Family Ties That Bind

July the Fourth rolled around, and it was time for the annual family outing at Aunt Ruth's and Uncle Trey's place.

Yeah, it brings to mind a modest picnic on the farm, right? Wrong. Our family name was a pretty respected, or at least a well-known, name in the business and real estate world. My second great grandfather had made his fortune in New York real estate, and quite a fortune it was. Unfortunately for me, he had a falling out with my great grandfather and our branch of the family was cut out of the wealth. It all went to Bartholomew, Bartholomew the Second, and then down to Bartholomew the Third, Uncle Trey ("Dahling, it's Bartholomew, please.") He was an okay guy, I guess, but his wife came from money, too, and she was a stuck-up bitch. That's harsh, I know, but she was. I hated the way she treated my Mother, Marianna, who had grown up on a dairy farm.

So, every Fourth, the family would gather at their estate - yes, an estate - for the family outing. It was palatial. Their swimming pool was bigger than the municipal pool in our town, and the pool house was at least as big, and probably bigger, than the house I grew up in. Ruth loved to be the matriarch of the family when she ever deigned to notice us at all, and seemed to delight in showing how much money they had compared to how little we had. Hell, the diamond on her finger and the pearls on her neck were probably worth more than Mom and Dad, both high school teachers, made in a year, combined.

One aspect of her bitchiness really bothered me. Dad had the family name and when I was born, Mom wanted to name me Bartholomew. Aunt Ruth wouldn't hear of it. Her son, eventually, would be Bartholomew IV, and there was no way she was going to allow me to share that name. So, I was Ben, instead.

Was I bitter? I tried not to be, but I couldn't help it sometimes. Ruth and Trey had three kids, Ruthie (who names a daughter after herself?), Quad (yep, he was B the Fourth), and Steven (never Steve). My sisters, Joanie and Heather, and I were all smarter than them, we thought. We went to the state university on scholarships, while Ruthie, Quad, and Steven went to Ivy Leagues.

When we were kids, though, none of that mattered. We were kids. Sure, we knew they had more than us, but we played together and, in a family sort of way, loved each other. Oh, there were little spats and fights, but we always made up and we always counted on each other. We were the Gang of Six whenever we would get together - always on the Fourth, and occasionally when Uncle Trey would drive them down to our farm. Aunt Ruth never came. I guess she was always too busy with her ostentatious charity work.

There were some heated times, too. We were matched in ages, more or less, with Ruthie and I, Quad and Joanie, and Heather and Steven within years of each other. And what are cousins for when you're a hormone-driven adolescent? Yep. Experimenting. Ruthie, ever the tomboy, was the first French kiss I ever got and the first bare breast I ever saw (except for those delicious glances when Mom or Joanie were dressing and didn't know I was watching). Ruthie's was the first breast I ever touched. If Aunt Ruth had known, I would have been singing castrato, for sure, but she never knew. We were the Gang of Six, and had a formal pinky-swearing oath of silence.

All us kids were in college, with me having just graduated and ready for graduate school. We had gathered at home for the annual get-together trip, and I was looking forward to seeing Ruthie. Last year she was a damned beauty. She had the typical pretty, preppy look that I've always been a sucker for; she was no longer a tomboy in looks, but she maintained the wholesome attitude. We were going to leave early on Friday morning, spend the night with them, have all day on the Fourth to have fun, then return home to the middle class on the fifth. Lest there be any doubt of their wealth, we loved going there because they had so many bedrooms that each of us got a guest room of our own. You didn't even have to make your own bed. The maid did it for you.

"Ben," Mom yelled from inside the kitchen. "Make sure the cooler lid is tight. I don't want the pork to thaw." Mom always took them packaged meat and eggs from our little hobby farm, thinking that they probably never ate real farm-raised products from animals that were treated with respect. I'm sure Ruth probably threw it out, but Mom liked doing it.

We finally got on the road, a six-hour drive ahead of us, with me and the brats packed tightly in the back seat of Dad's Four-Runner. It was tight, but you know, I didn't mind at all. Remember I alluded to the fact that my hormones were running when I was an adolescent, and they hadn't slowed down. I was always horny. Since there were only two years between Joanie and me, and four years between Heather and me, I never suffered from a lack of butts and tits for my hands to roam. We were an affectionate pack of kids, you could say. The first nipple I ever sucked was Joanie's and, by her heated reaction that night, I always wondered if I could have fucked her then. We were high schoolers, though, so I didn't know how far to go or anything. But that's another story.

"Mooom," Heather complained in an exaggerated whine. "Ben's touching me." She was kidding, of course. I was in the middle and before we were out of the driveway my hands were on each of my sister's smooth, bare legs.

"You kids behave," Dad shouted. "Don't make me have to stop this car." We all had a good laugh, reliving our times in the car when we were children.

I pinched the inside of Heather's thigh, and she yelped. "That'll teach you," I whispered. She folded her arms and turned away, so I concentrated on Joanie. I took her hand and tried to put it on my dick, and she wouldn't have it.

"Stop it, you animal," she whispered closely in my ear. "Mom might see."

"OK, then later," I whispered back, and she rolled her eyes, folded her arms, and turned the other way.

"I'm just a rose between two thorns," I said out loud, and everyone laughed.

When we got there, I was disappointed to learn that Ruthie was in Europe on a tour, so I was odd man out. I didn't want to hang with the adults, and Joanie and Quad, and Heather and Steven, had paired up. We hung out at the pool, having fun and drinking beers, but I knew I was the extra. Every so often one of the pairs would go into the pool house "to use the bathroom," and I could tell there was some serious petting going on by the flush on their cheeks when they came out. Dammit, I missed Ruthie. This might have been my lucky year.

On the Fourth, Uncle Trey barbecued steaks and the caterers brought the sides. Uncle Trey, who was cooler than you would think, had a couple of kegs of artisanal beer and we were having a good time. Mom had on a one-piece swimming suit which I thought showed off her beautiful tits and ass, but she was self-conscious and kept a wrap on when she wasn't in the pool. More than once I noticed Uncle Trey looking at her. Why not? She was a little plump, maybe, but I thought she was beautiful. Her red hair set off her creamy freckled skin perfectly. Uncle Trey didn't know what I knew - the red hair was kept red courtesy of the Clairol Corporation, but neither he nor I cared. Mom was a pretty woman. Maybe to anyone else she was just that - a pretty, cute woman - but to me, she was beautiful.

I was laying on a lounge chair, nursing my umpteenth beer, and watching her out of the corner of my eye. I was thinking the same thought I had been thinking since I knew what it was: "I wish I could have one chance with that." Mom was at the grill with Uncle Trey, and I noticed her stiffen as she looked at the walk from the house to the pool area. I followed her gaze and saw the reason. Aunt Ruth was walking from the house, and she had on what I thought was a pretty daring two-piece for a woman her age. Mom must have thought it was pretty daring, too. I thought it was pretty hot, though. I had to admit, all the money Aunt Ruth spent on personal trainers at the country club was worth it. She was pretty tight.

I glanced over at Mom, and saw her looking at Dad, who was sitting at the table. His jaw was hanging open and if his eyes were any more popped, they'd fall out on the deck. "Charles," Mom said. "You want to come over here and help Trey with the steaks?" She called him "Charles" instead of "Charlie" so I knew she was steamed, and so did Dad. He jumped right up and scooted over to the grill, smartly turning his back to Aunt Ruth.

Frankly, I wouldn't trade ten of Aunt Ruth for one of Mom. Mom had it in looks, in my book, and she had something Aunt Ruth could never have - personality and love. But again, I have to admit, Aunt Ruth was looking pretty hot for a 50-something gal. "I'd give it a spin," I thought, and then laughed to myself. I guessed she would be something of an iceberg in the rack, afraid you might mess her hair or her perfect makeup. Mom, on the other hand? That would be a momentous fuck, I just knew. All this thinking had made my dick hard, and I reached over for a towel to put on my lap.

"Whattsa' matter, Benny? Getting a chill?" Joanie knew exactly what I was thinking, and couldn't resist giving me a dig.

The late afternoon lunch was great, as you would imagine. The steaks, and they had to have cost hundreds, were delicious. I had finished one and was eyeing another, when Mom caught my eye and shook her head no. Couldn't have Aunt Ruth thinking she didn't feed me, I guess.

I didn't want Mom to feel second-class around Aunt Ruth, so I said, "Mom, I wish you had brought your potato salad." She smiled, and I knew I had hit a home run, or at least a double.

"I'll make it for you this week, Honey," she said. "I know how you love it."

Aunt Ruth couldn't say anything. Hell, she hadn't even made the potato salad. The caterer had made it. It was good, but I wouldn't mention that.

After eating, everyone kind of lounged around the pool and things were quiet. Uncle Trey jumped up and went into the pool house, returning with his camera. "OK, everyone. Line up for the rogues gallery!" He took an annual family photo, and this year would be no different.

Normally we kids would be in front, but since we were all almost as tall or taller than the adults, we lined up behind Mom, Dad, and Aunt Ruth. Uncle Trey would always set the camera on automatic, and then sprint to get into the shot. Just as he was lining it up and focusing, Aunt Ruth broke out of the front line and came back to stand between Heather and me. "I want to be back here with the kids," she said. I didn't know why. She normally didn't give a crap about us.

Aunt Ruth linked her arm through mine, and turned slightly so her breast was against my upper arm. Suddenly I got it. Mom had made sure Ruth wasn't standing beside Dad, so she was going for me, just to irritate Mom. I thought, "You old bitch, you're not going to use me as a prop to make Mom jealous." Awkwardly, I had put my right arm around Ruth's waist, and just as the shutter was getting ready to click, I slid my hand down and cupped her ass. I thought I'd get some kind of reaction, like wide eyes or a jump, but I never expected her to do what she did. She put her hand on mine, pulling it tight on her butt. Never one to back off with the slightest encouragement, I slightly kneaded her butt, letting her know exactly what I wanted.

Uncle Trey had to take several shots, and I kept my hand on her ass the whole time, getting ever more adventurous. By the time the final shot had been taken, I was rubbing my fingers in the cleft of her ass, putting pressure on her little butthole. As we broke up from the pose, I expected her to give me a piece of her mind, but she just hugged her breast against my arm before walking away without a word to join the "adults" in their lounge chair grouping.

I stood there, shocked for a minute, until Quad took a running jump into the pool. That was the unspoken invitation for all of us to jump in, so I followed with the rest. My mind was racing, though. Jeebus. Had I really done that? Had I groped Aunt Ruth's ass? Holy Shit!

They had a nice fire pit in the pool area and that's where we spent the evening, trying as hard as we could to empty those kegs. We were in two groupings. The parents were kind of quiet, enjoying the evening, and we were huddled away from them at the table playing a game of Risk. Several times the pairs - Joan and Quad, Heather and Steven - would go into the pool house to use the bathroom or get something. Was I the only one who thought they were using the bathroom a lot? It made me wish Ruthie was there. Maybe she had outgrown me, but I sure would have given her the old college try. I wondered if there would be some tip-toeing down the hall between rooms that night. I'd ask Joanie and Heather, but I doubted either one would tell me if anything had transpired. I'd just have to imagine it; that's what fantasies are for.

The next morning, I was the first of the kids to get up and I made my way through the huge house to the kitchen. Maybe they were richer than us, but coffee is the great equalizer. Everybody needs it in the morning. When I walked in, I was shocked to see Mom and Aunt Ruth huddled together at the table, talking. They never did that. They usually tried to ignore each other as much as possible. I'll bet in a normal get-together, they wouldn't share more than two dozen words, but this time they seemed thick as thieves.

"Ben, I'm glad you're up," Mom said. "There's something we need to talk about." I looked at Aunt Ruth, and she had a slight smile on her lips. A cat-that-ate-the-canary smile.

"Fuck me to tears," I thought. "Aunt Ruth has narced me out. I'm about to get hammered into the dirt, and that will just be the precursor for what will happen when Mom gets me home."

I got my coffee and sat at the table with them, expecting the worst.

"Quad and Steven are off to Europe to join Ruthie, and your Uncle Trey has a business conference. Aunt Ruth has some gardening she wants to get done, and asked if you would like to earn some college money for a week or two. What do you think?"

What did I think? I think Aunt Ruth has never gardened in her life, that's what I think, but I didn't say it. "Uh, sure, if you need me, Aunt Ruth." She had never offered anything like that before, so why now?

"Oh, I do need you, Ben," she said, and she had that same smile. "And it won't be easy, you know. I'm going to work you."

I almost choked on my coffee. Probably she meant nothing by it, but not taking a double meaning from what she said was tough. My imagination raced, and then I looked at Mom. "If it's OK with you, Mom, then sure. I'd be glad to earn some extra."

Mom was pleased that I deferred to her, and smiled. "Great, Honey. I can give you up for a week, I guess."

So it was decided. I would return home with the family, and then drive back after a couple of days. On the way home, my mind was so occupied that I didn't even try to cop feels of my sisters' legs in the back seat.

Mom noticed I was quiet. "You OK with helping your Aunt Ruth, Ben? I think that's a nice gesture on her part. She could hire the work out, but she seemed to want to help you, so that's nice."

"Yeah," I said. "Maybe the old cow is mellowing a bit."

Mom scolded me, but smiled. Maybe Aunt Ruth had made an overture of peace, but Mom wasn't ready to scrap the battle lines.

Before I left to go back to Ruth's the next day, Mom took me aside. "Now I know I don't have to tell you this. You're a man now. Behave like one. Give an honest day's work for an honest wage, Ben, and don't drink all their beer and wine. Especially the wine. Some of those bottles are probably worth a semester's tuition, you know. And treat your Aunt Ruth with respect. She's doing this to help you. No smart ass remarks."

"I'll be good, Mom. I won't embarrass you."

She laughed and hugged me, her breasts mashing into my chest. She had no idea how much I loved it when she hugged me like that. "You could never embarrass me, Honey. You're a good one."

I had six hours to drive, and my thoughts were divided. I'd alternate between thinking I might have a shot at getting Ruth in the sack and wondering what that would be like, and thinking that I'd screwed up and gotten away with it and I'd better not screw up again. Hard dick and shriveled dick, those were my two states for the whole six hours.

When I arrived, I rang the doorbell and Donna, the maid, answered. "She's waiting for you at the pool, Ben. I'll show you the way."

I knew the way, of course, but I guess the house rules for servants was to never allow the riffraff to be in the house unaccompanied. When we got to the pool area, I saw Ruth laying in a lounge chair, wearing that same damned swimming suit. "Donna, you can be done for the day. I'll take care of Ben. We can serve ourselves tonight." That must have been unusual, because Donna wasted no time in scurrying away before Ruth changed her mind.

I was timid, not knowing how I should play this. Should I apologize? Just when I was getting ready to stammer an apology for groping her fine ass, Ruth gave a chuckle and said, "There's no rush, Ben. I thought we could eat out here, enjoy the pool, and maybe get started tomorrow. Why don't you go in and put your suit on? You'll be in the same room, if that's alright."

I stowed my bag, changed into my suit, and rushed back to the pool. She had seemed relaxed, not angry at all, so maybe I didn't have to apologize. I took the lounge chair next to hers and we both relaxed, in silence.

"So, what gardening do you have in mind, Aunt Ruth?"

"I've got some things that need tending, that's all. I'm not really sure there's a lot of gardening that needs to be done. Honestly, with everyone away, I didn't want to be here in this big house by myself. Is that okay with you? And call me Ruth when your Mother's not around. I'm not ancient, you know."

I laughed. "Oh, you're far from ancient. Ruthie got her looks from you, but not all of them."

She smiled, clearly pleased. "Oh, stop it, Ben. What, you're trying to be a silver-tongued devil so you can make your fortune in business? Like your Uncle Trey?"

Yeah, like my Uncle Trey, who inherited his wealth. But I didn't say it. "No, Aunt Ruth. I mean, Ruth. I'm really liking chemistry, and I think I want to get a doctorate in it. Maybe chemical engineering, but I'm really liking the theoretical side."

She looked at me with a little surprise on her face. Besides my hand on her ass, I guess she was starting to realize I wasn't a kid anymore. "Wow, Ben. Well, good for you. Do what you love, you know, and you'll never work a day."

I couldn't help it. I just looked at her, and then she understood what I was thinking. She laughed, loudly. "Oh, I haven't worked a day, have I? But it's not because I love what I'm doing."

Where was this going? "What? Ruth, you have the perfect life. You have everything."

"Yeah," she said, and a cloud passed quickly over her face as she jumped up. "I'm going to open one of Trey's expensive wines. You want to help me bring supper down here?"

"I'm on the clock, Lady. Your wish is my command," I said and jumped up to follow her in the house. I enjoyed the view of her ass as we walked.

We went into the kitchen, got the food ready, and then Ruth went to the cellar for her bottle of wine. In a moment I heard her call. "Ben, can you come help me? I can't reach it."

I went down the stairs into the custom wine cellar, and she was right. The bottle she wanted was way out of her reach, but she stood there stretching for it. Damn, her ass and legs looked good. I walked up behind her and reached for the wine. I admit it. It wasn't an accident. My hard dick rubbed against her ass as I got the bottle.