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Her breath met my skin with a warm shiver. “Good.”

We stood like that under the water for quite a while. Eventually, we pulled ourselves apart and showered. When we were done, Bri wrapped me in a towel and we made our way to bed.

As my head rested on Bri’s soft chest, my hand cradling her ribs, I sighed. Between the hike and the shower, my body was completely worn out.

Bri ran her hand through my hair, gently massaging my scalp every time she came back to the top. My eyelids grew heavy with each touch. Before long, all I could see was Bri’s gentle face behind my eyelids.

32

SARAH

I wokeup before Bri the next morning, giving her a gentle kiss on the forehead before saying goodbye and heading back to my house.

There was work to be done on the lakehouse and much to my disappointment, our date couldn’t last forever. Bri insisted I take one of her flannels since our clothes never made it into the wash the night before.

But I knew deep down that she wanted to mark her territory… just a little bit.

I went downstairs, said goodbye to Oakkie with a soft pet and a little kiss between his ears. The drive home felt like a dream, honestly I wasn’t even sure that I had woken up. At least not until I pulled into my driveway.

Slinging my backpack over my shoulders, I headed toward the porch.

But my forehead wrinkled.What is that?

Sitting neatly in front of my door, a black box with a pristine gold ribbon waited for me. Only one person would have left something like this. A blush rose in my cheeks as I bent down to grab the box.

I unlocked the front door and rushed inside. Checking the clock above the stove, I realized I had a little over an hour before I needed to be at the lake house.

But I couldn’t go see Vic without seeing exactly what she had gotten me.

So I set the box on the counter, tossing my bag on the ground next to the island.

Biting my lip, I tugged at the end of the ribbon. With little resistance, it came undone, falling off the box like an elegant dress to the floor. My finger worked its way around the edge of the box, pulling off the lid.

Even the box felt expensive, the slick black paper shimmering as it moved.

Inside, a red notecard sat on top of black tissue paper. My heart was racing in my chest, nervous at what my other lover could have to say in such a mysterious way.

I flipped open the note. It read:

Sarah,

I thought you might need a replacement

for the pair I stole the other night. Hopefully,

this will suffice. I hope to see how it fits soon.

V.

God. Even her note was sexy. I read it in her low, sultry voice.

Now, I knew what was inside.

I peeled open the paper with a delicate hand and shook my head as I saw the red mesh. Pulling the piece from the tissue paper nest, I held it up. It was an intricate teddy, one with a deep, low v-neck to show my cleavage. My fingers exploredthe fabric, rubbing the fabric that would lay over my center. It parted under the friction, creating easy access for Vic.