Page 143 of Honeyfires

"Mmhmm." A tired but wicked smile crossed her face. "Touch yourself for me. Let me see you."

The idea sent a fresh wave of arousal through me. I moved to lie beside her, avoiding the wet spot her squirting had left on the sheets, and spread my legs slightly.

"Like this?" I asked, my hand sliding down my stomach.

"Exactly like that." Her eyes were fixed on my hand, dark and hungry. "Show me how you pleasure yourself.”

I was already so worked up from making her come, from the taste of her on my tongue and the sight of her falling apart. It didn't take much, just a few circles of my fingers on my clit, my other hand moving to my breast, before I was climbing toward my own release.

"You're so beautiful," Vera murmured, her hand coming to rest on my thigh, anchoring me. "So strong and gorgeous and perfect. I love watching you like this, love seeing you let go."

"Vera.” My hips started moving, seeking more friction.

"That's it, baby. Take what you need." Her hand slid higher on my thigh, not touching where I was touching myself but close enough to feel the heat. "I want to watch you come. Want to see your face when you let go."

I was close, so close, the coil of pleasure tightening with every stroke. But before I could tip over the edge, Vera found her strength. She shifted, pushing my hand away and replacing it with her mouth.

"Fuck—" The word came out strangled as her tongue found my clit.

"Let me," she said against my skin. "Let me finish you."

And she did, her mouth working me with practiced skill, her fingers sliding inside to curl just right. The combination pushed me over the edge, and I came hard, my hand fisting in her hair as pleasure crashed through me in waves.

When I could breathe again, she crawled up to lie beside me, both of us sweaty and satisfied and utterly spent. We shifted slightly to avoid the wet spot—evidence of what we'd just done, of the intimacy we'd reclaimed after weeks of crisis.

"I love you," I whispered, pulling her close.

"I love you too." She pressed a kiss to my collarbone. "So much."

"Thank you," I said. "For the article. For standing by me. For being brave when I couldn't be."

"We're in this together," she murmured, already drifting toward sleep. "Always together."

"Tuesday," I said quietly.

"Tuesday," she agreed. "And then it's done, one way or another. We face whatever the answer is together."

"Together."

She was asleep within minutes, her breath evening out against my collarbone. I stayed awake a little longer, holding her, thinking about Vera's enormous, brave heart, and how I had somehow ended up with such a perfect woman in my corner.

Whatever came on Tuesday, I wouldn't face it alone.

Because I had my fire, and I had my honey to soothe it.

Honeyfires.

Fall Apart Here, With Me, So You Don't Fall Apart on the Stand

Chapter Twenty-Six

The union rep's office smelled like coffee and old paper, stacks of case files lining shelves that reached the ceiling. Daniel Knoss had been representing firefighters for twenty-three years, and it showed in the sharp creases of his cheap suit and the way his eyes found the vulnerable parts of a story before you'd finished telling it.

Diana was already there when I arrived, her briefcase open on the table, the incident file spread in front of her. She looked up when I came in and said nothing. That was Diana. She didn't waste words on greeting.

"Knoss handles the union contract, employment history, departmental context," she said, when I sat down. "I handle the legal argument, the evidence record, and you. If either of us objects during the hearing, you stop talking immediately. If I put my hand flat on the table, you pause. Do you understand?"

"Yes."