Lizzie's Sanctuary Ch. 02

I woke up the next morning to find Lizzie already out of bed. I heard her in the shower, and as I sat up in bed, I looked down at the spot where she had slept next to me. It was really no different than it had been twenty-four hours earlier, save that we had both been naked when we went to sleep. After having sex. Together. I hoped things wouldn't be as complicated as I feared they might be.

A few minutes later, she came out of the bathroom and made a beeline for her room, ignoring me as I called out to her. I was on the phone confirming an appointment when she left. One fleeting glimpse of her as she went out the door was all the contact I had with her.

It was like that all night long after we got home from work, too. She got home late from going out with some friends, and Lizzie was almost completely unresponsive to me when I said anything to her. It's like I was a nuisance of noise she was trying to ignore. Fallout from our special night together had set in hard, as realization of what had taken place hit.

She was already in bed when I got there that first night, and for the first time since she'd moved in, her night-time apparel was almost what you could call modest. Her nightgown was even buttoned up.

She had pulled the sheets up, her arm holding them snug just beneath her breasts, and it at least looked like she was asleep.

I stripped down to my boxers and crawled in beside her. As I settled down beneath the covers, I rolled over towards her, brushing a few strands of hair away from the side of her face.

I kissed her softly on the cheek and lay down behind her, moving close enough to slip an arm around her, but not pulling her close enough that we were actually spooning.

"I love you, Sis," I said, kissing her again, this time on the back of her shoulder.

Her breathing wasn't yet in the steady rhythm of someone who's asleep, yet she remained motionless and silent.

She waited until she thought I was asleep, but finally, she took my hand in hers, pulled it to her lips and kissed it.

"I love you, big brother." Her words were soft. I wasn't supposed to hear.

The rest of the week was like that. What made it worse, every time I tried to talk to her, she went the other direction.

Friday, as I was about to arrive home, Rebecca called. She was flying in, getting a rental car, and after she checked in at her hotel, she wanted to clean up and come get me for dinner.

As I walked through the front door of my condo, I told her I was looking forward to seeing her.

"Do you want to see me at your place, in my hotel room, or both?" she asked.

"Let's talk about that when you get here," I said.

"Okay," she said. "I need to get laid in the worst way."

I hung up with Lizzie looking right at me.

"I guess we both have plans tonight," she said.

I looked down at my phone and back at Lizzie.

"That was a friend of mine who just called to let me know she's in town for the weekend," I said. "We're going to dinner."

"Anybody I know?" she asked.

It was a crazy question; Lizzie knew hardly any of my friends.

"Rebecca," I said.

"A woman?" she asked, eyebrows raised.

"Yeah," I replied. "She and I started out working together when I graduated. She works for a different company now, but we still see each other every now and then."

"She isn't married?" Lizzie asked.

"No," I said, looking over at Lizzie. "She doesn't even have a boyfriend; she's very career focused."

"Wait a minute," Lizzie said. "She's the one you were sleeping with when you spent that week in Miami last year. I remember you talking about that."

"That's her," I said, nodding acknowledgement. How had Lizzie heard me talking about that?

"Are you going to sleep with her tonight?" she asked.

Blunt. Direct. With more than a touch of jealousy, I was pretty sure, from her tone and body language. Lizzie stood with her arms folded across her chest, staring me down.

"No" I said. "She came into town for a weekend seminar and wanted to go to dinner. You said you were going out with friends. I didn't think it would be a problem."

I'd been looking forward to fucking Rebecca, but the events of a few nights ago had changed my thoughts about a lot of things, Rebecca included. Going to dinner with her was one thing. Sleeping with her was another.

Lizzie had plans to go out for the evening with an old college roommate and another good friend of hers, and they were supposed to help her reclaim more of her stuff from her house on Saturday.

"No, it's not," she said. "In fact, I'm not sure when I'll be back tonight. It'll be late."

Lizzie walked ahead of me, darting into her room as I walked behind her to drop my shoes and start getting ready in anticipation of Rebecca's arrival.

"By the way, they're supposed to deliver my bedroom furniture tomorrow," Lizzie said, standing in her doorway. "Is that going to be a problem? I probably won't be here."

I turned around as she pulled her shirt overhead and stood there wearing a leopard print bra.

"No," I said, "it won't be a problem. I'll be here."

Lizzie disappeared into her room. I heard her move some things around, and she reappeared a couple of minutes later, toying with the shirt she was about to pull on over her head. She had changed bras, and my eyes were drawn to her tits, nipples plastered against the now sheer cloth, begging me to suckle them. Like that was going to happen again. I sighed as Lizzie's head got lost in her shirt, her arms dangling overhead, her breasts jiggling seductively. Was this an anomaly, or was she acting more like the Lizzie I knew from before three nights ago?

"These shoes won't work," Lizzie said, looking down at her feet. She turned and left the room.

I went back into the living room and flipped on the TV to catch the news. As I turned up the volume, I felt Lizzie behind me, her hand on my shoulder.

"G'bye," she said, leaning up and kissing me on the cheek. "I love you. I'll see you later."

"I love you, too, Sis," I said, watching her walk out the door.

What the hell was going on with her? It's like she was a Stepford Sister or something.

I sat there thinking about my situation. It was crazy, but my love for my little sister was driving my train of thought. Sleeping with Rebecca was out of the question.

Lizzie asking me bluntly had forced me into a realization; I felt a loyalty to her, a need to be faithful to her, for lack of a better description, that transcended the fact she was my sister. For the first time in my life, one woman held my affection, even if she was holding herself at arm's length.

Nearly fifteen minutes after Lizzie left, the doorbell rang.

Rebecca looked hot, leaning against the doorway when I pulled the door open. Her hair, normally pinned up, cascaded down over her shoulder, spilling onto her chest, where it tried to conceal the fact that she'd already unfastened enough buttons to reveal the lace of her bra to me.

I took her by the hand and pulled her inside, slowly shutting and locking the door behind her.

"You look good enough to eat," she said as she put her arms around my neck, kissing me and sliding her tongue along my lips. "Do you want me now, later, or both? Because I need to get laid in the worst way, and we've got all night to do it. I don't have to be anywhere until 9 a.m. tomorrow."

Rebecca held herself against me, her breasts crushed against my chest. Confusion was the only constant in my mind; my cock was indicating it willing to get down to business; my heart and mind were thinking of Lizzie.

"That might be a little problematic," I said. How are you supposed to tell a woman that you're saving yourself for your sister?

"How do you figure?"

Rebecca tossed her purse on to the couch and kicked off her shoes.

"My sister is living with me," I said. "She's supposed to be out for the evening, but I can't be sure when she'll be home."

"Lizzie or Kath?" Rebecca had never met Lizzie. She and Kath had talked shop over lunch more than once.

"Lizzie," I replied. "Her husband cheated on her. She's staying with me until the divorce is final and she gets her roots set."

"You have to be the best big brother in the world," she said. "Mine wouldn't have the time of day for me. That just means we need to be a little more discreet."

Rebecca headed toward the bedroom, unbuttoning her blouse.

"That leaves out the balcony, the kitchen and the living room," she said, "but we can tear up the bedroom. Right now, I want you to fuck me, then we can go eat dinner, and either go to my hotel or come back here and make a night out of it."

I watched Rebecca disappear into the bedroom and took a deep breath before following her. This was awkward. And uncomfortable.

"What," she said, "is this?"

Rebecca stood facing me, blouse open, her breasts straining for freedom from the bra she was wearing. 'This' was Lizzie's leopard print bra; it sat on the back edge of my chest of drawers.

"That belongs to my sister," I said.

She'd clearly snuck in and staged it when she'd been changing her shirt.

"I thought she had her own room," Rebecca said, looking at me with a mix of curious disbelief as she held it in front of her.

"She does," I said. "She must have done laundry, folded it in here and missed picking that up when she was done."

"I don't think so," Rebecca said, shaking her head. "This has been worn recently."

"I'll ask her about it when she comes home," I said.

Rebecca smiled and let me slide Lizzie's bra off of her fingers. I folded it and set it back on my chest of drawers as Rebecca unzipped her slacks, turned and wiggled her ass as she began to shimmy out of her slacks.

"It's going to be really hard to fuck me if you don't get undressed," she said, tossing her slacks across the back of the chair and sliding her blouse off of her shoulders, "and I want to roll around in the bed."

"This is not a good idea," I said.

Rebecca reached behind her and unhooked her bra. She leaned forward and slid the straps from her shoulders, the cups falling free from her gorgeous 36Cs.

"Are you afraid your kid sister will come home and catch you in bed? That's why doors close," she said, pushing the door closed.

The door almost clicked shut.

"I want to know why, when I told you I was coming to town, you said you couldn't wait to see me," she said, "and now that I'm here, nearly naked and ready to fuck, you've got cold feet."

Almost as if on cue, Lizzie pushed the door open and stepped into the doorway of the bedroom, holding on to the door knob. It all happened so fast, but I can still remember it in painful, instant re-play slow motion. Lizzie stood there, a look of sudden shock on her face as she saw Rebecca standing there, topless, bikini panties perched on her hips. Rebecca quickly stepped up behind me for cover. Lizzie stood there, transfixed.

"What the hell?" Rebecca was pissed, the venom in her voice clear and unmistakable.

"I'm sorry," Lizzie said. Her hand fumbled for the door knob. "I didn't mean to... I'm so sorry." Her hand found purchase on the door knob and pulled my door shut quickly.

Rebecca moved around me and looked at me, indignation evident on her face.

"I hope that was your sister," she said.

"That's her."

"Does she not know what a closed door means?" she asked.

"There has to be a good reason for this," I said. "I'll be back in a minute."

I opened the door and stumbled into the living room to find Lizzie headed for the door.

"What's going on?" I asked. "Why are you back so soon?"

"I missed a phone message from Carol saying she was tied up tonight," Lizzie said. "So I came back home. I didn't know you'd be... you know. I mean, you said..." She waved her hand dismissively, not wanting to discuss the obviously awkward.

"Lizzie, it's not what..."

"I'm gonna go," Lizzie said.

"Where?" I asked.

"I don't know," she said, blinking away tears that were forming in the corners of her eyes. "I'll go see a movie or something."

Something fell in my bedroom, and as I turned to look that direction, Lizzie broke away from me, headed for the door.

"Lizzie, wait," I said. Too late. The front door slammed shut behind her.

I walked back to my bedroom. Rebecca was almost fully dressed, slacks on, fingers buttoning her blouse.

"Ready to go to dinner now?" I asked.

She stopped and looked at me.

"You can't be serious," she said. "I didn't know I could ever be so completely not in the mood, but sex is the last thing I'm thinking about right now, and dinner with you, at the moment, is actually a really close second. I have never been so embarrassed in my life."

"Let's go to dinner," I said as she finished buttoning her blouse. "I can explain."

"I've heard that before," Rebecca said. She shook her head, her mouth hanging open. "There is something going on here that you haven't told me about. I don't know why, but I have a feeling it's more than I want to know."

"There is nothing going on," I said.

"Maybe not at this instant," she said. "But your sister moved in and lives with you?"

"I told you about that," I said.

"Yeah, you did," Rebecca replied. "But you didn't tell me about her underwear lying around in your room or that she feels comfortable enough to open your bedroom door without knocking first."

Rebecca stopped buttoning her blouse and pulled her hair back, securing it in a pony tail behind her head.

"And then you bolt out of here after her like a man that's been caught cheating," she said. "And, unfortunately, I know what that looks like."

The motion of her hands fixing her hair behind her hair slowed to a crawl as she put the pieces together for herself.

"Ohmigod.," she said, her mouth hanging open. "That's it. You're sleeping with your sister."

I shook my head firmly and let out a deep sigh.

"No," I said. "It's nothing like that."

"That's it exactly or something damn close to it," Rebecca said, folding her arms in front of her. "You know, I'd ask if the sex was worth it, but, I don't really want to know."

"Rebecca," I said.

"Let me out of here," she said, pushing past me.

"You're being irrational," I said.

"Am I?" she asked, spinning on her heels and glaring at me. "Where does she sleep? Because I don't see another bed." She cast a gaze into Lizzie's room, seeing only a smattering of boxes and luggage.

"It's being delivered tomorrow," I said.

"Great, you'll have your choice of beds to do it in," she said, picking up her purse. "I'm getting out of the impact area. I've seen the look she had on her face before, and you are going to have a really long night. And I don't want any part of it."

Long, purposeful strides carried her toward the door. Rebecca yanked on the door knob, swinging the door open hard.

"Don't call me," she said.

The door slammed behind her, leaving me alone. I stood there for a moment, stunned. Nothing about this evening was good.

I picked up my phone and dialed Lizzie as I walked back to my bedroom. The phone rang and rang, going to voice mail as I stood the chair upright.

"Lizzie, call me back. Please."

I walked out onto the balcony and looked over the edge. Nothing. She had to still be downstairs.

I dialed Lizzie's cell phone again. As it started to ring, I walked back to my bedroom and picked up the leopard print bra as her phone went to voice mail again.

"Elizabeth Gail, this is your older brother. I'm worried about you, baby girl. Call me and let me know you're alright, or better yet, come back home."

I raised the bra to my face. Rebecca was right; this bra wasn't freshly laundered. It wasn't exactly dirty, but I could smell Lizzie, her scent; the aura of her body mixed with her body wash and her perfume. I closed my eyes and inhaled again, allowing my mind to conjure the image of her wearing the bra, her breasts filling the cups, of her pulling the bra from her body, her nipples hardening against the exposure to the air. With my third breath of her scent, I realized my cock was getting hard again. This was going to be a really long night.

I called Lizzie's phone four more times. I left another voice mail, almost pleading with her to call me. And then she turned her phone off. I had no idea where to go looking for her.

I found something to eat in the kitchen and tried to busy myself. For a couple of hours, I buried myself in my computer, knocking out a lot of the online work I had to do for the weekend. Finally, I called it quits and decided to stay up and watch a movie until she came home or I fell asleep, whichever came first. I didn't care about Rebecca storming out; I just wanted my little sister to come home.

The movie ended and still no call, no anything from Lizzie. I went to take a shower, and when I finished drying off, I pulled on a pair of loose gym shorts, not bothering to tie them. I pulled a t-shirt over my head as I walked back to the living room. It was getting late, but I wasn't going to give up on her yet, so I decided to watch another movie. The opening credits were about to roll when I heard her keys in the front door. By the time she had the door shut behind her, the TV was off. She stood in the entry way looking at me.

"I know you're really angry with me," she said, "and I'm sorry."

"I'm not mad at you," I said. "Come here." I motioned for her to join me on the couch.

She dropped her purse on the table and approached me like a child waiting to be chastised. I held out my hand as she drew near, and she took it. I pulled her to me, and suddenly, she was sitting in my lap, tears starting to roll down her cheeks as she tried to hide her eyes in my shoulder.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I should know better than to think about you like that. I don't have any right to be jealous."

"Shhh." I ran my fingers through her hair and kissed her forehead. "I've been jealous of you before, too."

Lizzie raised her head and looked at me, wiping the tears from her eyes. She missed a spot and I brushed it away with my thumb.

"When have you ever been jealous of me?" she asked.

"I never liked Warren," I said. "He was never good enough for you."

"That's not the same," she said.

"To tell the truth, I never liked any of the guys you went out with," I said. "I knew they were all after the same thing. They just wanted to get in your pants."

Lizzie laughed.

"Like you aren't out for the same thing, too, when you go out on dates," she said.

"That's different," I said.

"Typical man," she said, pushing against me in mock disgust.

"You're my baby sister," I said, "and I love you. Nothing is ever going to change that." I kissed her on the forehead.

"I love you, too," she said. Her lips found a spot on my neck.

"I do have a bone to pick with you, though," I said.

"What?" she asked, raising up and looking at me.

I reached behind me and pulled her leopard print bra forward.

"I believe this is yours."

"That's not where I left that," she said.

"I know," I said.

"You're implying I left that in your room to be found on purpose," she said.

"I didn't mention where I found it, but something like that," I said.

"Give it to me," she said, reaching for it.

"Not so fast," I said, holding it out of her reach. "You owe me."

"Give me my bra back," she said. "I don't owe you a thing."

"You intentionally sabotaged my evening," I said. "I ought to take you over my knee and spank you."

"You wouldn't dare," she said, struggling to reach past me and take her bra back.

I held her bra ought behind me, forcing her to reach past me. Lizzie scrambled off my lap, planted a knee between my legs and stretched her body past me. Reaching beyond me to grab her bra back, her shirt separated from her jeans and I found myself breathing in the scent of her skin, more pronounced than on her bra, but essentially the same. I grabbed hold of her leg, holding her to me as she took her bra back. I inhaled deeply and brought my other arm around her, my hand grabbing her ass and pressing her to me. Lizzie's scent, the same one I'd smelled earlier on her bra, flooded my lungs. It wasn't overpowering, but it was familiar to me now, intoxicating and arousing. Lizzie felt my arm around her, and as she pulled her bra back, her other hand clasped my head, holding me to her. As she pulled back, she lowered her body, and as her shirt began to ride up, I kissed her torso even with her ribcage. Lizzie's body stiffened and I felt her inhale sharply. Slowly, I relaxed my hold on her and she pulled back, looking down at me.