Steam rose from pots and pans on the stove. Emma pulled the oven door open and a whisper of smoke issued from inside. She reached into the oven with a thick mitt on her hand and pulled out a tray of yellowy-orange puff balls. Aaron did not recognize them, but his nose caught the rich scent of baked gruyere cheese.
Emma set the tray on the stove top and pulled off the mitts. She put another large dish sitting nearby into the oven. She picked up a bottle of white Burgundy sitting on the counter and poured it — glug, glug, glug — into two glasses. She picked up one and handed it to Aaron, who took it, and she picked up the tray of orangey puff balls and they walked to the living room.
Aaron and Emma settled into their seats and Emma offered a cheesy puff ball to Aaron. Aaron reached for one.
“What’s this called?”
“Gougere,” Emma replied. Aaron, who didn’t speak French, was impressed by Emma’s accent.
Aaron took the cheesy ball into his finger and put it to his lips. He bit off a piece. It came away in a flaky, flavorful chunk.
“Wow, Emma,” Aaron said. “That’s delicious.” He took another bite, and another. Aaron looked at Emma and smiled with the savory pieces of baked cheese in his mouth.
Emma held a cheese ball in her hand, but her attention was on Aaron, not the appetizer.
“It’s been a long time, Aaron,” she said.
“Too long,” he said. “Sorry about that. My internship keeps me working like a dog.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” she said. Emma looked at Aaron intently. She shifted in the seat across from him and Aaron couldn’t stop his eyes from glancing at her legs. The skirt rode high on her smooth thighs as she sat.
“Any time for love life?” Emma asked. “Are you seeing anybody?”
“Love life? What’s that?” Aaron asked, laughing. “I can’t remember my last date. I’m a medical intern, remember? What about you? Do you have a boyfriend?”
“I’ve had a couple of dates in the last two months,” Emma said. “But nobody special. Nobody that’s caught my eye. Riley tried to set me up with a guy she knew, but that didn’t work out.”
“Sorry to hear that,” Aaron said. “Guess we’re just unlucky in love right now.” Aaron was sure men must have been beating a path to Emma’s door, so she must have been very picky not to have a boyfriend.
“I have to get something,” Emma said, interrupting their conversation. Her legs swept wide as she turned away from Aaron to rise off the sofa, and Aaron caught a brief but clear look at pale pink panties under Emma’s miniskirt.
I’ve got to stop doing that, he said to himself. But he did not stop. His eyes stared between his sister’s legs while the panties were in view. When she rose and turned away his eyes followed her ass. The short skirt covered little.
Aaron forced himself to look away from his sister. He looked around the room. He saw a black and white photo in a 5×7 inch frame on the side table next to the sofa on which he sat. It was a photo of him. Aaron had never seen it before. But he felt only a moment of confusion before realizing where and when it had been taken, and by whom.