Amy - Changes of Venue

Amy turned without a word and went upstairs to our bedroom. The door slammed shut and I heard the lock click. Lys grabbed my shoulder and pulled me to my office.

"Holy hell, Pop. You've done it now," she said.

Chris followed us to the office and was looking wide-eyed, not knowing what just happened but clearly more perceptive than I was. "Go play," Lys said, and he vanished.

Lys and I looked at each other, the error of what I just did slowly dawning on me. My flippant response was just that: a flippant response that was not seen as humorous or charming.

"You do know that she grew up kinda poor, right," Lys asked, "Both parents worked. Even Allan worked to help out as soon as he could."

"I didn't know that," I admitted quietly.

"Amy gets that you have money. She gets that you don't shy away from spending money when you need to. But to her the loss of an income source is a potential disaster."

"And I made a joke about it," I winced. Lys nodded in agreement.

"I need to..."

"No," Lys corrected me, "you need to give her time to calm down. Go play a game with Chris and be a dad. He needs to reassured that everything is okay."

Lys's advice was sound, but she saw hesitation in my eyes. She pointed toward the back yard where Chris went and said, "Go!" I decided it best to follow instructions.

I caught the gist of what happened next from both women, and I pieced the conversation together.

Lys went upstairs and knocked on my bedroom door.

"Go away, David," Amy answered.

"It's me," Lys replied, "not Pop."

Amy opened the door and asked Lys if she was there to tell her not to be mad at me.

"No, I'm here to tell you he was being an asshole."

Amy nodded and went into the room, leaving the door open for Lys to follow. Lys took a seat at the end of the bed and she and Amy looked at each other and laughed.

"I just don't get what the hell is wrong with him," Amy said, "so nonchalant about losing a job. Why the hell isn't he devastated?"

Lys thought for a minute and answered, "Pop is a genius. A lot of people like him have no filter when it comes to saying dumb shit to their loved ones. Part of his flippancy is his way of dealing with the fact that it does terrify him to some degree."

Amy prompted her, "so you're saying?"

"He's an asshole," Lys concluded. Both women fell back with laughter. "But you realize he's a rich asshole, right?"

"Yeah, but can he afford all of this? Can he afford funding me and the loss of his job? Can he...can he afford it?"

Lys scoffed, "Of course he can. When he was drunk, Sophie and I saw the accounts that he and Ma had. He has no worries. And if he and the guys do this all on their own, even if it takes a little longer, that means more of the money is theirs for profit. He could retire tomorrow and barely take a hit."

"This just isn't how I was raised," Amy lamented.

"And I told him that. Pop gets into his own reality when he's excited. He feels like shit, and he wants to apologize but I say don't let him off the hook too easily."

Lys and Amy laughed and kept talking. They wouldn't tell me what about and I didn't press them, but I have no doubt Lys was telling her about all the dumb shit I'd done over the years.

Part VIII

Chris and I came back inside an hour later to find Lys making dinner. Sophie had gotten home and if the smirk on her face was any indication, she knew what happened by now. When the table was set, Amy came down and sat in her usual seat. We ate dinner as a family, and I listened with interest as Lys and Amy talked about applicants for the second funeral director position. Afterwards, Amy announced that she was going to read some continuing ed material and went upstairs to the bedroom, closing the door.

I looked at Lys who shook her head no and I stayed downstairs, hanging out with Chris. We broke out the Switch and played Mario Kart for a couple of hours. He kicked my ass, no mean feat. After Chris went to bed, I decided to download the new game engine that Cooper had brought up so I could look around its features. It was well after midnight when Lys poked her head in my office and simply said, "The door is open."

I shut down my workstation and went upstairs. Amy was already lying down, wrapped in the sheet. I undressed and climbed in, noting that for the first time since the camping trip that Amy was dressed in full pajamas. I had no doubt that her attire included underwear, too; all blockades were up.

"Hey, Amy," I said. She grunted.

"Love you, Sis," I said, and she responded flatly saying that she loved me too. Well, at least there was that.

I laid down and put my arm around her. "It's too hot," she said and rolled away. I spent the next hour trying to fall asleep. I know I finally did fall asleep but only because sometime in the wee hours of the morning Amy woke me up.

"Dave, I..."

"I'm sorry, Amy," I said, "I was insensitive."

"No," Amy corrected, "you were an asshole. But, I overreacted, too."

I wasn't about to contradict her, so I listened as she talked about how jobs and money were always a sensitive topic when she was growing up as a teen. Things got better for her family in her twenties but then the 2008 crash happened and her parents nearly lost their house, and they would have if she and her brothers hadn't banded together to help.

I reached out and grabbed her hand in the darkness and squeezed it. She pulled our combined hands up and kissed mine.

The bed shook for a moment, and I assumed that she was just getting comfortable but after a moment she grabbed my hand again and guided me to her body. Flesh. I felt flesh. Amy had shrugged off her pajamas and now was next to me, naked. I must have hesitated because she said, "This is where we have make-up sex, dumbass."

My head disappeared under the blanket, and I kissed my way down Amy's stomach. I slid my tongue from her naval on down to her pussy lips, which were already wet. I paused a second to enjoy my sister's arousal before I plunged my tongue into her core. Her thighs clamped tight around my head and Amy made a very hungry sound out of her mouth.

I began to lick slowly up and down, listening to Amy's mewling cries. "Make me cum, David," she urged. I latched my mouth to her clit, sucking it into my mouth and veritably assaulting it with my tongue. Amy's body went rigid, and she buried her hand in her mouth in an effort to muffle her screams.

"You okay," I asked Amy.

"Yeah," she answered between breaths.

"You want some brother-dick, now?"

With a laugh, Amy answered, "Yes, please." She pulled me up to her face, kissing me and tasting herself in the process. If I was hard before there are no words to describe what I was now. I wasted no time in sliding my dick into her.

Amy's eyes crossed as I began to thrust into her. She arched her back to meet every thrust, driving me deeper inside her. I could tell by her reaction that this was going to be a big orgasm.

Amy's hands dug into my shoulders, and I felt her nails rake my skin. Amy's eyes widened and her mouth froze open in a silent scream. Her orgasmic convulsions had me legitimately concerned she was seizing for a second before she grabbed my head and pulled me in for another kiss.

I couldn't hold back any longer and my own climax hit like an earthquake. By the time Amy and I both recovered she had started her insidious after-orgasm laughing. I shook my head at her and rolled over, taking her laughing frame in my arms, and holding her as we fell asleep.

Part IX

The next few weeks were amazing, and they flew by faster than I could blink. Amy was able to hire an assistant funeral director and the extra hands made it a lot easier for her at work. The decreased work stress led to a better home life, except for the proverbial one week a month. Jags, Cooper, and I had started experimenting with the new graphics and game engine.

At one point, Amy asked the three of us why we didn't develop our own, we clearly had the talent. "Maybe next time," we told her, "starting over once was more than enough."

One morning in mid-August, Amy woke up with a puffy face, wheezing, and a bad cough with a fever. My heart dropped to my shoes. It had been almost three years to the day that Grace had passed away from COVID, and I had a good old fashioned panic attack when Amy got sick. We masked her up and ran her to see Doc Sophie who tested Amy for COVID and examined her; I could see Sophie was just as worried as I was.

After fifteen minutes, Sophie declared, with visible relief, that Amy was negative, "But," Sophie said, "she has one hell of a sinus infection." Sophie sent us away with a prescription for an antibiotic and a huge sense of relief. That night when we went to bed, I almost broke a three-year tradition by offering a prayer of thanks.

In retrospect this was one of the last "normal" nights we ever had.

Part X

August 18th arrived. For those of you out there who are astute, you have already surmised, it was the anniversary of Grace's passing. In prior years the girls would have been on eggshells, worried I would tip back into the comfort of booze. This year, the mood was very different. Somber, yes but also hopeful.

We had all gathered in my living room. Sophie, Rose, Lys, and I made sure we had this day together every year and this year we were joined by Amy, Chris, and Clare. Amy kept us engaged all day to keep us from getting stuck in our own thoughts. She asked us questions about Grace and had us tell happy stories anytime we started to lag behind.

The bigger topic of the day (expectant mothers please excuse the pun) was the imminent arrival of David Seth Reed, my grandson. Steve and Rose had let slip the name, honoring one of Steve's grandfathers and me, that morning. Rose had told her sister that the act of uttering his name would constitute a summoning and that she would go into labor. Poor Rose was only a few days overdue but made no secret that if the doctor called and offered to induce labor, she'd happily take her up on it.

Amy was finally feeling better after her bout with the sinus infection. Once the fevers stopped and she stopped puking from the postnasal drip Amy recovered pretty quickly, though like me the short term antibiotics didn't do squat for her so she was on a full ten days of a broad spectrum antibiotic which means she spent a lot of time in the bathroom, anyway. This was the first day she felt even remotely close to one hundred percent.

At dinner, while I was avoiding the smell of the hot wings being handed around, Clare said, "I'm going to be seventeen soon. I'm going to need a car to drive to school..."

"You can take the school bus," Amy countered.

"...and to drive to work," Clare finished.

"Work," Amy asked, surprised, "Where did you get a job?"

"Frank's," Clare said, "he asked if me I wanted to work in the kitchen after Rose's baby is born." Amy looked like she was struggling for an answer. I think it was for Amy to admit that her daughter was ready to take on responsibilities.

"The Culinary Institute of America gives credit to students with restaurant experience," I said.

I watched Amy's expression change from reluctance to nervous approval. "Okay," she said, "but only if you keep your grades up." Clare gave her mother a smile that came close to the smile Amy used to steal my heart in the spring.

Rose excused herself and waddled to the bathroom, muttering about pregnancy and bladders. I glanced at Steve and said, "if this were a sitcom, she'd come out and say her water broke." Steve nodded in agreement, and we all laughed.

Lys said, "why don't we play cards tonight? It's a perfect night."

"I'm all for cards but I'm not playing 'Uno' for money against you, again," I said. Lys tried to look hurt, but she was already laughing too hard.

Lys started clearing the table while I hunted out the playing cards. I heard Rose come out of the bathroom and stand somewhere behind us. "Steve," she said, "the summoning worked."

The conversation in the room stopped and all eyes went to Rose. Sophie broke the silence, asking, "Water broke?

"Yeah."

Amy laughed and said to Steve and me, "We'll be right back after these messages."

The room erupted into action. Sophie sat Rose down to look her over. Chris, who'd watched way too many old cartoons lately wanted to get hot water. Clare and Amy started gathering everything to take Rose to the hospital. Steve turned to me. The poor kid looked grey/green and was already shaking.

"Hey," I said to him, "All you have to do is standby; Rose has the hard part. You got this."

Slowly, Steve stood up. He was very mechanical at first, but he quickly began to function and then moved quickly. He and I got Rose to the car, loading Doc. Sophie with them and they took off to the hospital. I wrangled everyone who stayed behind and we rushed on our way.

We arrived at the hospital just behind the others and I got to see my youngest daughter being wheeled away to become a mom. The nurses gowned Steve and swiftly, he was gone, too. The rest of us found chairs and settled in for the long wait.

Part XI

Shortly before midnight, a nurse poked her head through the Labor and Delivery doors. She pointed at Amy and me and said, "Grandma and Grandpop, mom is asking for you."

Amy started to protest that she wasn't Rose's mother, but I took her hand and pulled her along. "Yes, you are," I said, making her smile.

The nurse led us to Rose's room. The new Momma was holding her baby and the new Dad was slumped in a chair, succumbing to emotion and exhaustion.

"Hey Daddy," Rose said when she saw me, "I want you to meet someone." She carefully handed the wriggling newborn to me. "David Drake," she continued, "meet David Seth Reed."

I cradled my grandson in my arms. He was perfect. He was a perfect miniature human. And I already planned on teaching him to drive his mom crazy like she drove Grace and me as soon as he was able to learn. But more so than that, I remembered being in a room like this one two decades ago sitting in a chair like the one Steve was in. I think I lamented that I would never be in Steve's spot again.

I heard Amy's voice calling to me, it sounded like she was rooms away. My attention was a little hyper focused on little David. I heard Amy again, "Dave, are you okay?"

I blinked a few times to clear my eyes and smiled at her. I said, "Yeah, just a little flash back." I very reluctantly handed little David back to Amy who cooed at the newborn.

Soon, the nurse was giving us the eye, so I kissed Rose goodnight and Amy and I were ushered from the room. Steve's parents went in next. By hospital rules, anyone here this late shouldn't be taken back to the patient rooms, but nobody was going to say "no" to the family of Sophie.

As we came back into the waiting room, I thought aloud, "Did anyone call Aunt Ellie?"

Lys nodded sleepily, "Yeah, they'll all be out tomorrow. You two look dead on your feet, go get some sleep." I opened my mouth to deny that I was tired but only a yawn came out.

I gathered Chris up from where he was sleeping, curled up on a bench, and Amy, Clare, and I trudged to the Jeep. As we drove home, Clare asked, "I guess this means I'll be moving in with you and mom, now?"

"Yeah," Amy confirmed, "but you would have had to for school, anyway."

Though it was a short drive home, Clare fell asleep just like her brother.

Part XII

As the Jeep lurched a bit after I turned off the road onto my gravel drive, I heard Clare grumble as she woke up. It didn't take long going from the garage to our bedrooms. Clare helped Chris to his room, if she hadn't, he would have happily slept in the Jeep all night.

In our room, I sat on the bed while Amy used the ensuite. She came into the main bedroom naked and humming. She had a beautiful smile on her face. "What has you so happy," I asked.

"I got to hold my first great nephew and grandson at the same time." Amy looked incredibly happy and incredibly beautiful.

"Well," I began, "technically he is not your grandson. We're not married."

"Oh," she said as she climbed into my lap," is that a proposal, finally?"

"Could be," I replied, "but I don't have a ring."

Amy looked thoughtful for several seconds before quietly saying, "I don't need a ring."

I let several seconds pass before I spoke again. "So, if this is proposal," I prompted, "is that a 'yes'?"

"My parents..." she started to say then trailed off.

This was exactly what I'd been worried about since July. She was afraid to tell her parents about us, which was a reasonable reaction, but I didn't think they'd object, either. I asked, "Do you think they won't support us?"

"I don't. But I don't know, either." I could tell this was upsetting her. She climbed off my lap and lay down with her back to me. I took the hint and held her from behind. She immediately sighed and settled into my arms. I knew that my dick was poking her in the ass.

After several minutes, Amy muttered something that sounded like, "fuck it," and she rolled over to face me. "Yes," she said.

"Yes, what? You really don't think that your parents would understand and support us?"

Amy shook her head, "no asshole, not that. Yes, I'll marry you."

It took a moment for that declaration to sink through my sleep-deprived brain but when it did I grabbed Amy close and kissed her. I began to try to find my words and I was failing miserably. After a few seconds of stuttering, Amy put her finger to my lips.

"How about you stop trying to talk and give me some fiancé dick?"

We rolled in bed again until I was on top of Amy. One more quick adjustment later and I was sinking my cock into her, causing us both to let out a satisfied groan. I took my time as we made love, allowing both of our orgasms to build slowly. Amy cried out as she came, and I followed a moment later.

I drifted to sleep next to my sister/girlfriend/soon to be wife as she tried to suppress her after orgasm giggles. I remember thinking that nothing could ever break how good we felt in that moment.