Seven Days at Maplewood Lane

Previously: Following the funeral of his best friends Mike and Lindsay, Elijah was asked by their surviving daughter Teagan (who he helped raise) to stay a week in their home with her before she returns to college. After a day of organizing, reminiscing, and grieving together, Elijah woke up in the middle of the second night to find Teagan in her bedroom masturbating and calling his name. Horrified and excited in equal measure, he attempted to go back to sleep and forget he ever saw her. Later in the night Teagan, sad and afraid to be alone, woke Elijah up to ask him if she could sleep next to him. Against his better judgement he agreed. Eventually both gave in to their desires, leading to Teagan giving Elijah a hand job. Afterward, a guilt-ridden Elijah tried to stop things from progressing any further, causing Teagan to storm off to her bedroom...

***

Elijah couldn't sleep the rest of the night, and had given up trying long before the sun was rising.

He decided to get a head start on the day with some household busy work, starting with the dishes they'd left in the sink the prior morning. From there, he moved through the kitchen and living room, dusting and wiping down counters and shelves. He welcomed the work. It gave him time to think, to figure out how best to navigate the complicated situation with Teagan. By the time he was finished, he knew where he needed to start.

He was waiting with a pot of coffee already brewed when she finally came downstairs. The sun was shining bright through every window, its rays highlighting the shape and contours of her body from every angle, encouraging him to look. She had made no attempts to change, which disturbed him. His eyes lingered on the stain he'd left on her pink top, hating himself for how much he liked seeing it again.

"Good morning."

"Morning," she replied coldly. She shuffled her way past him to the coffee pot in stony silence, pouring herself a large cup and adding too much sugar and creamer before taking a seat across from him at the kitchen table.

He let her take a sip before speaking. "So, about last night. I want to apologize. I never should have blamed you. You're right, you're an adult, and so am I, and an old one at that. Alotolder. I should've known better than to...push things the way I did--"

"Do you regret it?" Teagan interrupted.

Elijah was stunned by her bluntness. "Well, yes, of course--"

"Why?" Her voice broke as she spoke. "I don't understand. I liked it, youclearlyliked it." Her eyes glanced down to the stain on her top as she took another sip.

Stubborn girl. Just like her dad."Teags, I'm twice your age. And more importantly, I'm practically family. Practically...practically your dad. I've known you since you were a baby..."

"So?" She asked it so matter-of-factly, as if what he was saying needed any more explanation. "You'renotmy dad. We'renotrelated. And knowing you my whole life isexactlywhy I feel so comfortable with you. I feelsafe.I...I..."

Teagan set her mug aside and began quietly weeping into her hands. Elijah watched in horror for a moment before the urge to rescue her leapt him up and secured his arms around her. He kissed the top of her head, melting all the conflict well away. "I'm sorry," he told her. "I'm so sorry. Please don't cry. Please."

"You're all that's left of them," she bawled. "Please don't push me away!"

"I'm not, I'm not." He forced her up and squeezed her tight, nestling her face within his chest. Her tears bled through his shirt, marking him with stains of her own. "It's okay, let it out. I'm here. I'm here..."

Elijah held her until the tears had stopped, and long after.As long as it takes,he reminded himself.What we did was wrong, but this, this is right.

When Teagan finally looked up at him, it was through puffy bloodshot eyes, and only an instant before burying herself further into his chest. He heard her inhale and exhale deeply. "You smell good."

"Well, that's just not true," replied Elijah. "I haven't showered since the morning of the funeral."

"Fine, you stink good. Either way, I like it."

Teagan stood up on her toes and anchored her face into the crook of Elijah's neck. He could feel her every breath, each one grazing his skin, slow and steady, warm and soft, sending chills across his body. He ought to push her away, he knew where this could go, but couldn't. It felt as though he had weights on his wrists, pulling his hands down to her waist. They sat there, heavy, absorbing her. She shivered, timed with an extra-long breath that tickled his collarbone.

"See?" she mumbled into his neck. "Is this so bad?

No,Elijah thought.This is bliss.He rested his chin atop her head, taking in the scent of that damn fruity shampoo still lingering in her hair. All his senses beckoned him closer, taunting him with that now familiar wicked ache he felt for her in his loins.

Stop,he commanded himself in desperation.Stop, stop, stop...

"I should probably take a shower then I guess." Elijah pulled his hands back up to her arms and gently eased her off of him. "Ithasbeen a while, I just realized."

"Oh, okay." Elijah could see the disappointment in Teagan's eyes, and it pained him. He patted her on the shoulder, nodded, and left, cringing as he did.

He made the shower cold. He needed it, needed something to shock him back to the real world, a world of reason and responsibility and consequences. A world where Teagan was the daughter of his dead best friends, and not the beautiful young temptress who was quickly captivating him with sweet soft fantasies.

She's practically your daughter,each freezing drop stabbing his skin reminded him.Especially now. She needs you. As a father. Not a lover.

Lover.That last word lingered in his subconscious, along with the memory of Teagan's body from last night, made porcelain by moonlight. It rooted itself in his mind, spreading down to his chest, through his heart and into his manhood. It told him to turn the shower handle hot, to wrap his fingers around his growing hardness and imagine it was her hand again, her eyes gazing into his with certainty as she worked him.

I want this,she assured him with each stroke.It's okay.

No, it's not,his conscience countered. It told him to turn the shower back to cold, and let its icy bullets melt the lust away.

After Elijah had decided he'd suffered enough, he stepped out of the shower and studied himself in the mirror, as he did every time. His body was aging; the faint wrinkles across his face and slightly sagging pecs made it obvious. But the blow was not as bad as it was for many others. His shoulders remained broad, his chest still defined, arms still curved with subtle shades of muscle. But it was all just a little softer, and would only soften more with each passing day he knew. Most noticeable was the silver; it had planted itself everywhere he looked, his head, his chin, his chest, even above his manhood.

You're old,Elijah acknowledged to himself. It wasn't the first time, nor would it be the last.

He felt silly when he poked his head out of the bathroom to check if Teagan was nearby, and when he saw that all was clear he cloaked himself in a towel and tiptoed across the hall to Mike and Lindsay's bedroom. He knew he'd fit into something of Mike's to wear; they had a similar body type and fashion sense, and sure enough, it was no issue. It only took a few minutes of sorting through Mike's closet for him to settle on a plain cotton gray long-sleeve henley, tied with a pair of dark blue jeans.

It fits me too well,he thought. Elijah sat on the edge of the bed, tugging at the sleeves while a blur of memories of his best friend passed by. Memories of late-night gaming sessions and frisbee golfing in summers and home improvement projects he'd volunteered to help with.

I miss you man.

"Uncle Eli?"

Elijah wasn't sure how long he'd been sitting in the past when he noticed Teagan standing in the doorway. She had changed into a snug black-and-white striped long-sleeve, her thumbs looped through small holes at the cuffs, along with a pair of blue denim shorts that cut off midway down her thigh. She had fixed her hair, combing the frizzy mess into short, layered, wispy strands that left her face wide open.

"Oh, hey Teags."

"You've been in here a while." She took a few timid steps into the bedroom. "You okay?"

"Yeah, no, I'm... I'm fine, just...thinking."

"About what?"

You know what,he told her with a look and tilt of his head.

Teagan nodded and took a seat on the bed next to him. "I just realized I haven't been in this room since they died. I've been avoiding it. The only reason I can stand it right now is because you're here with me."

"This was their place." Elijah looked around the room, glancing past shelves of Lindsay's trashy romance books and fantasy novels, and Mike's painted monster models sitting above. It was all too much, and he felt like crying.

Teagan saw the pain pooling in Elijah's eyes and took his hand, her touch a silent assurance that he was safe to let go. Elijah resisted at first, as he always did, but then she tightened her grip him, and a bomb went off in his head, so sudden and intense it left him sobbing. He collapsed into her arms, and she held him and stroked his hair and rubbed his back. Elijah felt pathetic, havingherholdhim.It felt wrong, but somehow also right.

"I'm sorry," he said once he had exhausted himself of all his tears. He wiped his eyes with the tissue Teagan had handed him.

"Why?" She forced his eyes to hers and caressed the sides of his head, and for a moment she was the spitting image of her mother."You know, for awiseold man, you sure can bestupid."

Elijah stifled back a snotty laugh. "What do you mean?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"You think hiding your grief from me helps me. It doesn't. This..." she wiped a single tear away with her thumb, "this helps me. Seeing you, therealyou. Seeing how you feel. How much mom and dad meant to you. It makes me feel happy and less alone. I want to grievewithyou Uncle." She sucked his tear off her thumb and pressed her cheek to his, letting his coarse salt and pepper whiskers knead her skin, like it used to, back when he'd chase her and pin her down and yellwhisker rub! as she giggled and fought back.

Another happy memory,he thought.And another reason why this can't happen.

And yet he let her linger, let his eyes drift over her body. Teagan's breasts sat finely shaped and firm in her shirt, and the faint outline of her nipples gave away that she wasn't wearing a bra.I bet they're soft.He pictured them as best he could, along with an urge to reach out and see for himself.

"I...saw you last night." The confession sprouted from Elijah's mouth unprompted, like a tree of truth that wanted to grow against his will.

"Oh..." was all she said.

"I...didn't mean to," he stammered. "I thought I heard you crying, so I went to check on you, and your door was open..."

"And you watched me?" Her voice was huskier than he expected. "You heard me call for you?"

"Yes."

When Teagan finally leaned back to meet his gaze, he saw no shock in her eyes. Only a glimmer of a mischievousness he recognized. "I know," she said plainly. "Why do you think I kept the door open?"

Elijah rubbed his eyes in disbelief.I should have known, he realized. The girl was always able to get what she wanted. Especially from him. "You've always been a devious little troublemaker."

Teagan shrugged her shoulders. "I saw the way you kept looking at me. You think you're slick but you're not. All guys think they are, but women have an instinct. We can feel when a man's eyes are on us, and I felt yours. They were quick, but as heavy as I've ever felt, and I realized just as quick that I liked it.Reallyliked it." Teagan rested her hand on his inner thigh, her touch warm and disarming near his manhood. "Last night, when I was touching myself, I imagined it was you, with the hope that it could be more than fantasy. I left that door open out of hope. Iwantedyou to hear me Uncle. To see me..."

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course," replied Teagan.

"Have you always...thought of me this way?"

"Not always. I mean, I had a bit of crush on you, back before I even knew what that was. I looked up to you and admired you in a way I didn't any other men." She cupped his cheek, rubbing his whiskers with a loving thumb. "But it has only been these past few days that I really noticed how handsome you are. How...special you are to me. You've always been there for me, in ways even mom and dad weren't. You make me feel a certain way...unlike anything I've ever felt with any other guy. Anypersonreally. I just want to be close to you and touch you and feel you touch me." Teagan brought his hand up, pressed his palm firmly against hers, and closed her fingers. For a moment she said nothing, letting the faint pulse of their hearts pounding against each other speak for her. "See? Isn't this nice?"

"It's a pretty sentiment," said Elijah. He removed his hand and stood up, pacing the room and scratching his whiskers in contemplation. "But what we did last night...it's not right."

"Maybe not," countered Teagan, "or maybe it's the rightest thing there is. I don't know, and I don't really care. I'm done caring. All I know is that last night was the happiest I felt in weeks. Hell, months, if I'm being honest. Even before mom and dad died, I felt kind of lost, and now with them gone I've felt...hopeless. Like there's no point to anything. But last night, for a moment, that despair was gone. I wasalivetouching you Uncle. Hearing you moan...it feltgood. And I know it felt good to you too."

Elijah's cheeks grew hot. "I know it feels good Teagan, but you're wrong. It's wrong. What feels good isn't necessarily what is good. I know you're depressed, and I will be here to help you see it through, but we can't be together inthatway. It's not right."

"You're too hard on yourself. There's no one here to judge you. Just me."

"But your parents-"

"My parents are dead." Her words were harsh, her eyes soft. "I'm not. I'm here, with you, right now. That's what matters." Teagan sat up and stepped to him, looking not at all like the little girl he'd known all his life as she placed her hand over his heart. "I won't push you to do anything you don't want to do. But just know..." She rested his right hand on her waist. "Just know that your little Teagan isn't little anymore. I'm an adult, a woman with needs and wants, and I wantyou. And I know you wantme. These are likely the only lives we'll ever have Uncle, and I'm willing to share mine with you. What's so wrong about that?"

Elijah stopped to study Teagan before responding. Even dressed modestly, her body urged him to accept her reasoning, to strike all notion of consequence from his mind. He slipped a single finger under her shirt to feel her skin.She fits nicely within my hands. "You make a compelling argument."

"Well, I was on the debate team, remember?"

"I do." Elijah grabbed a lock of Teagan's chestnut hair and tugged it gently. "I also remember you being pretty good."

"I had my moments."

"Still do." He pulled her in close, enough that her lips grazed his neck.

She shuddered. "Don't tease me Uncle..."

"Why not?" He lifted her to him by the chin so their eyes could meet, rubbing his thumb across her bottom lip. The beast was near out of its cage now, and it was hungry. "I've always teased you."

She turned away. "Not like this. I'm serious, you're giving me whiplash. Do you want me or not? Make up your mi--"

Elijah felt his hand move by itself, bringing Teagan's lips up to his. She tasted sweet as honey, and he felt her body shake and melt into his as he drank. Her hands answered him back, slithering up his shoulders to rest on his neck, fingers digging into his scalp with their own frenzied hunger. She slipped her tongue into his mouth, and he sucked it, stirring a moan from her that made him mad with lust. With a grace that startled him she hopped up and wrapped her arms and legs around his neck and waist, forcing Elijah to catch her. He cradled her in his arms as she used her weight to pull him toward the bed.

Mike and Lindsay's bed.

"Oh Uncle Eli," she hummed into his mouth and down his neck. "Make me feel good. Please, god, please, I just want to feel good. Make me feel good. Make me feel good..."

He brought her down to the bed gently, as he had many times before, when she was little. But she wasn't little now; she was a woman with a woman's body that he ached for. He told her this, with soft hungry kisses all across her skinny white neck. His hand traveled up her side and under her shirt, where he found her bare breast. It was as supple and soft as he imagined, and he took his time to savor it, kneading and massaging the tender flesh with his palm, twisting and twirling her nipple until it was stiff and long.

"Mmm, that feels nice," Teagan moaned. She snaked her fingers through his hair and tugged. "Will you suck it?"

"You didn't even have to ask."

Elijah sat up, watching Teagan free herself of her shirt in one graceful motion. She tossed it aside and leaned back, allowing him to soak in her nakedness. Her breasts hung small and shapely from her chest, capped with even smaller nipples, pink as ripe berries against the surrounding milky white skin. He crawled back on top of her and kissed her again, just once, pulling her bottom lip with his teeth before planting another long trail of kisses down to her right nipple. He took it in his mouth and sucked, rolling his tongue up and down and around every sensitive bump and ridge. Her flesh was salty and sweet, the finest he'd ever tasted.

"Oh my god." Teagan squirmed underneath him, her body swelling in waves like an ocean under a storm. She slipped her hands under his shirt and raked her nails against his back, and he answered back with a light pull with his teeth that sent her torso arching. "Fuck, you suck me so good Uncle. Fuck, fuck, mmm, don't stop, please don't stop..."

It's too late,he thought.I can't.

In his mind Elijah saw them again, the ghost of her parents, his friends, standing in the doorway, watching, judging, but instead of groveling for forgiveness, he stood up and closed the door in their faces. The choice was made, and there was no going back.

Teagan's right breast was hard and flushed and branded with nibble marks when he was done. He moved on to the left, showing it the same adoration while he walked his other hand down to the waistband of her shorts.

"Let's get you out of these." His fingers deftly freed the shank and drew her fly down, and even before he could remove them he could smell her wetness. He slipped his hand underneath, where he was greeted by the outline of her pussy lips pressing through the thin fabric of her panties. With two fingers he lightly traced it from top to bottom, his teasing touch sending shockwaves up her body that made her breast jiggle in his mouth.

"Yes, play my pussy Uncle. It's yours, take it, take it, take it..."

Elijah answered Teagan's pleas with a growl and a bite of her nipple and a swirl of his fingers that together made her scream, "FUCK!"

"You like that baby girl?" He sat up, admiring the redness that he had spread across her chest as he began pulling her shorts off.