Girls on the Side

To the friendly readers who have supported me for so long - I hope you will join me for another ride...

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Girls on the Side

Chapter One

"You fucking bitch," Joely said in a low, almost bemused voice. I stared at her, not sure what to say or do.

"Joely, I'm sorry," I finally managed. She looked up at me, eyes hardened like flint, and I found myself taking an involuntary step back.

"You're sorry?" she asked, incredulous. "That's all you have to say?"

I was silent, looking at her. She turned away from me and walked to the window of our bedroom, folding her arms across her chest.

"When did you decide this?" she asked.

I sighed. The truth was, I had known for months that our relationship was going to end. We had discussed it, at great length, but she had always convinced me to hang on -- even when all my instincts screamed against it.

"Joely, come on. It's not like this is coming from left field," I said.

She turned and looked at me, and I was taken aback by the look in her eyes. She looked utterly lost...and although I knew it was my fault, I also knew there was nothing I could do about it.

"You promised me you would try, Collie" she said, and her chest heaved as a sob escaped from between her clenched teeth. I suppose it was a measure of how things had deteriorated -- for me, at least -- that although my heart wrenched painfully, I had no desire to walk over and comfort her. Heaven knows I had done enough of that throughout the course of our relationship.

I walked to the other side of the bed, opposite her, and leaned against the dresser behind me. "Honey, I did try. I've been trying for months, and I can't do it anymore. Can you honestly say you're happy with how things are?" I asked gently.

She lowered her eyes and her shoulders slumped. She knew the state of things, as little as she wanted to admit it. These days, the space between us in our bed felt like Siberia. Compared to how we used to be, so completely entwined that it was hard to tell where one began and the other ended, our life together had become a barren wasteland.

"Do you have to leave now?" she asked in a small, trembling voice...and in that moment I knew, in spite of what the consequences would be, that I would end up staying with her for one more night. 'One more night,' I promised myself as I walked around to her side of the bed and took her in my arms. She wrapped herself around me like a limpet, and as I held her and stroked her hair, I thought, 'One more night, then it's over and I'll leave.' I almost convinced myself it was true.

I got her into bed and excused myself to the kitchen, where I got a glass of water and drank deeply. I knew she was waiting for me and would cling to me and probably try to make love to me, and the thought exhausted me physically and emotionally. I emptied the glass and set it in the sink, then walked back down the hall to the bedroom.

Once again, my instincts were screaming at me, and I even briefly envisioned a scene in which I walked in, turned on the light, grabbed a suitcase, and ran out before she could stop me. I actually paused just inside the doorway and felt my heart pounding at the possibilities...but then I heard her voice call out to me and I went to her.

I crawled into bed next to her and she turned to me immediately, molding her body into mine. She clenched one fist in the t-shirt I was wearing and put her other hand on my face, tracing along my jaw and cheek. There was a time her touch made me shiver and ache with desire, but now all it did was make me sad. I reached up and took her hand in mine, holding it still.

"Joely," I murmured softly. "Please don't."

She made a tiny noise in her throat and let her hand fall between us, but she was still holding on to my shirt. I knew she was going to cry before she started, and I braced myself for the loud, wracking sobs I had come to expect...but she startled me by crying almost silently. Her whole body was clenched so hard that I was afraid she'd pull every muscle in her body, and before I knew it I had wrapped both of my arms around her and was rocking her, rubbing her back and trying to quiet her.

"Joely, shhh," I whispered. "Honey, please don't cry." In response, she inched even closer to me, her face buried in the hollow of my neck. Against my will, the feel of her warm breath on my throat began to do something to me, and I pulled her closer. I felt her shift and press her groin into mine, and my heart began to pound faster. Her free hand found its way to my back and slid up under my shirt, and I felt her nails dig into me.

Startled, I tried to pull away from her but she held me tighter and began to kiss my throat. Before I knew it, my hands were tangled in her hair and she was kissing my mouth, her hands sliding up under my shirt to my breasts, making my nipples hard. I gasped as she took my bottom lip in her teeth, then kissed me fiercely. My body responded to her as it had for so long, with longing and desire so strong that it made me ache. I heard her moaning deep in her throat as she felt me respond to her, and even though I knew it was wrong, I couldn't stop.

I rolled over on top of her and kissed her, my hands stroking her hair. Our breasts pressed together, and I heard her whimper as she pushed me up and pulled my shirt up, her mouth greedily sucking at my breast. I gasped as her teeth scraped my sensitive nipple, then felt her tongue flicking as she sucked on me. In my head I was cursing her because she knew how much that turned me on, yet I was powerless to stop her. I pulled her head closer as she sucked me, then pushed her back and bent to kiss her again. She responded with greed and desperation, her mouth pressed hard against mine, and the roughness of her need only fueled my fire.

I felt her legs open up and I slid between them, the shock of her hot skin against mine making me gasp again. I had nothing on except my t-shirt, and only now did my tired, overheated brain realize she was completely naked. I ground into her, feeling her wetness against me, and she grabbed my shirt and pulled it off over my head. We kissed again, our bodies pressing into each other, and I felt her wrap her legs around my ass and lift herself up into me.

I slid one hand down between us and touched the center of her, moaning when I felt how wet she was. Wet and hot and slick and hard under my touch, I began stroking her clit lightly until her hips were thrusting against my hand. She bit my lip and dug her nails into my back as I stroked her. I kept the lightest pressure on her until she moaned into my mouth, then I slid inside her and began fucking her, rubbing her clit with my thumb as I moved in and out of her warmth. Her hips were thrusting faster and faster and her nails raked against my back as she came, hard and fast and loud.

She shuddered and her legs stretched out as they always did when she came, and her nails dug in just deep enough to hurt. I backed away and tried to move, but she held on tight and rolled me over onto my back. I was caught by surprise, because usually after an orgasm so intense she needed time to catch her breath. Not this time, apparently. I looked up at her and she hovered over me, her hair tickling my face.

I opened my mouth to speak, but she placed a hand over my lips and shushed me. She ran her fingertips from my forehead down to my chin and kissed me, then slowly made her way down my body, her lips brushing against me lightly, her tongue leaving a trail of cool wetness down my stomach.

My mind began to scream at me then, telling me to make her stop before things went too far...then I felt her tongue part my swollen lips and slide along my sensitive clit and all reason escaped me. I arched my back as she teased me and slid her fingers inside me, my fingers in her hair, her tongue swirling around, sucking me into her mouth. I felt my orgasm begin to build and I cried out as the wave of it washed over me, my clit throbbing, the walls of my pussy contracting as spasm after spasm hit me. I felt her kissing my pussy, the insides of my thighs, then working her way up as she slid back up on top of me.

She kissed me deeply and I could taste myself on her lips and tongue, then she slid down next to me and put her arm over my stomach. We lay there, our breathing slowing down even as my mind was racing. I couldn't think of a thing to say, and it seemed that she had fallen asleep anyway. Just as my overworked mind began to shut down and my body started to relax, I felt her murmur against my shoulder.

"I knew you wouldn't leave me," she said, then her body relaxed and she began breathing deeply, probably as emotionally drained as I was.

My heart froze and I stopped breathing, but before I could say anything my exhaustion overtook me and I fell backwards into the darkness.

To be continued...