Things could get complicated with so many generations running about.
No, not 'could get' β better say 'certainly are!'
Jennie stood beside her host, Edward, watching through the living room window as her grandparents' car disappeared down the drive, headed to a two-day junket on the wild Pacific shore a hundred miles west of Seattle.
Jennie's parents were not accompanying her - this was specifically a parent-free junket to enable her to get to know her grandparents better. So far it had worked to perfection - they formed a very compatible travel-trio. The grandparents -Darian and Jessy- were Edward's longest-term friends -over forty years. Jennie had never met Edward in person before arriving two days ago, although she felt as if she knew him well, having been regaled for all of her twenty years with stories involving her family (various generations) and him - mostly about research cruises and the running club... mostly, that is, up until three weeks ago, when the tenor and topics had changed radically.
Edward was a fine host - certainly he had done the three of them proud as their local tour guide, taking several days off for their visit, finding for them a fine selection of Seattle's unusual and interesting.
And for once Jennie was faced with a man fully her intellectual equal (a rarity!), one who positively reveled in hyper-fast complex repartee. She was fascinated, stoked, and after only those two very busy days, actually close to having a crush on him, the 40+ years of age differential be damned. Forty-eight hours alone with him would be lovely. For several reasons, an important one being the conversational potential. One amongst others.
She stood there in her snug short-shorts and boat-necked blouse, being physically gorgeous as well as intellectually attractive - in spades on both axes β holder of a recently-completed four-major bachelor's (done in three years yet!), blond, blue-eyed, with perfect skin and posture, fine physical condition, a genuinely beautiful face - not merely "quite pretty", and a very nice figure. Jennie and her mother Beata, and also Beata's sister Caroline, were small-busted (very unlike Grandma Jessy), short (right at five feet) and somewhat broad across the beam - but attractively so. In any case, Jennie was a wonderfully-assembled package, very much appreciated by Edward - although so far appreciated in careful, neutral silence.
The car reached the end of the drive, made a left, vanished. Jennie took a deep breath, turned to face Edward: she was wearing a slightly mischievous look, saying nothing, looking like a cat with a canary in its mouth.
After some seconds, Edward finally grinned at her and said "OK, madam... what is it?"
She giggled and blushed slightly- very out of character. "Permission to speak freely?" She had picked up some of Darian's Marine-Corps phraseology, and knew Edward shared it.
Edward nodded: "Of course. Any time, any topic. Proceed."
Still standing, facing him squarely, she began: "I've been wondering for the past two days how the HELL you have been able to keep a perfectly straight face in Jessy's presence, with her hubby Darian right here. After all, you and she..."
She paused to study the carefully-controlled expression he was putting on, smiled, and continued. "Oh, crappola, Edward, don't look so stricken! Mom and Caroline and Grandma and I are pretty close - we really have no secrets. And I do mean NONE! Which has made for some interesting conversations."
She held him in her gaze: "I know you and Grandma Jessy had an affair - and that it was both intense and short-lived. Also a long time ago. And I also know that you fucked both my mother and auntie Caroline when they were pretty young - they've all told me that themselves. So don't bother to apologize or pretend, please. Plus there are rumors, pretty tangled and unclear, about you being involved with even earlier generations of my family."
She paused, waited.
He studied her face: open, honest curiosity, nothing negative on view. After a second's silence, he shrugged: "So - I'll make no excuses because I think none are needed - but I
will
take the opportunity right up front to point out that you come from a long line of extremely attractive, personable, and highly-sexed women. All of whom I have found very attractive and some of whom occasionally found me likewise under circumstances where an appropriate response was feasible. I doubt there are any active regrets floating about."
He stopped, grinned briefly at her, then asked "So, M'Lady, is there an actual question in here somewhere for me?"
She nodded at him, went somewhat serious. "I am a VERY curious person, Ed- you should have figured that out by now. Would it be rude of me to ask for a complete rundown of you and the women in my family? Sexual rundown, I mean, specifically. I'm super-curious, have been for years, and who knows, this might be my only chance to ever find things out for sure. But I'd like it to be as accurate as possible - no male braggadocio, and no hiding either. There is no question about my feelings or sensibilities being hurt, no matter what. I just want the facts, the data. Please!? Frankly, the curiosity is just about killing me!"
He thought for a second, then said "What the hell, why not? True confessions time. But first, tell me please - what triggered the request? It didn't just materialize out of hyperspace on its own initiative!"
"Ok, fair enough" replied Jeannie. "Here's MY little story. I and Mom and Grandma Marina and aunt Caroline have always been close, and pretty free in our discussions of almost everything. Three weeks ago when Mom and Caroline and I got together with Darian and Jessy at their place to plan this trip, the next-door neighbors had just put in a new hot-tub. But they were going to be gone for a few days, and said we were free to use it. Good go exercise the machinery, I think."
"So we four women declared a girls' tub-night, trotted over to the tub in the dark, stripped down and hopped in. Complete with a couple bottles of good wine, of course. Lots of girl-talk, but the evening's central topic evolved - or devolved - as it usually does - to sex. Successes, failures, adventures, needs, wants - all that stuff. Stuff we women seem to find it easy to discuss with one another β also something men just seem to be unable to discuss either amongst themselves or God Forbid with women! We did a lot of female bragging, complaining, dreaming. As I said, girl talk."