The water over the sandbar lapped at my legs just above my ankles. I stood remembering that day not so long after I came to the beach at the start of summer, that day Brenda and I kissed and held each other right here. Now it was the end of summer and tomorrow I would be leaving.
I was wearing the bathing suit she had left behind. I pulled it off in a single motion and stood there with it wadded up in my hands. I held it to my nose and took a deep breath. Her smell was gone, just like she was. I walked further out until the water was up to my shoulders, and then heaved it out further into the water. My chest heaved in huge sob. Tears flowed down my face.
"Fuck me, it was only a fling," I screamed over the roar of the surf, "she was just here a few fucking days!" I tried to comfort myself by wrapping my arms around me as I shook from the uncontrollable sobbing. I stood in one place for the longest time, unable to pull myself together, unable to stop crying, unable to stop the huge sobs. I could no longer see Brenda's bathing suit floating on the water, the last piece of her was now gone. I turned and started to walk back to the shore.
In the edge of the surf, I kicked the water.
"You okay?"
I looked up and it was the guy with the 'Fish or Die' hat, the first person I'd seen at the start of summer. I was barely covered then, my blouse unbuttoned. Now I was standing in front of him with no way to hide my nakedness. He was wiping his face with a bandana, the front of his shirt was dripping wet; I assume from the water that I'd just kicked.
"I guess. No not really." Another big sob overtook me and my body visibly shook.
He put his bucket and pole down and walked towards me, then stood in front of me. His old rough hands with gnarled fingers rested on my shoulders.
"This is about your lady friend from the start of the summer isn't it?"
"Yes. You..."
"I wasn't spying. I just happened to see you two walking on the beach one afternoon. I could tell you both cared for each other. I had a lady friend once. I still remember those times."
"Guess memories are all that I have."
"Enjoy them. Sometimes they are better than the real thing."
Those words rolled around my mind as I looked down. His cock was pressed against his shorts, much like that first time I saw him. He noticed what I was looking at. I could feel his hands grip my shoulders a little tighter for a moment. I don't know what came over me, but my hand brushed against the bulge.
"No. It wouldn't be good for you." He gave me a small peck on the cheek. "You'll find another lovely woman and I'll have a nice memory of you." He walked back, picked up his things, and then continued on down the beach.
I lay in the edge of the surf where I'd just been standing, my arms and legs spread wide. The small waves broke over me; a few broke harder, some just between my thighs. My hand covered my pussy; a finger worked its way inside as my mind drifted with thoughts of the summer.
-
The ink of the Sharpie flowed over the square of the calendar as I made another 'X'. It was my third week here, almost two weeks since Brenda left. I cried as I lifted my hand from the page. It wasn't the first time and surely not the last time I'd cry over her loss. It was strange that she could come into my life for a few of the best days of my life and I would just let her walk away. I knew from the start that she was just a stranger. She had even told me she could only stay a few days. Goddamn, it had been years since I'd had a girlfriend, one that I was really attracted to. This was supposed to be a summer just for myself. What a pickle I'd gotten myself into.
In the refrigerator, all that remained was a single beer. Not even a frozen dinner for tonight. On the counter was an empty bread bag. I pulled my clothes on and then drove to the small grocery store five miles up the road toward the bridge.
It was maybe the third time I'd been there. Everyone that worked there was very friendly, some more than others. I was looking through the apples for just the right four.
"How about this one?"
My hand didn't stop moving until it landed on a hand.
"You have such soft skin," the same voice said.
I left it there as I looked around. It was Susan, the woman that stocked the fruit and vegetable section. She had always talked to me for five or ten minutes each time I'd been there, probably the friendliest woman there. I had thought she might have even watched me from a distance as I shopped.
"Hi Susan, how are you today?"
"Hope you don't mind me saying this, but nicer at the moment."
I looked at her trying to read what she was thinking. I knew what I was thinking. I was trapped in a moment of deep sadness and I wanted to feel someone lying next to me so very much. That half hour of masturbation this morning didn't do much to take the edge off either. Susan wasn't a knock out, but not bad looking either. Her lying next to me would probably be quite nice.
I rolled my hand over and wrapped my fingers through hers. "Not at all. Would you like..."
"I'd love to. When?"
"Now?"
"I'll meet you at your place in half an hour."
I told her the house number and she wrote it on her arm.
-
With my cutoffs and t-shirt still on, I sat the single bag of groceries on the counter. I put the frozen dinners in the freezer and a new six-pack of beer in the refrigerator. As I removed the top from the former lonely cold bottle of beer, a car pulled into the driveway. I leaned against the doorframe of the front door holding the screen door open with my out stretched arm as Susan got out of the car.
I looked at her differently now, not the woman in the vegetable section of the grocery store, but as someone I was about to make love with, well at least have sex with. I tried to picture her naked in my arms, what she might feel like, and how she would respond to a touch, a kiss, or a nibble. She was probably in her fifties, maybe five or more years older than me. Age had been good to her and she was still slim; at least she wasn't even close to being overweight.
About halfway to the door she called out, "Hey Karen!" It didn't take more than a few more seconds until she was standing directly in front of me, her arms wrapped around me, and pressing her lips against mine. I could feel her tongue forcing its way between my lips. I was so horny I didn't care; this was exactly what I wanted and needed so badly. This was like a drug I needed to take.
My hands held the back of her head, my fingers intertwined in her hair. My tongue welcomed hers; they made love as they rubbed against each other. Our faces parted long enough for her to say, "I wanted you the first time I saw you." I responded, "I need you."
