Page 25

"Yes, perfect. Then, if you don't mind, I'll stop by to see him tomorrow as soon as I get off work."

Mia Clark is on the phone with her brother's foster mother. The woman sent her a message confirming that Aaron had arrived home and, although he was a bit nervous, he apologized to her, ate a light dinner, and went to his room. Mia, who paces around the small living room of her apartment with one hand on her hip, appreciates that Elena Morris is approachable, someone she can talk to without problems and who also allows her to see her brother occasionally without informing the social worker. With the previous foster mother, she didn't have that relationship – the woman was gruff and found fault with everything, not allowing unscheduled visits even on special days.

"If you notice he's anxious, please call me," she asks the woman. "One of his lawyers has made him understand that this kind of behavior only hurts us, but Aaron is still just a child, after all."

Emma follows her with her gaze. She thought that after receiving the call from the tennis player informing that Aaron was safely at home, Mia would relax and the anxiety that had been consuming her for hours would disappear. It hasn't happened; the caddie doesn't stop moving, clenching her fist, or biting her lips. The lawyer has had to use all her tactics to hold her back. Mia was convinced that seeing her brother that very night would help calm him down, but nothing could be further from the truth, and in their current custody process, it's best to maintain a low profile, not make too much noise, and act intelligently.

Mia says goodbye to Elena, apologizing again on Aaron's behalf. The caddie puts her cell phone on the table and takes a few awkward steps to the couch. She collapses next to Emma and covers her face with both hands before resting her elbows on her legs. The young woman's breathing is rapid, her shoulders are positioned in a way that indicates tension, and the entire time she was talking, her tone was halting.

"It's over now, Mia," Emma says, the first thing that comes to mind. "Aaron is safe, and what he did was just a silly mistake caused by his fear."

The lawyer struggles to know what to do. Always moving in a cold environment among her friends and lovers, there have never been reassuring approaches or words loaded with hope and encouragement. On the contrary, when something has affected them, they either don't share it to avoid showing weakness or they mention it as something that can be resolved with money. Emily is the one who's good at these things; despite being very tough in court, she's affectionate and knows how to handle these situations. Emma wonders if it would be excessive to call her and ask what to do.

"Aaron is all I have left," Mia whispers without removing her hands from her face. "If something happened to him, I'd go crazy."

Emma feels a violent and sudden urge to tell her she's not alone, that she's there too. She reproaches herself for the thought; the caddie is her client, and the only reason she's there is to represent her legally.

"I'm terrible at giving encouragement," Emma responds and puts a hand on Mia's back to transmit some security, "but I can tell you that we'll do whatever it takes to make sure you're by your brother's side."

Without being fully conscious of it, Emma slides her hand softly, caressing the girl's back. They remain silent, neither knowing what to say, though Mia clearly finds this touch familiar, intimate, exciting. It's hard for her to think. The caddie has experienced such a moment of stress that right now she'd love to go out and run through the streets of Charleston until her legs burn, though she prefers to burn that feeling of anxiety in another way, a more delirious one. When she feels the lawyer's touch has shifted toward her thigh, the caddie doesn't think twice, she acts. She stretches her arm and grabs Emma's to pull her up onto her lap, leaving her straddling her. They look at each other as if it's the first time their armor rests far away from them. Mia caresses her bare thighs; that flared gray skirt works in her favor and allows her to touch the lawyer's white skin. Their chests heave faster, Emma moistens her lips, and Mia gives her time to reject her, get up, and leave her apartment. She doesn't; Emma's response is clear because she approaches the girl and, without touching her with her hands, slides her tongue across Mia's lips with an agonizing slowness.

"You taste so good," Mia whispers when their tongues meet and the lawyer intensifies the kiss with a pleasurable murmur.

Emma's head spins, like one of those fairground rides that turns at a surprising speed. Mia has always seemed like a strong woman to her, even a bit rough, and what she's demonstrating at this moment is completely different. She caresses her calmly, almost with veneration. Her fingers feel like silk and her lips like cotton candy. Emma is on cloud nine, getting higher and higher, because Mia's caresses are taking her to Mars. The caddie stands up from the couch, keeping Emma with her legs around her waist.

"Right now I prefer the bedroom," Mia says against her lips while pressing her tighter against her body.

Emma crashes her mouth against hers and kisses her for a few seconds.

"Let's go," she only stops kissing her to release that monosyllable and continues clinging to her lips.

Mia walks confidently and, when they reach the edge of the bed, reclines the lawyer with delicacy. She looks at her, smiles with incredible sweetness, and begins to remove her heels. She kisses her legs and moves up slowly until she's on top of her.

"Can I take off your skirt?"

The question surprises Emma so much she's left speechless. No one has ever asked her permission for something like that. She's always assumed that, if she gets into bed with someone, responds to their caresses and kisses, she's giving approval for them to, at least, undress her. It doesn't bother her, it just throws her off for a few moments before she nods.

The caddie leaves a kiss on her lips and another on her neck before beginning her task. She finds the button that's right on the side, above a zipper. She opens it, slides it down, and removes that garment covering the woman's legs. She sets it aside gently and moves to Emma's belly to lift her shirt a bit and kiss that area which, without a doubt, could become her favorite.

"Your skin is so soft," the caddie runs her hand along her side and immediately raises her gaze to lock it with Emma's. "You're beautiful, incredibly so."

Emma thinks she might melt in the middle of the mattress. What she's experiencing is completely surreal. Suddenly she realizes she hasn't said anything, has barely moved, and the feeling that Mia might think she's inexperienced or one of those who lie in bed and do nothing, doesn't appeal to her at all.

"Come here," the lawyer asks with a voice tinged with desire, and she bites her lips when the girl obeys, but does so leaving a trail of kisses wherever she goes.

Emma takes her face and plunges her tongue fiercely. She lowers her hands to find the edge of Mia's shirt, tears it off with a quick movement, and opens her eyes to observe her. She doesn't ask; she doesn't seem to be as polite as the caddie, she removes her bra, and those small, firm breasts cry out to her that they need the warmth of her mouth. She sucks them, bites them, and delights in the taste that remains on her lips while listening to her companion's sighs and feeling the pressure she exerts with her hips.

They spend a good while in bed; Mia believes there isn't a corner of Emma's body left to discover. She has licked every part of her and recognized every inch of her skin. First the caddie comes, and minutes later, with a couple of fingers inside her, Emma does too. There are no multiple orgasms or wild screams. In the bed lie two women who seemed to hate each other and suddenly have made love. Yes, love, because that can't be called fucking. Emma has never been touched in such a subtle way, with such adoration, and she believes her mind might explode.

"Do you want something to drink or eat?" Mia speaks with her eyes closed and a voice velvety from exhaustion, pressed against Emma in a state of absolute relaxation.

"Rest, I'm fine," the caress that the lawyer leaves on her face has come without thinking, but she wanted it so much that she couldn't control herself.

Mia falls asleep immediately. Her breathing becomes calm, regular. Emma is assaulted by doubts, anxiety, a nervousness that has decided to start telling her that what she's done isn't typical of her. She has slept with this ball girl who seems hateful to her, or seemed to, because, damn, what a sweet girl. But the fact that she felt that way doesn't erase the difference between them: personalities, attitudes, social classes, nothing about them is compatible. She has to leave, she can't stay in that bed. Okay, she enjoyed the encounter and must understand that it was just that. She moves slowly so as not to wake Mia and escape from that apartment. When she's about to succeed, she feels an arm holding her; Mia presses against her, hugs her, and leaves a kiss on her shoulder to curl up against her and continue sleeping. The lawyer is completely disarmed, it's as if this girl has the power to give her a happiness she didn't know existed. She's in trouble, she knows it, but decides – for once in her life – to leave that worry to the Emma of the future. She closes her eyes feeling Mia's warmth behind her and clears her mind to fall asleep in just a few minutes.