Traces of Desire
Copyright© 2025 by Big Ed Magusson
Chapter 30
On Friday, Len, Liz, and I drove up to Len’s parents’ place in Loveland. I’m not sure if I had only a dozen butterflies in my stomach or maybe a whole swarm. I was going to get to see Lori and this was definitely our third date. I calmed myself by repeating my mantra—”I was Superman, and I could do anything.” It helped. Some.
Len directed us into an older neighborhood a few blocks from the big park with Lake Loveland in it. The houses were from the Sixties and Seventies but the neighborhood hadn’t aged. Instead, it’d clearly gone more upscale with immaculate lawns and old trees. Most of the houses were the split levels that populated neighborhoods up and down the front range, but most of them had been upgraded with additions or new facades. I pointed out one to Len and he mentioned they’d done their addition out the back.
We turned down a street with a gentle curve and then Len pointed to his house. It wasn’t particularly bigger than my house. It rose on a small hill and was one of the same split-levels we’d seen before. They hadn’t done much to the front. Overall, it was far more modest than I’d expected. The Freemans might’ve been better off than my family, but they weren’t rich.
“Just park in front,” Len said to Liz.
She nodded. She’d been looking over the house with a bland expression. Once she’d parked, we trouped up the sloping walk. Len rang the doorbell, which struck me as odd but didn’t wait for an answer before he opened the door. He led us into a small entryway with stairs coming down from the second floor. We’d just gotten inside when Len’s mom hustled down the stairs.
“I thought I heard a car door!” She exclaimed. “You’re here!”
I did a double-take and tried to hide my surprise. When I’d met Len’s mom in August, she’d reminded me of a hippie in her casual granny dress. She looked nothing like that now, which stunned me. She’d dressed like Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, with a black wig that hung down so it framed her face. She had on a tight black dress that cut off mid-thigh and black stockings below. A glimpse of pale flesh confirmed that they were indeed stockings instead of pantyhose. Her plunging cleavage and prominent nipples made it clear she wasn’t wearing a bra. This woman was a walking sex bomb even if she was in her forties.
“Lenny!” His mom threw her arms around him in a big hug, then squeezed him again before stepping back. Len flushed with a mixture of amusement and embarrassment.
“Oh, Mike! It’s so good to see you.” She pulled me into a big hug as well. That was ... well, I was all too aware of how little fabric was between her curves and me. Fortunately, she quickly let me go.
“Hi, I’m Liz.” She held out her hand.
“Ah, yes,” Mrs. Freeman said as she shook it. “So glad to finally meet you! And I must say, Len has told me nothing but good things about you. I do hope you have a great time tonight.”
Liz gave Len a sharp look, but he blinked in mock innocence. Then he stepped back and looked his mom up and down.
“Going as Elvira tonight, I see,” he said.
“Mmm, yes,” she said, “and your father’s a sexy devil.” She smiled apologetically at Liz and me. “We have our own party to attend.”
I nodded because I’d figured that out.
“Is Dad upstairs? I need to talk to him about my costume.”
“Ah, yes,” Mrs. Freeman said. “Lori’s upstairs, Mike. And Liz—I’ll show you to Leanne’s room where you can change.”
We nodded and followed her upstairs. We’d just reached the second floor when Lori emerged from a bedroom.
And promptly took my breath away.
At first, she looked like she was nude, and then I realized it was a form-fitting, flesh-colored body suit with green fabric leaves strategically placed over her nipples and pussy. The way it clung to her breasts and hips caused my dick to twitch. Fortunately, I didn’t drool. My gaze drifted further up until I found her smile.
I smiled back. “Wow.”
She grinned. “Care for an apple?” She tilted her head so I could see her apple-shaped earrings.
I laughed. “It won’t take that to tempt me.”
“Yeah, Mike’s got the snake,” Len said.
“Behave.” She playfully slapped his shoulder. He just grinned and walked past her to one of the other bedrooms. Liz and Mrs. Freeman did the same. Once the way was clear, Lori launched herself into my arms.
We kissed—hot and hungry, and wet. She pulled back, still in my arms, and smiled at me again.
“Glad you made it,” she said.
“That makes two of us.”
She waggled her eyebrows. “So where’s your costume?”
I nodded at the bag. “I need to change.”
“You can change in my room.”
She took me by the hand and led me back into the room she’d come out of. I took about three steps in and paused to look around.
At first, her room felt cramped until I realized that it was just that she had a double bed instead of the twin I’d expected. Her decor was feminine without being girly and ran to pastels but without a lot of pinks. Posters of animals covered most of the walls except for around the mirror above her dresser where she had pictures of her family. She had shelves of books and animal figurines, and multiple pillows on her bed.
I turned and met her nervous smile.
“Nice,” I said.
“Thanks.” She puckered her lips so we shared a quick kiss. “Um, I suppose I should let you change.”
“If you want to see the costume.”
She laughed and gave me a quick kiss. “See you downstairs.”
I set the costume bag and my backpack on the bed and then realized I’d made one mistake. I hadn’t gotten instructions on how to put it on. I remembered a lot, but I wasn’t quite sure whether I had some of the pins in the right place. Still, when I looked in the mirror, I didn’t look bad.
My nerves kicked as I thought about taking off my underwear. Years of being scolded for leaving my bedroom not fully dressed came back to me. I didn’t think I could go commando. Thankfully, my briefs were dark so I decided to leave them on.
I looked around her room one more time. It felt ... warm. Loving. I could easily imagine her sitting on the bed with a cat in her lap while she studied. Or maybe at her desk. I did check the photos—yep, there were pictures of what had to be her cats as well.
I was stalling. I took another deep breath. Then it was time to head downstairs and see what Lori thought.
I walked down the stairs to find that the main floor entry area opened up into a split level great room with the kitchen a half dozen steps up from an expansive family room. I immediately spotted Lori at the kitchen table sitting next to Liz, who was fully dressed. The Freemans were across from them. He wore a red silk shirt with the top two buttons undone and a pair of short red devil horns on his head. He was the first to see me.
“Mike!” he called. “Looking good!”
“Oh, wow!” Lori’s eyes lit up as she looked me up and down.
“Yes...,” Mrs. Freeman added. “Very sexy.”
Liz’s eyebrows shot up at that and even Lori gave her mom a wary look.
“Uh ... thanks.” I shifted uncomfortably but forced a smile before walking over.
But then we heard footsteps coming down the stairs. All eyes turned as Len sauntered in. He wore a trench coat and a fedora. The trench coat hung open showing him in a full dark suit beneath that. He paused at the bottom of the stairs and grinned.
“Sam Spade,” I said.
“Close. Rick Blaine.”
“Of course.”
“Who’s Rick Blaine?” Mrs. Freeman asked.
To my amusement, Liz answered. “Humphrey Bogart’s character in Casablanca.”
“Oh, good choice!” Mrs. Freeman said.
“Just don’t lose my hat,” Mr. Freeman admonished. Then he turned to his wife. “We should get going.”
She nodded and stood. “You have fun, kids!” She collected hugs from Len and Lori and then they were out the door.
A little after that, so were we.
Apparently, parking at Rusty’s party was going to be a pain, so we decided to take Lori’s car. It was a little bigger and Liz seemed relieved to not have to drive. I certainly didn’t mind, especially when Lori gestured for me to sit in the front with her.
The drive to Fort Collins was mercifully short—a mere twenty minutes down a bunch of backroads I didn’t know. In the back seat, Len and Liz chatted about some of the people who usually came to the party, with Lori occasionally chiming in.
I noticed something and silently laughed. Lori, Len, Liz. I was surrounded by people with L names, just like Superman with Lois, Lana, and Lex. Sometimes real life imitated art, though I didn’t think Len would make a good Lex Luthor. He was too laid back to be a criminal mastermind.
I started humming I am Superman. Lori’s eyes darted in my direction and she grinned.
We drove down this dirt road on the western edge of the city. I knew we were close when we started seeing rows of cars parked along the side. We drove past a driveway that led to a well-lit couple of buildings set back from the road among some large pines. The nearest neighbors were thankfully a distance away, given the loud music we could already hear. Lori found a parking spot on the road only a short walk from the house.
We climbed out of the car and the crisp autumn air made me catch my breath. Below my kilt, the hair on my bare legs rose. I immediately felt sympathy for women and the skirts. I also wondered how much of the party was outside.
Lori and I fell in beside each other and I took her hand. She gave mine a squeeze as soon as I did. Warmth raced through me as I reveled in her touch.
We walked down the road—there weren’t any sidewalks out here—until we reached the driveway. Some people ahead of us were already headed around the side of the house, so we followed them. We rounded the corner to find a large yard between the house and an old bar.
I blinked. The yard was jammed with people—probably thirty or forty scattered about in various clumps. I spotted a wide range of costumes, from the usual zombies and vampires and witches to superheroes. Some were really fancy while some were little more than torn t-shirts with fake blood.
I sucked in my breath. There were a lot of people here. But it was too late to turn around, and, besides, Lori had a firm grip on my hand.
I noted that one costume group clustered around what looked like a couple of kegs while another stood near a table filled with bottles. A stereo blared near the open barn door and the inside was lit with floodlights. Outside, the barn was decorated with orange and black streamers and a handful of cardboard decorations of skeletons, black cats, and pumpkins. A few people stood nearby drinking and talking.
As we wandered further in, a woman in a Wonder Woman costume detached herself from the group standing near the table with bottles. Lori let go of my hand and waved. The woman smiled and headed our way and I blinked in surprise. Her breasts threatened to explode out of the top, but she didn’t seem to mind at all. Lori and Wonder Woman exchanged a hug before Lori turned to me.
“Mike,” Lori said, “this is Terri, my roommate. Terri, this is Liz and you know Len.”
“Good to see you, Ter,” Len said.
She grinned at him and looked him up and down. “Let me guess ... private dick?”
He laughed. “No...”
“Well, a gumshoe of some sort.”
“Rick Blaine. Casablanca.”
Terri nodded and turned to me. “Sexy Highlander?”
I blinked. “Sort of. I, uh ... don’t know about sexy.”
“Oh, you’re sexy,” Lori said, and Terri nodded agreement, though without any real interest herself, I realized.
Then Terri looked Liz up and down and grinned.
“Sexy harem girl?” she asked.
“Sort of,” Liz said.
“Sexy genie?”
“Nope.”
“I give up.” Terri grinned, obviously not at all disappointed at not knowing it.
“Scheherezade.”
“Ooh!” Terri said. “Maybe you can tell me a story later.”
Liz’s eyes widened with surprise before the blush filled her cheeks.
Len hefted the bag with the wine coolers we’d brought. “Where do we put these?”
“Depends on what it is,” Terri said.
“Wine coolers.”
“In the fridge.” She gestured for us to follow her.