To Mused, thank you for all your help with this. You're the best.
*~*~*
The summer cottage was dark when Brandon arrived home from his afternoon in the dunes. He wondered if Emma was back yet. He wondered, too, what had transpired between her and Adam. He went around to the side, where the entrance to the sleeping porch was located, and entered the cottage from there. If Emma was already home and asleep, he didn't want to disturb her with the squeaky front screen door.
Brandon crept through the interior, quiet as he could be, and used the bathroom. On his way back to the sleeping porch, he passed by Emma's bed. His sister was curled up on her side, facing him, sound asleep. He paused and watched her for a few minutes before placing a chaste kiss upon her upturned cheek.
Brandon made it as far as the door to the porch when a snuffling sound hit his ears. A tiny voice spoke, "Bran, that you?"
"Yeah, Em. I'm home now. You okay?" Something in his sister's voice told him she wasn't. Brandon returned to her side. "When did you get in?"
"A while ago," she whispered.
Brandon sat down on the edge of her bed. "Everything go okay with Adam?" Adam Gerhardt was a summer friend of Brandon's, and a real player when it came to girls. He'd asked Emma to go down to Silver Lake for the day and Emma had excitedly agreed, as she'd nursed a serious crush on Adam for years. It was Brandon's fear Adam would exploit that crush and use Emma for his own pleasure. Brandon was even more afraid that Adam would then toss her aside, the way he had with so many other girls.
"You were right, Brandon,"
Brandon's heart fell at Emma's words. He hadn't wanted to be right. He only hoped that Emma hadn't let Adam go too far. "About what, Em?"
"He only wanted one thing," Emma sighed. She hated to admit it, but her brother had been right about Adam. Emma turned and buried her face in her pillow.
"Well, that was fast."
Fucking hell, the bastard
! Inside, Brandon seethed with anger; he stayed calm for Emma's sake. He reached over and rubbed his little sister's back. Contact with Emma felt so good, no matter how innocent the touch. His physical reaction took its normal course, and in seconds he was hard. He sighed, and shifted a little on Emma's bed in an effort to relieve the discomfort.
"I didn't give in, but he does want to see me again," Emma ventured, somewhat tentatively. In the filtered moonlight, she saw the muscle in his jaw work overtime. She knew her brother extremely well, probably better than anyone. She could sense how upset he was.
"What? You told him to fuck off, right?" Brandon asked her carefully.
"I--I thought I might give him another chance."
Brandon bolted up off the bed. "Another chance! Another chance to do what? To stick his dick in you? Goddamn it Emma, he doesn't want you, he wants your pussy! You just told me that's all he wanted!"
Emma sat up on her knees in her bed, alarmed at the fury in her brother's voice. "Maybe he just needs another chance, you know, to get to know me better. Maybe, eventually..." she trailed off, uncertain of her brother for the first time, uncertain of the wild look in his eyes.
Brandon spat out a harsh laugh. "Eventually what? He'll love you?" The thought of Adam loving Emma was too much to bear. He grabbed Emma by her arms and hauled her up to eye level. "He'll never love you, Emma! Don't you get it? Not like I--" Brandon caught himself, but it was too late. He saw the look in Emma's eyes, as the dawning realization of what he said, or hadn't said, washed over her.
Emma felt like she'd been struck by lightening, so floored was she by this sudden revelation. But it made sense to her. The way she caught Brandon staring at her from time to time, the loving touches, and the sweet smiles that he bestowed on her suddenly seemed that much more intimate. Emma knew then just what Brandon felt for her. He loved her, plain and simple; he loved her the way she wanted to be loved. Emma felt a rush of emotion unlike any she'd ever known. Her heartbeat increased, and her palms grew damp, as her gaze stayed locked on Brandon.
Slowly, agonizingly, Emma slid her hands up his chest. His skin was warm beneath her palms, and already held a golden hue from the full day spent in the warm June sun. She leaned into him and gently rested her cheek there. The thudding of his heart drummed in time with her own, as his arms came up around her shoulders and held her close.
Brandon couldn't believe he was holding Emma in his arms. He hadn't meant to tell her his real feelings, yet he couldn't help but feel relieved now that she finally knew his secret. Terrified she would recoil in disgust, he tightened his hold, slid one hand up her back into her hair, and cradled her head.
The silence stretched out between them before Emma finally broke it. "How long, Bran?"
"How long what, Em?" His voice sounded strange and foreign to him.
"How long have you felt this way?" she whispered into his chest.
"Too long."
"I never realized..." Still kneeling on the bed, Emma's arms moved to encircle Brandon's waist.
"I never wanted you to know."
"But why?"
"You're my sister, for Christ's sake. I'm not supposed to feel this way about you. It's wrong; it's immoral; it's--"
"I feel it, too. I can't explain why, but I do, Brandon," Emma nodded against him. Her hand caressed his shoulder and arm. She tenderly kneaded the muscles beneath his tanned skin.
"God, Emma, no," Brandon groaned. Her touch was like a gift from the heavens. He dreamed of holding her in his arms every night. But it was so wrong.
Emma's hands moved slowly between their bodies. Brandon watched her unbutton the old flannel shirt that she always wore to bed. His mind seemed to work in slow motion; the fact that she was unbuttoning her shirt took several seconds to register in his brain.
Emma sat back on her knees, her shirt unbuttoned but still on. She looked up at her brother with a shy smile. "Brandon?"
