What did surprise me in a way about Eric needing to work from home every day was what happened at night. After the first few days, he could no longer stand to be in his own bedroom when he was not working. In hindsight, it made sense -- after all, after spending eight, nine, ten hours or more at the office, everyone is in a hurry to get out.
The problem arose on the third night of his working from home. The first two nights, we had slept in my bed. But on the third night, he was fidgety. He held me as usual, but he just could not sleep. After about two hours, we finally gave up, and moved to my bedroom. Within three minutes, he was asleep in my bed as I gently caressed him before slipping into slumber with him.
The weekend came, and Eric did do a little work in his bedroom on Saturday. But that night, again, he just could not sleep, and again we moved to my bedroom.
Sunday afternoon, for no apparent reason, we were both quite horny. Without thinking about it, I took him by the hand and led him toward his bedroom, just because it was closer, but he stopped, and almost had an expression of fear in his eyes.
That was when I finally realized what was at issue. His bedroom was no longer
his place
. It had become
his office
: the place where he slaved away his days. No longer was his own bedroom a place of rest and relaxation and lovemaking.
While the sexual mood had been broken, a new idea was born. By dinnertime, Eric's bedroom had been rearranged so that my desk could fit into it as well, making his bedroom a home office instead, a place where I could also dedicate myself to studying once my sophomore year of university finally began. Space in the new home office was cramped, but that was an issue we were both more than willing to live with to give him a greater peace of mind.
It also meant something rather significant: We would
always
be sleeping in my bed. Granted, we had slept together in the same bed -- either his or mine -- every night since our furniture had arrived, but there was something significant, something almost overwhelming, about my big brother
always
sleeping with me in
my
bed, and I wanted to do something to make it a memorable night for us, but especially for him.
As I made dinner (and once again felt like a wife), my mind was churning, trying to think of something to make the evening memorable. And then I realized that I was simply thinking too hard, that I needed to keep things simple.
"After dinner," I said as I set the table, "how about a nice long hot bubble bath?"
Eric looked at me blankly, almost as if he could not believe that I had just suggested a nice long hot bubble bath. But then he smiled, his eyes softening. "Sure," he agreed. "That would be great."
I believe he was expecting me to join him for the nice long hot bubble bath, but I had a different plan.
I ran the bath, watching as the bubbles formed, breathing deeply as the strawberry scent filled the bathroom. When my big brother finally entered the bathroom, he was already naked, and he paused to close his eyes and inhale the fruity scent. A smile spread across his lips, and I knew that this was the right idea.
As I had for much of the day, I wore only my thong and shorts, and I am almost certain that Eric expected me to undress for him. Instead, after sharing a brief kiss and hug, I turned off the water and motioned for him to step into the mass of pinkish-white bubbles. "Don't worry," I assured him, "the girly scent will be gone by morning." Fortunately, he smiled at my semi-joke.
Once Eric was settled in the bathtub, I retreated to the living room, finding the book he had been reading earlier and returning to hand it to him. "Read a bit," I said. "Relax. Unwind. Lose yourself in the book. I'll take care of you afterward."
He seemed genuinely disappointed that I was leaving him in the bathtub alone, but my big brother simply nodded, and I heard him opening the book as I left the bathroom.