Lines We Cross

Some days, the universe just likes to mess with me.

I tossed my keys in the bowl by the door and kicked off my shoes with a sigh. Great. Another botched schedule. My manager had screwed up again, and now I had the whole day off unpaid, of course. Normally, I'd be thrilled to get some surprise free time, but rent wasn't going to pay itself.

Everyone I usually hung out with was working, like I should have been. Still, maybe I could convince Jess and her best friend, Lila, to head back to the lake with me. Going alone would just look sketchy, but with them alone, I could chill, swim, and yeah... sneak a few harmless glances at all the beautiful girls in bikinis without looking like a creep.

Especially one girl in particular, Lila, in that tiny black two-piece she'd worn last time. My stomach flipped just thinking about it.

And no, I wasn't proud of it. She was Jess's best friend and my adopted cousin, practically part of the family. But it wasn't like I'd do anything. I wasn't a total scumbag. I just looked. Discreetly. Harmlessly.

Lila had moved in a couple of weeks ago, since she and Jess were starting university in the fall and my stepmom had offered up our guest room to save her from dorm costs. She and Jess had been inseparable for years, ever since Jess's dad married my mom and we all ended up under one roof. We'd gotten used to sharing space, even liked it. Jess was cool, more of a laid-back gamer girl than a high-maintenance type. Lila was the wilder one, funny, fearless, and totally at ease in her own skin.

I headed down the hall toward Jess's room, music thumping loud enough to vibrate the floor. No big deal they were supposed to be the only ones home. I knocked once, twice, and when there was no answer, I figured they couldn't hear me and pushed the door open.

"Hey, do you guys wanna?"

I froze mid-sentence. My mouth went dry.

There they were, tangled together on the bed, completely naked. Lila on top, Jess beneath her, their hands buried between each other's thighs, kissing like their lives depended on it.

"Eli! Oh my God get out!" Jess screamed, scrambling to yank a blanket up as they both gasped and pulled away from each other.

But it was too late. The sight was already burned into my brain. Jess's soft curves and shoulder-length dark hair clashed with Lila's toned, statuesque frame and wild chestnut curls. I slammed the door shut and backed into the hallway, heart pounding.

"God..." I muttered, my voice low as the tension surged through me, my body reacting before my brain could fully catch up. I shifted uncomfortably, my jeans suddenly way too tight. With a shaky breath, I reached over to Jess's desk and turned down the music to something less deafening, figuring we'd all want to actually hear each other now.

"You two... how long has this been going on?" I asked, blinking like I was trying to reset reality.

"You have to swear you won't tell anyone, Eli!" Jess shot back immediately, her eyes wide, panic rising in her voice. Her bright blue gaze locked onto mine, a mirror of my own. We didn't look much alike her short blonde hair and petite frame contrasted sharply with my taller, darker features, but those eyes had always been the dead giveaway that we were family.

"I won't. Of course I won't," I said quickly, raising a hand in surrender. Then, because my brain couldn't handle the awkwardness any other way, I cracked a crooked grin. "So... does this mean it's my turn next?"

It was a joke. Just a bad one. My go-to defense: humour, sarcasm, anything to distract from the insane situation I'd just walked into.

But Lila looked up at me with those big, dark eyes and softly said, "Okay."

The word hit like a lightning strike.

She blushed, her cheeks blooming pink against her pale skin, and offered me a shy smile from where she was half-curled on the bed.

Her chestnut hair spilled around her shoulders in a wild mess, and I couldn't help but feel the floor tilt beneath me.

Jess let out a sharp gasp, eyes darting between the two of us. "Lila! You can't be serious!"

I felt just as thrown. "Wait what?"

Lila only bit her lip and glanced down, then backed up at me. "I mean... only if you want to..."

Jess's mouth opened, closed, then opened again, completely at a loss. "This isn't, this was just supposed to be between us."

"I'm not trying to mess anything up," I said quickly, raising both hands. I was joking. Seriously. I didn't mean to make things weird."

But it was too late. Things were already weird.

Very, very weird.

"Why not?" Lila smiled back confidently. "It's not any different doing this with you than it would be with him. And like I said, I've never been with a guy before... I want to know what it's like."

"I don't know..." Jess bit her lip nervously.

"Then lucky for you, you don't get a say!" Lila laughed, leaning in to press a firm kiss on Jess's lips. "I'm not trying to make you do anything with him! You can just watch if you want. But if you really don't want to, Pete and I can go to his room, and you can stay here."

"No, I... Like you said, this is new for you. I just want to make sure he treats you right," Jess said quickly, shaking her head. It was a weak excuse of course I wouldn't hurt her! I'm sure Lila saw through it too, but neither of us called her out on it.

"Come here," Lila said, patting the bed beside her and sitting up, holding the blanket over her chest. Whether I'd been joking or not, now that she was clearly interested, there was no way I was going to say no. I walked over, trying not to move too quickly and give away how excited I was. I'm pretty sure she noticed anyway, because she giggled softly and slid one hand to rest on my hip, slowly moving it up under my shirt as she looked up at me expectantly.

I got the hint and quickly pulled off my shirt, tossing it aside. She smiled, biting her lip seductively as she looked me over, her soft hand tracing over my abs. It wasn't the first time she'd seen me shirtless but this felt different. I ran my fingers through her silky red hair, and she bit her lip again, raising her other hand to my chest and letting the blanket fall into her lap.

God, she was beautiful. Her breasts were small and firm perfect B-cups just enough for me to hold, her nipples small and pink, begging to be kissed. I reached out, taking her warm flesh into my palm gently. Her eyes fluttered closed as a soft hum of pleasure escaped her lips.

Her hands started to roam too, one squeezing my pec, the other teasing my thigh. She took her time, but when she finally moved lower and found my growing hardness, her eyes widened in surprise. I wasn't sure why she'd been looking at it for minutes! But feeling it for real was different.

She quickly attacked my belt buckle, fumbling a little with the zipper. When she moaned in frustration, I helped, and she pulled my jeans down to my knees. I slipped out of them completely, kicking off my socks as she stared at me in my boxers, gathering courage again.

I used my free hand to tilt her chin up. She hesitated, not wanting to break eye contact, but let me anyway. I leaned down to kiss her softly.

She moaned eagerly into the kiss, one hand finding the back of my neck, the other wrapping around my cock, gently stroking. I teased her lips with my tongue, and she deepened the kiss, searching my mouth with hers. We kissed long and hard until we were both breathless.

When she finally pulled away, licking her lips seductively, she was ready.