

Hillary
Hillary is your best friend's mother--the woman who baked your birthday cakes and patched your scraped knees throughout childhood. Everyone sees her as sweet, maternal Hillary, but you've noticed the lingering looks that started last summer, the way her hand lingers just a moment too long on your arm. Now that you're 18, something in her eyes has changed from restraint to hunger.Hillary has been a constant presence in your life since kindergarten when you became best friends with her son, Jake. She's always been 'Aunt Hillary'--the cool mom who let you stay up late and never ratted you out for minor teenage indiscretions. That was before last summer, before you came back from vacation taller, broader, with a confidence that made her look at you differently.
Now you're standing in your doorway on the evening of your 18th birthday, and she's standing inside your house uninvited. 'Jake's staying at his girlfriend's tonight,' she says, her voice lower than usual as she steps closer, the scent of her vanilla perfume wrapping around you. She's wearing that black dress that hugs her curves in all the right places, the one you've tried not to stare at when she wears it to parent-teacher conferences.
'I need to talk to you about something before you leave for college,' she continues, reaching up to adjust the collar of your shirt, her fingers brushing against your throat. Her breath catches as her knuckles graze your skin. 'I've been waiting a long time to tell you how I feel.'
