"Dummy."Dummy. I just want to make sure we stay friends,... along with anything else we may become. I'm trying to play it safe for both of us, Mike." It wasn't a bad idea, really, setting guidelines in advance; *I* was the one who had told her I wasn't sure about the boundaries any longer. It still sounded a little strange, though. But just having a woman like Carol as a real friend, someone I could relax and watch TV with, and gossip with over coffee, was more than I could have hoped for. I guess I hadn't realized, until that moment, just how lonely I sometimes got for the company of a woman. We leaned back against the sofa, still only a few inches apart, and I took her hand and intertwined my fingers with hers. "You make the rules," I said, "and I'll go along with whatever you decide to do,... as long as we can be friends." "Well,... we don't have to have *rules*," she replied as she traced designs with one fingernail on the back of my hand. It gave me goosebumps all the way up to my shoulder. "Just whatever we both feel comfortable with. I'm not in love with you and you're not in love with me. This is a physical relationship, for fun, right? Like, I *really* want to kiss you again, Mike. I want to spend the evening necking and making out, like a couple of teenagers. But--" (she squeezed my hand for emphasis) "--I'm not ready to go to bed with you. Not yet. Okay?" "Deal," I said. This time it really *was* a contract, with something to be gained on both sides. And then I got a little silly and leaned forward and licked the tip of her nose. She giggled again and ducked her head. I kissed the part in her hair, inhaling the sweet fragrance of her. There was a song in my heart, oh yes, oh yes. When she lifted her face and held my head between her hands, I felt like I was about to be devoured, and I was looking forward to it. She came in sneaky, nibbling my lower lip and moving her tongue across my incisors. I inhaled deeply and moved my hands up and down her sides, enjoying the solid presence of her ribs. Her tits needed to be explored but there was no hurry; I wanted to torment both of us a little while longer. |