Is She Smiling at Me? Pt. 07

This story is the seventh installment of the "Is She Smiling at Me?" series. As dearly as I wish I could say any part of the following is based on actual events it is, in its entirety, a work of fiction. Any resemblance to real people is purely coincidental. I love hearing feedback from my readers; please feel free to leave comments or contact me with your thoughts or suggestions.

Thanks again to my much beleaguered editor, SissyKaty, for putting up with my inane questions, pleas for insight, and the random whimsies of my mind.

*****

"I'm going to miss you, baby." I said, giving Liz an affectionate squeeze around the waist while she leaned against the counter, helping me prepare breakfast.

"I'm only gone for a weekend." Liz smiled brightly; her big doe eyes twinkling as she stood up on her tip-toes to kiss me on the cheek.

"I know. I haven't spent a weekend without either of you since the cabin." I smiled sheepishly.

"Aww." Liz cooed, "I'll miss you too. I'll miss both of you."

"You're such a softy, Matt." Alex teased, a playful grin on her face.

"Yeah, well, don't be telling people that, okay?" I chuckled.

Liz was spending the weekend at her parent's place. They lived in another city some two-hours drive North-East of us and wanted Liz, as well as her two brothers, home for a family function. The three of us were having breakfast together on this quiet Saturday morning before Liz took the car and headed off. I really was going to miss her. My hopeless, desperate love for the girls made being away from either of them feel as though a piece of my life was missing.

The relationship I shared with Liz was different than the one I shared with Alex. Liz was lively, fun, and full of energy; she made me feel youthful and being with her was as invigorating as it was easy. Whereas Alex and I had a relaxed, more laid-back intimacy; our minds were very similar which gave us an unspoken understanding of each other that, I think, was rare to find for people like us. Neither was better than the other, just different, and each was half of a whole. It was an interesting aspect of our three-way relationship; that any two of us together had our own, unique dynamic and yet, taken all together there was a certain synergy. As a complete set we were very much greater than the sum of our parts.

Liz took the plates of eggs and toasted bagels to the kitchen island while I poured us all another round of coffee; black for me, milk and two sugars for Liz, and the diabetes special for Alex. I sat across from the girls and smiled as they dug into their breakfast. We were all in our pajamas; Liz in her pink flannel bottoms and a tight, white printed t-shirt that accentuated her bountiful, braless breasts, Alex in a pair of black, floral print lounge pants that hugged her waist and pelvis snugly but flared at the legs, loose and flowy, a fitted black tank revealing her pale, freckled shoulders. They seemed so beautiful in that moment, even as they hungrily shoveled down their eggs, that I couldn't help but feel a flare of arousal from deep inside.

"So, what are you two going to do today?" Liz inquired, distracting me from my naughty thoughts.

"We never really settled on a plan." Alex replied, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Hmm," I added, swallowing a bite of bagel, "I think 'let's go downtown' was as far as we got."

"Well, I'm sure you'll think of something fun." Liz flashed me a quick, mischievous grin, unnoticed by our lover.

With that subtle, fleeting expression, my naughty thoughts had returned. Liz had been helping with a surprise for Alex and had suggested previously that I should make use of the opportunity to spring it on her. I smiled back, holding in a chuckle at the happy twinkle in her eyes. We finished our meal and Liz went upstairs to get ready for her trip. A short while later, Alex and I were seeing her off, a round of tight hugs and loving kisses, and then she was gone.

*****

"He looks so lifelike..."

Alex and I were in the European History gallery of the big downtown museum standing before a glass enclosure that housed a recreation of a bed chamber from a bygone era. An ornately carved four- poster bed dominated the room, surrounded by plush chairs and ostentatious décor. The walls were papered in gaudy shades of gold and brown that someone at this particular point in history clearly felt was the pinnacle of aesthetics. Near a reproduction fireplace, complete with glowing red lights to simulate a warm blaze, a wax figure adorned in the garb of English nobility of the age stood frozen in time, staring back at us through the glass.

The room, the entire gallery for that matter, had been designed to evoke some atavistic sense of nostalgia for a time and place the casual viewer could never come close to truly knowing. Unfortunately, I understood that the realities of the era were far more grim, despite the romanticized attempt to depict otherwise. To say nothing of the social and healthcare practices of the day, a more poignant example on my mind was the fact that someone like the beautiful woman standing next to me could never have had the chance to live her life on her terms in that world. I had been ruminating on these sad thoughts when Alex's comment snapped me back to the here and now. The dark cloud that had been drifting in dissipated instantly at the sound of her sweet voice.

"You think?" I asked doubtfully, "He seems kind of stiff."

"Well, you are a very handsome man." Alex replied matter-of-factly.

I couldn't believe my ears. My jaw dropped and I turned my head to look at her. Her delivery was absolutely deadpan, and her eyes bored straight ahead, looking at the figure behind the glass barrier. A slight smile tugged at the corners of her lips, betraying her nonchalant façade. I gasped dramatically, affecting a reaction of surprise and excitement. Alex's defenses broke down at my affectation and her face cracked into a wide smile as she looked over at me, a playful gleam in her brilliant, emerald green eyes.

"Oh my God." I said slowly, "Alex. Was that... Lowbrow humor?"

"What can I say? You and Liz are pretty funny sometimes. Even if you're obnoxious and immature about it." Alex answered with a grin.

"Interesting..." I replied thoughtfully, "Would you say we rubbed off on you?"

"Gross, Matt." She groaned.

"You didn't think it was gross last night." I smirked.

"Just stop."

"Didn't say that last night either."

"Ugh!"

I watched Alex storm off in a parody of a frustrated huff, admiring how cute she was when she was pretending to be irritated with me, before I hurried after her. We made our way through the rest of the museum, the journey taking us through ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, and China. In the span of a few hours, we had traversed three continents and an impressive two-hundred-and-forty-five million years of history; the final gallery being a walk amongst the reconstructed skeletons of the enormous monsters of the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods. Of all the displays we had seen, the dinosaurs spoke to me the loudest, awakening my inner child as I stared up in wonderment at the yawning, toothy maw of a tyrannosaurus.

When we had seen and done all the museum had to offer, we stepped out into the bright and bustling city street. Unseasonably warm for late fall, Alex had worn a camel-brown crochet hooded poncho over a black, form-fitting turtleneck sweater. The hem of the poncho hung down past her narrow hips; its fringes brushing against her thighs as they danced in the light breeze. Black suede high heeled ankle boots accentuated her slender legs under her tight, dark blue jeans. The blaring sunlight caught in her mahogany hair, highlighting the rich crimson tones that flowed in wavy locks around her shoulders and down her back. Her pale skin looked absolutely radiant in the over-abundant illumination, offset by the adorable spray of freckles across her nose, cheeks, and forehead.

Alex looked over at me and caught me gawking at her as I was wont to do from time to time. Even now, over half a year into our relationship, her beauty still managed to capture my mind, narrowing my perception of the world down to a singular focus. She smiled warmly and I felt her soft hand slip into mine, pulling me in for a quick kiss. We walked a few blocks down the busy street, passing antiquated storefronts contrasted by the towering concrete and glass structures that defined the downtown skyline, until we found a Starbucks. Alex ordered an unpronounceable concoction that had to be at least half sugar, and I, exciting and adventurous soul that I am, ordered a black coffee. We killed time wandering down the street, window shopping along with browsing through stores that happened to catch either of our fancies.

It was early evening when we decided we ought to find a place to eat. The sun, long since disappeared behind the monolithic monuments to human ingenuity run amok, had begun to set, turning the sky a pinkish-orange hue as twilight settled over the city. Walking hand in hand, we finally settled on a quiet, romantic looking Italian restaurant and were quickly seated at a candle-lit table for two. I glanced up from the menu to see Alex staring at me, deep in thought, with a twinkle of adoration in her eyes and a warm smile pulling at her lips.

"What?" I chuckled, caught off guard by the reflective look on her face.

"I was just thinking." She smiled back, offering no further information.

"Were you planning on telling me what about, or are you going to make me drag it out of you?" I grinned, closing the menu and placing it beside me on the table.

"No..." Alex paused thoughtfully, collecting her thoughts before she continued.

"I don't have to tell you; you know I had my misgivings about this whole situation when Liz first brought you home. She's always wanted a man in her life, I've known that for as long as I've known her. It's not like I was necessarily threatened by that; I knew she loved me, but she had this pie in the sky notion of having her cake and eating it too and I just didn't see how it could possibly work."

"Right, I remember." I replied, wondering where she was going with this.

The early days of our relationship had been rife with uncertainty. Liz was practically all-in from the night we met, but both Alex and I were somewhat more pragmatic. The reality of the risks and challenges of a three-way relationship were obvious to both of us, and that sense of doubt hung over our heads for a long time. In retrospect, it was easy to see that it had held us back; Alex in particular, who had been quite guarded with me in the beginning. We built trust and affection quickly, but that doubt and uncertainty had been a haunting background presence right up until I professed my love for the girls on Liz's birthday, finally shattering that barrier on what was probably the happiest day of my life.

"And then Liz brought you home." Alex continued, "It was practically love at first sight for her, and then I did feel threatened. I could see how happy you made her, and it scared me at first. I was terrified there wouldn't be room in her heart for me anymore. At the same time, I loved her so much that my only choice was to bottle that up and go with it; see where this takes us. I felt kind of trapped. If I put a stop to this thing, I'd have hurt her in a way I just couldn't bring myself to do. But if I stuck it out, I risked losing her to you."

"Baby..." I began, feeling a deep sadness at her recollection of her pain, "I'm so sorry. I don't know what to say..."

"No, no," Alex smiled and reached across the table to take my hand, "This is a happy story, but I had to explain that part to get to the point. What I was just thinking was how happy I am to have been so very wrong. I've watched you spend every day showing me how wrong I was, even if it took me a while to get it. I learned Liz's heart was big enough for the both of us. Then Liz's happiness became my happiness and I fell in love with you. I learned my own heart was also big enough for two. I'll never run out of gratitude, to both of you, for that."

My eyes had clouded over with tears during the latter part of her speech and I cleared my throat, trying to collect myself and to deflect from the fact I was damn near crying in the middle of a restaurant.

"Who's the softy now?" I choked, my voice nearly breaking.

"Shut up!" Alex laughed, a brilliant smile stretching her mouth wide.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

When the waiter came to take our order, I opted for the grilled veal on fettucine, and Alex chose the lasagna. Not normally the biggest fan of Italian cuisine, I was pleasantly surprised to find I quite liked the dish and Alex raved about the lasagna. I filed that information away for later use, as I knew I could whip up a fairly decent rendition myself. We enjoyed our meal over wine, the conversation turning flirtatious as we talked and laughed. Not ready to call it quits on our day out on the town just yet, we discussed what to do next as we waited for the bill, concluding we would wander around some more and find a bar to get a few drinks.

Back out on the now-darkened city streets, we walked aimlessly, satiated and happy. Gone with the sun was the uncharacteristic warmth of the day as a chill had seeped into the air. Not that I needed an excuse to be close to my beautiful lover, but I held Alex tight, sharing our body-heat as we appraised our options. We meandered along the wide, downtown sidewalks as we sought a suitable place for libations until we stumbled upon a bar-slash-pool-hall. The dark, tinted windows emblazoned with a logo of crossed pool cues promised a satisfactory atmosphere and a little fun to be had.

"You sure you want to do that?" Alex asked with a teasing lilt to her voice.

"Why do you say it like that?" I chuckled.

"I might make you look bad." She replied with a devious grin and a shrug.

She probably would too; Alex was remarkably proficient in everything she did. It was a charming characteristic that went hand-in-hand with her general air of poise and grace. The woman exuded confidence and sexiness in nearly all situations; a quality that had so powerfully attracted me to her since the first night we met. With that knowledge in mind, her teasing served only to settle the matter as I accepted the challenge.

We ordered drinks at the bar and found an empty table in a back corner of the vast room. The place was busy but not crowded, and the sharp crack of ball striking ball sounded regularly over the din of the other patrons as they talked, laughed, and cheered. I racked up the table distractedly as I watched Alex slip out of her poncho, her fitted sweater conforming to the figure of her slender frame. The game was underway when I happened to glance over at Alex and quickly did a double-take. She was wearing an alluring smile while she held her cue vertical with both hands, sliding one up and down in a sensual, suggestive fashion as she stared at me, biting her lower lip.

"Just so we're clear then," I began in a sardonic tone, "vulgarity is okay when you do it?"

"Depends how horny I am." Alex replied with a sultry wink, putting on a show of bending over to line up a shot.

Just as she took the backstroke, I seized the opportunity to smack her pert little ass; an irresistible temptation, displayed as it was in the tight denim of her jeans. The sudden impact threw off her stroke and the shot went wild, the cue ball spinning off to the side to bounce harmlessly off the cushion.

"Hey!" Alex exclaimed,

"That's not fair, I'm taking another shot!"

"Worth it." I shrugged with a wide grin.

We played a few rounds over a few more drinks; I won a couple but unsurprisingly Alex was way out of my league. At the best of times, I was a mediocre pool player, but Alex's flirting and teasing had slowly ramped up as the night went on and my concentration was all but shattered. She was looking to get fucked tonight, and she had been telling me so in no uncertain terms in the unspoken language of familiar lovers. Enthralling as that prospect was, I still had that surprise for her later that I was equally excited about.

"Funny," She said, backing herself into me and wiggling her ass suggestively into my groin, "I hadn't planned on being the one sinking their balls tonight."

I laughed and squeezed her around the stomach, planting a tender kiss on the soft skin under her ear. That was that; with my cock already swelling inside my pants, we were done playing. At least, certainly done all the playing we were going to do there at the pool-hall. Alex called us an Uber while I went to settle up with the bartender. Once I finished paying, we went outside to meet the car, Alex leaning back into me as I held her close, placing soft kisses behind her ear while we waited.

*****

After an unendurably long and inappropriately flirtatious ride in the back of the Uber, we had made it back to the apartment. Both of us sufficiently hot and bothered by then, Alex wasted no time dragging me by the hand up the spiral staircase to the bedroom. I made a move to kiss her, but she blocked my lips with a single finger as though she were shushing me, a playful twinkle in her eyes as she giggled and instructed me to wait on the bed before she disappeared into the bathroom. The enchanting smile that she flashed over her shoulder as she closed the door doubled the sense of excitement and anticipation welling up inside me.

My phone buzzed in my pocket and I pulled it out to see a text from Liz that read, "Having a good time with the family, how's it going with you two?"

"We just got home, had a fun day." I messaged back.

Quickly, Liz sent back a string of emojis like the modern-era version of the hieroglyphics Alex and I had pondered over in the Egyptian gallery at the museum earlier; "Eggplant, surprised-face, squirt, drooling face, question-mark."

I chuckled when I deciphered her code, and typed back, "Just about to do that. Miss you baby, gotta go."

"Good luck! I miss you both!" Her reply came back just as I put my phone away.

A moment later, the bathroom door swung open revealing Alex in a new set of lingerie. A strappy, black lace bralette hugged her body tightly, capturing the slight swell of her perfect little breasts and descending a couple inches down, covering a portion of her ribcage. With its cut plunging low between her tits, narrow straps overlaid a pattern of black webbing across her pale, freckled chest. The defined muscles of her stomach pointed the way down towards a matching pair of lace boyshort panties; the curvature of her exquisite cock bulging against her left hip alluringly. She completed the look with a pair of black stiletto sandals, her sexy feet on full display adorned with jet-black nail polish and the diamond toe ring I had bought her some months ago. The stones sparkled brilliantly, drawing the eye and complimenting the ensemble as a whole.

Alex struck a pose, leaning against the doorframe while sliding a slender leg up behind her before arching her back suggestively and flashing a sultry look. Her long, mahogany hair fell across one side of her face, covering an eye and cascading down her shoulders in wavy locks of rich red. Stunned by her raw, animal eroticism, my cock responded immediately at the sight of her, swelling against my suddenly confining underwear.

"Good Lord..." I muttered, almost involuntarily.

Alex let out a throaty growl at my reaction, pushing herself off the doorframe and doing her best impression of a runway model as she approached, crossing one leg over the other with each step, her hips oscillating to her seductive gait. As she neared, I stood up from the bed, taking her shapely hips in my hands as she stepped into me, slipping one leg in between mine and pressing her bulge against my own. Alex leaned back, biting her lower lip and staring hungrily into my eyes while her fingers sought out the buttons on my shirt, slowly unfastening them one by one until she could push the garment off my shoulders, letting it fall to the ground behind me.