A Gray Area

Cady sat Indian style on one of the two leather chairs positioned in front of her agent's office door. The receptionist at the desk directly in front of her was peeking up over her half moon, horn-rimmed glasses with mild interest as she pretended to staple papers together.

She felt like she was in a movie. No, not even a movie— she was having flashbacks. The scary kinds you saw in movies when the screen would go all white and then you were magically in the main characters brain, re-living their flashback with them. In Cady's mind, she was sitting in the Dean's office, waiting for her father to come out. The Dean's secretary would sit behind her desk, shooting her glances of disappointment and disapproval. Then her father would come out of the room, his face pale yet stern and the Dean of the school would shadow behind him.

"We have a lot to talk about, young lady," Victor would say, and as if he needed a narrator the Dean would add in, "Me and your step-father, here, have had a long talk about what you did today. I hope when you come back next week, you will be a whole new person." With one final farewell the Dean would shake Victor's hand and give Cady a reassuring pat on the shoulder, as if to say 'take it like a soldier, kid'.

And she would.

She always did.

When Cady came back from her flashback the receptionist was talking to her. "Miss? Molly would like to see you now." Caden nodded and hoisted her bag over her head to the other shoulder and walked towards the door.

'Take a deep breath and do like the Dean. Take it like a solider.' She lifted her hand to knock but heard "you can just go right in."

Okay.

'This could be about one of two things,' Cady thought to herself. 'They could be firing me for my indecisiveness or ...' her thoughts were cut short by Molly's cheery Irish accent.

"Oh, Cady! Sit down." They exchanged a brief hug then seated themselves. Caden sat in the chair to the left. The leather moaned uncomfortably under her weight. "You need new chairs, Mol." Caden suggested with a small smile. "Oh, I know, I know. I've been to do that but it keeps slipping my mind." And then she got down to business. "Your new prints just came in," she said. She reached a pale hand under the desk and Caden heard a metal on metal shriek as a drawer opened. It took Molly two hands to heave a large black book onto her desk. She opened it to the last page and turned it around so her client could look in.

Caden recognized her own prints. Her heart sped up. This was gonna be bad. She never got called in because of her new arrivals.

"Is there something wrong with them?" She asked, faking puzzlement in place of fear.

"I'm not sure if wrong is the right word but there is something different about them."

If there was something different, Caden wasn't catching it. She stared for a few more seconds before looking at the red-head, feeling like an idiot. "Mol, I was a failure at I Spy when I was a kid. What's wrong with them?"

"Cady...you don't see? You gave me color prints." The Irish woman was elated, barely keeping her smile to herself. "You know how long it's been since I got color prints from you?" She didn't wait for an answer. "Months. More than months, actually. Perhaps a year and a half."

The younger girl nodded, not seeing where the conversation was leading too. "Child, your depression has made you a genius. Possibly a famous genius." Molly leaned over on her desk and pressed the call button on the phone. "Send him in."

Caden felt her heart speed up. She had been the only person in the lobby before or so she had thought.

"Mol, I don't know what --"

The wooden door opened abruptly, cutting off her words. She didn't want to turn around and see who it was but when her agent stood in greeting Cady followed suit. The new occupant of the room walked to the other side of Molly's desk and gave her a number of kisses on both cheeks before turning to look at C.K.

She recognized him immediately, and her heart stopped. "Jacques Baker." She said, making little or not attempt at hiding the astonishment in her voice.

"In the flesh!" Jacques squealed. "Well, hello!" His voice was pitched higher than Cady's and she couldn't help but smile at his high class, New York accent. "This must be her..." he shot Molly an excited look and walked over to the younger girl, embracing her in a back breaking hug.

Caden didn't return it. She was still shocked. Jacques Baker had just hugged her.

Jacques. Baker.

One of the most famous art gallery owners in the good ol' U. S. of A had just hugged her--no, suffocated her, and she had loved every second of it. "I'm sure you can figure out why I am here." He took a seat next to Caden. She didn't sit until he crossed his shin over his thigh and patted her seat.

"No, I really can't."

Jacques looked disappointed. He glanced at Molly. "You didn't tell her?" Molly shook her head.

"Good! I will!" he wiggled to the edge of his seat. "I've been looking at your photographs a lot lately; there's just something about them that catches my eye, but anyway. I've been looking at them and I realized--" he stopped and looked up, almost as if watching a cloud pass by in the sky. Caden followed his gaze, only seeing white ceiling. "--this is the kind of thing I want in my gallery. This progression, this ability to display emotions in pictures--it's a gift! And you have it. So..." he moved to the edge of his seat more and Caden leaned forward in preparation to catch him if he slipped off the leather. "I would be honored if you came to New York with me and gave me the privilege of hanging some of your work in my gallery."

There was a long silence before Caden even realized it was her time to speak. "I'm sorry," she said. "I'm still waiting for lightning to strike or for me to have a massive stroke or something--are you serious?" Jacques slapped her knee playfully. "Of course I'm serious. I don't joke when it comes to my gallery." C.K. opened her mouth to speak but was cut off. "And I know you previously lived in the Big Apple and you didn't like it, but I promise I will make it worth your while."

Cady meant to speak, she honestly did, but she felt dumbfounded. This was unbelievable; this was a huge shocker; this was what she was waiting for; this was...bad.

This was exactly what Deity had been yelling about last night—leaving and pushing all the slack down on Dee. Caden gritted her teeth. She hated when her younger sister was right—and it was rare that she ever was so the concept made it even worse "Mr. Baker, I'm really sorry, but can I get back to you with an answer?"

"Caden..." Molly gave a sharp whisper of warning. "This is—"

"A once in a lifetime chance. I know, Mol." Cady, looking mildly distressed at her sudden decision, elaborated to Jacques. "I have a lot going on now. Perhaps Molly told you that my mother was recently released from the hospital? She has diabetes and I know my younger sister is not...she isn't exactly what I call a responsible teenager. And—"

Jacques held up a hand. "I understand. I'm leaving in about two weeks so if you make a decision within that time, let me know."

Caden only nodded.

Two weeks was not going to be enough time to make this decision. She already knew that.

"So you're gonna be famous?" Jon whispered into her ear, sending tingles down her spine. "Maybe, maybe not. I have two weeks to make a decision and as of right now..." She sat up on the floor, her elbows holding her up and looked down at him. "Its not looking like a yes." Jon sighed, his hazel eyes glittering in the Cady's dim living room light.

Just as he had said, he actually decided to come in. They had done dinner (Chinese food, again) and talked about almost everything. Caden stared at the ceiling wondering how it was they had gone from the kitchen, to the hallway, to the living room couch, and down onto the floor, with almost minimal contact.

'We aren't even touching now,' she thought and slung her arm over his stomach, turning her body so she lay slightly on his side, head on his shoulder, leg slung across his middle. "Now, we're touching."

"Talking to yourself, again?" Jon asked.

"A little bit. Just trying to form my plan of attack." She smiled, wickedly into his neck and planted a small kiss there. "Plan of attack. Sounds dirty." Caden laughed and sat up, throwing both legs across his middle. Jon slid both his hands behind his head and looked up at her. "Are you gonna leave again?" He asked. The calming mood in the room shifted completely. Cady felt a small pain in her heart. His voice was soft, and delicate, but the question was meant to jar her out of her comfort zone. And it did.

"I don't know yet..." And she didn't. She had planned to forget about it till the last minute. If things got better with her and Dee and her and Jon then maybe she would stay.

If not? Then at least she could say she tried, right?

Wrong.

"Kitten," he said, his voice coming out stronger. "I don't know," she said again. "Jon, this wasn't supposed to be the topic of conversation tonight. I was hoping to actually put it out of my mind and maybe only think about us and what we're gonna do now. I don't want to think about any major decisions I have to make anytime soon."

Jon said nothing. He simply watched her as she removed herself from the living room, taking up their empty Chinese food containers with her. From his spot on the floor, he could hear her throwing things away and tossing things in the sink, then washing them. The water ran for a few minute before shutting off abruptly. She shut off the kitchen light and walked back to the living room, but stopped short, her gray eyes meeting Jon's lighter ones.

'God, he looks so fucking good.' She couldn't help but think to herself. All momentary anger at him, slipped away, like smoke in a breeze.

His head was tilted back so he looked at her upside down. His body, lean and strong was a straight line outlining her couch. Cady almost forgot that it was Jon she was looking at. She hadn't noticed it before but he had changed so much. He still looked the same but at the same time different. His hair kept its unruly dirty blonde look but his eyes were deeper; he looked almost tired and the hairy shadow across his chin and cheeks only added to the affect.

"What?" she asked, still standing in the same spot, not moving.

Jon smiled, his teeth another mark of perfection to add to the list. "Nothing. I guess I'm just waiting for your landlady to come by and tell me to keep the blood line pure." Jon opened his eyes wide, mocking the elderly women. His attempt at making her smile worked. One side of her mouth tilted upward. Jon turned over on to his stomach, elbows holding up his upper body. He patted the ground in front of him. "Sit."

She obeyed and tangled her legs, "criss-cross-applesauce," she said, in a small voice. Jon slid close to her, his head almost between her legs. "Kindergarten," he reminisced. "Those were the days." He allowed her fingers to smooth through his hair, massaging the scalp. Slowly, his head fell onto her thigh and he closed his eyes. "You know back in those days, we didn't have twenty year-old men, halfway between our legs, like this." Cady joked, tugging on his hair lightly. Jon snuggled closer to her thigh, delivering light kisses. Cady squirmed and she felt his hands wrap around her waist, holding her steady.

"Ssh," he whispered into her skin. The feeling of his lips and the quick air passing them gave her goose bumps. Instinctively, she tried to move backwards but Jon held her tight, bringing her closer. His buried his face in the junction of her leg and hip. "Jon..."

"Take these off," he pulled at her shorts, giving her an impatient growl.

"...the living room floor?" she asked, her voice a whisper. Jon's only answer was his strong arms pushing her back to the floor. He hoisted her legs up as if she were a baby, having a diaper removed and took off her shorts, allowing his fingers to trail behind the fabric as they slid from her legs. When her legs came back down Jon parted them and placed himself in between. She laughed when he threw her shorts across the room.

"I better be able to find those in the morning." She threatened. Jon gave her a deviant smile. "Or else?" he laid a kiss on her thigh. Caden squirmed and sighed, excitement taking over her senses. When she didn't answer, he kissed her again, farther up this time. Caden moaned. "Sounds like an empty threat to me." The hazel eyed boy hooked his fingers along the seam of her panties but did not remove them. He merely watched her. He saw her breathing speed up, her chest rise and fall quickly, knowing what he was going to do. "Calm down," he whispered into the fabric. She could feel his breath in the perfect spot. She felt him, where he needed to be. He placed a kiss where he thought she would feel it most and got the response he wanted, her body jerking and shivering. "Off," she begged. He obeyed. Caden felt her body heat up as the cold air touched her intimately. He tossed her underwear in the same direction as her shorts but this time she didn't notice. She was too busy looking at him; watching him as he removed his own shirt.

She slid forward and sat up, her lips meeting his before he even had time to register his own shirt was off. She kissed him hard, this time getting access to the warm cavern of his mouth instead of vice versa. Her hand found a place in the back of his head, bringing him closer. She wanted to taste any and everything he had to give her.

She wanted all of him this time. No haphazardness, no aloneness in the morning-none of it. It was going to be real. If he was there in the morning, sleeping next to her like she always wanted him to be, then she could honestly say that the past was forgotten

Jon's warm hand found its place on her breast, massaging roughly. Her nipples hardened and peaked through her shirt. Jon took full advantage, circling them with his thumb and tugging on them through the thin cotton. His other hand drifted down her stomach to the center of her warmth and found her most sensitive spot. Her body jerked and she cried out. He used his ring and index finger to apart her nether lips and his middle finger flicked her hypersensitive clit quickly.

"Oh, God." Caden breathed. She allowed Jon to push her back down on to the carpet. "Ssh, baby," he whispered to her, kissing her stomach then the underside of her breast as she moaned and writhed. Without warning, he removed his finger from her clit and pushed his first two fingers inside of her, earning her a short gasp. His thumb replaced his middle finger on her clit and this time Caden's body came off the carpet, her back arched. She felt warm lips trail up her body then take in the nipple on her left breast. A warm tongue flicked it back and forth as if it were candy.

Cady thought she would explode. She felt it already, building inside her. The more she tried to push it down and away from her was the more it threatened to spill over. Her inner walls, gripped Jon's fingers. He removed his lips from her nipple and slid down her body. His warm tongue on her clit was a shock to her senses and her orgasm spilled over, uninhibited.

What little of the carpet she could grab, she held on to for dear life as a year's worth of sexual frustration and tension was released from her body and coated Jon's fingers.

"Shit," C.K. whispered, as she came back down from a temporary high, still shaking but not as much. Her body jerked when Jon removed his fingers. She felt the warmth of his body as he lay down next to her. He nuzzled into her neck leaving little kisses there. "It's been a while?" He asked. Cady only nodded, eyes closed, lips searching for his blindly. She found them and she tasted herself on his lips. "Jason wasn't anything to brag about..." Her voice sounded weak. Jon couldn't help but get turned on by it. The ache in his cock had been plaguing him since he got there, now it was a full blown pain. His jeans restricted him.

Cady slid her hands down his chest, stomach, ending at the bulge in his pants. "Why are your pants still on?" She whispered, kissing his once more. Jon smiled against her lips. Without unbuckling them, she slid her small hands past his waistband and gripped him. Jon sucked air between his teeth. She stroked him lightly, taking advantage of what little movement she could get inside the tightened pants. "Just take them off," he groaned.

Caden allowed him to lay back. He undid his buckle, then button, and zipper and slid the restraining fabric halfway down his thighs, along with the boxers, freeing himself. Cady took that as her cue and took over. She straddled his thighs, getting close enough to his cock so he could feel her heat. She gripped him with her fingers, teasing him and Jon whispered something that she didn't quite hear. With a feather light touch, she raked her nails up the underside of him and then back down.

"Don't tease," He said, finding his voice. Cady smiled at the frustrated look on his face. "I don't have any condoms," Caden whispered. Disappointment surfaced, if eh didn't have any they were both screwed. She had gotten excited about having him inside of her the moment his pants were off. He was bigger than what she remembered; or maybe she had just gotten used to the smaller stuff with Jason.

"There's a condom in my left pocket."

Good. She reached in and pulled the small package out. She opened it and placed it on, quickly, her hands shaking.

Caden straddled his hips, her body still hovering over him, not giving him access yet. "Don't tease me, Cady," he warned her again. He used his hand to grip his cock and aim it upwards and his other to push her down onto him, connecting them.

He filled her up completely and Cady felt herself heat up to almost more than she could take. Inside her she felt his cock jerk. "Don't move," he gasped. His head was thrown back and eyes closed. A light sheen of sweat dotted his forehead. Caden smiled. She used her thighs to lift herself up on him and then back down. Jon gasped. He made an attempt to grip her hips and stop her but she rose up again and then back down, driving the blonde-haired boy momentarily insane.

They reveled in the feel of each other-Jon sliding in and out of her, her tightness gripping him like her hands were; Caden, loving the feeling of being filled by his length.

The feeling of each other began to overtake them and Cady found herself, crying out for him as she leaned back, gripping his knees and riding him hard. He plunged upward into her, hands holding onto her thighs, moving her to match his speed. Without warning, he flipped them over-Caden on the bottom, Jon on top. Her legs were wrapped firmly around his waist as he held onto her thighs and thrust into her wildly.

Jon looked down at Cady, her short hair a mess and her beautiful gray eyes closed. Her lips were parted slightly and every so often, depending on how hard Jon pushed into her, his name would slip through them.

"Kitten," he whispered to her, his voice hoarse. "Look at me."

And when she did, he felt himself explode inside of her, the feeling so strong and cried out. He felt her inside, as she gripped his cock and milked it while she cried out too, yelling his name, her orgasm every bit as powerful as his was.

His body collapsed weakly next to hers, and he pulled her onto his chest. She only moaned a protest, too tired to do anything else. She mumbled something. "What?" Jon lifted his head to her hear. "Take these off." She kicked at his jeans that were still on his legs. "I think I have a bruise from the zipper..." Jon was sure that's what she had said. She had fallen asleep mid-sentence. Jon felt his heart flip. He could still make her do that.

"Do you wanna go in the bedroom?" he whispered.