Southern Comfort

As I awaken from a deep and peaceful slumber, I open my eyes to take in the view of my seemingly unfamiliar surroundings. I wipe the sleep from my large almond-shaped hazel eyes, taking a closer look around me.

Lying on my back with a soft feather filled cushion supporting my head and a white cotton sheet draped across my naked body, my eyes dart from wall to cream-coloured wall, desperately trying to figure out where I am.

As I slowly remember the events of the night before, my legs curl up towards my body and I can feel the little hairs on the back of neck rise, sending shivers up and down my spine.

I recognise a painting on the wall directly in front of me so I sit up sligtly, propping myself up on my right elbow. The softness of the rug on my bare skin reminds me that I am in my own living room. Looking at the painting again confirms this.

It is a vivid colour canvas of two bodies intertwined in an intimate embrace. It was a birhday gift from my boyfriend Toby and I had brought it down with me from our flat in York.

I had only been in my new house for one night since moving to Ripton Close the day before, a fairly quiet suburban area in South London.

I had qualified as a Doctor just a few weeks previously and was moving to London to start a new post as a Senior House Officer in a large London Hospital.

Alison Newbery, a 30-something yr old successful fiction writer, lives four houses away from me. I call her my neighbour as there are only 10 houses in the Close. A confident woman with a quirky but pretty face, pale skin and long legs, she introduced herself to me the day before...

On that day, as I was unloading boxes from my car, I heard the click-clack of high heels on the tarmac behind me. I turned around to see a woman of medium-tall height dressed casually in a light green linen dress, shoulder-length wavy auburn hair, piercing green eyes and a large wide smile directed at me.

'Hi there, I'm Alison. I live at no. 8. I just got back from town and noticed you moving in. I just wanted to say welcome and ask if you need any help?' she said, cocking her head slightly to one side.

I was grateful for her kindness but looking at her in those heels and pretty dress made me think she was in no fit state to carry heavy, dusty boxes for me and was just being polite.

'Thanks but I'm almost done now' I replied, conscious of the fact that I was looking a bit worse for wear, aware that her eyes had wandered ever so slightly away from mine, down to my chest. I was bending over a large box, attempting to pick it up and my ample breasts were protuding quite obviously from the top of my vest. Her attention bothered me slightly. I was used to being ogled by men but felt uncomfortable having a woman stare at me so intently, so I stood upright and pulled my vest up a little trying to cover up.

'OK, well you know where I am' said Alison, seeming to be unaware of my embarrassment. ' If you need anything, just knock on my door. I'm throwing a dinner party for some friends later around 8 and you're more than welcome to join us'

'That sounds great' I said, not wanting to seem unfriendly 'I guess I'll see you later then. Oh by the way my name's Jo'

And with that, she left, the click-clacking of her heels becoming more faint as she walked home.

I could do with cheering up, I told myself. Leaving Toby behind in York was already taking its toll. We'd met in uni and lived together throughout most of our years there. We'd had a massive argument about my relocation to London. We had parted on a bad note so I was feeling rather sorry for myself.

Once I'd unpacked the last of the boxes and made my new house somewhat livable, I started thinking of what to wear for the evening. The time was fast approaching 8 so I had a quick rummage through my wardrobe and picked out a simple outfit of a short denim skirt and strapless satin black top. I put on a little blusher and a slick of coral-pink shimmery lipgloss, pulled my long brown hair into a low ponytail, slipped into comfortable but sexy slip-ons and headed for Alison's.

Standing outside no.8 at 8:15, I could hear the booming of loud music though the front door. I rang the doorbell and a middle-aged man answered the door, introduced himself as Alison's boyfriend Mark with a handshake, and asked me to come in. As I walked into a spacious living room, packed to the brim with guests drinking, eating and chatting happily away, I spotted Alison sitting in the kitchen with a guest. I walked over, greeting her with a kiss on each cheek and apologised for being late.

'Hey Jo!' She sprang to her feet, embracing me with both arms as she pressed tightly against me, returning my kisses. 'Don't be silly, party's just getting started' she said loudly above the thumping music. 'You look gorgeous' she exclaimed, eyeing me from head to toe. 'Help yourself to food and drinks. There's nibbles in the living-room, I'll be serving dinner soon'

And so I wandered off into the living room, grabbing myself a glass of wine as I did, I struck up conversations with other guests and proceeded to enjoy myself and take my mind off Toby. Half an hour later, we were all called to the kitchen where we were seated at a large round dinner table. A delicious meal of mixed seafood risotto, washed down with more wine and followed by a creamy dessert of Italian ice-cream with moist chocolate fudge cake was served. Conversation around the table flowed easily, ranging from work to babies, sex, travel, fashion, politics, relationships...a real cocktail of topics.

Alison was siting next to Mark, and occasionally he would lean toward her and give her a kiss on the head. He had his arm around her all night and when he thought no-one could see, he would slip his hand slightly up Alison's shirt and fondle her breast. I could tell Alison was enjoying this. Her cheeks flushed a dusky shade of pink and her eyes would quickly search around the table, making sure no-one was looking.

By then, I had diverted my eyes back to the person sitting next to me, but glancing back again I noticed the nipple of the breast his fingers had been busy with now poking through the fabric of her shirt. This aroused strange feelings in me, remembering the way my own nipples would respond to Toby's touch, and as I did so I felt a sweet tingling sensation as they stood proud against my breasts, pushing against the satin of my own top.

At that moment I noticed Alison looking directly at me, a little smile stretched across her lips as though she knew that I had been watching. I instinctively looked away and put an arm across my chest, not wanting her to see how turned on I was. I wondered if anyone else had noticed what they were up to, but they all seemed far too engaged in their conversations.

I could sense a warm feeling spreading through my body, ending at my womanhood, making me shift awkwardly in my seat. I felt odd for enjoying their private little show that had now become so public to me. I also had unwanted feelings of sadness creeping back as I watched them together, so obviously in love, wishing my Toby could be here too, angry that he hadn't been more supportive of my plans.

As I felt the tears welling up in my eyes, I quickly made my excuses, thanked my host for a lovely dinner and made a hasty exit.

It was pouring heavily outside and despite my efforts to avoid the heavy raindrops, my hair and clothes quickly became wet. I found my keys in my little purse and opened the front door, slamming it behind me, immediately bursting into tears as I slid down to the wooden floor, my back against the door, in complete darkness.

I sat sobbing to myself for what seemed like an eternity, watching my tears create tiny puddles on the floor, feeling the energy slowly drain from my body as it always did whenever I cried. I began drifting off to sleep when the knock-knock on my door woke me up. Quickly wiping my eyes and clumsily getting back up on my still clad feet, I looked through the peephole. I could just about make out the silhouette of someone who looked like Alison. To be sure, I put the latch on the door and opened it as far as it would.

'That you Alison?' I muttered, her blurry figure becoming clearer as the dim light of the porch flooded my eyes.

'Yes it's me, is it alright if come in? It's just that you looked a bit upset as you were leaving earlier' she said, looking concerned.

She had changed out of her earlier outfit of a smart trouser suit and was now wearing jeans and a t-shirt.

'Don't worry about me, I'm fine' I lied. 'Your party...'

As I said this, I realised I could no longer hear music.

'It's over, everyone left a while ago. Just thought I should check up on you but if you'd rather be alone I understand'

'No. No, please come in' I pleaded as I removed the latch and fully opened the door, closing it behind her. 'Please, sit down'

I motioned towards the large brown leather couch that had been delivered early that morning.

'Can I get you something to drink?' I asked.

'Don't you think I've had enough already' she giggled. 'Your clothes, they're soaked.'

I suddenly realised that in my little moment of misery I had forgotten to undress. I ventured into the bedroom, peeled off my wet clothes, removed my shoes and slipped into a pair of shorts and a clean vest, and returned to the living room where I sat next to Alison on the couch. The tv was on and some random music channel was playing.

Alison and I began chatting, talking about our lives, careers, discovering a little more about each other as we went along. She had a very easy way about her which immediately put me at ease. I felt I could open my heart up to this complete stranger, something I would never usually do.

Conversation then turned to men and inevitably boyfriends. I discovered that she and Mark had been together for a number of years and had a somewhat 'open' relationship. This left me a little shocked as it was such a foreign concept to me, but I tried my best to hide it for fear of looking childish.

As we talked about Toby, I told her about the problems we'd had before I moved, how he hadn't spoken to me for 2 weeks, how he had sworn to find someone else while I was gone, how he'd not called me since I arrived...I couldn't control the tears streaming down my face. I turned away from Alison, in an attempt to hide my quivering lips.

Alison put her arms around me, pulling me close to her. She had one hand on my head, running her fingers through my hair, and the other gently stroking my back, soothing me. As my body relaxed into hers, I found my head slowly dropping, nestling into the curve of her neck, as I always did with Toby when I needed comforting.

As I inhaled, I could detect the faint sweetness of Lavender on her skin. I was so close to a stranger I barely knew, a woman at that, and although logically it didn't seem right, all my worries seemed to escape with every breath. I closed my eyes and placed my arm around the small of her back to snuggle even closer to her, the warmth of her breath spreading across my body.

I felt her soothing fingers trail their way from my back towards my face, travelling over the curve of my chin, my rounded cheeks, and back down to my lips, lingering over their outline, delighting in their fullness. She brought her lips down to meet mine, kissing me tenderly, making me gasp, shocked at what was happening to me, even more shocked that I was enjoying it. I made a feeble attempt at pulling away but her eyes seemed to have pierced right into the very depths of my being, keeping me locked to her. She knew I was hers.

Her fingers drew small circles over my arm... waist...supple hips and thighs, making me gasp once more as she slipped her fingers under the moist cloth of my shorts, lightly pinching my swollen clit, caressing the delicate skin around my labia. I felt the wetness of my own juices on my stomach as she inched her way to my chest.

She unlocked her lips from mine, my heavy head falling into her lap. I turned my nose towards her crotch, savouring the subtle musky scent of her womanhood, my tongue becoming drenched at the thought of what it would be like to taste it.

I could hear my heart thumping as her hand inched towards my left breast, gently squeezing the soft rounded flesh through the flimsy fabric of my vest. Her wet tongue travelled down my neck until it reached the fleshy mound of my right breast, drawing a line to my nipple but deliberately avoiding it. Through my vest, her tongue circled around my areola several times, coaxing my nipple to emerge fully, standing taut, straining against the cloth.

In two swift movements, my vest was by my torso, my shorts by my feet. A cool breeze surged in from a window. Alison's eyes fixed on my nipples, watching them rise even further, standing erect against my fullly engorged breasts. She blew gently against each one before finally placing her wet lips around my right nipple, drawing it firmly into her mouth, sending shockaves of pleasure to my clit.

I felt my nipple harden in her mouth as he sucked on it fervently, pulling it further into her mouth, flicking it firmly with her tongue, her hand occupied with my other breast, rolling and tugging my left nipple between her fingers. My breasts bounced gently in all directions, enjoying the longed-for attention.

I arched my body towards hers, letting out little moans to tell her just how much I was enjoying what she was doing.

She bit my nipple, making me cry out loud from the pain. She let go with a snap and moved to my left nipple, taking over from her fingers, sucking harder, more hungrily this time. My breathing became louder and heavier as the sweet feelings and wetness around my clit intensified, aching to be touched, sucked, anything, just begging for attention. I began to rub my thighs together, enjoying the friction against my clit.

Her hand wandered back to my now exposed pussy. She slid a finger into my wet pussy, massaging my g-spot as I let out another sharp gasp. She slid another finger in, then a third and continued finger-fucking me, the thick juices from my pussy making loud smacking noises,the base of her palm rubbing my clit in circular movements, her lips still engaged around my nipple.

I thrust my hips towards her hand, grinding desperately against it, wanting more, feeling my muscles tense around her fingers, but at the same time trying to fight it, not wanting this moment to end. I felt my body stiffen as wave after delicious wave of orgasmic extasy coursed through my clit and pussy, my body jerking forwards, my back arching.

I cried out loudly as the last orgasmic wave shot through me. My body collapsed back into hers, now glistening with sweat, gently shuddering as it recovered from her assault.

She released my nipple and held me as she descended to the floor, laying me on the soft central rug, shedding me completely of my clothes. She stood up, went to the bedroom and returned with a white cotton cloth, laying it across both our bodies.

She kissed me softly all over my body, content in knowing that she had satisfied me fully, enjoying my lips once more as I fell asleep in her arms...

I returned to the brightness of my living room as the last details of the events of the night before left my mind. By my side was a handwritten note from Alison.

'You know where I am, if you need anything...' it read.

I clutched it to my body, allowing myself just a fleeting sense of guilt as I drifted into a daydream, vowing to return the favour, dreaming of more encounters to come....