Bidding War (22 page)

"I would love to, James," she said, standing up.

I looked over at the dance floor and found Moira dancing with some woman. I turned to David. "Should I be jealous?"

"No. It's just a dance."

"Does it bother you to see Andi in another man's arms?"

"She goes home with me." He was smiling. "Do you mind if I ask someone to dance?"

"Of course not," I said. "I'm going to get water for us all."

He got up, and I watched him as he walked to the other side of the floor and asked a woman to dance who was old enough to be my grandmother. She smiled. When they got onto the floor I realized she was an exceedingly good dancer. The two of them were fun to watch.

I stood up to find water for us, but I almost bumped into a woman behind me. "Excuse me."

"I hadn't asked you yet, and already we're dancing," she said. "Would you care to make it more official?"

Moira had told me to say 'yes'. "I would love to. If you can lead."

She smiled and led me to the floor. I stepped into her arms. She was shorter than Moira, but she and I fit better than I had with the men. "I haven't seen you here before," she said once we were dancing.

"I am from Minneapolis," I told her.

"Oh, you're here with Moira?"

"Yes.
You know her?"

"She comes to our milongas two or three times a year. I am Kim, by the way. I am one of the local instructors."

"Pamela."

Kim asked for a step I didn't know. I stumbled through it.

"I am sorry," Kim said.

"My fault," I replied.

I got three nice dances with Kim before the cortina. She returned me to the table and thanked me. "I hope we'll see you again."

Moira returned to the table and immediately grabbed me for the next tanda.

"Did you enjoy your dance with Kim?" she asked.

"There is no one here I would rather dance with you than you."

She laughed softly into my ear. "That isn't what I asked."

"Yes, I did."

"She was checking out your ass earlier."

"She was not!"

"Most of the men are, too." Then she asked for a back ocho.

"If you keep making me do that, of course they're going to check it out," I said. "It's a tight, hot ass."

"Yes, it is."

* * *

That pretty much defined the rest of the evening. We danced until eleven. Both Moira and I wanted to dance longer. We found a break, and Moira said to Andi, "I'm sorry, Andi."

"Quite all right," she said. "Time to go?"

She nodded. "Long flight back."

"You could stay overnight," she said. "We have a guest room." She looked at me. "And the sofa isn't bad, if sharing a room isn't in the cards yet."

"Next time, Andi," Moira said.

Andi and David led the way to Andi's car. Moira and I sat in back while Andi drove. I closed my eyes and leaned against Moira, clasping her hand. We drove first to Andi and David's to change clothes, then she drove us back to the airport. David stayed home.

At the airport, Andi handed me her card and offered a quick hug. While we were hugging, she told me, "Figure this out, Pamela."

"I will."

"Call me any evening this week, after you've studied."

"I will."

Then she hugged Moira before getting back in her car and driving off.

The building was locked, but we walked around and to Moira's airplane, still sitting where she had left it. Using a flashlight, she did her preflight while I
loaded our luggage in the back.

"Do we need gas?"

"Full tanks. They filled it while we were gone."

"When did you pay them?"

"She swiped my card while I talked to her."

One the preflight was done, Moira climbed in and I followed after her. I closed the door, and this time she showed me how to latch it.

She did all the things she had done in the morning, except she didn't talk to the tower. Instead she just announced on the radio what we were doing.

"You don't have to ask permission?"

"The tower is closed."

"Can we still take off?"

"Of course. The procedures are just a little different."

We taxied to the end of the runway and Moira did her checks, then she said to me, "I was going to let you do the takeoff, but it's night."

"Next time?"

"Next time. Are you disappointed?"

"Second best date ever."

"Only second best?"

"Best date was Tuesday."

She laughed. "I can live with that."

I waited until we had taken off and were clear of the Chicago area before I said, "This might have been the first best."

She looked over and smiled, clasping my hand for a moment.

"Tired?"

"Yes."

"You can sleep if you want. We'll be home in two hours."

"Are you going to nap?"

She laughed. "No."

"I'll keep you company. What did you want to talk about?"

* * *

It was after two in the morning when we pulled up in front of my house. "I want you to come in," I told her.

"I won't stay," she said.

She helped me with my things, and we stepped into the house. We set everything down and I slipped out of my jacket. Moira took hers off, too, and I melted into her arms.

The kiss was exceedingly passionate.

When we pulled apart, I tugged her over to the sofa, then curled up into her with my legs tucked underneath me.
She kissed me again, and I turned more to face her, my hand on her furthest shoulder. During the kiss, I let my fingers play with the skin on her neck, then slipped it inside her collar, stroking her shoulder with the back of my finger.

She broke the kiss and looked into my eyes.

I slipped my fingers down to her top button of her blouse and fumbled with it.

"What are you doing?"

"Just two," I said, releasing the second button. I realized I couldn't see any cleavage yet, so I did one more.

"Hey," she complained.

I began caressing the freshly exposed skin.

"Pamela," she said.

"What are we doing on our third date?" I asked her.

"You're coming to my house and we're cooking together." She paused. "We'll discuss recipes ahead of time."

I caressed her skin and quietly asked her, "Do you intend to seduce me?"

"Do you want me to?"

I undid another button. She caught my hand. "Honey," she said. "You're getting me more worked up than I would prefer."

I looked at her in confusion. "This isn't what you want from me? It's what I want."

"It is what I want, but I want it when I can act on it."

I sighed. "Have I answered your question?"

She smiled. "Yes."

I lowered my hand from her neck and snuggled into her. She kissed the top of my head while wrapping her arms around me. We sat quietly for a while, snuggling, before she said, "I need to go, honey."

"I know." I held onto her more tightly.

"You're making this difficult," she said.

"I'm very naughty," I told her.

She growled at me a little. I looked up at her in shock. She was offering a look that could best be described as predatory. "I can't believe you just asked for a spanking."

"Who said anything about a spanking?"

She pulled me into another kiss, and there was no doubting what she wanted. Her tongue explored me deeply, insistently, and I mewled into the kiss.

Finally she broke the kiss, and she was breathing hard.

"I'm sorry, Pamela, but I have to go or I won't go at all."

"You could stay," I told her quietly.

"We're not doing that until after your third date with Gwendolyn."

I sighed and slipped away from her. She stood up and pulled me to my feet. At the door, she grabbed her coat and hugged me, but I didn't get another kiss. She slipped out the door, and I watched as she climbed into her car and drove away.

I closed the door and found my phone. It was way too late to call Sam, but I sent her a text. "Two AM. Call me at ten, if you can."

It took a long time to fall asleep.

I woke much earlier than I intended. Groggy, I stepped into the shower and cleared the cobwebs from my brain.

Gwendolyn would call me today, asking me to have a meal with her. I had told her our third date would be me cooking for her, but I decided I was in a mood to cook, even if it was something simple. When I stepped out of the shower, I dried off and brushed my hair, then put a robe on and went to the kitchen. I started making bread dough.
Once it was rising, I dried my hair and got dressed.

Sam called right at ten.
"How was Chicago?"

"You knew?"

"Yep."

"It was amazing. She took me dancing. Did you tell her?"

"Nope. Not a word."

"Sam, I am still so confused. I tried to get her to seduce me when we got home."

"Only tried?"

"She told me to behave, that we weren't going down that path until I've had my third date with Gwendolyn."

I told her all the details. When I got done, she said, "My advice? Let whatever is going to happen, happen. If it feels okay, don't worry about all the labels. If it doesn't, then put a stop to it. Moira will understand."

"All right. Sam," I said. "Do you know if Bonnie has some sort of crush on me?"

She laughed. "Of course she does."

"You laugh about it?"

"Pamela, she's been trying to seduce you for six years. You didn't think there was a reason for it?"

"I thought she was teasing. Oh sure, if I'd ever given in, she'd have had my clothes off in an instant, but I thought it was mostly just
a game she was playing with me."

"She and I haven't talked about it. If you're going to go down that path with Gwendolyn or Moira, though, you probably need to talk to Bonnie yourself."

I sighed. "I'll call her and ask her to come over tomorrow."

We talked for a few more minutes, then my phone rang. It was Gwendolyn. "Gotta go, Sam."

I switched over to Gwendolyn. "Good morning," I said to her.

"Good morning, Pamela. It's Gwendolyn."

We talked for a few minutes before she said, "I'd like to take you to lunch."

"Gwendolyn," I said. "I've changed my mind."

"Oh," she said quietly.

"I have cinnamon rolls rising, and I was hoping you would come over and help me eat them."

I heard her smile over the phone. "Can I bring anything?"

"Just yourself. This will be lunch and a little conversation, then I'll chase you out.
Come whenever you like."

"I'll leave shortly," she said. We talked for another minute then hung up.

I gave the house a once-over. Everything was ready for a guest. The rolls were ready to bake whenever I wanted, so I worked on them and slipped them into the oven.

I made a salad and pulled out a salmon filet. I prepared it for cooking on the stove, then sat down and waited for Gwendolyn to arrive.

I was checking email when she rang the bell. I opened it with a smile. She was in jeans and a blouse. I held the door open, then immediately after closing it, stepped into her arms. She wrapped her arms around me, and I lifted my chin for a kiss.

There was a pause, then she kissed me. It was brief. I opened my eyes and looked at her. "What was that?"

"That was restraint," she said.

"Not rejection?"

"No, definitely not rejection."

"All right." I took her hand and pulled her to the kitchen, then made her sit on a stool. "You may have tea, coffee, water, or a diet soda."

"What are you having?"

"Coffee now. I'll switch to water with lunch."

"Perfect. Milk or cream?"

"I have both. I keep them for cooking."

"Cream then, if you can spare it."

I got her settled in and told her the plan. We talked for a while, and then it was time to take the rolls out of the oven. I put on an oven mitt and pulled them out, then while they were still hot, began adding the frosting.

"You really made those yourself?"

"Yes. They aren't at all difficult."

I finished frosting them, then grabbed two small plates and dished a roll up for each of us. I slid hers in front of her then sat down kitty corner from her.

"It's hot," I warned her.

She used her fingers and pulled off a bite, blew on it, and slid it into her mouth. She began to smile and made appreciative noises.