Taking a Shot at Love Page 17

  Lisa saw Celeste smirk and wink at her. “She said all the right things to me that night, seemed very interested in me and getting to know me, so I agreed to go to dinner with her. She did all the right things in the beginning—held the door open, pulled my chair out, complimented me—and I started to believe her. I was flattered that she gave me so much attention, but I never felt completely comfortable with her, didn’t fully trust her. One night, we were having dinner and she was in a foul mood. I asked her if there was anything I could do to help, and she said something like I could start by making her a better meal, that I was a terrible cook. I chalked it up to her being in a bad mood, but the insults continued to come. One night, while we were being intimate, she told me that I should work on losing some weight because there were some flabby areas on my body. She said she wanted a girlfriend who was hot and in shape.”

  Lisa sat there with her eyes wide and her mouth agape. She couldn’t believe what a bitch that Jackie was. “Celeste, you are one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen and extremely sexy. I hope you didn’t listen to her.”

  “No, in fact I got dressed and left her house. The next day, I broke up with her. But I’d be lying if I didn’t say she put doubt in my head. I’d worked so hard to love myself and she tried to destroy it. When I told her I didn’t want to see her anymore, she called me some nasty names. It took some sessions with my therapist to get over what Jackie had unraveled of my self-esteem. She spread rumors about me in her department and I was thoroughly embarrassed. Since then, she’s been trying to talk to me, asking me to take her back. Even if I never have a date with another woman or another romance, I’ll never regret ending it with her.”

  Lisa placed her hand on top of Celeste’s and gently squeezed. “Thank you for telling me. For what it’s worth, I’m proud of you for not staying with her. You are an incredible woman who has so much to offer, and any woman would be lucky to be loved by you.”

  Celeste had a look on her face that Lisa couldn’t quite decipher. Embarrassment? Appreciation? Hope? Maybe all three?

  “Jackie is why you don’t want to date anyone you work with. Because she spread those rumors.” Lisa posed that as a statement, not a question.

  “Yes.”

  Lisa let go of Celeste’s hand and leaned back in her chair, aware again that they were in a public place. She didn’t want anyone in the café speculating and possibly spreading rumors of Celeste. “I hope you know that I’d never do that to you or treat you the way Jackie did.”

  “To be honest, Coach, I didn’t know you well enough in the beginning to know that. Now I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t.”

  The fact that Celeste still couldn’t fully trust Lisa hurt, but Lisa knew it had nothing to do with her. Jackie had done a number on Celeste, but in time, Lisa hoped Celeste would be able to trust again. She vowed never to give Celeste a reason not to trust her, even though they were just friends.

  “Okay, then. I better get going. Conference play starts this week and I have to get my team prepared. I’ll walk you out.”

  They stood and threw their trash in the bin on their way out. When they reached the bottom of the steps, they turned to face each other, and Celeste placed her hand on Lisa’s forearm and let it trail down until she held onto Lisa’s finger.

  “Thank you for listening, Lisa. It means a lot.”

  “I’m here for you, Professor. If you want to talk, or if you want me to kick Jackie’s ass, just let me know.”

  That got the desired laugh from Celeste, and Lisa felt some tension leave her body. “I’ll talk with you later.” Lisa slowly stepped back and released her fingers from Celeste’s loose grasp then walked back to her office, enjoying the sunshine and slight breeze. Celeste was opening her life more and more to Lisa, and for that, she was grateful.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Celeste was enjoying a Sunday morning by herself. It was quiet outside. It was a little breezy, but the sun was shining and not a cloud in the sky. It was a gorgeous day, she was feeling grateful, and she wanted to reward her mind and body. She tied her hair up in a bun, put on her booty shorts, a snug camisole, and went into her pole room. She put on some sensual, soft music and spent twenty minutes performing some stretches and yoga poses then went to work on the pole. She wasn’t following any sort of routine; she was just doing whatever came to her. It was fluid and organic, and she got lost in her own mind. She almost didn’t hear the knock on her door and she was tempted to ignore it, but her inner voice told her to at least see who it was. She looked through the peephole and saw Lisa standing on her front porch with a tray containing two cups and a paper bag.

  Shit. There was no time to get cleaned up. But why should it matter? They were just friends, after all. Yeah, right, Celeste, you know there would be more if Lisa was on the same page. She took a deep breath, then let it out before opening the door.

  “Good morning.”

  Lisa held up the tray as an offering. “Good morning. I wanted to know if you’re interested in breakfast? I’m sorry I didn’t call first, but I went for a walk this morning and I found myself getting closer to your neighborhood.” Lisa looked at Celeste and how she was dressed, and she blushed. “I’m sorry. I should have called first.” She turned to go, but Celeste stopped her.

  “No, come in. I was just doing a little workout on the pole.”

  Lisa’s face lit up and lust filled her eyes. “Oh, yeah?”

  “Why, Coach, you look interested in staying for breakfast.”

  Lisa stammered and Celeste felt the desire radiate between them. “Would you like to watch?”

  Celeste felt emboldened by the wanton look in Lisa’s eyes, and she wanted to do anything to keep it there. This could be fun and who knew what it would lead to. Actually, Celeste knew exactly what it would lead to if she did it right. She took the tray from Lisa and placed it on her coffee table, then took Lisa’s hand and led her to the pole room, neither saying a word. Celeste unfolded a chair and gently pushed Lisa down onto it. She walked over to her music player and quickly scrolled through the songs she downloaded for pole performances. She picked out Paula Cole’s “Feeling Love” and got her inspiration just from looking at Lisa.

  She walked seductively toward Lisa and trailed her fingers on Lisa’s shoulder, across her neck, and to her other shoulder as she moved behind her. Celeste moved toward the pole, placed her back against it, and squatted and spread her legs open. Lisa’s face was slack, and she almost looked like her brain had short-circuited. Celeste stood and grabbed the pole before turning and throwing her head back. She swayed her hips, thrust her chest out, and squatted again. She glanced a look over at Lisa who looked mesmerized by what Celeste was doing, which spurred Celeste on to continue her seduction. She climbed the pole, hooked her leg around it, grabbed it below her body with her opposite hand, and spun slowly around in a clockwise direction while her free leg stuck straight out. She then lowered herself to the floor and did a belly slide toward Lisa.

  Celeste knelt in front of Lisa, placed her hands on her knees, and spread her legs, easing her body upward against Lisa’s chest until she was upright. She straddled Lisa’s thighs and moved her pelvis against Lisa’s, then stood again and sat back in her lap, this time with her back to Lisa. Celeste grabbed Lisa’s hands that were grasping her hips and moved them up her body and over her breasts. Celeste squeezed Lisa’s hands, prompting Lisa to squeeze her breasts. Celeste arched her back again, thrusting her hard nipples into Lisa’s palms. Celeste felt her clit grow hard and her sex get drenched. Even if she wanted to, there was no way her legs would allow her to continue her private show. She was way too turned on. She turned around once more to face Lisa and ground her pelvis again into Lisa’s lap. She grabbed the back of Lisa’s head and brought her face into her chest.

  “Did you like the show, Coach?”

  Lisa said nothing, but the fire in her eyes and the flare of her nostrils said everything. Celeste had no idea how Lisa did it, but she stood with Celest
e’s legs wrapped around her and kissed her hard while Celeste’s back was against the wall. Celeste dropped one leg so her foot was on the floor but kept the other leg wrapped around Lisa’s waist. The only sound that came from Lisa was groaning and low growling as she slid her hand into Celeste’s booty shorts and easily slid two fingers inside her. Celeste cried out her pleasure. She didn’t know Lisa had this aggression in her, and it turned her on. She allowed Lisa to take what she wanted. She gripped her fingers into Lisa’s contracted back muscles, urging Lisa to take her harder. Lisa slid a third finger inside and filled her up. It didn’t take much longer before Celeste cried out her release and held tight to Lisa so she wouldn’t fall.

  Lisa pulled out and Celeste dropped her other leg from around Lisa’s waist. They stood, hugging each other close, breathing hard. Finally, Lisa spoke.

  “That was the sexiest fucking thing I’ve ever seen.”

  Celeste laughed and it sounded deep and sultry to her own ears. “I’m glad you enjoyed it. I bet you didn’t expect that when you brought over coffee.”

  Lisa laughed and kissed Celeste deep and slow. She broke the kiss and looked into Celeste’s eyes. “No, I did not. But I’ll bring you coffee and bagels every Sunday if you want to perform for me. If you don’t though, I’ll still bring you coffee and bagels just to hang out.”

  Celeste kissed Lisa, took her hand, and led her down the hall to her bedroom. She stripped out of her clothes while Lisa stripped out of hers.

  “We’ll heat up the breakfast later. Right now, I’m in the mood for an appetizer.”

  Lisa lay back on the bed and Celeste decided to skip the foreplay and go right for the feast.

  * * *

  Lisa had gone home later that afternoon and Celeste lounged on her sofa in front of her living room window, sipping a glass of wine, contemplating if she was going to fix dinner for herself or just nibble on some cheese and crackers. Just the thought of getting up from the couch to slice some cheese didn’t appeal to her. She was basking in the afterglow of a day full of sex—touching, kissing, licking, caressing, moaning, laughing, teasing, crying out commands.

  In the grand scheme of sexual experience, Celeste had very little, but when she was with Lisa, she felt experienced, uninhibited, experimental. Primal. She felt primal, and it was a marvelous feeling. She felt at ease with Lisa, like she could say or try anything and not be or feel judged. She felt free to sexually explore, and in the few times they’d been together, Celeste now felt like an experienced lover.

  When she’d been with Jackie, she’d been completely submissive. She let Jackie rule the bed, letting her tell Celeste how to do things to her, and it always made Celeste feel like she was being judged or graded on her performance. Celeste never let go and experimented with Jackie. Jackie had pleased her, always made Celeste come, but she never really allowed Celeste to do her own thing, to see what she was good doing or learning to do new things. Sex was always in bed, always lying down, always one woman on top of the other.

  That afternoon, there was standing up against the wall, on all fours, on her stomach, on her back, on her knees. Celeste felt like they had covered so many positions already, she didn’t know if there were many more.

  When Celeste had first started dating Jackie, because of her lack of experience, she ordered the book Lesbian Sex and studied it until she felt she knew every word and every illustration. She wanted to be ready for Jackie. She didn’t want to reveal to Jackie that she’d be her first sexual partner. Because that whole judgment thing? Not something Celeste wanted to experience with her first girlfriend. She wanted to fake it till she made it, but she never was really given the chance because of Jackie’s dominance. Lisa, on the other hand, seemed willing to let Celeste take control some of the time. And just because Celeste hadn’t had a lot of experience with a sex partner didn’t mean she hadn’t had fantasies of how she wanted to take and be taken. That whole friendly friend thing was a really good thing for Celeste and Lisa.

  There was a problem though.

  Celeste was starting to have feelings for Lisa. More feelings. She was thinking about Lisa. A lot. She often wondered how Lisa’s day was going, how the team did in practice, how Lisa was spending her limited downtime. Celeste wondered if she was getting enough sleep, getting enough to eat, getting enough exercise. She sort of sounded like a mother, but she certainly didn’t think of Lisa as her child. No, she definitely thought of Lisa like more than a friend. She thought of her as her lover. Celeste wondered if Lisa thought of her during the day. Hopefully, after this morning’s pole and lap dance, Lisa was thinking about Celeste, thinking sexy thoughts about Celeste.

  * * *

  Lisa sat on her couch, drinking a beer, staring at the television but not seeing the college basketball game that was playing. Her mind was occupied by sexy flashbacks of earlier in the day. While she’d been on her walk, she’d only had pure and innocent thoughts of sharing coffee and bagels with Celeste for breakfast. She’d been completely upended when Celeste took her to the pole room, sat her in a chair, and gave her a private performance. It had been obvious that Lisa had interrupted Celeste’s workout routine by the way Celeste had been dressed and had her hair pulled into a messy ponytail, but that didn’t diminish how hot Celeste had looked in her tight shorts and shirt.

  When Celeste practically pushed Lisa into the chair then turned on the music, Lisa grew instantly aroused. She had fantasized about Celeste doing a private pole dance for her, but she never would’ve asked for one. She wasn’t sure if Celeste would’ve taken the request the wrong way or if she’d even be comfortable doing it. Oh, she’d seemed comfortable, all right. Right at home as she twirled around the pole, moved her hips, prowled toward her, and gave her a lap dance. Never in Lisa’s wildest dreams did she think she’d get a lap dance from Celeste—and how much it turned her on. Celeste had asked Lisa if she liked what she was doing and Lisa felt animalistic. She might have growled when she picked up Celeste and carried her over to the wall and kissed her then fucked her hard and fast. Lisa had never done that with anyone, but Celeste made her wild with lust and Lisa just had to have her right then and there. The rest of the day was spent pleasing each other in different positions, with fingers, lips, and tongues. Lisa was exhilaratingly exhausted.

  She was having feelings though. Feelings she wasn’t supposed to be having because Celeste wasn’t interested in a relationship. No, that wasn’t fair. Neither one of them was interested in a relationship for their own specific reasons. They’d agreed to be friends with benefits. The only problem was that Lisa was thinking of Celeste as more than a friend now. She thought about her nearly all day unless she was thinking about her team’s next practice or game. Celeste and basketball. That’s what Lisa’s thoughts were all about now. And sex. She couldn’t forget sex with Celeste. So, sex, Celeste, and basketball, and not necessarily in that order. Maybe sex with Celeste was getting in the way of Lisa’s coaching plans.

  No. Not entirely. Even if they weren’t having sex, Lisa would still be thinking about Celeste all the time. When Lisa first saw Celeste, she thought she was beautiful, elegant, and sophisticated. When Lisa first met Celeste, she thought all of those things, then added pain in the ass and stubborn, and someone who jumped to conclusions. Now that she’d gotten to know her, she could add funny, kind, assertive, and determined. Add all of those traits together, and without knowing what she was looking for in a woman, Lisa had found her perfect woman in Celeste. Lisa wasn’t the kind of person to kiss and tell, but she wished Athena was home so she had someone to talk to about that. She had other friends, but she trusted Athena to listen, give Lisa her thoughts, and never say a word to anyone else. That was especially important since Jackie had spread rumors about Celeste after they broke up. That Jackie was a real asshole. No wonder she didn’t like her before she even knew her. She was a real smarmy type—Lisa would definitely keep an eye out for her, make sure she didn’t cause any more grief for Celeste.

  Lisa laughe
d. She had an image of Celeste dressed in a hoop skirt and her hair in large ringlets like Scarlett O’Hara, and Lisa and Jackie with swords out, ready for a duel, the winner getting the love of Celeste.

  She looked at her watch and figured Athena wouldn’t be home for some time. She was out on a date with the woman she’d met online. Stephanie was her name and this was their third date. Athena had been mostly tight-lipped about it so far, not wanting to jinx it, she claimed. Because Athena had her own dating life to think about, she wasn’t too involved in what was going on between Lisa and Celeste. She knew that they’d had sex a few times because there was no way she could keep that quiet from her. At first, Athena seemed shocked, but then she playfully punched Lisa and told her it was about damn time.

  Lisa was keeping her fingers crossed that Athena and Stephanie would work out because she really wanted Athena to find a love she could cherish and spend the rest of her life with. If Lisa got a head coaching job at another school, Athena would probably stay at Glassell University if they decided to hire her as head coach. It would make Lisa feel less guilty about taking another job out of town, or likely, out of state. It would make Lisa feel better knowing Athena would have someone to look after her. Of course, Celeste and Olivia would look after her as well, since they’d all become friends. But damn it, she really wished Athena would come home so she could talk to her about her growing feelings for Celeste.

  Lisa turned off the television, threw her beer bottle in the recycle bin, and got ready for bed. Whatever she was feeling for Celeste could wait another day for Lisa to discuss with Athena.

  Chapter Twenty

  “Olivia, can we have lunch today? I want to get your opinion and advice on something.” Celeste sat in her office grading papers, but she had a difficult time concentrating. Ever since Lisa had left her house two days ago, Celeste had only thought of Lisa and her growing feelings for her. That wasn’t supposed to happen. They were only supposed to be colleagues. It started out simple enough. Lisa showed up to her office wanting help for one of her players. Simple, right? But then they kept running into each other, and Celeste kept saying crazy things that required apologizing. Okay, fine. They could be friendly, maybe even friends. Celeste started going to the games, Lisa seemed to stop by her office more, occasionally sharing a conversation over coffee. Great. Celeste could always use a new friend. Two, actually, because it seemed Lisa and Athena were a package deal, and Celeste really liked Athena. She wasn’t attracted to her like she was to Lisa, but Athena was funny and she enjoyed the banter between them.