Wren reached the front door of Cara’s house holding the older blue-haired woman over his shoulder. He was still surprised that Diana’s affection had gone over 50 and Priya too, apparently even after all of this time.

’Honestly, what else can I say?’ Wren thought, feeling a little dizzy himself. He climbed up the front steps and knocked on the door, letting out a sigh as he adjusted his grip.

His palm sank into her ass through her trousers.

The flesh was soft, meaty and yielding beneath his fingers. He had to hold himself back... he couldn’t feel up a woman’s ass while she was knocked out. That would be taking advantage of her, and he wasn’t that kind of person.

The door opened shortly after and Ryan stood in the doorway, wearing a casual singlet and red shorts covered in banana designs.

He had a smile on his face.

"Welcome back!" Ryan said. "How were the drinks?"

Wren stepped inside.

"They were pretty strong..." Wren said.

The living room opened up before him. On one of the couches sat an older woman holding Olivia.

The little girl was already half-asleep with her head resting against the woman’s shoulder and the older woman looked up at Wren.

"So you’re the Wren my daughter’s husband has been telling me so much about, oh?" the woman said.

Ryan laughed.

"Yes, this is him," Ryan said. "Wren, this is Miralda... Cara’s mother."

"Nice to meet you, ma’am." Wren said. "I hope you’re having a wonderful evening."

Miralda smiled.

"What a kind-hearted young man you are..." Miralda said.

Ryan’s attention shifted to his wife. Cara’s nose was buried in the crook of Wren’s neck with her breath warm against his skin and Wren thought that he was perhaps going to lash out or something however Ryan just smiled.

"With the way she’s knocked out, she must have drunk a lot, right?" Ryan asked.

"Yes she did..." Wren confirmed. "She wanted to protect her title as the best drinker."

Ryan laughed.

"That’s just like her." Ryan said, shaking his head. "Always has to win at everything."

He gestured toward the staircase.

"You should go upstairs," Ryan said. "The first room on the right is ours. You can just set her on the bed."

"Got it..." Wren said.

He made his way to the stairs and climbed up. At the top, he found the first door on the right and pushed it open with his foot.

The master bedroom was spacious.

A large bed dominated the center with dark blue sheets and a wooden dresser stood against one wall, its surface covered with framed photographs.

Wren’s eyes lingered on the photos as he crossed to the bed. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Most of them showed Ryan and Cara together.

Ryan in his mechanic’s coveralls, grinning at the camera. Cara laughing with her blue hair catching sunlight.

A wedding photo with both of them happy and family photos with Olivia as a baby, then as a toddler.

The furniture was mismatched but comfortable with a rocking chair in the corner. There are two nightstands... one had Ryan’s cluttered with car magazines and tools and the second was Cara’s neat one with a lamp and a half-empty glass of water.

Wren carefully lowered Cara onto the bed and she made a small sound of protest with her fingers gripping his wrist.

"We still have to drink..." Cara mumbled, clearly dreaming about the contest and he chuckled.

Just then...

[Limited Time Mission has started...]

[Kiss Cara on the forehead and tell her goodnight]

[Time Limit: 30 seconds]

[Reward: 3000 Credits]

Usually Wren would complain, but the timer was ticking and he wasn’t ashamed. Wren bent down and his lips pressed against Cara’s forehead in a short kiss.

"Goodnight..." Wren whispered near her ear.

Cara’s grip on his wrist loosened immediately and a small content smile curved across her face as she settled deeper into the mattress with her body relaxing completely.

[Mission Complete!]

[3000 Credits have been deposited into your System Balance!]

Wren straightened up, took one last look at the sleeping woman and quietly left the room. He pulled the door closed behind him with a soft click then made his way back downstairs.

Ryan was still in the living room, now sitting on the couch next to Miralda and gently stroking Olivia’s hair as the little girl dozed.

"All set?" Ryan asked quietly.

"Yeah, she’s out for the count..." Wren confirmed. "She’ll probably have a killer hangover tomorrow."

Ryan grinned.

"She always does. Thanks for getting her home safe, Wren. I appreciate it."

"No problem..." Wren said though he wondered where Cara’s father was, regardles he said his goodbyes to Ryan and Miralda, then headed out into the night.

...

"I’m home..." Wren called out as he opened the front door to Diana’s house.

The hallway light was on, casting warm yellow illumination across the polished floors.

Diana appeared almost immediately since she must have been waiting right there near the entrance.

Her dark chestnut hair had been freshly combed and was shining under the light, falling in soft waves around her shoulders.

She’d changed clothes since this evening, now wearing a different dress. This one was a soft cream color that hugged her curves in a way that was probably unintentional but definitely noticeable.

"You’re pretty late..." Diana said with a concerned face. "I was about to lock the door."

Wren rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, offering an apologetic smile.

"Sorry for being late," Wren said. "I lost track of time at the club."

Diana’s expression softened immediately. The worry lines around her eyes eased, and her lips curved into a small, forgiving smile.

"I-I forgive you..." Diana said, a slight stutter catching on the first word. Her cheeks flushed pink, visible even in the dim hallway light. "Just... maybe call me next time? So I don’t worry?"

"Thanks..." Wren said, already moving past her toward the staircase. "I need to go upstairs to my room. It’s been a long night."

Diana nodded, but her eyes followed him as he walked past and she could still smell his cologne on him making her sigh in relief.

Wren disappeared up the stairs with his footsteps fading as he reached the second floor.

Diana turned back to the front door.

Her hands trembled slightly as she reached for the deadbolt, turning it with a metallic click that echoed in the quiet house.

She secured the chain lock too, going through the motions of her nightly routine on autopilot while her mind was not at ease.

She walked to the kitchen moving through each room on the first floor, checking windows and locking them one by one.

The familiar actions helped ground her and gave her something to focus on besides the thoughts spiraling through her head, Zoe was still out tonight after all,

’Maybe if I act like I care less, she’ll come back home on her own...’ Diana thought, though the logic felt shaky even to her. Reverse psychology or just giving up? She wasn’t sure anymore.

For now, she had more important things to focus on.

’I need to confront him,’ Diana thought as she locked the final kitchen window and checked it twice to make sure it was secure.

She needed to confront Wren about what she’d seen this afternoon... what she’d witnessed while standing frozen in the bathroom doorway... watching him.

Her face burned at the memory with heat flooding her cheeks.

She had been watching him stroke himself while holding her panties while groaning out her name.

’Is he... stressed down there?’ Diana thought. ’Is there any way I could help him without it affecting our relationship as stepmother and stepson?’

The thought made her stomach flip with a confusing mixture of anxiety then Diana slapped her own cheeks with both hands with the sharp sting bringing her back to reality with a jolt.

’What the hell are you thinking?’ she scolded herself mentally for the umpteenth time today but the thoughts wouldn’t stop circling back.

He’d been there for her today... when she’d broken down crying about Zoe, about her failed marriage, about feeling like she was losing control of everything in her life... Wren had stood there and listened.

He’d held her through it, He’d hugged her and let her cry into his chest without judgment... What kind of stepmo— no, what kind of person would she be if she wouldn’t help him with his own problems too?

Even if those problems were... physical in nature.

Diana took a deep breath and slapped her cheeks again harder this time as the sound echoed in the empty kitchen like a gunshot.

"I’m ready," Diana whispered to herself. "I can do this. It’s just a conversation. Adults have conversations about difficult topics all the time."

She walked toward the staircase with each step feeling heavier than the last.

Her heart hammered against her ribs so hard she could feel it in her throat and hear it pounding in her ears.

By the time she reached the top of the stairs and stood outside Wren’s bedroom door, her palms were slick with nervous sweat.

She raised her hand, hesitated for just a moment, then knocked.

"Diana?" Wren’s voice came from inside sounding surprised. "Why are you here?"

Diana opened the door before she could lose her nerve with her prepared speech ready to tumble out.

"I want to talk to you," Diana said immediately then she saw him.

Wren was in the middle of taking off his tanktop.

The black fabric was caught halfway up his torso, revealing the defined lines of his abs and the V-cut of his hips where they disappeared into his trousers.

His skin was slightly flushed from the alcohol and the night’s activities and there was a light sheen that made his muscles catch the lamplight.

Diana’s brain completely short-circuited and she slammed the door shut.

...

A few minutes later, Diana sat down next to Wren on his bed. He was no longer half naked but this time he was wearing a shirt and shorts now.

"So Diana... what did you want to talk about?" Wren asked, he was interested in what was so important that she had to enter his room at this time to tell him about it.

"I– I–" Diana swallowed and clutched the bedsheets. "I saw you..."

"You saw me?" Wren blinked, when did she see him? See him doing what?

"Yes, I saw you when you were using my panties to masturbate." Diana said and Wren coughed into his hand with a blush on his cheeks, she wasn’t supposed to see that... He was sure she had left.

"You must be mistake–"

"I checked your room while you were gone too." Diana told him, "My panties are under your bed... you didn’t know what to do with them so I’ve put them in the washer."

Wren wanted to pull out his hair, all of this was because he had been shameless enough to do that System Mission on her bed... Now Diana had found out and—

"Wren, I have an important question for you." Diana said refusing to look him in the face and Wren looked the other way shyly too. "Are you... sexually stressed? Or is my presence uncomfortable with you in any way? I can understand that you may not be comfortable suddenly coming to live with a woman."

"No I feel very comfortable around you, it’s just that you’re really attractive and sometimes I don’t know how to handle it." Wren said, there was absolutely nothing that he could say to justify using her panties to get it off on her bed so Wren was simply going to say what was on his mind.

It wasn’t like he could tell her that he did it for a System Mission, she would look at him crazily for it.

Diana let out a sigh and though Wren couldn’t see it, she had a smile on her face.

"Wren... look at me." Diana said while reaching out and placing a hand on his shoulder. "I’m not mad at you, I’m happy..."

"Happy?" Wren turned to her with wide eyes, people got happy over stuff like this?

"Yes, I’m happy you find me attractive." She said while looking down at the crotch area of his shorts. "I–If you want me to... I can help you satisfy it but just this once."

She didn’t want Wren to look at her like a whore even though she wanted to see it up close. Wren on the other hand blinked, he couldn’t believe his ears.

A woman was offering to jerk him off? Did he die and go to hell?

[Host~ Stop letting your virginity get into your head and do the needful, remember you have a mission to complete right?]

He blinked, there was that handjob mission and he had been wondering how he would have completed it... now he was going to.

"S-s... sure, you can do it."