"Listen, Caroline, I'm not sure what the etiquette is here…"

Caroline turns to her, confused. "Etiquette? For what?"

"For this, for…sharing a bed with you when…"

She trails off, looking more uncomfortable than she's ever seen her. She holds back a sigh; she should have known this was a bad idea. In her five years as headmistress there's never been a single member of staff who's been properly comfortable around her, except perhaps Beverley; she should have known that for all Kate's kindness and polite acceptance she'd rather be anywhere but here, stuck in a double room with her boss because some dimwit hotel clerk had found booking two separate rooms completely beyond his abilities.

"I'll call a few hotels, I'll find something."

"No, no, I didn't mean-"

"It's fine, Kate, I should have arranged it the moment we found out about the mix-up."

"That's really not what I meant. Really."

"What did you mean?"

Kate stares at a bedside lamp, fiddling nervously with a button on her cardigan. See what you do to people, she thinks. The sweetest woman in the world and you scare her witless.

"I meant, I don't know what the etiquette is when one of you is…when it's two women sharing and one of you is gay. I didn't know if you knew that about me so I think I'd better just tell you. So now I've told you. I hope it's not a problem but I do understand if it is."

Kate's voice is quiet, nervous, but she's raised her gaze now and is looking straight into Caroline's eyes, her sincerity obvious. Caroline stands still, staring at her until she realizes what she's doing and rips her eyes away. She'd heard the odd rumour about Kate McKenzie's sexuality but always assumed that it was nonsense; God knows the school grapevine came up with all kinds of weird and wonderful ideas that weren't remotely close to the truth. But this one's true. She's gay. Kate's gay.

"Caroline? Can you say something?"

"I, er…of course, er, it's…"

"Can you say something in the form of a sentence?" Kate manages a small smile as she teases her. "Is it going to be a problem?"

"No, no, I shouldn't think so. I mean, of course it isn't, of course not, why would it? We're both adults. Not a problem."

A blush is starting to make its way up her neck; Kate's watching her warily, looking very unconvinced.

"Did you know I was gay when we checked in?"

"Well, no, to be honest, but it really isn't an issue."

"Like I said, I wasn't sure of the etiquette-"

"There's no etiquette required, we're adults and we're perfectly capable of sharing a bed in an adult way. I, um, no, I didn't mean…perfectly capable of sharing a bed without being, er, childish about…anything. That's what I meant."

Kate looks even more worried than before.

"Shall I take this side, is that all right?" Caroline says breezily. "Looks quite comfy I'd say, it's quite a nice room for the price isn't it?"

"That's fine."

"Do you want first dibs on the bathroom? And I'll get myself sorted out here, see if I can fathom the remote control if you want to watch a bit of telly before we go to sleep."

"OK. Thanks."

She gives her what she hopes is a bright and friendly smile, but Kate's smile is half-hearted at best. She has no idea how to fix it so she starts to unpack her bag.

Half an hour later they're lying side by side in their pyjamas watching the news in silence. Kate's so friendly, usually, so chatty, but she's not chatting now and Caroline still hasn't come up with a way to make things better between them. Insisting that she's perfectly relaxed about the situation is clearly not going to work; she's not that good an actress. And talking about her own long-buried sexuality is, as always, completely out of the question. Maybe they should just go to sleep.

"Getting a bit late, isn't it?" she says. "Shall we switch it off?"

"OK."

"We can watch something else if you'd prefer?"

"No, you're right, it's time we turned in."

She turns off the TV and waits for Kate to lie down, her hand on the bedside light.

"Ready?"

"Ready."

The light is turned off and they're plunged into darkness. She slides down in the bed, careful to keep close to the edge, wondering whether she should face away from Kate or if that would make things worse. She settles for lying on her back. There's quiet for a few minutes, just the sound of their breathing and the muted hum of the air conditioning in the background.

"Did you really not know? About me?" Kate says softly.

"No. I didn't. I'd heard a few mutterings about it, but you hear an awful lot of rubbish in my position. Someone once told me in all seriousness that Mr Baxter was a Russian spy."

"Graham Baxter? He wore socks with union jacks on them."

"But that was his cover, you see. Hiding in plain sight."

"Ah. I see."

Her voice sounds a little more relaxed than before; maybe they can manage this after all.

"It really isn't an issue, you know."

"Only before, you seemed…a lot of people wouldn't be comfortable with it."

"A lot of people are phenomenally stupid. That was social ineptitude, you shouldn't mistake it for anything more sinister."

"Ineptitude's a good word."

"Thank you, I thought so too."

"I'm glad. I'm glad that we're OK."

"Me too."

There's quiet again, although the tension in the air has more or less gone. She might actually get some sleep tonight.

"Caroline?"

"Mm?"

"Would it be…I'm not sure if it would be appropriate, but I'd like…"

Her heart picks up speed. Has she seen through her already? There's some radar, isn't there, a sixth sense, where some gay people can tell that you're that way inclined…she's always hidden it so well, but maybe her reaction earlier on has given it away…

"I'd like to say, there's been something on the grapevine about you lately-"

Oh Jesus Christ in heaven, does everyone know? How the hell would they have found out, she hasn't so much as kissed a woman in 25 years?

"- and I wanted to say that I was sorry to hear about the divorce, about John."

"Oh right, right, thank you. That's nice of you." She breathes a quiet sigh of relief. Of course she would have heard about John.

"It can't have been easy."

"No. No. It was the boys I worried about."

"How are they are?"

"Oh they're fine, they'll be fine, Lawrence is a bit of a Daddy's boy but he'll survive. And William's been wonderful. Do you mind if I ask…what exactly did you hear, on the grapevine?"

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been listening."

"Oh don't worry, it happens to the best of us. But what did you…"

"Just that you'd divorced him because there was, um, another party involved."

"Very delicately put," she says wryly.

"I am sorry."

"Thank you. All water under the bridge now."

"I'll never understand people who cheat. I can understand wanting to end a relationship, but to treat the most important person in your life like that, with such…I've never got my head round it."

"It's the easiest way, I think. Rather than being an adult and talking about it they take the coward's way out and have an affair. And you inevitably find out and then they have the excuse they wanted to trade you in for a younger model."

The darkness is letting her talk far more freely than she usually would. Better watch it, she thinks. You don't want to regret anything in the morning.

"Is she? Younger?"

"Yes. A bit. Attractive, I suppose, in an obvious kind of way. She's also a raging alcoholic who lives in a flat that can only be described as a cesspit."

"God."

"What about you?" she says, trying to shift the focus away from herself. "Do you have a…special friend?"

"A special friend?" Even in the darkness she can hear her smiling, which makes her smile back.

"Oh you know what I mean."

"I can confirm that I don't currently have a special friend."

"Has there been…anyone special?"

"Not really. Not since Richard."

"Richard? What an odd name for a girl."

"He was my husband. For years. He shouldn't have been, if I'm honest, but I did love him. I've dated since then, but no great love affairs. I lived with someone for a little while but it didn't work it."

"Sorry."

"It's OK. It was good while it lasted, we're still friends. And it made me realize that I definitely wanted to be with a woman."

"You're very brave." It's out of her mouth before she can think.

"Brave? How do you mean?"

"Well…like I said, a lot of people are phenomenally stupid, and to live openly, to let yourself…it seems brave. To me."

There's quiet for a moments and Caroline wonders if she's being too personal. Perhaps they should go to sleep soon.

"Thank you. That's a nice thing to say. Although I think it got to the stage where I had to start being honest with myself or I was never even giving myself a chance to be happy, I was always going to be searching for something I would never find however much I longed for it. It was more self-preservation in the end."

Caroline shifts a little in the bed. When John left she'd spent a lot of time trying to work out how happy she'd been before the affair, how much she had lost. And the funny thing was, it was almost as if she couldn't remember, as if her entire marriage had been so nondescript as to make no impression on her heart at all. He'd hurt her by choosing someone else, someone 'better', and he'd hurt her by lying. But she wasn't at all sure that he'd hurt her by leaving.

"And you?" Kate says. "Are you seeing anyone new?"

She laughs sharply. "No. No I'm not. I was no good at it the first time round, I think it's best for everyone concerned if I buy two dozen cats and live as a spinster. I'd suit that, don't you think?"

"Oh you can't do that, what a waste!"

"A waste?"

"You're only in your forties, you're hardly ready for the multiple cat stage, and you're far too-"

"Far too…what?" She says it with a slight edge to her voice, her natural instinct to expect criticism.

"Nothing."

"No, come on, if I haven't even got the cats to look forward to I want to know why."

Silence. Maybe she shouldn't push but she wants to know what Kate really thinks about her, even if it's hard to hear.

"Kate? You're not going to answer?"

"I'm wrestling with another point of etiquette."

"Oh come on, sod the etiquette. I'm a big girl, I can take it. I get called a dragon twelve times before lunch."

"You think I was going to say something bad?"

"Well, not bad, exactly, but – weren't you?"

"No."

"Oh. Then where does the etiquette come into it?"

"Because…it's…"

"Spit it out, Kate, we're only here for two nights."

"You're far too beautiful. Was what I was going to say. Far too beautiful to live alone with your cats."

Immediately she's nervous, a fluttering pleasure in her abdomen, her heart beating faster.

"Thank you," she says quietly.

"I did mention about the-"

"I know. I'm not cross."

"There really should be a handbook for this kind of thing."

"Debrett's Guide for the Modern Lesbian?"

Kate bursts out laughing. "That would do it."

There's quiet. The nerves intensify, her mind racing as it tries to process the last few minutes. Did Kate just admit that she's attracted to her? No, she said that she thought she was attractive in general, that's all. Objectively, perhaps, like a painting. And she doesn't seem embarrassed; she'd laughed easily at her joke. It can't have been an admission of desire.

The nerves start to simmer down.

"Why were you no good at it? The first time round? You said…"

"Oh. Well. Hundreds of reasons. Mostly because for some inexplicable reason boys used to think I was snooty."

"Bet you anything you like they could tell from a mile away you were twice as clever as them and they didn't like it."

Another flutter of pleasure runs through her; she's never heard Kate talk about her like this. She had no idea she held her in such high regard.

"Hmm. I suppose it's possible. Plus I am quite snooty."

"Did you have many boyfriends before John?"

Too late she realizes that they've strayed into dangerous territory.

"No. Not many."

"Any?"

"I had…a few, here and there."

"Anything serious?"

"Well…yes. Sort of. I was with someone when I met John but that was it, really."

"What made you choose John over the other chap?"

"I…I don't know, can't remember really, it was a very long time ago."

"But if you left him for John, you must know why you chose John over…what was the other bloke's name?"

And there it was. Half past eleven on a Friday evening and she's in a large double bed with Kate McKenzie. Gay Kate McKenzie, who wants to know the other man's name.

"Don't know if I can remember."

"How long were you together?"

Lie to her, says her brain. Lie to her and get it over with and go to sleep. She can't bear lies though; maybe she can tell parts of the truth and get away with it.

"Almost a year."

"A year! And you can't remember his name. The poor, forgotten chap."

"It was such a long time ago, Kate. Hardly relevant now."

A small silence.

"I didn't mean to pry."

"You weren't. It's fine. Let's get some sleep now, all right?"

"Right. Course."

She turns over on her side, facing away from Kate, her heart heavy. She wonders about the rules of etiquette from her side of things, but surely you don't have to reveal your own sexuality when you've successfully repressed it for 25 years? Surely that's an exception? She's about as gay as any other woman who experimented in her youth. Kate herself had even been married, but Richard didn't make Kate a heterosexual any more than Hannah made her a lesbian.

She's starting to feel a little better when-

"Was it a woman?"

Her voice is soft, kind, but her words send a rush of panicked adrenaline through her veins.

"Excuse me?"

"You'll have to forgive me if I'm wrong, Caroline, but when people are reluctant to give names-"

"Maybe the people you associate with, but in my world it's called normal personal privacy. Now I'm very tired and I'd like to go to sleep."

She can almost hear Kate's pain, the harsh words shattering the air of quiet trust that had built between them. But attack is the best form of defence, after all. Only…

"I'm sorry."

"It's fine. Get some sleep. Goodnight."

"Caroline-"

"I said goodnight."

"…Goodnight."

Only…attack can leave you vulnerable, too. Fight back too hard and you're in danger of exposing your greatest weakness.

The dawn light wakes her up and she slips quickly out of bed. A five-minute shower revives her tired brain and then she pulls on some clothes, runs a hairbrush through her hair and gets the hell out of there. She doesn't bother with make-up and doesn't look at the bed to see whether Kate has woken up. And she absolutely refuses to think about the night that's to come.

The day is filled with seminars and lectures and she makes a list of the ones meant for headteachers only, attending them all and making copious notes on her laptop. At lunch she sits with the head of a nearby school and quizzes him about his improved maths results. In the afternoon she attends a long lecture on the use of data in analysing key stage 3 progress and asks question after question about advanced statistical forecasting.

She eats dinner by herself, tucked away in a corner, fiddling with her Ipad and ignoring the world around her. Afterwards she heads for the hotel bar and orders a large glass of red wine, sipping it as slowly as possible while staring vacantly out of the window.

She doesn't see Kate all day.

By 10pm she can't put it off any longer. With a rapidly beating heart she heads upstairs, taking in a deep breath at the doorway when she sees the 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the door. What does that mean? Does Kate just want a lie-in on a Sunday morning?

Squaring her shoulders she attempts to open the door; it takes her three tries before she realizes that her key card is back to front. When she finally gets the door open Kate's lying on the bed in her pyjamas, apparently doing nothing at all, the TV off, the room quiet. She tries to smile at her but can't manage it, standing awkwardly by the door.

"I didn't see you in any of the lectures," Kate says quietly, not looking at her.

"No. We must have just missed each other."

"Must have done."

She puts her bag down by the bed, feeling utterly out of her depth and wanting desperately to go home.

"I'm sorry about last night," Kate says.

"Don't worry about it."

"I have been. Worrying about it."

"Well I haven't. I hope you were paying attention to the seminars."

Kate finally turns to look at her. "Am I going to get a detention, Dr Elliot?"

"Don't be childish."

"I wasn't paying attention. I thought about you all day."

She picks up her bag again and rifles through it, trying to look busy, in control. The last time she felt nerves as bad as this…

"That really wasn't necessary."

"Necessary?"

"I've said it's fine."

"It wasn't just worry, Caroline. I wasn't just thinking about that."

"I've had a very long day. If you wouldn't mind I'd rather not talk at all."

Kate studies her for a few moments, her eyes burning a trail on her skin, before she drops her eyes and releases her.

"If that's what you want."

"It is."

She steps into the bathroom and prepares for bed. The nervous tension grips her so tightly that she thinks about driving home right now, just leaving this room and this place and going home to normality. She'd be home in a few hours; she could sleep in tomorrow morning and forget the whole awkward mess ever happened.

And if the boys ask her why she came home in the middle of the night she'll say…she'll just say…

When she leaves the bathroom Kate has moved under the covers, lying on her back and staring at the ceiling. They don't speak. She hurriedly gets changed, her back towards the bed, aware of every last nerve in her body, every tiny area of skin that's exposed. She gets into bed with a pounding heart and turns the light out immediately.

"I'll sleep on the floor if you want me to," Kate says.

"Don't be ridiculous."

Kate sighs in the darkness. "I got it all wrong, didn't I? The etiquette. I was trying so hard to be honest with you but I got it all wrong."

Caroline doesn't respond.

"I told you I was gay but I didn't tell you how attractive I find you. Well, I did, I suppose, in the end, but not in the way I should have done. I should have told you straight away. I'm sorry I didn't."

"Doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does. It does, Caroline. I was trying to be honest but I didn't want you to feel uncomfortable, so I edited out the wrong bit. I never meant to make you feel like this."

"Your apology's accepted. Get some sleep now."

"And I shouldn't have pushed you about your…past. I'm sorry about that too."

"Fine. Whatever. Is that all?" she snaps.

There's silence for a minute or more, her words hanging painfully in the air.

"It's just that…when you've…when you've wanted someone for a very long time, when you've longed for someone…and then suddenly there's a chance…and you're so thrilled, so excited that you snatch at it…"

As she listens to Kate's quiet, sincere confession she struggles to contain her emotions. When you've longed for someone…A deep, warm desire flows through her, heating her entire body, coursing through her veins like liquid fire. Her whole being lighting up, heating up, awake after decades of slumber.

"Caroline? Are you-"

"Everything's fine," she says earnestly, trying to keep her voice steady. "It really is, I promise."

"Am I fired the very moment we get home?"

She laughs briefly, tightly, her heart thudding in her chest, her body tense with anticipation. "No. You're not. Whatever would I write on your file?

"Failure to inform superiors of homosexual feelings during a sleepover?"

"Hah! I would think you could sue for that."

"Are we OK? You and me?"

"Yes."

"Sure?"

"Yes. I'm sure. I'm very sure."

There's a long pause, the atmosphere electric with tension, her arousal impossible to ignore. This is it, she thinks. This is the moment. Kate won't go any further; it's up to you now. It's all up to you.

With a slightly shaky hand she reaches over to the bedside lamp and turns it on, bathing the room in a pale glow. Gathering all of her courage she looks over at Kate, who's still lying on her back, watching her nervously.

Slowly, ever so slowly, as if she's afraid that Kate will stop her, she leans over to her. With her left hand she reaches out and, as if in a dream, brushes the back of her fingers against Kate's cheek. Kate's still watching her, motionless, but the look of hope that has appeared in her eyes gives her the extra shot of courage she needs to lean in and gently kiss her. Her heart thuds in her chest. They kiss softly, tentatively, but every slight touch of Kate's lips lights her body on fire, her mind racing ahead to what Kate might want, what she might need, what the night might hold if she's brave enough to claim it.

When she can finally summon the willpower she leans back slightly, feeling a hand slide gently into her hair, the fingers sifting through the soft strands. Kate's looking at her with such wonder it makes her smile.

"Have I shocked you?" she says boldly, teasing her, the adrenaline making her brave.

"No, no…yes, a bit. Yes."

"I'm not sorry," she says firmly.

"Neither am I," says Kate, sounding equally sure.

She leans in to kiss her again and their second kiss becomes deeper, more passionate, lasting longer than before. The hand in her hair tightens its grip and she feels another hand slide gently up underneath her pyjama top, warm silk on her skin, stroking her back.

It takes even more willpower to pull away this time; when she does they're both a little breathless. The wonder in Kate's eyes has changed into pure desire.

"You mustn't do anything you'll regret," Kate says. "Don't let me get carried away."

"The only thing I regret is that we wasted a night in this bed." As soon as she says it she knows it's true. And she knows where this night is going to lead, where it was going to lead from the second Kate told her she was beautiful.

She sits up a little, carefully pushes the duvet down and unbuttons Kate's pyjama top, shyly opening it, exposing Kate's breasts. Driven by pure instinct she leans down and takes one dark, lovely nipple into her mouth, thrilled by the sigh of pleasure that's released from the woman beneath her, excited by the quiet moans that quickly follow when she begins to lathe the nipple with her tongue.

With her other hand she gently caresses the other breast, astounded at the velvet softness, the wonderful heat of her. After several delicious minutes she gives the nipple one final lick and reaches up to take Kate's kiss again, the passion burning brighter between them this time, Kate's hands gripping onto her body, her tongue duelling with her own.

When she breaks the kiss Kate moans, the hand in her hair urging her to return, but she's desperate for her breast again and she suckles the left nipple this time, licking, sucking, coaxing the most erotic sounds she's ever heard in her life out of Kate's parted lips. With what's left of her rational brain she tries to think about what Kate would want, whether she'd prefer her hand or her mouth for a first time, but the pleasure is so overwhelming, her blood rushing so loudly in her ears, that she can barely form a coherent thought.

Leaving the breast behind she trails a line of kisses down Kate's stomach, going as slowly as she can bear, adjusting her kisses and licks instinctively as she discovers how to draw the loudest moans and the breathiest sighs. As she reaches the top of her pyjama trousers and lathes the sensitive skin just above the fabric Kate's body starts to subtly move in desire. She tears her mouth away reluctantly, longing to be close to her but needing to remove the barrier between them.

"Can you…lift up a little…" Kate lifts her hips up slightly and she quickly pulls the pyjama bottoms down her thighs and over her ankles, throwing them impatiently on the floor.

"Again," she says, her hands on the top of Kate's white cotton underwear. There's no reaction so she looks up into Kate's face, worried that it had sounded like an order.

"Sure?" says Kate softly.

"Sure," she says firmly. "Are you?"

Kate immediately lifts her hips again and she has her answer. She slides the knickers down her legs, discarding them impatiently. When she looks at her she doesn't know where to touch first, but Kate's hand takes hold of her own, guiding her slowly, sliding her fingers gently through her wetness, Kate's eyes immediately closing in pleasure as she does so, her lips parted, a look of pure joy on her face.

She strokes her carefully, gently, until Kate takes her hand again and guides her fingers up to her clitoris. Her heart all but stops in her chest, a flash of alarm in her brain – don't hurt her, be gentle, be gentle – but Kate is still guiding her, teaching her what she likes, her eyes open now and fixed on her own.

They stay like this for long minutes, in a world of their own, Caroline caressing her reverently, Kate's response gradually changing from one of relatively calm pleasure to growing arousal to feverish excitement, a sleek sheen of perspiration appearing on her belly, her hips beginning to move against Caroline's fingers, her eyes closing once again.

Caroline stares at her in awe. Her hand is guided down again to glide through her wetness, coating her fingers thoroughly, before she hears her plead in a breathless whisper: "Please." She pauses for a second, confused, until she hears "Inside me, now, please".

She gives her what she wants, sliding two fingers ever so gently inside of her, watching her face carefully to check for pain, but her moan is unmistakably one of pleasure. With tender care she slowly slides the fingers so that they're almost outside and then slips inside again, caressing her inner walls gently, repeating this once, twice, three times until Kate takes a tight grip of her hand.

"Faster," she moans, "you're teasing me."

Caroline raises her eyebrows slightly, a sense of her own erotic power flooding through her. "Don't you like it when I tease you?"

Kate groans, her face half-smiling, half contorted in pleasure, one hand still gripping tightly onto her own hand, the other now clinging desperately to the sheets.

"I think you like it," Caroline says. "I think I might do it some more."

Kate's doesn't reply but there's something about the almost helpless look in her eyes that tells her she's stumbled upon one of Kate's turn-ons – and one of hers, too, the sense of complete control making her wetter than she can ever remember being in her life.

She withdraws her hand completely, earning another frustrated groan, and bends down to firmly lick her clitoris in one painfully slow, long lathe of her tongue. Kate's moan is so loud she's briefly worried about someone hearing them but a few more long, drawn out licks, a few more aching moans, and she couldn't give a fuck if the sky fell in. This is heaven.

With ever increasing pleasure she licks her again and again, going as slowly as she can bear to, an electric current of sexuality sparking dangerously between them. Both of Kate's hands are now clinging to the sheets, her hips beginning to move more and more and Caroline wraps her arms around her thighs and presses down carefully but firmly to hold her in place, wringing a long groan from her lover that sounds like a heady mixture of sexual frustration and deep eroticism.

She glances upwards, straining to see the look on Kate's face, to witness the effect she's having on her. Her head is thrown back against the pillow, the tendons in her neck taut and straining, her breasts showing a light sheen of sweat and rising and falling rapidly as she struggles to breathe through her pleasure.

"Please don't stop," she groans and Caroline realizes that she's staring at her beauty, transfixed and motionless. She returns to her task with relish, trying to make it last as long as possible without teasing her beyond her limits, tonguing the swollen, desperate clit and occasionally dipping down into her wetness just to experience the wonderful taste of her.

After another blissful few minutes she can feel the orgasm building, feel the tension in Kate's body stretch to absolute breaking point before finally, finally an almost animalastic cry is ripped from her body, her thighs tightening around Caroline's shoulders. She licks her gently, coaxing the last drop of excitement from her body, until Kate's movements eventually let her know that's it time to stop.

A few moments later and Kate has relaxed bonelessly onto the bed, limp, a delicious lassitude replacing the whole-body tension of before. One hand briefly covers her eyes and Caroline sits up a little and discreetly wipes her mouth on the bedsheet.

There's calm. She watches her, rapt, taking in every inch of her beautiful body, every delicious curve, amazed that she's been granted this privilege.

"I'm up here," Kate says huskily, a broad smile on her face, her eyes twinkling.

"Yes. Hello. You are," she says, feeling confident and powerful and sexy. "Am I not allowed to look?"

"Oh, you're allowed. Positively encouraged, in fact. As long as the view's acceptable."

"The view is not acceptable. The view is spectacular. You're spectacular. Beautiful. Absolutely, utterly perfect."

Kate laughs, reaching out a hand to stroke her face. "I think you've had too much adrenaline, Dr Elliot."

"Oh no. I haven't had nearly enough, Kate. Not nearly enough."

They smile at each other happily, Kate continuing to caress her face tenderly. She lightly runs her fingers down between Kate's breasts, hovering over her stomach, enjoying the quiet moments together after the intensity of their lovemaking.

"You really are very beautiful," she says quietly.

Kate smiles at her, her face showing nothing but happiness. "So are you. Although I told you that already, didn't I?"

"You did. But I could stand to hear it again."

"Then you're beautiful, Caroline."

Feeling fearless she trails her fingers down into the neat patch of dark curls, supressing a smile at the quiet gasp that results.

"I shall be leaving the hotel clerk a very large tip."

Kate bursts out laughing, her body shaking from it.

"Although it's still beyond me how he managed to get it so wrong."

"I suppose there are technical problems sometimes. We could probably get our money back if you can find the receipt."

Her hand is exploring her curls, feeling their texture, tracing the line of her skin underneath them. The conversation is starting to make her impatient as the desire makes itself known again.

"Beverley said she put it in my bag, I don't know why I couldn't find it earlier. We can look again tomorrow," she says, distracted.

"Beverley? Why did Beverley have it?"

She dips her hand a little lower, searching for the first hint of wetness.

"Because she made the booking."

She's struggling to remain focused now; she gives in to the urge and leans down to place an open-mouthed kiss on Kate's breast.

"I thought Helen usually – oh – usually booked the hotels."

She takes her nipple into her mouth, sucking gently for several moments before pulling away just long enough to speak. "Beverley books them when they're for me. I don't want to talk about hotels."

"No, it's just – oh – it's just…" She trails off, sighing. "If Beverley made the booking – oh, that feels so good…"

She's sucking harder now, licking at the hardened nipple with her tongue, increasingly impatient for more of her, more moaning, more sighs.

"No more talking," she says firmly. "You can moan all you like, but no more talking."

Kate does as she's told.

As she drifts slowly into consciousness she registers a number of unusual, but not at all unwelcome, sensations. The first is that she feels totally relaxed, devoid of any kind of stress whatsoever, her body free, her mind clear. The second is the soft, warm body touching her all down the length of her back, and the third is a gentle, sweet caress from a hand that's cupping her breast.

"You awake?" Kate says softly.

"Yes. Good morning."

"Good morning. I swear my hand was already there when I woke up, I didn't accost you in your sleep."

She laughs. "I believe you."

The hand continues to caress her and she slides back into her a little to encourage a firmer touch.

"So," Kate says. "It occurs to me that last night was wonderful for me, but you really had me at your mercy. Every time I began to recover my senses you started again. We should address that imbalance, don't you think? Etiquette requires it?"

Kate's hand moves upwards to tease at her nipple, already hardened from her touch, the sensuous caress already stoking her arousal.

"I'm not sure that I'd call it an imbalance. I enjoyed every second."

Kate's fingers continue to focus on her nipple for a few more moments and then move downwards to caress her stomach.

"So did I. Very much. But I want to make you come, Caroline."

She gasps in surprise at her honesty, a mixture of nerves, vulnerability and desire making her head spin.

"Sit up for me, lean back against me in my arms."

They both sit up and Kate guides her back against her, positioning her. Another wave of vulnerability runs through her as she realizes how Kate's going to touch her, with unimpeded access to all her most sensitive spots. A small shiver runs through her at the thought.

"Are you cold? We can-"

"It's not the cold. It's you."

Kate's hands cup her breasts and caress them as if giving a reward for her honesty; she leans back helplessly into her arms, silently begging her never to stop, grabbing onto Kate's thighs to anchor herself.

"You're so sexy," Kate whispers in her ear. "I've fantasised about you for years."

Even if her mind could form a coherent thought there's not enough breath in her lungs to say it; all she can do is strengthen her grip on Kate's thighs and feel the arousal build. Despite the 'imbalance' between them the night before she hadn't felt unsatisfied when they eventually went to sleep; quite the opposite, in fact. But now, as she feels Kate's hands on her for the first time, all the unsated excitement comes rushing back to her, her centre already aching with need.

As the soft, velvet hands continue to touch her she takes a few deep breaths, bracing herself against the pleasure and hoping against hope that she won't embarrass herself by reaching orgasm the second Kate's hand dips lower. Almost as soon as she's formed the thought Kate's left hand trails slowly down her stomach and begins to slide along the inside of her thigh. She tries desperately to keep quiet, fearing the volume of her cries if she were to let herself go.

"Do you like this, Caroline?"

She almost laughs; her breathing is so rapid it sounds like she's running a marathon. It must be obvious that she's enjoying herself.

"You know I do," she whispers, her voice full of pleasure.

"I could do this for hours."

She tries to clamp down on a frustrated groan but doesn't quite manage it, the noise escaping from her lips.

"Wouldn't you like that? I don't want to rush you. Tell me when you're ready for more, OK?"

She holds out as long as she can, but Kate's left hand is stroking the inside of her thigh over and over and over, never touching her where she needs it the most, her right hand sending sparks through her body as she touches her breast. It's all too much and not anywhere close to enough.

With only the faintest feeling of embarrassment she takes hold of Kate's left hand and guides it between her legs, her head falling back in relief as she feels Kate's fingers glide through her copious wetness.

"Thank God," Kate whispers in her ear, "I was longing for you."

It's become almost impossible not to moan, the fingers stroking up and down her centre, up and down, but when they tenderly brush over her clit she gasps and then, as the caress continues, listens as if outside of her body to the needy moan that's released from her.

"That's it, Caroline," Kate whisper, "I want to hear you, you can moan for me, I want you to, I want you to surrender to me."

She moans again immediately at the thought, the incredible feeling of being surrounded by Kate, consumed by her, controlled by her. Her clit is stroked and stroked and she fights and fights against the inevitable but it's so strong, so powerful, and as the shudders start to overwhelm her she hears Kate's voice in her ear, whispering to her how beautiful she is, how sexy, and she's sent tumbling helplessly over the edge, flooded with pleasure, groaning with the sheer eroticism of it all.

Kate's fingers gently coax her through the waves and then, as the bliss gives way to a glowing warmth, she finds herself wrapped in a tight embrace that feels almost as good as the climax itself. Kate rocks her gently, whispering to her how beautiful she is, how wonderful. She's in heaven.

She remains there, ensconced in her arms, for long minutes, trying not to think about how little time together they have left. Eventually, with a sinking heart, she breaks the silence.

"Checkout's at 10," she says softly. "What time is it?"

"Just after nine. I suppose we need to get moving."

"Yes. I suppose so."

Neither of them moves; she lets herself enjoy her position for a precious few extra minutes.

"You'll need to let me go, Kate."

Kate tightens her arms protectively. "Don't want to."

She smiles at the stubborn petulance in her voice. "I don't want you to either, but if the maid walks in here with us like this she's going to get quite an eyeful."

Gradually she releases her. Summoning all of her willpower she slides away from her and stands up.

"I'll be in the shower, won't be long."

"Can I come?"

She turns to her, amused, the hunger so evident in Kate's eyes cancelling out the urge to cover up her body.

"I don't think that will accomplish what we need to accomplish, do you? Besides, you came about 30 times yesterday."

Kate's face is a picture.

In the shower she soaps herself down, her skin tingling, her body hyper-sensitive and glowing. She waits for the regret to wash over her but it doesn't come. She brushes her teeth and leaves the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her, smiling at Kate who's still in bed.

"All yours," she says.

"Really?" Kate says, all subtle suggestiveness.

"Yes. Really," she says, smiling.

"I might watch you get dressed first."

She's immediately aroused. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"We've got time."

"Kate…"

"Please, Caroline. You know how beautiful you are. I want to see."

To her surprise the desire to let Kate look at her wins out over her embarrassment. She dries herself and then drops the towel to the floor, avoiding Kate's eyes as she pulls on her underwear and bra followed by the casual trousers and shirt that she'd saved for today, feeling Kate's gaze burn into her the entire time. By the time she's fully dressed she's deeply turned on; she turns her back on Kate to avoid temptation, laying a steadying hand on the wall to keep her grounded.

"I want you," Kate says earnestly.

She doesn't trust herself to reply.

"But I'll try to be good."

She hears her get up and head for the bathroom. Needing to touch her she reaches out a hand to grab her arm. Kate turns and the look between them is electric.

She glances over at the alarm clock; they'll have to be quick. Emboldened by the fact that Kate's looking at her as if she's the sexiest woman in the world, she pushes her gently against the wall, cupping her firmly between her legs. She rests there, enjoying the reactions she's evoking – the quickening of Kate's breathing, the arms that have slid around her shoulders to hold her up – until she feels the first hot hint of wetness under her hand.

"Do you want me to touch you?" she says, her voice deep and husky.

"Yes."

"Say please."

"Please, Caroline."

"Good girl." Her fingers slide inside of her easily, Kate adjusting her stance to give her better access. With her palm she strokes her clit, her fingers sliding through the slippery heat deliciously, resolving not to build it up slowly this time but to show her how quickly she can bring her to the edge of orgasm and keep her there. She steps back a little as if to emphasise the fact that she's barely touching her and still causing such pleasure.

"How long do you think you can hold out, Kate? You said yourself we've got time. I want you to resist it. I want you to hold on, to wait until I say you can come. Can you do that for me?"

Kate moans but manages to nod, a small frown the only sign of her frustration. Caroline uses all of the knowledge of her body gained last night to touch her in her most sensitive spots, to linger in all of the places that make her close her eyes and pant. A few more minutes and she can already tell she's close.

"What did I say, Kate? Hold on."

"I can't."

"Of course you can," she says casually, not pausing in her movements for a second. "Resist it until I say so."

Kate lets out a low groan, her hips starting to rock, her brow furrowed in concentration. There's quiet for a few moments as she fights against the feeling but eventually she cries out again, even more urgently than before.

"I'm going to come."

"You need to ask for permission."

"I need to come-"

"And I said, you need to ask for permission."

"Please, fuck, oh my God…"

She waits until the last possible second, until she can tell that Kate's about to lose her battle and surrender to the intensity, until she's repeating "Please, please, please" like a mantra, before leaning forward and whispering "Now" in Kate's ear and it's like setting off a firework. Kate groans, low and loud, her body contracting around Caroline's fingers, her legs taut from the strain of holding her up. She keeps touching her until every last moan of pleasure has been wrung from her overwrought body and then leans forward to place a delicate kiss on her parted lips. It's a little while before Kate can catch her breath.

"You're cruel."

She smirks – there's no hint of displeasure in Kate's expression.

"You're gorgeous. And you enjoyed that even more than I did."

"You realize I have to shower and I can barely stand up."

"You'll manage. You'd better go, we're running out of time. If we don't get out of here soon we might never leave."

"And that would be a bad thing?"

She smiles at her, moving backward and gently releasing her hold. "Go."

Kate slides her arms down from where they had been resting on her shoulders and takes a rather shaky few steps towards the bathroom.

"Jesus, Caroline, what have you done to me?"

"Here," she says, holding out her arm in an exaggerated show of gallantry and then escorting her over to the bathroom door. "You'll be able to stay upright in there?"

"I have no idea. If you hear a crash then come and save me."

"Will do."

They grin at each other before Kate disappears into the bathroom and closes the door. Caroline leans into the wall, breathing deeply in an effort to dispel the arousal that will have to remain unsatisfied until she gets home. By the time Kate emerges from the shower she's just about got herself under control, although the sight of her wet and wearing only a towel doesn't help in the slightest. Kate goes to her bag and picks out some clothes.

"Going to watch?" Kate asks teasingly.

"Nope. Going to read about key stage 3 statistical analysis because we need to vacate the room in 10 minutes."

"You don't think I could achieve anything in 10 minutes? You seemed very worked up before."

"Get a bloody move on you evil temptress."

Kate grins at her and gets dressed; she more or less manages not to look. They both pack up the remainder of their things and Caroline makes the bed, ignoring Kate's teasing about the purpose of chambermaids.

They're all ready, standing by the door, when Kate's expression suddenly changes.

"I just remembered…did you find the receipt?"

"Oh, I haven't had a chance to look yet."

"But you said that Beverley definitely booked it? Not Helen?"

"Yes. Why does that matter? You kept talking about this last night when I was trying to make love to you. Very inconvenient it was."

"From memory you managed to shut me up pretty comprehensively. But the thing is, Caroline…Beverley knows how I feel about you. I was a bit down about it one day, hiding away in the library, and she found me and she's a good listener and it sort of came pouring out of me. And maybe…it's just possible that she…well…"

Caroline stares at her for a few moments as she processes what she's saying, taken aback.

"But surely…she wouldn't have known anything from my side, I mean…you didn't know, did you? About my…past?"

"I didn't know the details, but…" She shrugs a little sheepishly.

"Oh good Lord, you did! How did you know?"

"I didn't know for sure, Caroline, but I thought…sometimes I thought it was wishful thinking but it felt like, well, it felt like there was a real chemistry between us, every now and then there'd be a look in your eye that seemed like it was more than friendly. And now I look back Beverley did seem to be encouraging me to be honest with you about my crush. Subtly, she didn't say it straight out, exactly, but…"

"But why would she have done that if she didn't know about my…inclinations?"

"I can't say for sure, but when you and I were together it felt like there was a…sexual tension there…didn't it? That someone who spent a lot of time with you might have picked up on?"

They stare at each other for a long moment before Caroline strides over to her bag and digs around for the receipt, rifling through all of the compartments until finally she opens a zipped inner pocket that she'd forgotten about and finds it. She searches for the information she's looking for and then gapes at the piece of paper, open-mouthed.

"What does it say?"

"One double room. Eighty pounds for one double room."

"Wow. Well. I mean, it's still possible that she made a mistake-"

"Beverley doesn't make mistakes. Besides, you can't accidentally book one room for eighty pounds when you mean to book two for a hundred and sixty. Oh my God, this is why she was funny about the receipt, she wouldn't hand it to me, said she was going to pop it straight into my bag. I thought it was a bit odd at the time but I had a hundred and one things to get done…and she was hiding it from me in case I noticed her little subterfuge. Christ. The sneaky little so-and-so."

They stand quietly for a few moments, taking it in.

"It's very audacious, don't you think?" Caroline says. "I could have been furious!"

"I suppose she could have just said it was a mistake on the website and she didn't notice it. Or she presumed that you'd be too polite to spell out what she'd actually done when what she'd actually done was-"

"Sent us to bed together!"

"Yes. That. Are you? Furious?"

"No. No. I'm not. It would seem extremely churlish to be furious about something that had such spectacularly enjoyable results." Kate grins at her. "Although God knows how I'm going to look her in the eye tomorrow morning."

"I'm sure you can brazen it out. After all, she might have been trying to get us alone in a room together but I doubt she thought that we'd actually…I mean, not after only two nights with a conference to attend in between."

Caroline grins, feeling on top of the world.

"No. Perhaps not. But that would be vastly underestimating the chemistry, wouldn't you say?"

Kate smiles at her, her eyes twinkling. "I would."

"Right. Well. Now that we've solved that little mystery, I suppose we'd best get going." It's said with enormous reluctance – this nondescript, identikit hotel room has been the highly unlikely setting for twelve hours of nirvana.

"There's just one more thing, Caroline…"

A certain anxiety has appeared on Kate's face; Caroline watches her in alarm.

"We have one last point of etiquette to address."

"Yes?"

"Yes. As in…I think we need to establish whether this is the part where we kiss goodbye and say 'We'll always have Birmingham', or whether it's…something else."

Her pulse quickens, but the night has been so heavenly there's no way she can turn down a chance for more.

"Well. I can't see myself saying 'We'll always have Birmingham' with a straight face."

"No. Me neither. So…"

"So…I think it had better be the start of something, not the end. Don't you? Would you like that?"

"Yes," Kate says, her relief obvious. "Yes, I would."

"You know, you should probably say 'Yes please'," Caroline says, grinning. "Just as a point of etiquette."