Bernie and her mom were full-on lovers for a little bit.

They sat for a while side by side in the Super Surf Van, holding each other.

"I guess I have more more thing," Bernie said.

"Uh huh?" Gary said.

"You know I've dated more girls than guys," she said. "That Habiba and I were roommates and lovers."

"Uh-huh," Gary said.

"You know how Mom and I masturbate together?"

"Yeah," Gary said.

"After Habiba, and before I met you, I was broken-hearted and lonely, and I was missing the sex so much, too, well, Mom asked me what was wrong," Bernie said. "It was a long talk, I mean, talks. Over a week. And the way things worked out, well, until I met you, Mom and I did everything together that Habiba and I did as lovers. We strapped it on for each other, we licked each others's vulva, clit, and ass, sucked each other's nipples, shared a double dildo, and did tribbing, you know, that scissor thing where you grind together."

"Was it...good?" Gary asked.

"The best," Bernie said. "But somehow it didn't feel real, you know. Mom's still after me to clean my room, keep on top of my classes, all the Mom stuff. I don't know, the sex was really good, I mean really good, but it never felt like we were lovers that way. Mom loves sex, she's kind of a fanatic even, but she's kind of a block of wood when it comes to romance."

Gary smiled. "So you just kind of stopped?" he said.

Bernie said, "Yeah. I met you, and I just didn't feel like it anymore, I wasn't lonely that way. Mom was happy for me, and as long as she knows I'm getting what I need, well, as long as she and I are masturbating together, you know, she doesn't miss the rest of it. I mean, Mom totally got off on it all, but she doesn't need it like I did. Mom was really doing all that for me. I don't know, I guess we were full-on lesbian partners for about six weeks, every day, and when we were done, it was back the way it was."

"Wow," Gary said.

They looked at each other and nodded. "Mom," they said together, each thinking of their own.

Bernie leaned back and adjusted her glasses so she could watch Gary's face. "That change anything for you?" she asked. "Hearing all that about me and mom?"

"Well, I know you're not faking it with me," Gary said. "And it's not just good sex that keeps us together."

Bernie laughed. "Though that is important to me," she said. "You care for me, you show it, and even when things go way off, you don't run away, or hide, or get angry. You talk with me. And you listen."

"Yeah," Gary said. "Well, it did make me wonder, are you going to miss all the ways you did it with your girlfriends?"

"Sometimes," Bernie said. Her glasses glinted.

"Maybe we can find you a nice low-drama girl as a fuck buddy," Gary said. He laughed. "You've got a low-drama guy, your cousin Ben."

Bernie giggled. "More like 'low drama' than low-drama," she said. "Yeah, we have sex in this totally geek-out way, and it's fun, especially trying new stuff. But after a few days we get into fights about stupid stuff. His girlfriends are really shallow. I don't think we could ever live together. So I never thought of him that way."

Gary smiled. "Guess not." He nodded. "So you and your mom." He shrugged. "Yeah, I guess that's the only thing, that you might fall for some girl and that would be it for you and me. I'd be sad, but it would still be worth it. You're good for me."

"You're good for me too," Bernie said.