An introduction to Eve

Fascinating, thought Reggie, watching his stepsister scurry out of the family room, the wood stick of the fudge pop poking lewdly over the waistband of her pink jogging shorts clutched tightly in her hands. This may be quite – entertaining. Even if it only works on my stepsister. I’ll need to find out if the bitch is the limit. Hmmm, the young man eyes looked up at the white ceiling thoughtfully. I wonder if her bitch of a mother is home… I can always try…

“For my military knowledge, though I'm plucky and adventury, has only been brought down to the beginning of the century; but still, in matters vegetable, animal, and mineral, I am the very model of a modern Major-General!” he heard his stepmother’s voice ring out at the top of her lungs.

Holy crap! The young man grinned, sitting back on the sofa, clasping his hands behind his head. Now I know I can do this at a distance. How much of a distance remains to be seen, but I’ll look into that later. For now… He closed his eyes, his face pleased at the sudden change in his life.

“Why aren’t you at school?”

Reginald’s orbs opened, taking in the sight of his stepmother and legal guardian standing over him, hands on her hips and frowning at him.

“It’s Saturday, remember?” he said with a smile, admiring her toned body beneath the light blue three-quarter sleeve silk blouse and khaki slacks. “No classes for me at County Community.”

“Hmmph.” Her frown deepened, marring her pretty face. “Damn.”

“Something wrong?” the young man arched an eyebrow.

“I didn’t think you would be home today.”

“That makes a difference why?” Reginald asked.

“I’m having a Lady’s Tea this afternoon.”

Hmm. The eighteen-year-old community college student thought for a moment. I could have some fun with Eve and her friends, make it a Tea to remember. Maybe. Depends on who would be there. Some I like. Some I don’t. Like Theresa. Stuck up bitch always looking down her nose at me. I get around her and sparks fly. Every time. We just – piss each other off. The laughable thing is that for as hoity-toity she thinks she is the money she was raised on – was built on shit. Her ole granddaddy rose to riches in the county from a small two-man septic maintenance operation to the state-wide wastewater treatment corporation. That the family still stayed here rather than the Capital or one of the state’s other large cities remained a mystery to Reginald. Still, he considered. I could put her in her place. A small smile flitted across his face. That could be fun.

“I don’t want you around,” Eve snapped, eyes narrowing at her stepson’s mien, a small shiver running up her spine at his satisfaction. “I want a pleasant afternoon and after the last row you had with Theresa there won’t be another.”

“Probably a good thing,” Reginald shrugged, his mind flitting to his financial situation – or rather the lack of it. The young man knew a trust set up by his father was paying his bills – one of the reasons why he was attending County Community rather than State – but beyond that nothing. His stepmother and stepsister appeared to spend from an unending well. But then, Eve had money from her first marriage and McKenzie – she worked – occasionally. Maybe I should make some calls, figure out who’s the attorney or executor of the trust, see how much I have. Stop letting Eve and our accountant, lawyer, whatever or whoever it is take care of everything for me. Gather what information I can, figure out what I want, make a plan. Yeah. It’s a start.

“I’ll need the Benz,” the young man said firmly. McKenzie certainly wasn’t part of the Tea, already having plans to spend the day out with her friends, probably to spend money at one of their favorite boutiques, ogle hard-bodied men about town or whatever it was they did. The family only had the two cars, forcing Reginald to rely on friends and public transit. One of the reasons why he was looked down on in high school, his peers thinking he didn’t have the financial resources they did. For a lower middle-class community, money played too much into the appearance and status his and the previous generation.

“I don’t care where you’re going,” Eve frowned at him. “But you can take the bus as usual. You’re not touching my baby.”

“It’s Saturday,” Reginald said flatly, his eyes flashing. “The buses aren’t running. And unless you want McKenzie to drive your car instead – which I doubt after how badly she trashed her last car – then I’ll just stick around, making a nuisance of myself.”

His blonde stepmother’s frown deepened, her brow furrowing in thought, considering her options.

“You can walk,” she said dismissively and turned away, presenting him with her firm backside and stepping towards the foyer.

“Fine, be that way – bitch,” her stepson said under his breath, glaring at her. He concentrated on her, thinking and pushing thoughts into her mind. The blonde stopped in the foyer, hand on the railing to the second floor. Without a word, the forty-year-old reached for the small bowl by the front door, picking up her keys within, and grabbed her purse also on the small table that held the bowl. Crossing the family room, she tossed the keys towards Reginald – he caught them one-handed – and opened up her purse. Removing her wallet, she took out her American Express and handed it to the young man.

“There’s no limit,” Eve said, her voice sounding slightly mechanical with an edge of anger behind it, “But try not to spend too much. I can’t afford the interest charges if I fail to pay the balance.”

The young man blinked up at her.

“Really?” he said. “I thought your purse was bottomless, the way you and McKenzie spend money.”

“We – used to,” the blonde admitted slowly. “Not so much, anymore. Grace –” her accountant “– put us on a budget. It’s large enough to keep us comfortable and – maintain appearances, despite my daughter’s attempts to fritter it all away.”

“Interesting,” Reginald nodded, rising to his feet and sticking the keys and credit card in his pockets. He glanced over this stepmother, frowning, his mind mulling over a serious of possibilities, catching on a particular one. “When was the last time you had sex?”

“How – how dare you?” Eve gasped in shock. “I am your stepmother! How could you have such a perverted thought? You are – you are –” She cut off, spluttering before the dark brown haired young man; he scowled in return, prodding her with another thought.

“Over six years ago,” she said in a small voice, her cheeks pale, shivering before her stepson; looking up at him – Reginald had a nearly four inches on her – her sky blue eyes searched his. “How – Why am I telling you this?”

“That long?” the young man arched an eyebrow. “That was before –” Both his eyebrows rose. “You and Dad never…?”

“No,” the blonde lowered her gaze to her feet, swallowing nervously, afraid of what else he might ask her. “Can we – drop this? Please?”

“For now,” Reginald agreed, “But I intend to bring this up again later.”

“Please, Reggie,” his stepmother pleaded, her voice shaking. “Don’t.”

“Perhaps if you can give me a good argument to leave it as is tonight,” he said with a shrug, stepping past her on his way to his bedroom upstairs to get his wallet. “Or a reason to for me to – leave it alone.”

A reason not to? The blonde-haired woman blinked, Reginald leaving her alone in the family room. Slowly, she sat down on the sofa, her knees trembling, threatening to drop her to the carpeted floor. I don’t want to let him know, about his father and I. What I wanted – and he didn’t. Reginald never said I shouldn’t tell his son. It’s just – It’ll be embarrassing. Humiliating if it ever gets out. I couldn’t face that, all my friends laughing at me behind my back – if I manage to keep them. God, that would be horrible.

“Hey, Eve.”

The stepmother looked up at Reginald’s son standing before the front door, clutching her hands tightly against her stomach, her blue eyes watery. He cocked his head slightly, a trifle disconcerted at the normally composed woman so – so shaken up.

“Are – are you okay?” he asked in concern. Sure, the blonde wasn’t or hadn’t been much of a mother towards him, but – she was still his family, such as it was.

“Just – go,” Eve shuddered, hugging her arms tight to her belly, almost rocking in her seat on the sofa. “I’ll be – I can’t – please, Reggie – just – just let me be.”

“Eve,” Reginald said softly, his own belly twisting in guilt at her reaction. “I –”

“Go away, Reggie!” she half-wailed, half-yelled.