“You have me.” The smile she sends me is sensual and knowing, though I have no idea what she might actually know. Because, in this moment and in this situation, there’s not much more to know than what is happening right now. There is no future. Our pasts don’t matter. It’s just now.

While I slip a hand inside her blouse and, in one swift motion, inside her bra cup, I lean down to kiss her.

When I feel her nipple between two fingers and press down with the lightest amount of force, she groans into my mouth.

I might be lying half on top of her, but it doesn’t mean I feel in control of this situation. Should I ask her what she likes? Does she even know? Just let it all go, I remind myself. Be in the moment. I intensify the pressure of my lips on hers and my fingers on her nipple. She squirms against me and I relish every second of it.

When we break from this kiss, I’m overcome with the urge to see her naked. My subconscious desire, of which I’m now sure it was there all along, is catching up with me, steering me. It has lost patience. I retract my hand from her warm breast and start unbuttoning her blouse. I push the sides away and drink in the sight of her. She has three freckles underneath her left breast and I connect them in an invisible line with my fingertip. I bow down and kiss her just above the belly button. The touch of my lips on her skin there sends a shiver up my spine.

Her own hand gets busy and finds a way inside my top from my neck down. It reaches the back of my bra and starts fumbling. I can only conclude that her impatience matches mine. She has been waiting a long time for this. So have I. To feel this alive again, this overtaken by lust.

“Maybe we should go into the bedroom,” she says, when our eyes meet next.

I chuckle, then nod. “Let’s go.” I maneuver myself out of the couch and take her hand in mine. We rush into the bedroom, where the bed is pristinely made. Camille pulls the covers off unceremoniously, then stands in front of me.

“This might be easier from this angle.” She slides her hands underneath my top and has my bra unhooked in a matter of seconds.

I follow her example and we keep undressing, taking off items of our own clothing while disrobing the other. It’s as functional as it is sensual, because by the time I stand in front of her in just my panties, my pulse has picked up speed and the throbbing between my legs has intensified.

We slide into bed, end up lying on our sides, facing each other.

“Now what?” she asks.