“I’m here. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” Oksana hung up before Annie could say good-bye.
The Element of Surprise
“That’s great, Willow. Just one more and you’re done.” Oksana counted out the last fifteen reps of her weight set, wishing she could drag out the session. She wasn’t in a hurry to see Annie.
Jeff was back, and from what she understood, Annie’s relationship with him was officially over, but Oksana felt uneasy. They’d barely spent a day apart in the past few weeks and not seeing Annie, right after Annie saw her fiancé made Oksana feel slightly neurotic. Annie had called her that morning to ask Oksana to lunch, right after her session with Willow. She’d apologized over the phone as well. Oksana didn’t entirely buy it.
She wanted to say no to the lunch invitation, give Annie a taste of her own at arm’s length medicine. Acting like an adult, though, and not avoiding your significant other was the healthier alternative. Annie most likely wanted to pretend her quick apology was enough. That’s what scared Oksana, that Annie hadn’t recognized her hurt, that she had been so lost in her own struggles with her ex-fiancé that she hadn’t considered that being in each other’s arms was exactly what they needed.
Oksana wanted to be there when Jeff left. She wanted to be the last person Annie saw before she fell asleep. She wanted to do all she could to erase Jeff from Annie’s mind. It was selfish, petty want, but Oksana had become attached to Annie and she was terrified that at some point during her conversation with Jeff, Annie was starting to reconsider her future with Oksana.
Be honest; you think Annie is coming over here to break up with you in person. That’s exactly what you’re worried about. But you’re just being paranoid. She loves you and you need to accept that.
That was the truth. Annie needed some time to process her breakup with Jeff. Oksana thought about that concept. Her girlfriend needed time to get over her fiancé. It had been backward from the beginning. There were moments when Oksana wished she hadn’t caved that day in the park. She should have made Annie wait, and later, when things had been handled in a proper order, Oksana would have agreed to go out on a date with her. Jeff would be an afterthought, not a hurdle. She’d given in and now she was falling in love with someone who was probably debating her own mistakes at this very moment.
Oksana felt the foolish need to dwell on all the ifs and whats until she came face-to-face with one Annie Collins. Willow’s need for guidance brought her back down to Earth.
“Should I stretch?”
“Uh, yeah. Sorry.” Oksana smiled at her own stupidity. She helped Willow rack her weights and guided her over to the mats to stretch. They sat facing each other, fingers gripped together as Willow did her best to press her head to her kneecap. Oksana absently admired her flexibility.
“Good thing we’re finished. I’m not sure I could have kept your attention for another hour,” Willow said.
“Ignore me. You’re a pro at this stuff and you’re right on track.”
Willow had thirty pounds to shed and she was already halfway there. Much to the studio’s and Oksana’s delight, they might reach her goal ahead of the schedule.
“You have something on your mind?” Willow asked. Oksana tried to ignore the lustful concern in her eyes.
No direct sexual proposition had come from Willow yet. She kept a respectful physical distance, and though they never discussed it between them, Paulo admitted that Willow had asked about Oksana’s relationship status. The ass told her Oksana was sort of seeing someone. “Sort of” didn’t stop Willow from flirting, constantly commenting on Oksana’s smile or her eyes. A lot of clients flirted, but Oksana could tell Willow would go in for the full-on kill if she returned her affections even the slightest bit.
Things weren’t perfect at the moment, but Annie was definitely on Oksana’s mind and the sole occupant of her heart. Oksana had the feeling Willow wasn’t going to give up until their last session. Willow was sexy and smart. She seemed genuine and reasonably grounded for a movie star. On another planet Oksana might give her a chance, but in the here and now, she was not interested.
“You could say that. Same time next week?” Oksana held out her hand to pull Willow off the mats.
“You want to talk about it? I’m an excellent listener and you see these shoulders? Great for crying on.”
“I’ll be fine. Thanks for the offer.”
“Well, can I interest you in some lunch? A low-calorie lunch of course.” Willow must have felt the countdown on the professional relationship ticking somehow faster. She’d never been this aggressive.
Oksana forced a smile and casually straightened her shoulders. “I actually have lunch plans, but make sure
you
drink plenty of water.”
Willow laughed and shook her head dismissively.
“There is nothing funny about hydration.”
“You’re just so professional.”
“It’s my job.” Oksana smiled back. She waited for Willow to grab her bag, then led her toward the front of the gym. Paulo’s client kept up his leg presses as he stared Willow down from across the room.
“How serious is it?” she asked.
“How serious is what?”
“This relationship you’re in.”
Oksana hesitated to answer because there was Annie, standing outside Paulo’s office. A bright smile lit up her face the second she saw Oksana coming in her direction. Oksana wanted to be crabby about the night before, give Annie at least five minutes of the cold shoulder, but Annie looked so adorable and so happy to see her and at the same time so exhausted, Oksana couldn’t bring any sort of grudge to the surface.
“It’s pretty serious,” Oksana said.
Annie ignored Willow. “Hi. Paulo said it was cool if I waited here.”
“It is. Willow, this is my girlfriend, Annie.”
“Nice to meet you,” Willow said. Oksana would have believed her sincerity if she wasn’t sizing Annie up as if there were some sort of competition.
Willow turned to Oksana, the expression on her face business-like and friendly. Oksana returned the look with a professionally firm handshake. “I’ll see you tomorrow and I’ll remember, plenty of water.”
When she was gone, Annie slipped her hand into Oksana’s palm. Oksana had the sudden urge to cry, but Annie’s smile kept that urge at bay.
“God, she’s gorgeous,” Annie said. “Is she still trying to get with you?”
“No, I think she’s just blurring the line of friendly. Where are we going?”
“Car picnic?” Annie shrugged expectantly.
“Okay…”
Oksana followed Annie out to her Prius. They drove a few blocks away and stopped in front of a heavily shrubbed ranch house off Melrose. It was a perfect spring day. The sun was out and the street was quiet. Oksana dreaded what Annie had to say.
Once she put the hybrid in park, Annie reached behind Oksana’s seat and pulled out a green and blue gift bag.
“This is for you.”
Oksana peered inside. Ruffles of tissue paper hid what goodies accounted for the heavy weight. This time she did a shitty job at keeping the emotion from her face.
“Is it too much?” Annie asked.
“No, I’m just wondering if it’s a bribe. Did you do something wrong?”
“Gasp. I would never! Give it back.”
“No.” Oksana chuckled. “I at least want to see what it is.” She reached inside and pulled out a large purple dildo. One end was adequately long and thick enough for her tastes. The other end curved up into a short, bulbous nub. Underneath the toy she found a large jar of organic honey and a turkey wrap from Whole Foods.
“I’m not trying to buy you with presents, but I figured honey was a good way to apologize to a bear.”
“And this?” She cocked her head to the dildo in her hand. “I thought you didn’t want me to get a strap-on.”
“I don’t. This is for you. It’s the biggest one they had. I just figured it would be easier for me to use since I’ve never strapped up before.” Annie giggled. “The lady at the store said it was the best in double dildo technology. We could use it together?”
Okay, that’s enough. She’s sorry. She’s begging. Give her a break.
Oksana leaned over and kissed Annie’s lips. “Very thoughtful of you. Thanks.” She sighed and brushed Annie’s bangs away from her glasses. “I was pissed you didn’t want me over last night, but I understand. You and Jeff had a tough talk and you needed a breather.”
“I did, but it would have been nice to see you. I’m sorry.” Annie went on to tell Oksana everything she and Jeff had talked about. In a way, she was shocked he hadn’t flipped out even more. She was also overjoyed that Jeff hadn’t taken Annie’s mother up on her offer for the free gym membership.
“I didn’t want you to think I was upset over him,” Annie told her. “I was upset with how I’ve been living my life and how much I took for granted. But this morning I remembered if I hadn’t agreed to marry Jeff I would have never met you, and I would have no one to tell me that I have no business speaking anything but a particular Southwestern dialect of English.”
“So it was fate, you’re saying?” Oksana smiled at the idea.
“I’m saying I want to spend my life with you, and even if it took a while, I don’t care how we ended up together. I’m just glad that we did. I don’t belong with Jeff, and I would have never been a part of his family and he never would have been a part of mine. He was never going to give up his loft. That’s not how I envisioned married life.”
“How did you see it?”
“Lots of food and tattoos. And I’ve always wanted a big slobbering dog.”
Suddenly, the Prius wasn’t big enough. They should have taken the Tahoe. Oksana wanted to drag Annie into the backseat to show her just how grateful she was for divine intervention. She kissed Annie again, this time tasting every part of her tongue, moaning as the heat spiked between her legs.
Annie panted as they came up for air. Oksana gasped just the same. She would give anything to blow off the rest of the day so they could spend it together. She welcomed Annie’s hand into her lap, squirming a little until Annie’s fingers were nestled between her thighs.
“When are you going to tell your parents?”
“Sunday. I’m going home so I can tell my parents in person. Do you want me to tell them about you? I’m only asking because they aren’t going to be happy about my sudden switch in the batting order. I don’t want you thrown into the fray if you’d rather be left out of it.”
There were certain truths about a person’s life that should never be kept a secret. Who you love was one of those truths. If Oksana were to ask, not only would Annie tell her parents that she was in a committed relationship with another woman, complete with hot lady-on-lady sex, but if Oksana wanted to be there for the coming out conversation, Annie wouldn’t hesitate to bring her along.
“Don’t tell them yet.”
“You’re sure?”
“Yeah. Ending the engagement is between you and Jeff and your family. Let your parents adjust to one shock before you bring up another.”
“How are you so understanding?” Annie asked.
“Even though I’m still a little pissed that you wouldn’t let me come comfort you, I’m not so proud that I
need
you to come out to them this week. I want this to work, and that kind of bombshell will change the whole climate of this situation.”
Oksana leaned into Annie, kissing her just as the words left her lips. Annie withdrew her fingers from Oksana’s lap and gently gripped her waist to deepen the caressing of their tongues.
She slid her hand between Annie’s legs and chuckled lightly as Annie seemed to melt under her touch and her Russian pronunciation. She rubbed with a rough thrust against the seam of Annie’s jeans. Annie slid lower in the seat and let her knees fall open. Sensing Annie’s impending surrender, Oksana kissed small circles around the soft skin of Annie’s neck. Annie shuddered.
“Can I ask what you’re doing?”
Oksana moved closer, letting the center console support her elbow. “Giving you something to think about for the rest of the day.”
“You want me to go back to the office with cum-soaked panties.”
“No. That would be awful.”
Oksana continued with her fingers, rubbing Annie harder and harder through her pants until her hips started to pump back and forth on the seat. Annie gripped her shoulder, her low whimpers filling the car that was starting to overheat.
“Crack your window,” Oksana said.
“There’s an old man watching us.”
Oksana’s head darted up. She glanced around several times. When all she saw was an unattended mailbox and a crow hopping in the middle of the street, Annie burst out laughing.
“Just for that.” Oksana reached over her and yanked the lever for the back of Annie’s seat. She dropped back with a shriek, the perfect position for Oksana to pounce on her. She tore at the button on Annie’s jeans and shoved her hand into her underwear. Annie’s shrieks turned into deep moans as Oksana’s fingers rubbed against her damp clit.
“Still think it’s funny?”
“Yes! Oh my God. Keep doing that.”
With a slight adjustment of her wrist, Oksana slid two fingers into Annie’s wet pussy. Annie’s whole body went rigid for a moment before she began to writhe and thrust against Oksana’s hand. She matched the intensity below with a heated kiss, driving her tongue past Annie’s lips, matching her whimpers with her own pleading moans.