The Warmest Winter, Day 14

Thanks to everyone for their feedback on the previous chapters, with a special thank-you to my real-life editor. Remaining errors, if any, are mine. Reading the chapters of this story in order is highly recommended. All geek culture references are properties of their original copyright holders. Spoiler: No actual sex in this one -- catch you next time!

*****

Her mystery man had returned. Cassie was helpless. With one hand he held her down against the countertop, and with the other he held her waistline. Thrusting deep, he fulfilled himself in her.

Too bad her morning alarm went off.

Waking up and turning off her phone's chimes, Cassie stretched for the morning. Her legs caught the blanket and exposed her hardened nipples to the cold bedroom air. Cassie shivered at the sudden contrast, which was nonetheless titillating.

Reaching down, Cassie could feel how wet she was. She'd been outrageously horny, just being able to express her sexuality openly, she felt for the first time in her life. Then she got the backlog out of her system. Only now, she had a solid idea of what she wanted in a man, again for the first time in her life, and the fantasy ratcheted up her libido all over again.

A partner in life, she thought, That's what every woman wants. But in the bedroom? There's something I want more.

The thought that preyed on her mind was Mike, her current sexual interest. He could certainly take charge, but there was a bit of a cost. He wasn't quite himself when he did it. Something had to be wrong for that to happen. It was hot as Hell, and Cassie owed the best orgasms of her life to it, but she couldn't do that to him.

As she was getting dressed for the day, she was surprised by a knock at the door.

"Cassie?" It was Jenny.

"Yeah? Come in."

Jenny had apparently gotten a jump on the day. She was already dressed, from her Game of Thrones t-shirt to her hip-hugging jeans, and, yes, her pink fuzzy slippers. She'd even put her hair back into a loose braid. Cassie, however, had only managed to slide her bikini bottoms up her legs, and so was popping into and out of the closet getting and putting on her outfit for the day.

"Someone's ambitious this morning," she commented as she put on a bra. Her brother was arriving in the afternoon and she didn't want to make him uncomfortable. It was nice being unrestrained, however long it lasted.

"I, uh, wanted to help Mike make a good impression on Nate," Jenny said. "And I don't want Rick to think we're bad for Mike."

"You're worried about those?" Cassie said, donning one of her own t-shirts. It might have been borrowed from Jenny in a previous year, but possession is nine-tenths of ownership between best friends and roommates.

"Not really, I guess. But, you know, it couldn't hurt..."

Cassie laughed as she walked to her closet, clad only in her tight shirt and panties. Her ass swayed with each step, something she did to keep her hips loose, should she decide to flirt.

"What do you think Rick will be like in person?" Cassie asked.

"A lot like on the phone. An arrogant cod, but good at what he does."

"I wonder if that's true in the bedroom..." Cassie mused as she stepped into her jeans.

"Cassie!"

"What? Is Mike allowed to sleep with all of us, but I can't think about maybe another guy?"

"No, it's just... you haven't even met the man!"

"I will today," Cassie said, shimmying her jeans up past her hips. She did so carefully and slowly, not wanting to damage the clothing. It took longer than she cared to admit to find jeans matching her full-bottomed figure.

"What would Mike think?"

Cassie shrugged. "Does he have to know?"

"He is our friend, and the lawyer's. And it's sort of on that subject I meant to talk to you about."

"Oh?"

"Mike's put a stop to everything, for the time being. No more sex with each other unless it's exclusive, like, a relationship."

"You sure it wasn't your idea?"

"What? No, I'd never do something like that without talking to you first."

"Ah. So has he confessed any secret longings for moonlit walks on the beach with either of us?"

"God, I hope not," Jenny said, "If he ever does, I'll Friendzone him permanently. That kind of date is completely not me."

"You've thought about what it would be like to date Mike?"

"Haven't you?"

Cassie said nothing, but let a small smile cross her face the next time her back was turned.

*****

After joining his houseguests for breakfast, Mike got right down to business.

"So, it looks like today should be another clean-up day," Mike said, "It's been another week."

They'd been cleaning as they went, but company was coming and even if they didn't need to clean much, it passed the time.

"Rick and Nate should be here sometime in the late afternoon, depending on how they handle lunch. Cassie, you want to call and check?"

"Nah. He's a big boy. If he has to, he knows to call."

"You talking about Rick or Nate?"

Cassie shrugged, smiling. "Does it matter?"

Since Mike had no work to do, it being a Saturday, he pitched in equally and tidied up the place. They had to run some fans in the basement, to air it out. Between all of the exercise and sexual encounters that took place down there, it had gotten a tad ripe. A couple of refreshed Glade Plug-ins and it was smelling as good as new. On the first floor, most of the rooms were a cinch. The kitchen took a bit longer. Cassie, of course, directed the whole effort. Whatever she was in the bedroom, she would always be queen of the kitchen. After that, everyone took care of their own rooms, and everyone took a bathroom, one on each floor. Veronica drew the short straw and had to clean the one in the basement.

Other than laundry, this was it for the house. After the scouring the previous week, everyone was a bit more careful, mindful of cleaning it up. By lunchtime, they all settled back down again.

"Well, that worked up an appetite," Mike commented.

None of his houseguests commented. As with last week, they were quite turned on by a man who was proficient and even eager with housework. However, present circumstances being what they were, the ladies had to quell any desires to being mere fleeting fancies.

For Cassie, this was quite a bit difficult. She had to keep reminding herself that while Mike was pretty damn good, she in fact wanted something only similar to him. Maybe Mike would be different in the real world, maybe not. But until she found out, she couldn't fixate too heavily on him.

All in all, it was a pretty quiet lunch. The only thing left to do was wait.

*****

An electric blue Camaro turned into Mike's driveway around one in the afternoon. The driver got out first: a stocky man with thick brown hair. He wore jeans and a polo shirt under his leather Denver Broncos jacket. Coming out from the passenger side was a taller man, wearing a long overcoat which concealed everything else he wore. After finding his feet again, he reached into the back seat and pulled out an expensive-looking briefcase.

"Good gravy, and I thought Denver drivers were insane," commented the well-dressed one.

"Come on, you've lived in the Boroughs, you know what it's like to want to cut loose."

The passenger sighed. "Let's just go in. I've got a job to do."

They climbed the steps and knocked on the door. The cry of "Sonofabitch!" echoed from somewhere in the back of the house.

"Sounds like Jenny lost Jenga again," said the driver.

A few moments later, Mike opened the door.

"Rick! Good to see you!" Shaking his hand and clasping him on the shoulder, Mike ushered him into the house.

"You must be Nate. Glad to meet you." Mike gave him a similar welcome. By now the three women had joined him, and were giving Nate hugs.

After the initial greetings were over, Mike said, "Jenny, Cassie, Veronica, this is Rick. Richard Tessaro. He's my lawyer, and a damn good friend."

Rick held out a hand in greeting, using each woman's name to help him remember. All three were stunning, but the short one... was she eyeing him?

After Mike helped them out of their travel attire, they moved to the kitchen, where there was more room and the coffeemaker. Everyone had some sort of hot-water-based drink, be it coffee, cocoa or tea, except for Rick, who insisted on water.

"Not a drop or milligram of anything while I'm on this case," he explained, "Usually it's only during the actual court case, but for Mike, I take no chances."

Rick them cast a sidelong glance at Nate. "No matter how tempted I am to calm my nerves."

Cassie put her hands on her hips and peered at her brother. "What did you do?"

"I thought we'd be here a couple of hours from now," Rick said, "That is, until I met this bat outta Hell. Apparently, Mike, did you know that when we made the original agreement, we removed speed limits from the access road?"

"...Yeah! I remember now. The speed limit was for the rangers, because their vehicles couldn't handle higher speeds. It was a safety guide. But my Hummer could, so we had it dropped. It wasn't a big deal, as I recall."

"Is now!" Rick said, "I'm hanging on for dear life in that little blue pinball he calls a car, and he just smiles and accelerates."

"What? That road is fun," Nate chimed in.

"The worst part is, every time I try to voice my worries about, you know, death and other inconveniences, all he says is, 'It's okay, I'm a leaf on the wind.' What does that mean?"

"Nate," said Cassie, "What have I told you about freaking the mundanes?"

"What?" said an increasingly confused Rick.

"Scaring the Muggles," offered Jenny.

"Using geekspeak on non-geeks," explained Mike, "It's from-"

"I don't care," Rick interrupted, holding up a hand. "Court date still Monday?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Okay, then we have zero more time. Sorry to be abrupt, ladies and gentlemen, but this is my job and my client's time. I take it you only have road trip clothing?" This last part was directed at the women. They affirmed his suspicion.

Opening his briefcase, he pulled out a credit card.

"This is a card for my firm's account. The firm owes Mike incredibly for a lot over the years. In recognition, they have granted me some... leeway. Each of you may buy one ensemble for the purposes of appearing in court. If it is visible in any way, even just an outline under another layer, even just a patch showing from a particular angle, I can justify it to my bosses. Also, dinner at a food court. There's a megamall about two hours from here. You can use Nate's car. The mall's address is already programmed into the GPS. Do any of you know how to use one?"

"We all do, of course," Veronica said.

"Then how did you end up here?" Nate cracked. Cassie swatted him on the arm, which only made him and Mike laugh harder.

"Moving on," Rick said, "I need the vehicle back here by ten. You leave the mall at eight, getting there at three. That gives you five hours, minus dinner. Unless you drive like Speedy Gonzales over here, in which case you'll have a lot more."

At this point, he handed to card to Cassie, who immediately stuffed it into her bra. Taking her friends' hands, she ran off, and the three were out the door less than five minutes later. A free shopping spree? Out of the house for the first time in two weeks? Megamall? Sweet!

As the Camaro's wheels spun away from the house, Nate turned to Rick. "So what was that really about?"

"You noticed? Well, I'm going to need to be a bit bossy the next forty-eight hours. The less time I spend arguing before I get into the courtroom, the better. That shopping trip just bought me what is now a precious commodity: time."

"You still didn't give them much time," said Nate, "You don't know girls that well."

"Actually, I know them quite well," said Rick, "I've wooed my fair share."

"And then some," Mike murmured into his glass. Ignoring him, Rick continued.

"I don't actually need the car back that soon. But if I actually told them eleven, I'd get it back at midnight."

"So what do we do in the meantime? And why isn't Nate getting an outfit at the same time?"

"I had Nate bring his -- it's still out in the car. And I just know you have something appropriate from times your clients come to you. And in the meantime, You can show me all the documents you think are relevant. Nate? You ever do any criminal profiling?"

"Not as a specialty, but all cops do to some extent."

"Good. Let's go; time's a-wastin'."

*****

Jenny, in the driver's seat, turned off the road and into the gas station once they reached town.

"The guys already filled up on their way in," pointed out Veronica, confused.

"This is Stan's place. Remember? He has the check for us? And I checked; my bank has a branch in the mall. We can deposit it," Jenny said, getting out of the car.

"Bigger shopping trip!" Cassie exulted from the back seat. She even pumped her fists in the air, so far as the car roof would allow.

Inside, Jenny rang the bell for service. A minute later, out from the back came Stan. "Ah, hello. You'd be here for the check, right?"

Stan was an older gentleman, grey-headed with an ambling demeanor. He had a quiet assurance about him that put Jenny at her ease.

"Yup. That's me."

"Well, I have it still. But I have to ask for some I.D. afore I hand it to ya, 'cause that's the rules."

Jenny reached into her bag and pulled out her wallet. After Stan had the card, it took all of a second for him to holler back to Tina, his wife. She came out, same demeanor as her husband, and about the same age, but with a bit more vigor in her step.

"One of Mike's young ladies?" Tina guessed.

"Yep. Tina, this is Miss Azevedo; Ma'am, this is my wife Tina."

"Pleased to meet you, ma'am," Jenny said, offering her hand. Tina took it, and held it.

"Now, you're keepin' good care of our boy Mike, now, aren't you?" Tina said with a twinkle in her eye, still gripping Jenny's hand.

"Um, we're all friends, and helping out with the hearing as much as we can," Jenny said. Tina let go, then handed her the check with her other hand.

"He's losing his hearing? Aww, that's a shame," said Stan, "Still, it's so quiet 'round here, not missin' much."

"No," said Jenny, "The court hearing. About the laws that got changed?"

"What laws?" Tina said quickly.

"Um, it was rather quietly done, but some people tweaked the laws the same way Mike did, only they did it to force Mike out. The hearing's up at the county courthouse on Monday."

"Well, we'll be there," said Tina, taking the reins from Stan, who still looked confused. "Count on it."

"Thanks. Listen, I have to go now. Nice meeting you, Tina, and thank you both for everything!"

As they watched the car drive away, Tina turned to her husband. "Come on, we got some calls to make."

*****

About an hour down the road, the ladies came upon a rest stop. They got out to switch drivers. Veronica jumped around and did some cartwheels.

"Whoo! Free! FREEEEEEE!" she exclaimed, to the amusement of the truckers, who would certainly remember her on the next cold night. Jenny and Cassie leaned against the car for a minute or so, their breath making fog in the air. As great as Mike's place was, they missed the outside world.

"You know how this makes me feel?" Veronica said, "I feel alive! I feel energized! I'm... I'm ME!"

A few more minutes later, Veronica calmed down enough to be able to get back into the car. It was now Cassie's turn to drive.

Rolling down the road once more, Jenny piped up from the back seat, "And now the cats will come out to play!"

Cassie and Veronica giggled.

"Cats?" Cassie said, "Where did you come up with cats?"

Jenny could feel herself blush mildly. "It was just something Mike said. You guys know he has nicknames for us now?"

"Oh, really?" said Veronica, folding her arms across her ample chest.

"Yeah. You're the tomcat, Vee."

Veronica shrugged. "Could be worse. And I'm the most boyish out of the three of us."

"Cassie's the bobcat."

"Is that a short joke?" Cassie wondered, more out of curiosity than taking offense. When she knelt in front of them, men tended to be thankful for her height.

"I think it might be a tribute to your blowing skills," Jenny confessed. "I've seen him react to it. You're pretty damn good."

"I do my best," said Cassie with feigned humility. If she didn't change the subject very soon, she was going to have to enter herself into the Sixty-Mile-An-Hour Club. "And you, Jen?"

"Oh, me? He, uh, he called me his wildcat."

"Nice," said Veronica, giving Cassie a look across the front seats. Cassie returned it. They both allowed themselves quite small grins. Jenny did not notice, however, as she was concentrating on how best to situate herself so that her long legs could stretch out in the back seat.

"Guys?" she said, realizing the silence, "What? What is it?"

"Nothing," said Veronica. "Cats. I like it."

*****

Back at Mike's house, Rick finally stood up and stretched his stiffening limbs.

"Well, I think that about does it. Everything else is either in town tomorrow, or in court on the day," he said, "Unless you can think of something."

Mike shrugged. "I think we're good."

"Good. Now, if I'm not mistaken, the Playoffs are on."

Downstairs, the men kicked back and enjoyed the game. It was AFC, and the Broncos are NFC, so they really didn't care who won.

Around the start of the third quarter, Rick casually asked, "So, Mike, you hitting it off with any of them?"

"Excuse me?" asked Nate.

"I said 'hitting it off,' Nate. Not 'hitting it.' Although if you want to answer that one, too, Mike, we can have Nate leave the room."

"Not on your life."

"Chill, guys," said Mike. "And no, Rick. I'm not going to lie, they did all try at first, but with everything else going on, I temporarily friendzoned them."

"Damn, that's badass," said Rick. "All that sweetness coming your way and you sidestep it, lickety-split. I am so proud to know you."

"It's not like that," said Mike, "They are actually friends now."

"Did their stupid 'rule' give you any trouble?" Nate asked.

"What?" Rick looked confused.

"They had a rule," Mike explained, "So that if more than one of them like a guy, they each pursue the guy individually, out of sight and mind of the other interested parties. Whoever the guy picks, the guy picks, no hard feelings."

"And this is the first time I've ever seen them all go for the same guy," Nate said. "I guess saving their lives goes a long way."

"It's not like that, either, I swear!" Mike said. He was starting to blush now. "Any time their interest moved to the next level, they made the first move. Every time, I swear."

Nate's hackles lowered a bit at this. He may not have liked thinking about what his sister may or may not have been doing, but as long as she was fully willing he knew he had no right to complain or interfere.

"So you had to let them all down easy, one at a time?" Nate said. "I bet that was fun. I never liked that rule. I've always said it did more harm than good."

"I agree," said Mike. "That's why I contrived a way to get them to break it. It's gone. Kaput."

"Okay," and Nate, "Now I'm impressed."

"How?" asked Rick pointedly.

"What?" Mike's head whipped around.

"How?" Rick's eyes drilled into Mike. "How did you get them to break the rule?"

"I, uh... I made up a party game, and we all played, and I made the rules a bit convoluted, enough so that one of them would complain about it, so that when they did, I could point out that a person can change the rules they themselves made."

"What was the game?" Great. Now Nate was interrogating Mike, too.

"A version of Truth Or Dare, with Spin The Bottle added to see who would be asked and such."