The silence that settled over the two-story house right after Lucas and Sophia left for the gym was almost comforting. For the first time since I moved in, I was completely alone with Ana. In the kitchen, the aroma of the sweets I had put in the oven was beginning to fill the room. Baking refined desserts had always been my refuge during difficult days, but today, I was baking out of pure gratitude.
I heard calm footsteps and looked back. Ana walked into the kitchen holding two crystal glasses and a bottle of a visibly expensive red wine. She was still wearing only that white shirt of Lucas's, her hair tied in an elegant bun, exalting the natural dominance of someone who managed an entire hospital staff, but with a lightness that only existed within these walls.
"A perfect dessert calls for a good wine to go with it, dear," Ana said, with a welcoming smile. She poured the dark liquid into the glasses and handed one to me. "Let that bake for a bit and come sit with me."
I nodded, setting my oven mitts aside. We sat at the kitchen counter. I held the glass with both hands, shrinking a little into my conservative pajamas, feeling my cheeks warm up under her mature, analytical gaze.
"Tell me, Beatriz..." Ana began, using my full name in a soft tone, but one that carried an authority that made me want to obey immediately. "How are you feeling? Are you getting used to our rhythm yet?"
I took a small sip of the wine, tasting its strong, sophisticated flavor.
"It's all very new to me, Ana. At my old house, the atmosphere was always tense, selfish. Here, your freedom scares me a little, but in a good way. I've never felt so cared for. Lucas is my safe harbor; he gives me a stability I never had. Sophia... well, she completely disarms me, breaks all my barriers. And you..." I looked down at my feet, shyly. "You make me feel protected. Like I finally belong somewhere."
Ana smiled, an expression of genuine affection softening her dominant features. She reached out her free hand and caressed my cheek, tracing her fingers down my neck.
"You belong to us now, dear."
The warmth of the wine and the cozy atmosphere gave me a courage I normally wouldn't have. I looked straight into my mother-in-law's deep brown eyes.
"Ana... can I ask you a question? A real question?" I murmured. She nodded, leaning her body forward. "Why did you choose this? I mean... being with your own son and your daughter. And what is it like for you... sharing the same man with other women? With me and Sophia?"
Ana's gaze wavered for a second, filling with a deep melancholy. She looked down at her own wine glass, swirling it slowly, reliving painful memories before facing me with an overwhelming honesty.
"To be honest, Beatriz... in the beginning, when Lucas told me he had been with Sophia, I absolutely exploded with anger," she confessed, her voice thick with emotion. "I have never in my entire life felt an anger like that. It was such a violent snap in my chest that, for a moment, I almost forgot she was my daughter... I was blind, ready to kill her right then and there."
She paused, taking a deep breath.
"But after confronting her, I came to my senses. I realized that what Lucas and I have... is already something very wrong in the eyes of the world. No matter how much I love him, he was still my son, and not truly my man. It was a painful reality check, but a liberating one. I thought to myself: if he can sleep with his own mother, I think he should also be allowed to sleep with his own sister. Who was I to dictate rules after breaking the biggest taboo? Over time, that pain turned into complicity. And today, seeing the two of you with him... it doesn't make me jealous. It just shows me that we've created our own world inside here."
I was speechless, touched by the depth and the suffering that woman had carried to accept it all. Ana then set her glass on the counter and tilted her head, turning the weight of the conversation back to me.
"But now the question goes to you, Beatriz. What is it like for you? What do you really feel about sharing your boyfriend with his mother and his sister?"
I lowered my eyes, feeling my face burn intensely. With trembling hands, I took another sip of the wine before answering, almost in a whisper:
"I've always had a crush on Lucas, you know? I mentioned it to Sophia a few times. When Sophia invited me to this house that day, I thought she was just setting up a bridge between him and me... but what you all introduced me to was a pleasure I had never felt in my life."
I paused, fighting against my shyness, feeling Ana's attentive gaze on me.
"When Lucas asked, that night in bed with the four of us, if I wanted to be his girlfriend, I was so scared. I thought I would just be a girlfriend for cover and that he was just going to use me, exactly how my ex used me too... just for pleasure. But I saw it in his eyes, Ana... I saw that he wasn't that disgusting kind of man. I saw that he would be able to love the three of us equally. And that the two of you... that the two of you would love me too."
Ana listened to me in silence, and her expression shifted. The sentimental melancholy gave way to a sudden electricity, a spark of pure pride and desire at seeing the depth of my submission and surrender. She leaned in even closer, her striking perfume invading my senses, and cupped my chin firmly. Tilting her face, she pulled me into a kiss. Unlike Sophia’s electric kisses, Ana's was slow, experienced, and profoundly dominant.
When Ana pulled back slightly, breaking lip contact, my eyes were closed, my breathing completely erratic. My whole body was on fire. I was totally disarmed, melting into the chair with my arms open, ready to be possessed by her right there on the kitchen counter.
Flick!
I opened my eyes with a start, bringing my hand to my forehead. Ana had just given me a light, but precise flick right in the middle of my head.
"If you keep getting distracted like this, the sweets you're making are going to burn in the oven," Ana said, gesturing with her chin toward the appliance.
I looked at her and noticed that my mother-in-law's cheeks were suddenly flushed. Ana quickly looked away, clearing her throat and adjusting the hem of her white shirt. She had abruptly snapped back to reality, visibly flustered and deeply embarrassed for letting herself get carried away like that and being so easily provoked by the intimacy with her own daughter-in-law in the kitchen.
"I-I'm sorry... I'll check the oven," I stammered, still dizzy from the kiss, getting up quickly while trying to hide a smile as I realized that even the commanding matriarch of the house could lose her composure around me.