"So what are your plans for new years?"
The question caught me off guard. Sitting around the dinner table with family, celebrating Thanksgiving, new years seemed far off. But, here I was looking across the table at my 22 year-old cousin Amanda, her head cocked slightly to the side, waiting for a response.
"I haven't given it much thought to be honest. Why?" I replied.
"I thought I might come visit you in the city. Would that be Ok?" she asked nonchalantly, twirling a lock of her wavy brown hair. I was delighted by the request. My cousin and I had always gotten along well growing up. Being just a few years older than her we were always able to relate to each other. Whenever our family got together Amanda and I would inevitably end up off to the side spending time together. The two of us were always immune to the family drama and politics that inevitably invaded our family gatherings.
I'd be lying if I said I hadn't enjoyed watching her grow up. As a kid she had always been a little awkward, but today she stands a healthy curvy 5'8", with olive skin and wavy brown hair that falls to her lower back, high cheek bones and flashing green eyes. Her chest has blossomed to a healthy C cup and her pleasantly narrow waste that flares out into distractingly wide hips. I have to force myself to keep my eyes up every time she walks away, especially after she came close to catching me gawking several times.
Amanda and I had never spent time together on our own. But now that we were older and I have my own place in the city, it made sense that she might want to come and explore.
"So how do you want to celebrate" I asked her later as we sat together in the backyard.
"Hmm, I'll leave that up to you, but I'm sure we can get up to some no good." she answered. Her response sounded flirtatious. I looked her in the eyes and she held my gaze for several seconds. I dropped my gaze, secretly telling myself to stop imagining things. This was my cousin after all.
***
A month later I was sitting in my living room looking out the dark windows, listening to the clicks and taps coming from the bathroom as Amanda got ready for the evening. I reached into my pocket and fished out my phone, trying to get an idea of how long it was going to take Amanda and I to get to the house party I was taking her to. A few minutes later, the clack of high heels approached. When I looked up my jaw dropped. Amanda wore black high heels that seemed to go on for days. Her long tanned legs were accentuated by a red, form fitting strapless dress that pushed the line of scandalous with it's hem line. Her hair flowed across her shoulders and chest, framing her face and simply done make up stunningly. I recovered from my ogling as quickly as I could, but I suspected not quickly enough as I caught the flash of a mischievous smile as I picked my jaw off my lap.
"Wow...look at you!" is all I could manage to wheeze. Cursing myself internally for the thoughts invading my mind.
"Yea!" she responded breathily, playfully doing a 360 in mock-modeling fashion. I had a hard time keeping my mouth from falling out of place again as she turned and I saw how perfectly the striking red dress hugged her ass.
"Shall we then?" I blurted, jumping off the couch and heading for the door.
"Let's do this!" She quipped excitedly.
***
We spent an hour or two circulating amongst the groups of friends at the first party. I was pleased to see most of the other male attendees had as much difficulty keeping their eyes off my cousin as I did. But when they tried to talk with her she seemed to bore quickly. None of them lasted long. A few more drinks and we found ourselves off to the side together as usual. After finishing another drink, Amanda put her hand on my arm and leaned up against me asking quietly if I wanted to try going to a bar or a club. I couldn't help but notice how warm and soft she felt against me. Loosened up after my first few drinks, I was also ready to move on to something more happening.
We decided to hop in a cab a go check out the bar scene. We settled on busy spot with great music where we managed to get a table in the corner, just removed enough from the bustle so we could talk. A few more drinks and she was regularly placing her hand on my arm and flashing a brilliant smile. It made me dizzy and I couldn't help but notice our evening was feeling more and more like a date. Nonetheless I attributed it to our familial closeness and the drinks, nothing more.
"You know, you've always been my favorite cousin." she confided shortly before midnight, tilting her head to the side, drawing my gaze from my empty glass to her brilliant green eyes. She was sitting facing my chair, her legs crossed one over the other, her red dress riding - if possible - further up her thighs.
"Oh really" I said, holding her gaze this time "Why's that?"
She kept looking at me, "You know why. We've always had...a connection." her leg now against my own.
"I feel the same way." I admitted, looking back down at my glass, twirling it in my hands, trying to convince myself that my cousin wasn't intentionally trying to turn me on.
"And look at you know!" she exclaimed, drawing her leg away momentarily as she straightened up. "You've grown up so well: great career, your own place and so handsome..." she let the last words hang in the air for a moment, before sliding her leg back against mine.
I laughed. Maybe it was the free champagne that the bartenders had been passing out on top of all the previous drinks. But I decided to stop analyzing the situation and just see where it led. "You've turned out pretty well yourself" I gestured to her body. She smiled, apparently pleased with my response.
"You think so?" she asked demurely, letting her eyes fall, drawing my own with them over her sloping chest down to her exposed thighs.
"Yea, I mean look at you. Cuz, you look...hot!" it was true, and the liquor was steadily making it seem less and less important to pretend that I wasn't attracted to her just because she was family. The sudden flush of her cheeks was either her champagne kicking in or her flustered response.
"Thank you..." she muttered, putting her hand on my leg and giving it a long squeeze. I let her rest it there. We moved on to other topics and as the minutes passed the room became more and more of a blur. I wasn't sure how much time had passed before the crowded bar was counting down in unison.
10! 9! 8! 7!
"So was this how you pictured celebrating your new years?" I yelled over the crowd.
6! 5!
"Almost" she yelled back at me.
4...3...
"Almost?" I shot back.