We had no idea where this might lead although we both felt we were on a slippery slope. Yet it was a slippery slope of our own making and we both knew the next step would place us on the cusp of the slide, the point of no return. Hand in hand we took one more step.
Who are we? We are two humans on a path to one of two destinations. One destination means our union, the other our destruction. There is a third possibility of union then destruction because of our union. We are not blind to the outcomes and take our path with complete resignation.
We stare at the horizon trying to glimpse what we can't see over the horizon. With no further delay, we leapt onto the slippery slope. We sighed in unison as we felt our bodies mold to the other. We became one body in an instant of desire, lust, and passion. We felt our bodies reaching our mutual release until we cried out in one voice. We had more love to make before we reached complete satisfaction.
Who gave whom more satisfaction? Were we in some kind of contest? Our bodies gyrated in pleasure, each touch releasing energy driving us toward a new goal. We were a tangle of legs and arms trying draw us more tightly together. We reached a new peak and slid more deeply down our slippery slope.
Onward our desire drove us. Where were we getting the fuel for our drive, how much longer will the fuel last, when will we reach the next stop? The next stop came sooner than we expected propelled by a third mutual release. We reached the junction of gone too far and a long way to go.
I wish foresight were as clear as hindsight.
**********
I watched as my long time neighbors loaded a moving van with the few things they decided to keep after selling off their property and deciding to retire. I knew I would miss our over the fence talks. I was in envy that they were off on an adventure that I still only dreamed of or dreamt for. A final good bye and they were off.
The next couple months saw their empty house a flurry of activity. Trades people filed in and out as extensive remodeling transformed their mid seventies ranch into something more modern and open. I still hadn't met the new owners.
My home is a cookie cutter ranch that the 70s fell in love with. Although I've updated and modernized, it is still a cookie cutter ranch. I guess, I'm kind of cookie cutter also.
I have a traditional job and make traditional money. Fortunately, I fell into an inheritance a few years ago that I reinvested in growth markets and have a nice bundle set aside for my retirement to come -- in maybe 15 years. In the mean time, I live a simple single life.
I was married once. I learned from that experience and have avoided love interests ever since. Listen, I do get out and I do dip my wick regularly with no strings attached. I do have one or two friends with benefits but only when it is safe for both of us. I prefer being discreet for myself and for my lady friends.
In most every way, I am an average almost 50-year-old male in fair shape, a little girth where my waist used to be. I'm just over six feet tall with light brown hair that gets much lighter in the summer sun. My name is Bert. No Bert and Ernie jokes, I don't go that way.
**********
The contractor doing all the reno work saw me outside a couple days ago and told me my new neighbor would move in in less than a week. Throughout the reno, he let me see some of the progress. The new neighbor decorated and furnished with all new furniture in a very stylish pallet of color and accents.
The contractor said he didn't know the new owner receiving instructions by email through a local property manager. I was on my own to make friends with whoever moved in.
As Friday rolled around, my new neighbor pulled into the drive in the evening after working hours. I like sitting on my porch evenings a sipping on a beer, maybe listening to some jazz and reading the paper or a book. I immediately noticed the new car, showroom new, pull up.
There was a single person behind the wheel and didn't appear anyone else. I made a point to wave and smile as I rose from my lounge chair and saunter toward the new neighbor.
A very attractive woman in her late twenties or early thirties smiled back and waved. Her car wasn't packed for moving but since the reno and all new furnishings, it made since she only had her clothes packed.
"Hi, I'm Bert, next door. You are my new neighbor?"
"I wasn't expecting a welcoming committee and I am glad to see I get one. I'm Sara your new neighbor." She exited her car and extended a hand. I accepted with enthusiasm. "Does the welcoming committee also help with a few bags?"
"Very pleased to meet you Sara." I wanted to jump right into questions about husbands and children and noticed a ring less finger on the left hand. "Yes, a hand with bags is highly likely and an invitation to come over for a beer and snacks later if you like."
"After three days behind the wheel driving from northern Maine, I would not like a beer and snacks, I'd love it."
We gathered her bags for two trips in, out, and back in. I explained how her contractor let me see some of the work in progress and how well it turned out. "I need your skills to make my place look better. I think it wreaks of single man."
Sara picked up on the single man with her reply, "Single, oh my lucky day. Not even in my house thirty minutes and I learn I have a single neighbor. How will he take to having a single younger woman living next door?"
"How about that beer, or maybe wine if you prefer?"
"Hell, yes! And, beer is fine."
We walked next door where Sara took a seat while I got a couple cold beers and more snacks. "I brew my own beer and it is a bit strong, close to 15 percent. It might hit you hard after a long drive."
"Single neighbor, brews his own beer, how lucky can a girl get."
Oh how much I wanted to ask, "How lucky do you want to get?" I didn't step into that breech saying only how lucky I was to discover a new single neighbor.
"Bert, you really are a gentleman. I expected a more forward reply."
"Okay, got me, I did think it." The fact was, Sara was a very attractive woman who kept herself looking fit and attractive.
"Good to know your eye sight is fine. This beer is phenomenal! And, thank you for not saying what you were thinking. It is not easy being 31 and single."
"Ain't real easy being 50 and single. If you'll allow one indiscretion, you do add an attractive feature to the neighborhood."
"One indiscretion allowed and one or two more occasionally will go a long way."
Sara stayed for two beers before saying she needed to get home to unpack and wash the road grime away. "Let me walk you home, Sara."
When we reached her door, I said my good bye with another welcome to the neighborhood. Sara smiled, gave me something of an unchaste hug and a light kiss on the lips.
"Can we talk more tomorrow, Bert? You've made me feel very welcome and comfortable."
"With pleasure, Sara. I'll have coffee ready anytime after 8:00. I do watch some of the renovation programs on Saturday mornings, always looking for ideas."
"Coffee at eight it is. See you tomorrow."
**********
The rest of the evening passed quickly. I did some cleaning and freshening the living room and kitchen. The main bathroom needed sprucing up since it rarely gets used. I even spent extra time running the vacuum over the carpets. I realized that I didn't put this much effort into cleaning up for other dates.
Saturday morning arrived and my usual unshaven face sparkled with a clean shave. I showered and dressed in my finest Saturday shorts and knit shirt. I guess I wanted to make a good second first impression.
The slider off the kitchen was open although I expected Sara at the front door. When I heard someone walking up the steps to the deck, I turned to see Sara wearing something similar to me. That frightened me; we couldn't already be mind syncing.
"I hope you don't mind me using the back door. Friends should be informal. I bet you had some good tongue wags over the fence with your old neighbor."
"That we did but I sense many more tongue wags to come." Wait a minute, was that a sexual innuendo? "Coffee is ready, kitchen or deck?"
"Fresh air and morning sun sounds good with hot coffee and a warm new friend." Sara's smile was more sunshine than a universe of suns could produce and I knew Sara was going to be a very welcome neighbor.
"Bert, I'm being forward but I want to know, why is a nice guy like you single? I feel comfortable with you already and can't believe my luck in neighbors. You're not bad to look at either."
"Well, now, don't I feel all a blush?" Truth was, I was blushing and Sara saw it.
"You are blushing, Bert. Now I'm feeling like a nervous school girl." Sara sat softly on the chase lounge and took her coffee.
"If it makes you feel better, I feel like a nervous school boy with the queen of the prom."
"Bert, I was the prom queen." Sara bowed her head with a coy smile on her lips.
"I bet you were radiant in your prom dress and the prettiest bell at the ball." Another innuendo?
"Are you going to answer me, Bert?"
How much does Sara need to know or want to know my mind chased around finding an answer. "I was not single always. There was a wife at one time; however, things didn't end the way they started. So, for about 15 years, I have stayed single. Date occasionally, but for the most part I am single and enjoying myself. It wasn't a pretty divorce."
Sara listened as my words touched her in some way. She sipped on her coffee as if digesting my first personal revelation.
"Your turn, Sara. Why is an attractive woman, young and fit living alone?"
A sad look came to Sara's face and she seemed to slump on the lounger, "The trophy lost its luster." I noted a tear well up in her eye. "The house next door is my entry to a new life."
