Love's Secret Domain

The shower felt good, the hot water running down his taught, wiry muscles. His hands were wrapped around the shower spigot as he leaned his head under the steady stream of water. He had walked for a very long time and then finally, took a bus as far as his cash would take him. He found himself somewhere in Delaware, he thought it was Dover, but he honestly wasn’t sure. He had checked into a hotel near the bus station barely getting through the lobby as the desk clerk thought he might be a homeless bum without money. He went to a cash machine, pulled out enough to secure two nights and was finally given a key.

Standing there, the dingy bathroom filled with steam, the smell of generic soap and cheap shampoo filling the room, Phineas closed his eyes and let himself sink down so that he sat in the tub, the water running over his head and shoulders.

The first few months that Phineas was away at school, he was not allowed home. The household would not accept his phone calls and no one contacted him. He wrote Adalia every other day, telling her how he missed her, what he had done that day, the martial arts and necromancy classes he was taking. His 7th week, he finally received a letter from his sister.

“I told father that if he didn’t let you come home, I would find a way to kill myself. He got mad and threw a decanter of brandy across the room but he finally said yes. And so, he’s sending a car for you THIS FRIDAY! You’re coming home to me, Phineas!”

When he arrived at the estate, Adalia was standing at the front door, her smile huge, and her arms behind her back. She was wearing a white dress with little pink flowers across the skirt. Her hair was wavy and partially pulled back from her face with a pink ribbon. Phineas ran from the car and stood in front of her, looking at her, smiling until finally she threw her arms around his neck and pulled him so tightly to her that he expelled all his air with a tiny grunt and then wrapped his arms around her little waist.

“I missed you so much,” she whispered as she took his hand and led him inside. She ran with him downstairs to his room and swung open the door. His usually blank, white walls were covered with pieces of paper. Drawings of Phineas reading a book, Phineas baring his teeth, Phineas and Adalia sitting beneath a tree nose to nose, Phineas looking puzzled with his hair falling into one of his eyes, Phineas and Adalia sleeping on the bed with their arms wrapped around each other, all manner of poses covered the walls.

He smiled and said, “You should take some art classes, “ before tickling her, the two of them falling onto his bed.

Adalia pretended to pout, her rosebud lips turned downwards, “I’m just kidding.” He looked around the room, his eyes shining, “They look so real.” She smiled and kissed his chin and then tickled him so hard that his sides ached from laughing.

He was allowed home twice a month. He rarely saw his father. The man seemed to stay away from Phineas and Adalia. Every Sunday evening, just as dusk approached, the car and the driver would be waiting and once again Phineas would be whisked away, his head bowed, his expression sour, his hands falling limply at his sides. Adalia would cry, Adalia would throw things, Adalia would hit and kick and claw anyone near her. And when Phineas would return again, she would be giggling, happy, his bedroom filled with fresh drawings and the smell of peppermint.

Phineas leaned back in the tub and rest his head against the edge, the hot pellets of water hitting his belly, his legs stretched out before him. He sighed and opened his eyes staring at the yellowing ceiling, ribbons of hot steam swirling around the room. “Adalia,” he whispered as he let his eyes lazily close again. He breathed through his nose and one of his hands wandered down his stomach, his long, wet fingers sliding around the tightness of his muscles.

The winter that Phineas had turned 14, he was allowed home for a week at Christmas. Their father would be gone, away, tending to his business, whatever that meant. They were not a family that spent Christmas Eve around the fire, talking about the goodness of the world while sipping cocoa and noshing on warm cookies. They had never had a Christmas tree. His father thought it was foolishness and nothing more than a pagan ritual turned into some kind of ridiculous puritanical, holy nonsense. Christmas at the Kracken household was just another day.

When Phineas arrived, it was early evening and the house appeared dark. He walked into the foyer and quietly called his sister’s name to which he received no response. He picked up his suitcase and walked downstairs to his room. The door was ajar and there was a greenish glow coming from the slight opening. He slowly pushed the door open and there, in the corner, stood a small Christmas tree. It was wrapped in blue and green lights, little paper ornaments dangling from the branches. Adalia sat on the floor, her knees pulled up to her chest staring at it. She looked over her shoulder and smiled brightly at her brother, “Merry Christmas,” she said as she stood and embraced him.

That night as they lay in his bed, the feather duvet pulled high around their necks, the glow of the tree spread across them, Phineas lay his head on Adalia’s bosom and wrapped his body around hers. She was bigger now. For the first time, he fully realized it. Her breasts were large and soft. He could feel her nipple against his cheek. Her hips were wider and her pelvic bones stood out against him. The fleshiness of her stomach intrigued him. It was flat, but there was a small mound of flesh beneath her belly button that gently rose and fell as she breathed.

“You’re so different,” he whispered as he clung to her.

“What do you mean?” she asked as she ran her long fingers through his hair.

“I don’t know,” He let one of his hands run along her belly and over her pelvic bones, “Just different.” He lifted his face to look at her and they quietly lay there, staring at each other in the dim green light. It was obvious that Phineas had an erection, he hadn’t meant to, but there it was. He found that of late, he couldn’t really control when he would become excited and when he wouldn’t. The most mundane activity could make him hard, practicing martial arts, walking through the gardens at school, taking a shower. And he had learned how to please himself; he did it often, every chance he got. But he hadn’t meant to become stiff, lying here with Adalia.

She smiled at him and quietly said, “I love you.” She kissed his forehead, she kissed his eyelids, she kissed his nose and then, she kissed his mouth.

At first it was the usual kiss that they always shared but they both lingered, hesitant to pull away. Their mouths opened slightly, their tongues touching gently and Phineas found himself pressing his sex into her firm leg. It was an involuntary reaction that simply overtook him. He pulled away and rolled over onto his back. He was embarrassed.

“Sorry,” he quietly said as he stared at the tree in the corner.

“Why?”

He didn’t really know except that she was his sister and he had seen what those men had done to her so many years before and he had sworn to her that he would never hurt her like that. Her hand ran down his hairless chest to his belly.

Phineas quietly breathed her name, “Adalia. His eyes searched her face.

“It’s okay,” she smiled. “I don’t love anyone but you, Phineas.”

He ran his hand through her long hair, the soft, red tentrils gliding through his fingers, “You’re the only one I love too.”

Her hands gently pulled down his shorts and her fingers ran along his erection. He closed his eyes and sighed as the jolts of desire shot through him. He let the tips of his fingers brush her breasts before reaching under her t-shirt to feel them there, the hard nubs of her nipples, the warm flesh, pliable but firm. He heard Adalia whimper and he pulled his hands away, fearing he had hurt her. She smiled and tilted her head, “Don't stop. I want you to. I like it.”

He bit his lip and watched as she rose to stand at the foot of the bed and shucked off her t-shirt, slipped out of her panties and stood there naked and glorious in the green light of the tree. Phineas took in a breath and sat up, his erection slapping against his stomach. “You’re so beautiful,” he whispered in awe as he gazed at her.

Her skin was milky white, not a blemish or imperfection to be found. Her pink nipples stood out against the whiteness of her skin, her collarbone, the dip of her waist, her round hips, her perfect form. It made him breathless. He reached out and tentatively touched her, letting his hands softly graze along her breasts and belly. It enthralled him, her body, its softness, its smoothness, its utter beauty. He wanted to bury himself in her and never leave. He wanted to be surrounded by her, inside of her, living and breathing in the softness of her flesh forever.

He kept looking into her face for approval, making sure he wasn’t doing anything wrong. His fingers slowly found their way to the down of her sex. It was so soft, the red hair lying against the mound of her pubis. She parted her legs slightly and he gently ran his fingers along her folds, feeling how slippery it was, how warm and soft, seeing the pinkness there in the glow of the Christmas tree. The palm of his other hand slowly ran along her erect nipples. He quietly asked, “Can I kiss them?”

She smiled and nodded and he rose to his knees and gently put his lips against the hard buttons of flesh before letting his tongue taste them. He let one slip into his mouth and he slowly sucked it as his fingers continued to explore the slick place between her legs. His eyes never left her face and he watched her sigh, watched her eyes close, and felt the goose bumps rise along her pale body. His own excitement throbbed, almost ached as he continued to touch her, kiss her, fondle her. Gently, Adalia pushed him back on the bed and climbed on top of him.

She reached between her legs and ran the head of his erection along her warm, slippery folds. He groaned quietly, his hands pressing into the small of her back and finally, she placed it at her opening and slowly slid down. Phineas whimpered and opened his eyes staring at her above him, “I don’t want to hurt you. I never want to hurt you.”

She smiled and slowly moved her hips on top of him, breathing in sharply before whispering, “I’ve never done this before when I wanted to. I want to with you.”

He nodded. His body began to move of it’s own accord, slowly, softly, his hips rising and falling to meet hers, his hands running the length of her torso. She was so warm, so snug, so all encompassing. He could feel the tightness of the muscles inside of her as they wrapped around him, saw the gentle sway of her breasts, how she bit her lip and looked helpless. It was the first time he had ever seen Adalia look helpless. She opened her eyes and pushed her index finger into his mouth and he pricked it with his tooth, feeling her sweet blood trickle onto his tongue. He began to suck, taking long, hard pulls from her finger.

They moved faster, harder, with more urgency, his eyes locked onto her face, her essence filling his belly, her body writhing on top of him. Her eyes shut suddenly and she cried out, her body stiffening and shaking, her breasts quivering, her insides jolting and tightening around him even further, her thighs trembling against him. Her eyes fluttered open and she laughed, her delight filling his ears.

Phineas found himself rising, the sensation swelling in his stomach, his lower back arching forward, his eyes clenched closed, his mouth a perfect O, his fingers grasping her hips tightly. He began to release with hard shudders inside of her. She cooed his name as his body jolted, the hard spasms of pleasure overtaking him. She leaned down and whispered in his ear as his thrusts began to slow, “I love you, Phineas. Brother. My Phineas…”

Phineas shuddered and cried out as his body released. The water had turned cool against his skin and it washed away the sticky remnants of what he had just done. He let out a groan of breath and lay there, feeling the cold of the porcelain against his backside. The telephone had begun to ring and its unexpected and shrill buzz made Phineas jump. He tilted his head and stood up. Stepping out of the tub, and leaving the shower running, Phineas walked to the adjoining room. He stood there, dripping and cold, staring at the telephone as it rang for a fourth time. Tentatively, he picked up the receiver and held it to his ear not saying anything.

“Mr. Francis?” He stood there in silence as he heard the woman’s voice say his name. “Mr. Francis, are you there?”

He quietly cleared his throat and said in his deep voice, "Yes."

"Marion Francis?"
He swallowed hard and sat down on the edge of the bed, dampening the faded blanket beneath him, “Yes.” There was a pause. He heard the woman sigh quietly.

“Mr. Francis, I have a message for you. It's about Adalia."

His hand clutched the reciever so tightly this kis knuckles were white, "Yes?"

The woman on the other end cleared her throat and quietly said, "Come any closer and we'll sever your miserable head from its body." And then the line went dead.