"God Dan, you really don't realize how beautiful you are, do you?"

I shook my head, flushing. "Thanks, but you don't need to flatter me."

"I'm not, babe." Cherri took a pace so she stood close to me. Her warmth touched my naked skin and I flinched when she rested her hand in the small of my back, stroking my skin lightly. "You're absolutely stunning. God, what I'd give for tits like yours." Her free hand reach across for a third time as though to touch me, not sure if I was relieved or disappointed when she stopped.

Cherri turned away quickly and strode to the bales and draped herself across them, patted the straw beside her. "Come sit next to me, Dan. It's warm."

I eased myself onto the bale, making sure a foot of space separated us. The straw had worked loose from the bales and formed a comfortable bed, but stalks tickled my back and ass and thighs. The sun fell hot against my skin and I let my head drop back, raised my arms and closed my eyes, exhausted from the tension in the air.

I heard Cherri shift beside me but kept my eyes closed, knowing she was examining my body, as though permission had been granted with the lowering of my lids.

"You shave your pits, Dan," Cherri said after a while and I smiled.

"Of course."

"Me too. Of course. So why do we do that, but not shave, you know, down below?"

I shrugged, relaxing in the heat. "I guess we just don't, do we."

"No."

I heard her lie back, and she moved closer, her arm pressed against mine, her foot touching my leg. I didn't dare open my eyes now, lay in the heat of the sun trying not to tense up. I listened to small waves wash against the shore, listened to the wind soughing through the trees around the barn; distantly I heard voices coming from people back at camp, sound carrying in the still evening air. Then I heard Cherri moving. Faint sounds. A creak of straw as she shifted. The noise of her breathing, faster than before. I lay still, aware the arm pressed against mine was moving. When I couldn't stand the suspense any longer I opened my eyes. Cherri was doing what I'd guessed, right next to me, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

Cherri's left hand slipped between her legs, knees raised slightly, and her fingers were moving over her clitoris. Her body undulated softly, hips gently rising to meet her hand. My eyes tracked her body; the bright sun caught her red pubic hair turning it to flame; flat stomach ridged with lines of muscle beneath soft skin, drawn in along the line of her navel; breasts small and firm, up-tilted nipples erect a quarter inch from the pale pink aureole around them. I was staring and Cherri caught me.

"I thought you'd gone to sleep," she said, her voice soft. Her movement didn't stop, continuing to rub herself, adding her right hand to the mix by lifting it to a breast.

I shook my head, not trusting myself to speak. My nipples hardened, much darker than Cherri's, longer, the deep brown aureolae round as a silver dollar.

"Join me if you want, hon."

"Uhhn..." I hadn't meant to respond, but some primeval sound escaped me.

Cherri laughed softly and her movement speeded up. "Come on, Dan. I know you do this. I've heard you in the night. You must've heard me too. I'm always so horny round you I can't help myself, and you're my best buddy, and if I can't do this with you... well..."

"Nuh," I said.

Cherri lifted her hand from herself and reached over to grasp my wrist. Her fingers were strong, a faint slickness on them against my skin but it didn't disgust me. Far from disgust. She pushed my arm, pushing my hand down my belly toward my own sex.

"Go on, Dan, let's do it together. I'd like us to do it together."

"Cherri."

"I know, hon, but you know you want to."

The side of her hand slid over my skin as she pressed my fingers closer to my bush, my skin responding galvanicly, tiny thrills darting from her touch. My hand hardly offered any resistance. My fingertips encountered my pubic hair, fine and soft and short. Cherri pressed on, sitting up to watch, color rising along her neck, her shoulder pressing against mine, her head close and I smelled shampoo and skin, her breath brushing my cheek, the sweetness of her breath filling my senses. Cherri led my fingertips to my clitoris and pressed, her hand never leaving my wrist, encouraging me, moving my hand over myself.

"Like this," she whispered, sitting up further. "God Dan, you've got such a pretty pussy. I love your clit, honey, absolutely love it. I'd like mine to be as big and juicy as yours." She leaned close and her breast touched the side of mine and I shivered. She laughed gently. "I guess we're being wicked, ain't we?"

I nodded, all resistance gone as Cherri rocked my hand. My thighs parted of their own volition and Cherri urged my fingers downward, finding myself wet and ready.

"Go on, baby, do yourself for me." Cherri spoke against my neck as I parted my sticky pussy lips and slid a finger inside. She sighed, pressing closer against me, her small breast now resting against my larger one and I wanted her to come closer still but too afraid to say a word, unable to believe my perverted lust would be reciprocated. She withdrew her hand, leaving my wrist bereft as she began to pleasure herself once more. She lay half turned toward me, her breasts shivering as she worked herself faster and I shifted position to face her, our breasts touching now and I shifted again until my larger, darker nipples pressed against the sweet pinkness of hers and Cherri gasped, wanting this too but still I held back, afraid of consequences, afraid of rejection, my belly aflame with what we were doing to ourselves.

"God Dan, I want to..." Cherri gasped, pressing against me, her nipple hard against mine and I wanted to touch her and didn't. This so different, so hot I couldn't make sense of the emotions roiling through me. I enjoyed sex with Jack, but this was something transformed, something stirring me in a deeper place, and I believe that moment in the barn with Cherri was the moment I accepted my true nature.

"What d'you want, Cher... anything you want..."

"Oh Dan... I wanna touch you, baby..."

"You do?"

"Oh fuck yeah."

My arm slid against Cherri's, the arm that led to the hand that pushed two fingers inside myself rubbed against her arm doing exactly the same thing.

"You really want to touch me?"

She nodded, gasping. "Sorry if I'm grossing you out... but yeah I really do."

This was the moment, one way or another. "I want you to touch me," I said.

Her arm stopped moving and she looked up, away from what we were doing to ourselves to gaze into my face. "You're sure about this, Dan?"

I nodded, wanting to lean across and kiss her and I should have because she was about to touch me but I didn't.

"Oh Dan."

I slid my slick fingers free of the warm tightness of my sex and let them trail over Cherri's belly. Her skin trembled beneath my touch, then her own hand came back across and touched me below my navel and I sank back on the straw and parted my thighs wider, letting Cherri know I was hers to do with as she wished.

"Me too?" Cherri whispered, lying back, and I allowed my fingers to drift lower. Her skin was so soft, so smooth. Her hand slid flat down my belly, reached my pubic hair and caressed me, always moving lower until her fingers found my clit and pressed, lightly at first and then more firmly and I pushed up against her hand, rocked against her so her fingers pleasured me and she groaned and moved down and pressed inside my dripping pussy. I found her pretty sex nestled among the tangle of red hair and opened her, finding her equally wet.

"Make me come," I said.

"Oh Dan, yes please baby."

As her fingers explored deeper I was moments away, the trembling already starting up, my thighs quivering. I pressed against her side, our bodies touching and sliding against each other, our fingers invading the other's most private places and Cherri started moaning deep in her throat, as excited as me and I stopped thinking, stopped worrying and allowed the wanton pleasure of the moment to build and peak. I came suddenly, fast and wild, crying out once before biting down on my lip and beside me Cherri hissed tightly between her teeth and the slick muscle walls inside her pussy closed on the two fingers I'd worked inside. She grabbed my wrist and pressed me deeper, gripping my hand between her thighs, quivering and jerking beneath me. I bucked against her hand, stretching my legs out, opening them wide to allow her full access, Cherri knowing what I wanted, pressing far inside me as pleasure washed out from her fingertips, out from my pussy to fill my body, washing in waves through my belly and breasts and arms and fingertips. I jerked and cried out again, relaxing only slowly as the waves became ripples, my body slumping. Cherri's fingers stayed a moment before withdrawing and I drew mine from her body but left my hand flat on her stomach.

We lay beside each other, bodies sated, unease building inside me as the moments passed, wondering if what we'd done meant as much to Cherri, or if she'd needed only to find relief and I'd been a convenient means of achieving that. Cherri rolled on her side and slid her hand around my waist, kissed my shoulder.

"Fuck, Dan, that was something else."

I laughed, nervousness giving way to possible hope. "Did you like...doing that?"

"Like? You gotta be joking. That was so different to doing myself. How about you?" She snuggled closer, her hand rising to stroke the lower curve of my breast, triggering fresh arousal.

"It was wonderful," I said, hearing the passion in my voice, fear rising again, but Cherri only pressed closer and her hand came up and circled my nipple.

"Wasn't it? You wanna do it again sometime?"

"Sure."

"When?" Cherri stared at her finger circling my nipple, apparently fascinated at the effect on me. Some effect, her touch electric, my nipple rising beneath her fingertips, a slave to each caress.

"Anytime you want," I said.

"You mean that, Dan?" She caught my nipple between finger and thumb, pulled softly. I jerked and she laughed. "Sensitive?"

"And some."

"Wanna touch mine?"

"You don't mind?"

She laughed again, louder. "I think that's allowed after what we just did, don't you?"

"Cherri..." I rolled to look at her pretty pink nipples, my fingers going directly to their target, her firm breast filling my palm perfectly.

"What hon?"

"I'm not sure..." I pulled on her nipple, enjoying the response. "It's just..." I shook my head.

"You ever done this before, Dan? Touched another girl, I mean?"

I shook my head, fascinated by her body and the way her skin responded, cherishing my touch. "How about you?" A pang a ridiculous jealousy stabbed me at the idea she might have done these things with someone else, but she shook her head too.

"Never. You thought about it, though?"

I tried to shrug, but lying on my side it just made my boobs shake under Cherri's hands.

"I bet you have. I didn't have to try too hard to persuade you, did I?"

Only all summer! "You seduced me."

She laughed. "Hardly. You were desperate. You wanted me to touch you, didn't you?"

"How about you, Cher? Did you want me to touch you?"

Her face lost its grin and she nodded. "Couldn't you tell?"

I slipped inside her arms, my breasts flattening against hers, my belly pressed against hers, my thigh sliding between her legs and she put her arms around me and drew me tight.

"I wasn't sure. If anyone finds out we'll get thrown out, just like Holly and Tonya."

"We've only got a week left. Fuck 'em. I want to do this again, so fuck 'em."

"I want to do it again too."

She stroked my back. "We will, baby, I promise."

I love you, I thought, but said nothing, the thought so strong in my head I was sure Cherri must hear, but she continued to hold me and somehow I slept, waking to darkness, chilled, still wrapped inside Cherri's arms.

My emotions were extremely weird after what we'd doneahappy, ecstatic and tingling all over, but weird. Cherri was her usual self and as we came out from the trees she jabbed me with her elbow and said, "You know the perfect way to finish off the night, don't you?"

"Enlighten me."

She laughed. "God, you're so funny."

"I am?"

She shook her head. "Come on, let's go spy on Jeff and Chrissy again. I'm still horny and I'm ready for a show."

"Cherri," I said, but when she swerved off the path I followed. She led uphill into the trees until we sat once more on the branch, Cherri in front this time because she was shorter and I watched over her shoulder. The roof window glowed with soft light and shadows moved across the walls.

"You think they're gonna fuck tonight?" Cherri asked.

I shrugged. "How often do married couples normally...?"

Cherri suppressed a laugh. "How often do your folks?"

"I-" I stopped dead, not even wanting to think about Mom and Dad having sex, the idea way too uncomfortable.

"How about yours?"

"Difficult to say. With each other?"

"Duh."

"Been a while, I guess. Did I tell you my folks split up?"

"No."

"Well they did. Two years back. I live with Mom, but I think she'd prefer if I didn't."

"You don't mean that."

She glanced over her shoulder at me, raised an eyebrow before returning her gaze to the lighted window. "Show's about to start."

Cherri hiked up her skirt and slipped a hand down the front of her panties. Insatiable. But a surge of arousal filled me and I loosened the top of my cargo pants.

Jeff Simmons came into view and lay on the bed naked. His cock lay flaccid along his thigh, still pretty impressive. Despite my growing obsession with Cherri I still appreciated his broad chest, flat stomach and thick cock. I loosened my pants more, working them down over my hips, rested my hands on Cherri's hips.

"Atta girl," Cherri said, her fingers working herself already. "Where's Chrissy?"

Jeff was alone. Along the house another window was lit and steam clouded the glass.

"I think she's taking a shower."