Felicity unfurled herself back up off the bed like a stretching cat. What a delightful sight she was leaving. Cooper spread before her in postcoital disarray? It felt like she’d just debauched an Amazon of Themiscyra—in the best possible sense.

Once standing, Felicity stepped back and placed her hands on her hips once more.

Cooper’s eyes, once they were focused, drank in the sight of her. “You look so powerful standing there like that; so self-satisfied.” Her smile became amused. “Be a nice overlord and take off your shirt for me?”

Felicity decided only Cooper could get away with teasing her about her authority. She shot her a withering look, then undid her shirt buttons before wrenching down the suspenders until they dangled at her side in flattened hoops. Finally, she pulled off the shirt, held it up for a moment, then let it fall to the ground.

“Would you touch your nipples for me? Stroke them? Show me how you like being touched?”

“I suppose,” Felicity said, aiming for haughty. It was more breathy. Admittedly, she was as wet as she’d ever been.

She reached for her own breasts. Felicity was usually self-conscious about them. They were so small, so insubstantial next to most women’s. But under Cooper’s admiring gaze, they seemed perfect as she plucked at her aching, erect nipples. Felicity rubbed and rolled them, gaze locked with her lover’s, the burn between her legs growing sharper.

“You’re so beautiful, Felicity,” Cooper said. “I love your breasts. I’m going to taste them soon. I’m going to taste all of you.”

Felicity swallowed. Strong Cooper running her lips all over her body, sucking and licking her until she squirmed…

“But right now, wouldn’t you rather have your fingers stroking yourself, too?” Cooper’s voice was almost a purr, and her eyes were raking her.

Yes, actually, Felicity would damn well love to be stroking herself right now. She briefly pictured denying herself just for sheer contrariness over being told what to do. That idiocy lasted two seconds. Instead, she unbuttoned her tailored pants, slid them to the floor along with her lacy La Perla thong, and left them in a puddle at her ankles.

Felicity was obscenely wet now. She wondered what Cooper thought of her naked body. Phillip had once called her a ballet dancer without the muscles. He’d meant it as a compliment, but all Felicity had heard was brittle. Weak. Breakable. Compared to solid, sturdy Cooper, Felicity was downright insubstantial.

“Touch yourself.” Cooper’s hand drifted between her own legs. “I’ll do it, too. Hell, I can’t not. You’re so beautiful.”

Felicity slid her fingers down and began to finger herself in front of Cooper’s appreciative gaze. Suddenly her doubts fled. It felt…so naughty. Both of them fucking themselves, gazes locked on each other. The sounds of slippery strokes of flesh filled the room.

“Fuck. Oh.” Cooper’s mouth fell open as her breaths turned into short, fast gasps. She opened her thighs wide, and she came—again.

Felicity’s front-row seat of her lover orgasming was highly motivating. Beneath her frantic, furious fingers, her clit tightened and tingled.

“That’s it,” Cooper encouraged as she combed her fingers through her own drenched curls. “Watch me.” And then she slid one finger inside herself.

Felicity’s brain turned liquid—like the rest of her. She twitched and spasmed, crying out as she came hard. She sank onto the end of the bed, legs weak.

“Fuck,” she said, when her breathing returned to normal. “Can’t say I’ve ever done that before.” She shot Cooper a faintly embarrassed look. “Put on a show.”

“And what a spectacular show it was. You do so many things to me.” Cooper patted the bed beside her. “Come up here. It’d be a shame to waste all this nakedness. We’ve got plenty of time for a snuggle before our fun ends.”

Felicity paused. She wasn’t one for snuggling. But then all of this was just temporary, wasn’t it? A long fuck hello and goodbye, to put it crudely?

An exceptionally magnificent one at that, though, her brain supplied merrily.

“Well,” Felicity said, slithering up beside Cooper, “I suppose if I have to snuggle for the first time, at least it’ll be with someone worthwhile.”

“The first time?” Cooper eyed her in surprise.

“I don’t generally stick around to find out who’s a snuggler and who isn’t.”

“Then I’m honored. And why do I suspect calling me worthwhile is the world’s best compliment, coming from you?”

“You wouldn’t be wrong.” Hesitating, Felicity slowly slid an arm around Cooper’s waist and squeezed in closer next to her.

“You really haven’t snuggled before?” Cooper asked gently.

“Are we going to talk about it all day or…”

“Right, right.” Cooper chuckled and pulled Felicity in properly. “Never thought I’d be the little spoon.”

“There are spoons?” Felicity asked.

Cooper chuckled.

Naked skin on naked skin fizzed Felicity’s brain again until she forgot the question. And oh… Why did it feel so good? Different from sex, despite all the slickness and warmth, because, well, there was always a goal with sex, wasn’t there? Felicity was always motivated when goals were involved. This was just…closeness.

“I like this. It’s acceptable,” Felicity admitted before she could stop herself.

“Acceptable, huh?” Cooper burst out laughing. “You might be a big deal, Felicity Simmons—hell, the biggest I’ll likely ever meet.” Her fingers trailed along Felicity’s bare arm. Goosebumps rose in their wake “But you’re going to miss this, aren’t you? You might even miss me.”

Felicity didn’t reply immediately.

“Well, I’m really going to miss you,” Cooper said quietly, all traces of laughter gone. “You’re like no one I’ve ever met in my little world. You’re special.” She leaned in. “You do know that, right?”

Special. No one had ever called her that—not in a good way at least. Well, maybe Elena, though not in so many words. She’d showed her that by offering her a job. But actually hearing it? That felt so…gentle. Like a compliment wrapped in tissue paper.

Tears pricked Felicity’s eyes, and she blinked them away. No time to get maudlin. “I’m glad you think so.”

“I do. Look, I know you’re good at solving things, even weird mysteries like ours, so your time with Living Ruff might be over real soon. So if this is the last time we ever do this… Or hell, if the next time I see you you’re on TV explaining how you just took over the world’s biggest newspaper corporation, I’ll remember this you. The one who cries when she’s snuggled.”

“I do not!” Felicity protested, alarmed that Cooper had noticed.

“The you who cuddles kittens.”

“I never… That’s a complete twisting of—”

“The you who rocked up on day one with all these completely wrong-assed opinions about the homeless—”

“Wrong-assed! But—”

“—and yet were prepared to ask questions and change your views when given better information—something most people move heaven and earth to avoid.”

“Well…” That one at least was true. Felicity sputtered to a stop.

“And the you who loves my dog so much you can’t even bear to pet her in case you get attached. Until this afternoon, when you cracked because you couldn’t stand not doing it a second longer. All of these sweet and quirky and decent yous who you hide when you’re playing God at work? They’re the Felicity I know.”

Sweet? Quirky? Decent?! Felicity was quite sure no one else on earth would ever assign those descriptors to her. She drew in a breath, not sure what to say. In any event, rebuttal wasn’t what she was in the mood for. “Just be quiet and snuggle me some more,” Felicity muttered. “And don’t be smug about it.”

“Never.” Cooper chuckled, then added in a quiet voice, “Hell, woman, I really will miss you.”