Neighbors

James was driving back from a long Labor Day weekend at the coast. It was nice to catch up with everyone, he felt like he hardly saw his friends anymore, but he was happy to be coming home. He had been sorry to miss the neighborhood block party, mostly because he had been sorry to miss a chance to hang out with his neighbor Cassie. He had bought the house across the street from her in the spring. They had spent the whole summer flirting while she was still hanging out with a guy who worked at the bar with her.

But last week he heard from her friend down the block that she was done with that dirt bag for good. James had been crushing on Cassie since the moment he saw her. He loved her wide smile and the freckles that dotted across her nose. He loved her tall, athletic body, and her pert little breasts with their puffy nipples that showed through the bikini tops she wore around her yard all summer. James had been waiting for his chance with her, and he wondered how long it would take to come,now that the other guy was out of the picture. He pulled into his driveway and hopped out of his truck.

"Hey!" He heard Cassie's voice shout. James turned to Cassie's yard to see her bouncing into view from behind her car in the driveway. "Guess what I got?"

"Looks like you got a trampoline." He called back as he began to make his way across the street.

"The McNally's gave it to me!" she continued to bounce. "Too much trouble to pack it for the move I guess." Cassie had set it up on the concrete driveway in front of her garage.

"Dangerous setting it up on the concrete," James said. "You could crack your head open if you fall off."

"Nah," Cassie said. "I won't fall off." She did a split in the air on her next jump. "You want to join me?" she asked. "It really gets your heart rate going!"

James paused a moment before answering. He watched her, taking in her graceful athleticism, the blush on her face brought on by the exertion of jumping, the way the bouncing tousled her wavy hair. Just watching her was getting his heart rate up. "Why not," he said. He bent down to untie his boots and hoisted himself to sit on the edge of the trampoline before kicking them off. Cassie paused her jumping to help him up and held his eye for just a moment before she started up again and James tentatively joined in.

"The best part about having a buddy to jump with," Cassie said, half out of breath, "is if you time it right, you can give them a boost." She had a wicked look in her eye, and on his next jump James shot up twice as high. He almost lost his balance and came down a touch less gracefully than he had hoped. Cassie let out a cackle of laughter.

"We can give each other a boost!" James said as he returned the favor, launching her up into the air.

"Whoo!" Cassie cried as she did another split.

They kept jumping, taking turned boosting and launching each other higher. They did twists and spins and splits in the air, though neither was brave enough to try a flip. James was getting tired, he couldn't remember the last time he was on a trampoline, but he didn't remember it being this exhausting. Both he and Cassie were losing steam. On Cassie's next boost she came down, crashing into him and they both crumpled into a heap. Cassie sat up, laughing, but James lay on his back, eyes closed, breathing heavily.

"Time out," he said.

"Time out," Cassie agreed, laying down beside him.

With his eyes closed, James could sense Cassie beside him. He heard her panting breath. He could feel the pull of their weight toward the center of the trampoline, like gravity was trying to force them together. He could sense the warmth radiating off her arm beside his. He felt like every nerve, every cell in his body was tuned in to Cassie, reaching out into the space between them and feeling the electromagnetic field of her body. He opened his eyes and stared up at the sky. It was a grey day, the sky looked white and far away. The air felt heavy and muggy, but a cool breeze whispered past. James thought it might rain.

"Seems like it might rain," Cassie's quiet voice broke the silence.

"Seems like it," James agreed, and they returned to silence.

James was aware of her hand next to his. He sensed it move slightly, though it didn't touch him. He wanted to touch her, every part of him yearned to feel her. He held his breath as he twisted his wrist, ever so slightly, and extended his pinky, just barely. A wave of sensation sparked through his body as his pinky brushed hers, and he did not dare to move any more. They lay side by side, frozen, connected by the barest bit of skin for a moment. Then she lifted her last two fingers and slid them over, wrapping them around his. He felt like all the blood in his body rushed to the surface of his skin, lighting him up with awareness of the feeling of her fingers on his.

He tentatively moved his hand, afraid that breaking the contact would make her withdraw, but also needing to touch her more. He flipped his hand and slid it under hers, so they were palm to palm, and interlaced. He felt another rush of blood though his body, but this time to his groin. He was a forty-year-old man, divorced, getting a boner over holding hands with a girl like he was a teenager. But this was Cassie, he had wanted her since the day they met, even if he didn't realize it, and he had waited so long, and holding her hand felt incredible. Her hand was resting lightly on his, and he began to slide his thumb up and down her wrist, stroking the soft skin. She didn't move, but somehow, he could still feel her responding in some quiet, internal way. And then he felt her weight shift.

Cassie rolled onto her side toward him without breaking their contact. She brought her free hand up and rested it under head. He could feel her looking at him and he felt self-conscious. He tried to assess how visible the bulge in his pants might be, embarrassed that she might notice it. He turned his head to look at her, she was starting intently at his face, and then he turned onto his side as well. Their faces were only a couple of inches away from each other. He could smell an earthy sweetness in her breath and feel the warmth of it mixing with his in the space in between them. He saw an honesty and earnestness in her eyes when she looked into his, but also a furtive shyness when they darted away. He smiled, and she smiled back. Her wide mouthed smile that seemed to take up her whole face, but the shyness was still in her eyes. That's when they felt the first raindrops, but they didn't move. They lay there smiling and taking each other in, as the rain picked up. The sprinkle began to turn to a downpour.

"We were right about the rain," she finally said, raising her voice slightly to be heard over the noise. James just nodded. "Do you want to come inside?" Cassie asked. James nodded again, and as if a spell was broken, they let go of each other's hands and both sat up. Cassie quickly rolled off the trampoline as James scooted toward the edge. She ran barefoot up the steps to the back porch as he slipped his feet back into his boots and followed after her. The back door to her kitchen was already open and they ducked in out of the rain.

They leaned against opposite counters in the small galley kitchen. "Do you want a beer?" Cassie asked. Cassie always seemed to be offering people beers.

"Sure," James shrugged, not really caring about the beer, but not wanting to say no to her.

Cassie turned to open the fridge next to her and pulled out two IPAs in bottles. She opened both before handing one to him and resuming her spot against the counter across from him. They each took a sip and stared at each other as they swallowed. Cassie smiled, and James smiled back, acknowledging the awkward tension of the moment. James kept his eyes on her, even as she looked away, and then back, and then for a moment settled her gaze on his lips. She wanted to kiss him. That glance was all he needed. James set his beer down on the counter next to him and took two steps across the kitchen to stand in front of her. Callie watched him and didn't look away as she set her beer down as well. She pushed herself off from her position leaning against the counter and stood before him. She looked at his eyes, and then down at his mouth again.

In one motion, James brought his hand up to her neck, slid his fingers into the soft waves of her hair at the back of her head, and leaned his face into her. She tilted her head back slightly and his lips found hers. The kiss was gentle at first, just a peck really, held for a moment, and then released. James was holding back, afraid of the intensity of his desire. They stood frozen for a moment, their mouths partly open, only millimeters apart, breathing the same air. Then Cassie closed the space, tentatively tracing the edge of his lower lip with the tip of her tongue. It was like a dam broke. James wrapped his other hand around her waist and pulled her against him.

The kiss deepened and James briefly met her tongue with his. Her hands came up around his neck and she raked her fingers through his hair. The kiss went on, their lips mingling. She lightly scraped her teeth along his lower lip, he sucked her lip gently into his mouth, their tongues brushed against each other in their exploration. He brought his hands up to either side of her face and held her as her kissed her more intensely. Then drew his hands down her body, down the slope of her back to her hips and the curve of her ass. He pressed her to him, and she gasped into his mouth. She could feel his hardness through his jeans. She bit his lip and pressed herself against him.

James bent slightly to lift her up onto the counter in front of him and she wrapped her legs around his waist. He leaned forward to kiss her as she leaned back, scooting her hips toward him. He slid one hand up from her hip to cup her breast. She wasn't wearing a bra and he could feel her nipple, hard beneath her tank top. She arched her back and ground her hips into him. He took that as an invitation to keep going and moved his hand up and over the top of her shirt. He pulled the front of her tank top down to expose her, and ran his bare hand over her breast. James alternated between light caresses, grazing his hand over her sensitive nipple, and deep gropes that massaged her tissue.

She kissed him harder. He caught her nipple with his fingers and rolled it between them, then gave it a light pinch. She jumped at the sensation. Her mouth was hungry on his. He broke the kiss and trailed his lips over to her ear. James gently ran his tongue up her earlobe and along the outer edge. He smiled to himself when he felt her give a little shudder of pleasure. He ran his lips down her neck and across her chest, kissing and licking her skin. His lips finally settled on her nipple, and she gasped. He ran his tongue in circles around the edge, sucked it in between his lips and lightly grazed it with his teeth. He looked up at her face, her eyes were closed, and her lips parted, she was breathing heavily.

"Fuck," she whispered, and she brought her hand up to the back of his head to hold him to her breast.

James let her nipple slip from his mouth. He kneeled lower down and brought his hands to the waistband of her shorts. He looked up at her for permission, and she braced her hands on the counter and rocked her hips so he could pull off her shorts and panties. He kept his eyes on hers as he parted her legs and positioned himself, kneeling between them. He turned his face and kissed and nuzzled his way up one thigh. She flinched and giggled as his scruff tickled the delicate skin. He smiled at her and did the same to her other thigh as she squirmed and bucked. He released her and took in the sight of her, bare in front of him. She was beautiful, with a light thatch of soft brown curls, and lips parted to reveal a deep pink center slick with her wetness. He made eye contact as he slid his tongue up her slit, feeling a slight shudder as he brushed it over her clit. He kept eye contact as he did it again, this time flicking her clit harder as he reached the top. She closed her eyes and jumped at the stimulation. He could sense her bracing herself for it again as he lowered his tongue and began to lick his way back up. This time he closed his mouth around her nub, sucking it between his lips and circling it with the tip of his tongue.

"Oh fuck," she squeaked as he felt her melt into his mouth. Her body going momentarily limp on the counter. He continued to work her cunt, licking and sucking and tonguing her clit. Her body began to tense again, and she started to rock her hips into him, fucking his mouth with her pussy. James loved the way her body responded to him, and he felt a surge of blood in his erection. He felt precum, pooling wet on the tip of his dick. He brought one hand from her thigh and pressed one finger and then two into her. He slid his fingers in and out of her, stroking her g-spot as he increased the speed and pressure of his tongue on her clit.

Cassie moaned and whimpered and rocked her hips into him in an almost involuntary rhythm. She moved faster, fucking herself on his fingers, panting and gasping, and then she came. She arched her back and clenched her thighs. She grabbed his head and cried out. He felt her wetness flood his mouth and her vagina pulsing on his fingers. He felt another surge in his dripping cock, she was unbelievable. He slowed his tongue as he felt her begin to come down from her peak, but he kept his fingers still inside her. Just to tease her, he flicked his tongue at her oversensitive clit and she squealed and jumped. He laughed and did it again, she laughed and squealed and jumped further this time, pulling herself off of his fingers.

Cassie grabbed his head and pulled him up from his kneeling position. She held his face in her hands and kissed him, tasting herself on his tongue. She brought her hands down to his jeans and unbuttoned them. Sticking one hand down inside his briefs. She could feel the wetness dripping from his rock-hard cock. She slid her hand down its length and whispered into his ear, "Should we go upstairs?"

"Oh god, please," James groaned into her shoulder.