Chapter 56: Spring Break, Part IV

March 1981, Milford, Ohio

I let Stephanie know that Kara was indeed coming for dinner, as we expected.

“Ready to start working on dinner for our guests, Mrs. Adams?” I teased.

“God, Steve, don’t tease me like that! Just thinking about being your wife makes my pussy drip! Please, quick, right now in front of the fireplace,” she said, unbuttoning her blouse seductively.

“You are insatiable, Squirt!” I said, removing my shirt.

“Yes, I am, Big Brother. And it’s your fault! You feel so good and make me cum so hard!” she said, removing her slacks and panties in one push.

“I love how your pussy feels around my dick, Stephanie,” I said, removing my pants.

“Then shut up and fuck me, Big Brother!” she giggled.

I pulled her to me and we hugged, then lay on the floor and screwed until we both came, her multiple times, and me once, groaning loudly.

“Thanks, Big Brother. That’s just what I needed!” Stephanie sighed contentedly.

We went down the hall to shower and then went back to the living room and put our clothes back on. Stephanie and I worked on preparing dinner. I was making London Broil and had put the meat in the marinade the day before. Our kitchen had a fancy electric stove with interchangeable tops. I switched out the regular stove top for the flat-surface grill that I would need, and Stephanie cut the broccoli and cauliflower heads into bite-sized pieces to be steamed. We worked together on a pasta salad and prepared fresh dough to make dinner rolls. About 3:45pm I dressed and went to pick up Kara.

When I walked up to the door and rang the bell, Kara opened the door almost immediately. We kissed softly, and she called goodbye to her parents and we went out to the car.

“Did you, Steve?” Kara asked tentatively.

“Yes, we did,” I said.

“And you’re both OK with it?”

“Yes, we are. The question is, are you OK with it?”

“No, of course not. But it’s something I have to accept, I guess,” she said, a hint of sadness in her voice.

“I know this will affect our relationship, I knew that beforehand. The fact that you’re still talking to me makes me very happy. If you and I end up just being friends because of this, I’ll understand.”

“Won’t we end up as just friends, anyway?” Kara asked. “At least at the end of the Summer? You’re going to be with Jennifer in Chicago. I know if I want you, I have to wait. Your sexual history is a problem, but I knew that going in. This is just one more bump in the road, I guess.”

“Are you really sure you want to be with me? I mean, so sure that you’re willing to accept me being with Stephanie in the short term and me being with Jennifer in Chicago?”

“Steve Adams, you really have no clue how much I love you, do you?” she sighed.

“I’m getting the idea. I just don’t know how you can love someone like me.”

“I’ve told you many times about all your good qualities. You are one of the sweetest, most caring people I’ve ever met. Your friends love you so much that they are willing to sacrifice quite a bit to be your friend, and the girls, well, I don’t even have to tell you about that. And I’m not talking about sex; I’m talking about the way you pay attention to them and protect them.

“Do you have flaws? Of course you do! So do I. You’re just too nice to say anything, or maybe you just overlook them. I see you do that with all of your friends — you never let their flaws or issues interfere with your fierce loyalty. I will say one thing, though, that your sister is right when she says that when you screw up, you really screw up! And that’s what happened with Becky. I think you learned your lesson, Steve. Did you?”

“Yes. And I know why I did it. And that problem is solved. Once and for all,” I said forcefully.

“With regard to Becky, I’m sure. What about other girls? Can you resist the temptation? That’s the real question that you have to answer.”

“I think so. Honestly, I haven’t had any desire to be with anyone else. Even that one time that you permitted, it was out of obligation, not a desire to have sex with a new person. I’m NOT saying I didn’t enjoy it, but honestly, and I am not lying, I could see only having sex with you for the rest of my life and being content.”

Of course, we were both ignoring the elephant in the room of my little sister, but that was, indeed, a very special circumstance.

“But you still want to be with Jennifer, despite all of this? Despite being madly, deeply in love with me?”

I was silent as I turned into my driveway. I parked, and we got out of the car. I took Kara in my arms.

“I have to find out,” I said. “I have to know for sure one way or the other. If you, Joyce, and Bethany are right, then you’ll have your chance. Stephanie, Melanie, and Larry don’t think that’s the case. You know I don’t. The only way to find out who is right is for me to be with Jennifer in Chicago.”

“It hurts, but it’s another thing I knew going in. We’ll figure it all out at the end of the Summer.”

We walked into the house and I smelled lavender. Stephanie was burning a scented candle. She greeted Kara with a hug and asked me to step into the kitchen for a minute.

“Steve, I put clean sheets on your bed. If you want to make love to your girlfriend, go ahead. We have enough time before you have to start dinner, I’m sure.”

I hugged my little sister tight and whispered, “You are amazing!”

“I know! And you know just how amazing, too!” she giggled.

I went back into the living room and took Kara’s hand and lead her down the hall to my room. I shut the door and pulled her into my arms.

“What are we doing, Steve?” she said impishly.

“That’s up to you. We have an hour before I have to start dinner. I thought maybe you would like to spend some time together, alone.”

“Spend some time together?” she said, arching an eyebrow.

“Kara Blanchard, would you make love with me in my bed? We’ve done it in yours.”

“Yes,” she giggled. “Absolutely!”

We removed our clothes and got into bed. We kissed and caressed, then made love to each other. Kara cried out in ecstasy, and I groaned loudly when our final orgasms washed over us. We lay together, cuddling and kissing for a bit, then showered and dressed, and went back to the living room. I lit a fire in the fireplace and then went to the kitchen to start working on dinner. Kara sat on a stool at the counter to watch.

Stephanie and I quickly shaped the dough into dinner rolls and put them into the oven. I put the broccoli and cauliflower in the steamer and then turned on the flat-surface grill. I checked the clock, and it was close enough to 6:00pm to start cooking the meat. Once the grill was at the proper temperature, I seared the London Broil on all sides, then turned down the heat to very low.

The doorbell rang about five minutes before 6:00pm and Stephanie went to answer it.

“So that’s what it’s going to be like,” Kara said wistfully.

“What?” I asked.

“Being married to you. NOW I understand you and Stephanie. Completely. Watching you work together was like watching a husband and wife. Wow!” Kara said.

Stephanie and Joyce came into the kitchen, and Joyce set two bottles of wine on the counter. Joyce and I greeted each other with a kiss, then she hugged Kara.

“Dinner is in five minutes,” I said.

Stephanie and I finished up and put the food on the table. Joyce poured wine for everyone and we sat down to eat. I sliced the London Broil, and we passed the bowls of vegetables and the dinner rolls. Joyce and Kara loved the food.

“Amazing food, Steve!” Kara said. “You cook really well.”

“For a guy, Kara?” I asked.

“You know I’m not used to that. I’m sorry. I’d say it’s good for anyone!”

“He does have his uses,” Joyce said with a smirk.

“Oh, he does, that’s for sure!” Kara said, blushing.

Stephanie giggled but said nothing. I certainly knew what she was thinking, and I was sure Kara did. Joyce had once hinted at something between Stephanie and me, but the topic hadn’t come up in years.

“You should have seen the two of them in the kitchen, Joyce. They moved like a well-oiled machine!”

“They’ve always been close. It’s almost like they’re twins the way they communicate and relate,” Joyce said.

“Or like husband and wife,” Kara said, giving me a smile.

“My Big Brother is totally cool,” Stephanie said. “He can be a real idiot at times, but overall he’s pretty cool.”

“Oh, yeah,” Joyce said with a sly smile. “I’ve seen Steve in full idiot mode!”

“Do you three girls want me to leave so you can talk about me behind my back?” I asked, feigning being annoyed.

“No way, Big Brother!” Stephanie said playfully. “It’s way more fun to talk about you with you here!”

All three girls laughed together, and I just shook my head.

When we finished eating, everyone pitched in to clean up and I put on water for tea, then steeped the tea leaves in the teapot. The girls sat down as I poured the tea into their teacups, and just as I was about to take my seat, Kara looked up with a smile.

“Steve, go find something to do for a bit,” Kara requested. “I want to talk to Joyce and Stephanie.”

I froze, with my butt halfway to the chair, and slowly stood up, puzzled. The three girls smiled and Kara batted her eyes, “Pretty please?”

“OK, call me when you need me.” I shrugged, and took my cup, “I’ll be in my room.”

I walked down the hall and sat down at my desk. I reviewed my notes for my thesis paper and wrote down a couple of thoughts I had about Jack Burden and his relationship with Willie Stark and Anne Stanton. About twenty minutes after I had gone to my room, Stephanie came to my door.

“It’s safe to come out, Steve,” she said, giggling.

“Who won?” I chuckled.

“You did, Big Brother. All of us love you, you know that!” she said with a smile.

I got up and rejoined my friend, my girlfriend, and my sister. I poured myself another cup of tea and sat down. I had already decided not to ask what had been said. I figured one of the three would tell me at some point, though I didn’t know which one. When I finished my tea, it was time to take Kara home. I didn’t appreciate her early curfew, but in the end, it didn’t really interfere with our time together that much.

Joyce decided to leave at the same time Kara did, and the three girls said their goodbyes. I kissed Joyce goodbye, and she got into her car and Kara and I got into mine.

“I’m amazed at how nice Joyce is even though she and I are kind of competing for you,” Kara said.

“Joyce and I were friends like this before we became intimate. She’s the one who more or less broke things off, and the one who decided to see if we could ever put them back together.”

“Do you want to sleep with her, Steve?” Kara asked softly.

“That question doesn’t have an easy answer. I have no intention of violating my commitment to you. I could have taken Joyce to bed, but decided not to. And I don’t regret that decision, Kara. I like being with you. I’m happy being with you. I told you before that I could see being with you permanently and I would be happy with you as my sole sex partner for life, if we end up deciding that’s our future.”

“Your little sister seems sure that you’re going to end up with Jennifer,” Kara said, a hint of sadness in her voice.

“Yes, she does. My friends are split on that one, and honestly, I’m confused about the whole thing. You confused me, Kara.”

“But in the end, you want to be with Jennifer, don’t you?”

“I’m certainly going to be with her in Chicago in the Fall. That plan hasn’t changed. You told me you were confident that in the long term, things would work out the way you believe that they will. Do you still believe that?”

“I hope they turn out that way,” Kara said. “I am not trying to pressure you in any way, but I do want to marry you. After I saw you and Stephanie together in the kitchen, and the closeness you two have, I am sure that’s what I want. That’s the kind of relationship I need. I wish you would give up on Jennifer right now, but I know I can’t ask you to do that without risking a future catastrophe. You have to find out.

“The way I’m looking at it now, I’ll be a Senior next year. You will have a year to see Jennifer and figure things out. If you two are still together next Summer, then I’ll have to rethink my plans. But, and please don’t be upset with me, I don’t think that will be the case. Stephanie was pretty adamant that it would be, of course. Joyce agrees with me and that’s why she’s hanging around, though I know she thinks she’ll lose to me at this point.”

“She really thinks that?” I asked.

“Ask her yourself. She’s not giving up, but she feels she’s third in line, I guess.”

There was something to that, of course. Joyce had always been a ‘backup’ in my mind, even from the very beginning. And she had known that. In many ways, Bethany had felt the same way, though Karin figured in her mind, as it did Jennifer’s. I had to be careful because if I tried to figure this out right now, I’d go crazy and start obsessing over things. All I could do was take things one day at a time and let things sort themselves out.

“I guess that’s true,” I said, not feeling very good about it, knowing what was coming next.

“It’s the same with me, Steve. I’m second in line behind Jennifer,” she said sadly.

“I’m sorry,” I said, meaning it. “This is so difficult. I can’t make any final decisions about my life at this point, so all I can say is that we’ll have to wait and see how they turn out.”

“That’s not even close to true! You’ve decided on Jennifer. In your heart, that’s who you want to be with for the rest of your life. I just hope your heart isn’t crushed. You’re lucky, though.”