An Indispensable Woman Ch. 03

The orgasm came on in a rush.

"Look at me," Dani gasped. "I want to see your eyes."

Amara locked her eyes on Dani's as her tongue worked in a frenzy. And then the pleasure exploded, roaring and rippling outward from her core. For a few glorious seconds there was only ecstasy and Amara's lovely face.

Gasping for breath, Dani released Amara's hair. The other woman continued to moan and lick, still lost in powerful feelings of her own. Dani quickly repositioned herself, stretching out on the couch on her side, facing Amara. They kissed deeply and Dani could taste her own arousal on those lips, could feel Amara's urgency. She slid her fingers into Amara's soaking slit. Amara moaned, bent her knees and raised her hips.

"I loved your gift," Dani whispered. "Is there something I can give you in return?"

"Yes...please."

Dani slid two fingers into Amara's tight channel as far as they would go, then pulled back and pushed them in again.

"Tell me what you want."

Amara kissed her, hungry and demanding. Dani continued to work her fingers in and out at a leisurely pace, a delicious torment.

"Fingers," Amara hissed. "Hard. Please..."

Dani kissed her. Amara raised one leg and rested her foot on the top of the couch, spreading herself, opening herself for Dani's attention.

Dani began to pick up speed, curling her fingers a little on each out-stroke, and was rewarded with moans and cries and gasps. Amara's hips writhed and squirmed under her touch. Her hand was behind Dani's head, pulling her in for sloppy, open-mouth kisses. Their combined scents were everywhere, the juicy smacking sound of Dani's fingers in Amara's soaking pussy seemed to fill the den.

Suddenly the squirming stopped and Amara's body went rigid, her sex tightened around Dani's pounding fingers. A strangled cry forced its way from deep inside the other woman and a brief stream of hot wetness soaked Dani's wrist and the palm of her hand. Amara's pussy began a series of rapid contractions and she closed her legs, trapping Dani's hand between them.

After a moment Amara kissed her again but it was gentle, loving. The hunger had been sated, the urgency was gone.

"I think I made a mess," Amara said with a smile that was both exhausted and contented at the same time.

"Yeah," Dani said, then kissed the side of her neck. "Let's leave it for the maid to deal with."

**

"Read me this one," Anne said, handing Dani a book with a big purple blob on the cover. The blob had two eyes and two stick-like arms.

Day one of her babysitting gig was going well. She'd dropped Amara off at work, taken the kid to the park and pushed her on the swing, then to the grocery store. They'd had sandwiches for lunch, Anne had taken a nap while Dani finished a load of laundry and washed the dishes, and now it was story time. All according to plan so far.

"We say 'please', remember?" Dani said, trying to mimic Amara's patient, gentle tone.

"Pleeeeeeeease," Anne said, clearly knowing how to play the game.

The little girl climbed up on her lap, an Dani opened the book.

"Okay. The book is called...The...Purple...um..."

"Dinosaur," Anne finished, impatient to be underway.

"Right." Dani hoped there weren't too many hard words in this book. It was aimed at three-year-olds, right? It couldn't be THAT hard. "There was a purple...dinosaur...that lived in the sea. One day he asked his mom for a toy..."

"Do the dinosaur's voice different. He's a boy."

"Gotcha," Dani said, then continued. "He said 'my...um...friends all have toy boots-"

"Boats," Anne said.

"...Boats. Could you buy me one for...uh...oh, wow..."

"Dino-Christmas!"

Dani forced a smile, then messed Anne's hair affectionately. "You're so smart! You're helping me read this book!"

The kid smiled, then grew serious. "But read it the right way, okay?"

"Yeah, of course," Dani said, then took a deep breath and continued. "His mom said...uh...Dino-Christmas is not until...hmm..."

"December!"

"Of course...just like real Christmas, right?"

Anne slid off her lap. "Let's play Princess Barbie."

"But...well...sure, okay. Be right there," Dani said as the girl wandered out of the living room.

Dani flipped through the book, trying to read it through in her head. On almost every page she stumbled over a word she didn't recognize. She'd managed to memorize the way many words looked, but a lot of the words in The Purple Dinosaur were new to her. And some – like Dino-Christmas – weren't even real words at all.

She finished the book and sat back on the couch, disbelief and anxiety rising up inside her. Was she really that stupid? She couldn't read a picture book to a three-year-old? She was relieved that Amara hadn't been around to witness her failure – how pathetic would that have been? Would Amara even want someone so useless to babysit her daughter? At least Mrs. Hannah could help Anne learn to read!

The anxiety turned to fear as Dani saw for the first time the massive gulf that separated her from Amara. Amara was smart and professional and educated; it made sense that she'd want a partner with the same qualities. Dani had been able to compensate with hard work and attentiveness but that could only take her so far. Sooner or later, Amara would desire more than just housework and childcare, and then what?

"Dani!" Anne called from her bedroom.

She pushed herself off the couch, resigned to an hour of Princess Barbie.

There had to be a solution; some way to make it work with Amara. If she wanted the relationship to last, she'd have to find a way to raise her game. Dani filled herself with determination to do whatever it took. She wouldn't re-live the heartbreaks of the past. This time would be different!

There was an adult education center near her house; she'd looked into getting her diploma there a while back. Maybe a diploma was too ambitious give the time constraints – Amara needed her around the house and Dani needed a job – but surely she could squeeze in a few hours a week for some literacy classes, right? They were held in the evenings; there had to be some way to work the schedule so she could attend. And once she knew how to read, Dani could do the rest herself, learn on her own time, maybe raise herself up to Amara's level, or something close to it.

She resolved to make some calls, then speak to Amara about it that night.

**

There was an uncomfortable silence.

Dani had presented her plan – literacy classes Monday and Tuesday evening from four until seven. She'd need Amara to get off work early those days, probably around three-thirty. Dani would pick Amara up at work and Amara would drop Dani off at the literacy centre. Dani would take the bus back to the house when it was done.

Dani had expected some reluctance – she knew how Amara felt about having her work day curtailed. It had been an effort to get her to cut back to fifty-eight hours a week! Trimming a further four hours would be a hard sell.

"Well," Amara said, her words slow and careful, "I think going back to school is an excellent idea, and I totally support it. More than support it – I really admire you for wanting to improve. Life-long learning is so important..."

"But?"

There was another silence.

"It's just...we've got the senior management meeting Mondays from three to five. And the HRIS steering committee meets at three-thirty on Tuesday. The committee has twenty people – trying to find another time when they're all available will be practically impossible. And I have to be there; I'm the chairperson, and the project is WAY behind schedule as it is...and it's high-profile. If it sinks, the senior management team will be asking some pointed questions about my leadership."

Dani was quiet as she considered. She'd made it her mission to help Amara hit her goals to be a good mother and excel at her career. Amara was working hard at both, and had already given up a lot in response to Dani's demands. It didn't seem fair to ask her to damage her career; not when Dani had said all along she wanted to help her.

"Huh. Well...I suppose school can wait. I mean, it's waited this long, right?" Dani tried to make her voice sound light and forced a half-smile.

Amara took Dani's hand, raised it to her lips and kissed the palm. Her smile looked apologetic.

"Okay, how about this...the HRIS system should be live by the end of October, mid-November at the latest. No more HRIS meetings. As soon as that's done, I'll have the political capital to convince senior management to re-schedule their meeting to later in the week. That frees up Monday and Tuesday. You can pick me up at three, bring me home and then YOU can keep the car to go to and from class. How about that? Can you put off school for another three, maybe three and a half months?"

"Yeah. I can do that," Dani said, trying to suppress the low-level anxiety that accompanied the delay. It's not like there was a huge urgency to start right away, right? Things with Amara were strong, the relationship was in a good place. So far, anyway.

Amara's smile turned grateful. "Thank you. I'm sorry to have to pile so much work on to you. But where I am right now...you're just so important to me. You're like the keystone in my life; without you here everything would just crumble."

"I'm glad I'm helping."

"I need a little more time to handle things and then I promise it will be your turn." Amara kissed her hand again, then hugged it to her cheek.

**

"To your successful first week with Anne!" Amara said, raising the wine glass.

Dani clinked the glass with her own, then took a small sip. White wine had never been her favourite even when she'd been a drinker, but she'd humoured Amara by taking half a glass.

The two of them were on the loveseat together, Dani in her cotton nightshirt and Amara in pink panties, a matching half-camisole and a silk robe that ended mid-thigh. A Friday-night crime drama was showing on TV but neither of them were paying attention.

"We both survived," Dani said with a half-smile. In truth, babysitting had been challenging and exhausting, but by the end of the week it was beginning to get easier to look after the energetic kid.

"She can't stop talking about the petting zoo," Amara said. "Taking her was a great idea!"

"I never saw anyone get so excited about rabbits."

"She's already asking for one for Christmas."

"Heh. Kids."

"She really likes you."

"She's a good kid. Lots of spirit."

"Oh – and I have more good news. The pilot unit for the HRIS project went live successfully," Amara said.

"Does that mean the project is back on schedule?"

"Yes!"

Dani couldn't help smiling at how delighted Amara sounded. "Well that's something to toast, then." She raised her wine and forced down another mouthful.

Amara's smile faded and she grew suddenly serious. "I couldn't have done it without you, Dani. Without you here looking after Anne and the house, looking after ME..."

"Oh, come on. You'd have found a way."

Amara shook her head. "I don't think so. When you met me that first night...I was at the end of my rope. I was done."

Dani was quiet. She felt a little sluggish; she wasn't used to drinking and the wine was getting to her.

Then Amara brightened and chuckled. "Lucky for me you have a thing for older women."

"I do NOT have a 'thing'...and you're not even that old."

"I could be your mother."

"Sometimes I feel like yours," Dani said. It was a good counter, and left Amara temporarily without a comeback. Dani allowed herself a triumphant smile.

"Fine. So what type of woman do you look for?" Amara asked, leaning forward intently.

"You mean what age?"

"Everything. What do you find attractive?"

Dani shrugged. "Same things as everyone else, I guess."

"Oh, no. You're not getting away that easily. I want a peek inside your brain." Amara's expression was almost gleeful, her eyes glassy, her face flushed. Small wonder; she was on her second wine of the evening! That woman could drink.

"Well...I like women who are kind, gentle. That sort of thing."

Amara growled in mock frustration. "You're going to make me drag it out of you? Fine. Let's see...Jessica Haley or Brynn Campbell?"

"What?"

"Which celebrity would you pick?"

"Seriously? We're playing 'would-you-rather'? I played that when I was, like, fifteen."

"Jessica or Brynn. Pick one."

Dani took another sip, then sighed.

"That's not even how you play. You're supposed to make me pick between two bad things, not two good things."

"Okay. Barney the dinosaur, or a Telletubby?"

The mental image caught her off guard and Dani burst into a fit of laughter.

"I love that," Amara said. "Your laugh is so unrestrained."

Dani took another long sip. Somehow, the wine was getting easier to drink with each mouthful.

"So?" Amara said, "It's the Telletubby right?"

"Get real." Dani found herself giggling.

"Okay, okay. A different angle of attack. Tell me about your first true love."

"Why do you want to know that?"

"Well," Amara said, "Maybe I want to know how I stack up. Ever think of that?"

Could that be true? Did Amara see herself moving into that role – as Dani's true love? Or was it just the alcohol talking? Was she dropping a hint or just making a drunken joke? Dani didn't know how seriously to take the words but didn't dare dismiss them carelessly.

She drained the rest of her wine.

"Okay. I was seventeen, working in a hotel as a housekeeper – a maid, basically. Getting paid under the table, so the wages weren't good. But I mean, seventeen, can't read, no fixed address...you take what you can get, right?"

"You were a go-getter even then," Amara said, smiling and rubbing Dani's knee.

"Nah. Just tired of sleeping on the street. Anyway, my boss was Mrs. Remmington. A hard woman – she didn't take shit from anyone. You worked for her, you busted your ass for twelve hours and not a minute less. You gave her any backtalk and you were out of there."

"I know the type."

"Yeah. But she had this soft side, too. Like, if she saw you were doing your best maybe she'd bring you a muffin from the kitchen, or if you were upset or something she'd put you on an easier job like floors or folding. She wanted an honest day's work, but she didn't want to break you, if you know what I mean."

Amara just nodded. She looked like she was paying close attention.

"Anyway, it was my eighteenth birthday, but who cares, right? Just another day. I show up a few minutes early for my six a.m. shift, get changed. Remmington is handing out the work assignments, and I don't get one. Everyone else leaves the room to start work and I'm there alone with her, figuring I'm getting canned on my birthday. Instead, she gives me this box, wrapped in paper with a nice bow and everything. A really nice necklace – better than anything I've ever had. She..." Dani stopped as sudden emotion erupted inside her. Where had that come from? It had been years ago!

"It meant a lot to you," Amara said with a gentle smile and stroked Dani's cheek as the younger woman fought for control. No way she was going to cry right here in front of Amara! It took her a few moments to put her emotions in check.

"Fuck...I shouldn't drink. I'm getting all sloppy."

"Not at all. It's beautiful that it touched you so much."

"No one had remembered my birthday in...well, forever. But here's hard-ass bitch Remmington with a pretty necklace for me. Crazy, right?"

"Not crazy. It's sweet."

"Yeah. After that, I followed her around like a puppy. Washing her car on the weekends, running errands for her, even painting her toenails. I wanted to move in with her, but she wasn't interested. I stayed overnight sometimes, though, when she was in the mood for it. Those were good times."

Dani lapsed into silence. No point in telling about how it all went bad, not with tears already so close to the surface. She got up and grabbed the wine bottle, filled her own glass and topped up Amara's.

"Do you still have the necklace?" Amara asked.

"Sold it."

"That's a shame!"

"Maybe, but rent was due, so...gotta pay the bills somehow."

Amara looked at her without speaking, her eyes intense and probing.

"Okay, so that was me. Now I get to ask you a question," Dani said.

"Wait a minute, we're missing the larger issue here," Amara said.

"What's that?"

"You never told me you could paint toenails! I love having my nails done, but I never have the time. Will you do mine?"

"Geez, shaving your legs, painting your toenails...will I be wiping your ass next?"

"If you want to, but I'm not paying extra for it," Amara said with a goofy grin.

"Do I get to ask my question, or what?"

The other woman smiled. "Sounds fair. Ask anything."

Dani took a moment to think. Amara's question had been personal, and hit close to her heart. Did she dare to ask something like that in return?

"What do you miss most about your husband being here?"

"EX-husband," Amara said, the bitterness in her voice obvious. "I hate what it's doing to Anne. She's confused and I can't help wondering-"

"Hey...no cheating! I asked what YOU miss most. Like, personally."

Amara paused, lost in thought.

"I miss waking up in the middle of the night and knowing he's there, in bed with me. It's really comforting, somehow. Very reassuring to know there's someone there with you in the middle of the night," Amara said with a wistful smile. "It just lets you know you're not alone."

"You're not alone." Dani said, squeezing her leg.

"Believe it or not, just knowing you're in the house makes me feel better."

"Glad I can help."

"I couldn't do this without you. I'd never survive if you-"

"Yeah, yeah. I get it," Dani said with an eye-roll. She continued to stroke Amara's bare leg. "I'll sleep with you."

"What?"

"In your bed. I'll sleep with you from now on." Dani said, surprised by how confident she sounded. It had to be the wine making her reckless.

Amara looked suddenly hesitant. "I'm not sure about that. Anne would see, and I still haven't decided how to explain all this to her..."

"What's to explain? She's three – she doesn't care about any of that stuff."

"No, I suppose not, but...I mean..."

"And when you wake up in the middle of the night, you'll know someone's there. You'll know you're not alone."

Amara met Dani's eyes and a long moment of silence passed.

"I want that," Amara said, her voice a whisper.

Dani slid her fingers up Amara's leg and tickled the soft skin of her inner thigh.

"I can think of a few reasons I'd enjoy waking you up in the middle of the night," she said with a suggestive smile.

"Mmm. Yes, please."

Dani swallowed the rest of her wine, then put the glass on the side table and stood up. Vertigo hit suddenly and she stumbled before steadying herself with a hand on the wall.

"You're drunk," Amara said gleefully. "I never knew you were such a light-weight."

"Not drunk," Dani protested. "Just a little buzzed. It's not the same thing."

"I'm tempted to take advantage of you in your inebriated state." Amara's grin turned wicked.

"No objection here," Dani said with a crooked smile of her own. "Are you going to use those sex toys you keep in the back of your top drawer?"

Amara's eyes went wide and her already flushed complexion went a deeper shade of red. "You were snooping!"

"Nope, just putting away the laundry and found 'em by accident. I have to admit, I was surprised. You seemed like such a good girl..."

"Ugh. Henry bought those during his 'spice up the marriage' phase."

"And after he left, you kept them for...sentimental purposes?" Dani smirked, enjoying Amara's discomfort maybe a little TOO much. It was that sexy blush – she couldn't get enough of it.

"Oh please...I'd forgotten they were there, that's all."