Page 20 of Balancing Act (Soulmate #1)

“When you think I’m not looking...” Jamie pushed the hem of her sweater up, exposing the navy blue lace that contrasted against her milky skin. “. . . and how you pretend you haven’t been when I catch you.”

A mischievous glint sparkled in her eyes.

She was clearly delighting in the noises escaping from Beth’s lips as Jamie rolled a hardened nipple between her thumb and forefinger while pressing her thigh into Beth, harder this time.

God, the things Jamie made her feel by barely touching her.

It was too much and not enough. She needed more.

She needed more friction, more contact, more Jamie.

Her back arched up into Jamie’s touch, and in one swift move, Jamie pushed aside the lacy barrier swiftly before taking Beth’s nipple into her mouth and swirling her tongue around it, flicking playfully.

“Jamie.” Her name left Beth’s lips a hiss that morphed into a pleading whine as she held the back of Jamie’s head against her, massaging her scalp with the tips of her fingers.

It had been the first thing she’d been able to utter besides a moan.

Her eyes fluttered closed at the sensation of Jamie’s tongue making a series of small circles around her nipple.

With each swirl, she grew wetter and wetter, and she bucked her hips up into Jamie as she felt Jamie’s teeth bite down ever so slightly.

“Take me upstairs,” Jamie whispered against her.

Beth did.

She led Jamie up the stairs to her bedroom, then closed and locked the door behind them.

The second the door was shut, Jamie was on her, turning her in her arms, pressing her body against Beth’s back, holding her up against the door.

Beth pressed the palms of her hand against the door as Jamie’s hands explored her torso—like she was mapping and memorizing every inch of her.

She let her head fall back as Jamie kissed along the ridge of her shoulder blade and up her neck, hands firmly planted on Beth’s hips as she ground slowly against her ass.

“I’ve been thinking about this exact moment since that night at your show last month,” Jamie murmured against her skin. “Thinking about when we’d get to do this again.”

Beth braced herself against the door, pushing back into Jamie’s powerful frame.

Nimble hands found the button of her jeans, skillfully popping it open before sliding a hand inside, meeting Beth’s wet heat as Jamie’s fingers slid through her folds, feeling her damp arousal.

The noise that left Jamie’s throat in that moment should be considered illegal, at least in a few states.

“You’re so wet for me, and I’ve barely touched you.” Jamie brushed over Beth’s clit as she breathed the last word, making her body jolt in a way she’d never experienced.

Beth couldn’t take it anymore. The anticipation of wanting Jamie’s touch—not just tonight, but for weeks—had her completely on edge, and then Jamie did it again. She was helpless to stop the way her hand thudded against the door in pure ecstasy as that tingling sensation took over her body.

Repeatedly, that thudding noise filled her ears as she groaned, trying desperately to get lost in Jamie’s touch, but it felt fainter and fainter as the noise got louder and louder.

She blinked her eyes open, and darkness pressed in all around her.

Beth sat up in her bed, pushing damp hair off her face. Her cheeks burned, and she looked around, still confused. What the ? —

“Mama, we need to leave. I’m already going to be late.” Lily thumped loudly on Beth’s bedroom door again.

Beth reached for her phone to check the time. 5:50a.m. She let out a long, frustrated groan. It had all been a dream... It had all been a fucking dream.

She pulled her pillow over her head and let out her frustration into the soft linen-covered down. Her phone vibrated on her nightstand with an incoming text.

Jamie 5:52 AM

Morning! Thanks again for the wine and the chat last night. I had a really good time. We should do it again soon.

Beth found herself piecing together the previous evening with Jamie, details crisply separating from the hazy edges of sleep-induced fantasies.

What had really happened last night was that Jamie had stayed, at Beth’s invitation, for a drink, and what was meant to be a brief encounter had stretched into hours over a shared bottle of wine.

It hadn’t really dawned on Beth that they had never truly spent any time together one-on-one and that something like this might be awkward, but their conversation flowed effortlessly, light and engaging, touching on topics with an ease that felt dangerously comfortable.

Beth had laughed more freely than she had in months, drawn to Jamie’s sharp wit. The evening had been fun—genuinely fun.

But then Jamie went home, and Beth went to bed alone, as she was meant to.

Shocked awake by the bathroom’s cool tile on her feet, Beth splashed her face with cold water, trying to wash away the lingering feelings from her dream.

As the water dripped down her face, she couldn’t help but acknowledge a stirring realization: she was possibly more invested in whatever was unfolding with Jamie than she had intended to be.

The thought both thrilled and unnerved her as she reached for a towel, her heart racing. She was fucked.