A Midnight Feeding

Dropping her top on the floor, Kelly looked at her daughter. "I suppose you want me to take my shorts off also sweetie."

"Mommy . . . duh . . . if we are really going to share skin to skin bonding you should be completely naked just like me." The tone in her daughter's voice indicated it was a completely dumb question.

Kelly turned shyly away, before pulling down her shorts and panties together in one swift motion. She quickly hopped into the bed as Julie sat there with a triumphant little grin on her adorable face.

After snuggling down under the covers they both began to giggle-maybe to cover the nervousness they felt for being so close, and so very naked, right next to each other.

After their little giggling fit ended, Kelly whispered, "So does grandmother know you sleep naked pumpkin?"

"No, she doesn't come into my room hardly ever now that I'm older."

"What about when you were younger? I remember she never was one for tucking in or good night kisses . . . at least not with me."

"Me neither."

"One time though I had a really bad dream where I woke up screaming and she came into my room and held me and gave me Eskimo kisses until I fell back to sleep."

"Really, I feel deprived. I never got Eskimo kisses from her."

Kelly snuggled closer to her daughter under the covers. She leaned her head down so their foreheads were just touching. "Well I can give you Eskimo kisses baby. Like this."

Kelly rubbed her nose against her daughter's in the traditional fashion as Julie started to giggle. "Those are nice but I prefer the real thing, Mommy."

Kelly pursed her lips and gave Julie several small kisses on first her nose, and then her forehead, while Julie slipped her arms over her shoulders. "Not bad, but this is better."

Their lips come together gently as they share several unhurried kisses, sweet and delicate, before irrefutably they began to turn into something more serious. The kisses continued unabated as they slid deeper under the covers, and deeper into their love for one another. At the very last possible moment, sensing things were spinning out of control, Kelly pulled back.

"Time to go to sleep baby," she whispered.

"I suppose so . . ." Julie sighed turning her back on her mother.

With neither saying a word, it seemed to have come natural to them, they shifted their bodies into a spooning position. Both fell quickly asleep in each other's tight embrace. It was a fitting end to a night full of loving mischief.

As they slept peacefully it snowed; piling up a good ten to twelve inches by the dawn. The blanket of snow stretched from southern Ohio all the way down into Kentucky. Looking out the front window and seeing a lovely unbroken plain of snow, Kelly, had a sense of hope. Maybe her parents will get snowed in, and won't be able to make it home from Kentucky, giving her another night alone with Julie.

As she made breakfast, and listened to the weather forecast for the day, her hope grew. The forecast called for high winds and more snow, resulting in unsafe travel conditions. The snow might even last into the next day.

Around ten thirty, just after she finished up with the eggs and bacon her phone buzzed. It was her mom with the news they are going to be spending a second night in Kentucky.

Her mood brightened, Kelly decided to surprise her daughter by bringing her breakfast in bed. She prepared a tray while praying Julie didn't wake up and ruin her surprise.

Her prayers were answered when, after entering the bedroom, tray in hand, she observed Julie still sleeping peacefully. Not wanting her breakfast to get cold, Kelly sat the tray down on the nightstand, leaned over and gave Julie a small kiss on her forehead.

"Wake up sleepy head, your mom brought you breakfast in bed."

"No . . . more sleep," Julie grumbled trying to turn away.

"Uh-uh, it's already almost eleven, time for you to get up and face the day. Now don't be a grumble bunny and give me a hard time as I have good news."

Julie slowly sat up as Kelly handed her a tee shirt from the closet. "Here put this on. You maybe can sleep naked, but you can't eat your breakfast naked hon."

Julie smiled and pulled the tee shirt on over her head. "So what's the good news?"

"Your grandparents are going to be stuck in Kentucky for another day."

"That is good news, Mom!"

They decided to spend the day outside playing in the snow. First, they built a snowman, complete with carrot nose, and then engaged in a long running snowball fight, before finally taking a break for lunch. After lunch, they headed back outside for some sledding on the large hill that sloped down from the backyard.

It reminded Kelly of her childhood, but only better. She had been an only child with few friends to play with. Now, finally, she had someone to share in her snow play. Just as it started to get dark, they finally headed inside, tired and cold from playing in the snow the whole day.

Julie surprised her mother by insisting on making dinner. "Unlike you Mom," she teased, "I listened to Grandma when she gave me cooking tips."

"Well you got me there, sweetie. I never was one much for cooking. I suppose you wanna just slum it and sit in front of the TV like a couple of hobos while we eat dinner?"

"Actually, I was thinking, if I am going to go all out in cooking my specialty-"

"What is your specialty?"

"Secret . . . Anyways I am thinking quite the opposite would be nice. Instead of sitting in front of the TV why don't we . . ." She paused, breaking into a mischievous smile that Kelly has come to understand meant her daughter was cooking something up in that fledgling teenage brain of hers- besides what she was planning for dinner.

"Well, come on, don't keep me in suspense. Tell me."

"OK, how about we totally unplug for the night. Go old fashioned all the way."

"Sounds interesting. Do explain daughter."

"First, we both turn off our phones and put them out of sight. They don't exist. Second, no TV . . . in fact as soon as I am done cooking in the kitchen we kill the power throughout the whole house. We will turn off the breakers for everything except the fridge. Don't want to spoil the food."

"Hey that does sound interesting, but what are we going to do eat in the dark, and then spend the rest of the night stumbling around in it."

"Come on Mom, you know Grandma's motto . . . always be prepared."

"Oh, yes of course, candles. She used to always have plenty of candles on hand . . . just in case."

"Nothing has changed. Are you up for a candlelight dinner and then staying unplugged the rest of the night? I just think it would be really nice to share a quiet evening at home with my mother. No buzzing phones, no racket on the TV, no bright lights, just peace and quiet with you and me connecting on a human level without all the gadgets."

"Well-" Kelly was about to answer when a sudden loud racket rumbled throughout the old farmhouse. It was the furnace down in the basement kicking on. "That will be no good coming on and off all night for your idea of peace and quiet. Jesus, I thought they would have replaced that thing by now."

"They did replace it . . . like ten years ago. The new one, if you can call it that, is getting as bad as the old one they replaced. When we turn off the breakers we can kill the power to that dumb old thing."

"What and freeze to death in our dark home?" Kelly said with a laugh.

"Oh Mother, don't be so dramatic. We have blankets to keep warm, a fireplace, and best of all . . . each other."

"You make it sound so tempting how can I say no? Can we at least keep the furnace on until dinner so I can enjoy whatever secret dish you plan on preparing in relative warmth?"

"I guess so." Julie replied heading back into the kitchen while reminding her mother she was not allowed there. Kelly agreed once again marveling at her daughter's sense of drama.

Kelly took her time upstairs; putting on makeup and fixing up her hair nicely before slipping back into her only pair of jeans and putting on the nicer of the two spare sweaters she packed for her overnight trip.

Going back downstairs, the first thing that hit her was the enticing aroma of baked chicken coming from the kitchen. Approaching the entrance, she paused and called out, "How much longer hon? And it smells delicious by the way."

"Just finished. Hey, can you go down to the basement and kill the power."

"Sure," Kelly answered before heading to the basement.

Ten minutes later, they were sitting across from each other at the candle lit dining room table enjoying Julie's special dinner: baked chicken, with homemade mashed potatoes.

With dinner out of the way, there was nothing left to do but allow the quiet ambiance of the silent house, flickering candles, and maybe most of all, the delicious red wine, to weave a spell around both of their hearts.

During the meal, Kelly consumed roughly a glass and half of the red wine, while Julie was only about half way through her first glass. At the consistent urging of her mother to "not drink too much, too fast, like last night," Julie was carefully pacing herself.

After dinner, still sitting relaxed at the table, they made small talk before Julie, now picking up the pace and sipping her wine faster, started to tease her mother.

"You know it would only be fair if you got really wasted like me last night, Mom, so why don't you stop nursing that wine and start drinking. I am catching up you know."

Kelly, responding to her daughter's challenge, took a large drink of her wine, polishing off the last bit of it. "Why would it be fair?"

Julie quickly refilled both their glasses from the bottle sitting between them. "It's simple. Last night you got to see me drunk while you barely had anything to drink."

"Hey, I had enough to where I was not exactly sober."

"But you weren't smashed like me either."

"True."

"So tonight, how about you drink enough to let me see how you act when you're drunk. It will be fun."

"Maybe. I mean I haven't been drunk in a long time, but sweetie, your mother . . . ahh, tends to get really emotional when drunk. Maybe you don't want to see that."

"Yes I do," Julie snapped right back, "please, do it for me so you can start spilling all your secrets about California and other stuff."

Kelly knew if she allowed herself to get drunk, like her daughter obviously wanted, she probably would spill all her secrets. Kelly sighed, tipping the glass back, and draining the balance of her wine in three quick swallows.

The full glass of wine, her third, left Kelly feeling dizzy, but more importantly, it left her wanting more as they retired to the family room.

Together they managed to get a nice fire going, before settling down next to each other on the sofa. "So what secrets do you want to hear first?" Kelly asked her.

"Tell me about your life in exotic California."

Kelly smiled to herself at Julie calling California "exotic". She remembered, being eighteen and thinking of California in exactly the same manner. Maybe it's natural for all juvenile girls from small Midwestern towns to think of life in sunny California as being exotic.

While sipping on her wine almost continuously, Kelly told Julie all about her life there. By the time she was done answering all of Julie's breathless questions the temperature inside the house had dropped to the point where sitting on the sofa across the room from the fire was not keeping them warm.

"Mom, I am cold." Julie complained after sitting her empty wine glass down on the coffee table. She was, just like her mother, dressed in a sweater and pair of jeans.

"Yeah, me too. Maybe it time we thought about going to bed, but not naked like last night honey. I hope you agree that is probably much too cold for that."

"Yeah, especially without the furnace on the bedrooms upstairs will be really cold."

"We could always turn it back on."

"No way! It will ruin our peace and quiet. Besides, I have a better idea," Julie whispered to her mother.

"I'm all e-ears," Kelly said, suppressing a burp as her speech was starting to slur. She had polished off, by her last count, four glasses of wine which was about one past her normal limit.

"Well I was thinking we could sleep cuddled together down here in front of the fire. I could bring down some blankets and pillows and we could make a nice little sleeping area right in front of the fireplace."

"I'm not sure about that, hon. Maybe I will let you sleep here with a couple blankets and I will be OK over on the couch."

"Mom," Kelly reached out touching her arm lightly. "I know there is something bothering you about . . . you know, cuddling with me in front of the old fireplace. I was not so drunk last night that I didn't catch that."

"Oh honey . . . I'm not-"

"Don't you trust me?"

"Of course, but what is really bothering me. It's embarrassing and could be hurtful to you."

"Listen, I am going upstairs for a minute to grab the blankets and change into my jammies since Mommy told her little girl we can't sleep naked tonight."

"Oh Christ Julie, that again . . . more role playing."

"Well if you don't want to fine." Julie retorted quickly. "I will be back in a minute then . . . Mother." She headed off toward the stairs, stomping, before Kelly decided she better not let her leave mad.

"Honey, wait. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. It's jus-"

Julie reached the stairs then whirled on her mother. "Mom, you hurt me by keeping secrets and not trusting me."

"Actually, you are right . . . if I can't trust my little girl who can I trust? You go upstairs and put your jammies on and grab some blankets while I freshen up the fire and then get ready for bed myself and then we can talk."

"Cuddled in front of the fireplace, Mommy?"

"Yes little girl, cuddled in front of the fireplace."

Kelly went to the downstairs bathroom after grabbing her small overnight suitcase. Inside the bathroom, she pinned her pretty blond hair up, stripped off her Levi's and sweater, and threw on her favorite powder blue UCLA sweatshirt.

Coming back out to the couch, she refilled her wine glass, figuring one more glass should do the trick making her just drunk enough to confess everything.

Julie paused at the bottom of the stairs just in time to watch her mother finish off the last of her wine. She grinned to herself, knowing her mother drinking more when she has obviously already had enough, can only mean one thing—she planned on making a full confession. She took a deep breath ready to reprise her role from last night as "mommy's little girl".

"Mommy, is getting really drunk I see." Julie announced as she bounded into the room carrying a load of blankets. She put a couple down on the couch, before dropping the rest on the floor in front of the fireplace.

"Y-yes s-she is . . . and you should be warned I am feeling really vulnerable so you should be extra nice to me."

Being careful to use her sweetest "little girl" voice, Julie replied. "Of course, Mommy." She began to spread the blankets out on the rug in front of the dancing fire.

Kelly watched her a moment. "Those are some jammies honey. Maybe not the best ones for a cold night."

"Lucky then I have you to keep me warm during the night," Julie answered straightening back up and turning to her mother with a bright smile on her face.

"And lucky I have some cute little kitty to keep me warm also." Kelly replied with a smirk making an obvious reference to her daughter's sexy attire. The little white half tee shirt she was wearing, along with the matching white panties with pink piping, were adorned with the whimsical Hello Kitty logo.

As Julie stood there, hands clasped behind her back, Kelly noticed how her daughter's half tee shirt was easily short enough, coming down to just barely below her tits, to leave her perfectly flat teenage tummy uncovered, while also tight enough to make the fact she wasn't wearing a bra blatantly obvious.

I guess she is in a mood to show off so my talking to her last night about having beautiful breasts must have went straight to her head, Kelly mused before reaching out and grabbing one of the blankets off the couch. She carefully wrapped it around herself before plopping down on the couch.

Patting the couch, she invited Julie to sit down. Julie accepted happily nestling her head on her mother's shoulder as Kelly adjusted the blanket so it covered the both of them.

Kelly took a deep breath preparing to spill her guts. She decided she must talk slowly, carefully so as to not slur her words. The last thing she wanted was for her confession to sound like the ramblings of some drunk person.

"It was such a romantic dream at first . . . me and Tommy, high school sweethearts. He was so perfect that even your grandparents could not find fault with him. After I got pregnant, the plan was for him to move in with us after we got married."

"Wait, you mean he didn't leave right away after he found out you were pregnant."

"No, at first he seemed fine with it. He would have graduated by the time the baby came and your grandfather was going to get him a job at the plant over in South Millington. Me . . . silly me . . . my only concern was finding a dress for the wedding and decorating what was going to be your room. Once I found out I was having a girl I started imaging what your room would look like."

Kelly paused turning to Julie. "Do I have to tell you everything, pumpkin?"

Julie smiled, grabbing the bottle of wine, she filled up the empty wine glass sitting nearby on the coffee table. She took a big swallow of it, draining half the glass, before offering it to her mother.

"Hon, I have had enough."

"It will make it easier. Please I need to hear everything."

Kelly sighed, knowing she was already way past her limit, but took the glass anyways taking a pair of large swallows.

"Fine, here is the rest of the sad story." Kelly pulled the blanket around them tighter. "I was about eight months pregnant looking as big as a house and feeling totally unattractive when Tommy told me he wasn't ready for a baby or ready to be married."

"What an asshole. I am glad he is not in my life or I would smack him."

"You and me both, sweetie. Anyways, I freaked out. God this is embarrassing, but I even talked about getting an abortion. Sorry honey, but you wanted to hear everything."

Julie squeezed her hand. "It's OK. A good friend of mine got knocked up her junior year in high school and she had one. I talked to her and I think I understand why."

"So you can forgive me?"

"Only if you promise to make it up to me tonight."

"I promise. I swear honey you are the bes-"

"Shh save it for later, Mommy. For when we are curled up under the blankets in each other arms, but for now just tell me the rest."

"The rest . . ." Kelly snorted, "all makes me look like crap. Your grandmother would hear nothing of me having an abortion. No matter though as it was only a passing thing for me. I mean if I really wanted one I would have done it anyways. Like you I was a headstrong teenager back then. We came to an agreement after I started planning to go to California. I would have the baby and then sign all parental rights over to them and . . . well, that is what happened."

"You gave me up and went to California? By yourself? You didn't run off with another man or anything?"

"No, there was never another man. I just seen my life as a single mother all laid out. No college, a job as an office worker at the plant, trying to find a man to accept me and my new born baby. Hmm, good luck with that is this little shit town. I had hopes and dreams of something better than being a mommy I guess. Looking at you now and knowing what I missed I see how wrong I was to go running off."