The Bedtime Tales of Be287m

Friends and Benefits, Chapter Twenty-three

“So you and Tina never did talk about whether you were a couple or not, did you?” Sherri asked.

I shook my head.  “I assumed she knew we were just friends now, but obviously she assumed differently.”

Sherri winced.  “Not good, Joe.  Not good.”

I sighed.  “I know.  The entire time we were together in Tucson, I avoided saying that I loved her, because I didn’t want to lead her on when I knew I was leaving.  And then I led her on by flying her out to visit.”  I sighed again.  “Of course, I see that clearly now.  Then, I was too excited about what could be in store for later….”

“So,” Sherri prompted.  “You were driving home from the airport when Sharon made her comment about friends with benefits….”

“Yeah,” I said.  “I was hoping I was reading too much into it when Tina spoke up….”   

* * *

Tina reached over and put her hand on my thigh, squeezing it.  “But don’t you want more?” she asked Sharon.

Sharon shrugged.  “Sure, but friends with benefits is better than nothing, particularly given the distance.”

“I agree,” I said.

Tina looked at me with a furrowed brow.  I shrugged, but didn’t say anything.

We arrived at my apartment soon thereafter.  I gave Sharon the tour and she dropped her bags in the bedroom.  Then I broke out a bottle of chianti classico and we settled into the living room, the women sinking onto the sofa while I pulled a chair in from the dining area.

“So,” Sharon asked, “what’s the plan?”

“Well,” I said, “not much tonight, since it’s so late.  Tomorrow, I was thinking we’d go to the Capitol and maybe the White House and then walk around Georgetown for a while before coming back here to get ready for dinner.  Tina and I’ve already seen a lot of the Smithsonian.”  I tried to look apologetic with that last sentence.

Sharon didn’t seem to mind.  “I’d like to see Georgetown.  I thought about going there when I was applying to college, back when I was thinking about going into international studies.”

“And you didn’t?” Tina asked.

Sharon shook her head.  “I didn’t get in.  I’ve thought about applying again, if I decide to go on to graduate school.  The psychiatry program in their med school is supposed to be pretty good.”

“Really?” Tina said.  “I haven’t started thinking about med schools yet, though I guess I’m going to have to soon.  I’m going to start applying in the fall.”

That’s right, she’s a junior.  I still had trouble seeing her as anything other than an eighteen year old freshman.

“Good luck if you apply,” Sharon said.  “I’m not sure I could get in.”

“What are you doing now?” Tina asked.

“Working for a catering company in their business office.”

“Oh?” Tina said.  The conversation slid onto food and cooking and the challenges of working in a professional kitchen.  Tina told some stories of cooking for her entire family and Sharon joked that she was already then trained to do hors-d’oeuvres for one hundred.  When the conversation hit its first pause, Sharon turned to me.

“So tell me about the restaurant we’re going to tomorrow night,” she said.

I glanced over at Tina, who was listening intently, and smiled.

“Well, I’ve read some great reviews.  The chef apparently does a tasting menu that can be five or seven courses for a fixed price.  You tell the waiter if there’s anything you can’t eat, like any allergies, and then he prepares what he wants.”

“Sounds fun,” Sharon said.  Tina nodded in agreement.

“It’s supposed to be wonderful.  It’s in an old country house that they’ve converted, so there’s also not a lot of tables in each room.  I think we’ll have a great time.”

“And we’ll do the pictures after?” Sharon asked.

“Yes,” I said, nodding.  I glanced over at Tina, who frowned and looked suspicious.

“I brought my camera, if you want to use it,” Sharon said.

“Nah, I’ll use my own,” I said.  “I could use the practice.”

Tina had grown quiet, her eyes darting from me to Sharon and back.  I smiled at her, try to be reassuring.

“So tell me about the Smithsonian,” Sharon said to Tina.  The younger woman forced a smile, and started talking about what we’d seen.  I chimed in with some anecdotes, and Tina smiled when I reminded her about a crazy protestor we’d passed on the sidewalk.  As we talked and drank, Tina relaxed more until she was genuinely laughing at some of the jokes that Sharon made.

Her seriousness returned, though, right after Sharon declared it a night and retired to the bedroom.  We’d barely gotten the sofa bed folded out when Tina turned to me.

“Tell me about the pictures,” she said.

I took a deep breath.  “Well, I’ve taken pictures of you, and I’ve taken pictures of Sharon.  I realized what I really wanted to do was take pictures of both of you together.  Sharon’s agreed, and I’m hoping you will too.”

“What kind of pictures?”

“Like we’ve taken before.”

She frowned.

“Look, it’ll be fun, particularly since the two of you get along.  And it’s something I really, really want.”

“You really, really want it?”

“Yes,” I said, “you’d make me very happy.”

Tina paused, thinking.  She looked into my eyes and I smiled, trying to be reassuring and not come across as pleading.  Then she made a small nod of her head.

“Okay.”

“Thank you,” I said, “you won’t regret it.”

“I better not.”

“You won’t,” I promised.  “And thank you.”

Tina’s smile was weak, so I took her in my arms and hugged her.

“I’m really lucky to have you,” I said softly into her ear.  She pulled back enough to smile at me, genuinely warm this time.  My eyes darted to her mouth and back to meeting hers and, when she didn’t object, I kissed her.

One kiss led to another, and we slowly sank down onto the bed.  Tenderly, without really stopping the kisses, we slowly stripped off each other’s clothes.  Only then did I kiss my way down to her mound before putting her legs over my shoulder.  Tina sighed as I slowly, almost languidly, kissed and sucked and licked her to a climax.  Then I slid up on top of her and into her.  We kissed, breaking only to gaze into each other’s eyes, while I slowly slid in and out of her.  My heart just seemed to melt with the connection, so much so that my climax seemed anti-climatic.  We fell asleep, entwined in each other’s arms.

We awoke to the sounds of someone moving around in the kitchen.  As we opened our eyes, Sharon walked in bearing two cups of coffee.  My eyes immediately snapped all the way open.  Sharon wore a Boston University sweatshirt, but her legs were bare.  The shirt hung too low for me to tell is she had panties on or not.

Tina and I sat up, but then Tina pulled the sheet back up over her breasts.

“Relax,” said Sharon, handing her a mug, “we’ve all seen each other naked before.”

Tina let the sheet slide as she accepted the coffee.  I, of course, couldn’t help stealing glances at her bare breasts, but Sharon didn’t blink an eye.

Sharon went back to the kitchen and returned with a mug of her own and settled into the kitchen chair left in the room from the night before.  She put her feet up on the chair rung, which forced the sweatshirt to ride up enough to confirm she wore underwear.  I didn’t know whether to be disappointed or not

“So what’s for breakfast?” she asked.

“I was going to cook breakfast burritos while you two got ready to go.”

“Mmm,” Sharon said, with a small grin.

“And to think he couldn’t cook when he met me,” Tina said.

“She’s taught me well,” I said.  Tina squeezed me hand and beamed at me.

“Well, I look forward to it,” Sharon said.  “After my shower.”

So with a little effort, we got all of us moving.  It was slower than I’d hoped, but faster than we’d managed in Albuquerque, which was good because we didn’t have our own personal chef this time, like Sharon’s mother had been then.  The women didn’t mind too much, though, and complimented me on the food.  I accepted and slipped off for my first shower of the day, trying to keep it short so we could get going.

The women enjoyed the day.  After stopping by the Capitol and Union Station, I drove us down to Georgetown, since we didn’t want to walk the couple of miles from the nearest Metro stop.  I miraculously found parking halfway between the University and Wisconsin Avenue, so we were able to tour both without having to try to move the car.  Tina thought the campus was quite pretty, though Sharon thought CU, with its red sandstone facades and the mountains in the background, had it beat.  We’d poked our heads into a handful of shops around Wisconsin and M Street before calling it a day and heading back home to prepare for the evening.

Sharon’s comment that we’d already seen each other nude helped when as we got ready to go.  Having three adults getting dressed with only two good changing areas and one bathroom turned out to be trickier than I imagined.  I caught several glimpses of both women, half dressed.  Tina saw me slipping on the thong and smiled.  It felt strange, with the fabric of my suit pants rubbing my bare skin where the thong didn’t cover me, but since both women were indeed wearing garter belts and black stockings under their clothes, I dared not complain.

Finally, we assembled in the living room, and I had to draw a deep breath of appreciation.  Sharon wore the skirt and blouse I’d seen before and appreciated.  Tina’s dress was new—the ubiquitous little black dress, with a scoop front that showed off her cleavage.  It also clung tightly to her hips and showed off her legs to perfection.

“You like?” Tina asked, turning and preening.

I let out a low whistle and nodded my head.  “Oh, I like.”

She dimpled.  “I got is especially for this trip.”

“You are a lucky man,” Sharon said, looking Tina up and down herself.

“I know,” I said.  “I know.”

Dinner was fabulous.  We all ordered the seven course tasting meal and the chef blew us away.  The scallops melted in my mouth like butter and the châteaubriand was so savory that none of us could leave a drop of the sauce on our plates.  The wines were a perfect match and, even better, no one carded Tina.  We drank, we laughed, and we teased each other for over three hours.

When we returned to my place, the merriment continued.  I broke out a bottle of champagne and slipped a second into the fridge.  We toasted to friendship.  We toasted to vacations.  We laughed and toasted to psychics in Georgetown.  Relaxed in only that way that good company and the remnants of a good meal can provide, we settled into a happy silence.

Then Sharon set down her now-empty glass and looked at me.  “So do you want to take the pictures now?”

I nodded.

“Where?”

“How about we start next to that wall?” I said, pointing to the blank one on the far side of the living room.  “Then we can do some on the couch.”

“C’mon,” Sharon said to Tina, tilting her head toward the wall.

Tina’s eyes went wide for a moment, but she quickly finished her champagne and followed Sharon over to my makeshift studio.  I quickly grabbed my camera and a couple of spare rolls of film.

“How do you want to start?” Sharon asked.

“Just standing side by side,” I said.  “I’ve got plenty of film.”

My first shots were pretty boring—just the two of them facing the camera.  Then I had them stand at an angle, like I’d seen the photographer at Allen’s wedding pose people.  I got some fun shots of them standing back to back, with their sides to the camera.  For the third one in that stance, they both took up their refilled glasses and toasted the camera.  I took the fourth shot with their heads tilted back as they drank.  Then I pulled a folding chair over and we took some with one of them sitting while the other stood nearby.  Both of them took turns in the chair and they went for poses from demure to silly to over-the-top vamping.  In no time, I’d finished the first roll of film.  The women freshened their glasses while I reloaded the camera.

“Are you ready for the next set?”

Sharon nodded and began unbuttoning her blouse.  Tina paused, watching her, until Sharon looked at her and smiled.  Then Tina reached back for her zipper, missing the tab on the first try.

“Here,” Sharon said, “let me.”

Tina turned and held her hair up so Sharon could get at the zipper.  I quickly snapped the new roll of film into the camera and dropped to one knee, so I was shooting up at an angle.  Sharon grinned at me.  She’d already finished unbuttoning her blouse, so she tossed it aside and then stepped back a bit so she wasn’t blocking my view of Tina.  As I clicked away, Sharon slowly unzipped Tina’s dress, exposing the pale flesh beneath one inch at a time.

When the fabric had parted enough, Tina glanced over her shoulder.  I looked up from the camera and mouthed “Wow!”  She grinned back at me.  Sharon saw our exchange and smiled.  She touched Tina lightly on the shoulder, and then slowly slid the dress strap off.  Tina’s warm smile didn’t fade as her dress slid to her hips and then, after a tug by Sharon, pooled at her feet.  I managed several great shots as it did.

Tina stepped out of her dress and the picked it up and set it aside.  While she was doing so, Sharon quickly shed her skirt and then grabbed the champagne.  She passed a freshened glass to Tina before holding hers up.

“To Joe,” she said, “the luckiest man in D.C.”

I chuckled.  “That’s for sure.”  With two gorgeous women standing in front of me, wearing only black lingerie and heels, how could I disagree?

I asked them to continue to hold their glasses up while I took a couple of shots.  They did, giggling, turning to face each other, and then back-to-back.  When their glasses were halfway drained, Sharon suggested they do the ‘drink through interlocked arms’ trick.  The first shot was fine, but then I realized it’d be even better if they each bent one leg slightly at the knee.  It took three shots to get exactly what I wanted, but I was confident that the final one would come out really well.

The ladies refilled their glasses while I shifted a lamp to better illuminate the couch.

“What now?” Sharon asked.

“I’d like the two of you sitting side by side,” I said, gesturing toward the new makeshift studio.

They sat and we tried a handful of arm and leg positions, none of which made me particularly happy.  The best one was when I had them lean against the sides of the couch, stretching their legs out across the cushions, almost intertwined. The sea of black nylon created by their stockings was interesting, but I couldn’t quite get it to be sexy.

I mulled it over while I changed the film.  I had two sexy bookends framing the scene, but it wasn’t as hot as when Sharon had unzipped Tina’s dress.

“Would you two mind interacting a little more?” I asked.

“What do you mean?” Sharon asked.

“Oh, I don’t know.  Maybe lean in together, or have Tina lie across your lap.

Sharon looked at Tina with raised eyebrows.  The younger woman shrugged.  Sharon shifted to the middle of the couch and Tina laid her legs across Sharon’s thighs.

I took the picture. “Try the other way,” I said, motioning with my hands.  When I saw their looks of confusion, I explained.  “Put your head and shoulders in her lap instead of your feet.”

They shifted around and I got a couple of pictures, but either Tina’s head was too low compared to Sharon’s, or the way she was lying just looked uncomfortable.

I looked up from the lens finder and frowned.  “We need something else.”

“I know,” Sharon said.  She looked at Tina.  “Slide up and roll over.”

Tina complied, which resulting in her stretched across Sharon’s lap, almost as if she were about to get spanked.  Sharon placed on hand between Tina’s shoulders and the other on her upper thigh.  The pose framed Tina’s ass perfectly, highlighting her delicious curves.

“That’s nice,” I said, dropping into a crouch.  Tina turned and smiled, more amused than sultry, while I directed Sharon on how to position her arms.

“It would really be sexy to make it look like you were spanking her,” I said.  “Maybe put your hand on her ass?”

Sharon frowned and shot me a small glare.  “I’m not going to do that.”

I nodded agreement and her face got devilish.

“But I could do this,” she said.  She placed her hand on the clasp of Tina’s bra.  Tina sucked in her breath, but didn’t move or say anything.  I clicked away as Sharon undid the hooks and pulled the fabric away.  I took two more pictures as Tina eased herself off of Sharon’s lap, letting her bare breasts come into view.

“Very nice,” I said.  “You are two very sexy ladies.”

Tina dimpled and Sharon laughed.  “Get us some more champagne, Joe.”

I retrieved a new bottle in the kitchen.  It took a moment to get it open, and when I returned, the two women were sitting, talking quietly on the couch, both bare-breasted.  Sharon had removed her bra as well.

“Aw,” I said, “I was hoping to have Tina take that off.”

“It was starting to dig into me,” Sharon said.  “It needed to go.”

“Well,” I said, “she could remove your panties.  That would be really sexy.”

Sharon shook her head.  “Not going to happen, Joe.”

Tina’s eyes were wide, darting from me to Sharon and back.

“Well,” I said, “how about if you remove them at the same time?”

Sharon thought for a moment and then nodded.  She turned to Tina and cocked her head, the question unsaid.  Tina took a deep breath and nodded back.

“You probably need to stand then,” I said.

The ladies got unsteadily to their feet, with Tina helping pull Sharon off the couch.  They grinned at me, a little loopily.

“Here,” Sharon said to Tina, “face this way.”  She tugged Tina’s arm so that the two had their backs to the camera.

Then, slowly, and ever so teasingly, they hooked their thumbs under the elastic of their panties and slowly rolled them down.  Past their hips, then down their thighs, before they dropped to the floor. As they bent over, their hips curved almost sinuously and the cheeks of their asses grew taut.  I used almost a third of a roll of film capturing the sight.

Tina started tittering.

“What,” Sharon asked, as they straightened up.

“I just realized we mooned Joe.”

Sharon giggled.  “And the camera.”

“Hey, I don’t mind,” I said.

The turned around to face me and put their arms around each other’s shoulders.  I snapped the last two pictures on the roll and then sat down to change the film.

“I’m sorry, Joe,” Sharon said, sitting and unhooking her garters.  “I know you find these sexy, but I’m getting tired of them.  They need to come off.

I shrugged, seeing as how I didn’t have any basis to object.  Tina watched Sharon for a moment and then decided to follow her lead.

“Another thing,” Sharon said.  “This fabric is rough on my skin.”  She got off the couch and rubbed her ass.

“Well, we could do some more standing shots,” I said.  “Or use the kitchen chairs.”

Sharon frowned.  “The chair’s pretty hard.”

“So let’s unfold the bed,” I said.  “It’s comfortable.”

It didn’t take long to get the sofa unfolded.  The women immediately stretched out, lying next to each other on their backs.  I moved to the foot of the bed and took a few more pictures.  I didn’t try to push them together, sensing that it wouldn’t go over well, but I did aim for some symmetry in how they held their limbs.  Finally, I ran out of film and set the camera down.

“Thank you, ladies,” I said.  “It’s been an incredible evening, having two such sexily dressed women with me at dinner, and after.”

“Or undressed,” Sharon said with a spark of mischief in her eyes.  She found her champagne glass and took a sip.

“Or undressed,” I said.  Particularly undressed, but I didn’t want to seem too enthusiastic.   “But it was great simply to go out with you two looking so nice.”

“You weren’t so bad in your suit,” Tina said.

“True,” Sharon said, looking at me.  “But we had him beat.  We were wearing sexy underwear.”

“Joe’s wearing sexy underwear,” Tina said with a smirk.

“What?”  Sharon’s eyes widened at Tina’s firm nod.

“He’s wearing a black thong I got him,” the younger woman said.  “I told him that if we were wearing sexy underwear for him, he had to wear sexy underwear for us.”

“This I gotta see,” Sharon said.

I shrugged.  “Okay.”

I unbuttoned my pants, lowered them, and then stepped out of them.  I paused to scoop off my socks before tossing my pants to the side.

“The shirt’s in the way,” Tina called.

“Patience,” I said, shooting her a look.

I fumbled with the buttons for longer than I wanted.  I glanced up to see Sharon propped up on her elbows, with one knee bent, while Tina now sat cross-legged.  Finally, I got the last button undone and tossed the shirt aside.

“Woo hoo,” Sharon teased, her eyes alight.

“Doesn’t he look good?” Tina said.  Then to me, “turn around.”

I slowly spun, feeling a little silly.  My ass was fully exposed, but could I really complain?  Both the women were naked, and so it wasn’t a big deal for me to be naked too.

In fact, wasn’t that what I wanted?  I had two gorgeous women stretched out naked on my bed.  Now they wanted me naked!  My cock started to stiffen at the thoughts of what might be next.

When I completed my 360, the girls started clapping.  I laughed and took a bow.

“Very nice,” Sharon said.

“I’m glad you appreciate it,” I said.  “Though, I must admit….” I looked at Tina, who continued to smile, “I liked how you showed your appreciation last time.”

Tina blushed as Sharon laughed.

“And how was that?” Sharon asked Tina, before reaching for her champagne and taking another drink.

“I gave him a blowjob,” Tina said, still red-faced.  “But he didn’t come.”

“We thought you might be able to give her some tips,” I said.

Sharon’s brow furrowed and she looked at Tina.

“Well…,” Tina said.  She bit her lip.

“Given all the great blowjobs you gave Allen,” I said, “I figured you’d be a good teacher.”

Sharon’s nostrils flared and then she nodded, with a hard look in her eyes.

“I can help,” she said.  Then she turned to me.  “Get on the bed.”

I peeled off the thong while cheering silently inside.  I crawled up into the middle of the bed, between the ladies, and lay on my back.  They scooted down below my waist, one on each side.

Tina knelt on her hands and knees on my left while Sharon sat cross-legged on my right.  Tina swept her hair back, out of the way , so we could see what she was doing.  My eyes danced from Tina’s breasts to Sharon’s and back again.  I was hard, definitely hard.

“Now,” Sharon said, “start by lightly stroking his shaft with your hand.”

Tina reached out and ran her fingers up and down my length, and then began to wrap them around me.  When Sharon nodded, she encircled my girth.  She slowly pumped me a few times.

“Don’t forget his balls,” Sharon said.

On her next downstroke, Tina let my shaft slip from her fingers and then lightly tickled my balls.  I squirmed, and she slid them back up to my shaft.  She pumped my cock a few more times and smiled when a drop of pre-come formed on the head.

Sharon smiled too.  “Normally, I’d just continue to play with Allen until he got really hard, but I think you’re already there.”

“So how should I start?” Tina asked.

“I like to start with a kiss,” Sharon said.

Tina bent over and lightly kissed the side of my cock.  Then she feathered kisses down to my balls, and then slowly back up.  She paused to sweep her hair back out of the way once, but then resumed.  I started to pant lightly.

“Now,” Sharon said as Tina started working her way back up, “when you get to the tip, go ahead and put your mouth around the head, but just the head.”

Tina did so, and I let out a small gasp.  Sharon quickly glanced up at me, grinning.

“Now flick the tip with your tongue,” she said.

I gasped again.  This time when Sharon looked up, I said, “Allen was a lucky man.”

Sharon beamed.  She reached over to the end table and claimed her glass of champagne.

“Now start moving your head back and forth,” she said.

Tina started doing just that, and it felt good, but not great.  Once again, I felt more massaged than pleasured.  Sharon looked at me, and I made a small frown.

“Try more suction,” Sharon said.

Tina pulled off my cock and looked at her.  “How do I do that?”

“Tighten your lips,” Sharon said.

Tina took my cock into her mouth once again and started moving her head up and down.  Her hair came untucked, partially blocking our view of what she was doing.  Sharon took one last swig of alcohol, draining her glass, and then dropped to her hands and knees for a better view.

Which gave me a better view too.  The sight was magnificent.  With both of them kneeling on either side of me, I was treated to the sight of four gorgeous breasts dangling down and swaying with their slightest moves.  Tina swept her hair back, out of the way, and Sharon quickly copied her.  Her face was only a few inches from Tina’s, and from my cock.  I started breathing hard, really hard.

“A little tighter,” Sharon said.

Tina’s lips pressed more firmly around my cock.  It felt better, but this time I didn’t gasp.

“Try a little faster,” Sharon said.  “And use your hand too.”

Tina shifted so that her weight was on one elbow.  She stroked the base of my cock with her fingers while she bobbed up and down, just a tad faster, on my cock.

“Tighter,” Sharon said.

Tina paused, and let my cock slip from her lips.

“I don’t understand,” she said.

“Here, let me show you.”

Time slowed.

Tina pulled back, making room for Sharon, who reached in and wrapped her hand around the base of my shaft.

The blood pounded in my ears, one slow beat after another.

Tina’s eyes widened as Sharon lowered her head, pulling her hair to the side so the younger girl could see.

As could I.  I couldn’t tear my eyes from Sharon’s opening mouth.

I gasped when her lips touched my cock.  Then I shuddered as her head descended, taking half of me into her mouth.

Tina’s mouth fell open, but Sharon’s didn’t.  She was right about the suction.  The sensation was incredible as she bobbed backward, almost letting my cock slip free.  Bolts of pleasure shot through me as she reversed direction and took my cock deeper once again.

It was too much.  With all the build up, and all the teasing, and the pure sight of Sharon actually blowing me, I lost control and erupted.  I grunted as my orgasm arrived.

Sharon’s eyes flashed as she felt me throb, and she yanked her head back.  She wasn’t fast enough.  My first spurt of semen went in her mouth.  The second splashed her face before she could let go of my cock.  As it flopped back to my belly, my remaining come spurted across my own torso.

Time speeded back up to its normal pace.

“Ow!” Sharon cried.  “My eye!”  She jumped off the bed and dashed for the bathroom.

I turned and looked at Tina, who stared back at me.

“What just happened?” she asked.

“I must have hit her in the eye,” I said.

She shook off my answer.  “I mean, before that.”

We could hear Sharon retching now, over the sound of running water.

“I better go see if she’s okay,” I said, sitting up.  Tina didn’t say anything as I slipped off the bed and headed for the hall.

“Are you okay?” I asked, coming up behind Sharon hunched over the sink, the water running.

She nodded, and straightened up.  “I can’t believe I did that.”

“Neither can I.”

Sharon’s right eye was definitely red.  She turned the water off.

“I think I’ve finally got the taste of you out of my mouth,” she said.

That pissed me off.  “What’s wrong with the taste?  You like the taste of come!  Or at least Allen’s come.”

Sharon glared at me in the mirror.

“Fine,” I said.  “We’ll wait for you out in the living room.”

I turned and strode off before she replied.  Tina’d pulled her sweats on and was sitting on the edge of the bed.  I sat next to her, suddenly conscious of my nakedness.

“She’s going to be okay,” I said.

“Good.”

I sighed.  “Though this did not go the way I’d expected.”

“That’s okay,” Tina said, putting her arm around me, “our love is strong enough to get through this.”

“Love?” I blurted.  My mind reeled.  I’d intentionally never used that word with Tina, the entire time I’d been with her.  Did I want to explain that now?

The shock must have registered in my face.  Tina withdrew her arm and pulled away as if burnt.

“I… I’d better go see how Sharon’s doing,” I said.

I discovered that Sharon had moved from the bathroom to the bedroom and changed into her nightclothes as well.  She saw me and frowned.

“I’m going to bed,” she said, “and I’m going to pretend this never happened.”

“What do you mean it never happened?” I said, placing my fists on my hips.

“It never happened,” she said, crossing her arms and glaring at me.

“It happened, all right.  You sucked my cock and you did it by your choice.”

“Things got out of hand,” she retorted.  “Besides, friends don’t give friends blowjobs.”

That was the final straw.

“Goddammit, Sharon!  For the past two years you’ve teased me and turned me on but not done anything about it because we’re just friends.  Well now we’ve crossed that line.  And what I want more than anything is to stay across that line!  This ‘just friends’ thing is bullshit.”

“Well, tough shit.”

We glared at each other.

“You’re a bitch,” I said, and then turned and stormed out.

When I returned to the living room, Tina had turned off the main lights.  She lay curled on her side, the blankets drawn up around her, illuminated only by the hall lamp.  I took a couple of deep breaths to calm down.

“Hey,” I said, “this night has been a disaster.  I’m sorry.”

Tina moved her head, but didn’t say anything.  From her breathing, she seemed to be crying, but I couldn’t hear anything.  Nor, in the low light, could I see anything.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“I just want to go to sleep,” she said, her voice ragged.

“Okay.”

I found my boxers and t-shirt and put them on.  Sharon had closed the bedroom door, so I just turned off the remaining lights and crawled under the covers next to Tina. I tried to cuddle with her, but she tensed when I touched her.  So I gave up and rolled to the far side of the bed and tried to fall asleep.  Somewhere in the tossing and turning, I did.

* * *

“That’s it?” Sherri asked.  “That’s what you’ve been building up to?  A threesome gone bad?”

“Yeah,” I said, “but I thought you need to understand everything that led up to it.  Things wouldn’t have gone bad if Sharon and I hadn’t developed our weird semi-sexual friendship.”

“I can see that.”

“And it was really bad,” I said.  “Not only that night, but what happened after….”

* * *

‘Strained’ does not adequately describe what it was like the next morning.  Both women had serious hangovers.  Sharon’s eye was still red and both of Tina’s were as well.  They barely touched the food I’d prepared.  They also barely talked, to me or to each other.

By the time we actually got moving, it was almost time to head to the airport.  Instead of going back into the city, I just took them over to Old Greenbelt and pointed out some of the neat features that the WPA had built when the town was laid out.  Despite my attempts at jocularity, both women kept cool.  Their thoughts were clearly far away from sculptures in the main plaza or pedestrian tunnels under the road near the elementary school.  Finally, with almost a mutual sigh of relief, we drove out to BWI.

Tina’s flight was first.  Once we’d checked her in and walked to the gate, Sharon excused herself to go to the bathroom.  Once she was gone, I turned to Tina.

“I’m sorry,” I said.  “I’m particularly sorry about my outburst.”

“If that’s how you feel, that’s how you feel.”

“I don’t know how I feel,” I said with an exasperated sigh.

“But you know what you want.”

“No, I don’t.”

Tina frowned and looked away.  “Yes, you do.  I heard what you said to Sharon in the bedroom last night.”

My gut caved in as if kicked.  I winced and couldn’t help closing my eyes.

“I’m…I’m sorry,” I finally said.

She made a defeated shrug.  “Better to know you don’t love me now rather than later.”

“But….”

“Don’t,” she said.

I nodded and fell silent.  A few moments later, Sharon returned and sat on the other side of Tina without saying anything to either of us.  We didn’t move or talk until they announced the boarding for Tina’s flight, at which point she gave us both a perfunctory hug and got in line without looking back.

“I blew it with her,” I said as she disappeared down the jetway.

“You did,” Sharon said.

“She loved me.  Probably more than Alicia or anyone else.”

“That’s true.  Because Alicia never really loved you.”

“How do you know?”

“She wouldn’t have walked away from you so easily if she had.”

“Gee, thanks.”

Sharon didn’t reply.

“So what now?” I asked.

“We go find my gate.”

“No,” I said, “between us.”

“There’s nothing between us,” she said.  “I don’t want to date you, and, between last night and last New Year’s, it’s clear I can’t trust you either.”

I started to sputter.

“I can’t.”

“I didn’t do anything,” I said.  “You were the one who touched me, remember?”

“And you manipulated the entire weekend to set that up.”

I fell silent, my face reddening.

“Let’s go find my gate.”

We walked down the concourse until we found a monitor display and then her gate.  Again, we sat in silence while we waited.  Sharon pulled out a book and so, after a while, I tried to read a newspaper I found lying around.  We successfully ignored each other until they announced the boarding for her flight.

Sharon stood and turned to me.  “Don’t call me, Joe.”

“What?”

“Just don’t call me.  Not after this weekend.”

I started to protest, but she turned on her heels and strode off before I got more than a few words out.  I called after her, but she didn’t turn.  Stupefied, I stood there until almost the entire flight had boarded. Then, almost numb, I walked back to the car and headed home.

* * *

“So that’s what you meant by losing both your best friend and the only woman who could ever love you.”

“Yes,” I said.  “That’s the story of what happened.”

“Is there anything else?”

“There’s not much else to tell,” I said.  “I tried calling both women almost immediately.  Obviously, I was ignoring Sharon’s request, but it didn’t matter.  She never picked up, and I didn’t leave any messages.  Tina didn’t answer her phone either, or return my calls.  The following Saturday, when I tried once again, Tina’s father picked up.  He said, ‘Joe, don’t call again.  If you know what’s best for both of you, you won’t call.’

“Of course, that put me in a tailspin.  For the next couple of days, I couldn’t stop thinking about Tina and all we’d done together.  Not only the sex, of course, but the cooking and the movies and all the time just hanging out together.  I realized that I had loved her, but I’d just never been willing to admit it to myself.  I’d hated Tucson so much that I’d never wanted to admit that she’d been the best girlfriend I’d ever had.”

Sherri shook her head and rolled her eyes.

“I drank a lot those few days.  Then, I decided to call Allen.  He wasn’t much help.  He told me I’d fucked up, but that there were always other women.  He said I’d feel better after the next time I got laid.”

I looked up at Sherri, and gave her an ironic grin.  “I was drunk enough that getting laid seemed like a really good idea.  Good enough that I wouldn’t have minded if it was with one of the hookers from Allen’s bachelor party.”

I let out a sigh.  “So I called your agency and drank some more while I waited.  And started having second thoughts about it right up until you arrived.”

“So, you weren’t suicidal that first night?” Sherri asked.

I shook my head vigorously. “No.  Why’d you think that?”

She looked away, staring out into space.  “I must have been projecting,” she said.

“Huh?”

She gave a small snort and then met my eyes.

“One night my freshman year of college,” she said, “I got a call from my little brother.  Mom was out at a fundraiser and he’d gotten into her liquor cabinet and was drunk.  He was crying about a girl who’d done some cruel things when she dumped him.”

She took a deep breath.  I could almost see her tremble.

“I had a hot date that night.  I told my brother to stop drinking and go to bed and that I’d talk to him the next day.  He said he wasn’t tired.  I told him to take a hot bath then, but I really had to go.  He whimpered, but didn’t object when I hung up the phone.”

She looked away, her entire body stiff.

“Well, he did take a bath, but he took a razor blade with him.  Mom didn’t get home in time.”

“Oh my God,” I blurted.

She nodded.

“Why?  Was it that bad?”

“He thought so,” she said.  “Between the note he left and talking to some kids at school, we learned that girl in question had told people he was lousy in bed.”

I winced.  I really didn’t know what to say.

“But he was sixteen!” she continued, “what did she expect?”  She paused, slowly released her balled up fists, and took a deep breath.  When she was calmer, she looked at me.

“So when I showed up here,” she continued, “you were drunk and clearly hurting over a woman.  You’re also tall and thin like my brother.”

“But I wasn’t suicidal.”

“No,” she said.  “I was obviously projecting.”

“Well, I’m glad you did.  Or, rather, I’m glad you kept talking to me and getting me to talk.”

“Good.  I’m glad it helped.”

“It did.”

She nodded.  Then she looked at the clock.  “I have to go.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded and stood.

“So what now?” I asked as she grabbed her things.

“You’ll be all right,” she said.  “You can figure it out on your own.”

“I don’t know about that,” I said as we walked to the door.

“Joe,” she said, turning to me, “I’m not making excuses for Sharon’s behavior, but this is your own fault.  You never stood up to her and you never asked for what you really wanted.  And the way you treated Tina… well, you’re lucky her father only told you not to call.”

“I know,” I said.  “I was slimy.  But how can I fix things if I can’t talk to her?  Or Sharon?  If neither of them will talk to me, what do I do?”

Sherri snorted and shook her head.  “You fix it by being a man.  Decide what you want and be assertive in chasing it.”

My blood started to boil at the implied insult, but I swallowed it.  “So, how do I do that?”

She shook her head again.  “I really have to go.”

“Fine,” I said, trying not to pout.

“Goodbye, Joe.”

“Well, at least give me a goodbye hug.”

She nodded and slipped into my arms, but pulled back when I tried to kiss her.

“Good luck,” she said.  Then she turned and disappeared down the stairs.

--Fin--

© 2006, all rights reserved.

Read the next chapter in this story: Chapter Twenty-four

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