We sat on the couch, pretending to watch the movie on the small tv. Or, at least I did. I can't read minds, so I really don't know what Steph as thinking, but she seemed as little interested in the movie as I was.
It was later in the evening, and we had put Katie, my 18 month old, to sleep on the bed in Stephanie's bedroom about an hour ago. I knew I would have to wake her up when I took her home, but she slept well enough that she wouldn't be too fussy about it. Karen wouldn't be home for another couple of hours, so I could spend some a little while longer with Steph before I needed to get home to Karen.
Of course, Karen knew where we were. I had told her that we would be at Stephanie's for dinner tonight, so that Katie could go swimming in the pool at Steph's apartment complex. It was across the street and few buildings down from the building that Stephanie lived in, but it was a quiet complex and Katie seemed to enjoy splashing around in the pool. We had been friends with Stephanie for several years, and our family shared many dinners and other events with Stephanie.
Stephanie and I had been doing a kind of low-key seduction of each other for the past several weeks. Stephanie had been divorced for over ten years, and did not seem to be inclined to date much. I knew there was still some fire in her, but her plain looks and plump figure didn't draw many looks.
Nonetheless, I had been pursuing her, quietly, for the past several months. Whenever we would have the opportunity to be alone, I would touch her gently, with quick hugs, pecks on the cheeks when we parted, and just generally being close to her whenever I could arrange it.
Take tonight, for instance. Katie and I showed up around 4. I gave her a hug and quick kiss as we headed inside. I managed to get the kiss on her lips, even though she usually tried to turn her head to take my kiss on her cheek. She didn't seem to mind, and her efforts to turn her head had been lackluster at best in the past few weeks. Katie immediately went to the closet and began pulling pool toys out. Stephanie laughed and said, "Well, I guess we should get changed."
I leered comically and said, "Need any help?"
She looked at me and said, "No, I think I can manage." I ducked into the bathroom and changed into my suit and then got Katie into hers. By that time, Steph was changed and back out, getting towels, toys, and other swimming equipment together. We trooped out the pool and lazed about while Katie splashed and giggled merrily. I occasionally slipped my arm around Stephanie or rested my hand on her leg while we chatted and watched Katie.
When we headed back to Stephanie's apartment, Katie was worn out from playing and ready for dinner and sleep. When we were changing back into street clothes, I again teased Stephanie by asking if I could watch her change. She said no, but I could tell she gave it a bit of thought.
We had sandwiches and and chips and fresh veggies for dinner with some fruit for dessert. After we cleaned up, I laid Katie down on the bed and sang to her while she fell asleep. When she was sleeping, I closed the door quietly and went back into the living room.
Stephanie and I decided to find a movie on tv and settled onto the couch. It was small settee, and we sat fairly close together. I casually put my left arm around her shoulder, and after a moment, she cuddled against me.
We settled in to watch the movie, but I had seen it before and wasn't terribly interested. I began to use my left had to trace random patterns on her bare arm, my hand wandering widely over her upper arm. At the same time, her head was slipping down my shoulder such that the left side of her head was near my head. Every so often, I would lean down and kiss her gently on her head.
At one point, I moved my hand up to softly massage her temple. She closed her eyes and purred a bit, and then said, "You'd better stop that, or I won't be responsible for my actions."
I asked her, "What would you do?"
She quivered a little and said, "I don't know," as she bit her lip and sighed.
I moved by hand back down to her arm as she relaxed against me. I moved my right hand to being stoking her other arm, as we continued to stare at the movie. As we sat there, I continued to stroke arms, apparently aimlessly. In fact, I had noticed that because of her position on the couch, her heavy right breast was pressed up against her arm. As I stroked, I moved my hand slightly so that I was not just stroking the arm, but the flesh of her breast. Shortly, my hand had abandoned her arm and was slowly massaging her breast.
She didn't stop me, move my hand away, or otherwise recognize that I was now rubbing her boob. After a few minutes of that, I took the risk of reaching down to draw her shirt up so that I could touch the bare skin of her chest and perhaps reach into her bra. As I began to inch the fabric up her torso, she said suddenly, in a slightly plaintive voice, "What are we doing?"
I froze, debating how to respond. A wrong response would risk our friendship and worse, could get me busted as an incompetent adulterer. A right response could get me some sexual release. Since Stephanie know me so well, I decided that honestly was the best option. What the hell - might as well jump in feet first. "At the moment, I'm trying to get to know this magnificent breast I just found. Past that, I'm not sure, either."
I waited. She took a breath and said, "I think we're about to cross a line. If we do, things might never be the same. And what about Karen? She's one of my best friends."
"I'm willing to take that risk. I know that I want you, and that I will never hurt you. And I know that you know that I won't hurt Karen or Katie, either. What we can have can be nice, but it can't be much. If you're willing to live with that, great. If not, that's fine too, and I won't be angry. As for Karen, that's my burden to bear. I'm willing to take that risk, too."
Stephanie thought for moment, then nodded her head, more to herself than to me. She said, "Ok. I can live with that." Her breath came a little quicker, and I resumed inching her shirt up over the boob that had been my goal.
She suddenly turned to me, looked into my eyes for a moment, and then moved her lips to mine. The kiss started gently, but she suddenly opened her mouth to me, and her tongue found mine. Our tongues danced together, drawing moans and more frenetic activity from both of us. Soon, we broke apart, breathing heavily and letting our hands roam over each other's backs and we continued to hold each other.
I began to kiss her neck, working my way up to her temples and ears. She moaned softly. While I was still softly kissing her face and neck, my hands went to her heavy breasts. I took one in each hand, caressing them through the shirt and bra she wore. She broke our embrace, looked at me for a breath and said, "Hold on just a second." With that, she reached down, grabbed the hem of her shirt and drew it over her head and off. She dropped the shirt to the floor, reached behind her, and unclasped her bra.