This can never happen again.
My words. I meant them. And I couldn't even hold out for 12 hours.
Katie had walked into the house just seconds after Jeff had left me in the mud room. Any earlier, and she would have walked in on her son two fingers deep in my pussy and my hands around his cock. Thankfully, she didn't notice anything odd about my flushed cheeks and messed-up hair. All that could be blamed on the snowmobile ride, and not the intense erotic encounter Jeff and I just had.
I gave a silent sigh of relief and helped Katie carry bags of groceries to the kitchen.
"What a day!" she was saying. "The buyers were a young couple who couldn't agree on anything. They wanted quaint and cottagey, but also with a gourmet kitchen and a finished basement, for less than a million. In Muskoka! Dream on."
The afternoon sun was streaming in from the west, lighting up the view across the lake with pale yellow highlights and long blue shadows. I tried to help put things away but Katie shooed me out of her space. I took a seat at the massive marble island. A glass of wine appeared at my fingertips.
My heart rate had come down a bit, but I could still feel the imprint of Jeff's lips, his fingers. His dark eyes, staring down at me with that hunger -- hunger that I had matched. His hands in my hair, on my body.
Katie poured herself a glass of wine. "Where's Jeff hiding now?" she asked, interrupting my reverie.
"Uh, not sure. We got back just before you came in, and he kind of disappeared."
She sighed. "That boy," she said, shaking her head. "I swear, I never know what he's up to, even though he's living here. You probably saw more of him today than I have the whole week!"
No doubt
, I thought. I still couldn't believe how quickly that had escalated. True, things had been erotically charged between the two of us all day. But at what point did it all shift? When did he stop seeing me as his mom's friend from the city? A woman nearly twice his age? Maybe, like me, he hadn't been thinking at all -- he had just let a fantasy take over.
I felt confused, but still humming with a raw need that he had awakened in me. I shook my head to clear it, refocusing my attention on Katie. I was here to spend time with her, after all. I would mull over what had happened with Jeff later, when I was alone.
The last time I had seen Katie had been almost a year ago, back in the city, so we had plenty to catch up on. She was busy, social, and connected, and shared stories of glamourous events and high-profile clients. I talked about what was going on with my work life -- I'm head of marketing for a consulting firm -- as well as with my personal life. Just as I was about to tell Katie about a trip that my boyfriend Sacha and I had taken recently, Jeff walked into the kitchen.
He looked every inch the normal guy in his mid-20s. He greeted his mom, grabbed a plate, and filled up with an enormous helping of dinner. He gave me a brief, "Hi Aunt Nika," before popping a bun in his mouth and ducking back out again.
Katie and I exchanged glances. She shook her head. "I'm sorry, Nika, he's not normally so rude. He could have at least sat down with us."
"It's okay. We talked earlier." Honestly, I was thankful not to have to be in the same room with Jeff, much less sit and attempt to have innocent dinner-table conversation with him in front of his mother. It was hard enough knowing he was somewhere in the house. But calling me "Aunt Nika" after he'd just had his tongue down my throat? Cheeky.
"He's had a lot on his mind recently, with his business taking off like it has. I'm so proud of him! But he works too hard. Plus, now he's renovating his own place -- a cabin that he got for cheap on the other side of the lake."
"Is that why he's living here?" I asked.
"Exactly. Not that I'm complaining. I love having him around. Even if he spends too much of his down time playing video games. And his appetite is going to bankrupt me." She shrugged in a what-can-you-do manner, and gave me a smile. "Anyway, I'm sure we'll be able to drag him out of his room at some point this week. In the meantime, let's leave the dishes for him, and you and I can go relax. I want to hear more about how things are with Sacha."
***
Later, I carried our wine glasses back to the kitchen, yawning. Katie had gone to bed already, and I was on my way too. It had been a long day, with some wild swings. I needed a good sleep. Hopefully, things would feel more stable in the morning.
"Nika," said a low voice from the doorway. I jumped, but of course it was Jeff, the very person who was making me feel so off-kilter. He must have been waiting until his mom went to bed before coming to find me.
I wasn't sure I'd be able to resist him if he kissed me again.
He came closer but stopped on the other side of the kitchen island, which served as a barrier between us. I needed all the help I could get. It wasn't fair that someone should look so appealingly sexy in just a t-shirt and sweatpants. I opened my mouth to say something, but he cut me off.
"I wanted to apologize," he said quietly. "I shouldn't have jumped on you like that."
Well, that was unexpected. But at least one of us was being a responsible, respectful adult. I felt a twinge of disappointment that I tried to ignore.
"I didn't exactly try to stop you," I said. "We both got carried away. I'm sorry too. Let's chalk it up to being alone together too much, and try to forget it happened, okay?"
With a few steps, he was on my side of the island, standing far too close. I could smell his warmth. "I'm not going to forget about it. There's this...connection we have. Like I know you. I've known you most of my life. But now, it feels different. I can't stop thinking about you, wanting you."
I didn't know what to say, I gulped, half wishing he would walk away, half wishing he would touch me. His voice was undermining all the things I had told myself about never letting anything happen between us again.
"I think we both had a weak moment," I said, putting my hands up to stop him from getting any closer. "Let's just not put ourselves in the same position again. Like right now. I should go to bed." I was saying all the right things, being smart. I didn't move though. I leaned back against the island and kept my eyes away from his.