There was nothing nicer than spooning with someone in a soft bed with a fluffy duvet in an ice-cold room, all toasty under the covers. Nothing. The only thing that was making my morning even better was Alex’s hardon rubbing against my butt and the groping he was giving my tits.
One of his hands was inside my shorts, massaging my clit with a laziness of a man who had nowhere else he wanted to be, and his other trapped under my side but still managing to tweak my nipple when he pulled me closer. I moaned and tried to grind harder against him, reaching back to clutch his hair in my fist as I felt him breathing heavily on the back of my neck.
“Oh—” I gasped out, arching my back. “Harder, Daddy, rub my clit harder.”
He groaned out something in Greek, his voice still thick with sleep but immediately gave into my pleading. We were getting tangled in each other and the sheets; his leg pressed between mine, wedging them open while I struggled to get the blanket unwrapped from around my hips.
“Chloe!”
No! Alex froze and I groaned. “Don’t listen to her,” I begged in a frantic whisper. “If we’re quiet—”
“She will come up here again,” he warned.
Mama did that a few days ago when I didn’t immediately answer her screeching; she came charging up the stairs and barged into our bedroom without warning. We were dressed, thank god, but it was still a horrible feeling to be walked in on. Now we had the door locked all the time. After Peter walked in on us, we closed the door all the time, so I guess with each violation of our privacy we were going to lock ourselves further away.
“Koritsi mou!”
I squeezed my eyes shut and took a deep breath. I love my mother. I will not lose my shit on her. I disentangled myself from Alex and got off the bed in a huff.
We were now on day three of Mama being with us in the house and she worked as hard as she could to keep us apart. She kept me up late after Alex went to bed, wanting to play cards or talk, and got to me as early as possible in the morning. The fear I had about having sex with her in the house had disappeared the instant I realized that she was going to put the kibosh on that as much as possible. Worse, if Alex and I were standing or sitting next to each other in any way, shape, or form, she would put herself between us.
I rubbed my face with resignation and sat there for a moment, contemplating whether or not we should just run away again. We could stay in Greece, maybe just start travelling across the islands. Like to Elafonisi, the beautiful nature reserve with pink beaches…
“Chloe Ann Marie! I know you can hear me!”
“What do I have to do to get you to steal me away again?” I asked, turning to look at Alex over my shoulder. “For a long,long time.”
He chuckled and rubbed my back. “She has to go home eventually, just try and enjoy the time you have with her for now.”
His words gave me pause, I looked away and tried to stop my mind from wandering to Alex’s own mother. I wonder what her name is. Maybe Peter would tell me. I hadn’t been over to see him despite Alex telling me that Peter was asking to see me; I just didn’t feel like it was necessary. I could worry about that later, for now I got up and made my way to the door.
“Glykia mou,” Alex called softly.
I glanced back at him and froze as I watched his hand move over the bulge in his pyjama bottoms. I smirked, turned around fully, pressing my back against the door and pulled my shirt up slowly, watching his eyes follow the hem of my shirt up until it just barely covered my nipples. My hand froze and he stared expectantly until I let the soft fabric fall back down with a wink.
“That’s all you’re getting; you have to come eat breakfast with me before you get anything else.”
He groaned and threw his head back on the pillows. “I’ll get you back for being such a tease sooner or later,” he warned.
I laughed and left him behind on the bed to deal with his arousal and get dressed.
The first thing I noticed from the catwalk was that all the curtains were open and the entire house was bathed in bright, early morning light that nearly blinded me. It was beautiful, and I normally would have opened the curtains either way, but I was a little put off that Mama had done that herself, and as I glanced over the side and down into the kitchen, I realized that was the only thing she did. I raced to the stairs and took them two at a time until I was standing in the center of the first floor and gawking at the changes she made.
The couches were shifted, the table in the dining room was turned and moved further back, and Mama herself stood at the kitchen counters moving things from one cupboard to the other.
“Mama!” I snapped, grabbing the plates out of her hand. “What are you doing? Are you trying to make me lose my shit?”
“You have the plates next to the fridge, it should be over here near the sink—”
“Stop,” I demanded. “Seriously, this isn’t your kitchen, it’s mine and I like it the way it is.”
She huffed and spun around to me with clear irritation written on her face. “Koritsi mou, I’m trying to help you. There’s no need to be so rude.”
“And there’s no need for you to be rearranging my kitchen.” Or interrupting me and Alex.
“Well excuse me for trying to be helpful,” she complained haughtily.
I rolled my eyes and stood there watching while she got out a bunch of ingredients, she arranged them on the counter and promptly slid the cutting board with onions over to me. I could take a hint. The two of us stood in relative silence while we prepped breakfast but every so often I would catch her bopping from foot to foot while humming loudly. I couldn’t help but smile to myself as we worked together because no matter how much she drove me crazy, I loved getting to do this with her.
“Do you always cook for Alex?” she asked casually. “And dressed like that?”
I shrugged and started the burner before reaching for the cast-iron skillet. My outfit wasn’t outlandish, just a purple satiny sleep set with cute shorts and a flowy matching camisole. “Sometimes, but we cook together most of the time.” If you weren’t here, I’d be cooking breakfast for him half-naked. “Why are you so concerned about how I’m dressed inside?”
“It’s very revealing,” she said disapprovingly. “Perception is everything.”
“I’m at home with my husband. What do you expect people to say?”
“Iva told me that they say a lot.”
Of course, she did. And she would know, she told me about every rumour and all the speculation from neighbours. It didn’t bother me, I was going to dress how I wanted and they could go fuck themselves if there was a problem. Mama never believed the rumours, but she worried about how they affected me.
I didn’t say anything in response, instead just focusing my attention on the breakfast.
“Are you happy with cooking for him?” she asked, suddenly changing the subject. “And running a home?”
I blinked rapidly and looked up from the omelette I was preparing. “Aren’t you?”
To be honest, whenever I had thought about being with a guy from the States, I never saw myself as the doting housewife. Sure, I could cook, and I never really questioned whether I wanted kids, but I just didn’t think I wanted to have that role. But in the two years that I spent living back in Athens, being around my very traditional family and fitting more and more into that role everyday while with Peter, I just kind of fell into it. And I liked it. I’d never been less stressed or happier.
Mama had been a housewife for years; she was extremely active in our neighbourhood with different clubs and the church, she never seemed unhappy, and she always tried to get me to be more interested in traditional roles throughout my teens.
“Of course, that’s how I was raised, but you didn’t want to do that – at least, that’s what you told me and Dad.”
“It’s different now,” I said, shrugging. “I like where I’m at and I don’t feel forced into it.”
She laughed and glanced at me while cutting up fruit. “I never thought I’d see the day, especially with you talking about how much you hated it last year. I’m glad to see that you’re embracing our culture more though.”
I was saved having to respond when the door upstairs opened and we both looked up automatically. Alex’s footsteps were heavy and I heard him pause for a moment at the top of the stairs, probably noticing the new arrangement around the first floor. I could feel Mama watching me intently, waiting for someone’s reaction and I vowed not to give that to her again.
I pushed the omelette onto the plate and started on another one without a second thought. Suddenly I felt hands on my waist, Alex pressed a soft kiss to the top of my head and I leaned back against him while reaching up to pat his cheek.
“Good morning,” I greeted happily.
“Kaliméra,” he replied. “Is there anything you two need help with?”
“Do you want to set the table for us and get the lemonade from the fridge for me?” Mama had already made Turkish coffee, and since I preferred not to be jittery for the rest of the day, I wasn’t going to touch it.
We finished cooking quickly and I noticed that she avoided looking at me, it made me feel self-conscious for no reason and I tried to finish as fast as possible just so I could focus on my food instead of the sudden weird tension in the room.
Alex sat at the head of the table and I automatically took the seat beside him. Mama pursed her lips and sat diagonally from me. Silence filled the room as we divvied up food and I quietly used my phone to turn the radio news on so that it wasn’t as awkward. I knocked my knee against Alex’s and glanced at him covertly from the corner of my eye. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips and he quickly hid it with a swig of coffee.
“So, Konstantina,” he said, sitting back in his chair. “We haven’t been able to see each other much, but Chloe said you’ve been enjoying the island.”
Mama nodded slowly and continued chewing for a minute before she replied, “It’s quite lovely here, very beautiful. I don’t think I’ve thanked you for having me in your home, but thank you, I’m just glad to get to spend some time with my little girl.”
I bristled at her phrasing but forced myself to remain calm outwardly, instead pulling my knee up to my chest while I picked at my plate. Alex’s foot nudged mine and I pushed his back, immediately my mood perked at the feeling of him playing footsies with me under the table. We’re sickening, I can practically hear Dimitris retching at our gooeyness from the other side of the world.
“She’s glad you’re here,” Alex said, smiling knowingly at me. “How long are you going to stay with us?”
He wasn’t hostile about it, but I knew he was just as anxious as I was to have our privacy restored. I wanted to be able to just enjoy our time together now, especially now that I was wasn’t hurting from Peter and Lena so much and we could just do fun stuff and relax before Alex went back to work and we were forced to be apart.
“You’re going home for Dimitris birthday, right?” He was turning eight next week, she wouldn’t miss that.
She hummed noncommittally and wouldn’t meet my eyes.
“Right, Mama?” I insisted sharply.
“I was thinking Dima could come here, you know Dad would bring him—”
“Dad hates visiting the city,” I cut in. “That’s why you stopped bringing us here in the summers.” Well, she stopped bringing me when I was thirteen or fourteen when my grandmother on my Dad’s side complained that I never spent time with her. Dimitris stopped going three years ago because he didn’t fly well.
“But if you’re getting married in the church like you said, then why not just have them come here? Then we can do it all at once.”
Now? “How are we supposed to get married in the church right now?” I demanded, setting my fork down. “We haven’t even talked to the priest!” I looked to Alex pleadingly, unsure what I wanted him to say but hoping he could get her to stop.
Mama waved her hand dismissively. “Eleni and I can deal with that.”
I rubbed my eyes tiredly and sunk lower into my chair. Why did she have to be like this? Seriously, Alex and I were married, doing it a second time in the church made little to no difference.
“Chloe and I need to talk about that some more,” Alex replied smoothly. “Is that alright with you if we take some time to talk about it alone?”
The excitement on Mama’s face was the same as the day I told her I was going to live in Athens with her family and I was astounded. Alex needed to teach me how to smooth talk her.
“I have plans with Eleni and Iva this afternoon,” she said happily. “I’m going to head out now and see if we can talk to Father Costas while you two work it out.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to say it was nine in the morning, nowhere near the afternoon, but hey if she wanted to leave then who was I to stand in her way. Not even five minutes later and she had changed and was out the door, a woman on a mission.
“You told my mother that we’re getting married again,” I complained lightly, watching her through the windows charge down the path. “In the church. I don’t even think you can get married again if you’re divorced.”
“Marie and I didn’t get married in the church, it was a civil ceremony in England with her family.”
Oh. I turned to him, suddenly getting a great idea. “Do you really want to get married in the church?”
Alex’s cheeks suddenly became the cutest shade of pink and he quickly drank more coffee to try and mask it. “I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to.”
“Will you invite your mom and sister?”
He stilled and I watched as his thumb rubbed back and forth across his pyjama bottoms. “If I say yes, does that mean you’ll do it?”
“Not that I would say no anyway, but do you really think I could stop her at this point?” I asked, gesturing to the tiny pink dot in the distance where mama was standing on the pier.
“Probably not, but I do like having her here, she’s much nicer to you than most of your family that I’ve seen.”
“Then sure, I’ll do it, but I want you to invite them.”
“They’ll want to meet you ahead of time,” he warned.
“And? We’ve got the entire day to ourselves now.” I wagged my eyebrows at Alex and he laughed.
“Alright then.” He smirked and jerked his chin in the direction of the front door. “How long do you think she’ll be?”
“Long enough.” I downed the rest of my lemonade and set the cup aside. “Your office, let’s go.”
“Not upstairs?” he asked sounding mildly surprised. “If we have time—”
“After that, after getting her out of the house for the rest of the day? No way, I want you to rail me on your desk.” Uh hello, you act like the boss you get treated like a boss. Duh.
“Fuck me,” he muttered.
His chair scrapped the floor loudly and he grabbed my hand, pulling me along behind him while I giggled excitedly.