"You're what?"
My mother looked at me sympathetically -- which felt worse, actually. "It's been three years, Tim. Bill and I -- well, we've known each other for ages, he was there for me when your father died. We've spent time together, and he..."
I took a deep breath, sighed. "OK."
She put a hand on mine. "Something else -- I was going to wait before telling you, but you know Bill has a daughter?"
"So?"
"Well, she'll be moving in too, when Bill and I get married."
I rolled my eyes. "No more games room, then."
"Sorry."
There was a knock at the door. "That'll be them now," Mum smiled. "I said I'd tell you before they came round."
"But --"
She walked into the hall, opened the door, let Bill wrap his arms around her and kiss her. I looked away, embarrassed, and... Oh. My. Goodness.
The young woman standing in the porch literally took my breath away. Slim, dark-haired, with finely-drawn eyebrows, flawless makeup. She glanced at our parents -- OK, that came out weird -- and smiled wryly. "You must be Tim."
I nodded. "Sorry, I --"
She held out a hand, her eyes dancing as I shook it formally. "Elizabeth Smith."
She leaned forward, lowering her voice conspiratorially. "But call me Beth -- Dad hates it."
"Come on in, Beth," I invited. "I'll show you which room's going to be yours."
She followed me up the stairs -- I couldn't help wishing she was in front, for obvious reasons -- and I opened the door of the games room. "Could do with a coat of paint -- I'll help."
Beth stepped inside. "Wow -- is that Final Fantasy 14?"
She sat down on the sofa and picked up a controller. I watched fascinated as she cleared the level I'd been struggling with, then paused the game. "Switch to two-player?" she patted the seat next to her.
I joined her, taking the other controller, and Beth restarted the gameplay. We were soon absorbed in the story, and when Bill and my mother glanced in, I heard his whisper -- "Well, well. Seems these two have found something in common after all."
***
They moved in a couple of weeks later -- of course, the decorating in Beth's room was finished, in her favourite colour -- and we had pizza for supper to celebrate, then we all went up to bed. I got changed, carefully avoiding the thought of Mum and Bill probably doing the same across the landing, and laid down, pillowing my head on my hands. A much more pleasant thought was of my stepsister, on the other side of a thin partition wall, undressing, maybe she slept naked...
I jumped, startled, at the quiet tap on my bedroom door. "Yes?"
The door opened, and Beth slipped through, closing it behind her. My first thought was 'OK, not naked' -- so glad I didn't say that out loud -- then "Er, Beth, what are you doing?"
She gave a slight shrug. "Thought we could talk for a while -- you know, without the 'grown-ups'."
"OK."
I blinked as she pulled back the bedcovers -- "Move over then, give me some room" -- but I shifted across to let her slide next to me, very much aware of her bare leg touching mine. 'Not naked' for Beth was a long t-shirt, obviously no bra underneath, but I pushed down the distracting thought of whether panties were included or not. "OK, what do you want to talk about?"
She grinned, her eyes flicking to the doorway. "You've got to be wondering whether they're..."
I grimaced. "I was trying not to think about it."
Beth furrowed her eyebrows. "Why not? Married people do it too -- and it's not as if they're old and wrinkly."
She gave me a knowing smile. "Your Mum's still pretty hot, really -- I could wish for tits as firm as that when I'm her age. I bet that's what caught Dad -- something to squeeze, maybe grab on to while he's --"
"OK," I broke in hastily, "I get the picture."
"So maybe they are doing it," Beth wasn't fazed by me interrupting. "Wonder which way they like best."
She shifted in the bed, unmistakeably turned-on herself. "Maybe they like anal --" I saw a distinct shiver as if of anticipation run through her body -- "and there's no way Dad'd turn down having a pair of enthusiastic lips wrapped around him..."
I couldn't help looking at her obviously-hard nipples, visible through the thin material of her t-shirt, and she looked down with a grin. "Wups. Still, you've given yourself away too."
Damn, I had. Beth just smirked, and started to roll out of bed. "Well, I'm going to go next door and do something about how I'm feeling right now -- probably a good idea for you to do the same."
She slipped out of the door, and I reached for the box of tissues, then stopped as an idea dropped into my mind. I got to my feet, picking up the empty glass from beside my bed, and pressed it to the wall, listening. I was rewarded with the sound of footsteps, then the creak of Beth's mattress as she obviously got into bed. Then nothing for a while, and I began to wonder if she'd changed her mind. But after a few moments I caught what must have been a quiet moan, then another a little louder. I couldn't help myself, my fingers on my hardness as I listened intently, and -- oh god -- an unmistakeable moan forcing itself between her lips, the creaking bed betraying her shuddering body, arching back, then silence again. Somewhere in the middle of this I'd come, and I looked bemusedly at a splash of stickiness on the wall, my fingers glistening and slippery...
I did my best to clean up the mess -- I finally admitted I'd have to find the paint pot for the wall -- and went back to bed, the feelings Beth's words had stirred up in me blunted at least for the time being...
***
Mum and Bill were obviously relaxed at breakfast, and I thanked my lucky stars that for the moment they weren't all over each other. I heard footsteps, and Beth appeared, throwing me a grin. "Elizabeth, you should have got dressed before you came down," scowled her father.
"Who's going to look at me -- my brother?" Beth's tone was scornful, implying that would be the thing she least expected or welcomed.
She moved around the kitchen, pouring herself coffee, making toast, and as she leaned over the sink I was certain that panties weren't part of her nightwear, at least not today. "I'm in college today," she informed us.
"OK."