I needed to confide in someone, so I called on an old family friend to whom I had sometimes turned as a teenager. She now lived in New Hampshire. I hadn’t seen her in years, but we still spoke a few times a year by phone. I asked if she would be my confessor. She agreed.
In my teens and early twenties, I had always been frisky. I found that I enjoyed not only the sex, but also the thrill of the chase. I vowed to put all that behind me when, at 25, I married my husband. We had our first child, Jason, a few years later. Motherhood took its toll, however, and I found as I approached 28 years of age that I was turning fewer heads.
Not that I am ugly: I’m a natural blond, with long legs on a 5’9” frame. Since I’m still breastfeeding Jason, my breasts are large with milk and have soft protruding nipples. I have worked hard to get my figure back. My butt is really starting to tighten up, and my waist is much slimmer than it was, but I am still carrying around a few extra pounds, and I don’t feel great about that.
My husband and I had argued all last spring about when we would have our next child. I wanted to do it right away, before I got too much older, and he wanted to wait a few years. Well, since I was the one who would have to carry another child to term, I felt I should decide when to get pregnant. Without telling him, I stopped taking my birth control pills.
As spring gave way to summer, our arguments grew. When a couple of my old university friends asked me to go out with them, I readily agreed, feeling I needed a break. The Hayloft, a coffeehouse, was located on the university campus. It had once been one of my favorite hangouts.
Years ago, I would have spent hours dressing to kill before going out. My choice in clothes was now more ‘practical’. It was hot that night so I wore an old pair of runners, loose track pants and an oversized sweater. I was still breastfeeding Jason and my nipples were tender, so I went braless. In the mirror, I saw someone who looked dull, lifeless. If my intention had been to attract no attention to myself, I had succeeded.
A popular local artist was playing the Hayloft, so the place was packed. We had to share our table with a group of young guys. At first they were shy, but eventually they began flirting with us. Being older and married, we were all flattered by the attention and happy to play along.
One of my friends, Helen, was soon lost in conversation with a guy called Mike. Sheila, ever bold, had made friends with a fellow called Tony. Halfway through the first set, I noticed his hand had found its way to her knee. By the second set, it had moved to mid-thigh. Although Sheila always protested her innocence, I am sure it had climbed higher by night’s end.
I had paired up with a guy named Bob. I discovered that he was majoring in 19th century English literature, just like I had done years earlier. Between sets, we talked about life in a more romantic, chivalrous era. It had been a long time since I had spoken of such things, and it felt great to have a handsome young man pay such close attention to an old hag like me.
The tease in me came out to play that night. As we talked I would look deep into his eyes. Then, when I wanted to emphasize a point, I would touch him with my fingertips: the first time I did this, he jumped as if he’d been electrocuted. I would also make eye contact when he spoke to me and occasionally, to let him know that his words had reached me, I would touch him: sometimes on the hand, sometimes on the arm, and once on the knee. I enjoyed watching him react. I had forgotten what it felt like to control a man with a few simple touches. They really are primitive creatures.
I suppose I also complained to him about being married and being a mother: the unending obligations, the ever-present expectations. I remember advising him to seize the moment, to live life for all it is worth. Asking what counsel he might have for an old, married woman like me, he took my hand in his, looked into my eyes, and said that I should follow my own advice.
As midnight approach, I realized that my son Jason had been in bed for a long while, and that my husband was probably asleep too. Feeling guilt familiar to wives and mothers through the ages, I told Bob that I had to leave soon. He offered to walk me to my car, some distance away. We walked along a path overlooking the river that runs beside the campus. Scattered clouds hung in the night sky. The moon was full. The air was warm.
After the din of the coffeehouse, the tranquility was overwhelming. Bob asked if I wanted to climb down the bank and walk on the grass by the river’s edge, where it was cooler. I had always enjoyed the wildness of the river’s edge more than the manicured path, so I agreed.
As we climbed down the rocky embankment, he took my hand to steady me. Chivalrous, I thought, remembering our earlier conversation. Halfway down, the gravel gave way beneath my feet and I lost my balance. Bob was there to catch me. We began to make our way along the river’s edge. The dew glistened in the moonlight. It was beautiful, but it also made the footing treacherous. I slipped again. Bob offered me his hand. This time I kept hold of it hand as we walked along.
It had been years since I had walked hand in hand, alone with a man, in the moonlight. We came to a rock outcropping which overlooked the river, accessible through a narrow path. I had often gone there in years past. Wanting to see if it was still as I remembered it, I led him forward. We emerged into a small clearing. There was a picnic table off to the right.