I sat up for hours in my hotel room that night staring out the window over the void of the ocean. A light rain had streaked tears on the glass, little more than a mist to obscure the world outside.
Dani was just down the hall but she felt farther away from me than ever. I imagined her cleaning up my blacked-out brother. It made me furious. She shouldn't have to deal with that; she should be pampered and cared for and loved every night until she falls peacefully to sleep.
The image of Mike's corpse-like body hugging the toilet had imprinted itself on my mind. I couldn't shake the disgusting thought that he really was dead and that I could finally have everything I wanted now that he was gone.
Did he deserve to die for taking her for granted?
Would I kill my brother for Dani?
The idea made me sweat. It flipped my stomach until I couldn't take it anymore. I lurched up to the bathroom, hurling into the toilet until the unnatural thoughts had been purged from my system. When there was nothing left to spew, I flushed the bowl and collapsed onto the toilet seat.
All that was left was the thought of her; our amazing escape on the beach; the love we'd made in the shower while my brother dipped in and out of consciousness.
My hand moved without my brain's command, fishing my phone from the pocket of my slacks and navigating to the file that kept my secret pictures of Dani. They were my buried treasure, my precious horde of gold and gemstones that I kept from the world.
Of all the pictures Dani had gifted me--in various poses of exposure--the one that I landed on was the closeup of her face with that slight, concerned smile. I held the phone to my face and zoomed in until her eyes filled the screen as if we were nose to nose. My other hand had pulled my depressed but growing erection from my pants. I began to stroke myself slowly as I gazed into the artificial eyes of my lover.
I could feel her sweet lips brushing against my ear as she whispered to me.
My hand became hers, smooth and delicate as she teased my cock from tip to base.
The precum pouring out of me pretended to be her juices, her pussy soaked for me as I inched into her.
"Dani," I moaned to the empty bathroom. "I love you, Dani." I panted faster and faster as I began to tug at myself viciously. "I love you--I need you--I want him gone--I want him dead fucking leave him fuck why why why fuck FUCK!"
My arm snapped back before launching the phone into the shower door, cracking the tall glass. I jumped up, still screaming as I drove my heel down into the phone. Rage had taken over, and I watched from the passenger seat as my sorrow destroyed the device.
In an instant, the fury abandoned my body, leaving me slumped against the tiled wall in a pathetic heap of tears and a fleeting erection. I gathered up the pieces of the phone, finding myself even more distraught when I realized that I had broken it beyond repair. The phone's internal components hung out of it like the intestinal tract of a gutted man--the pictures were gone forever.
The hotel slept around me as I wept on the bathroom floor.
I hated my brother.
I hated Dani for being with him.
And then I hated myself for thinking that I could ever hate her...
I made a quick escape in the morning, leaving a note that apologized for the cracked shower door and asked them to charge it to my bill. The light of day assaulted my eyes as I walked to my car, my body tired and sensitive from a mild hangover and the lack of sleep.
My parents were hosting a Sunday BBQ at their house, and I couldn't abandon it without bringing unwanted attention to myself. So, I got ahead of the others, arriving at my parent's house before anyone else--even my parents--had arrived. I took a quick shower, downed a cup of coffee, and passed out in the guest room.
The sound of laughter and grocery bags being torn open downstairs pulled me from an uneasy sleep and when I came downstairs, my parents, Dani, and my aunt and uncle were in the kitchen preparing for the feast.
"There he is!" my dad cheered, stomping over and giving me a fatherly hug. He was especially jubilant that morning, and the glowing look on my mother's face told me everything I needed to know about their night. "Where did you disappear to last night? I tried calling you a few times this morning but your phone was off."
"Ya, I lost it," I lied, glancing in Dani's direction. "I must have dropped it in the surf when I was down at the beach."
"Ahhh," my father hummed, jostling me with his elbow. "Late night with a lovely lady from the wedding, huh?"
Dani granted me a subtle smile which I refused to return. I saw the hurt in her eyes before I turned away and it made me hate myself even more. "Ya, something like that, dad."
I gratefully accepted another cup of coffee from my mother, asking no one in particular, "Where's Mike?"
"Ohh, Mikey has a little hangover," my mother squeaked.
"A little one?" My uncle boomed. "That boy is on death's doorstep."
His wife slapped his arm as he laughed to himself.
If only...
"Ahh, he'll be alright," my dad said, cutting into a big slab of meat. "When this venison starts cooking, the smell will pull him right out of bed and down the stairs. Come on, let's get out back and enjoy the sunshine!"
It was objectively a beautiful Sunday, but I was looking at the world through shit-tinted glasses. If I was in the sunlight, it was too hot; if I took to the shade, too cold. The clear water of the pool looked uninviting. My mother's famous margaritas did nothing but overwhelm my depressed tastebuds with salt. And the banter between my dad and uncle that never failed to crack me up was falling flat.
That is until Dani returned from a short trip into the house. She had changed out of her Sunday summer dress, dawning a diaphanous beach robe and a black bikini. Her tits were covered but bursting, and the bikini rode up her busty ass as she walked. Suddenly, the world was vibrant again. For a moment, I forgot about the sorrow and hate and lost myself in her elegance.
More guests had arrived. Cousins. Family friends. And enough kids to bring joyful chaos to the backyard.
A few of the younger boys begged Dani to swim with them, and she obliged. I'm sure they were just being horny kids, eager for her to strip out her beach robe so they could get a look at a real woman. Dani was so good with them, matching their youthful energy and never shying away from an opportunity to be silly and make them laugh.
But when she finally emerged from the water, I had to cross my legs to hide my excitement. She dripped in the warm sunlight, oozing sex appeal as her curves folded and flexed. I imagined the two of us swimming together in an otherwise empty backyard. Our feet would tease each other under the water, inching closer together with each playful splash. Her body would stick to mine when we embraced--her legs wrapping around my waist--and we would float aimlessly until my back came against the edge of the pool. Sliding her bottoms to one side, I'd press my way into her, going slow until we broke past the barrier of water acting as an anti-lubricant.
"Alex!"
My father's voice drowned my fantasy, and I averted my eyes from Dani's body.
"I said, how many burgers do you want?" he asked, his eyes scanning my face with that parental interrogation that sons and daughters love so much.
