Sex & Candy Ch. 01

Chocolate.

I loved chocolate. Every wafer, every tempered bowl, every chunk. It didn't matter how it came. I loved it. I guess it was the love for chocolate that bonded me with my father. My earliest memories of chocolate were filled with images of my father. I could still see his hands with the sterilized chisel, breaking off pieces and tossing them into the copper cauldron. Every so often, he would look up at me with his bright blue eyes and place a chunk onto my tongue and the love affair would begin again. The chocolate would melt on my tongue and my eyes would be filled with the sight of my pastry chef father and I would sink into a universe that was untouched by human hands.

So when I graduated from high school, it was understood that I would attend the Culinary Institute of America in New York in order to take over the family's business, Sweets Inc. after Dad decided to retire. Mom and Dad took me to the dorm and we took a tour of the campus but Mom got tired and opted to lie down in the car while Dad finished helping me with my suitcases. I had a single room, which was what I had requested and what Dad's hard work was paying for, and I was so glad that we were alone because I never expected my father to cry.

"I bet you and Mom will be so happy now that I've gone. I bet you'll be having sex in the den … "

The sound of his sob startled me into silence and I turned to see him sitting on the side of my unmade bed, staring out the window as tears rolled down his cheeks. "Daddy?"

He wiped his cheeks, seeming to be embarrassed that I'd seen him. "I'm okay, honey."

"No, you aren't." I sat on the bed, a tin of chocolate almond nougat in my hands. "What's going on?"

"My baby's leaving home, that's what."

"Daddy!" I took a piece of candy out of the tin and popped it into my mouth, chewing as I watched him. I knew that he'd be upset about my leaving home but it seemed like he was upset about more than that. I decided to leave it alone. He was a grown man, after all. He'd let me know if I needed to know, wouldn't he? "I'm just a phone call away."

"I know. But it's not the same and you know it."

I sighed. I was as upset as he was. My mother had always been distant with me and since I shared a love of all things sweet with my father, our relationship never really fleshed out further than being related. We never treated each other badly but there wasn't the connection that usually marked a mother-daughter relationship. We'd acknowledged and moved past it, determined to be the best of friends and Daddy became my mother and father.

I put my arm around his shoulders and held him close. We nibbled on the nougat and cried together for a few minutes.

"I should get going. Your mother's out there by herself."

I shook my head and stood to walk him to the door, holding his hand with fingers intertwined as we always did. When I turned to him, I was amazed at the sadness that I saw on his handsome face. Deep lines were etched around his usually vibrant blue eyes and a slight gray-blond grizzle hung onto his hollow cheeks. I didn't think of what I was doing. I just thought about making my father feel better. I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his mouth.

I don't know what happened after that. I mean, I know but I really don't. Daddy was startled but his confusion only lasted a few seconds and then his arms were curling around me, his hands pressing me close. My stomach flip-flopped and a sweet warmth started in my pussy, turning into a gusher when his tongue slid along my lips, gently asking them to open.

Without knowing why, I opened my mouth to him and such a vibration went through me that I moaned. It was by far the best kiss I'd ever had; a perfect first kiss at the end of an innocent and awkward date. My arms drifted up but did not encircle him; instead, my hands cupped his face, one hand sliding back and into his thick hair, feeling the warmth of his scalp, the warmth of him seep into me.

All at once, it was over and we were nose-to-nose, breathing hard and shaking with passion that we both fought to control. He let me go finally, his arms dropping to his sides as he stepped back, his eyes cast downward. I felt bereft suddenly, afraid that he would never talk to me again.

"Daddy?"

His eyes met mine and something passed between us: an understanding that what we had done was wrong and that it wouldn't happen again. But I knew differently. I knew it would happen again. How did I know that? Because I was in love with my father. I hadn't realized it until now but I knew it with every fiber of my being.

"Daddy, say something."

His shoulders slumped and he turned away from me. "Goodbye, Loryn. I'll call you next week."