Amber 44

I have never been one for sleeping in. Even as a kid, there were always sports or some other activity that necessitated my early rising on the weekends. That habit continued when I was in college. While everyone else was still sleeping, I took advantage of the quiet mornings and indulged in my general avoidance of people. I found there was something otherworldly about walking the streets on a quiet morning that let you see a side of the town that most never get to experience. It's just the way I've always been.

That's what made this particular morning unusual for me. After a late night, I awoke alone in my bed. Amber was still out of town, taking care of her Uncle in Arkansas; so, I had the house all to myself. Again struck by the silence of my isolation, with the shades drawn I wasn't even aware of what time it was. Waking up naked in bed, wrapped tightly in the covers, the warmth was comforting and enticed me to stay.

Rolling over and pulling the blanket tighter around my neck, I thought back on the night before. Amber had called me just after I had gone to bed. As we talked, it became quickly apparent that she was definitely in a playful mood. We ended up sharing our memories of one of our many adventures, pleasuring ourselves as we traded increasingly graphic recollections. The experience was definitely new to me. Thinking back on it as I lied there that morning, I couldn't help but hope for a repeat performance while she was away.

Finally compelled by nature to leave the comfort of my bed, I slipped from the warm embrace of the covers and hurried off to the bathroom. There, I spent a prolonged stay in front of the toilet emptying my bladder. Finishing up, I casually went through the rest of my morning routine before exiting back out into the bedroom.

Checking my phone on the nightstand, I saw that it was mid-morning so I opened the shades and picked out some casual clothes for the day. After getting dressed, I got a drink from the kitchen and tried to decide to do to pass the time. Checking the weather on my phone, I saw that it was going to be a perfect spring day in Florida. Looking out the back windows, I considered just getting a six-pack of beer and lounging by the pool but figured that I would bore of that rather quickly. I opted instead to try to be productive and headed out to the garage.

As the rolling door went up, I surveyed the front yard and formulated a quick list in my mind of tasks that I could complete. Grabbing my earbuds from atop the toolbox, I put them in and took on the most important decision of the day, choosing the right playlist. After settling on my go-to collection of 90s grunge/alternative, I opened the top drawer of the toolbox. Buried near the back was another of my little secrets, one that Amber definitely didn't approve of but was willing to pretend to overlook. Grabbing a large pinch of wintergreen Skoal, I packed my lip and enjoyed the lightheaded rush as I ran the edger along the driveway.

With that done, I hopped on the mower and prepared to begin the process of lazily driving back and forth across the yard. In reality, I actually loved mowing. It was a chance to just shut my mind off and enjoy being outside. The tall pines provided ample shade while the earbuds played familiar sounds of my youth, taking me back to another place and time.

Starting in the back yard, I quickly took care of the small landscaped area before moving up to the front. While our property was large, most of the back was still wooded and left in its natural state. Only the pool area, the sides and front yard were grassed in. I had done about half of the front yard when, on one of my passes along the street, I saw a car headed my way. As it approached, I immediately recognized it. Coming to a stop as the black Jaguar slowed, I shut the mower off as the window rolled down. Taking my earbuds out, I smiled as Rachel leaned across the car and cheerfully said, "Hey! Long time no see! Where's your trusty helper?"

Fuck, with the light shining in through the open sunroof, her blonde hair pulled back and expensive-looking shades on, she was dressed as if she was heading out to play tennis or something; but goddamn, she looked incredible. Wiping my brow, I chuckled, "Yeah, you don't usually see me out here by myself. No, Amber had to go out of town on short notice....family emergency back home so it's on me to hold it down for a few days."

"Oh no, everything ok?" she asked with legitimate concern.

Taking a drink from the water bottle in my cup holder, I said, "Yeah, no, everything's fine. Her uncle lives by himself and ended up needing surgery so she flew up to take care of him for a few days. What about you?"

Rachel lowered her glasses and gave me a demonstrative eye roll before putting them back up and laughing. "I think it's Seattle this weekend... or maybe Portland... fuck, I don't know." With another laugh, she asked, "Any plans for this newfound freedom?"

Gesturing towards the yard, I said, "You're looking at it. I dunno, might get crazy and do a shopping trip." Ad-libbing from one of my favorite movies, I added, "Might go to the grocery store... I don't know, I don't know if I'll have enough time."

Rachel threw her head back and laughed, "Well, if you end up going streaking, let me know. I'd pay to see that."

Holy shit, she got my Old School reference. Impressed, I said, "You're clearly a woman of culture."

Rachel just grinned and tipped her head in acknowledgment. As she did, I unconsciously sent out a mouthful of dip spit onto the grass beside me. Surprised, Rachel leaned a little further over and said, "Woah, when'd you turn into a redneck?"

Laughing, I wiped my mouth and said, "Sorry, I know it's a nasty habit. Amber hates it too. Picked it up playing baseball and now I have to sneak away and do the yard to get my fix."

Rachel tilted her head, "Baseball? How long did you play?"

Shrugging, I said, "All my life it seems. Played all through high school and a couple of years in college. I wasn't going anywhere though so I quit to save my grades."

Biting her lip in that playful way that Amber also did, Rachel said, "Damn... guess there's still lots about you I don't know." Then with another little shrug she added, "And I wouldn't call it a nasty habit... just make sure you brush your teeth before you come to bed." She then laughed before adding, "And don't worry, I won't tell on you... I'm good at keeping secrets." The last line was spoken with a little wink as she sat back up in her seat.

We both laughed, although mine was decidedly more nervous than hers. Then an awkward pause preceded her finally saying, "Well hey, I'm headed out to meet some friends for lunch but I'll be around this evening... if you need anything, you know where to find me."

I just smiled and said, "Yeah, just uhh... let me get my permission slip signed."

Rachel smiled and said, "It was good seeing you."

Reaching down to start the mower back up, I said, "You too, have fun!"

As she drove off I put my earbuds back in and set about finishing my mowing. For the rest of the job though, the usual calmness in my mind was pushed aside. I couldn't help but replay that brief conversation in my mind while I traced that repetitive path across the yard. As I pictured her, I couldn't help but think about what was hidden beneath the little skirt and collared, sleeveless top. Part of me felt guilty for even thinking about her. But, as the mower droned along another stripe of grass, I figured there wasn't any harm in reminiscing.

Before long, the path led me back to where I had started. After parking the mower back in the garage, I got the blower out and cleaned off the driveway. When I was done, I looked out at the yard, satisfied with the results of my work. Spitting the lump of tobacco out into the planter, I rinsed my mouth out with the rest of the water in the bottle, thinking about what Rachel had said, "...just brush your teeth before coming to bed." Ha, if only.

Checking my phone as I put away my things, I saw that I had managed to kill a few hours. It was already a little past 1:00 pm. As I closed the garage door and kicked off my shoes, I typed out a quick text to check on Amber before heading back inside.

While standing in the kitchen getting a glass of water, I heard the phone ringing. Seeing that it was her, I brought it up to my ear, "Hey, what's up?"

"Oh nothing much," she said. "We're at the hospital. They said everything went well so they're going to let Uncle Mike go home in a little bit."

Surprised, I said, "Wow, that's fast. How's he doing?"

Amber laughed, "Good. I just went out into the hallway. He's uhh... I think he's embarrassed that I came to help. He's thankful of course, but I think he feels bad. He's insisting that I should go home tomorrow. Says he doesn't want me to have to miss work or something."

Laughing, I said, "Ehh, he should probably wait to see how today goes before making that decision."

Annoyed, Amber said, "Uhh yeah. Tell you what, he hasn't listened to me the dozens of times I've said it. Maybe you should try."

"No! No, I'm sure you did your best," I quickly said.

Amber laughed, "Yeah, I talked to my mom this morning. They're flying back tomorrow. So, I figured I'd be able to come home on Monday. I'll just tell him I couldn't find any flights."

"Sounds like a plan," I said.

"What about you? What have you been up to?" Amber asked.

Rubbing my head, I said, "You'd be proud of me. I did the yard!"

"Wait, I missed doing the yard with you?" She then playfully said, "After what we talked about last night, you're gonna tell me that I missed spending the day working outside with you?"

I laughed, "Well, now that it's spring, we can probably find something to do out there every weekend if you want."

Amber chuckled and then softly said, "Yeah, that'd be nice."

I just smiled before she asked, "So, got any plans for the rest of the day?"

Shaking my head, I said, "No, I did get an interesting offer though."

"Oh?"

Chuckling, I said, "Yeah, Rachel stopped by while I was mowing. She asked me if I had anything going on while you were out of town."

"And the offer?" she asked with a hint of surprise.

Rubbing the back of my neck, I said, "Ehh, it wasn't so much an explicit offer. She just made it clear that she was going to be home alone this evening. I believe her words were, 'If you need anything, you know where to find me."

"That little bitch..." Amber jokingly muttered. To my surprise, she then asked, "So, you gonna take her up on the offer?"

Taken aback, I said, "No! God no, Amber... I was just telling you--"

I was cut off by Amber laughing hysterically. Between laughs she said, "Babe, I'm just teasing you."

Feeling my face become warm, I chuckled and said, "I mean, don't get me wrong. I was flattered; but no, I'll just be here by myself the next two nights."

Amber laughed sympathetically and said, "Well, I'd say 'don't do anything I wouldn't do,' but in this case, I'm not sure that's helpful advice."

We both laughed before Amber said, "Hey, I think the nurse is coming with the discharge papers. I'm gonna go but I'll let you know how things are going later."

Before I had a chance to reply she added, "And hey, if you, uhh, decide to stay home, maybe I'll make it worth your while."

I let out an exasperated chuckle, "Babe, I'm not going anywhere."

In a seductive tone, she replied, "Good... then I'll talk to you later then."

We said goodbye and I disconnected the call. As I stood in the kitchen finishing my drink, I tried to decide what to do for food. Honestly, I felt like heading up to the pub for a greasy burger. But, not knowing where Rachel was meeting her friends, I didn't want to take the risk of running into them and the unavoidably awkward conversation that would undoubtedly follow. Instead, I decided that ordering a pizza would be a much safer option.

Having just come in from working in the yard though, I needed to get cleaned up. Setting my empty glass next to the sink, I headed back to the bathroom. Pulling my shirt off over my head, I tossed it to the side before peeling off my shorts and underwear in one pull. Kicking them aside with my shirt, I unstuck my sack from my leg as I reached into the shower and got the water going.

Once it heated up, I got in and relaxed as the warm water beat down on my shoulders. Although it was midday, with only the light coming in from the open bedroom door, the bathroom was dark, just how I liked it. Standing there, I rolled my neck from side to side and let out a long, relaxing breath.

When I finally reached for the shampoo, I squirted some out and tilted my head back into the water. Closing my eyes and beginning to wash, the image that popped in my mind was that of Rachel, leaning over in her car talking to me this morning. She looked absolutely beautiful and that sporty outfit that she had on only made me think about getting her out of it. As I scrubbed my hair, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret, thinking that my thoughts were somehow wrong. As if taunting me, the imagine in my mind just smiled back.

Tilting my head back again to rinse my hair, I wrestled with the thoughts in my mind. Part of me thought it was wrong; but, a much more persuasive part of me drew my attention back to that skirt and what I knew she had beneath it.

Reaching for the shower puff, I turned to let the water hit my chest. Opening my eyes, I tried to focus on something else as I squeezed out some body-wash. I decided that if my mind wanted to go there, I could at least think about Amber. While I began scrubbing my upper body, I thought about her and all the times we'd bathed each other. As I proceeded through my shower though, I realized that for some reason, it just wasn't working for me that day. That was fine though, I honestly didn't even want to be doing that. I really just wanted to get cleaned up so I could finally eat.

After washing my feet and legs, I eventually got to my groin. As soon as I rubbed the warm soap across my limp penis though, I unconsciously groaned as a pleasant tingling sensation filled my body. Without even thinking about it, I dragged the soapy puff across my genitals again. As I did, I reflexively closed my eyes and tilted my head back, softly moaning as another wave of pleasure washed over me. Dropping the puff to the floor, I squeezed and slowly stroked my soapy hand along the length of my still-flaccid penis. As my heart raced, I hung my head and groaned.

With the hot water striking my shoulders, I let out a long shaky exhale as I felt myself starting to get aroused. "Oh fuck..." I groaned as I continued slowly caressing my thickening, lengthening penis. When it began to throb as it reached its fullest, I took my hand away and just looked down at it standing stiffly in front of me. As I watched it bounce when I tightened my pelvis, I considered what to do next. I could just quickly rub one out, get it over with and move on. Or, I could try to ignore it, to save my libido for later when I knew Amber would be calling.

I decided to see what would happen if I did nothing. Fuck it, I had the house to myself. Worst case, I could still do it whenever I wanted. So, ignoring my deepest desires, I stood there under the water a little longer, letting the water rinse me off.

Once I'd had enough, I picked the puff up and hung it back on its hook. Turning off the water, I got my towel and began to get dried. Dabbing around my stiffened penis was a delicate affair but I managed to do so without further stimulating myself.

Hanging the towel back on its hook, I couldn't help but laugh at the image in the mirror. There I stood, looking completely normal aside from the rigid member still standing proudly in front of me. I just shrugged at the guy in the reflection and chuckled to myself as I walked out into the bedroom with it bouncing in front of me.

As I stood in front of the dresser, I decided that trying to tuck it into some underwear would be unnecessarily uncomfortable. Instead, I just pulled on a pair of sweatpants along with a loose sweatshirt. In hindsight, that might not have been the best idea if my goal was to ignore my current situation. Amber and I had made a habit of wearing sweats with no underwear when we knew we were going to mess around. Wearing that now just brought back all of those memories and only served to worsen my situation. Looking down at my sweatpants protruding in front of me, I took a deep breath to stave off the excitement that the liberating feel of the loose pants produced. Resolute to make myself wait though, I grabbed my phone and headed out to the living room.

On the way out there, as my package shifted in the freedom of my sweatpants, I realized that I couldn't exactly answer the door if a pizza delivery came while I was like this. Instead of placing an order, I grabbed the blanket off the back of the couch and flopped down with it wrapped around me. I figured that a few minutes of watching mindless TV should solve my current dilemma. To my relief, I found a Spring Training game on one of the local channels. Hell, what's the common advice to get rid of an unwanted boner? Think about baseball. That would surely do the trick.

No sooner had I turned the game on though than the inning ended and they went to commercials. As the first ad played, I found myself getting annoyed. My stomach was grumbling, a cartoon ant was singing a pest control jingle, all while I sat on the couch with a throbbing between my legs. Recognizing the ridiculousness of it all, I laughed as I made myself more comfortable. Lying down lengthwise with a pillow under my head, I wrapped the blanket tighter around me.

When the last commercial ended and the broadcast came back with a shot of the sun-drenched stadium, I reflexively yawned and snuggled into the pillow. As a second yawn caused my body to tremble, I gave in to the increasing weight of my eyelids. While the announcers recapped the day's action, the room faded to black.

Napping, aside from providing me some much needed rest, has always resulted in particularly vivid dreams for me. Waking up from a nap, I had always been able to recall my dreams more easily than when waking up in the morning. This time was no different.

As my body started to wake from the sleep, I fought to keep my eyes closed in a vain attempt to prolong that alternate reality playing somewhere in my mind. When I'd fully regained consciousness, I threw the blanket off my shoulders and started to roll onto my side. As I rolled over, I felt strangely uncomfortable. Wincing, I finished pulling the blanket from around me, tossed it onto the back of the couch and sat up.

It was then that I understood the nature of my discomfort. Rubbing my eyes with one hand, I grumbled to myself as I looked down at the small puddle on the front of my pants. Shifting my hips, I couldn't help but laugh as my now-flaccid penis shifted in that sticky mess.

Closing my eyes and thinking back on the dream that I'd had, it was no wonder that my body followed where my mind had directed. As I looked out at the dying light of the early evening, I stood from the couch. Clutching the front of my sweatpants to contain my self-made mess, I shuffled back into the bathroom. There, I stripped those pants off, adding them to the collection of dirty clothes that had collected in the corner. Using a soapy washcloth, I cleaned myself off before drying and switching into a clean pair of sweatpants. With that issue resolved, I figured it was safe to skip the underwear again.

Walking back out into the kitchen, I was now absolutely famished. Unencumbered by my previously inopportune arousal, I was now free to place my call, which I did without delay. To my relief, I was still quoted a 30-minute delivery time. When I hung up the call, I went over to the refrigerator. Looking in, I quickly reached for one of four tall, brown bottles towards the back. After the day that I'd had, I figured that I had more than earned a beer or two... or three or four."