Page 41 of Promises We Meant to Keep (Love in Massachusetts #1)

forty-one

“Ugh, I’m stuffed.” Kamryn sat down heavily on the mattress, watching as Elia pulled the earrings from her ears and tossed them into the small plate on the dresser. How often had she done that growing up? Kamryn wasn’t sure that she could imagine Elia as a teenager, or as a teenager in this house in particular. Would she have been a straight-A, goody-two-shoes teenager? Or would she have been a rebellious one?

Elia chuckled as she started pulling off her shoes and tossing them to the side. Kamryn was completely entranced with every single move that she made. She wasn’t sure if she’d ever get over Elia. And sure, they still had problems they would need to work out, but at least they were working on them together.

“Are you trying to be a tease?” Kamryn asked. “Because if you are, you’re succeeding at it.”

“Maybe.” Elia gave her a wicked grin. “I do have a gift for you, though.”

“A gift?” Kamryn frowned. She hadn’t realized they were exchanging gifts… at Thanksgiving… What tradition was this? She pulled herself to sit up on the bed and pulled off her own shoes. If Elia was getting comfortable, she was sure they were going to be staying in here the rest of the night.

Elia smiled over at Kamryn from the dresser that she was leaning against. This seemed almost like a trap, Kamryn wasn’t sure. But there was such an ease from earlier in the night, and Kamryn was so happy. She’d been worried after Abagail left with her…parting gift…that they were going to struggle to get back into the swing of things, but she was glad to find that it was easy.

Standing up, Elia turned around and took a medium-sized wooden box from the dresser and started to walk toward Kamryn. That was her gift? It’d been in plain sight the entire time? Also, who gives gifts at Thanksgiving?

Kamryn was still stumped on that last one. She ran her fingers through her hair and eyed the box as Elia came closer, sliding it into Kamryn’s fingers before she sat next to her on the bed. “I couldn’t help myself when I saw it online.”

“Online?” Now Kamryn was even more interested than before.

“And I couldn’t wait until Christmas to give it to you either.”

Were they planning for Christmas? Absolutely. And that thought alone made Kamryn so happy. She remembered all those times she’d planned for holidays with Lauren and then they’d break up before they got there, only to get together again last minute and Kamryn would have to scramble to get anything ready for the holiday.

Everything with Elia was so much calmer and easygoing. It really was easy to love her. At least now it was.

“Are you going to open it?” Elia asked, nearly as impatient as a toddler on Christmas morning.

Kamryn eyed her carefully. “I’m scared to open it.”

“Why?”

“What could you possibly have come up with for a gift?” Kamryn ran her fingers along the smooth and polished edges of the wooden box. It was gorgeous. Even if the box itself was the whole gift, then Kamryn would love it. But she had a feeling there was something else inside. Elia didn’t do things half-assed at all.

“You’ll have to open it to find out.”

Kamryn hesitated only a moment longer before she slid the lid of the box off and immediately burst into laughter. Inside, nestled in red fabric, was a whisk, and not just any whisk, but a golden whisk. She plucked the item out of the box, and grinned down at it, reading the engraved handle.

Promise Whisk.

“You got me a whisk?” Kamryn very nearly burst into tears. She’d never gotten such a heartfelt gift before. Not one that would mean so much to both of them. Kamryn ran her fingers along the metal and couldn’t stop smiling.

“You gave your whisk to the kids. I figured you needed a new one.”

“To cook with?” Kamryn snorted. She couldn’t remember the last time she cooked in her apartment. She usually ate at Elia’s. “You think I’m going to use a golden and engraved whisk to make my scrambled eggs in the morning?”

Elia laughed lightly and shook her head. “Well, no. Probably not. But the whisk is all about telling truths and highlights, and I wanted you to know what a highlight you’ve been to my life. I can’t imagine how this semester would have gone without you in it, to walk right alongside me, to be with me, to protect me.”

Kamryn took in a shuddering breath. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“I know I couldn’t have done it without you.” Elia moved in, kissing Kamryn’s cheek. “But the whisk is just the added good-luck charm that I think we both needed.”

“It’s not a good-luck charm.” Kamryn ran her fingers over the wires again, admiring the way the light shone off them. “It’s a truth teller, it’s a positivity master, it’s what I want to keep in the forefront of my mind always. I don’t want to live in the negative, and I think the world would be better off if we tried to be more positive.”

“You’ve always believed that,” Elia said, “even when you were a student at Windermere.”

Kamryn nodded. She had always believed that. She’d also forgotten it a time or two in the meantime. The whisk was the perfect reminder. “I’ll treasure this.” She settled the whisk back into the box and closed it up. “Thank you.”

Leaning in, Kamryn pressed their mouths together.

“Thank you, really. I love the gift.”

“Good.” Elia swiftly moved in and kissed her again.

Kamryn sank into the embrace. She let go of the box and threaded her fingers into the hair behind Elia’s head, pulling her in even closer. “Are we really doing this?” Kamryn asked.

“If you want to,” Elia answered, kissing her again. “And for the record…” another kiss, “I want to.” Elia was pressing their bodies together. “I want to remember why I love you so much.”

Kamryn smiled at that. “And you need sex to do that?”

“No,” Elia whispered, pressing their mouths together in a quick kiss. “Just time with you, and a promise that you won’t ever let me forget.”

Kamryn grinned at that. She moved to put the box on the nightstand next to the bed and immediately pulled Elia with her onto the mattress. She wanted to get lost in Elia’s body tonight, to be completely taken over by what they could do together and more.

“I feel like I owe you a gift,” Kamryn murmured against Elia’s neck as she pressed kisses down on her collarbone. “You should have warned me that you were getting me something.”

“Gifts given in surprise are better. Don’t you think?” Elia moaned lightly, arching her back against Kamryn as they laid down together.

“I don’t know,” Kamryn said, pulling Elia’s shirt upward. “Please tell me you have a lock on the door.”

Elia frowned before she glanced over Kamryn’s shoulder at the door. “Yes.”

“Good.” Kamryn jumped up from the bed.

She had the door locked in a snap. Instead of immediately going back to the bed, Kamryn started to strip off her clothes. Elia watched her carefully from the bed, one hand tossed over her head in a pose of relaxation. Kamryn knew it was exactly the opposite though. She unzipped her jeans and shimmied out of them. She loved that Elia wouldn’t look away from her. She’d never felt more attractive than when Elia was watching her like this.

“Are you going to get undressed?” Kamryn asked, wishing that she could watch Elia just like Elia had watched her.

“Do you want me to?” Elia asked, dragging her gaze all over Kamryn’s naked body.

“Hmm, yes.” Kamryn’s lips quirked up at her. “So much yes.”

Elia moved to sit up, starting with her shirt. She slowly stripped herself while Kamryn stood watching. This could very well be her favorite part of their sex life so far. The slow pulling off of all the responsibilities and weights and masks that they wore throughout the day so that they were purely themselves and no one else. Kamryn had never thought of it like that before Elia. But she could see how this was the way that they came together authentically, them together and only them.

When Elia lay back on the bed, Kamryn winked. “I’d love your mouth.”

“Then that’s what you’ll have.” Elia started to move, but Kamryn knelt on the bed and pushed her back down, shaking her head.

She wanted this to happen a certain way, the idea coming to her far too late in the game, but she wanted to make sure that she and Elia could do this together—she absolutely loved it when they did that.

“Lie down,” Kamryn said. “On your back. I’d like to be on top.”

“Oh!” Elia’s curiosity turned into a wicked joy. Kamryn wished she could bottle that and keep it. She adored Elia more and more each day that they spent together, the hopes and dreams that they were weaving around each other, individually and as a couple. It was like they were made for each other sometimes, and Kamryn leaned into those moments every chance that she got.

When Elia had a pillow under her head, Kamryn climbed onto the bed, walking on her knees until she was straddling Elia’s waist. She wasn’t going to wait or drag this out. The day had been long, and what she wanted most was to connect with Elia in a way only the two of them managed to do.

“I love you,” Kamryn said, not sure if Elia was paying any attention to her words or not. Elia was running her hands up and down Kamryn’s thighs, her gaze locked right between her legs, that hungry look back in her eyes again. Kamryn touched Elia’s nose lightly with one finger to get her attention. “You ready for this?”

“Absolutely.”

Kamryn lifted one knee over Elia’s shoulder and then the other, planting herself firmly over Elia’s face. She had longed for this for weeks now, but she hadn’t been bold enough to ask for it. Not until tonight.

Elia grabbed Kamryn’s ass, pushing her forward and right where both of them wanted her. Elia’s lips curled upward quickly before she dove right in. Kamryn sighed in pleasure, the sensations rolling through her instantly. Elia was so damn good with her mouth. Kamryn adored it. And she never wanted to forget moments like these where she’d absolutely lose her mind just to be tongue-fucked by this powerful and no longer icy woman under her.

Kamryn took her time centering her balance so she knew she wouldn’t accidentally topple over. Then she leaned back, sliding her hand along Elia’s body, from her waist to her hip and down her leg and right back up it. Kamryn grinned to herself as she pressed her fingers between Elia’s legs and waited for the hitch of a hiccup.

Instead, she was greeted with a widening of Elia’s knees so that she could slip her fingers as deep inside Elia as they would go. Elia didn’t falter in her pace. She licked and sucked just like she had been before. Now Kamryn was just damn determined to get Elia off track.

From this angle, it was super easy for Kamryn to slide her thumb along Elia’s clit. She touched. She teased. She tried to stare down at Elia’s face to see her reactions, but she couldn’t see over her own body and still reach to touch Elia in the way she wanted. Elia shifted Kamryn, her hands against her back as she moved them closer together.

Kamryn moaned, biting the sound back as best as she could. She needed to make sure that she didn’t let loose entirely in this house. She continued to touch Elia as best she could and wait for any kind of reaction other than the wetness against her fingers and the deepened breathing as Elia sucked in sharp breaths.

They stayed like that, concentrating on each other. Kamryn never wanted to give this up. She knew she’d been right to take the risk on Elia. Maybe not that first night, but definitely after that. There was something about this stunning woman that stole her breath every single day. They were so happy together.

Elia lifted her hips right when Kamryn was struggling to focus. Maybe Elia wasn’t as far behind her as Kamryn originally had thought. But it was getting harder and harder to concentrate. She continued to move her hand, trying to keep her pussy right where it was, against Elia’s mouth and face.

Elia pulled away sharply, dragging in a deep breath. She eyed Kamryn and closed her eyes. Kamryn continued to touch her, teasing her into the orgasm that she longed for. As soon as Elia could, she pressed her face against Kamryn’s body again, picking up right where she left off. Kamryn moved her hand and pushed up on her knees, changing the angle entirely.

This sent a new wave of pleasure through her. She had to press her hands against the wall to keep herself upright. She bit the inside of her cheek to hold back her moan. She’d essentially promised Elia that she wouldn’t scream or be too noisy, and she would be damn sure to keep that promise. She careened through her orgasm, pushing against the wall to hold herself up so she didn’t collapse on top of Elia’s face.

Kamryn laughed as she finally fell to the side, her legs still entangled with Elia’s arms. She stayed right where she was as she caught her breath. Elia turned on her side and started to move around, and it took Kamryn a while to open her eyes and see what was going on.

“Elia…”

“What?” Elia asked, her tone sharper than she probably intended it, but they were in a much smaller bed than normal, and nothing was quite the same as being at Elia’s house or Kamryn’s apartment.

“You didn’t scream.”

Elia let out a grunt before she finally tapped Kamryn’s hip. “Get up so we can pull the blanket down, would you?”

“Ready for bed already?” Kamryn said, yawning. All that turkey she’d eaten was catching up with her faster than she’d anticipated it would.

“I’ve been up cooking all day. How about you?”

“I drove here,” Kamryn whined lightly and then wrinkled her nose. “Nope, I can’t complain. And dinner was amazing.” She finally got herself together enough to shift so they could move the blanket out from under them.

Turning to face Elia, Kamryn kissed her, softening the moment back to what it had been before. She slowed the embrace, not wanting to incite any more than she already had. “Turn over. Let me hold you.”

“I’d love that,” Elia murmured as she settled into a position.

They lay there, listening to the sounds of the house and each other’s quiet breathing. Kamryn was so lost in the moment that she nearly missed Elia’s words.

“Will you make me a promise?”

“Sure. Anything,” Kamryn answered.

“Promise me that you won’t leave Windermere. The school needs you.”

Kamryn’s heart stuttered. She’d thought about leaving more times than she could count. But it wasn’t just the school drawing her back there now, it was the students she’d made a connection with, the staff and the board and the faculty. But more than anything, it was Elia.

Kissing the back of Elia’s neck, Kamryn closed her eyes. “I promise that I’ll think about it.”