**

“You were rambling on, Carm…”, Shane says, leaning against the fridge and showing her hands into her pockets.
My eyes open wide.
“What?”.
“Yeah, I had a feeling you were boring them stiff”.
I chuckle, silently.
“What the fuck are you talking about, Shane? I mean, I sweated my ass off to make everything perfect for your dinner and you tell me I was rambling on?”, I snap.
She shifts in discomfort, staring at her feet.
“This dinner means a lot to me, you know that. My future depends on those two men there”.
I grimace, crossing my arms and turning away.
“Well, tell your own story next time you care so desperately what everybody thinks”.
“They’re my bosses…”, she states, with a much softer tone.
“Everybody knows that. But it didn’t stop Alice from giving Helena a fingerfucking at dinner”, I retort angrily.
Shane sighs, slowly brushing my back.
“Alice doesn’t care about making new partners. Alice doesn’t care about anything, you know that. She already has a successful job. And she doesn’t have a wife. I do”.
I don’t reply, but her words are slowly melting me.
“You wanna keep living in this apartment?”, she whispers into my ear, “Because you do not buy a house on an ordinary photographer’s salary”.
She kisses my neck and I moan silently.
“At least, not the kind of house that we want”, she adds, quietly.
I turn around and wrap my arms around her neck. I watch her with apologizing eyes.
“Okay, I care what they think”, I admit, “I care, alright? I care. I care about you, I love you”.
Shane smiles brightly and we kiss, moaning into each other’s mouth.
“Shoot me”, she chuckles.
“And that phoney laugh…”.
“That was a genuine laugh…”.
“All right, all right…”, I murmur against her lips, “…Maybe I overdid it”.
Shane kisses the tip of my nose.
“I was just trying to keep things going…”, she whispers, sheepishly.
“God, I hope they didn’t notice what a jerk I am”, I say, blushing.
Shane cups my face.
“You are not a jerk”, she states, honestly.

**

When the guests leave, Shane pulls me towards her wordlessly.
She starts kissing me devilishly, casting out all the tension she was holding in.
I grab the nape of her neck and, with my free hand, I start loosening her tie.
Shane’s hands run across my back, they stop on my ass, cupping it, and then snake under my dress, brushing the rubber bands of my self supporting thigh highs.
“God…”, she pants, “…You’re so damn sexy…”.
I grab onto the collar of her shirt, dragging her towards the bedroom.
“I’ll be even sexier in a minute… When my clothes will be on the floor”, I mutter huskily.
Shane growls in anticipation.