Chapter 3 - Jake
The conversation with Dani stayed with me for a long time after that Sunday. I was as confused as she was. I loved her like I have never loved anyone else, but I was developing feelings for Kelly and I had an opportunity for happiness in a way Dani couldn't and wouldn't provide. It was far too early to think about marriage and children, but they were certainly possible at some point in the future with Kelly.
For her part, Dani backed off over the following weeks. We still spoke and saw each other when we could but there was a distance between us that there had never been before. I hated it. Dani was a part of the core of who I was, to drift from her felt like a part of my essence was taken from me. I worried about her. Something had changed and I had no idea what it was.
My time outside of work was split between my new relationship with Kelly and my old friendship with Dani. Dani never mentioned Kelly when we were together and suddenly there were silent gaps in our conversations - yet another thing that neither of us had experienced before. I wanted to talk to her about what was going on but for once, I simply didn't know where to begin or what to say. Communication had always been one of our strong points, but it seemed as though it was turning into one of our weaknesses.
Kelly helped in some ways but not in others. She reminded me subtly about Dani and what she termed 'emotional blackmail'. It was one of the few things we disagreed on. She thought Dani was using my feelings for her to manipulate me into caring for her as I always had and not giving me an opportunity for a future with someone. I listened but firmly reminded her that Dani and I had a history that simply couldn't be wiped out. Dani would always feature in my life, although not quite in the capacity she had before.
Kelly tried to get me to see her side and a part of me understood. To her, she was sharing a part of my heart with another woman, even though that was never the case. She told me that although there was nothing physical between me and Dani, there was an emotional relationship that would impact any and all of my relationships. It confused me and I had no idea what to do.
Trying to push Dani and Kelly together was like trying to force a pair of magnets to meet. Dani refused to see Kelly and Kelly likewise wanted nothing to do with Dani. I settled for two very separate parts of my life that were pulling me apart. For the first time, I wondered to myself whether my friendship with Dani meant that I couldn't have romantic relationships.
Kelly wasn't happy about the situation and more often than not, any discussion around Dani was tabled and we moved on to far more pleasant and pleasurable things.
Sex with Kelly was incredible. Her body was built for pleasure and she wielded it like an expert. Our sessions were vigorous and sweaty hours of fucking each other to powerful orgasms. Kelly sometimes liked to be in control and other times preferred me to take the lead.
I didn't mind either way, as long as I got to watch her huge tits bouncing while we fucked.
Having sex wasn't the only good aspect of my growing relationship with Kelly, though. We enjoyed date nights together and days out around the city. She was extremely driven and work-orientated but not at the cost of our relationship. I noticed she even picked up extra shifts at the hospital regularly to support her staff, something that made me admire her even more.
Things became tense at a family barbeque my parents hosted at their house. It was spring and the weather was turning from cold to mild, something my dad argued was more than enough reason to get the barbeque out.
Normally, I would pick up Dani and travel there together but she told me she'd make her own way. I suspected it was because I was driving there with Kelly. I was far more stressed about the day than I should have been and Kelly noticed it during the drive.
"Relax," she told me. "Dani and I aren't going to start fighting at your parents' house. It'll be nice to meet them all and get to know who raised such a wonderful man."
I did my best to relax. "Thank you. It's difficult to juggle two such opposing parts of my life, that's all."
Kelly didn't seem happy with that. "Well, one part represents the past and the other represents the future," she said stiffly.
I didn't like what she said at all but let it drop. The last thing I needed was a huge argument with her right before meeting my parents. When we arrived, the sun was shining pleasantly on my parents' well-maintained garden, where they were waiting with Dani and her parents.
"You're early!?" I blurted out to Dani without thinking.
She waited until our parents weren't looking and flipped me the middle finger. "And you're late!"
I made the introductions and held my breath as Dani and Kelly exchanged a frosty greeting. Things went OK after that. Dani and Kelly didn't talk directly to each other but our parents did a fantastic job of keeping the conversation light and flowing.
I mostly sat back and enjoyed time with the people I cared about most in life. Kelly did as good a job as anyone in winning over my two sets of parents, but I could tell that they didn't fully warm to her. It wasn't that they were rude. On the contrary, they laughed with her and told embarrassing stories from my childhood, but it was as if they held her at arm's length, not wanting to get too close.
After we'd finished eating my mum's delicious homemade burgers, I helped Dad clear the barbecue away while the others took the dishes inside to be cleaned. My dad was what I would call a happy person. He had a bubbly personality, much like Dani. It was one of the many reasons he and Dani had always gotten along so well.
The barbecue was a monstrosity, a mobile cooking machine on wheels. Dad and I steered it back toward a small shelter we'd built together one summer. After we'd tucked it away, Dad double-checked the gas was off and said, "Kelly's nice."
I raised my eyebrows. "Just nice?"
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "No, I suppose she's got the potential to be more than that. What do you think of her?"
"I think she's great. She's driven, successful, and obviously beautiful. She's got a plan for the future and we get on really well. I'm enjoying my time with her." I studied my Dad's body language. There was something he wanted to say but wouldn't. His brows lowered ever-so-slightly and his lips thinned fractionally. "Whatever it is, just say it," I told him.
He sighed and nodded towards my Mum. "It's worth more than my life to get involved."
"Get involved with what? Dad, what aren't you telling me?"
"Nothing serious, son. I promise. You know your mother and what she's like, she's told me that I'm not allowed to get involved with your love life. It's up to you to decide and work it all out for yourself. I will say this, though: the things you listed about Kelly, they're not important - at least, not in the grand scheme of things."
He looked at Mum and his eyes lit up. "Take beauty, for example. Your mother is and always will be the most beautiful person in the world to me, in far more important ways than physically. Whether we're twenty and in the primes of our lives or ninety sitting on a pair of rocking chairs, her beauty would be the same. The true measure of beauty isn't in the colour of a woman's hair or the size of her... assets, it's in the nature of her heart." He chuckled and shook his head. "Don't tell your mother what I said, though, OK? I might use it in her next birthday card."
I laughed with him, though his words struck me in a strange way. It made me wonder if I'd been blinded by Kelly's beauty.
He must have sensed my unease because he continued. "Kelly might be great, and she seems nice enough, but you don't look at her the way I look at your mother. Maybe it will come in time, who knows? Just... be careful. A heart is a fragile thing and I wouldn't want anyone's getting hurt.
It wasn't until much later that I realised my Dad hadn't been talking about my or Kelly's heart.
*
The conversation with my father stayed with me over the following weeks. I began looking at Kelly in a different light, trying to peel back the layers of astounding beauty to glimpse what lied beneath. I asked myself if I would be happy with her in twenty, forty, or fifty years. The answer evaded me and I had no idea why.
"She doesn't like me," Kelly told me one morning over coffee. We were sitting in my kitchen, recovering after a night of not much sleep.
"Who?" I asked, knowing the answer.
"You know who. She's going to try and get you to pick her over me one day, if she hasn't already. When that doesn't work, she'll start lying to you."
I closed my eyes and rubbed my temples. It wasn't the best way to start the day. "Dani won't ever lie to me and I don't think she'd make me choose between you either. I'm not kicking you or her from my life so you'll both have to make peace with it. Dani is my oldest friend. You are my partner and I see a potentially happy future for us. I'd be lying if I said I hadn't developed feelings for you."
I caught a glimpse of icy anger that I hadn't seen before but it was quickly replaced by a warm smile. "Feelings, eh?" Kelly asked.
I flushed slightly. "Uh-yeah... feelings," I stammered.
Kelly sauntered around the kitchen island and gave me a long, lingering kiss. "I have feelings too," she said. She kissed down my neck and fished my rapidly hardening cock from my shorts. She sucked the tip until I was as hard as steel and then grinned up at me. "Let me give you another amazing feeling."
I was almost late to work that day. Kelly's blowjob turned into a steamy sex session that required a shower afterwards. We left my house at the same time and drove our respective routes to work. Kelly was picking up overtime after her shift, freeing me up to see Dani when I finished.
The witches cornered me at lunch, both sporting broad grins. "Someone's been very busy," Robyn observed slyly. She sat opposite me and regarded me with a smug grin that was mirrored by Liz.
"You've made quite the impression on our dear friend," Liz said. I could tell they were poking me for information but I wasn't going to give it.
I took my time finishing my sandwich before replying. "Yes, Robyn, I have been busy. And that makes me happy, Liz. Kelly has made quite the impression on me as well."
They leaned forward eagerly but I wasn't giving them any more information. "Oh, come on!" Robyn exclaimed. "Tell us all the juicy gossip! What have you done? Where have you been? What's the sex like?"
"Robyn!" I hissed, quickly checking for any work colleagues in hearing range. The hospital was terrible for rumours. "What's got into you pair!? You're like two gossiping schoolgirls!"
