Carolyn knew something was up, but didn’t have the imagination to put the pieces together. But she wasn’t happy with the way the women in her family were treating her husband.
After a lunch of toasted ham and cheese sandwiches and fried potatoes, everyone settled in for a long afternoon of writing and research. Perhaps thinking to avoid Brenda, Cain took the older kids outside to shovel sidewalks and scrape windshields. The snow had stopped and the wind, still blowing, had slowed. It was still bitterly cold.
Snow plows were supposedly out, but none had rumbled past the church. Every road in the state was officially closed.
Thanks to Uncle Paul salting the sidewalks, they were clear in almost no time. Cain and his team couldn’t shovel the parking lot, but they cleared a path to the cars. As they tromped around, scraping windows, they created useful, if icy, paths around each vehicle.
After two hours, they were exhausted, drenched, and ready for hot chocolate. Uncle Paul caught Cain topping his with Irish whiskey, but in return for a sip, he said nothing.
When evening rolled around, everyone was tired, either mentally or physically. Aunt Rachel and some of the older cousins put together several large lasagnas. They ate sat around a large television that someone had connected to a laptop. It was playing family-friendly movies that everyone had seen a dozen times, but which would offend no one.
After the meal, Cain sat dozing in a chair when he noticed Carolyn sitting at a table by herself. He made two mugs of chamomile tea and sat across from her.
“Here you go,” he said, sliding a mug across the table.
“Thanks,” she said. She was looking at her tablet.
“Not into the movie?”
She snorted.
“I’d rather watch one of your action movies than this stuff one more time.”
“Yike.”
He glanced up at the Sunday school classroom where he had spent the night with Ellie recently. It was dark, but he could see a shadow standing behind the glass.
“What about you?” she asked.
“Maybe switch Hallmark movie with action movie.”
“Hm.”
She continued playing a game on her tablet.
“Any surprises with the project today?”
“Yes, actually. I found out that Grandma was pregnant when she and Grandpa got married.”
“You’re kidding!”
“No. They were always vague about their anniversary date and I never picked up on it.”
“Son of a gun.”
“According to the internet, it was pretty common right after the war. Nobody talks about it much.”
Movement above caught his eye. Shadows flashed in the Sunday school room as someone opened the door. The person turned as the room went dark again.
Carolyn followed his gaze.
“What are you looking at?”
“I thought I saw someone up there. Just a shadow.”
She peered at the window.
“Should we go up there?” she asked.
He sipped his tea, thinking.
“Who could it be? Isn’t everyone down here?” Cain asked, glancing around the room.
“Hard to say. I think some smokers are outside. Uncle Ronnie has spent most of the weekend in the hallway.”
“He’s a strange one, isn’t he?”
“Strange, sure. But he doesn’t have women hanging all over him. No reason to stay in here with everyone else.”
There it is, he thought.
“Baby, listen,” he said, but she held up a hand.
“I get it. You saved Sheri. You’re a hero.”
“I’m not a hero. Sheri needed help, and I was there.”
“To Ellie, you’re a hero.”
“You’re jealous of your little cousin? Is that what you’re saying?”
Since it was probably true, it was exactly the wrong thing to say.
Tears sprang to her eyes, and she stormed away.
A couple of heads turned to watch her go, but most gave them privacy.
Sighing, Cain drained his tea and followed. An apology wouldn’t go far, but it had to be done.
Passing through the double doors, he saw Ronnie on a bench in the hallway. Cain raised his eyebrows in question, and Ronnie pointed down the hallway.
“Thanks,” Cain said, and headed that way.
Several classrooms and a thrift store were down this hallway. At the end, past the thrift store, was the back stair. It was old and steep and received little use.
She wasn’t in any of the classrooms, and the thrift store was locked. He glanced up the stairway and heard a floorboard creak.
He sighed and headed up.
The fourth stair squeaked under his foot.
So much for stealth.
At the top, he paused, noting that Carolyn hadn’t turned on a light. Carolyn was standing at a window, looking out at the night. Moonlight bathed her face, and the pale silver light made her look like a goddess.
He walked toward her, composing his apology. She didn’t look up. He leaned a shoulder against the wall facing her.
Before he could speak, they heard a giggle from down the hall. Carolyn turned her head in that direction, raising a hand for silence.
Neither of them moved. They could just make out hushed voices. Women, it sounded like. Carolyn looked at Cain, but said nothing.
Her anger was gone, or at least on hold. Her expression said: What do we do?
He raised a hand, palm up, as if to say: I’ll follow your lead.
She turned and beckoned him to follow.
They crept toward the upstairs classroom, where the voices must have come from. Once they could make out the conversation, they stopped.
“How old were you when you and Uncle Will started dating?”
“We were 16 the first time. I think we were 20 before we were officially a couple.”
As soon as Cain heard “Uncle Will,” he knew Brenda was the second voice. But whose was the first?
“Was he the first boy you kissed?”
Brenda “hmmm-ed” in thought.
“Yes,” she said. “The first boy, not the first kiss.”
Carolyn grabbed Cain’s arm, but said nothing.
“Aunt Brenda! Are you saying… you kissed a girl?”
“Oh, Ellie, you’re so precious. I’ve kissed more than a few girls.”
It was Ellie, his wife’s young cousin. Cain’s overworked penis began growing, despite his exhaustion. Carolyn’s grip tightened.
“What was it like? Do you like boys better? Men, I mean. Does Uncle Will know? How many girls? I… have questions.”
Carolyn crept closer to the corner and pulled Cain along with her. He followed gamely.
“I could get into trouble telling you about this,” Brenda said.
“Oh, please. I won’t say anything. I promise.”
“How do I know you’ll keep your promise?”
“I always keep my promises, Aunt Brenda.”
“We’ll have to make a pact. If I tell you my secrets, you’ll have to tell me yours. At least one.”
There was silence for many seconds.
“Okay, I have a secret, but you can’t tell my mom.”
Cain’s blood ran cold.
“We should leave,” he whispered in his wife’s ear. “This isn’t cool.”
She glanced at him, then down at his erection. The tent in his trousers was casting a substantial shadow in the moonlight. She patted it and turned back to listen.
“Do you want to begin, or shall I?” Brenda asked.
There was a shuffling sound, like someone getting comfortable on a sofa.
“Yours will take longer. You start and we’ll take turns.”
“Mmm. Well, my first kiss was my best friend, Mandy. We did everything together. One weekend, we were on an overnight volleyball trip. We shared a bed in a hotel room with two other girls.”
Cain’s erection grew more solid, and he reached a hand up to Carolyn’s shoulder, pulling himself closer. His erection pressed into her hip. She shook her head at him.
“What happened?” Ellie asked, breathless.
“We talked for a long time. After the others went to sleep, we moved close and whisper to each other.”
“What did you whisper about?”
“Her mom didn’t let her have sleepovers. We had never been alone like this. We talked about boys, teachers, girl stuff. I couldn’t stop looking at her, stroking her hair.”
“Did you love her?”
“Mm-hmm. I still do. First-love….”
Ellie sighed.
“Are you cold?” Brenda asked. “Here, share my coat.”
There was more shuffling and rearranging.
“Better?”
“Much. Thank you.”
“So, you and Mandy kissed?”
“A lot.”
“Wow. Nothing… else?”
“We petted a little, but with the other girls, we couldn’t do much.”
They both laughed.
“Not long after that, she and I started dating boys.”
“Uncle Will?”
“Among others,” Brenda laughed.
“Are you worried he’ll find out? About Mandy, I mean.”
There was a low, sultry laugh.
“Oh, he knows, sweetie. I shouldn’t tell you too much….”
“But Aunt Brenda…” Ellie pled.
“How can I refuse you?” Brenda said, her voice muffled. “Mmm. Your hair smells delicious. Did you wash it?”
“Mom brought some shampoo back from Grandma and Grampa’s.”
“Ah, yes. Of course. She had a nice hot shower there, didn’t she?”
“Yeah. Lucky. I mean, aside from almost dying.”
“Okay. I’ll tell you this one thing, then you can tell me your secret. Deal?”
“Okay.”
“Well, Uncle Will dated Mandy before he dated me.”
“Oh! Is that how you met?”
“Yeah. I’m afraid I wasn’t a good friend.”
There was a pause. Carolyn started massaging Cain’s cock, and he slid his hand over her shoulder to her breast.
Brenda sighed.
“Will took Mandy from me. Or, that’s how I felt then. So I took him from her.”
“Oh,” said Ellie.
“Yeah. I went a little crazy when she told me she slept with him.”
“Wow.”
“Okay, my love. Your turn. Tell me something juicy.”
“I haven’t slept with any girls or anything yet,” Ellie said.
“Yet?”
“Oh…well, not YET, yet. I just mean… you know what I mean.”
“I’m teasing.”
“Well, but I have slept with someone.”
Carolyn caught her breath and squeezed Cain’s cock. He froze in fear, his hand pausing its ministrations to Carolyn’s breast.
“Oooh. Is he cute?”
“Gorgeous.”
“Spill!”
Ellie sighed.
“He’s big and strong.”
“Older than you?”
“Yeah, like, a lot.”
“So your parents wouldn’t approve?”
Ellie snorted.
“Not at all.”
“Does he make you feel good?”
“Oh, Aunt Brenda, it was so good. I mean, I’ve played with myself, you know? But this was a thousand times better.”
Carolyn melted back into Cain. He resumed kneading her breast while she stroked him. He nuzzled her ear, terrified but aroused.