Epilogue

Again, a heartfelt "Thank You!" to those who have followed me along this short journey and taken the time to rate, comment and even encourage my attempts at telling this story.

There are two primary things I'll take away from this initial attempt at writing:

1. Those who do it, and do it well, are truly remarkable and talented folks. Whew! It's certainly not as easy as simply telling your story with words. Those who can craft words into a story have my admiration and gratitude. As an avid reader, it doesn't work if you can't find good content...and so many of you are incredible at delivering just that.

2. If you pour yourself into your story, you can't help but become emotionally attached to your characters. Who knew? They seemingly "come to life" in your mind. That's why I feel compelled to offer this final chapter, or Epilogue, out of respect to the fond memory I'll retain of both Mary Beth and Scott.

This Epilogue is a little lengthier than what you might imagine but I hope you enjoy it and appreciate the closure it provides this story as much as I do.

As always, the errors in this are mine and I appreciate you reading past them.

Enjoy! (And I hope to maybe do more writing soon. There's this silly idea that's been percolating....:-)

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Those Eyes - EPILOGUE

Mary Beth and I were physically exhausted but too wired to just snuggle. Much of the reserve and control that I'd originally known in Mary Beth's personality and demeanor were now gone and she seemed like a kid walking through the turnstile at Disneyland.

She had a smile plastered to her face and was so animated and alive in the moment. She wore it well. With the constant smile accompanying those eyes, you wouldn't describe her as average or plain looking anymore. There was a clear and pure beauty about her that she emanated and it was infectious.

I made a dramatic show of gathering bedding and walking over to the washing machine buck naked. The look she gave me would've started another round of intimacy had we not both already been so spent.

Mary Beth was glad to accept a quick shower so I didn't start the laundry at the time. Rather I found my largest, fluffiest bath towel and wrapped her in it on her way out of the shower, then I jumped in and rinsed off quickly as well.

By the time I was out, Mary Beth was about fully dressed, even though she said she had pocketed her panties because they were too damp to put back on. So my quick gym shorts and t-shirt ensemble had us out of the bedroom in just a couple of minutes. On the way by, I asked Mary Beth if she'd do the honor of starting the washing machine. I avoided that playful slap completely. I was learning.

She gladly accepted my offer of a bowl of ice cream. As a bachelor, not a lot going on in my kitchen. I'm covered with the basics of frozen pizza, Ramen and cold cereal but the ice cream I jad stashed seemed the perfect desert to compliment and follow the "supper" we'd shared. It sure as hell beat lasagna.

The conversation was playful and casual and any worry I had about Mary Beth regretting this day quickly diminished. She didn't seem like the same person I'd bumped into at the coffee shop just 14 hours ago. She took my jokes about her having the shortest "walk of shame" ever back across the street to her building in stride. She replied that her head would be held up proud and high...even if her walk would appear a little bit off.

Before she left, we did set up a standing date for a Thursday night "laundry night" that would begin two nights from now.

Those went on for 6 weeks up to the point she told me that she was moving back to the midwest to be closer to her brothers. One of them worked at at a small manufacturing plant and had a boss that was looking for a new Executive Assistant. The news hurt but I was happy that she had a direction in her life that seemed both comfortable and exciting for her.

We never got around to binge watching anything during our laundry nights. They also weren't just big fuckfests, either. It was just an incredible friendship that formed where it seemed nothing was off limits. I learned a lot more about her childhood, marriage, life, etc. We laughed at silly jokes. We argued over whose generation had the better music.

Often times these things did occur as we lay naked together but there were a couple of the evenings where a quick hello and goodbye kiss were the only bodily fluids exchanged.

But, holy Hell! Did Mary Beth like to explore now that she'd had her eyes opened to shared intimacy. She had so much of that to offer and now that the "toothpaste was out of the tube", there was no putting it back. I was more than happy to be the recipient.

I never did get around to exploring the side of her that maybe liked to be naughty, and therefore needed punished, but there are only so many hours in the day. But to this day, Mary Beth is by far the most open and aggressive lover I've ever had at chasing down her release and then riding it out for as long as she possibly could. So sexy in that regard...and such a wonderful gift to share with the lover you are with.

Nothing feels better than when your partner is comfortable enough to admit they want pleasure and then let themselves completely go in pursuit of that pleasure. It's so much more of a turn on than a partner who tries to mask or control their pleasure because they don't have the ability, or trust level, to truly let themselves lose it in your presence.

Mary Beth and I even discussed that. There is having and enjoying an orgasm. Most can acheive that. But then there is actually EXPERIENCING an orgasm and letting it take you wherever it can. Wherever you are open enough to let it.

She was definitely in the latter group. She would give herself over to her orgasm and the emotion it stirred in me being a part of that with her was so powerful.

We had learned by Week 3 that Mary Beth's preferred "warm-up" was straddling my face, whether on the couch where she could place her hands on the backrest on in my bed where she could hold the headboard, and she could just ride herself to orgasm at the pressure and pace she wanted.

One brief discussion about this led us to hypothesize that maybe being empowered and in control of her own pleasure like that was likely in response to the 25 years of sexual repression she'd experienced with her ex-husband. Who knows? She cleary enjoyed it and I had no complaints looking up from her sopping, thrashing womanhood, between her pert breasts and into that beautiful face and eyes as she tossed it about in orgasm.

When she got back from a midwest trip to make her final moving and living arrangements, she showed me the listing for the cute little bungalow she found to rent. The pictures showed a move-in ready but empty home that had her worried about her need of furniture, decorations and other necessities.

I didn't worry about it. Mary Beth would have it looking and feeling like a "home" as soon as she occupied the house. I'd been to her Vine St apartment on a couple of occasions and it looked like she'd been living there for decades and yet she'd only been there for a couple of months.

We spent the final Thursday and Friday night together prior to her leaving on a Saturday. That Friday night was the only time we actually spent the entire night together and waking up with her in my arms was very special.

Then I saw her off at the airport. I felt incredible love for her, as she did me, but we weren't "in love". We's discussed that on a couple of occasions and at no time did either of us slip into believing that we had a future together as a couple. That just wasn't who we were to each other and it wasn't in the cards.

Who we were was better represented the Monday after she left when I received a text from her that simply read, "Smartass!" that included a smiley emoji. I texted back a quick, "What???" with a winking emoji and waited for her call later than night.

When she showed me the listing for her bungalow, I noted the address and that next day I called a local appliance dealer in her new town and purchased a nice washer and dryer to have delivered on that Monday. It came to her from "Scott's Laundry Service". I thought that was clever.

I mean..., what do you get the woman who has nothing? Haha.

My world was rocked just under three weeks later when Mary Beth called me late in the evening and requested a video chat. I accepted and while it was great to see her face, we'd only been regularly texting, I could tell she had something on her mind.

She came right out with it by saying, "Scott, I'm pregnant."

I don't know what she was expecting from me but I don't think it was a smile. I couldn't help it. The thought of a baby in this world sharing our DNA was immediately the coolest thing I could imagine.

She was clearly relieved that we weren't going to fight about this and that it didn't seem like it would effect our friendship but we didn't get into details or decisions over the phone. I asked her if I could come there to discuss or get her the ticket to fly her back to me so that we could decide what this meant.

She wasn't ready for her brothers to learn of her 25 year old lover and "baby daddy" so she accepted my offer to fly back the following weekend.

When I met her at the airport, the first thing I could see in her face was that her decision was to keep the baby. She looked like a mother. She was glowing. Apparently, the first thing that she could see in my face was support for her decision and acceptance.

The hug we shared before any words were spoken was incredibly cathartic for both of us and when we broke from the embrace I said, "Let's get out of here before we shut this concourse down with our bawling."

The hardest part for me was in accepting the fact that I would be entrusting her to raise the child as a single mother and that I would have no role or part of the child's life as the father. And yet, for as difficult as that was to wrap my mind around, it only took looks at Mary Beth to know that my trust and belief in her as a future mother was complete. I was happy for her. Happy for the gift and miracle she treated this as when she'd believed for years that this part of her life had already slipped behind her.

That night, following the bulk of our discussion and catching-up, we settled in to watching some Denzel movie about a runaway train that happened to be on television. 'Unstoppable', I think it was. I've always liked Denzel movies but Mary Beth seemed more partial to Chris Pine who was also in the movie. Huh? My admiration for her took a severe hit following that revelation.

Anyway, the character's talked during their rescue operation about how they had to be careful to not become a "wreck on a wreck" out on the tracks stopping the rogue train. I continually found my attention drifting back to the amazing woman sitting snuggled up to me so I asked her if we could possibly try to make a "baby on a baby"?

A brief twinkle occurred acknowledging my undeniably charming and sophisticated humor, but that quickly progressed into thise eyes that housed the pilot lights that made butterfly's churn in my stomach and my breath catch in my throat.

Knowing it was most likely our last night together, we ended up having our most conventional night of love making we'd ever orchestrated. Intimate face time with gentle kissing and a slow missionary coupling that ended with an intensely emotional shared orgasm. This time we actually ended in a cuddle. Not quite the physically expressive and draining experience we'd typically share. Neither of us seemed to mind the change.

Until mid-cuddle, Mary Beth said something silly that contained a ridiculously raunchy double entendre and as soon as she blushed pink at it's sexual meaning, I couldn't help but stab into her backside with my rapidly rising cock. It's well established what that blush and those eyes do to me. Completely out of my control.

Regardless, it led to her grabbing my cock and me cupping her wetness and having shared masturbation experience made all the more intimate because we both, in unspoken agreement, made eye contact throughout that was never broken. Thank you, Simon. That is all.

Following our daughter's birth 8 months later, who Mary Beth named "Scarlett Marie" but calls her "Scottie", I set up a college saving account under Mary Beth's control through a financial institution in her town. That, and the Facebook account we established for her to share pictures and updates was the extent of my contact and involvement in their lives.

As Scottie was about to turn two, Mary Beth let me know that she was engaged to be married. A middle manager at the place she worked had lost is first wife to cancer and had put his life back together. He had grown kids but was incredibly loving and giving to both she and Scottie.

It hurt to hear, but I really was happy for her. And my trust in her as the parent for my child had only grown stronger over the last couple of years.

Almost two years later, I updated Mary Beth on my engagement to a girl I'd met at the same coffee shop that had brought us together. I no longer lived in the high rise condo and my visit back to the coffee shop was pretty much a fluke. Just happened to be passing through and stopped for "old times sake".

This incredibly beautiful blonde haired, blue eyed Goddess rang-up my purchase and when she placed my change of $.01 in my hand, her touch made me look up into her eyes. There was familiar spark in that gaze that froze time for about 2 seconds and all I could think to do to break the spell was offer her back the coin, saying, "A penny for your thoughts."

Totally lame line and yet she smiled and blushed a bit at this and our relationship took on a life of it's own from that point forward. She also embraces pleasure and loves to give herself over to it and her partner. Again, aren't I the lucky sap.

Not long after Scottie was born, the company I worked for had grown to the point we broke our operations into three distinct departments; a Sales group, Design and Development and then Testing and Validation. Sales is pretty self-explanatory. Design and Development is the group who builds the security systems that have been designed based on the end-user's needs and then Testing and Validation is the group of "hackers" who try in everyway possible to destroy the system we'd developed.

When the growth and reorganization happened, I was offered the job as head of Testing and Validation. It came with a sizeable raise and even a bonus structure that was more money than I could think to spend. My big splurge was moving closer to my place of work bjying a pretty neat house in a quiet suburb. It has a killer laundry room...and a pool.

They pay me to break shit and I have a pool. Life is pretty damned good.

I didn't keep the fact I have a daughter from my fiance, Lynette. I've never been good at keeping secrets from those closest to me. Being an open book has helped me sleep soundly most of my life. She knows that I don't have a part in Scottie's life and as she's come to find out, there's no threat to her or us from Mary Beth, who's now happily married, or Scottie who is soon to start kindergarten.

Prior to proposing, I did make a sizeable contribution to Scottie's College Savings Plan and have since ended those regular contributions. If left alone, there should be $350 to $400k in it by the time she's eligible to draw from it.

Mary Beth sent a text with, "Why?" when she saw the contribution and I replied, "Because I'll always love both of you and I want want what's best for Scottie. She was blessed with an amazing mother so if I can help in this way, I'm honored to do so."

From that, I got a simple, "Thank you." I know from Mary Beth just how heart felt that sentiment truly was. It warmed me.

Lynette and I now have two kids of our own and are soon to become the parents of our first school-aged child. What a rush. It's incredible how fast the time goes.

Luckily, I'm just smart enough to have learned from Mary Beth what was truly important to me in finding a mate. Lynette's personality and demeanor remind me a lot of Mary Beth. So down to earth and such a kind and caring person. And lucky for me, Lynette was a really good gymnast in high school. Oh, man. Just...Oh, man.

Mary Beth is approaching 55 years old now and I adored the pictures she shared on Facebook of Scottie at her "Graduation" from elementary school. She's heading off to middle school and she looks so much like her mother it's uncanny. In one picture, Mary Beth is hugging Scottie and Mary Beth doesn't look like she's aged a bit. Maybe a couple of more gray streaks in her hair but her face still looks youthful and her body still petite.

And then there are those eyes. Damn.

The End