The shower beckons, luring me in with her seductive wrap of warm steam. I let the water pour into the palm of my hand, promising a few uninterrupted minutes.

That’s when I catch my phone light up with a number I don’t recognize. I pause, not really caring to answer, but the vibrations on the second ring bring it too close to the sink's edge. The third sends it over, bringing with it a tangled knot of earbuds. 

By instinct, I scramble, naked, to snatch them mid-tumble, and in the process, I inadvertently swipe the answer button. ‘Fuck.’

Slightly annoyed, I slip one of the earbuds in. “Hello?”

“Hi.” That one word already has me captivated. I look back to my phone somewhat addled.

“It’s been a while.” My words tremble off the shower tile as I reach in and shut off the water.

“I know.” Her voice is soft but unmistakable.

“Where are you?“

“I’m still where you left me.” I hear her sigh so I wait a long second before I answer. 

“I didn’t leave you.” 

“I know, I’m teasing.” This time her voice is sharp, quick. “I think… I don’t know, I guess I just wanted to hear your voice.” 

“So you found the book?”

“Book? No, I bribed Cam to find your number after you left. He’s not the easiest nut to crack but the sleuthing seems to amuse him.” There’s a slight pause. “What book?”

“Nothing.” With the shower off, the steam begins to dissipate, taking with it the warmth. I grab a towel and wrap it around my waist, “So, you’ve been holding onto my number this long?”

“Yeah.” 

“Are you and Thea sti-” 

“Don’t.”   

“What?” I’m relieved when she doesn't answer. 

“Can we not talk about that, not sure how much time I have… and I don’t want to spend it that way.”

There’s a pause while I try and find my next words. “I guess I’m just surprised to hear from you.” 

“Did you not want me to-”

“I wanted you... I wanted to hear from you.” 

“Good.”

The subtle sound of a finger paddling through water catches my ear. “What are you doing over there?”

“I’m currently surrounded by candles, soaking in a hot bath.”

“I never understood the appeal of a bath.” 

“That’s because you've never taken one with me.” Her voice is low, sultry. “Tell me what you are doing. Did I interrupt you?” 

“I was about to shower... ”  

“Seems our timing is still perfectly synced.” 

“I can tell you’re smiling.” I could hear it in her tone.  

“Why wouldn't I be. Your voice always made me smile. That hasn’t changed.” 

“Good, because now I’m wearing one.” Reaching over, I click the little lock on the bathroom door, knowing no matter what this is, I don’t want to be interrupted. 

“Is that all you’re wearing?” Her voice drops to a new level of sensuous. 

“Maybe.” Turning around, I look at my empty tub. I tuck the corner of the towel tighter like it’s going to stop wherever this conversation is going. “So, tell me about your bath.”

“It’s wet. What else would you like to know?”

“All of it.”  

“Like?”

“Like,” My eyes close and remember the last time I saw her; in an oversized T-shirt with those black lace panties. “Does the water cover everything?” 

”Nope. My toes are sticking out.”

“Oh?” The thoughts playing in my head now have those clothes in a pile and her under a blanket of bubbles.

“My nipples, too.” 

”Is the water warm?” I hear the faint melody of a song that I know well playing in the background.  

“Just as warm as that night.”

“You remember?” My heart skips that familiar beat knowing she remembers, and the throb I also know so well follows suit. 

“Did you forget?”

“Never.”

She starts to hum softly along to the song.

“Rhye, Wasted…” I answer. "Is that the Ry X remix version?”

“Yep. Impressive.” Her voice is whisper-like, almost fading lighter with each syllable.  

“Someone once pointed out the importance of a lyric. I have been paying better attention ever since.” My voice warms, “Tell me what you’re thinking.” 

“I’m thinking that I can't get you out of my thoughts. Your eyes, your body, your lips...“ There is a pause and a slight rippling of water.  

“Now that I know what you’re thinking about, tell me what your hand is up to?”

“It’s under the water at the moment.”

“Yea? And what is it doing under the water?”

“Getting wet.”

“Just from the water?” 

“That’s up to you…” Her voice trails off at the end, leading into another soft sigh.  

“Is that so?” I slip the other earbud in, focusing my attention on every little detail, every little sound that surrounds her, wanting to feel her at this moment. 

“How often do you think about it, about that time with the pillow between us.” 

“More than you know.”

“I'm thinking of it right now, Ay. I remember the way your hand felt against my thigh, the warmth of your touch, the way you smelled, the softness in your voice.” There's a subtle sound, like her movements are causing gentle waves to kiss off her skin. “The way you took control. I miss that moment.”  

I close my eyes and I’m back in that hotel room, the memory of her still so vivid as she lay on the other side of that pillow. We both felt the connection, the tension, the temptations, but it wasn’t our time. That pillow was the only thing that saved us from mutual destruction of the lives we held outside that room. “There's no pillow between us now.” 

“No,” she giggles and I feel myself wanting to melt. “Just a lot of miles and this phone.”

“Then it’s a good thing for technology, eh.”

“Mhmm… but if you were here right now.” 

“What? What if I was in that bathtub with-” 

“You'd be sitting behind me. I'd be leaning back into you, feeling your nipples harden against me as I lead your hand."

“Lead it where?” I reach for the volume on the earbuds, turning it up. If I can’t watch it, I want to hear how each word slips from between her lips. 

“Where my fingers are currently headed.”

“And what would I feel along my way?“

“The blended warmth of my skin mixed with the bathwater… The gentle rise and lower of my chest as my breathing begins to hasten.” 

I turn back to my reflection, slightly hidden behind the partially fogged-up mirror. Waiting. Longing for her voice to continue pulling me in. Pulling me back to that night we shared our first intimate moment. It wasn’t much. A touch here, a whisper there. A kiss. But, it is a moment I will never forget.

“You’d feel my heartbeat pounding, coursing blood to my nipples, to my clit.” There is a slight hesitation mixed with a sigh. My own heart begins to pound... clit begins to throb. “You’d feel exactly what my fingers are feeling right this second...”

As that last word leaves her lips, I reach forward to wipe a streak of fog off the mirror. The towel fold presses into the edge of the sink, pushing it against my heat. I watch my pupils dilate as her words, laced with moans, flow through the line. 

“I’d let your hand break free from mine as I push up to cradle my tits,” she continues, “Your fingers would slither across my silky skin, coming to rest on something freshly shaved.” There’s another slight splash of water, the sound of a hand stroking through it. 

“And what would my fingers do when they reached their destination?” I know damn well that they’d do, but I want to hear her say it. I need to know it’s in her head too. I grip the side of the sink and unknowingly rock my hips against the ceramic, waiting for her answer. 

“They would be free to do whatever they wanted.” 

A silent but exaggerated fuuuck escapes my lips. “I like the thought of that,” I can almost feel that smooth peach under my fingertips, then I realize they are wandering down my stomach. “The thought of exploring.”

“I want you to explore,” another sigh comes from her. “If you knew how-”

“To feel that distinction in viscosity between the water and your velvety wet walls.” I close my eyes and inhale slowly, remembering her scent. Opening them, I see the tub in the mirror's reflection and smile.

“I want to feel you, want you to take control while my ass wiggles back into you.” That last word escapes in a breath.

“To feel that skin on skin-” I take the two steps to the faucet and turn on the water after putting the drain-stop down. 

“As you pull me back against you. Ayla, I don't think you understand.”

“I do. I understand you would feel what you do to me as my hard nipples still press against your back.”

No reply, just that moan. 

The sound that just came from the other end of the call makes my knees weak and I find myself slinking down and leaning back against the tub as it slowly fills. “How I want to curl my fingers deep.” My fingertips are already finding their way under the towel as I slide further down. “To seek out your most tender spots.” 

“You’d know,” A sharp gasp comes from her, ”The way I'd push down, wanting to feel you inside, wanting your fingers to fill me.” 

“First one...“ My fingers slip under the towel and trace along a drip on my inner thigh. “Then a second…” I let out a gasp as I feel just how wet I am. “In and out, teasing.”

Her end goes silent, just the sound of heavy breathing and whimpers. I know she's playing. My two fingers spread my lips as my middle gathers a bit of my juices, pressing them against my swollen nub. The thought of one hand fucking her while the other wraps over her shoulder to hold her tightly has me soaring closer to the edge. 

Then, as I swirl that finger across my clit, I hear it. A whisper, barely audible; my breath hitches to catch it.

“Mark me, Ay.”

Visualizing her slender body squirming as the water splashes from the tub, I drag a second finger with a pop across my sensitive button. 

“Fuck,” she continues with more vigour. “Tell me how you would trace your teeth against my ne-”

“Leaving small nips as I find that spot. The place to leave my mark.” I can almost taste her flesh as I trace my tongue over my lips. 

“Yours.”

“Mine.” The word pours out in a growl, matter of fact.

“Ayl-” Is all I hear before I lose her again, but in my mind, she's still in my clutches. 

My tub is almost full and I can see her outline under the water. Her tits so perfectly pert, legs spread and pressing to either side of the basin.  “Abby,” I can't stop the murmur of her name from slipping out as my fingertips tease the entrance of my pussy. Just as I am about to plunge…

“Fuck, I need to go.” I can tell she’s startled and straightened up by the sharp splash and quick tone in her voice. “I’m sorry.”

“I know.”

There's a pause on her end, followed by that smokey whisper, “Think of me when you finish.”

“Only if you think of me when you do…”

“Always...” One word has me smiling despite her leaving me dangling on the edge. That ‘always’ sounded like truth, and I didn’t need to be staring into her eyes to know it was. 

“Always,” I reply before the other end goes quiet. ‘Always.’ I repeat it in my head; the earbuds still in, long after the line goes dead. 

Breathing heavy, I lean my head back against the cold ceramic of the tub and let out a sigh of frustration. It’s surprisingly cool and feels good, soothing against my heated skin. I watch the steam gather above, swirling and replay the last few words that slipped from her lips before abruptly hanging up. 

A knock at the bathroom door worms its way into the visual I have of me and her in the tub surrounded by candles and soft music-

“Babe?!” My girlfriend sounds annoyed, again. “What’s taking you so long? You know I have to get ready.”

“Yea... “ Sitting up, I bring myself to sit on the edge of the tub. I reluctantly pull the earbuds out and roll them onto the vanity. The finality of the moment weights on my chest, but I cling to the hope that it’s not the last time I’ll hear from Abby.

“When did you start taking baths, I’ve asked you plenty of times- ” The barrage is not unwarranted, just at the moment, unwanted.  

As I drown out the voice that wasn’t hers, I drop the towel.

“I’ve been thinking about them more and more.” I swing my legs over the edge and slide my body into the water. My head sinks below the steamy surface as my fingers wander and sink somewhere even warmer.