It's been two months living together in the cabin that belongs to Stacy's parents. Two months without any word from our parents. A few days after we'd left, we went back to the house, gathered things while they were at work. Took some of our clothes and other things we'd need.
I got a job at a small bar out here , working a few nights a week, making decent money, and alos got a waitressing job at one of the restaurants. While my brother still worked his job full time. We were saving up money, wanting to have enough to get ourselves out of here and not keep our stay longer than we had to at her parents camp.
Stacy hasn't come by, but will send me texts to just to check on everything at the cabin. She turns down every invite I give her to come and talk. It was my brothers idea to keep trying, he'd said we were already unconventional, that letting me also have a girlfriend was far less "out of the norm" than us dating. Which, fair point.
But tonight, she was coming over. She was coming over for dinner and drinks. My brother was cooking the main meal, which was the burgers on the grill out back, and i was making pasta salad inside.
More and more I found myself forgetting that he was actually my brother. Each day I spent, living with him, on our own, it felt like we were a real couple. We ARE a real couple. Each day I realize that I care a little less what people might think if they find out. Our plan is to move out of state eventually, where nobody knows us and keep our secret all to ourselves. But that will take some time, and right now were looking to get a small apartment somewhere, where rent is cheap and will allow us to save up for bigger moving expenses later on.
As Im sliding the serving spoons into the pasta salad. I hear Stacy's car roll up on the gravel and park. My heart beating faster. I missed her. I missed her so much.
I run my hands under the faucet quickly and wipe them dry as I walk to the door, where she's standing there looking at me through the screen door. My lips curve upward into a big smile as she gives me an easy smile.
"I wasn't sure if I should knock...it's my cabin...but...youre living in it..and.."
"Come in" I laugh slightly and step forward pushing the screen open.
She steps in and takes a look around as I let the screen door shut quietly, the wood banging gently on the frame.
"You guys have kept it nice." she says.
"Of course, you dont know how much we appreciate it" I say and she looks to me and then we're just looking at one another.
"I miss you." she says and my breath releases in whoosh and I step forward and throw my arms around her pulling her in close for a hug. Her arms automatically wrapping around me.
"I miss you too" I half croak, trying to hold back the tears of relief.
"I miss you so much" I say and squeeze her tighter.
We stand like this in each others arms and all I want to do is kiss her, but it would be too much, too fast, and I wasnt sure what he wanting to come here meant. We hadnt talked about it at all since she told me she wasnt sure if she'd ever be able to share me. My brother had admitted to wanting me all to myself, and honestly...if he was all I had. It would be enough. More than enough. I was truly, madly, in love with him. But, he also told me that as long as he had me, he wouldnt truly be against having a working relationship, as long as it was with Stacy. Because he trusted her, and knew her, and because I'd already been in love with her when we started to get together. So it was only because of his insistance that I was going to try to feel her out again, and see where she was at.
I step back and look at her and I cant help but lift my hands to her face and she gives me a little smile.
I sigh. "I miss your face."
She smiles. "Miss yours." she says. Each of us looking at each other, our eyes going to one anothers mouths , before I break the spell by stepping back and brushing my hands along the sun dress I'm wearing and gesture for her to walk in further.
The screen door to the back opens and my brother starts to talk
"Hey babe the burgers are done and I -" he stops when he sees Stacy.
"oh , hey" he smiles at her and sets the platter down on the small dining table in the small dining area.
"Hey." she nods with a friendly smile.
"Glad you came." he says, and pulls a hand towel off from over his shoulder and wipes his hands.
"Me too." Stacy says with a nod.
"LEt me get you a drink" he says and Stacy nods and we follow him to the small kitchen where he opens the fridge and pulls out a bud light in a bottle and pops the cap for her.
"thank you" Stacy says as she takes the bottle and then takes a sip, then another and then looks around.
"So...this is...still awkward." she says and it makes me and my brother laugh.
"It doesnt have to be" I say. "We just havent seen each other in awhile."
"Yeah..." she says. "Plus the whole, your brother stealing you from me thing." she says in jest. But it makes us all wince.
"Sorry, bad joke?" she asks.
Me and brother give a little laugh and shake our head.
"no, you're fine." I say. "You're right...that makes it awkward too."
"Well food is ready...we can struggle to make this less awkard, by giving ourselves reprieve when were able to stuff food in our mouths to have excuse for the awkard silence" my brother says and Stacy gives a little laugh and I turn and smile at him.
"Sounds great" I say as I turn and grab the bowl of pasta salad.
"Need me to get anyhting?" Stacy asks.
I shake my head. "Nope I've got it" I smile. "You just sit."
She walks over to the small table and my brother grabs the hamburger rolls he toasted along with condiments and cut up lettuce onions and tomatos, a jar of pickles for us to make our own burgers. I grab the plates and set one in front of Stacy, then my brother heads back with a beer for me and him.
I sit on one side of the table, Stacy on the side next to me, my brother on the other side next to me.
"Do you want pasta salad?" I ask Stacy and she nods, and she's quiet as I assemble her burger, using tongs to add the works. Everything plus both ketchup and mustard. I turn and set it on her plate.
"Did you even ask her if she wants all that junk?" my brother asks, because he was a ketchup and cheese and thats it kind of guy. Bacon if it was available.
"I don't NEED to ask her...i doubt what she likes on burgers has changed in the past two months." I say giving him a little scrunch of my nose and then thinking about it.
"Shit...has it changed?" I ask looking back to Stacy who laughs and shakes her head.
"No. It hasnt." she says.
I watch my brother scrunch his nose as he then in turn makes my burger, and I give a little laugh as he makes it the exact same as Stacy's. Because , we both liked the works. We'd always ate the same food, shared the same likes and dislikes for foods too.
"Dont know how you can eat onions raw" he makes a face. "or lettuce on a burger, burgers are supposed to be meaty..hearty...not laid on rabbit food." he says teasing us.
"I like the crunch. mind your own business" I say and he sets my burger down.
"As you wish" he says and I laugh as I scoop pasta salad onto both of our plates while he makes his burger.
Surprisingly, it's easy to keep a non awkward conversation going while we eat. We all end up talking and telling customer service stories from our jobs, each of us trying to win the award for worst customer experience ever.
We're talking as we all finish, each of us on our second beer, when my brother tells us to go out on the deck while he cleans up the table. I don't argue, because he would just fight me on it, so I go with Stacy out back.
"Wanna take a walk?" I ask. She smiles, each of us holding our new beers we snagged from the fridge before walking out. she nods.
"I'd like that." she answers and I give her a little nudge with my shoulder.
"Come on then." I say and as my arm brushes hers playfully, she reaches for my hand, slipping our fingers between each others and I look down and then back up at her, feeling all the butterflies I've always felt with her. All of them rushing back out of their cage to flutter in my belly as I look at her and she smiles.
"this okay?" she asks.
I nod. "yes...it's more than okay." I say and give her hand a little squeeze.
We walk down towards the lake and then along the shore , and we're both silent, both quiet, and comfortably so as I we walk along the edge, passing other cabins along the way, each cabin housed between a small little forest of trees for privacy. But people often walked the shore line onto others properties so we were fine to walk wherever we wanted.
"Come on" I say mischievously as we come up to a dock where theres a two story pontoon boat docked.
"What, no" she laughs as I pull her along the dock.
"They're not home" I say looking up to the house that's the owner of the boat. "I just wanna sit on it" I say and she laughs as I pull her down the dock.
I grab the side and step up and then down into the boat, then turn to hold her hand , my one hand on her waist as she hops in, both of us laughing.
"See, no cops are coming." I say teasing her with a laugh then walking over and sitting down on the one side with the cushioned long bench along the side. It was a simple set up, with open space in the middle, but seating along the edges. She sits down across from me on the other side of the boat.
"Why are you sitting so far away?" I ask.
"Because." she says.
"Because why?" I take a sip of my beer.
"Because I dont trust myself with you." she says and stop sipping and lower my beer.
"Cause you want to do more than hold my hand?" I ask bravely, and chew the side of my lip hopefully.
"You know I do. And quit your lip biting." she says and I press my lips together to fight a little smile.
"Sorry." I say.
"No you're not." she says teasingly.
I'd already talked to my brother about it, and he'd been clear he that he would not be slighted by whatever happened between me and Stacy tonight, or ever. His permission was given to me before tonight and again today, insisting he wanted me to see if Stacy was willing to still be my girlfriend, while I was also with him. So I have no guilt or worry holding me back when I stand up and walk over to her, sitting there in her jeans shorts and plain black v neck t shirt.
"What are you doing?" she asks cocking a brow.
"I told you...I miss you" I say as I lift one knee to her side, reaching behind her to the rails of the boat and then lifting my other leg.
She inahles, but on her exhale, her hands drive up my thighs slowly and push past and under my sundress. I bite my lip hard when I feel her hands against my skin , her fingertip touching the hip of my panties and I slip my hands onto her face and bring my mouth close to hers.
"Tell me to get off you, tell me to stop and I will" I say.
She shakes her head. "Don't stop."