Chapter 26: Karin, Part III

July 1981, Milford, Ohio

When Karin and Melanie arrived home, Karin and I went to Fazio’s to get what I needed for dinner and then stopped at UDF for some hand-packed ice cream. We took everything to my house and hung out in my room until my parents were ready to leave. I received a dirty look from my mom, but she didn’t say anything. My dad said goodbye, and they headed out.

As my parents pulled out of the driveway, I began preparing for the dinner party.

I had decided on London Broil as the meat dish and fresh broccoli and cauliflower as the vegetables. Stephanie helped me prepare the meal as she had in the past, and Karin sat and watched us. As usual, my sister and I moved like a well-oiled machine. Nothing had changed between us except the sexual attraction. Every other aspect of our relationship was as strong as ever.

Our guests began arriving at 5:30pm and by five minutes before 6:00pm, everyone we’d invited was in attendance — Joyce, Larry, Ed, Bethany, Pete, and Melanie. Again, Stephanie was the hostess, and that had Joyce and Bethany rolling their eyes.

“I see nothing has changed. Mrs. Adams is still running the show,” Bethany whispered to me.

“What did you expect? Nothing changed about our relationship except we’re not screwing at the drop of a hat. Or at all, as you well know,” I added with a smirk.

Joyce had brought three bottles of Chianti, courtesy of her parents. I really appreciated that they accommodated us that way. In the Spring, both Joyce and Pete would be able to buy wine because they’d be 21. Bethany pointed out that Wisconsin had a drinking age of 19. Sadly, I had found out that Illinois’ drinking age was twenty-one, the same as Ohio’s, though I could, at least, buy 3.2 beer at eighteen in Ohio.

Everyone enjoyed dinner and the conversation around the table was mostly about Karin and Sweden. I was happy that my friends weren’t teasing either of us, though I figured that Mary was going to be merciless at the party on Saturday! When we finished our meal, Stephanie cleared the dishes from the table and I served ice cream as well as coffee and tea.

“You’re getting to be a damned good cook, Steve,” Larry said, leaning back from his empty dessert plate.

“Don’t forget my sous-chef!” I chuckled, making a bow towards Stephanie, who curtsied to our laughs.

“I watched them work together in the kitchen,” Karin said. “It was nothing short of amazing!”

“Yes, those two are the closest siblings I’ve ever seen anywhere,” Bethany said with a smile.

I hoped she didn’t go further, because Ed, Pete, and Larry had no idea of the true nature of my relationship with Stephanie, and I intended to keep it that way.

Joyce and Larry volunteered to do dishes, which I really appreciated. While Karin was speaking with Stephanie and Ed, Bethany and I slipped away to chat briefly.

“Jesus, Steve, she’s as beautiful as Kara! I can’t compete with that.”

“Bethany Michelle Krajick, I do not make my decisions based on looks. And if you look in a mirror, you’ll notice you just happen to be a smoking hot cheerleader!”

“Not compared to them!”

“Oh, stop it! You know damn well how much I like that hot little cheerleader body of yours! Have I ever once complained? Have I ever once not been hard as a steel rod when you’ve been naked?”

She giggled, “Yeah, after we’ve done it four or five times! Or after Kathy and I are finished with you! Then you’re like a deflated balloon!”

“Touché!” I said with a smile.

“How do you feel about her?” Bethany asked.

“Good. Remember, I’m taking things one day at a time. I’m not going to make any decisions before next Summer beyond the ones I’ve made so far — sharing an apartment with Elyse and hopefully dating Kathy. And I’ll see you and Kara as often as my schedule allows.”

“I talked to Kathy. She thought she had died and gone to heaven. Give her a call once Karin goes home. I think you’ll be happy with what she wants.”

“Looking after your own interests, I see!” I smirked.

“You told me that was OK so long as I wasn’t underhanded,” she answered, smiling and winking.

“Of course! Now let’s go rejoin the guests.”

“I want a kiss first!” Bethany said petulantly.

I pulled her into my arms and gave her a deep French kiss, then we went back to join the guests. Everyone sat around the dining room table chatting and drinking tea or coffee until 10:00pm when we all left. I was happy that everyone was gone before my parents arrived home. Karin and I followed our usual pattern of making love twice before falling asleep, then making love in the morning. Karin’s internal clock had adjusted, so she wasn’t waking up at 2:00am or 2:30am. I found that I missed those middle of the night sessions.

After breakfast, we hung out in our room, cuddling in bed. Our time was quickly running out, and that made me sad. I was really enjoying Karin being here, and I knew that I would miss her a lot when she went home.

Just before noon, we headed over to Kara’s house. I had serious misgivings about Karin and me getting together with Kara, but didn’t see how I could avoid it. It would have been so much easier in a group setting such as dinner or at the party, but Kara’s dad wasn’t budging from his position.

As it turned out, I shouldn’t have been worried. The girls hit it off instantly and spent the entire time we were there, including while we were eating, chatting incessantly about Sweden, the US, and me. Several times, both Mrs. Blanchard and I exchanged looks and rolled our eyes at things that were being said. This was the first time I had ever seen Karin act like a giggly teenage girl. I’d seen it occasionally with Kara, though she was almost as serious and reserved in public as Karin was.

After lunch, while the girls were still chatting, Mrs. Blanchard took me aside.

“Steve, what’s your relationship with this girl? It seems like you two are more than just friends.”

“It’s complicated. It all started with her sister, Birgit.”

I went on to tell her the story, leaving out the sex. It took about ten minutes for the short version. Mrs. Blanchard asked a few probing questions and seemed satisfied. Or so I thought.

“I’m a bit surprised at how friendly she and Kara are,” Mrs. Blanchard said. “It’s clear they are competing for you. That young girl is head over heels in love with you.”

“Well, I think both of them are supremely confident that they’ll win in the end.”

Mrs. Blanchard’s eyes narrowed, “Are you stringing my daughter along?”

“To what end?” I asked. “It’s not like we can be together anytime soon, if you know what I mean. Why would I string Kara along? I’ve been totally honest and upfront with her. She’s known about Karin from the beginning and as soon as I knew that Karin was coming to visit, I told Kara about it. I’m not hiding anything from Kara. I did bring Karin here, after all.”

“You know that my daughter is expecting to marry you.”

“Yes, I do. And I guess the only thing I have to say is that Birgit’s death taught me that nothing is ever guaranteed in life. Even when we want something very badly, we don’t always get it. If Birgit were still alive, I wouldn’t be with Kara; that’s the plain and simple truth. But Birgit died and there is not a thing I could do about that except make try to peace with it and move on.”

“Kara doesn’t seem upset, so I guess she’s comfortable with the situation. In the end, it’s up to her to decide what she wants. If she’s happy, then I’m happy.”

“Thanks, Mrs. Blanchard. I understand it’s a complicated situation, and I really appreciate you letting us visit.”

We went back into the den where the girls were still chattering away. Both of them still seemed to be happy, and I was glad about that.

Around 2:00pm we said our goodbyes, Kara and I exchanged a quick kiss, and then Karin and I headed back to the Spencers’ house. Once again, we sat in our room and cuddled to talk. I was a bit surprised by Karin’s reaction to the past few days.

“I don’t see how I can compete with them,” she said sadly.

“What are you talking about?” I asked.

“The other girls — they all live here. They’re all beautiful. And they’re all older than me.”

“Karin!” I said forcefully, turning her head gently so she could see my face. “You’re beautiful! And yes, you’re a few years younger than they are. So what? And, yes, they all live in this area. And you know what? In three weeks, I’ll be living in Chicago. Joyce and Kara will be here, more than five hours away. Bethany will be in Madison, Wisconsin, more than two hours away. Yes, I’ll see them before I see you again, but it’s not like any of the three of them will be with me every day, or even every week.”

“Really? I didn’t even think about that. The US is so big; it’s not like Sweden where everything is close. And you all seem to move around a lot more than Swedes do.”

“Yes, really. And that’s true — we do move around a lot. Please don’t worry. I promise you that when I come to Sweden in June, I will not be steady or engaged or anything like that. I promise!”

“I guess that’s all I can ask for. It’s so difficult. I know I keep saying this, but I don’t know how Birgit did it so easily! I could never have sent you to Melanie the way Birgit did.”

“That’s OK,” I replied, “I could never have sent me to Melanie the way Birgit did! She had an amazing faith that things would work out for us in the end. Fate got in the way of that, but I think we can take heart in the faith that Birgit had and believe that everything will work out as it should. I know that sounds odd given Birgit died, but our only other option is despair.”

“Make love to me, please?”

I pulled Karin to me and we undressed each other and made love, then cuddled until dinner time. After dinner, we headed to my house to check up on my little sister. My dad hadn’t asked me to, but I wanted to do it anyway. When we arrived, Stephanie, Ed, and Shelly were watching Smokey and the Bandit on my dad’s LaserDisc player. Stephanie was surprised to see us, but not unhappy. I popped some popcorn for them and then Karin and I sat with them. I asked Ed how he was getting home and he said Bethany would pick him up. I offered to take him home when he was ready and Stephanie paused the movie so Ed could call Bethany and let her know.

When the movie finished, my sister looked at me and arched her eyebrow. I told her that she could do what she wanted with just my eyes. Her face lit up, and she grabbed Ed’s hand and led him out of the office.

“Well, they’ll be busy for half an hour!” Shelly smirked.

“Only half an hour?” I teased.

“Oh, shut up, Steve!” she giggled. “Not everyone is you!”

“«Du var med henne?»” Karin asked. (“You were with her?”)

“«Ja det var jag. En gång för ungefär en månad sedan.»” (“Yes, I was. One time about a month ago.”)

“«Har du haft många som henne?»” (“Have you had many like her?”)

“«Ja, en hel del. Vi kan prata om det senare, om du vill. Nu ska vi prata engelska för hennes skull.»” (“Yes, quite a few. We can talk about it later. We should speak English for her sake.”)

“Sorry, Shelly,” Karin said. “I just needed to ask Steve something private.”

Shelly smiled knowingly. We kept her company until Stephanie and Ed returned. I noticed Ed’s hair was damp, but it was short enough that it would dry by the time we got him home if we just waited another ten minutes or so, which we did. We said goodnight to the girls and headed out, dropping Ed at his house, then heading back to the Spencers. We went straight up to our room and made love, then spoke Swedish, as we did when we were in private.

“So, you were with that girl and quite a few others?” Karin asked.

“Yes. But honestly, for most of the time I’ve been home, with a few exceptions, I was steady with either my friend Debbie or with Kara. I told you how things were before, but I’ve calmed down, I guess is the right way to say it.”

“And in Chicago?”

“Most likely, I’ll date my friend Kathy for the school year. She and I have been friends for quite a while. I’ve known her since seventh grade, but, and any of my friends can confirm this, she and I are only friends. Sure, we’ve had sex, but there’s nothing romantic between us at all and there never will be.”

“You have a very interesting life, but one day, you’re going to have to pick one girl and stick with her for good.”

“I know,” I said. “For a long time I’ve said that would only happen when I get out of college. It might happen before then, but it’s certainly not happening before I see you again!”

Those were close to weasel words, but they were also true. It was the best I could do until I had more clarity and that would take time. Karin’s visit had thrown a monkey wrench into the works, or rather, Stephanie had thrown a monkey wrench named Karin into the works! I just had to be honest with myself and my feelings, and for that, I needed time away from all the girls that I thought I might be with. Karin and I made love again and fell asleep in each other’s arms.

When Karin and I awoke on Saturday, we made love twice and then had breakfast. As soon as we were done, we headed to Fazio’s to get everything we needed for the party. We had lunch with Stephanie and Shelly and they helped us prepare for the party. Larry, Bethany and Ed arrived early to help as well, and we quickly had everything ready for the rest of the guests to start arriving at 2:00pm.

By 2:30pm, everyone had arrived — Melanie, Pete, Bethany, Ed, Stephanie, Mary, Tracey, Marty, Debbie V, Larry, Joyce, Brent, Beth, Kathy, Elyse, Ralph, and Janet. We had a fantastic time with Pete and me manning the grill. I was happy the weather was mostly cooperating, though there was a light drizzle now and again. When we swam, my little sister had on her red bikini. When I had a chance, I whispered in her ear.

“You look great in that. I’m glad you have a chance to wear it!”

“Did you see all the guys drooling?” she smirked.

“Yes, Squirt, I did!” I said as I swam away.

She was damned full of herself at times! Of course, she was also extremely sexy. And she knew it.

The party lasted until 10:00pm when most of the guests left, though Bethany and Larry were nice enough to stay to help clean up. Ed and Stephanie had disappeared, which didn’t surprise me, so Shelly helped us as well. At one point, she was alone with me briefly.

“If you’re interested, I’m available.”

“I have Karin here, and Bethany,” I said quietly. “That just wouldn’t be possible.”

“Bring them along!” she smirked.

“As much fun as it would be, it’s a bad idea for a host of reasons.”

“I had to try!” she said and went back to cleaning up as if nothing had happened.

We finished cleaning up, and when Ed came out of my sister’s room, we all headed out, leaving Stephanie and Shelly by themselves. Karin and I were both exhausted, and we simply fell asleep in each other’s arms.

On Sunday morning, I kissed Karin to wake her up at first light.

“Can we just stay in bed all day?” she asked softly. “I only have today and tomorrow, and then I have to go home.”

“Of course! We can make love, cuddle, or play around. Or any combination.”

“Play around?” she said with a smirk.

“Well, if you want, we could do it until one of us passes out! And I’m pretty sure that would be you!” I chuckled.

“Let’s get some breakfast and then you can make love to me all day, lover boy!” she giggled.

Once we finished breakfast, we returned to our room, stripped naked, and got into bed. We kissed a bit and then Karin gently pushed me away.

“Since I’ve been here, except in the sauna, we’ve just made love the usual way. Is there something wrong?”

“Not at all. I actually prefer that. I guess, in a sense, I’m boring that way.”

“Those orgasms are NOT boring. You don’t want to do other stuff, though?”

“I’ll do anything you want to do,” I said. “No limits and no restrictions.”

“And I told you the same thing when I got here! But you never asked. I’m not afraid, if that’s what has you worried. Just ask me and I’ll do it. Willingly! In fact, lie back right now! I’m going to give you a fantastic blowjob!”

I reclined against the pillows so that my head was a bit elevated so I could watch as Karin grasped my dick and began gently licking my glans. The pleasure of her silky tongue quickly made me hard. She was taking her time, and began bathing my whole shaft with her tongue while she gently cupped my balls. After a few minutes, she took my glans into her mouth and gently sucked as she twirled her tongue.

Ever so slowly, she began sliding down my shaft, taking more and more of me into her mouth, all the while gently sucking and running her tongue around my shaft. I felt the tip of my dick touch the back of her mouth, but she didn’t stop until her lips touched my pubic hair. She continued sucking and tonguing me, creating intense pleasure. She slowly rose up until just the tip of my dick was in her mouth, then once again slowly took me completely in. She continued doing that, moving slightly faster each time until she was bobbing fairly quickly and I felt my release was imminent.