The Midnight Hour

"Wait ... what?" Keith said, thinking he hadn't heard her correctly. "You're here until closing too?"

"Just you and me, kid," Lilly replied. "Now if you'll excuse me," she added as she disappeared into the stall, closing the door behind her.

'That can't be right,' Keith thought as, leaving the cleaning cart behind him, he rushed out of the bathroom and headed for the front counter and the wall schedule that hung on the wall adjacent to it.

-=-=-=-=-

"Fuck!" Keith cried out as he looked at the large whiteboard and saw that, sure enough, Lilly Briggs' name was written next to his for the five to one shift. Furthermore, the lack of an erasure mark behind her name, as there was behind his, showed that it had been that way since the schedule had first been put up a week before.

"Hey Keith, something wrong?" Gilbert Caldwell, who had just finished his own two to ten shift and was only waiting for Lilly to come back from the bathroom before leaving, asked.

"Wasn't Brooke supposed to be closing tonight?" Keith asked.

"I don't think so," Gil said as he stepped closer to the board so he too could read it. "No, it looks like she was noon to eight. In fact, now that I think of it, I did see her leave a couple of hours ago."

"She left?" Keith said.

"Yeah, about eight o'clock or so," Gil continued, "I remember now, because it was right after that Pete said he was taking off once he handled the garbage, and he finished up at eight."

"Are you sure?" Keith asked, still hoping that he was wrong.

"Absolutely," Gil replied, now more confident in his recollection. "I'm guessing that by now she and Doug are already at that New Year's Eve party in the city that he bought tickets to."

"No, you must be mistaken, she broke up with Doug," Keith said, his own certainly now fading. "Didn't she?"

"I don't think so, man," Gil offered. "When I was leaving last night, I saw the two of them sitting in his car in the parking lot. They were going at it pretty hot and heavy from what I could see."

"Fuck!" Keith said again as he realized that he had indeed been screwed tonight, and not in the good way.

-=-=-=-=-

Over the next hour, not a single customer came into Burger Barn, depriving Keith of even that momentary distraction. All he could think of was how he'd let Brooke make a fool of him. Worse, part of the blame was on him. He'd been warned about her but chose not to listen.

"Is it really that bad?" Lilly asked as she came out from around the counter, two cups of coffee in hand and sat down at the table Keith was sulking at.

"I really don't want to talk about it," he said, then remembered his manners and thanked her for the coffee.

"It might be better than just sitting there and feeling miserable," the older woman suggested.

Keith looked up from his coffee and considered the idea.

"Gil mentioned before he left that you seemed upset about something," Lilly said, taking a sip before continuing, "something to do with Brooke and the schedule."

"I let her make an ass of me," Keith finally confessed.

"You and probably just about every newbie that's come in here the last few years," Lilly smiled, "so you have plenty of company. Take it as a learning experience and in the future, you'll learn to look beyond a nice set of tits and see people for what they really are."

When he first started, Keith had been startled by Lilly's willingness to use what his mother liked to term 'street language,' but now, after hearing her do so for a couple of weeks, it barely registered.

"Did she do it to you when you first started?" Keith asked, remembering that Lilly had started here after Brooke.

"Me ... never," Lilly laughed, "but then again, I'm not impressed by a big set of boobs - I don't swing that way."

It took Keith a few seconds to understand what Lilly meant by that, but once he did, he blushed, recalling the images in a dirty magazine he'd found in his father's workbench. Before that, Keith had never imagined that women might do things like that with each other.

"Also, you have to remember, I'm a bit older than you, and supposedly wiser and more experienced." She laughed, pausing a beat before adding, "Of course, back when I was your age, I made my share of bad decisions - my ex-husband topping the list."

Keith had a distant memory of George Briggs from the days he and Tommy played in the local Knights of Columbus Little League. He seemed like a nice enough guy, but then again, that assessment had as much to do with him usually buying them burgers and cokes after a game than anything else.

"Seeing that I remember seeing Doug's name next to mine on the closing schedule for tonight, I'm guessing that Brooke somehow convinced you to work for him," Lilly offered. "Am I right?"

Keith replied with a nod.

"Well, I'm not going to ask what cock and bull story she told you to get you to do it," Lilly said, "but I'm curious as to what she promised you in return."

"She promised me a New Year's kiss," Keith said in embarrassment.

"A kiss, that's it?" Lilly asked, her tone reflecting a sense of disbelief.

"Well, maybe more than just a kiss," he admitted.

"Really, and what might that have been?" the older woman asked, her curiosity piqued.

"I'd rather not say," Keith replied, again feeling embarrassed for having fallen for her lies.

"Oh come on, it's just you and me here," Lilly insisted, "and I'm not going to tell anyone."

Nevertheless, Keith was still reluctant to answer.

"Someone once told me that Brooke had flashed her boobs for him in order to get a favor," Lilly revealed, "but I think that, given that this is New Year's Eve, she had to have promised more than that."

She paused to watch his reaction and having done so, was sure she was on the right track.

"So, I'm going to take a guess and say, hand job, or maybe even a blow job, especially since she had no intention of actually delivering on it," Lilly suggested. "Am I close?"

Keith still remained silent, but his expression confirmed she was a lot more than close.

"I thought so," Lilly grinned. "That's what happens when a man starts doing his thinking with the wrong head: reason goes out the window."

"Yeah, and I was stupid enough to believe her," he finally said.

Lilly paused for a few seconds, then said, "I'm also going to guess that you've haven't really been with a girl yet, have you?"

"Not in the way she was offering," Keith replied, not realizing until he'd actually said the words that he'd confessed that to a woman only a few years younger than his mother.

"Well, virginity is hardly a crime," Lilly noted. "It's like original sin, we all start out with it, or so the Sisters at Blessed Mother used to say."

Her reference to the Catholic girl's high school reminded Keith that Lilly and his mother had once been classmates, or at least had gone to the same school. His mother, he now recalled, had been three years ahead of the woman next to him.

"So, like I said, learn from this and don't make the same mistake twice," Lilly said.

"I guess so," Keith agreed.

"And what was the lesson that you learned?" she inquired.

"Never think that a girl's just going to give it away," Keith said after a moment's thought.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," Lilly laughed. "A lot of women are willing to, as you say, give it away, especially to a cute guy like you. In this case, however, I think a better lesson is, with a girl like Brooke, it's better to get payment in advance."

That made Keith laugh hard enough that he no longer felt as sorry for himself.

Lilly got up from the table and had taken a few steps back toward the counter when she had a thought, and turned back to look at Keith who was still sitting at the table.

"You know, it's well already after eleven and we've cleaned everything that needs to be cleaned," Lilly said. "So, if you want to, I don't think it would be a problem if you took off early. You still live over on 13th street, don't you? You could still make it home by midnight and watch the ball drop with your family."

"But what if we get some customers?" Keith asked.

"I think that's doubtful, but if it happens, I'll take care of it," Lilly assured him.

"I appreciate the offer, but I really think I should stay," Keith said after considering it for a few moments.

"Okay, suit yourself," Lilly replied, adding before she walked away. "But another thing you need to learn in life is, you're never going to get the things you want without taking a few risks now and then."

She let Keith think about that as she stood behind the counter, wiping down an area that was already quite clean. She did so for another minute, then said she needed to use the restroom, promising as she headed for it that she'd be right back.

Another five minutes passed and as he looked at the clock on the wall, the teenager regretted not having taken Lilly up on her offer. It was too late now, he thought, noting that it was nearly twelve.

The sound of the overhead speakers coming to life startled Keith for a second as Lilly tuned in the broadcast from Times Square. He turned his head in the direction of the radio and saw Lilly stepping away from the adjacent soda dispenser, a plastic cup in each hand.

"It's not champagne, but we need something to toast the New Year," Lilly said as, returning to the table, she handed one of the cups to Keith.

After taking the soda, Keith also got to his feet and raised his cup just as the announcer began the ten second countdown. As soon as he reached one, Lilly echoed the disembodied voice and wished her co-worker a happy new year. A salutation the younger man returned, tapping the edge of his cup against hers.

He started to take a drink, but paused when he saw Lilly doing just the opposite, lowering her cup and placing it on the table instead. Thinking something was wrong, he was about to inquire what, only to have his question cut off as Lilly unexpectedly leaned forward and kissed him.

-=-=-=-=-

Keith would've thought that kissing a woman Lilly's age would be gross. Yet, as he felt her tongue slide into his mouth, which was even more surprising than the kiss itself, he found it quite thrilling. They shared a second kiss before he'd even had time to fully react to the first, followed by a third that was even more enticing than the two that had preceded it. When Lilly finally drew back and gave him a chance to breathe, all that Keith could manage was a soft "Wow."

"You were promised a New Year's kiss, weren't you?" Lilly asked with a broad smile as she picked up the plastic cup and took a small sip from it.

"I guess I was," Keith agreed, still a bit stunned.

"And as I recall, you were promised a few other things as well," Lilly added as she again put down the drink.

'She can't mean what I think she means,' Keith thought, saying instead that he didn't understand.

"Oh I think you do," Lilly smiled as she again took a step closer. "I know that I'm not Brooke, but I think you'd find that could very well be a good thing."

"Are you saying..." he started to ask, thinking he had to be misreading this.

"What I'm saying is that, if you want, you can still have all the things that Brooke promised you," Lilly stated, her tone making it clear that she was serious.

"But you're Tommy's mother," he heard himself say.

"And you think mothers don't like to fuck?" she laughed. "Even your own mother must've gotten down and dirty a few times in her life, or do you think that the stork brought you and your sister?"

"No, of course not," Keith stumbled, the idea of his parents having sex being something he tried very hard not to think about.

"Or perhaps you think I'm too old for you?" she added.

If Keith had been asked that question this morning, his answer might very well have been yes, but that was before he'd had Lilly's tongue in his mouth. An all too brief contact that nevertheless had changed his perception of her. In fact, the more he thought about it, the idea of knowing a woman her age in the biblical sense excited him just as much as the prospect of doing it with Brooke had - perhaps even more. He couldn't say for sure why, but thought it might have to do with the more forbidden nature of it.

"No, I don't think that you're too old," Keith replied, his words carrying a sincerity that surprised him.

"Damn right I'm not," Lilly said fervently as she kissed him once more. A much softer kiss, but one filled with the promise of what might follow.

Keith knew he should do something in response, but wasn't exactly sure that that should be. Thankfully Lilly filled the awkward silence by suggesting that it might be a good time for Keith to lock the doors; after all, the store had closed at midnight. He didn't have to be told twice as, with a grin on his face, the teenager rushed off to do so. Lilly watched him run for a moment, then walked over to the lighting panel on the wall. She began tripping switches, one after the other, causing shrouds of shadow to blanket the store. Her finger paused at the last switch, leaving a small number of overhead accent lights still on.

As her eyes adjusted to the semi-darkness, Lilly thought about what she was doing. It was true that she sometimes shared her bed, but the number of men with whom she had done so fell far short of her detractors' claims. Nor, contrary to rumor, had any of them been married. Lilly saw herself as sexually active, but not promiscuous, although there had been times she might have skirted the edge of it. This looked to be one of them.

The fantasy of being with someone much younger was hardly a new one, nor was it unique, although people seemed to associate it more with men than women. Looking back, Lilly remembered looking at some of her son's friends and admiring their trim, fit forms. In the years since her divorce, she'd found them arousing her libido even more. And while she'd never taken one to bed, at least outside of her imagination, the passage of time had only eroded the strength of the reasons why it might be a bad idea to do so.

Only an hour before, when the thought of seducing Keith had first occurred to her, Lilly had tried to dispel it by offering to let him leave early, thus removing any such temptation. When he had declined, the thought had advanced to, given what he had hoped to happen tonight, it really wasn't a seduction, was it? At least not much of one. Finally, by the time the clock struck the midnight hour and heralded in the New Year, it had simply become, why the hell not?

-=-=-=-=-

"Everything's locked up tight," Keith said as he stepped under one of the remaining overhead lights, its glow highlighting the look of excited anticipation on his face.

'Do I or don't I?' Lilly asked herself one last time as she took a long look at the young man standing just a few feet away. "Fuck yes!" she finally answered under her breath, in a voice too low to be heard.

Actions speak louder than words as they say, and Lilly's action as she tossed her last cautions aside spoke volumes. She reached out and grabbed Keith by his shirt, pulling him towards her, their mouths coming together once more.

The kiss was even more fiery than those that had preceded it, her tongue again invading his mouth as Lilly took hold of his hand and pressed it against her left breast. That shocked Keith more than the kiss, but not so much that he didn't quickly respond, pressing his fingers hard against her soft flesh, feeling the warmth of her body even through the layers of cloth.

Shifting his hand a little to the right, Keith found Lilly's nipple, its hardness contrasting with the softness of the surrounding flesh. Not needing any further prompting, he brought his other hand to her right breast, finding it equally delightful.

He continued to massage her breasts through her blouse, even as they shared a few more kisses. Eager to see them as well, Keith reached for the buttons of her blouse and managed to undo the first two before Lilly unexpectedly stopped him. The teen wondered if he'd done something wrong, then felt relieved when she insisted that she just wanted to do it herself.

Stepping under the cone of light that had previously illuminated Keith, Lilly picked up where he left off, slowly undoing each button as she worked her way down the line. She'd reached the fourth button when it occurred to her that, bathed in light as she was, she was visible from the street should a passerby glance into the large plate glass windows. Admittedly, given the time of night, the chance of that happening was slim, yet it still gave her an unexpected thrill.

Keith, on the other hand, was so absorbed by each new exposure of forbidden flesh that the possibility of discovery never occurred to him. Which in the end was probably a good thing for, if it had, the thought would've dampened his ardor quicker than a bucket of ice water.

"Damn," Keith said softly as, having undone the last button, Lilly casually pulled off her blouse and exposed the partially concealed breasts beneath it.

Without missing a beat, Lilly slid off the straps of her simple white bra, then reached into each cup, lifting out the mound within. It only took a few seconds more to twist the undergarment around so that she could undo the clasp holding it together, dropping it to the floor afterwards. Keith had watched with keen interest, filing away 'so that's how it's done,' for future reference.

The eighteen year old had only seen two pairs of breasts before, well, three actually, but he tended to discount the time he'd walked in on his older sister in the bathroom. Despite Lilly being more than being twice the age of any of those girls, Keith thought her mounds magnificent.

An assessment partly due to the fact that, spotlighted as they were, he was getting a far better look than he had in the dimness found in the back seat of the family Honda. Another factor was the casual indifference Lilly displayed to being topless, a high contrast to the reluctance the girls he had shared that back seat with had exhibited. Rubbing her hands along the underside of her breasts before tweaking her thick nipples, Lilly displayed her assets with pride.

"Would you like to touch them?" Lilly asked, knowing full well the question hardly needed to be asked.

Keith placed an outstretched palm against each breast, replacing Lilly's hands with his own. Her bare flesh felt warm to the touch and as he ran his fingers across her dark areolae, he felt his heart race and a surge of electric excitement spread across his body.

"I know they're not as large as Brooke's," Lilly noted, "but I've never thought bigger was necessarily better."

It wouldn't have occurred to Keith to compare Lilly to Brooke, but now that she herself had brought it up, he couldn't help doing so. Yes, Brooke's breasts were larger than Lilly's, by both a couple of inches as well as two cup sizes. And while he'd never seen the blonde's mounds unrestrained, it was clear that the redhead's reflected some of the effects of time's passage. In the end, however, none of that mattered, Keith told himself, because Lilly was the one that was here whereas Brooke was who the fuck cared where.

"Why don't you try sucking on them?" Lilly suggested, noticing that Keith's attention seemed to have wandered for a moment.

Reacting like a six year old asked if he wanted ice cream, Keith lowered his head to her left breast and closed his mouth around her nipple, his tongue swirling back and forth across it. As he did, Lilly placed her hand on the back of his head and pressed her breast deeper into his mouth.

"Oh yes, baby, suck it harder," she cried out as tiny ripples of delight danced across her chest, "use your teeth, just like that."

Lilly was greatly pleased by Keith's willingness to follow instructions. She had only to make a suggestion and he was quick to act on it. As he continued to feast on her bounty, working his way across to her other mound, his free hand reaching for the nipple that his mouth had just relinquished, she wondered how far she might take that willingness.