The Competition

Eliza Jane and Ayumi Anime sprawl across Eliza’s bed, laughing as the afternoon slips away. Eliza leans in for a kiss and Ayumi pulls back, eyes darting to the door. Cherie is only one floor away. Eliza just smiles—her mother knows she’s gay, and everything else is incidental. One caveat, she adds: whatever her daughter gets, Cherie tries to take. Dresses. Cars. Girlfriends. Cherie is already at the threshold, watching. One look at Ayumi and heat flushes her cheeks; she steps inside and announces herself like the room is hers. Eliza rolls her eyes, but before she can object Cherie has stripped off her shirt and cupped Ayumi’s trembling hands to her breasts. “Experience counts for something,” Cherie murmurs. Ayumi freezes, fingers curling around warm flesh she didn’t expect to hold. Eliza snaps. She rips her own shirt over her head. Two can play, she snaps—then grins when Ayumi’s gaze bounces between them, cheeks flaming. The girl doesn’t choose. Instead she reaches for both mother and daughter, drawing them closer, the afternoon turning hotter with every shared breath.