Celebration Left Us Alone

The last car door slammed in the driveway and the suburban quiet rushed back in like a held breath finally released. Renata stood in the doorway of her big two-story house, wineglass loose in her fingers, watching the taillights of the final Uber disappear down the tree-lined street. Inside, streamers drooped from the banister and empty beer bottles crowded every surface. Roman had already headed out with the rest of the graduates for an after-party downtown, laughing, half-drunk, clapping his best friend on the shoulder and telling him not to let his mom clean alone.

Silas stayed.

Twenty-two, broad-shouldered from years of varsity lacrosse, still in the fitted white button-down that clung to his chest where sweat had darkened it earlier. He rolled his sleeves higher and started gathering cups without being asked. Renata watched the flex of his forearms and felt the slow, shameless throb between her thighs that had been building all night every time he laughed too close to her or brushed past in the crowded kitchen.

“You don’t have to,” she said, voice lower than she meant.

“I want to.” He met her eyes. “Besides… it’s nice. Just us.”

The house felt enormous once the music died. Renata changed nothing about the tight sundress she’d worn all evening—the one that hugged her full tits and stopped mid-thigh, the one she’d chosen knowing exactly how the fabric would ride when she bent. She poured them both fresh drinks, then grabbed a cloth and started on the kitchen island. She leaned far over the cool marble, arching her back, letting the hem crawl up the backs of her thick thighs until the lower curves of her ass were impossible to miss. No panties. She’d taken them off an hour ago in the powder room, already soaked.

Silas went still behind her.