Status: Part 3

Erin dragged herself out of bed and into the kitchen to make coffee. She’d always been an early riser but now that she was into her late 30s it took a bit more to get her going in the morning. Before she and Gideon had gotten married, she would have been out in the garden planting flowers and pulling weeds or checking to see how her vegetables were doing. Now the extra work was unnecessary given that Gideon had his own staff to do things like that for him. Admittedly, it was sometimes enjoyable to work outside and get her hands dirty, but having to do it all the time was a chore that Erin was rapidly learning to appreciate not having to do. She peered out of the window as she sipped her coffee, watching contentedly as the gardeners and housekeeping staff bustled about the lavish planters and hedges in the chilly morning air while she happily enjoyed being cozy and warm in her robe. It really was a nice change of pace and a role she was finding herself fitting into more easily than expected.

(1)

It took her a few moments of watching to realize that her son was also tasked with maintaining the gardens as a means of earning both his stay and the decently substantial allowance that Gideon had been providing him with since they’d moved in. Another second after that, she’d realized that Kyle wasn’t out there working with the rest of the gardeners.

She went to his room and couldn’t find him, but did notice that not only was his door unlocked, but there was a somewhat poorly hidden woman’s bra laying on the floor. Erin rolled her eyes and grumbled but knew that there wasn’t anything she could really do or say about it. He was 20 years old and not really in a place where she could scold him for having sex, but it still bothered her to become so viscerally aware of the fact.

In a moderately concerned effort to locate him, Erin walked out to the garden with increasing urgency and irritation the longer it took her to do so. Felipe, the eldest and chief of the gardening staff with several children and grandchildren of his own claimed to have seen him come out with everyone else, but before long they lost track of both him and the “pretty latina” he had with him. Apparently they had claimed that she was there to help with the work as well, but once the morning meeting was completed, the two of them were nowhere to be found.

Erin was furious. She knew damn well that the girl Felipe was talking was no latina at all, but Kyle’s Italian girlfriend. The very same one (she hoped) who had left her rather generously sized bra on the floor of his bedroom.

“Fucking ridiculous.” She snarled, storming around the grounds and throwing open the doors of every shed, barn, and clubhouse she could find. “I must look like such a fucking bitch now, stomping my fat ass around like a pissed off PTA mom. Thanks a fucking lot, asshole.” She grumbled, well aware that the position he’d put her in was inelegant and more than a little Karen-y.

Now she had to deal with the knowledge that all of the outdoor staff just saw the master’s new wife bitching about her punk ass deadbeat son and his girlfriend while trying to hunt him down in nothing but a bathrobe and a pair of slippers.

It was only when she tried to get into the resident staff house that she found the door locked and yet again had to trouble Felipe to get it open. According to him, it was never supposed to be locked, so neither of them were surprised when they opened the door to find Kyle hurriedly trying to button his pants while his shirt was still completely undone and open. Lucille was still out of sight, but a visible light under the bathroom door made it clear that she was at least smart enough of a girl not to be caught with her pants down.

(2)

“Abso-fucking-lutely ridiculous. Do have any idea what kind of a fool you’ve made me look today? It’s…what, 9AM and you’ve got me tearing across the grounds in a fucking bathrobe looking for your ass? Even worse, you were supposed to be WORKING right now, and instead, I find you in the goddamn servant’s quarters fucking your little girlfriend! And yes Lucille, I know you’re in there so hurry up and get dressed so you can leave. And as for you Kyle, do you have anything to say to me?” Erin barked, furious and red-faced with embarrassment.

Kyle was silent and avoided eye contact, but didn’t look one bit like he regretted anything that he’d done.

“WELL?!” Erin snapped, again amazed by the absolute gall her son was displaying.

“You didn’t *catch* us having sex. We were just talking.” He said with a visible level of arrogance that made him look like he genuinely didn’t believe that she had any right to come down on him any worse than she was already.

Stunned with rage, Erin stood there and stared at him with wide eyes and a slack jaw.

“Yes?” Kyle smirked, a slow aloof sigh heaving out below his lazily raised eyebrows.

Erin very nearly slapped him across the face but Lucille opened the door to the bathroom and stepped out sheepishly.

“Um…Hello Mrs. Lyzel. I’m…Sorry about today.” The stunningly beautiful girl said with what seemed like genuine sincerity.

Lucille really did look pretty with her hair gently tousled over one eye. It was no wonder why Kyle was so smitten with her. In her lingering fury however, Erin couldn’t muster the patience to accept the apology.

(3)

“It’s Mrs. Ashford. And you should be ashamed of yourself. If you’re EVER going to be allowed back in MY house again, you and I are going to have to have a talk about some ground rules. In fact, why don’t both of you *kids* come with me? I’m not exactly in the mood to handle this right now and frankly I think you probably want to deal with my husband more right now anyways.”

Gideon wasn’t all too bothered after he’d heard what had transpired. Erin was both surprised and impressed at his composure, even to the point of pushing away the creeping suspicion that he’d already known that something like that was going to happen.

“Well…I personally have no problem with Lucille being here. It’s a big house and I have enough to provide for everyone. Sure, there was a breach in decorum as far as where you two took your romantic activities, but at your age I’d probably be doing much worse if I were you. That being said, I want to make it clear that I’d rather you not take that as an invitation.

As for what to do….Kyle, you know that we had a deal as to you working to stay rent free here. I think it’s a pretty sweet gig you’ve landed just by being your mother’s son and it’d be a shame if you lost it, but I can’t help but think that you don’t quite appreciate what you have here. So instead of kicking you out or banning your girlfriend who hasn’t really done anything wrong, I’m going to assign Felipe to you as your mentor. You will follow his instructions as if he were your boss and learn from him day and night. As a means of accommodating this, I’m also having you move out to the staff house. You will have your own room and access to all the facilities, but living in a full blown mansion is a bit too much for you right now.

Now…You’ve upset your mom enough for one day and I’ve got a rather nice day planned for us so….Dismissed, I guess.” Gideon said, punctuating his judgement speech with a hearty pat on his wife’s back.

Kyle’s arrogance in dealing with his mother had completely vanished and was replaced with silent, obedient acceptance as he stared deeply into Gideon’s gleaming wedding band. He got up and immediately began moving his things from his room to the staff house with Felipe’s house while Erin went back up to her and Gideon’s shared bedroom to get dressed.

Lucille, feeling sufficiently awkward having been caught fucking her boyfriend and then getting in trouble with him after he tried to lie about it attempted to discreetly make her exit after giving Kyle quick peck on the cheek. She’d thought she was fairly discreet and nearly in the clear when she heard Gideon’s voice behind her.

“Leaving already?” He asked, causing the girl to turn around, terror running through her body as she looked up to face him.

She couldn’t quite place what it was about him, but something about him in that very moment made her blood run ice cold. She wanted more than anything to run away as fast as she could but knew that doing so would be out of place and probably upset him in a way that would only worsen her situation.

“Um. Hi. Mr. Ashford, I uh… I just thought…maybe I should go. It’s just that I feel kinda awkward after what happened and-“

“I said it was alright, didn’t I?” Gideon said, advancing towards the trembling girl.

“Oh relax. You’re not in any trouble. Besides, if you’re with Kyle then that makes you one of the family. That doesn’t sound so bad now, does it?” He asked, reaching up and stroking her hair.

The urge to flinch vanished from within Lucille as she saw the glint of the light from the older man’s ring flashing in the light as his hand approached her. More accurately, she thought, it was like she wasn’t CAPABLE of flinching. Or running. Or screaming for help. Her eyes went wide as the last of her mental defenses grew exhausted like flames trying to burn down a stone wall before fizzling out. Lucille felt herself become transfixed, Gideon’s words becoming more true with every syllable.

“You’re such a stunning, pretty girl. I’m surprised that you went for someone like Kyle in the first place. Then again, he DOES have a decent claim to a massive sum of money, so I imagine that helps. That and he’s nice enough, if not a bit lazy.” Gideon said, now lifting the girl’s chin with his hand so that her eyes met his.

“You don’t have to leave, Lucille. In fact, I think I speak for everyone when I say that I am looking forward to you becoming as much a member of the family as Kyle is. I know his mom can be a little uppity about her son, but we’re working on that. I myself don’t mind a sexy girl enjoying her own beauty while she’s got it. I mean…you’ve got amazing tits and teasing a little is something girls like you are good at. So from now on, whenever you’re here, you are family and can do whatever you want. Doesn’t that sound nice?” He smiled.

Lucille blushed and a giddy smile spread across her face as she adjusted her already tiny tank top, pulling it lower to reveal just the slightest bit of areola and basking in the glowing smile of her boyfriend’s weirdly suave step-dad.

(4)

“That’s a good girl.”