The Tenant - Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Jeff came home just after midnight to discover that Emiline still wasn’t back. Nor was Sasha.

Brushing his teeth mechanically, his eyes grew distant as he gazed at his own face in the mirror. Who was his tenant? She had just taken down Power Mistress in a crowded club with no one the wiser.

Except him.

And she seemed to have become far more powerful within a span of a few minutes. That red light…

...had she been weakening Power Mistress? Stealing her powers somehow with a kiss? Stealing attributes of her body? Sasha had seemed to grow taller and sexier while Power Mistress was diminished. It certainly seemed as if Sasha had been taking her power.

But how was that possible? Power Mistress was one of the more powerful supers on the west coast! She had a number of cities under her control. She had likely been preparing to take on Astro Ace and Fantasi-Femme for dominance in San Francisco, one of the few potential challengers to the city’s protectors that might actually have been able to pull off the feat of defeating them.

And she’d been beaten by a teenage girl.

An extremely sexy teenage girl who only seemed to grow more impossibly gorgeous by the day.

A shiver rolled down Jeff’s spine as he remembered just how incredible she had looked as she had left him in the club. She was like nothing he’d ever seen. At once lush and athletic, curvaceous and toned.

He felt his body responding to the mental image alone.

Fuck!

Feeling his cheeks begin to burn, he set aside his toothbrush and leaned over the sink to splash cold water on his face. Intentionally turning his thoughts toward work. And breakfast. And anything not sexy.

But it was no use.

His fluttering heart couldn’t be tamed. His aroused body couldn’t be mastered. The girl simply held too much power over him.

Jeff let out a shaky sigh and went to bed.

***

Waking up next to his rising fiancé, Jeff yawned and stretched. “Late dinner, huh?”

Emiline blushed, her movements quickening as she made her side of the bed, responding with nothing more than a curt nod. She quickly left the room, leaving a groggy Jeff in her wake.

That was odd. Emiline didn’t normally act like that. She typically greeted him with an enthusiastic hug and kiss in the morning.

At least, he thought wryly, he was thinking about her rather than Sasha.

His body trembled anew at the mere touch of his thoughts to her name. Christ! he thought, shaking the unwanted image of the girl’s stunning face from his mind. No wonder Emiline was acting standoffish. She was probably picking up on some subconscious vibe he was radiating. He should be ashamed of himself. He was ashamed of himself. Lusting after another woman like this. And not just anyone, but their nearly decade-younger tenant!

He shuffled out of the room, trying to keep his thoughts from their inexorable destination—the stunning brunette. He chased after Emiline, determined to make things right. He would get over this little infatuation of his. He would! He just needed some time. Some space. Some… something.

As he passed Sasha’s closed door, he shivered once again with another upwelling of absurdly powerful emotion. His jaw tensed with resolve belied by his trembling lips as he swept past the room to the stairs, nearly tripping over the first step in his distracted descent of the stairs.

Jeff wound through the kitchen to wrap his arms around Emiline from behind, leaning over her shoulder to kiss her warm cheek. She smelled amazing this morning. Was that perfume? She hadn’t showered yet. Was it a residual trace from last night? Funny. She didn’t typically wear perfume to business functions.

He brushed the thought away, however, refocusing his efforts on his robe-covered fiancé. “Can I get you anything? Some coffee?”

Emiline turned, her arms wrapping around his bare torso in a tight embrace. “Absolutely,” she said, flashing a warm smile under doe eyes. “I’m so lucky to have you.”

But there was a hint of sadness in her eyes. This was a look he had never seen before. It was new. And it was troubling.

“Everything okay?” Jeff asked, his eyes searching hers as her gaze faltered, falling away from his own.

“Fine!” she said, her tone upbeat. Too upbeat. The word came out as more of a mangled squawk than actual speech. She swallowed nervously the moment the awkward sound was complete.

“You sure?” Jeff probed further, his brow furrowing. Something was clearly bothering her. He was sure it had something to do with him and his feelings for Sasha. Feelings which he was trying his hardest to suppress at the moment. He was giving it away somehow. She was seeing through him, seeing his growing attraction to the sexy teen.

Again, the reverberations of her name through his consciousness sent a ripple of warmth over his skin, a flutter into his anxiety-laden stomach.

He ignored the feelings, proceeding to the coffee maker instead. If he couldn’t manage to be a good fiancé for the moment, then perhaps he could at least be a good barista. When he had finished, he circled the table, setting a warm, steaming mug of bitter black liquid before her before sitting down.

As he took his seat, he saw that Emiline’s eyes were distant, unfocused, looking not at him but through him as he settled into his traditional place at the kitchen table.

“So how did dinner go?” Jeff asked, watching her pupils shrink to refocus on his eager face.

“Great!” Again her response was shrill, cut off by another uneasy swallow.

“What did you have? Seafood? Steak?” Jeff asked, determined to prove his interest in her rather than the younger rival for his attention.

Rival? Where had that thought come from? Sasha wasn’t a rival, she was a… a...

What exactly was she to him?

A tenant.

That’s what she should be. A tenant and nothing more. Not a crush. Not an infatuation. Not an obsession. Not a fantasy. Not a woman whose touch he yearned for. Not a girl whose body he could only imagine wrapping around him, its nubile, youthful form doing things that had driven that other man to—

What the fuck?!

Jeff reeled, watching Emiline’s eyebrows rise with curiosity as she watched him.

“Steak…” she said, her brow furrowing at Jeff’s contorted face. “What are you thinking about, Jeff? Is something wrong?” she inquired, the question feeling like a dagger plunged into Jeff’s rapidly beating heart.

“What?” Jeff said defensively, all possible words with which he might respond leaving his brain in an instant. “Oh! I, uh…”

Thankfully, a distraction from the foot of the stairs came to his rescue. A voice.

“Good morning,” came its sensual rasp, its sultry tones drifting over the couple like silk over stone. “You must be Jeff’s girl.”

Two pairs of eyes shot to the source of the sound. Sasha stood at the base of the stairs, looking sexier than ever in a formerly oversized t-shirt that now barely made it to her hips. Exposed were her skimpy black panties, uncovered by cotton, clearly visible to the couple’s awestruck eyes. The shirt was pulled taut over breasts so full and perfectly formed that a shower of saliva poured over Jeff’s suddenly trembling tongue.

As his eyes descended tight, toned, exquisitely shapely legs that seemed to stretch for miles, the man swallowed, hoping the desperate need he felt for this girl wasn’t too obvious to his fiancé. He wanted to tear his eyes away from her breathtaking body, but he simply couldn’t. It was as if he had lost the last of his wavering control. Over his own body. To her.

“Jeff’s girl?” he heard Emiline ask, her voice shaky. But at least she seemed to be in possession of her power of speech. Jeff wasn’t certain of much, but he was certain that any attempt at words on his part would result in a grunt. Or maybe a squeak. At best.

“Yeah,” said Sasha, nonchalantly, stretching willowy arms over her head until her tight t-shirt pulled above the top of her low-cut panties, exposing both a sliver of sexy, sculpted stomach and more of her firm, rounded hips. “What would you prefer I call you?”

“His fiancé,” Emiline shot back, her voice less awestruck. This time, it held a note of concern.

“Oh yeah,” said Sasha, her voice thick as a large yawn levered open her delicate jaw. “Right.”

As her long lashes re-opened after the yawn, her gorgeous eyes turned first to Emiline before settling on Jeff. “I never figured you for the romantic type.”

“And what is that supposed to mean?” interrupted Emiline, her ire rising.

“Well, it’s just rare to see someone really good-looking like Jeff here with someone like you. That’s all,” she said flippantly. “Congrats.”

“Someone like me?” Emilines voice rose, her anger obvious, finally sufficient to tear Jeff’s gaze away from the teenage seductress to his fiancé’s crimson face. Her fingers curled into fists.

Sasha merely looked amused. “Yeah, you know. Someone less physically gifted or whatever. I think it’s great. Good for you. Woo!” She gave a small fist pump to punctuate her words.

Emiline rose to her feet, her body now shaking with rage. “Get out of our house,” she whispered, her quiet, quavering tone like a dam holding back a tsunami of anger.

“I live here, remember?” said Sasha, not seeming either surprised nor concerned at the reaction her words had elicited from Jeff’s fiancé.

“Then go to your room,” hissed Emiline, cracks forming in her dam of control. Jeff’s legs tensed. He wondered if he should get between the two women, restraining his wife. He had never seen her so upset. If he hadn’t seen what Sasha was capable of, he would be concerned for her safety!

“Yes, mom,” Sasha laughed sarcastically. “Way to give off that whole mom-vibe. The whole MILF thing might even be sexy if you weren’t so…” Sasha looked down her nose at the now-shorter woman, her eyes glimmering mischievously. “...you know. Frumpy,” she finished with a dismissive upward flick of her chin.

Already primed for action, Jeff jumped up from his chair as Emiline lunged for the girl. He grabbed her as her outstretched arms thrust forward to either side of him, legs churning. Sasha made no move to stop her. Didn’t react in any way. Simply smiled. After watching Jeff struggle with the flailing Emiline for a long moment, she strolled casually back up the stairs, closing her door softly behind her.

***

It took Jeff a good 30 minutes to calm Emiline after her row with Sasha. Once she had calmed down, she had been embarrassed at being so easily riled, but he could tell she was still harboring some pretty intense resentment for the teen temptress. Emiline was embarrassed, angry, and ashamed, but the simmering anger that lay beneath her smoldering eyes was unmistakable. She wouldn’t get over this one for a good while.

Jeff was sure that his ogling the girl in front of her hadn’t helped matters, but thankfully most of her suppressed rage seemed directed at the girl rather than at him. Still, by the time she had left for work, things seemed mostly back to normal, if a little tense. Again, she informed him of a work function, letting him know she would be home late. It seemed as if that was happening more and more lately. But maybe that was a good thing. The last thing that Jeff needed was another encounter between the two women. Of course, Sasha always seemed to come home late as well...

Jeff’s thoughts turned to the other half of the bickering. He wasn’t sure why Sasha had egged Emiline on like that. His fiancé was hardly unattractive, but he supposed that virtually everyone was lower on that spectrum than the teen stunner. He had never seen anyone as good-looking. And that was before her recent upgrade. Now, the girl was a force of nature! She sure had been a bitch to Emiline. Why?

But he couldn’t help a secret, deeply hidden pleasure in her words as she had addressed him. Did she really find him attractive? Did she really think he was too good for Emiline?

Did she think he was good enough for her?

As soon as he thought it, he cringed, scolding himself internally. He should not be thinking things like that. No good could come from it…

...unless he actually had a chance with—

No!

Mentally covering his ears, physically squeezing his eyes shut, he ran past Sasha’s door to his room, jumping into his bed with a flourish of covers. It was evening now, and he didn’t know whether Sasha was home. Emiline wasn’t.

Having been out late the previous night, Jeff was tired, and he decided to go to sleep early. He barely even managed thoughts of the girl in the room next door before falling into a deep slumber.

He awoke to the feel of a warm body crawling under the covers beside him. He glanced at the clock. 12:09 AM. Emiline was home. Finally.

Normally, when she got home so late, she simply rolled over and went right to sleep. Tonight, however, she slithered under the covers toward Jeff’s unmoving form. Jeff felt naked breasts touch his shoulder, firm nipples digging into his muscled flesh.

“Emiline?” he whispered in the darkness, turning to look at her, but finding himself unable to make out any of her features in the lightless room.

She didn’t answer verbally, instead rolling over him to press soft lips to his own. Her breath was hot, her body warmer still as a silky leg snaked between his thighs. Her body at an angle to his, he could feel the full swell of one breast push into his bare, muscled chest, the other into his tensing bicep.

This was new. Emiline was never this forward. Maybe it had been the interaction with Sasha this morning? Maybe it had encouraged her to be more active in their sex life? He couldn’t say he minded that.

But her boldness wasn’t the only thing that seemed different. Her body felt… better somehow. More curvaceous. Smoother. Sexier.

Was it his imagination?

The woman began to undulate her body, her hips closing the distance to his, tongue gliding between his lips into his waiting mouth.

Jeff continued to kiss Emiline deeply, with more passion than he’d known in the entire time they’d been dating. Now he was certain of it. She was behaving differently than ever before.

Sucking on her writhing tongue, Jeff wrapped his arms around her slender waist, his hand descending the firm slopes of her lower back, only to rise over the smooth swell of an ass that seemed far more developed than he was used to. He gave the muscle of her spherical cheek a gentle squeeze. It was nearly unyielding beneath her satin skin.

She was so fit!

Her long legs shifted over his, their sleekness like nothing he had ever felt. As she began to undulate her hips over him, a sense of shock slowly washed over his aroused body.

This wasn’t Emiline’s body.

Then, another, far more exciting thought struck him.

Was it Sasha’s?

His heart thrilled with a dizzying blend of anticipation and terror. Could he really do this? Should he really do this?

He knew the answer. But he didn’t want to hear it. He continued to make out with the gorgeous silhouette as it squirmed over his increasingly stimulated body, but even as he enjoyed the feel of the girl against him, his hand reached out to the lamp on his nightstand. He had to know for certain…

His trembling fingers searched over the metallic surface, fumbling for the switch for a moment before finally finding it. He turned the knob, the bulb flaring to life.

His eyelids squeezed shut, momentarily blinded by the light. Then, slowly, he opened them. As his pupils shrank and the image of the woman’s face became clear, he gasped.

Above him, her eyes widening in surprise, was someone else entirely. Someone he hadn’t expected in the least.

It was Fantasti-Femme!