As Timeless as the Sea

As Timeless as the Sea...

by

Trigudis

This is a follow-up to A Merry Month of May (mature -- 5/15/23)

Dennis

I'm drifting through this merry month of May in a state of near disbelief.

Just a few short weeks ago, my life was so simple, so ordinary. I was a full-time college student living at home, with nary a thing to upset that kind of conventional equilibrium. These days, my life is anything but simple. I'm still living at home, still in college preparing for final exams and also involved romantically with a woman old enough to be my mom. She's beautiful and sexy, she lives nearby, she just lost her husband and she's become dependent on me to help her through her grief. My life has become more complicated than I'd ever imagined; but also more exciting than I'd ever imagined.

So, no complaints. The incredible chemistry between Abbey and me supports the idea that age is just a number. My experience so far has been well worth the hassle of making my parents think I'm somewhere else on weekend nights, when in truth I'm holed up in a hotel with the luscious Abbey Lane, making beautiful love to her, falling asleep next to her and then going out for breakfast.

I'm learning the art of artful dodging, a euphemism for lying. But white lies have their place. Telling my parents and friends about what's going on between Abbey and me would cause more trouble and embarrassment than it's worth. The truth will set you free? In most cases, maybe. However, mine is an exception to that ancient biblical rule.

So, the beat goes on--our beat danced to our own special rhythm. Too bad that our secretive tango might soon come to an abrupt end. Alice and Edward are coming home next week, and Abbey isn't comfortable with the idea of trying to sneak out with me, let alone telling them the truth. 'The future will take care of itself, one way or another,' she had said when we were bedded down in the Hampton Inn. Which way will it go? I'm not sure, but the thought of ending things with Abbey leaves me in a funk.

*****

Abbey

Oh, if there was ever a time when I was so conflicted emotionally, I can't think of one. I'm so looking forward to seeing Alice and Edward, yet sad at the prospect of having to end my affair with Dennis. Should I even call what we have going an affair? An affair sounds like we're doing something illegal or immoral. We're not, but some might think that we're at least stretching the bounds of morality or decency. At the very least, it would make significant others like my kids and Dennis' parents uncomfortable. Dennis might get away with keeping it from his parents, but I doubt I could be that secretive. Like I told him, I don't feel comfortable sneaking around and lying to my kids. And telling them? Oh, gawd, I can see the drama that would ensue. Edward, especially, would feel embarrassed because he and Dennis were once close friends. Not so close since Edward went away to college. But that's another story, one best told by either Edward or Dennis.

Anyway, my kids already suspect that something is up with me. "You sound more upbeat than usual," Alice says on the phone. "The most upbeat I've heard you sound since dad died. Anything going on?"

Part of me would love to tell her, because when your life takes a turn for the better, you want to spread the joy. Instead, I say, "Nothing, honey. Just trying to think positive, to hope for better days ahead."

"Glad to hear it, mom. You're still young, young enough to meet another man, to find happiness again. Last we talked, you mentioned men calling to ask you out. Not to rush things. I know you're still in mourning, as we all are, but have you considered seeing any of these guys?"

"Yes, at some point. I'm just not ready yet. Besides..." I sigh, frustrated that I can't bring myself to tell her about Dennis.

"Besides what, mom?"

"Nothing, honey. Just thinking is all. Can't wait to see you and Edward. I miss you guys."

"Miss you, too, mom. See ya in a week."

If my kids only knew. Well, I guess they never will, not unless Dennis and I agree to reveal what we've been up to, and I don't foresee that happening.

Hours later, Dennis comes over the house--no hotel this time. I tell him about the phone conversation with Alice. He's only nineteen, yet he's sensitive to my frustration over keeping our relationship secret.

"Your call," he says. "You have kids. I'm living at home with my parents. It would be more of a big deal to them than it would be to my mom or dad. Like I said before, they might take it as a joke. Just trying to empathize, putting myself in your kids' place."

I hug him. "Dennis, your empathy is one of the reasons I like you so much. You're willing to see someone else's point of view. Somehow, I doubt those men who've called me for a date can match you when it comes to that." I raise the hem of my "sexy" gold kimono that he loves so much. "Or what you do for me in bed, either."

Hands shoved into the pockets of his white jeans, he gives an aw-shucks kind of shrug. "I care about you, Abbey. You're going through a rough time, and I feel honored that you've chosen me to help you through it." He looks me over, starting from my bare feet. "And speaking of bed, looking at you wearing that makes me want to hop in there with you ASAP."

I embrace him once more, and this time we kiss and hold each other tight enough to where I can feel the bulge in his pants. I swipe my hand over his crotch. "Let's go upstairs, big guy."

While he's undressing, I say, "Sorry to say, this might be our last hurrah for a while."

"Yeah, I know," he says while unsnapping his jeans. "Obviously, it's not something I look forward to. You've rocked my world."

"And you've rocked mine as well, baby, in all the ways it needed to be rocked."

He throws off his shirt, the last of his clothing. "So what do we do, Abbey?" He kisses me, then brushes strands of hair out of my eye.

I reach up and caress his face, now covered by a close-crop beard. "Right now, we don't do anything but enjoy these moments we have together. Come June, we'll see. Don't worry about it. Just do what you've been doing, making love to me, comforting me."

"Sending you to the cosmos."

I chuckle. "You like that line, don't you?"

"I do."

When we slip into bed, he uses his magnificent tongue to give my breasts a thorough going over. Adding to the tongue on boobs action, he slides his erection against my thighs and slips a finger into my wet pussy. Oh, man, does this young guy know how to please or what?! How I'm ever going to endure his absence in my bed for an entire summer, I have no idea. I crave him even as I now have him, body and soul, giving me what I need and giving back to him what he apparently needs as well. And that includes what he's doing now, sliding his manhood into me, then slipping a hand under my butt and lifting it slightly off the mattress for greater penetration.

"To the cosmos," he says.

"Indeed," I respond, too hot to say much else--as if anything needed to be said. Right now, we speak through our bodies, plus sounds that you don't find in dictionaries. But not for long.

"You're so delicious," he says.

"More delirious," I respond though heavy breathing.

"Okay, deliciously delirious."

I manage to chuckle at that line. Then it's off to the cosmos, which is becoming a pet phrase of ours. For me, it's more than that because on some level, it's the truth per the way my body and brain responds to his marvelous love-making, the physical part mated to the emotional part, his passion and care and in turn my gratitude for his presence in my life--so much gratitude that "I love you" comes out without me thinking about it. And when he says it back to me, I finally realize that I'll never be able to accept not seeing him over the summer. Figuring out the logistics of how we're going to manage that will have to wait, for concerns about anything gets lost in the delicious delirium of my mind and body, the latter beginning to quiver like it always does moments before I climax. Although we've been intimate for a relatively short time, Dennis knows me well enough to sense when I'm about to "bring it home," as he calls those electrifying seconds leading up to it.

Moments after we both bring it home, we sit up in bed, holding each other, giddy over the joy we've found but also anxious about how we might carry on for three months without anyone knowing.

"Stealth is the word," he says. "So far, it's worked for me. But, with Edward and Alice living here, I realize it won't be so easy for you."

"That's for sure. But even if I could find a way, I'm still not comfortable with the idea of deceiving them. I've always been honest with them. And, who knows, maybe they could accept it given my situation, albeit grudgingly. I mean, Alice did encourage me to find happiness with another man."

"Yeah, but we both know that I'm not exactly the man she had in mind."

We laugh our way through scenarios of how my kids, his parents and the neighbors might react. All fun and games now, but maybe not much fun if and when we reveal what's going on. What does one do when stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place? I don't know because I can't think of a time in my life when I've ever been in that situation.

Dennis wonders how long he can get away with seeing me overnight without his parents and sister Linda becoming suspicious. "They're beginning to question me already," he reveals. "My dad goes, 'what's with you and all these sleepovers? I thought sleepovers at friends' houses stopped when you got out of grade school.' Then he asked me if I got back together with Ilene, if she and I were 'sneaking off to some seedy motel.' It was half in jest but on some level he was serious."

I nod, then fold my legs up to where my knees are against my chest, my arms wrapped around my calves. "Well then, maybe we should just spill the beans. At least on my end by telling Alice and Edward. As far as your family, I'll leave that up to you."

He does a double-take. "Seriously? But what about all those snickering neighbors, not to mention how Edward and Alice would react? And we both agree that doing what those people would call taboo adds to the excitement."

I stretch my legs out, then wrap my arms around him. "Dennis, if we're talking love here, we shouldn't have to sneak around, and people should respect our feelings. Maybe that sounds absurd, even dumb or naive, but I love you, and I don't mind people knowing it. Well, at least the people who count the most, neighbors not included. There's no scandal going on here. Inappropriate? Honestly, I'm not even sure that applies either. What's inappropriate about two people, one recently widowed, the other in college, who love each other? Okay, we know all the reasons why others would think that. And maybe at some point we'll go our own way. But right now, I want to be with you, Dennis Merrick, without having to cover my tracks in order to do it."

I pause for a few moments, letting him absorb my thoughts. Then: "Dennis, do you really love me? You didn't just say it because I said it first?"

He turns to face me, then bookends my face with his hands. "I sure do. If you were a couple decades younger or me older, I'd be thinking of marriage with you. Look, if you want to keep this in the open, I'll go along. If you tell Alice and Edward, I guess my parents should know also. I can't keep it from them forever. Besides, like tonight, it's becoming harder to keep a straight face, telling my parents I'm somewhere else."

I begin to tear-up. "Marriage? Really? You love me that much?"

He nods. "Yes," he whispers, and then starts to kiss me for another trip to the cosmos.

*****

Dennis

What a merry month of May it's been. Whatever happens, May will never feel the same to me again. And now, "June is bustin' out all over," as my grandmother used to sing to me. School is out and I've landed a summer gig delivering car and truck parts to automobile dealerships throughout the area. Life is good but also complicated and about to get even more complicated when Abbey breaks the news to Edward and Alice, who arrived home a couple days ago.

"Tonight's the night," Abbey texts me. "Be over at 7."

She doesn't demand that I be there. "This is more my problem when it comes to them," she had said days before. I then told her we were in this together.

So here I am, standing at their door, more anxious than I've been in quite a while. Edward and Alice expect me. As far as they know, this is purely a social call.

Edward answers the door. "Dennis Merrick, how goes it, man?" He brushes a hand over his jaw. "What's with the whiskers?"

"Thought I'd give it a try," I say, "to make me look more distinguished." Your mom likes it too, I think of saying, but don't.

I take note of his attire, jeans, a gray and white Brown University pullover and maroon socks. His light brown hair creeps to his earlobes, longer than it was a year ago, and he's kept his slim, athletic build thin and athletic through intramural sports, swimming and lacrosse.

Edward's always been a high achiever when it comes to academics. We were closer until he went off to Brown and decided that a guy like me, attending a local, mediocre college, wasn't in his cognitive league. He never said that in so many words but we drifted apart. His choice.

Still, he appears glad to see me. We shake hands and then, when I step inside, Alice and Abbey come into the living room. Abbey's wearing an orange house dress--no gold kimono this time. We trade knowing grins. Alice, two years older than Edward and going into her senior year of college, looks like her mom's daughter, just not as pretty. Her eyes are brown, not blue, and her features, notably her nose, are bigger. She's also taller, with bigger boobs and legs and wider hips, a body type more akin to her deceased dad Sanford. She's letting her brown hair grow longer, too, I see, styled with a thick braid that drops to the middle of her back. She's wearing white shorts and a gray and red University of Seattle sweatshirt. I once thought she was hot. Actually, I still do. But we were always casual, neighborhood friends, no more.

In response to their jerseys, I say, "School spirit duly noted."

They give me a polite chuckle, followed by general questions about school and what I plan to do over the summer. Like me, both have summer jobs lined up. Edward hooked up with a landscaper. "It will do me good to be outside, away from the academic grind," he says. Alice will be teaching classes in modern dance to high schoolers through a recreation and parks summer jobs program.

Chuckling to myself, I think of saying, 'And I hope to vacation at the beach with your sexy mom.' Abbey and I had talked about going away together. Visions of rubbing sunscreen into Abbey's beautiful skin, romantic dinners and strolls along the shoreline, not to mention fucking like mad, whirl in my head. Of course, it's all contingent on what happens from this moment on.

Abbey suggests that we sit in the living room to "catch up" and then repairs to the kitchen to fix cold drinks. Alice and Edward sit on the sofa, while I ease into one of the two comfy chairs. Talk turns to how much they miss their dad. School keeps them busy, but not too busy to ease all the sadness they feel. "We're more worried about mom," Alice says. "During the school year, she's all alone in this big house. I've urged her to get out some, even to date on a casual basis. Men have asked her out. She says she's not interested but I think it would do her some good."

Abbey comes into the room carrying a tray of cold drinks. As she lowers the tray onto the coffee table, Alice says, "I was telling Dennis that men are pursuing you."

Edward squirms, slides a hand over his head. He looks less than comfortable with talk about his mom's dating prospects.

"Pursuing me?" Abbey says, glancing my way. "I'd hardly call it that."

"Four different men you said have called. I'd say you're being pursued, mom. Right Edward?"

Edward shrugs and jiggles the ice in his glass. "I don't know, I guess so."

Abbey takes a seat on the other comfy chair. Holding her glass of iced tea, she says, "All in good time. Some of those guys, after hearing a gal is widowed, circle around like vultures, waiting to swoop down upon their prey."

Alice nods. "I get it, mom. You're still in mourning and I guess it's tough after so many years of marriage to jump into the dating scene. But I'd also bet that there's a guy out there that could make you happy again. Not trying to rush you, I'd just like to see you happy again."

When Abbey glances over at me, I struggle not to laugh, all too aware, as is Abbey, that the guy Alice alludes to is sitting right here in this very room. I need a good laugh, if for no other reason than to deflate the tension, gripped around me like a tight steel coil. If Abbey doesn't say something soon, I might. Either that, or I'll run the hell out of here.

Abbey folds her hands on her lap. "Alice and Edward, what would you say if I told you that I've found a wonderful guy who's been sensitive to my grief, one who comforts me and eases my pain, who makes me happy when we're together and who's loads of fun besides?"

Alice and Edward sit clueless when I begin to laugh. I can't help it. All that tension needs a release and it comes tumbling out in the form of laughter. Hand over my stomach, I manage to say, "Sorry, I was thinking about something."

"Care to let us in on the joke?" Edward asks.

Still laughing, I draw Abbey a pleading look, as if to say, tell them already.

Alice grins and then chimes in. "Great, mom. Do tell us about this wonderful guy."

Abbey pokes her thumb my way. "He's the bearded, good-looking guy in the green polo shirt sitting to my right."

Sheepishly, I smile and shrug while watching Alice and Edward looking even more clueless.

"So, I guess that's the joke," Edward says. "Dennis, practical joker I've always known you to be, you must have invented that one."

"Actually, it's one of mine," Abbey says. "I kind of came on to him."

Edward and Alice stop chuckling. Maybe this isn't a joke after all is how I read their strained expressions. Or, the joke has gone far enough.

Abbey gets serious, looks like she's about to spill the proverbal beans. "Edward and Alice, something happened between Dennis and myself that neither one of us expected. Sometimes in life, because of things unforeseen, we stumble into situations we never thought we'd find ourselves in. The unforeseen was your father's sudden death. The unexpected--and also the unforeseen--was that Dennis and I became...involved."

Edward squirms, blows out a breath and shakes his head. Maybe he's thinking of those times I had looked up his mom's dress when she'd joined us in watching TV. Whatever he's thinking, this must be awfully embarrassing for him. I empathize.

Alice doesn't squirm. She sits there, her big legs crossed, her mouth open in jaw-dropping disbelief. "Are you kidding me? Please tell me you are." She looks at me, "Well, say something, Dennis. So far, it's been my mother doing all the talking."

I keep a straight face--the laughter's gone out of me. "Like your mom said, we're involved. It sounds weird, I know. But it happened. It just happened."

Edward clears his throat. Then: "Mind if I be excused? I need some fresh air." Without waiting for an answer, he gets up and walks out the door onto their flagstone porch.

Abbey reaches over and pats Alice on the knee. "Alice, I knew you could handle this better than your brother."

She re-crosses her legs, puts her hand across her forehead. "Not by much. Geez, I can't believe this. Do your parents know, Dennis?"

"Not yet. I plan to tell them tonight."

"So, um, I mean, so you two are like, intimate?"