The Warmest Winter, Day 10

When they were alone and cleaning up the lunch dishes, Jenny said, "I was wondering if you'd keep me company downstairs while I exercised."

"Umm... okay," Mike said, "And, don't take this the wrong way, but... why?"

"Well, we talked some stuff over, and I'd like your input. Also, there are some things I want to talk about and get your perspective. Just me, not on their behalf."

"All right, I suppose."

*****

Mike watched Jenny with interest and a hard-on as she went through her routine. She made use of almost everything he had in his exercise area. The free-weights, the stationary bike, the treadmill, even the chin-up bar.

"I try to keep a variety in my routine," Jenny explained, "It's great for overall health and figure maintenance. As soon as enough snow is clear and the temperature gets a tad higher, I'll probably do some jogging along that road."

In Mike's eye he saw Jenny's athletic form bounding along in a jogging suit, and he had to readjust his seated position.

"Sorry for the unintentional torture," Jenny said sincerely, but still with a grin. "How about I take your mind off it?"

"Sure. Why not?"

Jenny flopped down on the couch, having finished her workout. From his angle in his own chair, Mike got a great look at her long, smooth, olive-toned, firm legs.

"So here's what we did," Jenny started, "We told each other everything we all did with you."

"WHAT?!" Mike sputtered.

"Wait, hang on, noteverything, I mean we didn't get into details, but yeah. It kept us all open and honest and not competitive. And based on that, we decided that, going forward, we would still try and be discreet with our interests in you, but other than that, we're relaxing the rules."

"All three of you agreed?"

"Actually, only Cassie and I needed to agree. Veronica's out."

"Was it something I did?" asked Mike, instantly very concerned.

"No, no. I just think that she's got some stuff to sort out, and she also saw that it would only ever be just sex and friendship between you."

"Right."

"Don't sound too disappointed – she wouldn't say no if you asked, she's just not actively pursuing you anymore, is all."

"Okay. I think I get it."

"Good."

They sat in the quiet, cool basement for a while. Jenny caught her breath, and Mike felt his erection subside mercifully.

"So what's on your mind?" Mike asked, reclined in his chair with his eyes closed.

"I need the sociologist. It's about sexual identity."

"You, Veronica, and Cassie all now question whether you might be lesbians, or at least bi."

If it had been a question, Jenny would have been miffed at his cockiness. As it was, he knew it, and he knew that he knew it. And, in a way, he was sparing her the awkwardness of broaching the topic herself. Given the circumstances, she let it slide.

"Yes."

"Okay." Mike cleared his throat, his eyes still closed. He spoke as if lecturing to a college classroom. "Sex is the physical act of procreation, including the physical sensations directly involved. Sexuality is everything else associated with the act that does not fall into that category. Follow?"

"So far."

"Okay. The biology of sex is the same for everyone. Man and woman, then sex, then baby. The sexuality is so diverse as to be individualized. Some of this is cultural. We're taught who is and is not an ideal or even a viable sexual partner, based on ideas beyond practical biology. Some cultures one, some cultures more than one. Age, social class, hell, even neck length in a culture or two."

"Okay..."

"Here's where things get fuzzy. I'll start with an example. Have you known anyone who liked to be touched with ice during sex, even for brief moments?"

"Yeah, a couple." Now was not the time to reveal being one of them.

"Have you thought about what they have in common with sexual sadomasochists?"

Tires squealed in Jenny's head. "Wait, what?"

"The same mechanism drives both into being stimulants. Bear with me. Tell me: what happens to the nervous system during sexual arousal, especially towards climax?"

"Signals go a bit haywire."

"Exactly. Now, let's say someone lived on a farm, and every time they had sex, it was a literal roll in the hay."

"All right."

"Hay is uncomfortable, even to sit on, fully-clothed. Sex? Forget it. But sexual stimuli can override the others. And, as a biological adaptation, it can absorb them."

"Run that by me again?"

"Think about it. Humans are incredibly vulnerable during sex to all kinds of mood-killing stimuli. For our species to survive, individuals must adapt to unfavorable circumstances in order to want to continue procreation. As Paul Reiser said, 'If our parents had to, say, slap each other in the head with planks of linoleum and crawl hands-and-knees through acres of muddy stink to create Life, I don't know that we'd all be here today'."

Jenny laughed out loud. "Okay, I see your point."

"But that adaptation mechanism has a potentially wonderful, potentially dangerous side effect. Not only can a person grow to not mind whatever is associated with sex in their mind, they can grow tolikeit. Whatever that may be. Cold... pain... emotional love... physical attractiveness... animals... children... anything."

"So how does this relate to us?"

"Because it's not the only mechanism. The social ones are still in force, as well as personal choice. It is possible, on a purely biological level, to become sexually appreciative of virtually anything. Members of the same gender is a small hop compared to some of the deviances out there, and believe you me, youdon'twant to know."

"But-"

"I'm getting there. Let's use pain as an example. A person feels a little bit of pain once during sex, and finds that he doesn't mind. Okay. The idea plays in his mind, and he decides to push that boundary, taking more risks during sex, letting himself feel more pain until he hits his limit. But he hasn't yet. And all the while, the association between pain and sexual pleasure grows stronger, until he may even come toneedpain to become aroused. At that point, he has crossed from being sexually tolerant of pain, to being sexually appreciative of pain, to being a sexual masochist."

"See, now you've got me really wishing I'd taken that Psychology of Sex class instead of that elective."

Mike was distracted now. "What elective?"

"Mmm? Oh. A class on the Dead Sea Scrolls. Cool stuff."

"Interesting. So, to make this example relatable now, let me rephrase your initial concern. You, Veronica, and Cassie are obviouslytolerantof lesbian interactions, at least with one another, under some sort of circumstance. There may be additional factors out the wazoo. Your concern is whether any of you are appreciative, or even more."

The light fully dawned on Jenny. "Yeah. That's it. I guess."

"It's just a theory."

"Well, let's test it. On me. How would you determine where someone is on the spectrum?"

"A few questions. First: are you still sexually and-or romantically attracted to men as a gender?"

"Yes."

"You're not a lesbian. Same question for women."

"No, I think."

"As a gender."

"No."

"You're not bisexual, either. Now that you've had a sexual experience with another female, do you have thoughts about doing it again with different females?"

"No."

"Hell, you're not even bi-curious. May I take a guess?"

"You seem to be on a roll. Go ahead."

"You tolerated last night because you were curious in a scientific sort of way, and the idea of sharing a sexual experience with your friends was not a turn-off. But it was also not a turn-on. If I or some other man wasn't there, I feel sure you would not have been nearly so comfortable."

"Yeah, you're right."

"If I may be bolder, I think Cassie's in a similar position as you, maybe even Veronica. But I think this question stirred up some others for her, if what you tell me's true."

"Wow. I see why you're a hot consultant," Jenny said, "I mean, uh, that you're a consultant, and you're hot, no, that, um,asa consultant, you're hot, wait,dammit, as consultants go, you're-"

Mike burst out laughing. "I'm sorry. I kept a straight face as long as I could."

"Youass."

"Oh, come on, if that was a scene on TV you'd be laughing just as hard as me."

She didn't answer except to stick her tongue out at him.

"Let me be clear on one thing," asked Jenny, "Were you equating lesbianism to bestiality and child porn?"

"No," Mike stated emphatically. "I mean that everything associated with sex, other than the act itself and sensations thereof, are social constructs ingrained in us by our parents or such, or psychological constructs we develop by this other mechanism. The factors produce everything, both healthy and unhealthy forms of sexuality, however any society defines them."

Jenny suddenly gave a snort of derision.

"What is it?" Mike asked.

"I've been reading some of those sex stories you've got in that library upstairs. And wouldn't you know it, every time someone questions their sexuality, they turn out to be gay or bi."

"I hadn't noticed that. So none of them ever said, 'You know? I was just curious. It's fun, but I still like guys.' Weird." Mike finally opened his eyes and looked at Jenny, who was giving him a long, thoughtful look.

"What?" he asked.

"You," she said, "I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever get to the bottom of you."

"Well, just mind how you dig. That's some hefty dirt to be kicked up."

"Speaking of," said Jenny, "My sweat's starting to dry and itch. I gotta shower."

"Don't let me keep you."

*****

After her shower, Jenny found Mike in the library, working his way throughThe Return of the King.Hearing her come in, he read to the end of the paragraph (which takes a while with Tolkien) and put the bookmark back in.

"What's up?"

"It occurs to me that we've all been kinda spontaneous with you," Jenny said.

"I guess. Although in our case, I sort of nudged it that direction."

"Still. Even last night was not guaranteed to pan out the way it did."

"Granted. What are you getting at?"

"Wanna have sex?"

Mike burst out laughing. Not at the idea of having sex with Jenny, which was making him immediately respond in his nether regions, but at the casual tone she used to ask him.

"Oh, youknowthe answer to that one. Absolutely."

Jenny leaned in and kissed him. "Good. Go lay down on your bed, face-up and naked. And close your eyes. I'll be up in a few minutes."

"Hmmm," said Mike ponderously, getting up, "I am now intrigued, as well as horny. Sounds like fun." He hurried off upstairs, and Jenny tried to remember exactly what he had described the other day...

*****

Mike settled in, having fun imagining all of the tricks Jenny might be up to. He had a couple of ideas of his own, of course, not the least of which was now in his bedside table drawer. It was a restorative he had found some years ago. Applied properly, it greatly prevented or repaired the wear-and-tear on him from sex. Without it, the girls would have had to do without him even more often than one day a week. But that was just the side effect. It was mainly a massage oil and lubricant. It didn't even have much of a taste. It was his secret weapon.

His less-than-secret weapon was rigid in anticipation when Jenny came into the room. Mike dutifully kept his eyes closed.

"Open your eyes," Jenny said. She was wearing an outfit that Mike remembered, but couldn't place from where. He was about to ask when Jenny held a finger to her lips for silence.

With grace and ease, she slowly peeled off her shirt to reveal her glorious breasts, displayed and framed by a black lace bra. Jenny turned and began sliding down her jeans, revealing her mouth-watering hips and ass to Mike, whose eyes widened. He strained not to stroke himself at the striptease he was witnessing.

Jenny was now wearing only the bra and matching panties. Mike got another good, long look at her sport-toned legs as she bent over to remove her jeans. Jenny's hands caressed her skin all the way back up her body as she stood up again, around her hips, grazing her breasts, until she deftly caught her hair tie and pulled it off, shaking her head to let her silky hair fall all around.

She arched her back, jutting her breasts forward, keeping her head back as she reached around behind herself and unclasped her bra. Like most women, Jenny quickly brought her hands around to catch the bra before it fell away, causing Mike to groan in disappointment. Where was the dejá-vu coming from?

Jenny finally let the bra go, revealing her breasts, exactly as Mike had dreamed them the first night after he had rescued them from the blizzard.

Of course!

Mike smiled, and Jenny nodded. Over the last few days, he'd told Jenny about the dreams he'd had of her, in detail. She was re-enacting one for him.

Now that Mike had caught on, Jenny crawled up to him on the bed, using that catlike languor that only a woman can achieve. It was sexy as Hell.

"There now," Jenny said, "No game, no booze, no dream, no argument, no distracting friends.Thisis what it looks like."

"Mmm, I like it."

"Thought you might," Jenny said, then brought her lips in for a slow, patient kiss.

When they broke for air, she straddled Mike, the base of his hard-on pressing against the thin fabric of her panties. The man was solid, she thought. Jenny ground her hips against him, with her hands on his chest to steady herself. She could feel his muscles under the skin, and remembered how strongly he could hold her.

"Aw, you poor thing," Jenny started.

"There'sa sentence every man loves to hear in bed."

"Shut up," Jenny said, trying not to laugh, "Iwasgoing to take pity on your cock, seeing as how I'm getting satisfied and you're not."

"I have no complaints at the moment, but if you insist..."

Jenny shifted one hand to the middle of Mike's chest, and could feel his heart beating. With her other hand, she reached down and began to stroke him, as in the dream.

"I havegotto tell you more of my dreams," Mike rasped. His breathing deepened, and his pulse raced.

"Tell me one now," Jenny coaxed.

"All right... it's a pretty straightforward one... ooh, keep doing that... It involves my Hummer."

"Yeah..." Jenny picked up her pace.

"And you..."

"Yeah..."

"And Cassie. And Veronica..."

"Uh-huh..."

"In bikini tops, and short shorts, washing it."

"Youguy."

"I thought youlikedthat about me," Mike said, pressing his cock into her pussy for emphasis.

"Mmm... you know what I say to that?"

"What?"

Jenny leaned in close to Mike's ear. She moved her supporting hand away, but the other still stroked Mike's cock. Mike could feel her breasts press into his chest, her nipples drag a little over his skin. He heard Jenny draw in a breath to speak.

"Is this where you were expecting me to make loud and obnoxious alarm noises?"

"No."

"Liar."

"Busted. So what will you do to me for it?"

"Well, that's simple." Jenny did so, leaving Mike flat on the bed. "I'm going to ride you until you buck."

Jenny didn't even get up to take off her panties. She just slipped them aside, revealing her honeyed pussy lips for Mike's mouth to water at. She adjusted forwards, and now slid her pelvis back and forth over Mike's cock, sharing her wetness with him, preparing to guide him in.

At the first look of distracted concentration from Jenny, Mike slid a hand down to his cock and lifted it slightly, allowing Jenny to maneuver more freely. He felt her lips slide over the head, and then the very tip felt heat.

Jenny felt it, too, and slowly worked her hips back, appreciating every inch of Mike's hard-on as she filled herself with it. Mike drew his hands back and rested them on Jenny's hips.

After the heightened raw sexuality of the previous night, neither Jenny or Mike was in any rush. Some of what drove them before could have been pent-up sexual desire, fulfilled with an available partner. Now, however, they were having sex simply because they wanted to, not because they also needed to.

Mike relished the chance to focus on her. In last night's frenzy, so much had just blurred together. Hot, yes. Wildly sexual, not a doubt. But just a little unfulfilled with what else sex could be. As Jenny rocked back and forth, establishing a rhythm, he let his eyes wander across her lithe body.

Jenny knelt atop him, and he felt her hips under his palms. They tapered into Jenny's trim waistline, only for her body to blossom outwards again. Mike felt he could gaze at her breasts for days at a time. They were full, round, and completely natural. Her areolas were dark now, her nipples erect. In a minute, he was going to have his way with them, but that could wait for now.

Mike's eyes continued their upward trend, gliding across the smooth and kissable skin of Jenny's neck. Her face was framed by her dark hair, which flowed freely down her soft shoulders. Breathing steadily, Jenny had parted her full, pink lips, and her tongue occasionally licked them.

When Mike finally rested his gaze on her eyes, they were shut. Jenny seemed to sense he where he was looking, and opened her eyes to look back. He saw, as he knew he would, the fire. Somewhere in the back of his mind he recognized it, having seen it before both during sex, and lately, at other times. Had she been more open with him, so that he could see it? Did he just know her better? Something else? It didn't matter. He was satisfied to feel its warmth, and looked forward to seeing more.

Mike usually liked switching positions at some point during sex, but this time he lacked the inclination. Maybe just a small change. He smiled.

"Something funny?" Jenny asked, not changing her rhythms.

"Just enjoying myself."

"Aw, and here I was hoping you were enjoyingmyself."

"Oh, that, too. Here, let's try something."

Bracing his feet on the bed, Mike brought his hands to under Jenny's calves and lifted her up, still firmly rooted to him, and shifted them both back on the bed. Jenny cried out in delight and surprise. Between the pillows and the headboard, Mike was very nearly sitting, and Jenny now crouched around him, and miraculously still felt him inside her.

"Ooh, you're good," she said, leaning in for another kiss.

"I was inspired."

As their lips met and teased one another's, Jenny resumed her pace on Mike's persistent erection. Her new position gave her movements more bounce than before, and she took full advantage. More quickly now, she drove them both closer to the edge.

Mike's hands were firmly on her waist now, holding her just well enough so that she didn't accidentally slip off. Her arms were resting on his shoulders, her hands behind his head.

As Jenny was doing most of the work, she needed breathers more often than Mike. Whenever this happened, she would throw back her head and let Mike have his way. He would pinch her nipples with his lips, and use suction to pull them just a bit. His tongue traces swirls across her breasts and between them, up her neck.

"I love your tongue," Jenny groaned. Mike said nothing but she felt his cock twitch. She felt how close he was, he was pressing into her so much. She was starting to lose focus, but by now her body was taking over.

Mike and Jenny bent their heads, their arms wrapped around each other as Jenny bobbed on Mike even faster, even harder. There were no words anymore. They were both lost in the pleasure. Jenny could feel her climax approaching, and her hips raced to meet it.

Mike felt the familiar jolt, and knew it was time. With one hand, he clasped Jenny by the back of her head, and drilled his gaze into hers as he began to fire his load. With a couple more thrusts, which sent Mike careening, Jenny reached her own climax, and leaned back to enjoy it purely.