call.”

She pulls the phone out of her purse and walks away.

“You fucking dog,” Ian says.

“What?”

“You slept with her, didn’t you?”

I can feel my face growing warm, but my only real option here is denial. Of all the people on my crew, Ian has got to be the least discreet.

“Of course not,” I tell him. “I wouldn’t jeopardize the job like that. You should know better.”

“Then why do you have that stupid fucking grin on your face?” he asks.

“Because I think it’s hilarious just how much you think about what I do with my dick,” I tell him.

He doesn’t have a comeback.

“Where’s everyone else?” I ask, looking at my watch. “They’re running late.”

“José’s looking for another entrance to the store,” Ian says. “I don’t know what he thinks he’s going to find, but you gotta respect the guy’s work ethic. Alec called a few minutes before you showed up, asking if you’d gotten here yet. I told him that the store was still locked and you hadn’t shown, so he told me to call him when one of those changes.”

“Have you called him?” I ask.

“No,” he says. “Why the fuck should I cover for that lazy asshole?”

“Call him,” I tell him. “What about the new guy, Drake?”