The Calm Before the Calm

She comes faster than she's come in years, with Brody right behind her. "That was incredible, mom."

She puckers up for a quick kiss, then reaches out and brushes a strand of hair across his forehead. "Yes, it certainly was. I envy Jodi the time spent with you. She must tell you what a great lover you are."

He shrugs, then traces his finger along the gentle curve of her waist and hips. "We have fun. But I meant what I said about not being this turned on in my life. It's fun to be naughty and daring, to break barriers, to go places where only the brave dare to go."

"Are you talking about sex or a Himalayan climbing expedition?"

They both laugh over that. Then, moments later, she's seized by a sullen mood. She looks away, worried over the possible consequences that just minutes ago lay buried in the throes of her passion.

He notices. "Mom, you still with me? I hope you're not sorry we did this."

She gives him a reassuring hug. Then she says, "Not sorry at all. In fact, I'm looking forward to more. It's just that I'm not sure what to say to your dad."

"Don't say anything. I mean, does he have to know?"

She takes a few moments to consider. "We've never kept secrets from one another. He even knows what porn I watch. But if I told him that I crossed into the red zone, he'd freak. Boy would he ever. Not that I'd blame him. Most of my girlfriends would too if they knew about us. Jodi too, I would imagine."

"Jodi's fairly liberal minded and tolerant. Knowing her, she'd find it more interesting than repulsive."

"Well, I don't think your dad would be so tolerant." She sits on the edge of the bed to demonstrate. "I can hear it now."

'Hi, Amber, how did your lunch with Brody go?'

'Great, Glenn. The food at Samson's was delicious. We had sandwiches and a couple beers. The waitress almost caught Brody sniffing my wet panties under the table. Almost, mind you. Then we repaired back to his apartment to pick up where we left off. That son of ours is quite a lover. He took me into the red zone, made me come twice.'"

Brody, his back against the headboard holding his stomach, is convulsed in teary-eyed, body-shaking hysterics. Amber laughs with him, shoulders and boobs shaking. Then, when it trails off, he adds, "Knowing dad, he might say something like, 'Amber, don't even joke about sick stuff like that.'"

She nods. "So maybe I should tell him after all. He wouldn't believe it anyway."

"He might surprise you, mom, might ask us to make a video for Family Relations XXX."

This goes on for another few moments, the two of them in hysterics as they trade absurd scenarios between Amber and Glenn.

In fact, she's still laughing behind the wheel as she drives home, her hair up, the way she had it before she left the house today. She's still somewhat anxious, but the laughter helped. Glenn knew that she and Brody were going to meet for lunch, and she knows damn well that he's going to ask about it. She still doesn't know how she'll respond. Right now, with those absurd scenarios fresh in her mind, she's finding it almost impossible to keep a straight face.

She pulls up to their rancher, alights from her car and walks the twenty paces or so to the front door. Glenn and their daughter Kelly are home—at least she assumes so because their cars remain parked. She's surprised that she needs her key to get in because Glenn normally keeps the door unlocked when he's home on weekends. She's not five seconds into the living room when she hears noises coming from down the hall, probably from Kelly's bedroom. It sounds like people in a hurry, people scrambling. She steps across the carpeted living room floor, then turns a corner into the hall. Just then, she sees Glenn bursting out of Kelly's room with nothing on but a towel draped around him. For a few tense seconds, he looks toward Amber, then turns around and hurries into the master bedroom.

This couldn't be what it looks like. Or could it? She takes a deep breath, then proceeds down the hall and stops in front of Kelly's door. She knocks amid noises of her daughter scrambling to get dressed. A few yards away, she can hear her husband in the master bedroom doing the same thing. "Kelly, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, mom." Seconds later, Kelly opens her door. Her long, straight brown hair is disheveled, her face flushed like she'd been working out. She's barefoot wearing blue shorts and a maroon sweat shirt—with nothing underneath. Brushing the bangs out of her pretty blue eyes, she flashes a wide faux grin. "So, how's Brody?"

"Brody's fine," Amber says, just as Glenn emerges from the bedroom, dabbing at his bald, sweaty pate with a hanky. He's also barefoot, wearing jeans and a white t-shirt.

"I didn't think you'd be home this soon," he says. "Didn't you go shopping? You usually take a while."

Amber catches the anxious looks the two of them exchange. Stifling a laugh, she turns to Glenn. "Actually, no. Brody wanted to show me something at his apartment, so that's where we went after lunch." She folds her arms against her chest. "So, what have you guys been up to? You both look like you did a few laps around the block." Again, the anxious looks, comical Amber thinks, watching Kelly purse her lips and Glenn looking down, shaking his head. "I suppose you're going to tell me that this isn't what it looks like. Or, better yet, you can explain everything. Right?"

Glenn and Kelly stare at one another, as if deciding who should talk first. Finally, Glenn says, "Look, I screwed up. Okay? I just—″

"No dad," Kelly chimes in, "I'm not letting you take all the blame."

Amber can't help but enjoy this, feeling fairly confident that she and Brody aren't the only ones who were being naughty today. "Glenn, pardon my presumption, but if I recall, you told me that the red zone was off limits. What changed your mind?"

Her face a picture of incredulity, Kelly raises her narrow eyebrows and looks at her dad. "The red zone?"

He nods. "Yeah, the red zone. Another name for doing what happened in there." He points to her bedroom. Turning to Amber, he says, "To answer your question, I'm not sure. I wanted to live it myself, I suppose."

"Okay, so what I want to know," Amber says, "is how long this has been going on." She keeps her arms folded against her chest.

"Not long," Glenn says.

"What's not long? A few days? Weeks? Months? Do tell."

"I CAN explain everything, mom," Kelly says, "and will. Just don't be so damn judgmental."

"I'm not being judgmental," Amber insists, pointing her finger defensively. "Believe me after...well, never mind. Anyway, I think I have a right to know the details about a tryst that's been going on between my husband and daughter while I'm living under the same roof as they."

"Kelly caught me watching Family Relations XXX," Glenn reveals. "I'm usually discreet when I watch porn. But two weeks ago, I got careless, left the door cracked open when it should have been shut."

Kelly picks up the story. "Dad was so engrossed, he didn't know I'd been standing there watching. Dads screwing their own daughters! Can you imagine?! I found it fascinating. More than fascinating, it got me turned on. I'm standing there, getting dizzy and wet, with my fingers shoved down my panties, playing with my, well, you know what. After a few minutes, I couldn't take it anymore and I came into the room. Scared the shit out of him." She looks at Glenn and grins.

"I know, and one thing led to another," Amber says, her tone a model of tired cynicism.

"Not right away," Glenn adds, as if that grain of discretion would temper what followed.

"But soon enough after I began watching Family Relations," Kelly says. "Like dad, I had this irresistible desire to live what I'd been watching." She studies Amber's face, looking a bit confused. "Mom, I'd think you'd be yelling and screaming right about now, threatening to throw us out of the house. But you seem to be taking all this in stride, much better than most people would."

"Don't feel too safe yet, Kell," Glenn warns, draping a protective arm around her. "This could be the calm before the storm."

Amber smiles out the side of her mouth, chuckling silently at what they don't know. "Relax, Glenn. What you're seeing is the calm before the calm. You see, Brody and I have a little red zone thing going on as well." She tells them about it, starting with her interest in Family Relations XXX and how it led to what happened today. "Must be in our drinking water," she jokes.

"Looks like Jim and Marissa Martin have nothing on us," Glenn says.

"No, but unlike them," Amber says, "I'm not inclined to post our fun on a porn site."

Glenn and Kelly agree. Then Glenn says, "Speaking of drinking water—or at least drinking—I could use some of that Zinfandel we've got in the fridge."

"I think we all could," Amber says, and heads for the kitchen.

Glenn grabs three wine glasses from the cabinet above the counter. After Amber pours, the three of them stand around, sipping the soothing pink liquid that never tasted so good.