Little Waves

We ate, and caught up some more. The storm did its damnedest to silence us, and then, just as fast as it came on, it was over. The sun broke through, and apart from the damp earth outside, it was like it had never happened. We moved outside, standing on the deck and talking a few minutes more. I didn't want Eva to go. It was more than her good looks. I was having a pleasant time, and our conversation flowed far more naturally than any I had in years. Still, she had her life, and I had mine, and soon enough I was seeing her down the stairs back to the path down to the lake and her own home.

"Don't be a stranger," she said.

"Same to you. If you need anything, you know where I am."

I watched her go. The way her ass jiggled in those jeans, I couldn't help but think of her on her hands and knees, me thrusting into her, that ass rippling. She must have sensed my eyes lingering on her, because she looked over her shoulder...

...and smiled.

* * *

I spent that entire afternoon hammering out the scene pretty much as Eva suggested, the words flowing out of me to such a degree I forgot to stop and stretch, and went to bed that night with a cramp in my back and neck. My sleep, as you can imagine, was full of images of a certain long-nosed, full-bodied beauty smiling at me.

Ever since I started getting into working out again in my mid-twenties, mornings had always been my ideal time to do it. Back then, it was because of my schedule. I commuted from Pike Bridge to the city to work a boring office job, and by the time I got home at night, I was too drained with it all to get in much of a workout. So instead, on the advice of my brother, a health nut, I tried working out first thing in the morning. To my surprise, it worked. I had lots more energy for the drive, I came into work feeling happier, and it led eventually to me dropping a good thirty or forty pounds.

Now I worked out religiously in the cool mornings. Sometime after seven, I was doing half-kneeling presses with my kettlebells, a fine sheen of sweat on me. Whereas I'd once been what could conservatively be called chubby, I now leaned more towards... well, lean. I wasn't shredded -- I liked food way too much for that -- but I had a nice, solid pad of muscles. I could probably stand to get in more cardio, and now I had the perfect excuse in Eva and her college friends, if they liked to jog too.

That thought led to another. I wanted to see her again, and I really did owe her a thank you for helping me with that scene the day before. I could combine the two, I thought, and I knew how. She liked the tea the day before, and mentioned she once had an electric kettle but it was lost in a move. So once I finished up my workout and showered, I decided a drive into Pike Bridge was in order.

What was supposed to be a quick trip ended up being a few hours. I picked up groceries I couldn't get out in the countryside, had an impromptu breakfast with my brother and his wife, and spent the bulk of my time trying to track down an electric kettle, which I wound up finding at the hardware store, of all places. While I was there, Ross Walsh, the manager, pointed out to me that it was the Fourth of July in just days, and hey, didn't I need a barbeque?

I did, I decided, and we crammed it into the back of my Jeep. By that point, I was feeling good and mellow, and decided it was late enough in the day I could drop in on Eva and her friends without waking anyone up.

The funny thing about the lake homes was that I could walk and tell you pretty much where and how far anyone's home was. But driving, I got all mixed up. Even if I knew Eva's house was just four or five houses from mine, I thought it was a longer drive than that, and wound up having to turn around.

When I did pull into their driveway and parked behind a pastel blue Beetle, I was greeted in the best possible way. The house, like mine, had a wraparound porch that encompassed three sides, and like mine, it had a set of stairs leading down to the driveway. Down those stairs came Eva in the tiniest -- and I mean tiniest -- pair of denim cutoffs I'd ever seen, along with a cropped cherry red top that made her bounce in ways that seemed to defy gravity.

Fuck me. I should have bought another bottle of lotion because whether or not it was moral, I was going to need it that summer.

Until that moment, I wasn't sure if I was being too stalkerish or clingy or whatever, but her smile was wide and genuine, and as I stepped out, she said, "Alex! Hey!"

"Hey," I said. She came to me and gave me a hug, no doubt as a means to kill me by heart attack. Her nipples were very stiff, and there was a very distinct lack of a bra between us. Fuck fuck fuck, absolutely no chance I wasn't going to stiffen. When she pulled back, I fought the urge to clear my throat. "I, ah, I wanted to say thank you for your help yesterday walking through that scene with me. So I got you a thank you gift."

"Ohhh, you didn't have to do that."

"It's nothing big. I needed to run to Pike Bridge anyways so I picked you up an electric kettle and a tea assortment."

"Ohhh, thank you! That's perfect."

I heard a French door slide open as I dug in the back for the tea and the kettle. When I turned back to Eva, another young woman was coming down the steps, also in a crop top and in creamy shorts that didn't do much less to hide her thighs than Eva's. And fuck me, she was just as busty, with deep brown skin and frizzy hair that came down to her shoulders. She had huge eyes, and I don't mean that as innuendo, though her breasts were certainly plentiful too. Those eyes danced as she grinned wide.

"Is this him?" she asked.

"This is him," Eva said. "Alex, Cheyenne. Look, he got me a kettle!"

Cheyenne's smile became quizzical. "A... kettle?"

"Ah, she mentioned she lost hers in a move, so I thought since she seemed to like her tea... yeah, kind of dumb."

Eva smacked my arm as she cradled the kettle to her breast with the other. "Don't you say that. I love it. Really. I do."

"Oh, I didn't mean... that's me, always ruining a moment," Cheyenne said. "But I'm glad she finally came over and said hello. Took her long enough."

"Cheyenne!" Eva said, blushing hard.

"Uh," I said, utterly floored at what I imagined I was hearing. "Sorry?"

"Oh, she has a big-time crush on you."

"Cheyenne!" Eva said again, more sharply, but her friend reached out and covered her mouth playfully and kept going.

"When her parents told her you were living out here now, she practically begged me to come stay so she could say-"

"Oh my God, Cheyenne!"

"Wait. She told me..." I said.

"Oh, I know what she told you," Cheyenne said, grinning wide. "We have gone through a serious battery shortage in this house since she came here."

Eva darted for the house, clutching her tea kettle the whole way. She turned around at the door, and bellowed, "I'm going to murder you."

"No, you're not. You'd go the next three weeks without getting your thighs around his yummy head, and you'd regret it the rest of your life." Cheyenne eyed me up and down as Eva yanked open the door and stormed inside. "She has had a thing for you for forever. When you got famous, we never heard the end of it."

"I... Eva? Really?"

"Oh come on. Don't tell me you don't have a little something for her too."

"She was my neighbor's kid."

"She's not anymore. And I don't think anyone would drive an hour one way to pick up a gift like that for someone who wasn't on his radar."

"Ah jeez," I said, my cheeks burning.

"Listen, she's not crazy or anything. I don't mean she came out here to stalk you. She came out here because she wanted to shoot her shot. If that's really not what you want, let her down gentle. Okay? She's my best friend and... she deserves the best. To be happy. So just be sweet to her."

"I... I will. Uh. Do you all have plans for Fourth of July?"

She laughed. "Oh yeah. Margaritas, bikinis, watching the fireworks. Why?"

"I just bought a barbeque, because how do you live on the lake without one? I was thinking burgers and ribs, if you and your friends are interested."

"And Eva."

"Yeah, if she's not too embarrassed."

"She won't be. She's shy, but she didn't put on those shorts this morning just to hang out with us."

"You mean..."

"You, Mr. Writer Man. She was hoping you'd come by, or she'd see you on a walk again." With that, Cheyenne turned and sashayed her way to the house, her own ass nearly as tempting and juicy as Eva's. She looked over her shoulder at me and winked.

A bottle of lotion? Fuck, I was going to need gallons.

* * *

Without knowing how to reach out to Eva and tell her she didn't need to be embarrassed, I let her make the next move, and it came sooner than I expected. That night, I was having a beer out on the deck and listening to the crickets and other wildlife, along with the faint music drifting to me from what had to be Eva's place. My closest next-door neighbors were grilling something that smelled damn good, and I was just thinking about testing out my own barbeque when I got an email ding on my phone.

I glanced at it and smiled. Eva had sent me a friend request on Bottlegenie, the least douchebaggy of the social media apps. Ostensibly I was on all of them but gladly gave over my public persona to the publishing house's PR people. My private account was reserved only for friends and family. I spent all of about half a second before I tapped the "accept" button, come what may. I wanted her. She wanted me. I thought there would be hell to pay from her parents, who really were good people, but whatever remained of my resistance to Eva died a very quiet, very passive death that night and I was lost to her.

I opened the app to shamelessly ogle at her page, which made me wish, again, I had invested in a lotion company at some point during that day. Eva had a link posted with a fairly innocuous message attached -- "For my modeling shots, check out my professional page!" I clicked on that, and leaned forward.

"Holy shit," I murmured.

Eva wasn't just going to be a translator. Eva was a fucking model, or influencer, or whatever you want to call it. A hundred fifty thousand subscribers. A page full of pics of her and her friends that week in one-pieces, bikinis, short shorts and hand bras. There were frontal shots, back shots, and my favorite, a recent pic taken just that day of five of them on towels on the lakeside beach, the shot clearly showing off their thongs disappearing into the cracks of their amazing asses.

I sat back, utterly and complexly dumbfounded. I didn't move for a solid minute, not until I got a message ding. Eva, sending me a private message on her similarly private friend and family page that I'd just friended.

EVA -- I've been trying to figure out what to say. I'm so embarrassed. --

I liked that she typed in complete sentences with proper capitalization and punctuation, but it wasn't surprising. Whatever impression I've given you so far, Eva above all else was bright. That's just sort of hard to convey in a story primarily about her boobs and butt.

ME -- Hey. No need to be embarrassed. I'm flattered. --

EVA -- I sense a but. --

ME -- Hah. No but. Honestly, I think you know I was checking you out too. --

EVA -- That is a relief. --

ME -- Not grossed out by the guy more than ten years older than you? --

EVA -- Nope. What's your number? I want to talk. --

I gave it to her, and a few moments later, I got a call. I picked up, smiling.

"Hey," I said.

"Hey," she said. "I, um... I'm not usually this tongue-tied. Tell me something. Anything."

"I'm checking you out online. I didn't know you were a model. But it makes sense."

"Liking what you're seeing?"

"I think you know the answer to that."

"Mm."

"You want to come over?" I asked.

"I really, really, really do," she said, but sighed. "I don't know if I'm ready for it yet."

"That's all right. Take your time. Whatever you need. If it creeps you out, But I should tell you, I am staring pretty damn hard at this booty shot you posted today of you and your friends. You especially."

She laughed softly. "Stare all you want. I was hoping you'd find that."

"Where are you? I can hear the music from your place but I don't hear it through your phone."

"Sitting down at your dock, actually."

"Want company? I swear, no moves made tonight."

"That would be nice."

"On my way."

I hung up, ran inside, and grabbed what remained of the six-pack of beer from my fridge. I also grabbed a flashlight, because those woods could get dark at night. Not the cozy dark you'd think, either, but a black so complete you can't see your hand in front of your face. Usually there are houselights on and you can see enough, but sometimes not.

The path was thick with frogs that night. The crickets must have brought them out. More than a few birds rustled in the trees too, and across the lake, I heard an owl hooting. The night was hot but there was a steady breeze, and as I neared the lake, I could hear the waters lapping at the shore. It was a beautiful night to fall a little bit in love.

She sat on the dock, feet dangling in the water. She had an electric lantern next to her and a sweating sports bottle in hand. Her body tensed when she heard my feet hit the dock, and then she relaxed. Maybe it was the romantic in me, but I thought in that moment, much like me on the phone, she was giving up some resistance and fear of this.

I didn't know what to say, so I said nothing. I put down the beer and flicked off the flashlight before settling in next to her. Eva dipped her head against my shoulder, and I wrapped an arm around her. With my other hand, I fished out a beer and twisted the cap off. I offered it to her and she sat upright to set aside her sports bottle, take the beer, and drink.

We each downed most of a bottle in silence. Finally Eva said, "I was worried you might think I was weird for coming out here when I found out you lived here. I didn't want to seem crazy."

"I was worried you might think I was creepy for staring."

"Oh no. That I liked." She looked up at me. "I've got baggage, Alex. I've not had the best luck with guys."

The stars were so beautiful on the dappled water, not quite black from all the lights of the houses around the lake, but seemingly almost darker in the spots where the reflections couldn't touch. Shadows could be comforting in their own odd way, as though they and the light were dancing. It seemed to me that evening that was the case.

"Me too," I finally said, and it was true. "But I think we all do. It's all about finding someone whose baggage fits in the closet best with yours."

She lifted her beer to her lips and said around the lip, "It's almost like you're a writer."

"Your parents are going to kill me."

"Mm," she said, and took another long couple swallows of beer. "No. They knew full well I was coming out here to stalk you."

"They did?"

She nestled into me again and set her bottle of beer down. "Mm hm. Mom knew I had a crush on you as a teenager and still do. When she found out you were living here, she could have kept it quiet and I'd never have known. But she told me about you being here, and in the next sentence she said, 'Isn't your friend Cheyenne living out there this summer?' So I think you're Mom-approved."

I chuckled. "So you really did come out here to stalk me."

"Oh yeah. Big time. Seriously, does that weird you out?"

"No. You seem like a gentle sort of stalker. I'll let it slide."

"You'd better. My tits are worth it."

Much as I wanted to find that out for myself, holding her that night was all I limited myself to. We killed the six-pack talking about college. Both of us went to the same one in New Bainbridge -- go Gargoyles -- and I was pleased to learn not a lot had changed. She had one of my favorite professors for a freshman English class, and a mutually loathed science professor in her sophomore year.

"Cheyenne and the others will graduate next year," she said.

"I like her. After you went inside, she was pretty protective of you. Told me to be good to you or let you down gently."

"Mm. That's Cheyenne. She's a party girl but she's a momma hen at heart."

"Seems like it."

"Walk me back home? I'm a little buzzed."

"Of course."

I helped her to her feet. She leaned hard against me, grinning up at me lopsidedly. I knew she was more than buzzed and it was cute.

"I have something else I'm not telling you," Eva said.

"Oh yeah?" I asked.

"Don't worry. It's a fun secret. Not a big lie again like I told you about living here this summer."

I chuckled as I led her down the dock. "I didn't think of it as a big lie."

"Don't you want to know what it is?"

"Of course. I want to know everything about you."

"Mm. It's a fun, sexy secret. And that's all I'm going to say. You'll find out soon enough."

We walked on down the path, my flashlight swirling across the ground ahead of us. A deer shot across the path a little late at night for them to be out, but it was still so swelteringly hot I sure couldn't fault the little thing for needing a drink from the lake.

"I really love this place," Eva said. "I spent a couple weeks here two years ago with Cheyenne and her parents, I'm glad I got a chance to come back."

"You're always welcome at my place. I mean, look at the size of it. I went a little overboard."

She laughed softly. "I thought that's why you might be living with someone."

"No, there hasn't been anybody in a while. Been a pretty crazy couple years. You said you had a steady boyfriend in college. Ever think about getting married?"

"I wanted to. A family, kids, the whole thing. He wasn't a bad guy but that scared him off. Breaking up was hard but in the end I think I was more into the idea of having those things than him. I needed to learn to take a step back and look at the big picture, what I really want out of a person and not just a relationship, you know?"

"I do," I said. "I've been through that a few times. You're happy in the moment and you think that's enough. You see what a person is, but you don't want to see them. Or you think they'll eventually fit into your view of them, or the other way around."

"Yeaaaah. This got deep, old man."

"It did." I struggled to find something else to talk about, anything, and said lamely, "Did Cheyenne talk to you about the Fourth?"

"Oh! Yeah! You sure you can handle a bunch of college girls and one wandering graduate who's kind of all sorts of stupid about you?"

"It'll be a challenge, but I'll manage it, somehow."

"I'll bet."

We walked in comfortable silence the rest of the way. By now the party music had faded to reasonable levels, given the late hour, though Cheyenne's place was still lit up with strings of white lights and sleek modern lanterns built into the walls, posts, and most interesting to me, the stairs themselves. I made a mental note about that and filed it away for a potential future upgrade to my own house.

"Thanks for the talk, Alex," Eva said. "I-"

"Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!" a voice shouted from the deck. More joined in, and soon four women crowded the deck, including Cheyenne. They were all as beautiful as their pictures online, though wearing a bit more clothes. Just a bit, though.

I turned to Eva, meaning to tell her again I wouldn't make a move if she wasn't comfortable. But she was already moving, arms going around my shoulders, her head down, shy even if she'd made the first move. I brought two fingers to her chin, lifted her head, and lost any words I might have been about to speak. Her eyes were brighter than the patio lights, brighter than the stars, so bright that I might find myself blinded when I turned away. So I didn't intend to.

I kissed her, my Eva, for the first time. She smelled of sweet sweat and soft soap, and we both tasted of beer, and oh, when I felt those soft lips, the slide of her questioning tongue, the breath against me, I was lost. Well and truly lost. If you'd asked my name in that long moment, I'm not sure I could have given you an answer. I don't think I would have even heard you. There was just us and the water.