Carnal Rites by Ines Johnson (learn to read books .TXT) 📕

"No, silly girl. This is a huge step closer to artificial insemination. Soon there will be no need for copulation at all."

10

The sun's rays lapped at Merlyn's cheek trying to pull her from the depths of sleep and into the dawn. Merlyn fought against the current and burrowed under her sheets. From beneath the covers, a warm hand slid behind her head. She felt each of the five fingers envelop the nape of her neck. The smallest finger crested at the tip of her ear. The thumb curved at her throat. The three fingers in the middle banded together to tilt her head up.

Merlyn went with the flow. She ceased to wonder how this was possible while she was alone in her bedroom. She went beyond a quest for understanding or data collection. She met warm lips. Her eyes were closed, which allowed the feelings and sensations to show clearly in her mind.

Warmth.

Softness.

Wetness.

Throbbing.

Need.

Her lips parted and, in her mind, a tongue seeped through, breaking the dam of desire she never knew welled inside her. Merlyn marveled at the softness of his lips and the firmness of his fingers. Her legs parted, heels digging into the mattress. But a second later, she pressed her legs together. Why were they pressing together when she wanted to open herself wide to him?

Friction.

Her legs pressed together seeking friction to relieve the tension rising inside her. Her hands reached out to bring Jaspir to her. Merlyn arched her body. Her hands reached out but came up with air.

He moaned her name. The sound crashed into her knees, which knocked together so hard her toes rang. Then she realized it wasn't Jaspir's voice, it was Liam's.

In her mind's eye, Merlyn saw Liam's red curls tangled in her fingers. Liam's pale thighs entwined with her brown legs. "We've done it," he said with a grin on his face, a gleam in his eyes.

The haze, that a moment ago clouded Merlyn's head, cleared. She sank into the depths of the tepid waters alongside Liam. A sense of peace, no, victory washed over her. The fingers of Liam's free hand twined with hers, linking them together. With her hand in his, Merlyn felt strong, united. She looked into his clear, capable, steady eyes. The victorious feeling in the crown of her head grew, pushing at the borders of her brain, seeking to expand. Like the waters, it did not want to be contained. Merlyn leaned her body into Liam, allowing his hand, which still held her neck, to command their course.

Liam allowed her head to fall back. Merlyn gasped as she met another set of warm lips at the nape of her neck. The lips traveled up to her ear. This time Jaspir's voice whispered to her. "I will love you every day of my life."

Merlyn's thighs scissored together seeking relief. Her body arched back to meet Jaspir's. Her heart pounded rapidly in her chest. Her breath came out in pants as he continued to nibble at her ear, her throat, her cheek. Her body felt immersed in hot springs. Searing water burned her skin where his lips touched her; a branding she'd first come to know as a girl.

When Liam's mouth crushed hers once more, Merlyn felt pulled in two different directions. Liam's fingers, supporting her head as he kissed her mouth, made her feel invincible. Jaspir's hands, tracing a blazing trail from her heart southward, set her on fire.

Merlyn awoke in a tangle of sheets. She bolted straight up, panting, and looking wildly around the room. Her body was on fire, her mind awhirl. After a few moments of deep breathing, she crashed back onto the mattress.

Now that her mind was her own again, she did a mental scan of her symptoms.

Her heart raced.

She panted. She felt the uptick of her flaring nostrils.

Her palms sweat, along with other parts of her anatomy.

Nearly every system of her body was currently engaged. Jaspir had said he felt this way every time he thought of her. Merlyn now feared for his health. The body needed to maintain a level of homeostasis, stability, and equilibrium to function normally. This love situation continually caused disturbance. This love business could take a physical toll on the body.

But who were these symptoms in response to? Jaspir or Liam?

Liam's kiss was so similar to Jaspir's. He made her feel all the same things that Jaspir had. Did that mean she loved Liam now? Or did she only love Jaspir when she was with him? But that had been a dream just now. But then, she'd been dreaming of them both and experiencing the indications of love. But could you love more than once person at the same time?

Merlyn threw off the covers. She went to her closet. Her monochrome wardrobe stared back at her. In the back of the closet was a dress Alyss had gotten for her. It was a deep purple dress with white stripes along the bodice. Merlyn reached for the dress. It was completely impractical to wear in the lab.

She put it on and went to her mirror.

She looked nothing like herself. The purple complimented the earthy brown of her skin. The stripes along the bodice slimmed her waist, making her hips look curvier than they actually were. Merlyn hesitated, hands braced to pull the garment over her head.

She let the material fall back into place and headed out of the door.

Like every other morning of her life, Merlyn walked down the hallway. The pictures of the great women of science seemed to smile back at her today. If her trials proved successful, she might join them in their place of honor one day. The thought put a pep in Merlyn's step.

When she got to the lab, a flash of red hair bent over a work table stopped her in her tracks. She couldn't face Liam. Not after their kiss. Not after her dream. She turned and hurried for the front door,