Cotton mouth, dry eyes that were reluctant to open and a slight headache were Adam's first impressions of the day. Recollection of the evening before came next and served to counter the dilatory effects of the wine that had been consumed. A self-satisfied grin materialized with the awareness of a blond head on his left shoulder and darker brown on his right. Laurie and Natalie were motionless and both had arms draped across his mid-section under the comforter. The open window had significantly cooled the room with early spring air. They'd achieved that magnificent equilibrium where the temperature of the bed matched their bodies perfectly. Cool air to breath but a warm nest with mixed company. He couldn't think of a better way to start a day.
The shrill beeping of a truck backing down the alley behind the building disrupted the tranquility. A crow squawked indignantly from a tree branch close enough to the window that he seemed to be admonishing them for their lethargy. Natalie was the first of the girls to stir but she seemed to be wallowing in the realm between sleep and consciousness. Adam turned and placed his lips on the crown of her head. She gave a small squeeze with her hand on his ribs in response.
The first clue from Laurie that she'd emerged from the depths was a muffled request. "Anyone know the time?"
Natalie groaned a little and then turned on to her stomach and elbows. She blinked a few times and focused on the clock. "Almost nine-forty." She dipped her head and yawned expansively. "Well this is different." She gave Adam a quick smile.
"Mmph. I can't believe I've got to get out of bed." Laurie still hadn't moved, but was clearly having to come to grips with being awake. "I've gotta meet my Mom down at the farmers market on the Park blocks at ten-thirty." She gave a disconsolate growl. "And I blew her off last week—so no getting out of this one."
Laurie untangled herself from Adam and managed to mostly sit up. She was leaning on her right hand and rubbing at her eyes with her left. Adam stroked her lower back and took in the roundness of her right breast. It gently rolled with her movements, the nipple peeking into view and then away again. He reveled in the relaxed comfort of her nudity.
Glancing over at Natalie with a smirk, Laurie said, "If you were a real friend you'd come with me, Nat. I need help." She slipped into a shrill, unkind impression of her mother's voice. "So many girls are making money now—times have changed—you don't have to be teaching. That was all my mother and I were allowed to do. This is not a life for you, especially working with those poor children."
Natalie giggled at how close Laurie's mimicry was to the real thing. "Not this time, kiddo. You're on your own. Anyway I promised Sasha I'd swing by around lunchtime. And..."
"And you need to...sorry... want to be here for a bit." Laurie maneuvered to face Adam, giving him a fantastic start to his morning. She put a hand on his chest, leaned down and kissed him on the cheek. Mock hurt stole into her voice, "I can tell when I'm the third wheel."
Natalie reached over and put her hand on her friend's. "Thanks, Laurie."
Laurie detached herself from the womb of the bed, goose flesh pimpled her skin and her nipples tightened in the cool air. "Okay kids. Don't do anything I wouldn't." She flashed a smile and hurried out of the room, pulling the door closed behind her.
"Well, I think that leaves just us." Natalie said while idly tracing her fingers along Adam's collar bone.
"Yeah, it does. Well it will after I get back from the bathroom that is." Adam said and then slid sideways to excuse himself.
When he'd dropped his feet to the floor, Natalie had enjoyed her own moment of voyeurism. She could tell that the combination of it being morning and Laurie's body had somewhat aroused him. She observed his lean frame and liked how the slanting sun from the window backlit the small hairs along his butt and legs. She said, "I don't usually like such hairy butts."
"Hey!" He said and covered his rear with his hands while heading for the door.
When he'd gone she flopped onto her back and tried to make sense of the situation. Things were complicated. She was committed to Laurie...she loved her. But Adam had triggered similar feelings which made things messy. It'd be so much easier if he was just a fling; a boy-toy for the occasional dalliance when she was craving a change of pace. Undoubtedly true. Yet the past few months hadn't been a mistake. She sought his company. She wanted to spend time with him and it was certain she wanted to remain physical with him as well.
She heard Laurie and Adam bantering in the hall. Laurie was in the shower and there was only one bathroom in the place. She realized she'd be lucky if Adam came back to bed at all.
She expected his return, but he was taking his sweet, damn time. Another few minutes slipped by and Natalie said out loud to no one in particular, "That hussy." Laurie had probably lured Adam into the shower. But just when Natalie was about to go investigate, Adam returned carrying a plate of toast and a steaming coffee mug for her. The mental image of him moving around their kitchen, nude, to make her breakfast was both sexy and romantic at the same time. Yeah—she was in trouble.
He said, "I'm sure there are guys out there who'd whip up a soufflé or something for you, but I got the toaster to work and even managed to get that contraption to produce coffee. Milk and sugar—I believe."
Natalie gave an ear-to-ear smile. "We'll have to train you. What did you stir the coffee with?"
Adam looked down at his nakedness and laughed. "Ooh—no, no. That'd not be good. I managed to locate a spoon."
"I see." Natalie pushed back the covers. "Hang on. I'll be right back—nature calls."
Adam was walking through a dream. A few minutes earlier when he'd been going to the bathroom, Laurie was showering and the translucent glass had given him a suggestive view which had made willing away his hard-on difficult. Then she'd opened the shower glass door to stand facing him while water ran from her body. She'd given a wicked grin and ran a finger along her slit and it was clear her finger had penetrated herself. He'd pointed out that she was a little twisted, but it didn't seem to phase her in the least. Before getting derailed from his mission to bring Natalie breakfast, he'd had to leave one beauty in order to get back to another.
Natalie's lithe form approached him from the bed. She had a narrow waist, flat tummy, hips and thighs framing a light brown triangle. When she walked, there was almost no movement from her breasts, they were close to her body, but the underside curve from her ribcage was satisfyingly pronounced and her nipples had a decidedly upward inclination to them.
"Mmmm..." Natalie had taken the mug and sipped the steaming restorative. "Oh, that's good. Did you make one for yourself?"
"Yeah, and one for L too."
"Okay—put the toast over there. I'll be right back."
Adam set her breakfast on the night table and went back for his mug. He could hear Natalie and Laurie talking in the bathroom but didn't stick around for the conversation. He set himself up with some stacked pillows and grabbed the book off the nightstand to see what Natalie was reading.
In a few minutes, Natalie came back into the room and he could tell that she'd been teary. He said, "Hey, what's up? You okay?"
Natalie alternated dragging an index finger under each eye to wipe away the salty drops. "Yes. Fine. Laurie is amazing, that's all." She sat on the edge of the bed, with one knee flopped over toward Adam. She grabbed her coffee mug. "This is harder than I thought it would be. And Laurie not only knew it but...well...she's just amazing."
Natalie could see that Adam wasn't completely clued into what was going on. Until last night, he had no idea that the girls were more than roommates. Quite possibly, he thought that the threesome was some sort of fluke where Laurie joined them rather than the truth which was that Adam had been the outsider who'd joined the girls.
Adam had decided to focus on Natalie's face, he didn't want to be like a horny teenager and stare at her exposed body. Her position was overtly suggestive, but clearly this was not the time for that. The furrow was back on her brow, just the suggestion of it, and he knew she was working through things.
"Natalie, I don't want this to be difficult. The truth is..." Frustration welled. How could he possibly be nervous about talking to her given what had happened the previous night? "For god sakes, look I..."
Natalie put a hand on his arm. "Adam, I think I know. This is something that..."
"I'm sorry—I don't mean to be rude, but I need to say this. I'm just annoyed at myself for not being good at this sort of thing. The truth is pretty damn obvious at this point so I don't know why I have so much trouble saying it." He loved how much concentration was in her dark eyes. He continued, "For a few months now, I've been trying to find the right time to say something about how I feel, but I've had the hardest time reading you. Sometimes it seems like we're dating...we spend time on the phone, we go do stuff, I'm over here all the time."
"I'm sensing a 'but' coming..."
Adam took a sip of his coffee which was more of a delay tactic than anything. "But...then it's like you pull away. I haven't wanted to screw up my time with you, but I want more than hanging out. I don't know how to say this without sounding like a creep, but I plan my time around your schedule. When we set something up, that's the thing that the rest of my week suddenly becomes about. Then a thing like yesterday happens and I get totally confused."
Natalie raised her eyebrows in surprise, "Last night was confusing?"
"Not that. No. I mean when I saw that picture. I could have sworn you were going to kiss me, but Laurie came home and I ended up thinking I'd misread the whole thing. I can't read you worth a damn and that's why I haven't said anything." Once again, he sipped some coffee and took a moment to collect himself. "And there's more to it—but I don't want to burden you with my bullshit."
He'd looked away from her. She was roiling with a mess of emotions. Elation mingled with fear, frustration with relief. If she could've seen them, her feelings would have looked like a splattered Pollock canvas. There was pain in his eyes, which she'd not expected to see. She leaned forward and lightly pulled his chin back toward her."
