by Tia Siren
If you weren’t my step-brother, there are a few things I would like to try. I bit my tongue and thought for a second. He was just being playful and wanted to get to know me better. Maybe this was just the olive branch I needed to understand his family.
“Okay. What did you have in mind?” I asked.
“I’ll keep it a secret for now. Tomorrow really is the best day. I’ll send a car for you, and we can go from there,” he said.
“I’ll be waiting,” I replied.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Liz,” he said. Then he took his leave, and I was alone again on the couch.
I looked to the fireplace nearby, and Zach was standing there entertaining a few of his friends, or at least I assumed they were his friends. They all looked to be about the same age.
Zach kept moving his eyes to look at me from time to time. I was about to get up and ask him what sort of interest he had, but before I could do so he walked over.
“Don’t trust Adam,” he said before he shuffled away just as quickly as he had come.
I sat on the couch a bit dumbfounded. Zach had come over with cryptic advice and zero explanation, and I had no idea how to interpret what he had said. I pushed it to the back of my mind, but I knew I wouldn’t forget what he had told me.
I was nervous for tomorrow. Adam had been so secretive about what we might be doing, but to be honest, I probably would have done anything with that man.
4.
“Okay, what are we doing here?” I asked Adam as I stepped from the car that was sent.
“You sounded like you like to try new things. I had a good feeling that you hadn’t done this one,” he said with a smirk.
We had arrived at a small airstrip in the middle of nowhere. On the runway was an airplane starting up its propellers.
“I’m not sure if I want to do this,” I said nervously.
“The funny part about new things is that you don’t know if you like them till you try them,” he said.
“Yeah, but why would I want to jump out of a perfectly good airplane?”
“For fun!” he said, handing me a jumpsuit.
I took the garment and was ushered to a nearby changing room to get fitted. It was completely unflattering, but I was more worried about getting to the ground safely than doing it with style.
I met up with Adam, already changed, outside near the plane.
“I think you’ll enjoy this,” he said with a giddy and excited grin.
“As long as I survive,” I replied.
“You’ll be fine,” Adam said with an eye roll. “Besides, if you didn’t, they would have no repeat business.”
I chuckled nervously as I stepped aboard the small plane. The entire thing vibrated with the hum of the engine. Inside it was incredibly sparse, just a small bench on either side of the plane with one side already occupied by Adam. I took a seat opposite him.
As it was my first time, I was told that I would have someone jumping with me. I was thankful to have someone more experienced doing their best to keep both of us alive. Before long, the plane’s engines roared to a crescendo and we shot down the runway.
“No turning back now,” Adam said.
“I didn’t know that was an option,” I replied.
The plane climbed higher each second. I looked out one of the small windows at the landscape. The area was beautiful, green and entirely open. If I didn’t know I’d be jumping out of this plane, I probably would have enjoyed the scenery much more.
I could already feel my heart trying to pound its way out of my chest. Every couple minutes the pilot would look back at us and shout how much longer until we could jump. I was too nervous to make small talk, but that didn’t stop Adam from trying.
“You’d be amazed how many people don’t even put on the jumpsuit,” he said.
I nodded.
“You’re probably the first to actually go through with it,” he added.
I didn’t like heights, and the more he talked, the angrier I became. Then he gestured to my tandem dive partner, and the two of them switched seats, putting Adam right next to me.
“I know you’re nervous. I was too the first time. It’s okay to be scared. The first time I went, I almost passed out as the blood shot to my head,” he said with a goofy smile.
I smiled. He was showing a caring side I hadn’t seen yet, and it only made him more attractive. I cursed my rotten luck.
“I started thinking about jumping as a metaphor for business. It’s all a freefall until you realize your parachute was waiting for you all along. Once your feet are on the ground, you’ll have a feeling of wholeness that can’t be described. Have a little faith and you’ll be okay.”
I nodded, and he reached over to give me a hug. He was warm, and I could feel his heart was pounding just as hard as my own.
“Are you always nervous before a jump?” I asked.
“Every time,” he replied. “But you have to take the leap.”
Then the pilot chimed in.
“Okay, everyone, get ready,” he shouted.
My partner latched on to me and stood there in silence near the door. In front of us, already opening the door, was Adam. He looked like a schoolboy getting ready to run out the door after a day of class.
Then the pilot gave us the thumbs up.
I said a quick prayer even though I wasn’t incredibly religious. Adam flashed me a giant smile and flipped out the door. Then my partner and I shuffled to the door.
Looking out over the landscape with the wind blowing past my face was intoxicating. I already felt a rush of adrenaline just standing in the doorway. But nothing could get me ready for the feeling that followed when I fell from the plane.
I lost myself in the moment. The wind whipped past my face, and looking up I could already see the airplane getting smaller by the second as I fell. Instead of feeling nervous, or desperate to be on the ground, I felt something entirely different: freedom. I relished the sensation of being completely unattached. It felt as though my fate was completely out of my own hands, and giving up that control was liberating.
We fell for what seemed like an eternity. Adam and I danced in the air near each other, laughing as we fell. I screamed with excitement, and the sound was lost to the skies.
Our parachute folded open, and we began to drift lazily back to the speck of the green field that continued to open up below us. Then we collapsed on the ground with the parachute covering my partner and me.
Adam came over and howled at the sky, still experiencing the rush.
“Tell me you didn’t like that,” he said, giving me a big hug.
I didn’t know what to say, and the screams I had let out earlier were making my voice feel more than a little sore. So, I did the next best thing. I kissed him on the cheek.
He paused in his revelry and pulled me back, staring deeply into my eyes. I felt small compared to him, and my body quivered with unknown excitement. I wanted to do more to feel alive. My body yearned for it.
He looked over at my diving partner standing nearby and shooed him away. The man finished packing up the parachute quickly and jogged off the field.
Adam grabbed the zipper of my jumpsuit and gave it a tug, pulling it down to reveal my tiny sheer tank top beneath. I pulled his lips to mine, kissing him squarely on the mouth. I felt his passion flow into me. My heart continued to beat harder with every caress and each gentle touch on my back.
My head kept telling me how wrong it was, but my body screamed to be held. He tore through the remainder of my suit, and I lay on the grass. Adam paused for a second to take in my beauty, and I smiled wickedly at him as he did so.
Then he fell on top me, tugging hurriedly at my underwear while kissing me playfully and aggressively on the neck. I whimpered from the sensations. After tearing off my panties, he caressed me along my inner thigh.
I closed my eyes and arched my back in the excitement. When I opened my eyes, he was stripping off his own clothing. He exuded masculinity with his fit p
hysique. His defined abs and sharp arms flexed in the sunlight and glistened from the sweat of our afternoon’s excitement.
Then he came back to me, and I welcomed him. He held my lower back with one hand and rubbed his throbbing manhood along my slit with his other.
Then he pushed into me. There was a slight twinge at first, but the sensation left me as he continued to inch farther in. I gasped for breath as he pushed, and I wondered how much more he had to give. His pelvis pushed into mine, and he stayed still for a second, letting out a slight moan of pleasure.
I rested back on the grass, and he started rotating his hips. Each circle sent shivers up my spine. Then he slowly pulled himself out only to thrust back in. He was so rough, and as he continued, I begged for him to go harder.
Every moan I exhaled was an invitation, and he accepted each one. I was starting to lose my mind to the feeling building in the pit of my stomach. I grabbed his abs, trying to pull myself closer to him, but my arms were too weak to move.
Then a sweet release came over me. My back arched, and I threw my head back. I wanted to scream, but my voice wouldn’t come to me. With one final thrust, he drove himself the furthest into me I’d felt, and I could feel him shooting himself into the pit of my stomach.
I collapsed on the grass in a heap of sweat and satisfaction. He lay down beside me and wrapped his arms around me. It was then that I realized how cold I’d become from the breeze that blew over us. I didn’t want this afternoon to end.
In that fleeting moment, I had forgotten that this was something that couldn’t happen. He was my stepbrother, and soon he’d be my boss. I couldn’t let this continue on, but for now I enjoyed every sensation and let my mind wander.
5.
My phone started ringing, and I jumped from surprise. I checked the caller ID, expecting it to be Adam, but it was from a number I didn’t recognize.
“Hello?” I asked.
“Liz, this is Zach. I was hoping you’d have time this afternoon for an early dinner.”
It had already been a day since I’d been with Adam, and I didn’t know what to say. I’d been hoping Adam would call and ask me to dinner.
“I don’t know. I might have other plans,” I said.
“If you’re waiting for Adam to call, don’t bother. He’s out tonight with friends.”
I wondered how he knew what I was thinking.
“Who said I was waiting for Adam to call?” I asked.
“Just a hunch. Come out to dinner. I’d like to get to know you a little better now that we’re siblings,” he said, and then he clicked off the phone.
That was quite forward of him. It didn’t so much feel like I was being asked, as it did like I was being told. Still, his professional and confident attitude had me curious about what he wanted to discuss.
I didn’t take long getting ready, and just before I could finish there was a knock at the door; a driver was ready to collect me. I grabbed the remainder of my things and trotted off for the ride.
My assumptions had been correct, and we pulled up to a lavish restaurant downtown. I had chosen to wear a slinky black dress, and I knew I looked good in it. I was already getting a few glances from some of the older men escorting their significant others.
The host showed me directly to a table where Zach was already waiting with a bottle of chilling champagne chilling.
“So, what’s the occa—”
“I guess you don’t like to take people’s advice,” he said.
I had a feeling this would be a long night, so I plucked my already full champagne glass from the table and sipped from it.
“What are you accusing me of?” I wondered.
“You slept with him. I can tell,” he said. He hadn’t yet made eye contact with me since I’d sat down. He continued to stare out the window.
“And what of it?” I asked. “I’m not some prize to be claimed.”
He turned to me with the same piercing green eyes I remembered from the other day.
“I understand that, but do you think he does?” he asked. Then he gestured for me to look out the window.
I rolled my eyes at his ridiculous question but turned to humor him. I was shocked by what I saw. Adam was sitting across the street at a nearby café. I couldn’t make out who he was with, but I could tell it was another woman. My heart sank as I realized that I was just another one of his conquests.
“He is a shrewd businessman. Part of the reason the company has expanded so quickly the last few years is because of his confident ability to close deals that favor us. I assume that he took you out for some extreme sport, and while your heart was beating hard he took advantage. That’s the man he is,” Zach said.
I slumped in my chair and finished off the champagne in my glass. As much as I wanted to walk across the street and slap Adam in the face, I knew it would be a futile gesture. It was not as though we were an item.
“You’ve made your point,” I said. “Did you call me here to gloat?”
“Far from it,” he replied.
“Then what are we here for?” I asked.
“I wanted to tell you the truth about what happened almost a year ago to the day,” he said.
I pulled the bottle from the ice and poured another glass.
“From what I’ve heard, he stole your fiancée. Is there really much more to it?”
“A little,” he said.
“Let’s hear it then,” I said.
“Yes, he stole her heart from me, but when she thought he would always be there, he showed his true self. We were so much in love, but I couldn’t reconcile our relationship. She started abusing drugs, and I tried to help her, but she wouldn’t have it.”
“Where is she now?” I asked.
He went silent and finished his drink.
“I think I’ll have more of that champagne,” he said.
I wanted to reach out and take away all his pain. A smirk played at the edges of his mouth—not because he was happy, but because he didn’t want to appear sad.
“I’m not looking for sympathy. I’m just trying to help you understand the man he is,” Zach said.
“Thank you,” I said.
“It’s no problem. I just didn’t want to see another woman go through the same—”
“No. Not for the warning,” I said. “Thank you for trusting me enough to tell me the truth.”
He smiled. It was a genuine smile I knew he had been hiding for quite a long time.
We ate in comfortable silence. I struggled with myself about Zach. He was almost more gorgeous than his brother. He had an aura about him that felt so masculine and stoic. Unlike Adam, Zach seemed like the type of man who would hold you when you were sad, the type of man to be there when you needed him most. I needed that now more than ever. I had given in to my lustful desires, and they had betrayed me.
“I should probably be going home,” I said.
“Of course,” he said. “Take my car. I am close enough to walk home.”
Outside, the black sedan I had arrived in came to stop just in front of me, and the driver opened the door.
“We could always go together,” I said to Zach before getting in the car.
He smiled back at me and stepped into the car. I settled myself into the plush leather seat next to him.
“So did you have any other reason for asking me out tonight?” I asked.
He stayed silent, so I prodded again.
“I don’t suppose that you were also unable to keep your eyes off me,” I joked.
“Well, you are a beautiful woman,” he said.
I laughed. Until now he’d been incredibly stoic and standoffish.
“So, you’re a little jealous of Adam,” I said.
“More than a little,” he replied.
I sighed.
“I don’t know if I can do this,” I said.
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“I slept with your brother,” I started. “I don’t want to be another person to come betwe
en the two of you.”
He stopped himself from speaking and thought for a while. I stared out the window at the passing streets. It was a quiet night, with nary a single person about. It was getting late, and tomorrow was a work day— one that might be rather important for me, as I had a job offer I wanted to accept.
Zach took me by the arm and held me close, looking longingly into my eyes. I could feel the heat of his gaze boring into me.
“I’m not my brother,” he said.
“I never said you were,” I replied meekly.
He released me and returned to his seat, staring instead out the window with a grimace that had taken the place of his smile.
“I’ve been searching for something I can hold on to,” he said.
His vulnerability was palpable. I wanted to reach out and hold him, and in turn be held by him. Before I realized what I was doing, I had reached my arms out to him.
He turned as I wrapped myself around him. At first he tried to pull away, but he had nowhere to go. He let out a deep sigh, letting go of his apprehension and stress. Then his arms wrapped around me.
“Let me stay with you tonight,” I said.
Before long we were standing in an elevator, as we had a few days prior. This time, we were much less awkward. As the elevator climbed higher, we continued to hold each other.
It was an odd feeling that I was overcome by, the feeling of satisfaction. I didn’t want to kiss him, nor did he want to be kissed by me. But holding him felt so natural and easy that I didn’t want it to end.
The elevator opened right into his apartment. It was the penthouse of another building downtown. I looked out at the twinkling city lights that made up the view. I pulled myself away for a while to take in the sight.
When he returned, he had a bottle of wine in one hand and two glasses in the other. He handed me a glass and filled it and his own before setting the bottle back on the table.
“To new siblings,” he said.
I toasted my glass with his and took a sip. I wondered what was on his mind. He joined me, leaning over the balcony railing and staring out at the expanse of concrete that was our city.
“Millions of people going about their busy lives. It’s a breathtaking display of life,” he said.