What had initially been an obligation that Sharon was intent on getting out of, the barbeque had shifted to an opportunity to 'get into some more trouble' with Barb. After their wild 'brunch' the previous day, both women had gone back to the café to drink, debrief, and game plan. After a couple of hours, they'd both driven home drunk, high, and full of exciting future plans for their continued dabbles in marital infidelity.
It had also represented a definitive shift in the nature of their relationship. While Sharon had always held Barb in high regard as her best friend and most trusted confidant, this new chapter of their relationship had brought them much closer and now Sharon viewed Barb in a dual role—both as a partner in crime and a possible lover.
Sharon was still quite inexperienced with women, having only had the one experience at the swinger event—but it had left an indelible mark on her and opened her eyes to a much wider world of sexual endeavors. Now that Barb had clearly expressed interest in her and they'd begun this new phase of their relationship, Sharon was more than a little excited to see what it would be like to fuck her best friend of 30 years. In a way, it was like a reintroduction.
But of course, what excited her most was how free and unrestrained she felt in her presence. Barb had a unique way of disarming her inhibitions and dissolving her guilt. It was an incredible sense of relief to connect with a person with the same unspoken desires and none of the guilt, shame, or bargaining that ordinarily accompanied them. Barb made it okay—
preferable
even—to have morally and ethically ambiguous passions and pursue them with license—simply because it
felt good
.
It was a magnificent sense of freedom and was as addicting as anything she'd yet experienced.
And speaking of addictions; Sharon had slowed nothing down in that area. While they'd hoovered their way through her vial of coke yesterday, Sharon kept the train going upon returning home that evening. She didn't bother to cook dinner or interact much with her family—despite her earlier comment about 'needing to be more attentive.' Instead she locked herself away from Jim and Amanda and railed lines in the bathroom while texting Barb and scrolling through Facebook. She'd even made a 'Tinder' profile and started prowling there.
Her appetite for pleasure had been unleashed and there would be no stone left unturned in her pursuits to satiate it.
Which brought her back to the present—a somewhat awkward car ride where none of the passengers appeared overly interested in interacting with one another.
Jim hummed nervously to himself in the driver's seat to the radio that played classic rock—currently something by Joe Crocker. He hadn't engaged in much attempt to spark conversation, instead resigning himself to trying to maintain a little bit of his normal self in preparation for what was to come. He was also finding it increasingly hard to keep his eyes from the rearview mirror, where Amanda flashed sly grins at him any chance she got.
The event on the couch the previous day had been a terrifying, confusing, and exciting experience that prompted a million different thoughts and emotions that Jim felt ill-equipped to process or understand at the moment. Amanda—on the other hand—seemed perfectly at-ease with it, which represented a point of confusion for Jim in and of itself.
Jim had to admit to himself that even he was feeling some sense of guilt and regret and might've preferred to have Amanda sit this one out while he gained some distance and hopefully some perspective on the meaning and implications of this new chapter in his relationship with his daughter—but Amanda had been persistent and utterly uncompromising.
She had all but demanded to be included in this 'family' event and even hinted at a threat to be more casual with her knowledge of their marital life if denied—although she had mostly bluffed at that and intended it to be directed in her mother's direction. The ultimate motivation for her insistence was largely fueled by curiosity and the nervous excitement she relived every time she remembered seeing her parents 'partner swapping' that night last month.
Perhaps out of a desire to understand her fascination with it, she'd decided that if history repeated itself at this event, she absolutely
had
to bear witness to it at the very least. The unpredictable nature of what she might see infused her with a tingling electricity that moistened her panties and continually ignited a desire to further enmesh herself in the proceedings—which so far had translated into lip-biting looks of flirtation and silent insinuations of passion directed toward her father at every opportunity. That itself had been exciting, especially while it occurred under her mother's nose and without her notice.
Amanda's choice of attire was a reflection of her eagerness to stoke her involvement as well. A warm summer day next to the pool meant she could 'slut it up' casually and
mostly
inconspicuously—although she may have pushed the envelope in that regard.
She'd chosen a white net dress that essentially did nothing to hide the pink and yellow tie-dye bikini top that was a half-size too small and squeezed her ample breasts in a perpetual 'about to fall out' manner. The belly ring that her mother had once voiced intense disapproval of was on full display adorning her easily visible belly area that remained smooth and flat—an indication of her youth despite her penchant for munchies and getting stoned all day instead of doing yoga and drinking kale smoothies like so many other beauty-obsessed girls in the valley.
While she had considered it, Amanda decided against going bottomless aside from her bikini thong. She mostly decided to wear a tiny pair of yellow booty shorts out of sympathy for her father—who would likely appreciate her toning it down
ever so slightly
to avoid provoking an awkward erection whenever she walked by. Still, she was only barely interested in this line of reasoning and once she hit the back patio and pool area fully intended to tease and tempt him with her thick ass every chance she got.
Sharon was barely present. She sat in the front passenger seat staring blankly out the window and daydreaming about a great many things. There wasn't much of an interval between her Marlboro Light's these days and she'd basically given up any attempts at restraining herself to a certain number per day. She'd simply accepted that she felt better with a smoldering All-White 100 between her fingers and found herself slipping into it as her default state at this point. The drive was no exception, and she languidly pulled on her cigarette and only somewhat paid attention to exhaling up toward the open sunroof.
Amanda joined her, smoking a couple of her own and noticing Jim glancing her way a little less inconspicuously as a result—a mystery she made a mental note of and intended on unraveling in the future.
The tense drive ended 20 minutes after it began with the Weaver family pulling into the expansive driveway of Rich and Barb's large single story villa. Consisting of over 3,000 square feet in a U-shaped floor plan, it was an impressive piece of real estate. The long driveway stretched a couple hundred feet from the cul-de-sac and situated the house near the back of the property where the U-shaped floorplan provided perfect cover for the large back patio, pool, and yard. Being in the hills, stepping to the edge of the rear of the property afforded a gorgeous view of the valley from behind the waist-high fence.
While Sharon and Jim's home was impressive in its own right, it was far more reserved and represented a different approach to the same concept—albeit without a pool.
Walking up to the house Sharon detected a tinge of nervous excitement manifest behind her belly button as she prepared to see Barb and Rich again—both of whom she'd engaged in some manner of sexual escapades with last time they'd met. While her expectations for this barbeque were tempered by the seemingly 'family-friendly' nature it intended and the presence of her ever-watchful daughter—Sharon was still awash in the possibilities that await her.
Greetings were exchanged and pleasantries doled out and it seemed like nothing had changed—at least perceptibly. Imperceptibly there were countless changes to nearly every facet of the relationship dynamic and both Jim and Sharon wondered how much of that was being picked up on by Amanda. Silently, Sharon hoped that she could avoid drawing her daughter's suspicion while she lounged in the pool or sunbathed so she could sneak away with Barb or Rich or both at some point or another.
Jim was—as had become natural for him during these recent weeks—going through the motions. The main reason he was intent on attending was to assuage any concerns his friends had that something was amiss, especially being that the last time they were all together was for a 'couple swapping' night of debauchery. He also longed to assume a level of normalcy where they could pretend, at least for a time, to be a normal family again doing normal things. Even if it wasn't an accurate representation of the truth, it was a charade that Jim longed to reconnect with even on a superficial level.
As the group traveled to the back patio area where speakers in the awning lightly played something by Jimmy Buffet, side conversations began to branch off from the general introductions.
"So, are there more coming?" Jim asked lightly to Rich.
"Not sure, we sent out a few invites but it was a low-pressure kind of deal, so I guess we'll just see who shows up," Rich answered in-kind.
Jim nodded in understanding.
"You guys better be hungry, I've got some killer steaks for later," Rich continued.
"Oh yeah? Same ones you got from—who was that guy you got those last ones from again?" Jim followed-up.
"Wade, no, those were good, but I think these are gonna be better. At least they better be for what I paid for em!" Rich continued, trying to build some excitement for the grilling adventures to come.
"Better? Those were already the best damn steaks I've ever had so consider me interested," Jim effused, actually genuinely excited for what Rich had on offer.
Sharon and Barb were leaned in close to preserve the privacy of their conversation while the men openly discussed food.
"Did you bring your 'little brown friend'?" Barb almost whispered.
In response, Sharon just smiled knowingly which conveyed everything she needed.
"Have I told you today that I fucking love you?" Barb exclaimed half-hushed and half-yelling.
Sharon laughed musically, the effect of her friend's presence working to magically absolve her doubts, worries, and concerns.
The back patio wasn't just big, it was borderline
