All characters in sexual situations are 18 or older. Thanks for reading!
"I don't understand." Alyson stared at Nick. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and stared again. "It's Thursday?"
"Yeah." Nick nodded.
"So that means... everything that happened with Chris... yesterday... was really yesterday." She pulled the covers to her chin and looked around the room like she expected something to pop out at her. "And he's still mad... at me."
"Wait... what?" Nick shook his head. "He called you fat, remember? Aren't you mad at him? He called you a cow, Alyson. He's a..." He took a deep breath. "Relationships are complicated, I guess."
"Yeah, they are." Alyson's pulse slowed and her head felt light. She was in shock. She had thought she would have more tries at Wednesday. Many, many more tries. Things with Chris had just gotten a whole lot worse. She focused on her brother. "And you... you... and... Mom...?"
"Yeah, she's going to remember the blowjob. It's in the books." Nick sat on her bed. It was still early. He put his hand on her leg through the blanket and gently rubbed. "Don't worry about Chris. He loves you. It'll work out."
"I hope so, Nicky." Alyson rolled onto her side facing away from him and patted the bed behind her. She sighed when he cuddled up to her, his arm snaking just under her boobs. She wiggled her butt into him. It was impossible to miss his morning wood poking into her. "Let's figure out what happened yesterday. We should do some research, and see what the next riddle is before we
do
anything else."
It was clear from her tone that Nick's sister meant,
before you do anyone else
. "Sure, I was thinking that we should do research anyway. We need to figure out what the puzzle's all about."
"I have a bunch of books in my office on loan from a collector. I was supposed to go through them as part of my work on the puzzle. It's probably time to do some reading. And... we should get yesterday's and today's riddles translated. Which means we'll have to see Chris."
"Do you mind seeing him so soon?" He inhaled the floral scent of her shampoo.
"It should be fine. Today doesn't matter anyway." Alyson hoped Chris would surprise her with compassion, but she suspected this first go at Thursday would be sailing in rough waters. "If we do this, you'll have to leave Mom alone for the day."
"Yeah, I know." Nick sighed. "It's fine."
~~
"You look a little feverish, Nick. Would you like to stay home from school today?" Kate put her hand on her son's forehead as he ate cereal. "Definitely hot." She glanced at her daughter and husband. Fred was reading his phone, ignoring them. Alyson had a strange look on her face.
"I need to go to school, Mom." Nick loathed the words coming out of his mouth, but it couldn't be helped. He watched a frown crease his mother's forehead. "I feel fine."
Kate glanced at her husband. "Aren't you going to be late for work, Fred?"
"Hmm? No, I have plenty of time." He looked up from his phone and smiled at his wife. "Trying to get rid of me?"
Kate's cheeks flushed crimson. "No, of course not."
"I'll drive Nick to school." Alyson stood and grabbed Nick's hand. She wanted him out of the house before he changed his mind. She was getting the vibe that their mother wanted a repeat of yesterday. "Let's go, Nick." She pulled him out of his chair.
"I wasn't done eating." Nick let his sister lead him toward the door. He picked up his backpack and phone. "Goodbye, Mom."
"Nick's going to visit me in the city after school. I'll pick him up. He'll be home late." Alyson pushed her brother toward the door.
"Oh, okay." Kate looked quite taken aback. "Come home if you're not feeling well," she called after him as they exited through the front door. The door slammed and the house felt incredibly quiet. "You're going to be late for work, Fred."
"What?" Fred turned off his phone and took a bite of toast. "I still have time. Want a quickie before I leave?"
"Maybe tonight, dear." Kate exited the kitchen.
Fred shrugged. That was fine by him.
~~
They found Chris in his office, grading papers. "Hi, honey." Alyson tried to put on a sunny disposition. She wasn't going to get into it with him.
Chris looked up from his desk. "What's he doing here?"
"Nick's hanging out with me today. He wants to see what I do all day." She tried to hold her smile steady.
"What are you wearing, Alyson?" Chris frowned at his fiancΓ©e.
"It's one of my mom's sweaters from the '90s. Isn't it cool?" It wasn't cool. She knew that. But it draped off her and hid her new boobs well.
"It looks like a potato sack." Chris smiled like he was joking.
"We brought some Sumerian for you to read." Nick worked at controlling his breathing.
"Bring-your-little-brother-to-work-day is adorable." Chris took the puzzle from Nick and examined it. "What did you do to light up all six sides like this?"
"Nothing." Nick knew that this version of Chris hadn't read any of the other riddles. So, he rolled his eyes and let the pompous guy pontificate.
Brother and sister sat silently while Chris marveled at the puzzle. Finally, Alyson said, "Can you please read it for us?"
"Sure. The cuneiform is written in an interesting regional dialect." Chris adjusted his glasses. "It says,
your arrow may have
--"
"Not that one, this one." Nick pointed to one of the two sides they hadn't read yet.
"Um... what?" Chris looked at his fiancΓ©e. "Why does he care?"