Flirting with Fire: A Summer Camp Swingers novel

Chapter 2

On Saturday afternoon, Emily knocked on my door and then stuck her head into the office. I saved my work and automatically checked the time. It was only one o’clock, but she liked to be early.

“Ready to go?” I said, and she nodded. “What about Susie?”

“Her too.”

“Okay. Do we need to pick up anything on the way?”

“I can call them and ask.”

“I’ll do it.” I flipped open my phone and clicked the contacts. I didn’t call Allie very often, so I had to scroll down to R.

“It’s on the dance mom’s list,” Emily said helpfully.

“No, I have it. Home and cell.” I picked the home number and dialed.

“Hello!”

“Hey, Allie, it’s Paul Hughes. We—”

“Oh, thank God!”

My eyebrows rose, and Emily sharpened her attention. She didn’t like surprises. Fortunately, she was like me and looked for solutions instead of avoiding the problem altogether.

Allie barely paused, “Please tell me you’re coming early.”

I reassured Emily with a nod and soothed Allie with my tone, “We are. Do you need anything—?”

“I could kiss you!”

See? the little head said. She totally wants me.

“I’m guessing that’s a yes,” I chuckled. The little head turned smug, so I ignored him. “What do you need?” I asked Allie.

“Ice. Like, several bags. And something to put it in. And… I’m so sorry to even ask, but…”

“Go ahead.”

“Would you mind picking up drinks?”

“Coke or juice?”

“Beggars can’t be choosers.”

“Then you’re in luck. We have juice here. Snapple. A couple of cases.”

“You’re amazing! A lifesaver!”

“No, just a guy whose family drinks a lot of juice. Anything else?”

Like a long, hard—

Will you stop!

“No,” Allie said. “Just the ice and drinks. Thanks!”

“No problem. See you in twenty minutes.”

“Awesome.” She hung up.

I closed my cell phone and resisted the urge to glare at my crotch. The little head wasn’t likely to get the message, and my eleven-year-old daughter didn’t need to either.

“Drinks and what else?” she said. “Ice?”

“Uh-huh, and the cooler.”

She grinned. “Chop-chop.”

* * *

I pulled into the driveway and parked outside the open garage. Allie’s Lexus SUV filled the right side, but cardboard boxes and plastic totes cluttered the left, Ken’s normal spot. At least, it had been.

Out with the old, in with the new, the little head said flippantly.

I sighed and did my best to ignore him. Fortunately, Mother Nature helped—I opened the car door and stepped into a sauna. The air was so thick that I felt like someone was sitting on my chest, and my skin immediately prickled with beads of sweat that would never evaporate in the damp air.

“Ugh, disgusting.” Susie hopped to the ground and slammed the car door like it had caused the humidity. She was our Boston child, and she still didn’t like the weather in Atlanta. I had to admit that I didn’t like it either, and I’d grown up here!

The door at the back of the garage opened and then closed, and Allie’s daughters appeared a moment later.

Madison was long-limbed and coltish, with light brown hair and a dusting of freckles across her nose and cheeks. She looked like a younger version of her mother, albeit without her curves. She and Emily made an unlikely pair, the beanpole and the pixie, but they’d been friends since kindergarten.

Carly was more like her father, solid and compact, and with the same dark hair and almond-shaped eyes. They weren’t the same brown as his, though, nor blue-green like her mother’s. Carly’s were honey-colored and striking, the first thing that anyone noticed about her. And, like Susie and her bright blue ones, she hated when people made a big deal about them.

“Hello, girls,” I said.

“Hey, Mr. H.,” Madison said. Carly smiled and gave a little wave.

“Happy birthday,” I added to Madison. “Have you had a good day so far?”

“Not really.”

My eyebrows twitched up.

“The air conditioner broke. My mom’s been on the phone, like, all day.”

“Well, that sucks,” I said.

“Yeah.”

“What? No air conditioning?” Susie complained.

“You’ll survive,” I said. “Now, c’mon, let’s unload. I bet we can get everything in one trip. What do you think? Can we do it?”

“I suppose,” she grumbled.

Sure enough, we unloaded the SUV in one trip and hauled everything into the kitchen. It was actually hotter than outside, even with the windows open. Allie called from somewhere deeper in the house.

“Paul? Is that you?”

“It’s us,” I hollered back.

“Sorry for the air! I just got out of the shower.”

“No problem! What can we do?”

“Can you finish setting everything out?”

The breakfast table was covered with bags of chips, serving bowls, and party supplies.

“We’re on it,” I called back. “All right,” I said to the girls in a normal voice, “Maddy and Em, you’re in charge of the food. Carly and Susie, music, presents, and decorations. I’ll do the ice and drinks. Sound good?”

Nods all around.

“Okay, let’s get this party started.”

Allie joined us about ten minutes later. She wore a black sleeveless top, a pair of white denim shorts, and thong sandals. Her outfit was conservative enough that she wouldn’t catch any side-eye from the other moms, but the dads would definitely notice her long, tanned legs.

“What’s this?” she said in surprise. “It actually looks like a party. Thank you so much.”

“Not me,” I said. “The girls did all the work.”

They stopped what they were doing and beamed.

“They did all this?” Allie said.

“They did. I mostly supervised.”

“Wow, I’m impressed. And… I can’t thank you enough.”

“Happy to help,” I said. Then I shifted gears. “What’s the problem with the air conditioner?”

“Don’t get me started.” She cut her eyes toward her daughters, and I realized that part of it had to do with their father.

“Anything I can do?” I wondered aloud. About the air conditioner, about your ex, about your sex life…?

See? the little head crowed. You totally wanna fuck her. I bet she’s— Uh-oh.

Uh-oh? What uh-oh?

I snapped out of it and realized that Allie was doing her best not to grin.

I think she can hear us, the little head whispered.

Allie’s lips twisted into a smirk. Busted.

I winced an apology. “Anything I can do about the air conditioner?”

“I doubt it. It’s a broken thingamajig. They can’t fix it till Monday. That’s when the parts warehouse opens. Just my luck that it happened today, of all days. I mean, we’re supposed to have fifteen girls and their parents here.”

“We’ll make it work.” I swept my gaze over the girls. “Right?”

“Right!”

The girls went back to work, and Allie touched my arm. Her hand was soft and warm, and it sent a shiver through me in spite of the heat.

“Thank you,” she said softly.

“No problem. It’s what I do.”

Her eyebrows rose provocatively. Is that all you do?

The doorbell chimed, and Carly ran to answer it.

“Saved by the bell,” Allie smirked. “As usual. And literally, this time.”

* * *

The guests began arriving in a steady stream. I knew most of the girls from school or dance class. I knew about half the moms by name, and all of them by sight. I was the only dad until Mark and McKenna arrived.

“Hey,” he said. “What’re you doing here?”

“Christy and Laurie are in North Carolina—”

“Oh, that’s right! Leah mentioned it. At swim camp, right? Chapel Hill?”

“Yeah. They drove up with Wren and Missy yesterday. What about Leah?” I finished. “Why isn’t she here?”

“You aren’t excited to see me?” Mark teased.

“Always.”

We shared a grin before he turned serious.

“She had to fly to Washington last night.”

I didn’t have to ask DC or state. Leah had always reported on foreign affairs.

“Big story. A couple of senators wanna review the intelligence on Iraqi WMDs. They announced it yesterday.”

“Ah.”

“Anyway,” he continued, “since you’re here… d’you mind if I ask a favor? I have a client who’s on the fence about a big lease. They’re looking at the building again.”

“On a Saturday?”

“Commercial real estate,” he said with a resigned shrug. “You know how it is.”

“Yeah.”

“My assistant can handle it, but…”

“You’d like to be there to close the deal. No problem. You want me to take McKenna home?”

“Or you can take her back to your house,” he said. “I’ll pick her up there.”

“That works.” McKenna was practically our fourth daughter.

“Thanks, man. I owe you one.”

“Leah can pay me back.”

He grinned. “The usual?”

“Of course.”

“Thanks again. I’ll tell Mac.”

The rest of the party passed in a blur of conversation from the grown-ups and shrieks from the tween girls. Allie’s ex had rented a bounce house, a big inflatable castle, so the lack of air conditioning was only a minor nuisance.

The girls were having so much fun that Madison didn’t start opening presents until four o’clock. She received three copies of the new Harry Potter book, so I was glad we’d bought her Bath & Body Works instead. Afterward, we sang “Happy Birthday” and then ate cupcakes and ice cream.

Moms and daughters started saying their goodbyes, but the last ones didn’t leave until almost six o’clock.

“C’mon, girls,” I said to mine and McKenna, “let’s help clean up.”

“You don’t have to,” Allie objected. “You’ve done more than enough already.”

“Nah. That’s what friends’re for.”

With all seven of us working, we cleaned up the mess and put away the food in no time.

“Thank you so much,” Allie said. “You’re a lifesaver.”

“Our pleasure. And I was thinking…” I met her Caribbean eyes and felt like I was falling into them. I caught myself before I did it for real, but Allie’s smirk returned. “Anyway,” I continued, “since your A/C’s out, why don’t you come to our house. We can cool off in the pool. The girls won’t be hungry for a while—”

“Me either,” she agreed.

“—but we can order pizza if they are.”

“Are you sure? You’ve already done so much.”

“Please, Mom,” Madison said.

“Yeah, please!” Carly piped up.

Emily, Susie, and McKenna nodded hopefully.

“Well,” Allie laughed, “how can I say no to so much enthusiasm? Let’s do it.”

* * *

I kicked hard and launched myself onto the edge of the pool. I landed with a plop of wet fabric. I was wearing a swimsuit in deference to our guests, who weren’t nudists. The girls wore them too, including McKenna, who’d borrowed one from Susie.

I’d chosen a new pair of trunks that Christy had bought me a year ago, although I probably should’ve tried them on before I’d worn them in front of company. The wet fabric clung to my skin and outlined the shape of my dick. It wouldn’t have been a problem under normal circumstances, but I was half-hard from random thoughts of Allie.

Then again, maybe they weren’t so random. She’d worn a one-piece suit that accentuated her curves and showed a healthy amount of cleavage. The low-cut back revealed faint tan lines where she normally wore a two-piece suit. I could easily imagine her breasts in a bikini.

Or bouncing underneath you… swaying as she rides you… swinging as you fuck her from behind…

Will you stop! I half-shouted, half-pleaded. You’re obvious enough as it is.

The better to tempt her with.

I rolled my eyes. I hate to burst your bubble, but most women don’t care what you look like.

Christy does.

Yeah, and she’s the exception that proves the rule.

All of a sudden Allie turned and caught me watching her. I felt my cheeks heat like I was a teenager. Allie grinned and swam toward me, so I hopped off the side and into the water, although not before she caught sight of Mr. Big’s telltale outline.

“Are you okay?” she teased.

“Yeah, of course. Why?”

“You look a little, ahem, light-headed.”

Funny, ha ha. “Maybe too much sun,” I deadpanned.

“Do you need to get out?”

Or get off? the little head suggested.

“I’m fine,” I said aloud. “Maybe in a bit.”

“You’re probably right.” She leaned close and said in a mocking undertone, “Wouldn’t want to scare the children.”

For a moment I thought about playing dumb. Then I decided to roll with it. She was a grown woman, after all. Besides, she started it.

“Sorry,” I said. “They’re new. I’ve never worn ’em before.”

She feigned confusion. “The shorts…?”

“Yes,” I chuckled. “Of course, the shorts.”

“Okay. I was wondering. For a moment I thought you were talking about… you know.”

“Nothing new there, I’m afraid. It’s all original equipment.”

Her eyes flashed. “You said equipment.”

“You’re as bad as Christy.”

“Maybe worse.” Her next thought was obvious, I haven’t gotten laid in how long? “Why?” she added aloud. “Is that so wrong?”

“It depends.”

“On what?”

“Oh, no,” I chuckled. “I’m gonna plead the fifth on that one.”

“On the grounds that you might incriminate yourself?”

“Exactly.”

She laughed softly, and I caught the silver flash of her tongue stud, which was probably what she’d intended. Then she moistened her lips, in case I’d missed the first hint. I knew other women with their tongues pierced, but most of them were in their twenties. Allie was the only mom besides Christy. They both liked teasing me about it, and Allie had done it almost from the moment we’d met.

“Oh, boy,” I said, “is it getting hot in here?”

“I dunno, you tell me.”

“Think I’ll take your advice and get out of the sun. I’m going over there.” I nodded toward the table and chairs on the breakfast patio. “You’re welcome to join me.”

“Don’t mind if I do.”

I waded toward the stairs and climbed out. The conversation had only made things worse, and my dick was harder than ever. Fortunately, my towel covered the bulge in my suit as I dried my face and chest.

I kept my back to the kids, but they were too preoccupied to notice. They’d finally run out of energy and were floating on pool noodles in the deep end. Even Spike and Buck had settled down. They watched me from the shade of the master bedroom patio without a care in the world, for my hard-on or anything else.

Allie moved beside me and picked up her own towel. She didn’t say anything, but I felt her presence like a hot wind. She was nearly my height, and I watched her chest out of the corner of my eye as she dried off.

She waited until I looked at her directly before she gathered her hair over her left shoulder and squeezed out the water. The trickle ran down her chest and disappeared into the valley between her breasts. Her nipples made little shadows in the material of her swimsuit. She gave me a coy smile and practically dared me to look.

“Hey, Dad…?”

Allie held my attention and wouldn’t let go, so Emily raised her voice with eleven-year-old impatience.

“Dad…? Dad…? Dad!”

“Saved again,” I said to Allie, who grinned. I put on my dad face and looked toward the girls. “Yes, sweetie?”

“Can we order dinner soon?”

“Of course.” I glanced at Allie, as a parent this time. “That okay with you?”

She shifted gears just as quickly. “Only if you let me buy. I still owe you for the drinks and ice.”

“Good luck paying me back,” I said.

Allie raised an eyebrow. The hairs were fine and light brown, but my brain didn’t stop there. I wondered about the rest of her, of course. Her swimsuit was modest enough, but I didn’t think she wore her bush au naturel, unless she was one of those women with sparse pubic hair to begin with. So, did she trim the sides? Shave completely? Wax? Something else?

All of a sudden she laughed, low and throaty.

“Yeah, I gotta stop that,” I said.

“Stop what?” she asked disingenuously.

“Like you don’t know. You’re as bad as Christy.”

“You said that already.”

“Mmm.” I decided to change the subject to something safe. “Is cheese pizza okay? For the kids, I mean.”

“Sure, or pepperoni.”

I nodded, and we walked around the pool toward the breakfast patio. The sun was still a couple of hours away from the horizon, although the house itself shaded this side of the pool. The air wasn’t any cooler, but at least we could pretend.

“What about you?” I asked Allie. “What kind do you like?”

“Whatever you want.”

“Whatever I want?”

She heard the leer in my voice and laughed, “Pizza!”

So much for parental, I sighed. “What can I say? It was worth a try.”

I spread my towel on the chair and sat. My dick hadn’t returned to normal, but it had softened to the point where it wasn’t so obvious. Allie sat as well, and her towel parted when she crossed her legs. The movement drew my eyes to a tanned stretch of thigh. Then I scanned upward, to her stiff nipples. She looked as sexy as ever, although she arched an eyebrow at my lingering gaze.

“Sorry. I’ll stop.”

“It’s okay.” She smiled. “In fact, it’s nice to be noticed for a change.”

“Oh, I don’t think you’re in danger of not being noticed any time soon.”

“You’d be surprised.”

“Probably. Anyway, pizza. What do you like?”

“Whatever you normally get.”

“Veggie deluxe?”

“I thought Christy liked meat.”

“Not that kind,” I said without missing a beat. “What about you?”

“I like both kinds.”

“Oh, boy. We have to stop.”

“You’re right,” she laughed. “Sorry. I’ll behave.”

“Me too. Anyway, Giorgio’s has a pretty good special. It’s a bit of everything, including meat.”

“Perfect.”

I grabbed my cell phone from the table, flipped it open, and scrolled through my contacts. Then I hit the button to dial the restaurant. A girl answered and took our order—two cheese, one pepperoni, and one special—while Allie nodded along.

“About forty-five minutes,” I told her when I hung up. Then I called across the pool and repeated it for the girls’ benefit. “Hey, Em?” I added. “Do you need a snack before then?”

She thought about it but then glanced at the other girls and shook her head.

“Maybe yes?” I suggested. “A shake, at least?”

“I’m fine.”

“Five two,” I reminded her.

“Oh, all right.” She climbed out of the pool and found her towel.

Spike and Buck thought she wanted to play. They trotted around the pool and jostled for attention until Emily scratched their heads. Then Molly rose from her own patch of shade and moved to Emily’s side.

Spike was the alpha and larger than Molly, but he knew better than to come between her and Emily. Instead, he decided to check out the landscaping by the pool house. Buck followed, in case someone over there wanted to play.

I watched them go and couldn’t help but chuckle. Poor Spike had learned his lesson the hard way. Molly had only bitten him once, years ago, but he’d needed stitches and had had to wear one of those plastic cones for a week. These days, he gave her a wide berth when she was guarding her human.

The human in question wrapped her towel around her small body and sank to her knees to give Molly a hug. Then she stood and walked behind the rocks that formed the waterfall. She was short enough that they hid her entirely, although she appeared a moment later with the cream-colored dog at her side.

I watched them both and felt a pang of love. Emily already had Christy’s natural grace, plus her hair, complexion, and supercharged metabolism. Christy’s parents and brothers all swore that Emily was a little Birdy, and I couldn’t really argue.

“Five two?” Allie wondered.

“What? Oh. Emily wants to be a pilot. In the Navy. She needs to be at least 5’2”.”

“Ah.”

“Do you need anything?” Emily asked as she approached us. “Something to drink?”

I glanced at Allie. “Snapple?”

“Sure.”

“Two Snapples,” Emily said. “Coming right up.”

“Thanks, sweetie.”

She and Molly returned with a couple of bottles and a can of Boost.

I nodded at the protein shake. “Much better.”

“I know. Thanks for reminding me.”

She set our drinks on the table and shook the can as she walked around the pool. Susie and the other girls had finally decided they’d had enough swimming for one day, so they’d pulled several lounge chairs together and were enjoying the late afternoon sun. Emily sat demurely on the end of the chair where Madison half-reclined in a gangly sprawl of arms and legs.

“She’s so mature,” Allie said about Emily. “I keep hoping she’ll rub off on Maddy, but…”

“Kids mature at different times,” I said. “Besides, Em’s mature for a different reason, a not-so-good one.”

“Ah, right,” Allie agreed. Then she turned thoughtful. “Did it really affect her that much? I mean, she was… what… eight or nine when Christy went to treatment?”

“Nine,” I confirmed. “But it was bad for a couple of years before that. It affected all of us, just in different ways.”

“I know, but— Sorry,” she said abruptly. “We can talk about something else.”

“No, it’s okay.”

Allie sat back and shook her head in mild disbelief. “I still can’t understand how she hid it all those years. I mean, I saw her almost every day, and I never realized…”

“She hid it from me too. That’s what alcoholics do.”

“I guess you’re right. I’m glad she’s better now, though.”

“Me too.”

“Sorry,” Allie repeated after a moment. “I didn’t mean to get so serious. Let’s talk about something else.”

“Sure. Anything in particular?”

“Yes, actually. How much would it cost to design a place like this? Just the house,” she added quickly. “I don’t think I can afford the rest.”

“Well,” I said slowly, “the design would be free. The rest depends on what you want. Why do you ask?”

“Long story. The short version is that I’m ready for something new.”

“Ah. Okay,” I said diplomatically. “Well, in that case…”

* * *

Mark called before the pizzas arrived. His clients had agreed to the lease and taken him for drinks.

“Now they’ve invited me to dinner,” he explained. “It’ll probably be late when we finish. Would you mind if McKenna spends the night?”

“Sure, no problem.”

“Thanks, man. I’ll pick her up tomorrow. Is ten o’clock too late?”

“That’s fine.”

“Leah wanted to talk to her tonight.”

“Have her call my cell,” I volunteered.

“Awesome. Thanks again, man. I owe you, big time.”

I heard a car door in the driveway at the same time as someone said something to Mark in the background.

“Hey, I’d better let you go,” he said. “Tell Mac I love her. And her mom’ll call before bed.”

“Will do.”

We said goodbye and hung up.

“Be right back,” I said to Allie. Then I called across the pool, “Girls! Pizza’s here!”

I went inside to grab my wallet and then headed out to the driveway through the door by the garage. The pizza delivery guy must have been new, because he was nowhere in sight. I skirted the landscaping and walked around the front of the house.

The main entry was the one thing I regretted about the design. It was literally my dream house, a Craftsman ultimate bungalow that looked amazing from the driveway and even better in the pages of Architectural Digest. The front door, however, was not my proudest achievement. In fact, it was a pain in the ass most of the time.

Like most people, we lived our lives around the kitchen, breakfast area, and living room, along with the patio and pool. They were technically the back of the house, but I thought of them as the front. The actual front of the house was a seldom-used guest bedroom, a sitting room, and the formal dining room. We only used it for holiday sit-down meals and the occasional birthday party. It was a project room the rest of the time, and I thought of it and the others as “the back” of the house.

Sure enough, the pizza guy was waiting at the front door. He looked annoyed and rang the doorbell again.

“Over here,” I called. He jumped in surprise, and I sighed to myself.

That was my other major regret about the house. It was deep in the woods and looked older than it was, so it looked like it belonged in a slasher film. Fortunately, I didn’t. I looked like what I was, a friendly suburban dad in a polo, shorts, and canvas deck shoes. Still, I approached with my wallet in view.

“How much do I owe you?”

He told me and then relaxed when I pulled out cash instead of a butcher knife.

“Sorry if I scared you.” I handed it over. (The cash, duh! Don’t slash your first victim until the cheerleader takes off her top. I thought everyone knew that. Right, moving along.)

“It’s all good,” the guy said. He counted the money and frowned at the extra.

“Keep the change,” I said helpfully.

“Yo! Thanks, dawg.”

I chuckled to myself. I’d gone from would-be slasher to dawg in less than a minute.

“Next time come to the side door,” I said as we walked back to the driveway. I pointed it out when we reached his car.

“Sweet.”

“Thanks again,” I said. “Have a good one.”

“Yeah, peace out.”

I returned to the kitchen and set the stack of pizza boxes on the counter. Allie had already pulled out plates and napkins.

The girls wanted to eat inside and watch a movie, so we sent them into the living room. Emily turned on the TV, loaded Ice Age into the DVD player, and turned the volume up to eleven. Trip had specced the sound system, and I was pretty sure he’d been thinking in terms of Who concerts instead of suburban home theater.

“Do you wanna take ours outside?” I suggested to Allie.

She surveyed the scene in the living room. She loved her kids as much as I loved mine and McKenna, but five girls and three dogs made a lot of noise. Even Molly wasn’t immune to the girls’ energy. The animated squirrel added to the cacophony, and the subwoofer vibrated the entire room as the glacier in the movie cracked and began raining shards.

“God, yes!” Allie laughed over the din.

I signaled to Emily to turn the volume down. She glowered in true Christy fashion but jabbed the button. The sound came down to the heavy construction range. I gave her a measured look, and she aimed the remote like she was casting the Cruciatus Curse. I did my best not to grin as she glared at me instead of watching the volume level. It dropped to zero, and the other girls complained. Emily hastily returned the volume to a comfortable level.

“Much better,” I said. “Thank you.”

Allie and I retreated to the kitchen, and I gestured at the fridge.

“Sorry I can’t offer you wine or a cocktail—”

She twitched her eyebrows.

“—but we have an astonishing variety of juice, everything from pomegranate to açaí berry, whatever the hell that is.”

“It’s okay,” Allie chuckled. “I completely understand. I’m fine with Snapple.”

“We have a variety of that, too. Lemonade, kiwi strawberry, or cranberry raspberry? That’s what we have cold. We have more in the pantry, but I’m not sure what.”

“Cranberry, please,” she said. “Got to keep the plumbing in good order.”

“Oh, I’m sure it’s fine,” I chuckled.

Wouldn’t you like to know, the little head snickered.

Allie pursed her lips, and her eyes said the same thing.

“Oh, boy,” I added under my breath.

“What?” she teased. “Was it something I said?”

“Outside.” I gestured imperiously, part command, part request.

Allie grabbed the pizza box, plates, and napkins, and I followed with the drinks. The evening wasn’t any cooler than before, but at least it was quieter. Well, quieter in a relative sense.

The rhythmic song of frogs filled the air, along with the splash of the pool waterfall and the low growl of a passing speedboat. Our part of the lake was miles from the nearest public boat ramp, so it was probably one of our neighbors coming home.

Allie bent over the nearest chair and set the pizza box on the table. She was still wearing her towel around her waist, although she hadn’t covered her top with anything. I noticed her tan lines again.

“Why’d you decide to wear that suit?” I asked.

“What do you mean?”

We settled into our chairs and scooted them in.

“You normally wear a two-piece,” I said.

She furrowed her brow. “How’d you—? Oh, my tan lines.”

“Yeah.”

“What about them?”

“Not that I’m complaining,” I said. “You look great, but… I think you’d look amazing in your regular suit too.”

She snorted in polite disagreement, so I made a point to admire her. She was tall and curvy, padded in all the right places without being plump. Most men (and quite a few women) noticed her D-cup chest and stopped there, but I thought her eyes were her most striking feature. They were a lagoon blue that turned to green at the iris.

Even more than her looks, she had a healthy attitude about sex. In a way, she reminded me of Susan. Allie wasn’t a widow, but she might as well have been. She even looked a bit like her. She was taller, bustier, and wider through the hips, but close enough that I noticed the similarities more than the differences. And I’d been attracted to women like her for as long as I could remember.

She opened the pizza box as an excuse to avoid my gaze. “I’m hungry all of a sudden.”

“Fair enough. Let’s eat.” My stomach agreed as soon as the aroma hit me.

We devoured half of the pizza before either of us came up for air. I’d eaten with her before but never alone, and she took the opportunity to steal a piece of pepperoni from my plate.

“I told you, I like meat.”

“Just pepperoni?”

“No, sausage too.”

“Lemme guess,” I chucked, “Italian?”

“I prefer American.”

“Ah.”

“Yeah. It’s the casing.”

“I’m sure,” I said dryly. “But we should probably change the subject.” Before my own sausage gets me in trouble.

Spoilsport.

I pasted on a smile and tried to ignore him. I was a grown man, not a horny teenager.

“You’re right,” Allie said, almost like she’d heard. “What should we talk about instead?”

“Why don’t we just enjoy the view.”

* * *

The sun had already disappeared behind the house, but its dying rays glowed in the treetops on the eastern edge of the clearing. The trees were just visible over the roof of Christy’s workshop, a hundred yards away. Off to the northeast, between the house and the pool house, the light created a natural chiaroscuro in the forest.

“The woods are lovely, dark and deep…,” I said.

Allie looked at me sideways. She had an English degree from Brandeis, and she knew the classics as well as I did. It was another thing we had in common.

“But you have promises to keep?”

“Something like that,” I agreed. “Although… it isn’t a snowy evening.”

“No.” She fell silent for a moment before she sighed in contentment. “This is nice.”

“Yeah, thanks. Our little slice of heaven.”

“Ken wanted to buy one of the lakefront lots…,” she mused. “Several years ago.”

“Why didn’t you? They were going for a good price back then.”

She shrugged. “Wrong time. Wrong reason. Wrong everything.”

“Mmm.”

Ken was her ex-husband, Filipino American, Catholic, and much older. He was a traditional male chauvinist, and I didn’t understand what Allie had seen in him. Christy certainly didn’t like him very much, and I took my cues from her.

I’d only met him a dozen times in the six years we’d known them. He was a hotel executive who traveled for work, so Allie was a single parent for all practical purposes. He’d shown up for holiday parties and the occasional backyard get-together, but I’d never seen him at a dance recital, birthday party, or anything else to do with his daughters.

“I don’t wanna talk about it,” Allie said. “Sorry I brought it up.”

“No need to apologize.”

She thanked me with a smile that had nothing to do with innuendo, sexual or otherwise. We were still friends, even if we flirted all the time. She sighed heavily and stared into the gathering gloom. I didn’t want her to sink into a funk, so I changed the subject.

“Do you wanna go for a swim?”

“Has it been thirty minutes?”

“That’s an old wives’ tale. Besides, I’ll save you if you get a cramp.” I punctuated it with a roguish grin, but she didn’t rise to the bait. “C’mon,” I said, friendly this time. “The water’s nice this time of night.”

I stood and checked on the girls through the glass in the doors. Emily gnawed on a pizza crust, but the others had finished, and they were all engrossed in the movie. Allie followed my gaze.

“They can’t see us. The glass acts like a mirror. Safety precaution,” I added.

Allie had known for years that we were swingers and nudists, although she’d never tried either. According to Christy, that was Ken’s influence more than any reluctance on her part.

Now’s the time to find out, the little head said, and for once I agreed with him.

“We don’t need to wear our suits…”

Allie pretended shock and switched to a drawl straight out of Gone with the Wind, “Why, Mr. Hughes… are you makin’ an immoral suggestion?”

“That comes later,” I joked. “Right now I’m just trying to get you naked.”

“Why, whatevah for?”

“Why do you think?”

“And what would your wife say?”

“Seriously? You know what she’d say.”

“Crap,” Allie said in her normal voice. “You’re right. She’s been trying to get me to try it for years.”

“Now’s the perfect time.”

“I…” She hesitated and then glanced toward the girls inside. “Maybe some other time.”

I hid my disappointment. “No problem. Just thought I’d ask.”

“You can do it if you want,” she said quickly. “I mean, it’s your house, after all.”

“Nah. It’s more fun if we do it together.”

She caught the hint but dismissed it with a laugh that didn’t sound convincing.

“Come on,” I said after a moment.

I slid behind her and felt her stiffen. I couldn’t tell if it was anxiety or desire, but it didn’t matter. I wasn’t going to force her. She exhaled softly when I kept going, relief or disappointment or something else entirely. Still, it didn’t matter.

I stopped at the lounge chairs in front of the master bedroom. I dropped my towel on one and felt Allie move close beside me. She unwrapped her own towel and laid it next to mine, half-on, half-off. I thought it might be a suggestion, especially when she didn’t move away immediately.

“Are you sure you don’t want to…?”

Her indecision was almost palpable, but then she shook her head. “No, sorry.”

“No problem.” I paused for a moment in case she changed her mind. She didn’t, so I turned, gave her a friendly smile, and walked down the steps. The water was still warm from the day, but at least ten degrees cooler than the air. Allie followed.

“Wow, this is nice.”

I sank up to my neck, turned, and moved backward so I could watch her. I had to admit that most men (and quite a few women) were right—her chest was nice. Oh, not in a Pamela Anderson way, but more like a real woman, a thirty-something MILF.

Allie waded toward me and then sank to her neck as well. I pushed off toward the deep end and kicked backward until the bottom dropped away. Then I rolled over and swam toward the waterfall and the little alcove with the submerged bench. It was deeper and wider than the swim-outs, and two people could sit comfortably, while the water cascaded over their shoulders. The sound didn’t drown out conversation entirely, but it made it almost impossible to overhear from more than a few feet away.

I slid onto the bench and slicked water out of my hair. Then I watched as Allie swam toward the deep end. She wasn’t a natural like Christy, but she was confident enough. She stopped and treaded water about five feet away.

“You aren’t angry, are you?”

“Why? That you wanted to wear your suit?” I shook my head. “Maybe a little disappointed, but not angry. I mean, it’s your body. You can show it to who you want. Or not.”

“It isn’t that,” she said. “I want to give it a try. It’s just that I…”

“You don’t have to explain.”

She nodded and fell silent before she glanced up hopefully. “D’you mind if I join you?”

I scooted to the side and made room. She lifted herself onto the bench and then closed her eyes as the water hit her shoulders. Her height was more in her legs, and her shoulders didn’t reach mine when we were sitting. I had a decent view of her cleavage, but I didn’t want to make her uncomfortable. I gazed at the house instead.

“Did you design the pool too?” she asked.

“Mostly. The bench and waterfall were Christy’s suggestion.” For some reason I felt the urge to explain. “You know the camp we go to?”

“The nudist camp?”

“Yeah. There’s a lake there, an old quarry.”

“The one with the waterfall. Christy’s told me about it. That’s where you asked her to marry you, isn’t it?”

“Ah, so you do know. Yeah, that’s the place. Anyway, part of the rock wall sheared away and made this little bench.”

“And that’s what gave her the idea,” Allie finished.

“More or less. This one is a lot more comfortable, and the water isn’t as cold…”

“So you don’t have to worry about shrinkage?”

“Ha! No.”

“Not that you have much to worry about in the first place.”

“I’m not so sure about that,” I demurred. “I mean, the water’s pretty cold.”

“There. Not here.”

“No.”

“Is that why…?” She grinned at me sideways. “You know, earlier? Did the warm water… excite you?”

I raised an eyebrow and kept my thoughts to myself.

“Sorry,” she said. “I’ll behave.”

“Christy says the same thing.”

“Does she? Behave?”

“Not really.”

“So you won’t be surprised if I don’t either.”

“No, probably not.”

“Good.”

“Mmm.”

We fell silent and enjoyed the water as it splashed over our shoulders.

“This was a good idea,” Allie said at last. “And I’ll be honest, I’m not looking forward to going home.”

“You’re welcome to stay.”

“How—?” She cleared her throat. “I mean, how would that work?”

Some instinct told me to go for it.

“Well,” I said slowly, “McKenna’s already spending the night. The girls could have a slumber party in the living room. Or the pool house.”

“And where would I sleep?”

“The guest bedroom.” She furrowed her brow, so I explained, “Not the one over the garage. That’s for the girls and their friends. I mean the bedroom downstairs.” The one down the hall from the master bedroom.

Allie grew very still. Our arms and hips were almost touching, and I watched her out of the corner of my eye.

“I guess it depends,” I added.

“On what?”

“Whether you’re serious or not.”

“Serious? About what?”

“Spending the night.” I turned to look at her.

“I—” She cleared her throat again. “Sorry. I don’t know what you mean.”

I felt the moment slipping away, but I knew better than to try to force it. She wasn’t ready.

“That’s okay,” I said. “It was just a suggestion.”

We fell silent, and I could feel her wrestling with her conscience.

“I’ve made you angry again,” she said, very softly.

“No, not at all. Besides, this was my mistake.”

“What? How?”

I looked at her again. She met my eyes and moistened her lips, a nervous gesture instead of a come-on.

“I misread the signals,” I said after a pause. “Sorry. I thought we were flirting for real.”

“Oh. No. I—”

“That’s cool,” I said. “It was just friendly flirting. Like I said, I misread it. I apologize.”

“No, I—” She swallowed hard but then nodded. “You’re right. It was just friendly. Sorry. I shouldn’t’ve done it.”

“No! I like flirting with you. It’s fun. I just need to remember that it’s only banter, nothing more.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No need to apologize. And don’t worry, it won’t happen again.” I gave her a moment to collect herself before I glanced at her. “I hope this doesn’t change our friendship. I’d hate to lose that.”

“Yes, absolutely! I thought I’d messed that up too.”

“No. It’s all good.”

“Oh, thank God.”

I gazed across the pool and into the lighted living room. I watched the girls’ rapt expressions and guessed that the movie was almost over.

“You’re still welcome to spend the night,” I said. “No strings attached. The girls can have their slumber party in the living room, and you can sleep in the pool house.” Alone.

“That’s tempting,” she said after a moment, “but we really shouldn’t.”

I knew better than to press her.

“Thank you,” she said, so quietly that I almost didn’t hear it.

“Well, let me at least offer you some ice cream before you go.”

“What? Ice cream?”

“Yeah. So you can cool off before you have to go home to a house without air conditioning. I’m sure the girls would like it too.”

She followed my gaze across the pool and realized I was trying to make things normal again.

“Sure, let’s— I mean… that’d be nice.” She forced a smile. “Thank you.”

“That’s what friends are for.”

Stupid friends, the little head grumped.