While Liv recuperates in the hospital, her son and Cody's best friend Jack visits, his girlfriend Yv with him. Cody walks in on the two of them fucking hard; only Yv notices, and later follows Cody upstairs alone while Jack sleeps his climax off. Still eager and needful, Yv pulls Cody into Liv's bed, and into her. The next morning, overwhelmed by passion, Cody and Carla end up in the shower, then in bed together. Carla tells Cody she also watched her brother and Yv on the couch, then Yv came to her room afterwards to make out with and go down on her. Liv figures out what happened between Cody and Carla, and gives them her blessing to continue while she convalesces.
The hospital was less busy than Saturday, but the word on me and Liv seemed to have gotten out, since we were now under the careful surveillance of the nurse's station. When we shut the door to go over paperwork, a grim iron-haired nurse, built like a palace guardsman, opened the door, peering inside every five minutes to confirm, I'm sure, that I hadn't tempted her heart patient to test the bounds of recovery.
Liv kissed me tenderly when I arrived, then hugged me tight. "Cody, I miss you every day." Then she released me, still clutching my hands. "How is it going?" Eagerness shone brightly in her eyes, and I wondered if they had her on any pain meds, but discarded that thought quickly. I knew that what she had bestowed upon us was because she loved us.
"It's...going, Liv. I love you."
She kissed me again. "Good. To both. I don't want any details, but you know I meant you and Carla."
If I'd felt awkward before, that was nothing to alluding to my lady love about intimacy between me and her daughter. The conversation seemed unreal, something I never imagined I would ever have a need to talk about or even consider. "Liv, I'm still..."
"Conflicted, my love? I gave the two of you my blessing to do this, and you know if I was healthy it would be, always has been, you and me tearing up the sheets.." She was gentle, as loving as ever.
"Baby, I wish it
was
you..."
"Not Carla, not just a little bit?" Her eyes sparkled with good humor, and It felt like she was goading me into an admission of...what? Not guilt, since this was her idea. And mine. And Carla's. I finally realized she wanted, not to taunt me, but to have me accept the situation, her gift as much as Carla's.
I closed my eyes and exhaled, still holding her hands. "Okay Liv, more than a little bit. Carla is a wonderful...woman. Just like her beautiful, sexy mom."
Her eyes were filled with merriment. "I bet you say that to all the sexy women whose daughters you have sex with!"
"No, actually, just you." I searched her eyes, but saw only desire, no pain, there.
She looked into my eyes very matter-of-factly. "Cody, I didn't do this lightly or on the spur of the moment. I wish it were me also. More than you know, since I've been all over you and our bed for the past eight months, and those two incredible months back in Concord. I know the two of you are attracted to each other. A great deal. I can see it in her eyes, and in yours. I'm still very much in love with you, and always will be. I want to be selfish..."
"Liv, I'm okay with you being selfish..."
She quieted me with a frown. "Cody, I never admitted it before, but I actually
was
jealous the first time Sally told me about Sheila and later Hilda. A little less so when you told me about your
menage
with Nancy, since it was you and Sheila sharing her. At the same time, I wanted you to be here to warm my bed, love me all night, and even attend college out here so I would have you all to myself. I knew I was being jealous, and it was stupid to want you only for myself, but it didn't stop the hurt.
"Right now, it's not fair to you to keep you waiting for me until I'm totally well. Not at your age, babe." She reached up to caress my cheek. "You're not sneaking around behind my back, nor is Carla. I already told you I don't want details, from either of you, but my imagination is running wild with all the things you and I have done, and will do, later in the Fall when I'm ready for it, to have you back in my bed."
She leaned forward again, her eyes smoldering with passion and lust and love. "Cody, I
love
you and that means not trying to possess or control you." She kissed me again, a lingering kiss and opened her mouth, which I happily responded to, until we heard a gruff
ahem
at the door, the iron-haired nurse reminding us she was watching.
Disengaging from Liv's kiss very slowly, I waved the nurse away, and said, "We'll behave ourselves." She stalked off to seek out and interrupt another convalescing couple, I suspected.
As if we hadn't been interrupted, Liv grinned at me, still a little weakly, but noticeably stronger than the past couple of weeks. "Cody, there is no other man I would trust to 'cheat' on me"--using air quotes--"while I'm laid up..."
"Liv, I'd rather you were getting
laid
..."
Her laugh was delighted, delightful, and stronger than it had been recently. "Fuck, so would I, my sexy man! If I thought we could get away with it again, I would take the gown off and beg you to feel me up again." She winked. "I'm sure I mentioned regular sponge baths once I get home..."
"You did, on demand. Liv, I just feel wrong about being with Carla."
"No, I think you feel fine about that, at least in the moment. You just wish it were me."
"True. Very true."
I stayed almost to the end of visiting hours, and the nurses were very indulgent, as though it was very cute that such a young man was so devoted to this older woman. I suspect they had their own hopes and dreams in that direction, the attentions of some strapping younger man, say in his forties (for some of them) to fill their off-time with romance and plenty of sex. Under my breath, I sincerely wished them all luck.
Carla visited with her the rest of the time, while I sat in the waiting room reading a magazine that had been out-of-date before the Carter administration, showing homes and décor I didn't care about but it was all that was available to read except the contents of my briefcase, and one time was enough now that Liv had signed off on the documents.
Afterwards, looking tired but happy, Carla came out and hugged me very calmly, no kissing at all, which would have renewed the disapproving looks from the nurses' station in short order. I went in and kissed Liv goodbye for now, and promised to return the next evening after work.
"Cody, one last thing. Tanya dropped by and said you're really doing a great job. I have to agree with her, and you're really growing in the position." She blushed at her own phrasing. "She thinks you could be in line to be in charge of Analytics someday."
I felt very flattered, but also like things were moving faster than I was really comfortable with. "That will be a long time coming, Liv. First thing is to get
you
