Broken Trails

It had been taken a superhuman will to stay away this long. Once Lainey had finished checking in, she had mushed the team to the dog lot with Scotch and Miguel in the sled. Miguel took over handling the dogs, effectively chasing Lainey away when she tried to intercede. Scotch walked her back to the truck she had borrowed from her friends and whisked Lainey away. Lainey was introduced to her hostesses, stuffed to the gills with a good country breakfast, and sent to the showers. By the time she emerged from the bathroom, smelling of lavender, she could barely keep her eyes open.

Still tired from her time on the trail, Scotch happily joined Lainey in their bedroom. Cuddling with the smaller woman was a balm to her doubts and insecurities, and her worries about their future faded away. In no time, the exhausted Lainey fell asleep, Scotch soon following her.

Hunger drove Scotch out of the warm blankets a few hours later. When she had eaten, she forced herself out of the house, borrowing Beth’s truck to get to the dog lot and check both teams. She had to admit, Lainey had done her proud. Not only had she won the Rookie of the Year award, but she had done a spectacular job with her dogs. All of them appeared happy and healthy and glad to see her. Except Bonaparte, of course. He gave Scotch the cold shoulder and kept scanning the handlers in the dog lot. She had the distinct impression he was looking for Lainey, as absurd as that sounded.

With her obligations met, she returned to the house to torture herself while Lainey slept. As much as she wanted to wake her and show her exactly how much she had been missed, Scotch sat in the living room with Beth and her partner, Wanda, discussing the race with a few of their friends who had come over. After the hundredth time of staring wistfully down the hall, Wanda plucked the coffee cup from her hand and shooed her off.

Now Scotch stripped down to her t-shirt and panties before crawling under the covers. Lainey was sleep-warm and cozy, and Scotch sighed as she fitted her body to the smaller woman’s. Lainey mumbled in her sleep and stirred, turning to snuggle closer. Smiling, Scotch adjusted herself to accommodate until they lay wrapped about each other.

She was not tired, but closed her eyes anyway to better enjoy the feel of Lainey’s arms and legs entwined with hers. This was the place to be, the rightness of their proximity overriding the reality of the situation. Lainey only wore a camisole and panties, and Scotch ran her palm along the bare arm. A smile curled her lips when Lainey hummed in sleepy response and sighed.

The temptation was too great. Several months spent necking on the couch in the cabin but sleeping in separate beds took their toll. Scotch slipped past Lainey’s arm, caressing her shoulders and neck with a firm hand. Lainey’s mumble encouraged her further, and she slid down to touch the bare skin of her lower back where the camisole had ridden up. It was a simple maneuver to slide beneath the waistband of her panties and explore previously untouched territory.

Well, not necessarily untouched. McGrath had given them both the opportunity to roam where they had not been before. The memory fired her already smoldering desires.

“That feels good,” Lainey murmured.

“You’re awake,” Scotch said needlessly. Her touch became a little more forceful as she cupped the rounded flesh and gave it a gentle tweak.

Lainey chuckled, her lips finding Scotch’s pulse point. “Mm hmm,” she said, bringing her leg up to cross Scotch’s torso. “In more ways than one.”

Pleased, Scotch rolled onto her back, taking Lainey with her. Both her hands were free and while one remained where it was beneath Lainey’s panties, the other crept up beneath the camisole. Her fingers brushed scar tissue and she examined the feel of the thick skin there, not shying away from the damage. She loved everything about Lainey, even this, and she wanted to get that point across.

Lainey shifted until she straddled Scotch’s hips and pushed herself into a sitting position. The blankets fell away and she drew her camisole over her head, pausing to grind herself once against Scotch’s belly before tossing the material to the floor.

Mouth dry at the vision before her, Scotch brought both hands up to caress Lainey’s belly, slipping along the firm muscles there to reach the breasts above. The skin was soft and warm, nipples taut with anticipation, and Scotch wanted to taste them so badly. She squeezed their heaviness, her fingers rolling Lainey’s nipples as she enjoyed the soft weight.

Lainey moaned and her hips moved again. She braced herself against the head of the bed as she rocked slowly on Scotch, her eyes half closed in concentration. “You feel so good, Scotch,” she moaned.

“So do you,” she said, her voice husky. Scotch pushed partway up, leaning on one elbow as her mouth found what it desired. She sighed in pleasure, echoing another moan from Lainey as her lips enveloped one of those inviting nipples. Surging upward, dislodging Lainey’s grip on the bedstead, Scotch sat up, her hands now cradling her lover as she suckled.

Lainey caressed her back and shoulders, fingers digging into muscle at a particular sharp nibble. She gasped aloud, her hips bucking against Scotch. Then Scotch felt her hair being pulled, dragging her from her conquest until Lainey’s lips met hers in a hard, wet kiss that made her forget all about what she was doing. The next several minutes were nothing but tongues and teeth, sighs and soft grunts of exertion, heated flesh and insistent touches.

It was the sound of rending cloth that brought Scotch back from her ecstasy enough to register what was happening. Lainey now lay on her back, one hand buried in Scotch’s hair, the other gripping the headboard again. Scotch was paying homage to her firm abdomen with one of Lainey’s legs hiked over her shoulder as she moved steadily down that luscious body. The torn cloth turned out to be Lainey’s panties, two tattered ends gripped in Scotch’s fists. The smell of Lainey’s arousal was stronger with no underwear to impede it and Scotch hastened to get her fill, ruined panties forgotten.

Her first taste was intoxicating as she tongued the woman’s clit. Lainey’s cry was the sweetest music, matched only by the taste of her arousal. Scotch bent to her task with a purpose, exploring past the protective hood and outer lips to savor all of Lainey. In response, Lainey moaned and pressed against Scotch’s mouth, her hips in constant motion. Scotch settled into place, Lainey’s thighs cradling her head, one hand bracing against the bed and the other in Scotch’s hair.

While she concentrated her attentions on the sensitive bundle of nerves, Scotch wanted more. Her fingers slick with Lainey’s essence, she thrust deep within her lover, relishing how Lainey tasted, how she sounded, how her muscles contracted rhythmically around her fingers as she stroked the velvet skin.

The bed rocked with their exertions, the thump of the headboard against the wall interspersed with Lainey’s harsh pants and demands. God! She could never get enough of this! She thrust deeper, filling Lainey as she teased the tender clitoris beneath her mouth.

Lainey’s orgasm swept over Scotch, and she drew it out as long as possible, not wanting it to end. Her efforts were rewarded by another hitch in Lainey’s breathing as she came again, calling Scotch’s name. Only when Scotch was certain Lainey could not stand another round did she slow her attentions, pulling her fingers from the warmth of her lover.

She looked up Lainey’s sweat slicked body to see very satisfied brown eyes looking back.

“Come here,” Lainey rasped, weakly waving.

Scotch scooted up the bed, pulling Lainey into her arms. They lay together for several minutes in silence as her lover caught her breath. Despite a fiery need for Lainey’s touch, Scotch’s soul sprawled in the aftermath, a part of her hoping that perhaps her lover would decide to remain with her it Alaska.