āDirty Dancingā
***
If you have any talent for bullshitting, there are some torpedoes you can see coming and prepare for with a little well-intentioned manipulation. Evil questions like āDo these pants make my ass look fat?ā or āDo you think that girlās hot?ā can be deflected with a casual compliment to the fine derriere of the former, or the snarky comment about dime-a-dozen looks to the latter, because unless sheās really looking for a fight, sheāll accept the validation. Thatās what Jahn liked to tell himself, anyway, because the rule had always seemed to apply with his ex.
Fiona had dropped a similar grenade on him, anxiously asking after their second time together whether he thought her breasts were too small. He liked her tits just fine, in fact: dark-nippled and delightful domes of flesh that gave her womanly curves even if they didnāt seem to satisfy whatever inferiority she felt towards her sisterās far larger breasts. Blue-sky lob, that throw was, and heād managed to cover his ass by asking what she thought of Reanna Chevriezās figure. Inspired remark, it turned out, as they both knew Fiona had a girl-crush on the songstress, a tall, dark and beautiful womanā¦. who just happened to be flat as a board. He supposed that reply could come back to haunt him if she really wanted to make an issue of it, but sheād laughed and let it lie.
There was no such inspiration for Jennyās question. What were he and her father saying about her and Fiona? Jahn couldnāt very well lie about it. Jen had been standing right behind him while they were talking, and while heād done some beating around the bush in an attempt at being circumspect, the inference was clear.
So he told her, attempting to explain why heād responded to her father the way he had, why heād given the man that much information. Truth or not, it wasnāt what she wanted to hear. Glancing at his girlfriend from the corner of his eye while driving, he could see the pale skin of that pretty face darkening, and knew it wasnāt a blush but real anger. Directed where? No illusions: choice curses peppered between a stream of āHow could you?ā and āThatās my father you were talking to!ā made it clear that he was the target. Closest theyād gotten to fighting, and he couldnāt really defend himself, because while he might have the truth on his side, it sure didnāt feel righteous.
Pulling the Taurus onto an off-exit, he found a place to park and turned to her. āLook, Iām sorry, okay? Itās not an excuse, but I couldnāt think of the right thing to say, and Iāll admit ā he was pissing me off, the way he talked about Fiona. You said heās racist, I get that. But for fuckās sakeā¦ā
Long blonde locks fell forward as Jenny ducked her head, and it took him a moment to realize that she was crying. Reaching out, a hand on hers, he waited for her to subside. When the tears had finally ceased, she said, āI love them both, but Daddy always hated her so much. I used to try and tell myself that it was just because she wasnāt his daughter, but I know. Itās why Mom threw him out. He never raised a hand to Fi, but the wordsā¦ hurt so much more. I tried to stick up for her, be a peacemaker, but I was likeā¦ 6. Mom knew, knew that he was hurting all of us with his hate.ā
āHeās a bad person, I know that, but sometimes I think itās because of the way he treats Fiona. Not because he killed someone.ā Fresh tears flowed. After a moment, Jenny got hold of herself again. āItās so fucked up. Thereās something wrong with me, I know it.ā
Squeezing the smooth flesh of her fingers tightly, he said, āNo, Jen. You love your family, and family doesnāt always make sense. They donāt have to; they are what they are and we love them anyway.ā
Consolation wasnāt enough, and he could sense that there was still an undercurrent of anger at whatever presumption heād had in explaining the situation to Donovan, but for the time it was directed elsewhere. The remainder of the drive took place in silence, and when he dropped her off, he said, āGive me a ring when youāre feeling better, weāll go dancing or something.ā Jen nodded wordlessly, and he couldnāt help but notice how much like Fiona she seemed as the door closed in her wake, quiet seriousness that was utterly unlike her.
God help me, I hope I didnāt hurt her by running my mouth, he thought, invoking an unspoken prayer.
***
A week passed without a word from either of his girlfriends before the phone finally rang again. āHello, Jahn. Sorry I didnāt get back to you sooner. I talked to Jenny on Saturday, and she said she wanted some alone time. I figured we could all use a break from each other. Things have been a littleā¦ tense, here as well. I just donāt want you to take it the wrong way.ā Fionaās voice echoed over the phone with her usual confidence and self-assurance.
Working her words over in his mind, he responded, āYeah, I guess we _have_ been seeing an awful lot of each other over the last couple months.ā That was an understatement. Jahn could count on one hand the number of days that he hadnāt been with one sister or the other. Mostly Jenny, now that he thought about it. Potential problem? He made a mental note.
āIāll let Jenny work out her funk first, but weāll set things right again,ā she concluded.
āSounds good. Say, a question while Iāve got you on the phoneā¦ā
āYes?ā
Hesitating, unsure of how to phrase what might be considered unnecessarily snoopy, he asked, āJenās father said he has a friend outside who keep an eye on her. What does that mean?ā
There was silence as she considered the question. āMargrave.ā
āI donāt know the nameā¦,ā but damn, it sure sounded familiar.
āBig man across the street. Iām sure youāve seen him around.ā Ah, name on the mailbox. Heavy-set man. āHeās got an unpleasant disposition, but he used to run off any kids that gave Jen a hard time.ā
āOkay, got it. Wanted to make sure I wasnāt dealing with a dangerous asshole rather than just some nosy but otherwise harmless bastard.ā
āMom told me once that Margrave was one of Mr. Donovanās buddies from way back and that we should stay away from him. She said they were a bad influence. You can probably guess why.ā
āYeah, I can. Thanks for the call, Fiona. Take care, both of you.ā
There was no response for a moment, and it seemed sheād hung up. Instead, a heartbeat before his finger cut off the call, he heard the faint reply āI love you, Jahn. Be well.ā
***
One grenade after the next, Jahn thought, absently studying the cellphone nestled in his palm. I love you, Jahn. What am I supposed to say to that? He already knew how strongly he felt about Jenny, though he wasnāt sure she felt the same – unless the insatiable sex streak was her strange way of expressing it. Fiona, on the other handā¦ there was an increasingly warmer spot in his chest for her each time they were together. The prospect of eventually having to choose between them… that felt like sacrificing a family member.
Goddamnit, he thought, squashing the thought ruthlessly. Thereās gotta be a way to ensure this works. Mulling the problem over his head as he took care of the cleaning heād been neglecting since New Yearās, he found himself at a loss. It wasnāt like he had anyone he could ask for advice. Despite their usual bragging about sexual conquests, he knew none of his work buddies had anything useful to offer on the subject. Either married, or perpetually single, that was their lot.
The internet? Desperate times call for desperate measures, he thought grimly. Iāll probably get nothing but trolling, but whatever. After some searching, he was able to find what looked like a reliable forum for relationship advice. A little hesitation at first, but he finally typed out:
~Luckystarz: Hey people, newbie looking for some advice here. Iāve got relationships with two great women who know about each other and are okay with itā¦ for now. How do I maintain this? How do I make it work?
Leaning back, he waited for a few minutes before replies started popping up.
~Guest12: fuck em both lol
~AdonisLives: tits or gtfo
Die in a fire, he thought with a spike of irritation.
~Ladiesman42: bullshit, get out troll
āKarma,ā he sighed resignedly. How many times have I posted something like that when some dude started ranting about his supermodel girlfriend?
~ModGod: Cool the flaming, kids. You know the rules. Real advice only, even the requests seem unreal. Love takes many forms.
Things got quiet after that, and the wait lasted what felt like eternity, stretching to an hour. Bored, he took a break to take care of his bills. When he got back to his computer, nothing much had changed, with one small exception.
~Birdwatcher: LS – speaking from experience, here ā balance is part you part them. Treat them with respect and love always, but you have to know that if they feel the situation is unfair or wrong or something else entirely w/e your best intentions thereās nothing you can do. You cant make them change. It didnāt work out for me and I couldnāt choose so they both left. Sad story boo hoo sure but do what you can and pray for the rest.
Is that really all there is? He wondered, bookmarking the site. Love them as best I can, and hope they feel the same? Could it last, like that? Jabbing a button, he cut the power.
***
A rollercoaster, he thought. Up ān down ān away we go, screaming into oblivion. As Jahn pulled into the Reed driveway, he recalled the surge of sheer pleasure and adrenaline when Jenny had at last called him the previous evening. A full week of moping around his apartment, waiting for advice from people that didnāt seem to have anything worthwhile to offer ā depression to exultation, thatās what this was.
Jen had told him that sheād made reservations, though she wouldnāt say exactly where, and that she wanted him to see her dress before they left. Excuse for a quickie, he was betting, but heād settle for admiring a new dress too, if thatās really all it was. Snatching up the rose heād gotten for her, he let himself into the house.
āKnock knock?ā he shouted, not seeing any sign of the blonde in the kitchen or living room.
A faint, āYeah, come on up,ā greeted him. Quick negotiation of the stairs led him to her room and he paused with a frown. What the hell was that smell? Sand? Incense? Was she burning something? Alarmed, he yanked open the door to her room. What he saw stunned him into paralysis.
//Minarets cast in shadow against a burning horizon of orange and red sun, hazy with the coming twilight. Bells tolling like vespers signal the dayās end and a call to worship. A woman stands before him, hourglass figure presenting the same contrast against the landscape, dark curves clad in translucent, diaphanous material. A stray wind whips past, colorful and clear material fluttering alike.//
The entire bedroom was cast in dim and flickering light, illuminated mostly by a circle of candles. With wonder, he realized that Jenny was standing in front of the bed, clad in something certainly, but no dress. It was some sort ofā¦ costumeā¦ that brought to mind a dozen old and dusty fantasies of harem slave girls clad in revealing silk veils, blouses and pantaloons, colorful and well-placed sashes the only nod to modesty.
//Haunting music that evokes the sense of great loneliness, in a vast and empty desert only sparsely populated with oases such as these, plays on unfamiliar instruments. Accompanying the piping notes is a womanās voice, high rich and beautiful. While she sings, the lone dark figure standing here begins to dance.//
An odd clicking noise sounded and exotic music had begun to play. Arabesque? He speculated. No, thatās stupid.. This is truly _foreign_ music, the stuff you hear on TV specials or from singers in other countries. Jahn had no idea, and it only tugged at his ears with a sense of dĆ©jĆ vu rather than real recognition.
Jennyā¦ he recognized that it was her, despite the strange garb, long blonde hair tied up in a ponytail and garbed in the feature-concealing shadows of the roomā¦ began to move in liquid sway, first raising her hands skyward and then unleashing a rhythmic dance that flowed like undertow, seeming to pull his feet from beneath him.
Holy smoke, he thought, aware of a growing erection. This is what really erotic dancing is about. Not overt and raw sexuality, but hinting and teasing at the delights that lay concealed behind a thin veneer of beautiful music and sinuous motion.
His girlfriendās face was unreadable in the darkness, but she was communicating with him in a different way, entirely nonverbal, using her body to speak to him. First gesturing to him with open palms, keeping him at arms length, turning and whirling dervish-like in place, kneeling, bending, twisting, always in motion, while never losing that graceful and rhythmic dancing. Colorful sashes drop away, fluttering into darkness.
Cupped hands, outstretched, pulling just slightly inward, an invitation to approach, then spreading outwards as if to encompass the roomās small horizon. Jahn embraced her about the waist, but she still did not stop moving, the smooth rhythm of her slim body serving only to excite him further.
There was a roughness to the material as he pulled it away from her body revealing the pale candlelight-clad skin beneath, but it is no bar, was never meant to be, for what she is offering is his and his alone. He slid into the delicious tightness between her shadowed legs, and though he has her firmly within his embrace, it is she controlling him with her movements. A low cry of pleasure escaped him as she moved, towards, away, gyrating, within and without, the contact of outer flesh against inner flesh secure, but never the same from one moment to the next. His release is like an explosion of light, surging from his loins to hers.
***
A glass of ice water was all Jahn really needed, though he knew he was done for the evening. Jennyās little ā¦ ambush seemed to have drained him of every last bit of energy heād possessed, leaving only a dim glow of satisfaction. Heād understood the blonde was far more sexually expressive than her sister, but sheād always expressed it in raw, purely sexual acts. This was, well, wow. Setting the glass down, he wiped residual sweat from his forehead. The sound of movement from the doorway caused him to turn with a smile.
āHeyā¦ā
āHey, yourself.ā A small, slender woman stood in the doorway to the kitchen, and for just a second, she looked just like Jenny. No illusion though, this woman was dressed in a flattering skirt and blouse that were far more conservative than anything his girlfriend wore, and she was much older. Crowās feet touched the corners of dark eyes, feathered silver-grey hair framing her forehead, putting her somewhere in her fifties if he had his guess. He could see something else in her tooā¦ both Jenny and Fiona
Cocking her head in curiosity, as if she were an inquisitive bird, she looked like an inquisitive bird. āFionaās new boyfriend, I presume?ā
Unthinkingly, he nodded. āJahn Halvers. You must be Mary Reed?ā
Their shared attention was drawn to a muffled oath immediately behind Mrs. Reed, and she turned to see Jenny, still clad in her harem girl outfit, clutching a bruised leg, blue eyes wide not just in pain, but surprise.
ā¦ to be continuedā¦
Via: https://www.lushstories.com/stories/love-stories/sweet-dreams-are-made-of-this-ch04