Mikey's Mom

For the first time in several months I didn't call Traci during the week to talk. I also didn't go home the next time I normally would have. I was pissed off. I was confused.

My phone ringing jarred me from my reverie. It was Sunday morning. I normally would have stopped by Traci's to say goodbye as I was leaving to head back to school, but since I didn't go home ...

I answered on the third ring, knowing who was on the other end of the line.

"Hey, I missed you," Traci said quietly when I picked up. "We haven't talked for two weeks ... and I think I know why."

"Listen, Trace, you don't have to explain anything to me," I said. "We're just friends. I get it. You've got a life outside of our friendship, and so do I."

"Well, yes, we each do, but there's something you need to know, and I can't do this over the phone. Could you come home this weekend? Please?"

Traci sounded about as defeated as I felt. But of course I couldn't turn her down. I told her I would stop by on Friday.

I went to classes and did whatever it was I had to during the next week, but my mind was definitely elsewhere - although I wasn't exactly sure where. I dreaded my meeting with Traci on Friday.

I got home Friday about 4, said hello to my mom and went to my room. I definitely didn't want to talk to my mother, who somehow seemed to be in the middle of this whole mess with Traci. I ate dinner with my folks mostly in silence. I was pretty sure they both knew something was up and were giving me space.

About 7 I walked over to Traci's. I didn't get my usual cheerful greeting and peck on the cheek. She looked pensive and nervous. I glanced down at her tight ass in her jeans as I followed her to the kitchen, where Traci poured two cups of coffee. I never drank coffee before I started visiting with Traci last fall, but it was just one of the things that I now did because of her.

As we faced each other at the table, she took a sip of the brown liquid for courage. I noticed, as I always did, how good her lips looked ...

"Zane," Traci said and then hesitated. She knew me well. I had gone off into my own little world watching her lips take that sip.

"I went out on a date your mother fixed me up with two weeks ago. I didn't tell you, and I'm sorry," Traci started.

"I think your mother was afraid that something's starting between us, and I'm sure she wanted to make sure that wasn't happening, so she set me up with some handsome single guy from her office. I knew what she was doing, and why, so I felt obligated to go on the date. She said I must be lonely since the divorce and with Mikey away at school, so she said a date with someone in my age range would be good for my sanity.

"He was a nice guy, and handsome, too, and I did have a nice time. We ate and talked, and then he took me home. Nothing happened, and I didn't want anything to happen.

"But I didn't tell you when you came home last week. I felt almost guilty and ashamed that I went on a date and didn't tell you. And then when you didn't come around, I knew that your mother must have said something, and I figured you were pissed. And ... damn it ...I don't want you to be pissed. I want you ..."

Her look of anguish was killing me. I rose from my chair, took a half-step to her, pulled her to her feet, and mashed my lips against hers. Her lips were soft and hot. Mine were hotter. Her lips parted slightly, and almost reflexively my tongue found hers in her mouth.

"Mmmm ... mmm," she moaned into my mouth. I moaned back in assent. I was now in unchartered waters. My head was swimming. I had been with several girls in my young adulthood until this point, but I had never liplocked any woman this gorgeous before ... and who was my best friend's mother.

We separated a bit, tentatively. Then I took both of her hands in mine. Her hands were soft, sweaty.

"I was pissed, Traci, and I'm sorry. And I couldn't even put into words why I was. I mean, over these last few months we've become very good friends ... but we've never really talked about us ... if there is an us. I know you have your own life and I have mine, but I guess, sort of, I thought somehow we were becoming something. I didn't have a clue how to go about talking to you about us ... I mean, you're Mikey's mother, for God's sake. I ... I ..."

I reached for her again and gave her the most passionate kiss I've ever given any girl in my life. I felt like I was trying to impart my feelings for her through my lips, mouth, and tongue. I held her strongly in my arms, and felt her body quivering up against mine as I tasted her passion. She was mine, I could feel it, and suddenly I wanted to scream out loud in joy.

Instead, we separated quietly and sat back down. Although we had done a lot of talking in the past, and told each other a lot, this was going to require a lot more discussion.

"I think we need to be low-key about this at first, Zane," Traci told me. "Until we can get things figured out, we don't need to invite trouble from others, and have tongues wagging."

"That means I need to start with Mom," I said. "What she did about fixing you up was uncool ..."

"You need to be gentle on her, Zane," Traci interrupted. "She was being a good mother, looking out for her son. I might have done the same thing if it was Mike.

"Think about how it looks to her. It probably looks like some divorcee 20 years older than her son has designs on him ..."

"Or maybe her 20 year old son has designs on some hot 40-year-old," I interrupted, smiling.

"Exactly. That would be a scary situation for a mother. A woman her own age being involved with her son."

"Oh, shit. I've got to be the one to tell Mikey," I said as it dawned on me. "He'll probably accuse me of being a pervert who just wants to have sex with his mom, like all the other guys."

"All the other guys?" Traci asked somewhat surprised as she arched her right eyebrow.

I blushed deeply, not knowing what to say. I figured I would try the truth.

"You've got to know you're hot, Traci," I said as she nodded. "Well, high school boys can be rude, crude, and obnoxious. Several throughout the years expressed the thought of having sex with Mike's mother. That's why I got in trouble that one time, because somebody said something like that to Mikey, and he promised you he wouldn't fight. So I fought for him."

"I remember that," she answered. "That sort of thing happen a lot?"

"Not out loud; not after I beat that Bozo with the tray, and then he got in trouble because of saying it.

"But now I'm afraid Mikey might think I was one of those guys after all. He might think I was only his friend to get to you!"

"He knows it wasn't like that, Zane, but the question still remains, 'how will you handle it when someone makes that remark?' if it happens as much as you say it does. You can't go packing a school lunch tray and hit everyone who says something upside the head."

"Well, I guess I'm going to have to do some growing up ... and maybe get a carry permit for a loaded lunch tray," I chuckled.

"I guess maybe we're both going to have to do some growing up," Traci noted.

"Some things we're just going to have to figure out on the fly," I said as I stood up, pulled her up to me and laid another kiss on those full, luscious lips.

"Mm-hmm," she agreed through the kiss.

We moved to the living room and planted ourselves on her sofa. We pretty much stayed lip-to-lip for about another half hour. We both pretty much kept our hands to ourselves. It kind of felt like we were both 13 and trying to figure things out in Joe Amaro's basement. Oh, wait, that wouldn't be right, because Traci would have been 33, married and divorced, with Mikey being a teenager. This is going to take some work.

We were both red-faced and panting when I pulled away. I had to come down before going home to speak with my parents - my mother in particular.

My parents were in the family room watching TV when I walked in. I asked them if they minded turning off the set so we could talk. My mother's face turned very red and I saw my father give her the raised eyebrows.

"Look, I think you both know what I'm going to tell you, but I'm going to say it anyhow to make sure there truly is nothing left unsaid," I began as they both squirmed a little in their seats.

"I love Traci; at least I'm pretty sure I do. And I think she has similar feelings for me. I know this whole thing is kind of weird - trust me, I know - but we both want to give this a chance and see where this leads. It could go nowhere. It could go everywhere. But I, for one, don't want to look back 30 years from now and wonder if I missed the love of my life because we were afraid to try due to the age difference. It could be too big a hurdle to overcome, but I don't think so. It's right when I'm with her; I'm lost when she's not around."

"But Z, she's my age," Mom said in a shaky voice. "You wouldn't go out with Patty Albright would you?"

Patty Albright was a bad example. She was 250 pounds and had a bad complexion. I looked hard at my mother.

"Well, OK, Traci is prettier than that - much prettier - but you get where I'm going. She thinks like me. She talks like me. Won't it be weird when you're together in public? Think here, Zane. This is just a young man's hormones having a crush on an older woman."

And there it was. According to my mother ... and probably everybody else, this was about sex.

"Although it's none of your damn business, we've never even had sex!" I said, my voice raising in volume. "I had never even kissed that woman until tonight.

"This is about us connecting on a deeper level. I-I-I can't explain it. I don't think I totally understand it. All I can tell you is she gets me ... and she makes me feel like I can accomplish anything. I've dated plenty before, and yes, I've had sex several times before, but none of those girls have ever reached inside me the way Traci has. I think this is love ... or I'm going fucking crazy."

Both my parents jumped a bit when I dropped the F-bomb. I've always tried not to use that word in their presence.

My father had been quiet to this point, but now it was his turn to speak.

"Son, love is a hard thing to get a grip on sometimes. And I'm not sure that after 22 years of marriage that I can explain it any better than you just did. But from what I'm hearing, you both think this is right, and if you two are willing to take the chance, I'm more than willing to support you both. But remember, if this thing doesn't work out, you make sure you do the right thing by that woman. She's been nothing but good to you for all the time we've known her. If you don't, you'll have to deal with me."

"Yes, sir," I said as respectfully as I could.

"Mom?"

Mom came over to me, hugged me hard and started crying. I held onto her for about 30 seconds, then Dad took her and she cried some more into his chest.

"She's with me on this, Zane."

"You are going to tell Mikey about this before you two become an item, aren't you?" he added. "You know the way people talk, Z. Don't let him find out from anybody else but you. And don't be surprised if it's a tough get. You're asking a lot from a guy who's been your best friend forever. I've known Mikey for a lot of years and always tried to be sort of like a spare father to him, especially after Gary split, and we both know he's not going to take this well ... at least at first."

"Maybe I'll take a trip up to see him next weekend and tell him then, face to face."

"Sounds like a good idea, son."

"I'll be right back, Dad. I know Traci's waiting to hear from me."

Traci was standing at her front door waiting on me, looking like a lost little girl. I wondered if she had been waiting there the whole 30 minutes I was gone. She looked at me with pleading eyes.

"My parents said they are willing to support us, although I know my mom's going to have some trouble with this," I told Traci. "Dad kind of led the way on this. And he warned me that if this doesn't work out, I better treat you right or he'd kick my ass.

"But he said we needed to tell Mikey about this before this gets out to anyone else, and I agree. I can't blindside my best friend by being a stupid jerk. And if he can't wrap his head around this ... well, I guess then we can't be. As much as I want you, I can't just ram it down Mikey's throat. We've been through too much together ..."

Traci's big brown eyes were brimming with tears, but she was nodding her head in agreement.

"I'm glad he's got a friend as considerate as you, Zane," she whispered to me.

"I'm going to give him a call tomorrow and see if I can't go up there next weekend. I've got to do this face to face, man to man," I said.

We then talked about our usual nothing and everything for about another 30 minutes while wrapped in each other's arms. My heart was racing the whole time. Was this love, or does this happen right before a supposedly healthy 20-year-old drops over from a surprise heart attack?

Columbia, MO, certainly was pretty on a fine spring day when I drove up to meet Mikey. He was waiting for me on the stoop of his apartment, which he shared with two other guys. We hugged like the brothers we practically were.

I would be sleeping on the floor of his bedroom - if he didn't throw me out after hearing what I had to say - and I put my gym bag down in the corner he pointed to.

"Beer?" he asked as he reached into his mini-fridge and tossed me one without waiting for the answer. He took one for himself and sat down on his bed, giving me the only chair in the room.

"So what's going on, Z? You sounded serious as a heart attack on the phone last week," he said. "You sick? Somebody dying?"

Although I was hoping for some time to work into this, I should have known Mike would be direct. There was never any bullshit between us.

"I'm not sure how to say this, Bud, so I'll just say it straight out: I think I'm in love with your mother!" I practically declared.

"You dumb bastard! Of course you're in love with my mother. What straight male who's seen the woman isn't in love with her?" he declared back with a shit-eating grin. "I know my mother's a babe. You think I'm a total idiot?"

"No, Mikey, you're not following," I responded. "I really think I'm in love with her - not in lust with her - and she's pretty sure she feels the same way about me. We've spent every other weekend together for the last several months just talking and getting to know each other, and I really think she's the one, Mike."

Mike's face twisted up as much as I've ever seen before, then I saw heat in his eyes.

"You've been fucking my mother for the last several months?! You fucking piece of shit ..."

"No, I haven't been fucking your mother, you tool! I never even kissed her before last weekend! That's why I'm here!"

"You want my permission to fuck my mother? How about I stick my foot up your ass, fuckhead!"

We had both risen from our spots and were glaring at each other maliciously. I have never seen that look on Mikey's face before.

"Back the bus up here a sec, Bro. Did you say that she loves you, too? And you two haven't had sex ... yet?

"What the fuck, pansy boy? The Z I know would have been all over any woman he thought he loved."

"I couldn't do that to you, Mikey," I said. "Before I made any move on your mom, I wanted to be straight up with you, and if you had any problem, I wouldn't go there. Give me the word and I'll back off completely."

"And have Mom kill me? Are you fucking nuts?"

I spent the next 10 minutes laying it all out for Mike. He sat there in stunned silence for about 30 seconds after I finished.

"Man, this is really weirding me out," he finally said. "My best friend and my mom? My two favorite people getting together?

"But then again, it sort of makes sense, too. You are the one person in the world I can trust not to hurt my mother, and to look out for her. But I'm not calling you Dad if you two get married ...

"God, won't that be totally weird, though, going out with a woman who's one of your mom's friends. Who you going to take out next, Patty Albright?"

"Damn, would all you fuckers stop with the Patty Albright references. Mom said the same thing."

"Well, you know, Patty Albright is one fine chunk of a woman."

"Aaarrrggghhh!!" I responded.

We spent the rest of the day just hanging out, occasionally talking about Traci and I dating. That night we hit one of the college hotspots, at Mike's insistence. There were a bunch of really cute University of Missouri girls there. Mikey was totally in his element, laughing and flirting and dancing several times during the evening. I mostly just hung with Mikey or watched him on the dance floor.

"OK, dude, now you're just being a fucking pussy," Mikey said to me about 10:00. "Look at all the primo flesh here, dude. And that blonde has done everything but sit on your lap."

He looked at my face and knew I wasn't having a good time.

"You're serious, aren't you? Oh man, you're hooked. Well, at least I know that you won't be cheating on Mom, unlike Dad. Just don't become a pussy-whipped wimp, OK? Hey, since you're not going to be using that blonde, do you mind trading me seats? Oh, by the way, do you mind staying out of the room for a few hours tonight?"

Ah, the joys of college. I watched TV in the guys' living room for a few hours while Mike entertained the blonde. I finally got a chance to go to sleep on the floor in his room at about 2 a.m. It's what you do for your buddies.

Mike and Traci were still going to have to talk, but I felt very much relieved as I drove back to school Sunday afternoon. I called Traci while I was driving and gave her my take on the weekend. I told her that I was coming home again next weekend and that I would take her out for our first official date. She had her game in mom-mode when she told me that I didn't need to be spending what little money I had on her, and that she could easily cook a great dinner for us at her house.

"Yeah, you could, but I think we really need to go out, Trace. Know what I mean?"

I heard silence for about 10 seconds, then she apparently realized she was in the wrong mode.

"If you don't mind, could we go somewhere and dance? I think I need to feel a man's arms wrapped around me."

"Good idea," I answered. "I've got a pair of arms just waiting to do some wrapping."

I didn't stop in to see Traci on Friday night when I got home, and Saturday morning at about 9 I got a text asking where I was. I told her I was home. Then my phone rang.

"So I've turned into chopped liver?" Traci asked sarcastically.

"I'm trying to be mature here, Traci. I don't want to smother you like a freakin' kid would."

"You've been over here virtually all of the time every other week for like seven months. Don't you think I might have said something earlier. Maybe I'm just the clingy type who likes a man around all the time. How about you stop overthinking this and get your ass over here."

I clicked off the phone and ran out of the house, catching a quizzical look from my parents as I ran past the kitchen where they were drinking coffee. I covered the distance to Traci's house and was on her doorstep in about a minute. When she answered the door, I stepped inside quickly and planted a deep kiss on those full lips, letting my tongue do a little exploring when she gave me the chance.

"That was certainly worth the wait," she said when we unlocked.

We ate lunch together and I helped her with some chores around the house before leaving mid-afternoon to get cleaned up for our date. I showered and shaved and put on a good pair of Dockers and real shoes. I stopped in the family room to let my parents know I was leaving, and they both stood up. Dad reached into his pocket and handed me a $100 bill, "just to help out with the evening," and Mom gave me a big hug and told me to be respectful. I think I saw a little bit of moisture in both their eyes.