Family Ties

“Yes.” I glared at Erin. “But we’ll talk about it later.” I forestalled Christy’s objection by pointing to my watch. “Later, I swear. Now c’mon.

We don’t have much time.”

She fell silent and nodded, albeit reluctantly.

Erin smirked at me again. Then she checked out Christy’s body while she wasn’t looking. Her eyebrows rose appreciatively.

I shot her another warning look.

What? her expression said. I’m just looking.

Christy was a lot more relaxed than I thought she’d be as we showered.

She and Erin chatted about hair care and then turned the conversation to razors as they shaved their legs. I simply enjoyed the view and kept my mouth shut, except when Erin teased me about shaving my pubes.

“I swear,” she said, “you’re more of a girl than I am.”

“Some of us aren’t naturally beautiful like you,” I said. Then I moved my penis to the side and concentrated on not cutting myself as I shaved the base.

“He has a thing about shaving,” Erin told Christy. “I think it’s a little weird, but it’s what he likes.”

“Why do you shave your legs, Erin?” I asked without looking up. “And your armpits? And your bikini line?”

“Because I’m a girl, dork. We’re supposed to shave there. Men are supposed to have hair there.”

“Men are supposed to have a penis and testicles,” I said as I concentrated on the underside. “That’s it. Everything else is just personal preference.” I finished and looked up to find Christy staring at me with wide eyes. I couldn’t tell if she was shocked by the conversation or because I was shaving the base of my cock.

“What’s the matter?” Erin asked her with genuine concern. “Are you okay?”

“I just…,” Christy stammered. “I mean, I never…”

“Give her a break, Erin,” I said. “She isn’t used to how nonchalant we are about our bodies and nudity. This is all new to her.”

“He only told me on Thursday,” Christy explained.

Erin’s jaw dropped. “Seriously? You didn’t know we were nudists?”

Christy shook her head.

“He only told you two days ago?”

She nodded.

Erin rounded on me and threw up her hands in disgust. “How could you not tell her something like that?”

“We’re taking things slow.”

“Slow? That’s glacial, you big dweeb.”

“It’s okay,” Christy said. “I still feel a little weird, but—”

“No wonder you were so nervous when we went to the bathroom last night,” Erin said to her. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea…” She glared at me for

good measure, but I didn’t let it bother me.

“I’m fine,” Christy repeated. “I mean, I was on the swim team in high school. We saw each other all the time. Well, just the girls.”

“Still,” Erin said, “it isn’t the same.”

“Um… no.”

I coated my scrotum with shaving cream and ignored the girls as I pulled it tight and carefully shaved the stubble. I checked my work by feel and touched up a couple of spots.

Erin mocked, “All done, princess?”

“Lay off,” I told her brusquely. “I’m not less of a man because I care about how I look.”

“Yeah, but you look gay. Like those guys you see in those magazines.”

“Erin, they’re gay because they have sex with other men, not because they trim their pubes.”

Her jaw dropped.

“I’m straight because I have sex with women. My pubic hair has nothing to do with it. Heck, if it did, Susan and Leah would be completely asexual, and we both know they’re not.”

Christy turned rosy at the direction of the conversation, while Erin looked suitably abashed.

“Now,” I said to her, “exactly what magazines have you been looking at?”

She gulped.

“Right,” I said flatly. “We all have our little secrets.” I glanced at Christy.

“One of mine is that I trim my pubic hair. I’m sure you noticed.”

She nodded, eyes still wide.

“One of yours,” I said to Erin, “is your stash of gay porn.”

“I have no such thing!”

“Sure you don’t, Erin. But hey, I’m not judging you. You can look at whatever you like. Besides, some of those guys are hot.”

Her eyebrows flew up as fast as Christy’s.

“They’re not my type,” I said. “I’m strictly a ladies’ man, but I can still say they’re attractive. Just like you do with other women. You too, Christy.

Matter o’ fact, if I had a quarter for every time you checked each other out during the shower, I’d… well… I’d have about three bucks. But you know what I mean.”

They each started to deny it.

“Save it,” I said as I stepped under the shower and rinsed the last of the shaving cream. “I saw you both. It was really kinda cute, to be honest, how you did it while the other wasn’t looking. But don’t try to deny it.”

Christy looked chagrined, while Erin wanted to argue.

“Ready for me to turn off the water?” I asked them.

“Yes.” “Uh-huh.”

“Chill, Erin,” I told her. “You can’t win every argument.”

“Says you,” she muttered.

I just laughed and handed Christy her towel. Then I passed Erin hers and reached for my own. “Let’s get a move on,” I said. “You know how Dad gets if we’re late. And if it makes you feel any better, Erin, you’re totally right about me being the worst boyfriend in the world. I’d be in the doghouse now if it weren’t for you and Mom and Susan. So thanks for that.”