Chapter 37: Transition

August 7, 2000, Chicago, Illinois

“Slow, gentle, and loving,” Maria Cristina requested as I pushed my hips forward, entering her for what was likely to be the last time.

I nodded, kissed her softly, and we began a slow-motion horizontal dance. Maria Cristina wrapped her legs around me, and we exchanged numerous soft kisses as we moved together. There was no urgency on either of our parts, as we wanted to make what was likely our very last lovemaking session last as long as possible.

For Maria Cristina, it wasn’t about orgasms - that had been the goal of the previous night, when after I’d taken her around the world twice, I’d spent nearly an hour pleasuring her orally. No, for her, this was about me showing her how much I loved her and she showing how much she loved me. Each kiss expressed our deep feelings for each other, and we spent considerable time just staring into each other’s eyes as we slowly moved together towards our final destination.

When we reached it, we each watched the other’s face intently, enjoying the visible sign of the pleasure which was coursing through our bodies. We lay together, kissing softly until I slipped from her, then went to the shower.

“I’ll run with you this morning,” Maria Cristina said as the warm water coursed over our bodies.

I nodded, and when we’d rinsed off sufficiently, we put on our shorts, t-shirts, and running shoes, and left the house. We walked to Washington Park, ran our circuit, then walked back to the house where we took a warm, loving shower, carefully washing each other’s bodies. When we finished, we dried each other, dressed, and went downstairs. Birgit was waiting, hands on hips, so Maria Cristina went to the kitchen to make breakfast while I took my slightly annoyed daughter to the sunroom to cuddle.

“You ran BEFORE cuddles,” she declared, snuggling close.

“I did. Maria Cristina and I needed some time together. And it’s not like you aren’t getting your cuddles!”

“I saw her dancing with that Navy Lieutenant,” Birgit declared. “Are you being dumped?”

I laughed, “Excuse me?!”

“I’m teasing, Dad! But she seems to like him.”

“She does. He asked her on a date and she’s going to go out with him. But that is not ‘being dumped’ you little turkey! Nothing else will change.”

“Good. I like her. She’s lots of fun and my friends like her, too.”

“That’s good. What are you doing today?”

“We’re going to the Brookfield Zoo. Aunt Sofia doesn’t work today, so she’s organizing things. Aunt Kathy will meet us there with her kids.”

“Cool. I saw you hanging out a lot with Kjell.”

“He’s nice, but don’t worry, Dad, I’m not ready to kiss him. Yet!”

“Why would I worry? You need to decide for yourself when you’re ready. Just remember the rules.”

“Give me a break, Dad! ‘Kiss’ does not mean ‘fuck’! It hasn’t since I was eight!”

“The one has a way to leading to the other,” I replied.

“That’s what Mom says!”

“And your mom would know!” I chuckled.

“Two more minutes!” I demanded when Dad said we needed to go eat breakfast.

“Yes, Pumpkin,” he replied.

I snuggled even closer and Dad tightened his arm around me. There was no better place in the world than lying in the chaise next to my dad in his arms. My moms were SO lucky. They got to do this naked. I imagined what that might be like, but I doubted it could ever happen. I’d seen my dad in the sauna, and he was handsome and gorgeous, but he was my dad. I wished there was a way...

When three minutes were up, we went to the kitchen where we had breakfast with Maria Cristina and Mom.

“Hi, Babe,” Dad said, giving Mom a sexy kiss.

“Good morning, Tiger! Have a good night?”

“We did!” Maria Cristina exclaimed.

I rolled my eyes, which Dad saw, and he laughed. They knew I knew, and thought it was cute, but none of them knew the truth; only Aunt Katy knew, and she was the one who told me quite clearly that it was impossible and I shouldn’t think about it. She was lucky, too, because she got to be with Dad when we visited Vermont.

“Morning!” Winter called out, coming into the kitchen. “Should I start breakfast for the Swedish contingent?”

“I think so,” Dad said. “I need to leave for work, which is why we’re eating now.”

He and Mom finished eating and left the kitchen along with Maria Cristina. I stayed to help Winter make breakfast, and when it was ready, went to get Kjell and Kristina while Winter went upstairs to get their parents. I sat with them while they ate, and then we all got ready to leave for the zoo. Uncle Josh and Aunt Mary arrived with Sandra, and Aunt Sofia arrived a few minutes later. We all got into Mom’s minivan, the minivan which Uncle Josh had rented, and Aunt Sofia’s car, and headed to the zoo where we met Aunt Kathy and her kids.

“Jesse decided not to join us?” Aunt Kathy asked.

“No,” I said. “He’s hanging out with Cynthia playing video games, and then Mrs. Sarcu is picking them up so they can go to the ice rink and skate with Mikey and Nicole.”

“Did you bring your family pass?” she asked.

“Yes, and Dad gave me six guest passes.”

“Good. I have three, so we have enough because we have our membership, and Sofia and Stavros have one as well.”

We all trooped into the zoo, and Aunt Kathy and Aunt Sofia made sure we got tickets for the dolphin show, then we started walking around to see the animals. I made sure we went to the penguin exhibit so I could tease Dad about it. He really liked penguins and he’d be jealous I got to see them!

“Hi, Jesse!” Cynthia exclaimed when I opened the door for her.

She came into the house and gave me a quick kiss, and then we went to the living room.

“What do you want to play today?” I asked.

She giggled softly, “I liked what we did yesterday!”

“We could,” I said.

“I, uhm, I’m a bit uncomfortable. We could kiss and stuff, but I think we need to wait a few days before we have sex again.”

“Sorry,” I said. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“It’s not your fault,” she replied. “Doctor Bethany’s book says that’s normal and in a few days it’ll be fine and won’t hurt or be uncomfortable. Well, assuming I get wet enough. You made me super-wet with your tongue!”

“I like doing that and you taste really good!”

“You think so?”

“Yes.”

“And will you do that if I do that to you?”

“Yes.”

Cynthia giggled, “I’d rather play with you than with the Nintendo!”

“Do you want to go to my room?”

“Yes!” she exclaimed.

We ran up the stairs, went into my room, I shut the door, and stripped off my clothes, getting into bed with an already naked Cynthia. We started kissing, and after a couple of minutes, I moved so I could kiss her breasts, then moved between her legs, and began kissing and licking her pussy, and sucking gently on her clit. She started moaning and breathing hard, and it wasn’t long before she gasped and groaned and had an orgasm. I wasn’t going to stop, and kept going until my jaw started to ache, which was after three more orgasms.

I moved up and French kissed Cynthia, and then she moved so she could kiss and lick MY nipples, which made my already hard boner ever harder. She soon moved down so she could kiss, lick, and suck me, and I propped myself on my elbows so I could watch as my dick disappeared partway into her mouth. I loved the feel of her soft tongue and the gently sucking, and enjoyed watching as she experimented with using her hand and mouth. When I came, she didn’t take her mouth off me, and ran her tongue around the head of my dick, almost making me pass out from pleasure. When I finished, she licked and sucked, then moved up so we could kiss.

“I want to, so bad,” she whispered.

“It’s OK,” I replied. “It’s only a few days.”

“I know, but I NEED you in me,” she said, her voice bordering on being whiny.

“Wednesday or Thursday,” I replied gently. “We don’t want to make it worse!”

“I know,” she sighed.

“I could lick you again,” I offered.

“Yes!” she exclaimed. “That feels SO good!”

I gave her two more orgasms with my lips and tongue, and then we cuddled for a bit before we took a shower, dressed, and went downstairs to play video games.

“I need to say something to Kelly,” I said as we picked up the controllers to play Mario Kart 64.

“You mean because we fooled around yesterday because of the bet?”

“Yes.”

“I didn’t ask you to be my boyfriend,” she said. “I like hanging out with you and I really like sex, but I think we should just be friends.”

“Friends with benefits?” I asked. “Mom One said that means people who want to fool around but aren’t boyfriend and girlfriend.”

“Yes! I don’t like all the mushy stuff. I like video games and pool and sports. And sex! Remember, I said I’m not jealous.”

“Did you plan yesterday?” I asked.

“No. The bet was just something silly. But once I was standing there naked, I SO wanted you to kiss me. And then, well, it was SO good I didn’t want to stop! You seem like you might be upset; are you?”

“No. It’s just that I didn’t expect it, and then I figured you wanted to be my girlfriend, so you did it.”

“You mean to keep you from Kelly or steal you from Francesca? No way! It kind of just happened. And no, I’m not mad or anything. I LIKED it. A lot. I’ll do it with you every day once I feel OK.”

“You can’t steal me from Francesca, because there is no ‘me and Francesca’,” I sighed. “Her mom made sure of that. But I don’t think Kelly would appreciate us having sex.”

“She’s not your girlfriend, so it’s not her business! SHE isn’t putting out for you!”

“But it’s not like that,” I replied. “I mean, yes, I like sex, a lot! But Kelly has to decide if it’s something she wants to do.”

“Do you want a girlfriend? Or is having a,” she giggled, “‘fuck buddy’ just fine?”

I laughed, “It’s confusing; I mean the ‘girlfriend’ thing. I still want Francesca, I just can’t have her. So that’s why I haven’t really tried to have a girlfriend. For now, a ‘fuck buddy’ is just fine!”

“You’re good at sex! Well, I think so, ‘cause that was the first time I ever did it! I really like how your tongue feels, and oh my God, when you were inside me and we were actually doing it, I thought I would lose my mind!”

“Well, it sure isn’t on racing! You just finished last!”

“Because I was thinking about having sex!” she giggled.

We played for about an hour, then had lunch, then went to the main house to play pool until Mrs. Sarcu arrived to pick us up for skating. We had a great time at the rink, and then went out to eat before Mrs. Sarcu brought us home. Cynthia and I shared a really nice French kiss, and then she left to go home.

“Interesting development,” Mom Two said.

“What?” I asked.

“You and Cynthia.”

“She’s a friend,” I replied.

“That’s a heck of a friend!” Mom Two laughed. “That sounds like something your dad would say!”

“Can YOU keep track of my dad’s wives, girlfriends, lovers, friends, or whatever the heck they call them?” I asked.

“No!” Mom Two laughed. “I’m not sure how your dad does it! But I have to ask, do you kiss all your friends that way?”

“If you think I’m kissing Mikey or Nicholas, you’re out of your mind! YOU decided to stick to kissing girls; I am NOT going to kiss guys! Ever!”

Mom Two laughed, “But it doubles your chances of getting a date on Friday night!”

“I do NOT have that problem,” I replied smugly, with a huge grin.

“Obviously not, if Cynthia is any indication! Are you following the rules?”

“Yes, Mom Two,” I replied, rolling my eyes.

“Not just STI tests and protection, Jesse; I mean how you’re treating Cynthia and Kelly.”

“Yes. No cheating and no lying. Kelly isn’t my girlfriend and she doesn’t think she is. I think she might want to be, but I haven’t asked her or anything like that.”

“So long as you’re honest and forthright with the girls, you know Mom One and I won’t interfere. I do suggest you change your sheets afterwards, though.”

“Oops,” I replied with a silly grin. “I’m going over to Nicholas’ house to watch a movie. See you!”

“Bye, Jesse!”

I left the coach house and walked to Nicholas’ house where we watched The Last Starfighter with Tom. When it finished, I headed home, and before I got into bed, I changed my sheets.

August 9, 2000, Chicago, Illinois

“You know that if I don’t get out of bed, a certain pint-size human will be on the warpath,” I said to Jessica on Wednesday morning.

“She is NOT the only one who likes to cuddle, Tiger!” Jessica protested.

“This is a far cry from wanting a trophy husband who curled your toes on demand!” I teased.

“I may have changed my opinion on our relationship.”

“And Kara and I are both very happy that happened. It wasn’t without a lot of pain and suffering on all our parts. And you know where I fix the blame.”

“The whole process of becoming a doctor, plus a bit of terrible behavior on the part of my mom and Troy.”

“That about sums it up.”

“You’ve done wonders preparing Maria Cristina for medical school.”

“It’s been a team effort,” I said. “I was just a bit surprised she chose now to change things, but honestly, I agree she had to seize the opportunity with Lieutenant Knox. Liz is going on her date a week from Friday with a guy from the Public Defender’s office. She met him when she was clerking for Melanie last year. They ran into each other and he asked her out.”

“Ready for the NEXT shoe to drop?”

“What?” I asked.

“In the mail yesterday was a letter for Winter from a place that does wedding planning.”

“When it rains, it pours,” I chuckled. “But you don’t know for sure, right?”

“Last week there was a postcard for bridal gowns. I figured it was just one of those marketing things because she’s in the right age group, but I’d say the two things together tell me she’s going to marry soon.”

“I haven’t seen a ring,” I replied. “So perhaps they’re just in the discussion stage.”

“We’ll have to replace her, because Birgit is still only twelve and you read that article in the paper the other day.”

“I can’t believe DCFS is going after parents for having a twelve-year-old babysitter! If the newspaper article is right, she did exactly what any adult would have done - called 9-1-1 and got the kid to the hospital!”

“And it was just a bad allergic reaction to something the PARENTS had brought into the house,” Jessica groused. “And the kid was fine after we treated him. So fucking stupid!”

“I agree. I’m sure Winter will give us enough notice. And it’s not like we haven’t seen this movie before! And now I need to go find our daughter before I’m in the doghouse!”

Jessica reluctantly moved and I got out of bed. I put on my running clothes, then went downstairs to cuddle my daughter.

“How are you this morning?” I asked.

“Good! We went to the Museum yesterday, and today we’re going to the Botanical Garden where Samantha got married. I bet they don’t have metal detectors this time!”

“Well, since Jesse, Nicholas, David, and the Kallas boys are going along, they might! You little terrorists are dangerous when you get together!”

“Very funny! Katt likes to cuddle you.”

“She does. We used to cuddle when I lived in Sweden. I’d sit in a chair in her room and she’d cuddle in my lap for hours.”

“Because it’s so awesome,” Birgit declared, snuggling even closer.

Despite Birgit’s protests, eventually I needed to get up to run, and Maria Cristina joined me again. She was off-and-on about running, but it didn’t surprise me now that we’d reframed our relationship that she seemed to want to run regularly with me. I appreciated both the company and the sentiment. When we finished our run, we walked back to the house, showered separately, and then went down to breakfast where Jessica joined us. Jessica and I both missed Kara; she’d be home in ten days, something we were very much looking forward to. Her girls missed her as well, but they were keeping busy with their friends, and now with our visitors from Sweden.

Before I left for work, I said goodbye to Josh, Mary, and Sandra who were heading back to Virginia. They promised to visit again soon, and after I walked them to where their van was parked at the dojo, I walked home, got in my BMW, and headed to the office.

That evening, after dinner, Winter asked to talk to me. I suppressed a chuckle, and we went to my study.

“Kendall and I are talking about getting married,” she said.

I decided to let her know we’d guessed because of her mail.

“The bridal gown card and the letter from the wedding planner sort of gave that away!”

“Shoot!” she laughed. “Doctor Jessica gets the mail when she’s home!”

“When?”

She held up her hand, “I’ll let you know when he buys the ring!”

“A rough estimate?”

“We’ve been dating for over three years, so it won’t be a long engagement. I’d say December or January, and lots of places have openings then, so it’ll be easier to schedule than say, June.”

“December worked really well for us,” I replied. “Do you have a plan with regard to work?”

“Actually, unless you have a different idea, I’d like to still work for you. Obviously, I’d move out and we’d have to change our arrangements, but it works well with me taking morning classes towards my degree.”

“Where does Kendall live?”

“Bridgeport. He can walk to work at Comiskey Park, which is really nice, and it’s not too far for me to drive here for work.”

Kendall was a maintenance supervisor at the ballpark, a very lucrative, but difficult job.

“I’m postive we can come up with a new arrangement,” I replied. “The kids will be happy because they really like you and don’t think you’re ‘up in their business’!”

Winter laughed, “I just try to be a big sister and it works. They’re pretty good kids, really.”

“Until they decide you’re a target, and then look out!”

“That’s only against you!” she declared mirthfully.

“You may have a point,” I chuckled. “Do you plan to stay until you marry?”