Mia seemed to like her new game. Now, as they moved boxes, Mia and Ellie kissed behind the ute at the end of every trip.

Ellie loitered around back there, waiting for Mia, giving Mia opportunities, and Mia took the chance, a lot. Enough that Ellie’s lips felt tender and well-kissed. Enough her chest was tingly, her heartbeat fast. They kissed while pretending to rearrange a box, kissing while Mia pretended to tug on a carton somewhere in the back. They kissed while pretending to be fetching water out of the cab, or checking for phone messages, or seeing how much fuel was left.

They were getting closer to something happening, Ellie thought. Mia was pushing Ellie, tempting her, and Ellie was getting a bit desperate with all the waiting. Something was building up between then, building almost inevitably. Something was going to happen, Ellie knew, even though she wasn’t quite sure what.

The obvious thing, more sex right here behind the ute, couldn’t actually be what Mia planned. Not there, in the driveway, in full view of the street. Mia couldn’t be that willing to take chances, Ellie thought, even though she couldn’t work out where else they could go.

She kept carrying boxes, and kissing Mia, and touching her, and in the end, eventually didn’t really care. She wanted Mia. That was all. She was lost in Mia. She wanted to touch Mia, to feel Mia. She’d do anything Mia wanted her to, if Mia only asked.

Ellie started groping Mia more determinedly, while they kissed. She started touching back a lot more than she had been.

She slid her hands over Mia’s body, down her hips, up her arms. She reached up, as they kissed, and found Mia’s hair, and pulled her fingers through it gently. Pulled, so Mia’s hairtie came out slowly, and Ellie felt her hair come free, to tickle her hand.

Tickle Ellie’s hand, and then her face as they kissed. Like it had the day at the market.

Later, feeling even more brave, Ellie stuck her hand up Mia’s top and grabbed something that was probably a bra. She had no idea, and felt silly for not being sure, felt embarrassed as soon as she’d done it. Then Mia did it back, and kind of stroked the bare skin right underneath of Ellie’s, and Ellie went breathless and weak and decided she’d done the right thing after all.

Then Mia kissed Ellie with her leg between Ellie’s. Pressing on Ellie, in the way Ellie desperately wanted her to, but was embarrassed to admit she did. Mia’s leg, which even thinking about turned Ellie on, sliding against Ellie, against her shorts, pressing her closer to something.

Ellie didn’t care any more. She didn’t care about anything except Mia’s mouth, and hands, and where Mia was touching her.

They kept kissing, between breathless pauses to carry boxes, until, after one trip, they started to kiss and just didn’t stop again.

Several minutes passed. Mia seemed to have forgotten about getting boxes, and Ellie wasn’t going to remind her. Mia slid her hand into Ellie’s shorts, slid in her special, particular way, her fingers spread on Ellie’s tummy, under her shirt, just touching and kissing, while Ellie waited, breathless. Then the sliding downwards. The sliding that filled Ellie’s world, and made everything about this perfect. Feeling Mia’s fingertips over her skin, down her tummy, into her undies, then slippery against her.

Ellie sighed, and closed her eyes, and leaned her forehead on Mia’s shoulder. She put her arms around Mia, and just stood there for a moment

Mia was kissing her. Mia was stroking her, was slipping the very tip if her finger into Ellie.

She was fingering Ellie again, and Ellie was doing nothing to her except stand there.

Ellie suddenly decided that wasn’t fair. It had been going on long enough. She didn’t want Mia to stop, but she had to say something, to make sure Mia knew this wasn’t just going to be Mia getting Ellie off, and then grinning at her.

Not this time.

“Wait,” Ellie said, into Mia’s mouth.

Mia kept kissing Ellie.

“I get to do you this time, all right?” Ellie said.

Mia stopped, and looked at Ellie, and grinned. “We’ll see.”

“I have to,” Ellie said. “I really do.”

“We’ll see.”

“It isn’t fair.”

Mia grinned some more. And Ellie looked at her, and couldn’t decide if she was serious.

“This is some kind of plot to make me desperate for you, isn’t it?” Ellie said. “Like keep saying no until I beg to do you?”

Mia seemed to think that was funny. “Sure,” she said. “It’s that.”

She moved her fingers, slid them further. Slid along Ellie, all slippery and clever, like she had at the market. She kissed Ellie’s neck, and slid with her fingers, and Ellie felt her go a little way inside and had never wanted anything so much.

Ellie gave up. She didn’t care enough about being fair she was going to stop Mia right now. She closed her eyes, and put her arms around Mia, and kissed her more carefully, feeling everything Mia was doing.

She kissed, until Mia stepped back and took her hand away.

Ellie opened her eyes, dismayed.

“I’d better get another carton,” Mia said. And grinned her grin.

Ellie stood there, astonished, as Mia walked away. “Seriously?” she called after Mia.

“We’re moving house,” Mia said, and kept walking. “We’re meant to be doing this.”

Almost as if she’d forgotten the last few minutes.

Ellie couldn’t decide if Mia was serious. She almost thought Mia was, that she somehow got so turned on she’d had a memory lapse. Until, halfway there, Mia wiped her hand on the back of her shirt quickly, and then looked back and grinned at Ellie.

She was just playing her games.

Ellie leaned on the ute, and stayed where she was. She didn’t bother doing any carrying herself, because her knees were shaking too much. Mia would be back in a moment.

Ellie waited, and Mia was.

Mia came back outside, carrying a box, and put it on the back of the ute. Ellie watched her. Mia put it down, then turned around and went back inside.

“Fuck,” Ellie said. “Dude…”

Mia ignored her.

Mia came back out again, and walked towards the ute. This time, she walked the other way around it to reach the back. The longer way, past Ellie, completely unnecessarily. Grinning.

Ellie grabbed her. She couldn’t wait. She pulled Mia over, and grabbed the box, and put it on the ground, and kissed her again.

“Where’s your hand?” she whispered in Mia’s ear, and Mia slid it back inside her shorts.

Ellie had asked. She felt proud. She felt brave. She was pleased she was doing this, learning to say what she wanted. To insist.

She felt proud, and she felt good too. Of course she felt good, with Mia fingering her.

She closed her eyes, and leaned on Mia, and didn’t even have the concentration to kiss.

And after another moment, Mia let her go, and stepped back, and went back inside.

Ellie almost hit her.