The Restoration

This is the second and final chapter of The Restoration. I owe a great debt of gratitude to Ravenna933, my editor, who was as helpful with this story as she has been since we started working together many stories ago. I also owe thanks to SpotintheSand for pointing out a plot hole which I'd missed in my first draft. I have greatly enjoyed and admired his work over the years, and I highly recommend checking it out if you haven't done so. I also need to thank my other two beta readers, each of whom contributed valuable feedback.

I awoke the next morning with a slight headache and a bad case of dry mouth from the wine I'd drunk the previous night. It had clearly turned colder in the night, and I could hear wind howling outside the cabin. I looked sleepily over at my wife Victoria, still fast asleep beside me, and smiled. Last night had been the hottest sex we'd had in years. Breaking out of our usual routine had felt amazing, but I was still feeling a little unsettled by her role-playing a woman who at present was asleep in the other room, and even more so by how tempted I'd been to sleep with the real woman next door rather than just role-playing. But I put it out of my mind for the time being. I was still determined to get a little skiing in today before driving home, so I checked my watch and confirmed what my internal clock already knew -- it was time to get up.

I headed out to the bathroom, wearing only my boxers, where I relieved the pressure on my bladder and drank two big glasses of water. As I exited the bathroom, Ana appeared, dressed in another loose-fitting tank top and flannel pyjama bottoms. She looked slightly unsteady on her feet, and I left the bathroom momentarily to let her use the toilet. She opened the door for me a moment later, and I saw her drinking a huge glass of water as she leaned on the counter for support, rubbing her temple with her free hand. I watched her eyes trace my bare torso up and down with undisguised admiration.

"I haven't gotten hammered in so long," she croaked. "This hangover is totally worth it."

"I had fun, too."

She raised her eyebrow. "So I heard. It was really hot hearing you guys going at it last night."

"It was hot hearing you going at it last night, too," I countered, looking her right in the eye.

Ana blushed. "You could hear me?"

I nodded as Ana turned an even deeper shade of red.

"Whatever," she finally decided. "I'm not ashamed. You already know I've got needs that aren't being satisfied."

"Clearly, if you had to bring your vibrator along on a

two-night vacation.

"

Ana buried her head in her hands. "This would be a lot less embarrassing if I had a guy here with me."

"I'm just teasing. I'm happy to hear your libido's come back. It's another good sign that you're getting closer to being ready to move on." I wanted to let her off the hook. "I've never seen you acting like this before, but I really like this side of you. I don't think you could have had a night like this even a couple of months ago."

Ana paused thoughtfully for a moment. "Yeah, I think you're right. I wouldn't have said so even a couple of days ago, but you're right. Maybe I am ready to move on. My body's obviously ready to have sex again. And emotionally, I feel like I'm mostly back to my old self, finally."

I pulled her in, hugging her. "I'm happy for you."

"I couldn't have done it without you," she said seriously. "You've been such a positive influence in my life."

"Thanks," I said. "I think you could have managed it, though. You're a strong-ass woman."

"Maybe," she allowed.

"Are you going to be up for more skiing before we have to head back?" I asked.

"I think so," she answered. "I'll definitely need an hour or two this morning to recover, but it would be a shame to come all this way and only get one day in."

"Good, me too," I agreed. "Victoria drank more than either of us last night, so I don't know if she'll be up for it, but we should wait for her to get up and ask her."

"Sure thing. I'll probably go back to bed. I don't need any more sleep, but it'll be easier to stay quiet in there."

"Would you like some company?" I asked.

She smiled. "I'd love some."

We turned for Ana's bedroom, and suddenly she stopped with a start, pulling the door closed in front of us. "I need a second. Let me..."

I eyed her quizzically as she trailed off.

"I don't have any modesty left with you, so I'm not going to lie," she finally said breezily. "I'm pretty my vibrator's still lying wherever it landed last night. I just want to put it away."

"No worries."

I let her go back to her room momentarily, then she opened the door and let me in. The room wasn't unfamiliar, as Victoria and I had slept in there many times over the years, but I was still taken in by Ana's things lying around, particularly the black bikini from last night hanging up to dry.

I climbed into Ana's bed as she wrapped herself around me and pulled up the covers. We didn't speak, we just lay there, with Ana playing gently with my chest hair and gazing at me contentedly. I felt very close to her.

I must have fallen asleep at some point, because I came to later in the morning with Ana still clinging tightly to me, snoring quietly. I took a moment to admire her sleeping peacefully. She was so beautiful. I brushed a stray strand of black hair out of her face. As I lay there, I suddenly became conscious of the feeling of her skin against mine beneath the covers, and then further recognition that it could only be a bare boob pressed into my chest. I lifted the blanket to peek, and sure enough, Ana's right breast had escaped her loose tank top's arm hole and was pressing pleasantly into my rib cage. I took a moment to stare in admiration at the dark nipple crowning her breast, then I lowered the blankets back down.

As I lay there further, I gradually started hardening in my boxers despite my best efforts.

Uh-oh

, I thought. I knew my tight boxer shorts left me nowhere for me to hide if I got a boner and Ana woke up.

I would have guessed that Victoria's best efforts last night would have worn me out, and in my thirties I was no longer quite as able to recharge as quickly as a decade earlier, but the novelty of a new partner after so many years with the same woman was overwhelming me. Within a minute I was fully, almost painfully hard. I was determined not to jerk off with Ana sleeping on my arm, so I just lay there, both enjoying and being mildly frustrated with the gorgeous sleeping woman's naked breast pressed into me.

I lay there for about ten minutes, willing my erection to die down, which it refused to do. My horniness was becoming unbearable, and I finally gave up, starting to stroke myself gently, but not with intent. I couldn't risk scaring Ana away if she noticed. I focused on Ana's breast again, and a surge of precum came out of me. I rubbed it around my head, feeling as aroused as I could remember.

Suddenly, I felt her stir beside me and inhale deeply.

Shit.

I quickly yanked my hand away as I turned to face her and saw her eyes open. Her gaze was full of affection.

"This is really nice," she said sleepily. "I haven't slept in a man's arms in ages."

She stretched, her legs crossing over and across my body, and she clearly noticed the hard rod jutting out of me, rubbing it experimentally with her knee. "Oh. Hello." She grinned. "Is that because of me?"

I blushed, embarrassed. "Well, that and the skin-on-skin."

Ana suddenly realized her boob was hanging out, and she quickly tucked it back into her top under the blankets. "Sorry. They have a mind of their own sometime when I'm sleeping."

"Don't ever apologize for that. It's not your fault, and I'm not going to pretend I didn't enjoy it."

"I'm sure you did," she said knowingly.

"Besides, all guys get morning wood."

She nodded. "I remember. I always liked waking up with Graham spooning me. It turned me on so much when I could feel his cock pressed into my back or my ass. Morning was always my favourite time to have sex. It was a really nice way to start the day." She rolled over, facing away from me, pressing her ass into my hip.

Is that an invitation?

I wondered.

I adjusted my erection so it was standing up under my waistband.

Here goes nothing

, I thought, and I pressed my body closer to hers. My cock made contact with the small of her back.

Ana sighed softly. "Yep. I missed this a lot."

Tentatively, I reached my arm around her, and she pulled it into her chest, placing my hand over her top but between her breasts. She held my left hand in such a way that I was now cupping her left breast, and I could feel her nipple rapidly hardening under my palm. I realized her hips had just barely, almost imperceptibly, started rocking against me as she lined up the underside of my cock with her ass crack. Another soft sigh escaped her, this one sounding far more intensely sexual than relaxed.

I was torn, between feeling very turned on and feeling on the verge of panic that Victoria would walk in. If Ana and I weren't over the line yet, we were rapidly heading in that direction. Ana softly moaned again, as if to underline how rapidly we were both losing control. I started gently thrusting back into her, matching her rhythm as she started rocking against me with more intent.

I nibbled her earlobe and kissed her neck as her moans gradually grew in intensity. Suddenly, her hand that was still grasping mine to her chest moved first to the loose arm hole of her tank top, then she slid my free hand under it. I touched her bare breast for the first time, soft and warm, gently tweaking her nipple as she moaned a little louder. I felt her body shiver with pleasure.

Just then, I heard footsteps heading for the bathroom in a hurry. Ana and I instinctively separated, as if jolted from a mutual trance, and then I heard Victoria throwing up.

I got up, heading for the bathroom and my wife, though I did notice Ana's eyes thirstily locked onto the massive bulge in my boxers as I left her room. Victoria was sitting on the floor of the bathroom, naked, looking like death warmed over. I poured her a glass of water and handed it to her as my erection finally, mercifully started dying down.

"I drank too much," Victoria began, stating the obvious. She clearly hadn't noticed my boner.

"I think you polished off most of the second bottle on your own last night," I agreed. "How are you feeling?"

"Awful." She coughed. "Are you going skiing again today?"

"If Ana wants to, and if you're okay without us here, then yes. I'm not going by myself."

"I'll be fine," Victoria responded. "I just want to go back to bed and sleep for a while longer. You guys can go."

I helped my wife back to bed, rubbing her back and comforting her as she fell back asleep. Once she was finally sleeping, I put a shirt on and headed out into the kitchen, where Ana had made coffee.

"Up for skiing today?" I asked innocently.

"Love to."

After we showered -- separately -- we went for a greasy breakfast at a local diner before going back to the mountain. Mont Tremblant was a lot colder today, with a bitter north wind whipping around, and the hill was mercifully empty as a result. We were back to our usual selves on the mountain, keeping up a steady conversation without much flirting, and both the night before and our earlier moment in bed remained unspoken between us. Ana was a trooper, but it was a cold, windy day, and we only made it to about 2:00 PM before we'd had enough and headed back to the cabin.

I found Victoria feeling much better, curled up on the couch with a book. She had a fire roaring in the fireplace, and she had already gotten a head start on packing the car. Within the hour we were heading back to Ontario with a minimum of conversation. It didn't feel as awkward as I'd feared, mostly because both the girls slept for most of the ride home. I was left alone with my thoughts, still feeling in turmoil about everything, and seriously hoping that I'd be able to keep a lid on my libido the next time Ana tried to cuddle with me.

It felt like we had come very close to crossing a line that weekend, mentally if not physically, and I wasn't sure what I wanted to come next. I believed that I would easily have been able to remain faithful to Victoria if I knew that she wanted me to remain faithful. In all the years we'd been together, monogamy had seemed like an obvious, if unspoken, requirement of being married. I'd never felt tempted to stray before, nor had I had an opportunity.

But Victoria's role-playing last night was really messing with me, and after this weekend, I could no longer pretend not to notice that I liked Ana, and she clearly liked me. I'd kept my feelings safely buried until that weekend, but my wife had been responsible for taking the lead in knocking down whatever barriers had been keeping us apart. But I couldn't deny it now, nor could I deny noticing the way Ana had been looking at me.

I told myself that the moment in bed the next morning wouldn't have happened without Victoria encouraging me the night before, and I tried hard to believe myself. But I was scared to see Ana again, let alone to cuddle her. I'd never felt that kind of desire for another woman before, at least not for a woman that would have been an option to sleep with.

A couple of weeks passed. Carpenters often take the winter seasons off, given that so much of our work is outside, and I was used to a slower pace of life in the snowy season. Truthfully, though, I was also glad of the break because I wasn't wanting to see Ana if I didn't have to. She didn't seem to mind, and I think that after months of hard work, she was ready for a break, too. I saw her car occasionally leaving and returning her house, but we didn't speak, and I texted her only when I had a reason to.

Things with Victoria remained normal, though with tax season approaching, she was working a lot of overtime. I had decided not to mention what had happened with Ana the morning after if I didn't have to, but I still wanted to talk to my wife about the night before, so one evening as we were sitting together, reading, I finally worked up the courage to approach her about it.

"Can we talk about the weekend in Quebec?" I asked.

Victoria looked up from her book. "What is there to talk about?"

"You said some things that..."

"Leave it in Quebec, Patrick," Victoria interrupted, sharply.

I was taken aback. "But..."

"What happened between us and Ana, happened. It was hot. But it was a one-time thing. Do we need to talk about it any more than that?"

I regarded my wife's face, icy and hostile in a way I hadn't ever seen before. It startled me. "No. I'm good. I had fun, too."

"Good."

I returned to my book, thinking. I'd never managed to keep secrets from Victoria, and having one now felt strange to me, but she hadn't ever had a problem keeping some of her innermost thoughts from me every now and then. I'd always liked that she had a bit of an air of mystery about her, but I'd never seen her wall up and shut me down as hard as she just had. I couldn't tell if she was embarrassed about it or if there was something else, but not knowing why she'd seemingly been pushing Ana and I together was still eating at me. I hated that I couldn't talk to her about it.

Victoria and I had had sex many times listening to Katherine screaming in the next room in that cabin, and I knew we both got off on hearing them and performing for them. But I'd never thought about Katherine in that way, and she wasn't my type even if I had allowed myself to think about it. I certainly hadn't ever been encouraged to pretend I was fucking her.

The next month went by, and things remained otherwise normal with Victoria. I didn't bring it up again, and apart from her working a lot and being tired and stressed in the evenings, she was no different from usual. Mostly I just jerked off a lot thinking about Ana and dreaming about what would have happened if we'd been allowed to continue.

I continued to stay away from Ana, though we texted just enough that I knew things weren't weird with her. We'd chat if we were out shovelling our driveways at the same time, but it was more distant than it had been before. In February, Victoria and I sent her flowers on the anniversary of Graham's passing, and she sent back a heartfelt thank-you note.

Finally, March came, the snow began to melt, and I started mentally gearing up for the construction season ahead. I had to give my Dad an answer on whether he was going to bring me back this year or hire someone else. I really wanted to go back to work with Ana, but I still wasn't sure if things were okay with my wife. I wasn't comfortable spending five days a week alone with Ana without at least having had the chance to talk it over with Victoria.

One evening, Victoria had drawn herself a bath, so I decided to corner her and see if I could get things straightened out while she was trapped in one place, so to speak. I was determined that we were going to finally talk about what had happened back in January.

I entered the bathroom, feeling the steam and heat from the room on my face. Victoria had the shower curtain closed, and I kept it closed, feeling like it might be easier if we couldn't see each other.

"I need to talk to you," I began.

"That's never a good sign," she called back nonchalantly.

"I'm serious," I said, sitting down on the bathroom counter. "You reacted badly when I brought this up back in January, but construction season is coming again, and I need to know if you're okay with my going back to working with Ana."

"Of course, I am," Victoria said, surprised. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well..." I trailed off. "We never talked about what happened back at Mont Tremblant."

"We never had a big involved conversation about you seeing Katherine's tits every year, either," Victoria shot back, a sudden edge in her voice. "Why should this be any different?"

"We went a lot farther with Ana than we did with Steve and Katherine, and besides, you never tried to convince me to fuck Katherine, either," I said, trying to remain calm.

"I never did that with Ana," she snarled. "Why, do you want to fuck her?"

"No!" I said sharply.

"You really don't want to fuck your beautiful neighbour, whom you spend forty hours a week with, clearly is into you, and whom you cuddle with on a regular basis?" Victoria spat.

"She's a good friend, and a neighbour, and I love helping her out, and yes, she's beautiful, but I'm married to you. I love you. You satisfy me. I don't need anyone else. I'd never cheat on you."

"The question was, 'Do you want to fuck her'. Yes or no?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm married to you, of course." I wasn't sure what she was getting at.

"I wasn't asking whether or not it was allowed. I was asking if you wanted to."

"Why are you asking me this?" I asked, worried.

There was a long silence from the bath. I could hear Victoria's breathing had become shallower, and I waited for a response for a few moments.

"Honey, are you okay?" I asked.

There was no response, so I pulled back the curtain. Victoria was laying in the bath, crying. Her right hand was a blur between her open legs, frantically frigging her clit.

"What are you doing?" I asked, confused.

"I don't know," she squealed. "What the hell is wrong with me? Why am I so turned on right now?"

"Do you want privacy? I can leave."

"Hold me," she begged.

I wrapped my arms around her, soaking my shirt in the process, as she rubbed herself senseless. I could feel the tension in her arm, rubbing herself as fast and hard as she was capable. She was melting down and desperate to cum. Within a minute, she moaned, and I felt her starting to shake as she clenched her legs around her hand, cumming with nuclear force. I then felt her body relax as she slumped down in the tub.