It was at that moment that Lily first noticed a glow from the barely cracked door at the top of the stairs. That light hadn’t been on when she entered the apartment–she would have seen it from the walkway. Turning off the lights in the kitchen, the blonde nervously made her way up the darkened stairway, trying to envisage what she would see when she got to her bedroom.

No imagination could have done justice to the sight that greeted her as she gently swung open the door. Anna Kaklis sat in the corner armchair by the window, the picture of calm with one long leg crossed over the other, one hand raised so that her fingers rested on her chin. Her features were shadowed by the dim light from the small lamp on the far side of the room. The woman was dressed in dark slacks and a long sleeved white shirt, the black hair draped loosely around her shoulders. Her elbows rested nonchalantly on the arms of the chair and her other hand held a cell phone in her lap. Beside her on the bedside table sat a small wrapped gift.

Lily walked slowly into the room, stopping at the end of the bed. "I can’t believe you’re really here," she said with guarded excitement. If they both kept their nerve, they would be lovers soon.

"I didn’t want to miss your birthday," Anna answered quietly. "A girl doesn’t turn 30 every day." Despite her seeming composure, the beautiful woman was quickly losing the bravado she had needed to set up this scenario in Lily’s bedroom. Never before had she stood on this end of a seduction.

As Lily’s eyes adjusted to the lighting, Anna’s features became clearer to her. The woman wore a look of apprehension that bordered on panic. Crossing the room, Lily calmed her by placing a hand on her knee. "Well, just having you here is about the nicest birthday present I could have imagined," the blonde woman said from her heart. It was clear from her presence in Lily’s bedroom that Anna had intended for this to be the night that they made love. Yet she had come as far as she could of her own volition. Lily knew that she would have to lead her lover the rest of the way.

Silently, she took Anna’s hand and pulled her up into a confident embrace. Looking into the blue eyes, she leaned forward into a gentle probing kiss that quickly became deeper, more passionate. There was no need this time for either to hold back.

Placing the woman’s long hand against her pounding chest, Lily told her, "This is only one of the things you do to me." With that, she slid her palm inside the open collar of Anna’s shirt, finding a rapid heartbeat that matched her own. Ever so deliberately, Lily’s fingers moved to undo the buttons of the shirt, pushing back the collar to reveal the top of a lacy white bra. Pressing her lips against the soft skin between the woman’s breasts, deft hands gently tugged the shirttail free.

Without a trace of shyness, Lily stepped out of her shoes and removed her own jeans and sweater, leaving her standing in dark green panties and bra. Anna then matched her movements, finally reaching behind her to unfasten her bra.

"Please, I want to do that." Lily stepped forward and reached around the woman. Releasing the clasp, the bra slipped loosely from Anna’s shoulders. Lily lifted both hands to caress the soft naked breasts, then brought her face once again to the woman’s chest, brushing her cheek against a hardened nipple. "Beautiful," she murmured, as she pressed her lips to the smooth skin. Kneeling on the edge of the bed, she guided Anna to sit beside her.

Anna was trembling with anticipation as she watched the smaller woman remove first her bra, then her panties. Lily’s naked form was far more beautiful than Anna had imagined from their late night telephone interlude. Overwhelmed with the need to touch this woman, she ran both hands up Lily’s waist, trailing her fingertips against the sides of her breasts. She realized now that she had wanted this since the day on the boat.

Remembering perfectly the touch that Lily had described, Anna gently pushed her lover back against the pillow. Slowly, lovingly, wondrously, she made love with this beautiful woman, repeating each stroke of the fingers and mouth that Lily had asked her for that night. Every facet of the experience was more incredible than her meager imagination had allowed. When she drew her fingers from the warm cocoon to touch the hardened nub, her whole body thrummed with excitement. Anna watched in wonder as a deep red flush covered Lily’s chest and neck as she climaxed. With one arm underneath, Anna pulled her close and searched for the green eyes. "I love you, Lily. I love touching you this way." Lily, look at me! Yes, that’s it. In her entire life, she had never felt so connected to another person.

Lily looked back into the blue eyes that seemed so desperate to hold her own. In all the scenarios that she had dreamed, none had involved Anna being first to touch her. When her tremors ceased, she gently nudged the beautiful woman to her back and cradled her as she herself had been held, all without breaking the intimate link. "I want to make you feel as wonderful as I do," she said. With that, she covered Anna’s mouth with a deep kiss, breaking after several moments for air, but not moving her face from that of her lover. "I want to know you, Anna, every inch. I want to touch you, kiss you and taste you," she whispered. She could feel the shudder underneath her as Anna’s mind journeyed to the intimate act of which she spoke.

Lily’s kisses and strokes stirred Anna to such arousal that when she finally lowered her mouth to taste her lover, the woman released within seconds, calling Lily’s name as she went over the edge. The skilled tongue drew back, barely touching the tender spot, waiting…waiting for the woman to still. Once she did, Lily pressed harder and drew out a second climax, then a third when she entered Anna as her lips once again encircled the sensitive bud.

**********

Anna awoke before dawn and slipped into the bathroom. She and Lily had made love until after one, when both collapsed physically spent. That in itself was remarkable, since Scott had never continued their lovemaking once she had an orgasm. Last night, she had lost count of the times Lily had brought her to climax. Splashing water on her face to clear the cobwebs, the dark-haired woman removed the traces of her lover’s arousal from her chin. Now that had been an amazing experience. She surprised herself with her own lack of reservation–she had simply wanted to devour the woman. In fact, she was astonished at her own need to give Lily pleasure, almost unmindful of her own body’s desires.

Almost, that is. It had certainly been the most satisfying physical experience she’d ever had. Okay, it was more than satisfying–it was incredible. Hell, it was mind-blowing. That’s what it was. Remembering now the thundering physical sensations, the tender words and intense looks they had shared, and the way they held onto each other as they climaxed, Anna finally knew what all the fuss was about. It was about connection.

She had questions, complicated questions for herself about her own expectations for where this all would lead. But right now, she needed to return to Lily.

The blonde in the bed was starting to grow concerned about the length of time that had passed since Anna had gotten up and disappeared into the bathroom. What is she thinking about? What is she feeling? A part of her wanted to go see if everything was okay, but another part was too afraid of the answer. Traumatic imaginings tumbled unbidden through her head. She supposed first that Anna had awakened with guilt or disgust at what they had done last night. Or perhaps it was just disappointment because Lily hadn’t lived up to Anna’s hopes or expectations. Worse, she had come to Lily simply for the experience of being with another woman, and now that they had shared this sexual encounter, she would move on. Either way, Anna was probably in the bathroom contemplating how to dress and leave without a word.

With her imagination running wild, Lily was simply astounded when Anna returned to the bed and turned on her side to draw the smaller woman close. As she began to doze again, the blonde woman noted that the very worst thing about insecurities was that they robbed you of energy that you could be spending on more pleasurable pursuits.

The sun streaming in through the narrow window above the balcony door stirred Lily awake. To her delight, a sleeping Amazon draped over her from shoulder to feet, dark hair splayed across her chest. Unfortunately, nature’s call was adamant.

"This is the lumpiest mattress I’ve ever slept on," the blonde mumbled mischievously as she returned, lifting the covers and crawling across the tall naked form. "Just can’t seem to get comfortable," she continued, shifting her head from one breast to another. Finally, she settled in and began a series of obnoxious snores that dissolved the "mattress" into fits of laughter.

"That’s a gift you have, finding lumpy things to crawl on," Anna laughed as she poked the woman in her ribs.

"Hey, who are you? How did you get in here?" Lily demanded playfully.

"Isn’t this Apartment 12? I was told to wait for the lady in Apartment 12."

"No, I’m afraid this is number 10."

"Does this mean I’m not going to get my money?"

Good one, Amazon! "Sorry, I’m but a penniless champion of the oppressed. You’re going to have to take it out in trade."

"That can be arranged," Anna agreed, arching her eyebrow suggestively.

And so began Sunday morning in Apartment 10.

**********

"Lilian Stuart," the attorney answered.

"So what are you wearing?" came the sexy voice over the speaker phone.

Lunging across the desk for the receiver, Lily absently checked the door for traffic in the hallway. "I’m fine. Thank you for asking," she scolded.

"That’ll teach you to answer your speaker phone without checking caller ID," the car dealer chuckled. Pausing a moment, she followed, "So? Are you going to answer my question?"

"I’m wearing a suit. Court clothes. I have a hearing this afternoon on an adoption proceeding. What about you? You in your grease monkey clothes?" Lily had stopped by the dealership last Saturday to find Anna working with one of the mechanics under the hood of an early model BMW. She was dressed in a grease-smeared pin-striped jumpsuit, her long ponytail pulled through a Dodgers baseball cap. Lily had never seen a sexier sight.

"Not today. I’ve got an appointment this afternoon with Steve French. Remember him?"

"Of course. The San Diego Sleaze. Maybe a grease monkey suit wouldn’t be such a bad idea."

"But you said I looked sexy in that. Are you saying that I should look sexy for Steve?" Anna enjoyed poking at the green-eyed monster.

"No, I’m saying that I should come down there and sit in on your meeting. If that jerk so much as looks at you, I’ll clean his clock with a crow bar." She fingered her birthday present, a delicate gold bracelet from the box beside the bed. The casual observer likely wouldn’t notice the series of BMW emblems etched into the small links. It just screamed Anna!

"My hero," Anna sighed in a mock swoon. "Can we do dinner tonight, sweetheart? I’ll take you out or pick something up and bring it over. I just want to see you." Work and family obligations had gotten in their way this week. They had spent nearly every night together over the last two weeks, but the only chance they had gotten to see one another this week had been lunch on Tuesday, which meant they had none of the private time that each of them now craved.

"6:30? I can stop and get Chinese food." Lily’s mind was already way past what they would eat for dinner.

"See you then. Love you."

"Love you too." The attorney wanted to pinch herself every time she heard or said those words.

**********

"I can’t believe there was ever a time when I didn’t need this," Anna sighed, rolling onto her back and pulling the blonde on top. Dinner had been a blur, both women looking ahead to having one another for dessert.

"Oh, you always needed it. You just didn’t know it." Lily trailed her fingers softly across Anna’s thin collarbones, down between her breasts and back up again.

"Well, I think you’ve ruined me."

"How so?"

"Well, I think about this every six minutes, no matter what I’m doing. I think I would have driven through a police barricade to get here." She chuckled, remembering her excitement on the way over. "I love this. I mean, I also love talking to you, or going out, or just sitting around. But this is what I need," the last part emphasized with a squeeze around the blonde’s middle.

"Yeah, I need it too, sweetheart. All of those things." The more time she spent with the beautiful woman, the more secure she felt about their relationship. But Lily knew better than to presume anything. She would take all that Anna had to offer, even if it meant losing her in the end.

**********

"Anna Kaklis, you have a call on line two. Anna Kaklis, line two." The normally animated Carmen always sounded so official and reserved when she used the intercom.

The car dealer swung into an empty office to grab the blinking line. "This is Anna Kaklis. How may I help you?" She had been on the lot with Holly, a new saleswoman she had hired yesterday. Holly was one of the top sellers at the BMW dealership in San Diego. Anna was pleased to find that she knew her stuff when it came to the BMW line; it was only a matter of learning the ins and outs of Premier Motors. They were lucky to get her.

"Anna, it’s Mother."

Well, here was a surprise. Anna couldn’t remember the last time her mother had phoned her at work. "Hi Mom. What’s up? Is everything okay," she asked anxiously.

"Yes, of course. I was calling to invite you to dinner on Saturday. I’m preparing a London broil." Anna knew that was one of her father’s favorites.

Anna was confused. It was usually her father who delivered these types of invitations, since they saw each other every day at the dealership. Nonetheless, Martine was waiting patiently on the other end of the line for her answer. "Saturday?" That bought her a moment. Saturday evening was Lily Time.

"Yes, about six. Kim and Hal are coming, of course. And David is bringing Heather. It would be nice if Lily could come too." There! She’d just told her stepdaughter that the attorney was welcome in their home. She wanted to create a comfortable setting that would allow her husband to get to know the young woman, and to see how happy the two were together.

They know! The car dealer was flabbergasted, to say the least. "I think that would be very nice. I’ll call her and call you back. Thank you, Mother."

**********

"I’m not kidding! She called me herself at work last Thursday, and she asked me to invite Lily too." Anna was filling her sister in on the details of Martine’s call.

Lily was outside by the pool with the rest of Kaklis clan, telling them all about the plans for the next Kidz Kamp outing, slated for next month. She was trying to sell David on the idea of coming along. Community service looks good on a college application, she reminded him.

"How do you think she knew about Lily?" Anna did not attempt to conceal her accusatory tone with Kim.

"I didn’t say anything, I swear. Not like I would have to, though. All anyone has to do is look at the two of you together, or listen to you talk about each other. You’re in love, Sister." Kim smiled knowingly. She loved seeing her sister so happy. "And it really looks good on you."

Anna couldn’t help but return the smile. "So do you think I should say something? If they already know, it’s like an elephant in the parlor."

"Well, I’d just be sort of casual about it if I were you. I don’t think it calls for any big announcement. Does it?" Kim was fishing.

"No, of course not! I do love her, but there’s really nothing more to say."

"Just remember, you promised to tell me all about the sex," Kim reminded playfully.

"I did not! Just because you asked me to promise doesn’t mean I did!" Anna folded her arms in mock indignation, a pose she adopted often when dealing with her little sister. "But since you brought it up…"

Kim’s attention was instantly riveted to her older sister. "Oh yeah?"

"Oh yeah! God, I had no idea it could be like that," she whispered animatedly, unable to hide her excitement. "It was never like this with Scott. Not even close."

"I told you, Anna. Scott was not right for you."

"I know. I just wish I knew if this was right for me," the tall woman said wistfully. "I don’t think I’ve gotten a perspective on the lesbian thing yet."

"Well, what about it? If it feels right for you, that’s all that matters. You don’t have to worry about what to call yourself." Kim was open minded and accepting, but she didn’t quite understand Anna’s dilemma.

"It’s more complicated than that, though. I…I feel like Lily has shown me what real love is supposed to feel like. Now that I know, should I be looking for that feeling with a man? Or what if I really am a lesbian? Is Lily the right woman for me? Am I right for her? I’m plowing all new ground here."

Kim recognized the seriousness of these questions, but wasn’t about to spoon-feed her own opinion to her sister. "Well, you’re the only one who can answer those questions. Do you have any interest in going out with anyone else? A man? Another woman?"

"No, not at all. If I could have this from now on, I’d be happy." The enormity of that struck Anna suddenly. From now on.

From now on? Wow! "What do you think Lily wants?"

"I don’t know. I mean, I know she loves me, but she’s been burned before. I get the feeling sometimes that she really doesn’t expect this to be permanent. I doubt she’s thinking about anything long term."

"You’re already thinking long term? You’ve got it bad, don’t you?"

"No, it’s not that I’m already thinking long term. But why keep seeing somebody, especially intimately, if you know that there isn’t any chance for a commitment at some point down the road? I’m just not into dating or sleeping with somebody for recreation. That’s not me." That was it, she knew. She wanted Lily, but only if Lily also wanted her. Anna wasn’t looking to get her heart broken either.

"Well, give it some time, Anna. There’s no rush. I think the answers will come to you." Kim was pretty sure that they already had, but that her sister just needed to try them on for a while. "So I take it you’ve figured out what it is that you do?"

Anna turned red and smiled. "I should have known I couldn’t distract you from your mission." Kim smiled triumphantly. "Yes, I’ve figured it out. Yes, it’s wonderful. Yes, we do it every chance we get." That last bit was actually more than she had intended to say. "Now, we’d better get out there. Lily’s going to think I’ve thrown her to the wolves."

George Kaklis was soundly impressed at the way the little blonde attorney had coaxed his son into agreeing to help out with Kidz Kamp. In his father’s opinion, David was pretty self-centered, though not unusually so for most young men his age. Padding his college application was certainly a plus, but besides that, he seemed eager to have the chance to work with some of the younger boys that Lily spoke of. The elder Kaklis found himself genuinely liking the woman, despite his misgivings about her relationship with his daughter. She was obviously a good, decent person.

George followed Martine into the kitchen so that they could have a few minutes alone. Wrapping his arms around his wife from behind, he told her, "Dinner was marvelous darling. You’re the best." There was more, but it was going to be difficult to get out. He waited for a moment, anticipating the argument he would get when she voiced his thoughts. "I…I really like Lily, but I just don’t want that for Anna."

"George, please. It isn’t your choice." Martine wasn’t going to put up with this any longer. She had orchestrated this entire evening as an opportunity for her husband to get to know the young woman better–Martine was certain that Lily herself could win him over. "Can’t you see how happy Anna is? Are you so selfish that you’d deny that for your own daughter?"

"It isn’t right for her," he practically wailed.

Martine hated to do it, but it was ultimatum time. "As long as this is my home, Lily will be welcome here, no matter what her relationship is with Anna. If you can’t deal with that George, then you can go spend the day at the goddamned dealership." With that, she turned and headed back into the dining room.

Still with me? Hold on tight! Concluded in Part 14

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