The Mother Tracie Deserves Ch 23

A DREAM BEFORE HALLOWEEN

The peak of the autumn colors had come and gone. Most of the leaves had fallen, and those that had escaped the rake were fringed with frost in the mornings. The cold season was coming again.

Tracie was busy in school and sports. I was busy at work. Bill and I were still dating when we had time, though he was busy too and often out of town.

I was feeling an emptiness. The shopping trip with Tracie had had very mixed results. It had not done as much as I'd hoped to bring us closer. It seemed there always had to be some kind of tension between us.

One evening, I sat at home, eating dinner by myself, thinking how soon my daughter would be gone, off to college, leaving me alone. I hated to think she would leave with any bad feelings between us.

And then I had an idea. I smiled when I decided to bring back a long-time tradition, if only for one more year. There wasn't much time, but I'd make it work somehow.

Ever since Tracie was little, Halloween had always been her favorite holiday. Of course, at nineteen, she had already grown out of going door-to-door begging for candy. But it had always been one of my proudest things as her mom to throw my girl and her friends a nice Halloween party each year, with costumes, decorations, treats, music, a bonfire and everything. It was a lot of work (especially cleaning up the mess), but it was something special that I loved doing for my stepdaughter. I'd done it every October since I started dating Tracie's father.

The sad exception, of course, was just the year before, when I had been too drunk and depressed to put on a party. It was only twelve months since then, but that dark time seemed so long past. I resolved that this Halloween would be joyful, like old times again.

Right from the start, when I asked Tracie what date would work for the party, I saw a spark of happy excitement in her eyes. She told me she already knew the perfect costume for me, and she sat me down to order it from one of her costume websites.

I asked her, "Are you going to wear your new black cat costume?"

"Maybe," she said. "But now that we're having a party, I'll have to think about it."

Of course, with the cosplay she had been doing even before our ill-fated trip to

Martina's for Lovers,

Tracie had her pick of costumes already in her closet.

She said, "Will you help me look through some outfits?"

I lit up. "I would love to, baby." That was just the kind of Halloween fun I was hoping to have with her again.

I sat happily on my daughter's bed, watching her go through her costume wardrobe, trying on things in front of her tall bedroom mirror.

It crossed my mind that the cosplay had started out as part of the blackmail stuff. But I told myself,

That was then, this is now

. I tried to focus on the positive and forget the past.

Looking through the costumes strewn across Tracie's bed, I said, "Ooh, I love this Little Bo Peep one." I handed it to her.

My stepdaughter had just stripped off the previous costume and she seemed perfectly comfortable to be naked except for her panties. She shook out the big puffy Bo Peep skirt, all pink and white.

"Yeah, let's try it," she said. She tugged the costume on and pulled her boobs into place in the form-fitting, sky-blue bodice.

I said, "Look at that décolletage!"

My daughter said, "Day-what?"

"Décolletage. You know, your chest area, above the neckline there."

"Is that what it's called?" She touched her fingers to the flawless skin above her fantastic cleavage.

"Yeah," I said. "And yours looks beautiful in that outfit. Add the bonnet and the shepherd's staff and you'll look so adorable."

"It is cute," Tracie said, turning side to side in the mirror. "And you're right, my boobs look great in it. But I don't know. It's my senior year. I think this is too cutesy and little-girlish."

I said, "Well, show me the costume you probably already decided you're going to wear."

"Here it is," she said, holding it up, still in the package. It was the Black Cat costume from the sex shop.

Again I dismissed the negative feelings that I remembered from that shopping trip and said, "Time to try it out, I guess."

I helped my stepdaughter pull off the Bo Peep dress, leaving her in just her panties again. She opened the new costume package and pulled out a black nylon bodysuit.

I watched her wiggle her perfect young body into the stretchy material. It fit her like a second skin. I said, "Gosh, that fabric looks really thin."

She straightened the seams. "Yeah, it's a little cheap. But I didn't want to get one of the expensive ones. As long as I'm careful, it should hold up. It's not like I'm going to do yard work in it. It looks good, though, right?"

I said, "It looks like someone painted your skin black."

Tracie chuckled, "Well, Mom, I have a decent body and I should be able to show it off, at least at a costume party, right?"

I sighed and smiled. I'd always tried to teach my girl to be unashamed of her looks. "Yes, honey, you're right."

"Check this out." She pulled a little belt out of the package and clipped it around her waist. The belt had a long, fluffy cat tail hanging off the back. She craned her neck around to look at her backside in the mirror.

I said, "It looks just like old Blackie's scraggly tail."

We both laughed. I said, "Here, let me try to fluff it up." I brushed at the tail with my hands from its tip up to my daughter's shapely butt. "There we go," I said. "Much better. Oh, here, let me fluff this up too." I tickled her round buns.

She squealed and laughed, jumping away and holding her butt. "That's fluffy enough, thank you very much."

I loved laughing with her.

She went back to the package and pulled out a headband. "And it comes with little cat ears, too, see?"

"Very cute."

Looking at herself in the mirror, she said, "Seems to fit pretty good." She turned to me and smoothed her hands over her torso. "So, what do you think?"

"Well, it sure does show off your body. Are you going to wear a bra with it?"

"Do I need to?"

I sighed again, this time enviously. "No. You look amazing. Maybe a little too amazing for a party with a bunch of teenage boys."

She laughed, "That decides it. 'A little too amazing' is what I'm going for. And there's only going to be a few boys, Mom. It's mostly girls from volleyball and basketball - you know, girls dressing up for each other."

"If you say so." I watched my stepdaughter admire her curves in the sleek black tights. I had to admit, she looked stunning.

Tracie and her friends were no longer little children excited about candy and party games. They were now young adults. I missed the innocence of those earlier years, but I was also proud of my daughter and how confident she was in her body.

And she still could get excited for innocent Halloween fun. She said, "I'll do some sharp black fingernails to go with it. And will you help me put on pussycat whiskers and stuff, like the squirrel makeup you did on me for the school play?"

Delighted, I said, "I'd be sad if you didn't let me."

She looked at herself in the mirror, clearly pleased. "Welp, this is the one. Will you help me take it off? I don't want to rip it."

We carefully peeled the body suit down from her shoulders to her ankles. Gently, I tugged it off her feet, then stood back up behind her.

Making eye contact in the mirror, we both smiled. I put my hands on her arms, savoring the touch and the reflection of my gorgeous teenage girl. She let me look, unbothered by her nudity.

I said, "No matter what you wear, Tracie, you're the most beautiful thing in the world. I hope you know that. Just look at you."

"Thanks, Mom."

I stroked her arms and said, "I love you, you know. And I've always loved doing Halloween with you."

She smiled sweetly. "Me too."

I couldn't stop looking in the mirror at my stepdaughter's fantastic body. She stood up extra straight, showing herself off to me. Young as she was, she looked as sexy as any of those women in the book under my bed. I kissed her shoulder. Her skin was so perfect. I loved the scent of my girl.

Tracie giggled, breaking my trance.

Catching myself, I forced a laugh too. I quickly let go of her, clearing my throat as I turned to the costumes on her bed. I nervously starting moving them around for no logical reason.

My daughter came up behind me and wrapped her arms around me. "I love you, Mom. It's going to be a great Halloween."

That night I had a wonderful dream. I was somewhere out in nature, in a pretty meadow, on a warm, sunny day. A magnificent, magical winged creature came to me - something between a flamingo and an ethereal angel. Swirling with soft colors, it was like an exotic bird from another world, another dimension, but it was my pet, my intimate companion. I felt with dream clarity how much I loved this pet and how much it loved me.

Slowly, gracefully, the magical bird danced with me, its wings moving like those of a sea ray swimming underwater. Into the air around us, the bird's movements shed sparkling curls of rainbow-colored stardust.

And as my beautiful pet gently danced and waved its wings, its body stroked against me - lovely caresses that filled me with joy.

While the dream went on, the sensations grew more thrilling. The wondrous feathers swept slowly up my belly and wrapped around my breast. I hummed in the luxurious feeling.

The warm touches fluttered slowly back down my torso. I was completely relaxed. The bird's angelic caress circled around my sex. The dream feathers became more solid as they pressed to get inside my panties.

I gasped softly in pleasure. Its fingers were moving slowly through my pubic hair. I knew I was wet, and I spread my legs, wanting the touch. In the sunlight of the meadow, I whispered, "Yes."

The bird-angel was there to please me. Some part of it covered my nipple with warm wetness. Giving in to this sublime erotic fantasy, I was in heaven.

With the dream-gates wide open and love flowing free, I enjoyed an easy, smooth-pounding orgasm under the perfect touches of my amazing dream-bird.

Then, somehow, I was climbing on top of myself. I know that makes no sense now, but in my sleeping state, that's what I felt. Maybe my pet had transformed into another me, and its womanly body was on my body. The tender breast of my magical duplicate lowered to my face and I began to suck.

My other self moaned a loving tone. Her flesh between my lips was deliciously supple. It must have been my own - the nipple fit so well and happily in my mouth. Its soft warmth fed my soul with light.

I slid my hands up my other body - I knew it was a dream body, because it was impossibly smooth and firm. Every inch I felt aroused me more. I gripped the angel's breasts and held them to my face.

Then, from outside the dream, a voice whispered, "Oh, yes, Mom."

The last word bothered me. I ignored it to continue dreaming my fantastic dream. I focused on my pet's young body, tasting the love of my bird angel.

"That feels so good, Mom, don't stop."

I froze, my lips falling from the sweet breast of my other body. My dream was breaking into confused pieces. As wakefulness flooded in, all that ethereal beauty and warmth switched to a twisting, cold lump in my belly. "Oh no," I whimpered. "Oh god, no." My sleepy eyes took a moment to focus on my stepdaughter straddled on top of me, naked, her breasts in my hands.

Tracie's dreamy eyes grew confused at my stopping. "What is it?"

"Honey, oh no, we can't do this," I said, my heart starting to pound. I worked my way out from under her and curled myself up into a tight ball. "What are you doing in my bed?"

Her eyes were wide, brows crooked with hurt and confusion. "But you said yes."

I swallowed and realized I had. I said, "Tracie, I was asleep. I was dreaming."

She pleaded, "It doesn't have to be a dream, Mom." She leaned to kiss me.

I panicked. "Yes it does! Yes it does have to be a dream! Only a dream!" I scrambled out of my bed and into the bathroom.

She cried after me, "But you- What about in my room tonight? When I was changing costumes? You-"

Closing the door between us, I caught a glimpse of her kneeling up in my bed, her fit, naked body unbelievably beautiful. I locked the door, trembling. I said, "No... You're imagining things, Tracie. You misinterpreted-"

She shouted, "You're a liar! And a coward, Mom!"

It broke my heart to hear my daughter sobbing as she ran out of my room and down the hall.

The next day, of course, things were once again difficult between Tracie and me. We avoided each other before she left for school. The Halloween party was set for two days later. Throughout the day at work, I was too nervous to reach out to her. But I finally forced myself to text her the question, "Should we cancel the party?"

Her reply was, "We're not breaking any plans. I'm going to have a good time with or without you."

I wrote back, "Ok. I'll be there."

Her only response to that was a 'thumbs-up' emoji. Maybe I was projecting my fears onto that little icon, but it felt curt and sardonic.

That night, the silence and tension were hard to take while Tracie and I went ahead, as planned, to bake and decorate a bunch of cookies and cupcakes. Making homemade treats for the party had always been a part of our Halloween tradition. But instead of having fun, we barely spoke a word to each other the whole time.

We sat at the dining room table and covered the cookies and cupcakes first with frosting of Halloween colors: orange, black, green, white, purple. Then we piped on more frosting in shapes of bats and jack-o-lanterns and the like. Tracie's ghosts were especially cute. You'd never know by looking at the treats how miserable we were as we made them.

The day before the party, Bill came over to help us decorate the house. He couldn't come to the party - he had to go out of town for a national sales retreat - but I appreciated his offer to help us set up Halloween-colored streamers, strings of lights, fake cobwebs, and other decorations. I even rented a smoke machine for a foggy graveyard effect.

As soon as he arrived, Bill noticed my stepdaughter and I were both in very unhappy moods. He quietly asked me what was going on. I just said she and I had had a fight, but it would be fine.

We originally had planned for the three of us to watch a scary movie after we got the decorations up. But when movie-time came, Tracie instead shut herself away in her bedroom without a word.

I couldn't enjoy watching TV. Bill spent half the time consoling me while I wiped away tears.