Whiskey Nights

by Fabiola Francisco

  “Want coffee? I’m going to make pancakes for breakfast.”

  “Yes and yes. Thank you. I’ll be right out to the kitchen.” I get out of bed and head to the bathroom.

  As I walk into the kitchen, I watch Jake hum and prepare breakfast. This man is all mine, and today we will climb up another step in our relationship. I have been more focused on us and have been hesitant to introduce him to my parents. Not because I don’t think they won’t get along with him, but my family is dying for me to get married and start a family. I don’t want them to scare him away or add pressure to what we have. I love our relationship and the pace we’re moving at.

  I walk to the cupboard for a mug to fill with coffee and kiss Jake’s shoulder before settling on a stool to watch him finish up the pancakes.

  “Did you already tell your family about the promotion?”

  “I did. They’re happy for me.” Jake smiles over his shoulder as he flips a pancake. My stomach growls and he laughs.

  “I guess I’m hungry,” I shrug.

  “Good. I’m making plenty.”

  A few minutes later, Jake places two plates on the counter and sits next to me. I prepare my pancakes just the way I like them and eat my breakfast.

  “You totally spoil me,” I say finishing up my last bite. “These were delicious. Thank you.”

  “The pleasure is all mine. I like spoiling you.” His mischievous grin gives away his multiple meaning.

  I jab his side with my elbow and collect the plates to wash them. Jake settles onto the couch to watch TV. The sports channel is recapping baseball and soccer games from the past week and showing plays of the week when I sit next to Jake.

  “What time do we need to leave?”

  “Around noon,” he replies.

  I grab my book from the coffee table and lay back on the couch placing my legs on Jake’s lap. He smiles at me, shaking his head. We have some time to be lazy before we need to get ready.

  After reading a few pages, I put the book down on my chest and ask, “What do I wear for lunch? I only have a few things here. Should we go to my apartment?”

  “Anything you wear will be fine.”

  “Jake! Help me,” I say and my voice gives away that I am, in fact, nervous about meeting his family.

  “What do you want help with? Dressing you? I can manage that.” He runs his hand up my leg and I try to shake him off.

  “I’m being serious, Jake. I want to make a good first impression.”

  “You will. Just be yourself. Anything you wear will be perfect. If you want to stop by your place to change, we will.” My heart is beating fast but I smile at him as he does his best to calm me down. I’m in love with him, and I want his family to like me.

  “I’m going to jump in the shower,” I say as I stand from the couch and walk into his room.

  I take a quick shower, grateful that I had my hair done yesterday. I search through the few items I brought with me to Jake’s last night and say a silent prayer of thanks when I see I brought a sundress. This will be perfect.

  “You can wear just that and I’ll be happy,” Jake says when he walks into his bedroom.

  I glare at him and he smiles. “I am not wearing just this, Perv. I’m meeting your family.”

  “I’m kidding, although you had better keep that on underneath for later.” He looks at me with approval and pulls me in for a quick kiss. He slaps my exposed ass and I yelp.

  “Go take a shower,” I sigh. The man will work me up, and we won’t make it to lunch. I look at myself in the mirror and smile. Who would’ve thought lace underwear would arouse him so much? Who are you kidding? The strapless bra fits perfectly and cups my breasts with a gentle lift and my lace thong leaves just the right amount to the imagination. He is so getting lucky later.

  I get dressed and do my make-up while he finishes taking a shower. I keep it light and airy for a summer lunch. I take a few deep breaths and wonder if it is too early to have a shot of whiskey to calm my nerves, or maybe an Irish coffee?

  “Ready?” Jake walks out of his room, and I close my book.

  “Yep,” I respond and it causes him to laugh.

  “Relax. My family’s okay. They won’t bite. I might, but they won’t,” he winks.

  “Stop trying to calm me down by thinking about sex. That will only work me up.”

  “Sorry,” he laughs. “It was too easy to let it slide by.” He kisses me softly and looks into my eyes. “Beth it’s just lunch. They know we’ve been dating and they know how I feel about you. Trust me, it will be great. Come on.” Jake holds my hand and leads me out.

  “So you’ve told them about me?” I am curious.

  “Yeah, of course I did. Haven’t you told your family about me?” I curl my lips in and bite them and look out the window. Jake peeks at me from the corner of his eyes while he drives. “Beth?”

  “Not really,” I respond and feel really bad about it.

  “What?! Why the hell not?”

  “Don’t get mad. They’re just so on my case about meeting someone and getting married and asking what I’m waiting for like if I were running out of time. I’m not running out of time,” I say frustrated. “I love them but ever since my brother started having kids, everyone looks at me expectantly. They don’t get that I’m independent and feel no rush to settle down.” Geez that sounded bad. “That’s not what I meant!” Way to go.

  Jake looks over at me at a red light with raised eyebrows. My nerves cause me to laugh and I can’t stop it. “Sorry! I’m not laughing at you. That came out wrong. What I meant was that I wasn’t in a rush to settle down with just anyone. I love you and I’m happy we’re together, but I wasn’t going to marry the first guy that crossed my path because I’m reaching thirty and my family thinks there’s some unwritten law that a single woman in her thirties is a spinster.” I’m rambling.

  Jake laughs. “Well, I’m glad you cleared that up.” It’s apparent that he misunderstood what I said the first time. “I am glad you didn’t settle down with just anyone. I get what you mean, but eventually you think you will, right?”

  “Of course I will. My family has just been pressuring me with questions lately about meeting a nice guy to marry,” I imitate their voices and Jake laughs.

  “I guess it’s different for women than men.”

  “You have no idea. That’s why I haven’t told them yet. My mom will probably start planning a wedding,” I laugh nervously and Jake’s head whips my way. I laugh louder. “Relax. Who’s the one freaking out now? We’re not quite there yet. I love what we have right now.”

  “I do, too, and I love you. One day,” he promises and my heart skips a beat—a combination of nerves and happiness.

  “We’ll see, bartender.”

  Glad we got that conversation out of the way, the rest of the drive to his sister’s house is peaceful as we listen to music and talk.

  I take a deep breath when Jake parks his truck in the driveway.

  “Don’t worry,” he says, taking my hand and kissing my wrist.

  Jake knocks on the door. My stomach flips nervously while we wait for someone to open the door.

  “Hey, bro,” Jake’s sister opens the door and hugs him.

  “Hey, sis,” Jake greets her and their similarities are uncanny. She is the female version of him. It’s crazy. “Jen, this is Beth. Beth, this is my sister, Jen.”

  “It’s nice to meet you,” I say, extending my hand to shake hers. She shakes it briefly and hugs me.

  “It’s so nice to finally meet you! Jake’s told me a lot about you.”

  I look over at Jake, and he shrugs unapologetically as his mouth breaks out into a huge smile.

  “Come in. Mom and dad are on their way.” Jen leads us into her house. The home is gorgeous. It is modern and sleek. We head through the house out to their patio.

  “Keith is getting the grill ready. Beth, I know you’re a vegetarian, so I bought veggie burgers. I hope that’s okay.” Jen smiles sweetly.

/>   “That’s perfect. Thanks.”

  “Keith, come say hi,” Jen calls her husband over.

  “Hey, man.” Keith shakes Jake’s hand. “Hi, I’m Keith. It’s nice to meet you.” He extends his hand to shake mine.

  “It’s nice to meet you,” I reply.

  We take a seat at the table they have set up and Jen asks us what we want to drink. Jake and I both get beers and Jen drinks lemonade. Keith sits with us for a bit with his own beer before he needs to go back to the barbecue.

  “How’s work?” Jen asks Jake.

  “Great! I really like it. I thought I’d miss the bar at first, but I like having more responsibility. I’m going to work on having more live music soon. It’s always great for business.”

  “That’s awesome. We’re really proud of you.” She then looks at me. “I know you work at Sweet Delights. You’re Savannah’s right hand woman.”

  “I am,” I smile.

  “How’s the bakery doing?”

  “Great actually. We’ve had some new customers come in that are visiting for the summer and were told they had to come by and try our sweets. It’s always nice to hear that people are recommending Sweet Delights.”

  “That is good. You’ve been working there for a long time, right?”

  “Yeah, since it opened. Sav and I started off when she was making cakes out of her house. When she told me she was going to open the bakery and asked if I wanted to help her, it was a no brainer. We met in college and have been friends ever since.”

  “That’s awesome! What the hell took you so long to make a move?” She looks at Jake and laughs.

  “Hey! I tried. This woman is stubborn. She definitely made me work for it.”

  “Good! She should,” his sister winks at me and I laugh.

  “How far along are you?” I ask Jen. It’s obvious she’s pregnant.

  “Eight months. I can’t wait!” Her excitement is so sweet.

  “Do you know what you’re having?”

  “It’s a girl! I can’t wait to meet her. I feel like I’ve been pregnant forever, but I know it will be worth it.”

  “I’m sure.”

  “Well, she won’t be meeting any boys for a long time,” Jake says protectively.

  “She isn’t even born yet and he’s being protective Uncle Jake.” Jen rolls her eyes.

  “That’s cute,” I say. “I have a niece and a nephew and being an aunt really is wonderful.”

  “Cool. Do you have a brother or a sister?” Jen asks.

  “A brother. He’s a few years older than me and lives in Birmingham.”

  “I love Birmingham. Do you get to see them often?”

  “They visit on holidays and try to make it down here more in the summer. They’ll be down in a few weeks. My parents have more time to go visit them than I do, but I make it a point to go a few times a year.” I smile as I think about my niece and nephew. I love those two kiddos and talk to them every chance I get. I can’t believe how big they are already.

  “How old are they?”

  “They’re six and nine. They grow up fast,” I say and notice Jake sitting back and smiling between the two of us as we continue our conversation.

  A little while later, his parents arrive and Jake introduces me to them. It turns out his mom has been to Sweet Delights a few times, but I just never knew who she was. We have lunch and get to know each other. The conversation flows easily, and they all congratulate Jake on his promotion. He talks a little about work but doesn’t go into much detail. I do observe him brush it off as no big deal when his dad asks about it, and I wonder back to what he told me when we first started dating.

  It doesn’t seem like his father is disappointed in him at all. Actually, he seems really proud of him. This only makes me wonder if Jake is the one seeing things differently because he thought his life would go a different route.

  Karen and Tim are sweet and welcoming as are Jen and Keith. Jake’s family really is wonderful. I notice Jake’s good mood and wonder if he’s happy I’m here with him. I sure as hell am. I think it is time he meets my family as well.

  After a few hours, we leave. “Wanna grab a drink before going home?”

  “Sounds good. I loved your family. They’re amazing, babe.”

  “Thanks. They liked you. I’m happy you got to meet them.” His smile melts my heart. “It was important to me.”

  I smile in return and plan to tell my family about him soon, so I can introduce Jake to them.

  We walk into Southern and sit at the bar. Jake orders two whiskeys.

  “Here ya go, boss.”

  “Cut the crap, Dave,” Jake says. Dave smirks as he places our glasses on two napkins.

  “They’ve been on my ass about this. I know they’re kidding, but I don’t want them to think I’m superior all of a sudden,” Jake confesses.

  “It’s okay. I know they’re joking, but you are kinda their superior now. Well at least when it comes to your job title. I think it’s good you’ve worked with them and understand the work it takes to be a bartender though. It makes you more supportive.”

  “I know. I like that too.” He drinks his whiskey.

  “I love whiskey,” I say as I put my glass back down.

  “I know you do. Did you really have fun today?”

  “I really did. Thank you.” I lean in to kiss him.

  “I’m glad.” He holds my hand lovingly and rubs his thumb on my skin, tickling and igniting me at the same time.

  “Your family is proud of you,” I state.

  “Yeah,” he shrugs.

  I dare to ask. “Jake,” I wait for him to look at me. “I just wanted to ask you something but I don’t want to upset you.”

  “You can ask me anything.”

  “Do you think your dad’s not proud of you? I noticed you didn’t really go into details about your job, and I remembered you had once mentioned he wanted you to play football.” Jake sighs loudly, but I continue before he speaks. “I think he’s really proud of you. I saw how he looked at you. You’re his son, and he’s happy you’re successful. I don’t want you to think you aren’t. We’re all really proud of you, but you need to be proud of yourself too.”

  Jake pulls me to him as much as he can and hugs me. “Thank you, baby,” he says against my hair and kisses the top of my head. “I love you. I am proud of myself. The teenager in me still wishes he would’ve succeeded in playing college football, but I love my job and working harder each day to make you proud.”

  “You make me proud every day. You’re a hard worker and an amazing person. People admire you.”

  “Thank you,” he kisses my lips, and I settle back on my stool.

  People greet Jake while we drink our whiskeys. Some female customers say hi to him and he smiles with a wink. I swear some of them blush.

  “Flirt,” I scoff.

  “Gotta keep the customers happy,” he jokes. I roll my eyes playfully. “You’re not jealous, are you?”

  “No. I trust you and I trust what we have.”

  “You can be so romantic when you want to.”

  “You see. I’m not that bad.”

  “Oh, you’re bad when you want to be. So about what you’re wearing underneath this dress.” His hands run up my legs and I shoo him away.

  “Can’t you wait ’til we get home?”

  “I think I can manage. Want one more drink?”

  “Yes. Remember I am going home tonight.”

  “We better hurry then,” he teases.

  I love spending nights together, but it’s also more difficult during the week when I wake up for work. It’s been easier now that Jake’s schedule is “normal” but I still wake up much earlier than he needs to. Weekends are usually easier and I look forward to those nights. We continue to move forward in our relationship and spending lazy nights in bed helps us grow together as a couple. We talk and joke with each other and share our dreams for the future.

  Jake’s lips find mine, and he kisses me passionately. H
is tongue enters my mouth, tangling with mine. I hook my arms around his neck and pull him towards me as he guides us through his apartment. Half way there, he picks me up, wrapping my legs around his waist, and continues on his way to his bedroom. He sits on his bed and keeps me straddling his waist. We continue our passionate kiss. His hands slip under my dress and grip my ass, fueling the desire between us to spread. I feel his hardness beneath my body and rock on him. The roughness of his jeans rubbing against my thin underwear sparks my need for him.

  “Jake, please,” I plead. His hand moves to my front and sneaks into my panties to release the ache that has built between my legs. As soon as his fingers meet my core, I scream his name. I swear I’m riding his hand wildly, and I’m not ashamed.

  Jake lowers the straps of my dress and cups my breasts through my bra with his free hand. His thumb passes over my nipple and it puckers through the material.

  My moans are uncontrollable as his thumb rubs my clit and his fingers fuck me. His mouth finds its way to my breasts. While his tongue teases one nipple, his fingers tease the other, adding pleasure to both. His teeth scrape my skin softly and I tremble.

  “Fuck,” I draw out.

  “You’re so beautiful when you’re like this. So erotic,” he whispers against my skin.

  My orgasm rips through me as I ride his fingers hard and fast. I grip his shoulders and cry out as the last wave crashes down on me. I stare at Jake for a second before I attack him with my lips and push my tongue through in a sensual kiss that pleads for so much more. He growls deep in his chest and grabs my waist before throwing me on the bed and landing on top. He rotates his hips and I shudder.

  “Fuck, Beth. What you do to me.” I pull his head down and continue our kiss only separating our mouths when I tear his t-shirt from his body. I run my hands down his back and lightly brush my fingers around the inside of his jeans. His muscles twitch at my touch. I feel his erection straining inside his jeans and I want to release him.

  I somehow get him to shift onto his back, and I straddle him again. I kiss his lips and move down his neck and chest. I trail my tongue further down never taking my eyes off his. I lower the zipper of his jeans and lick my lips in anticipation. Jake groans and throws his head back onto the mattress. I lower his jeans and he kicks his shoes off. Once I have him naked and at my mercy, I stroke his cock a few times before my lips are on him. I take him in, sucking his long, hard length. I lick up and down his shaft and circle his head with my tongue before I take him to the back of my throat and keep him there as I continue to suck. His groans encourage me and he threads his fingers in my hair, gripping the back of my head.