The Second Time Around

The first part of this story was published last month. Our MC, a widower named Jake, reconnected with an old flame, Alisa. Their first break up occurred while Jake attended an out of state college, primarily because Alisa's father swore Jake would never marry his daughter. During their reconnection, Alisa's adult daughter Tina worked to sabotage the affair, trying to get her divorced parents back together. (Disney -- take note, sounds like an idea for a movie or two.)

The story ended with Jake receiving an apology from Alisa, her letter requested another chance. Jake didn't immediately tear up the letter, an ending which many of our readers found disturbing. Some commenting that the story didn't belong in Literotica's Romance. The story ended this way because, like Jake, we didn't know if they should give it another try, for reasons Jake explains in the story below. Hope you enjoy this conclusion; we're certain you'll let us know in the Comments if you don't.

The Second Time Around -- Conclusion

Chapter One

"If you two are trying to kill me, you should know I recently changed my will!" Jake shouted over the sound of the rushing water, as the raft he shared with his children and their guide floated down the Class V rapids. "All my money is going to a cat rescue shelter in Calgary!"

Both Lyle and Beth laughed. Having spent two months talking their dad into this trip, nothing could wipe the smile off his face. They couldn't wait until this evening, to see their dad's reaction when they arrived at tonight's campground. Beth's boyfriend Aaron wasn't so certain, he was in the 'make a good impression on my girlfriend's father' phase of their relationship. He didn't understand the Belzini family dynamics, how they constantly teased each other.

"Dad, you hate cats!" Beth shouted back.

"That's why I chose Calgary," Jake shouted back, "to keep those damn Canadian cats on their side of the border!"

Aaron kept shaking his head. This was the second day of the trip and he was trying his best to avoid groaning at the old man's corny humor. But Jake's two kids just egged their father on and they had five more days together.

After another three hours, the guide steered the raft to the shore where a van was waiting for them. Three-quarters of an hour later they were in their truck heading to Ridgway, stopping along the way for an early dinner.

****

As they checked at the front desk, Jake read the sign on the wall.

"Beth, this sign says the hot spring pools are clothing optional." Jake stared at his two kids, both with shit-eating grins smiling back at him. Only Aaron had the decency not to stare back. "Please tell me you're going to be wearing a bathing suit."

"Yes, father dear. I wouldn't dream of embarrassing you." Saying it while smiling because, yes she would wear a suit tonight, but she was also getting a kick imaging how embarrassed her father will be tonight. "We'll all wear our suits, but some of the other guests may not." She didn't add the fact that the last time she was here with Aaron they enjoyed the pools 'au naturel'.

The sun was setting behind the mountains as they set up the two tents. Jake shared his with Lyle, Aaron and Beth in the second.

Last night, the first night of this camping trip, Jake convinced Aaron that he was all right with him sharing a tent with his daughter. "She's a grown woman and will make her own choices." Jake explained to his daughter's young suitor.

Aaron pulled Jake aside. "I plan to ask Beth to marry me, I'd like your permission." Aaron said this in a low voice so as not to be overheard. "I'm waiting until March, the first anniversary of our first date."

"If my daughter says 'yes', you have my blessing. I appreciate that you asked me first. Now, please keep it down in the tent tonight." Jake got a big kick out of watching Aaron's face turn crimson.

Tonight, with both tents up, all four walked to the showers before heading out to the pools. Settling into the first pool, the warm water felt great as Jake relaxed against a rock and let the heat sooth his aching muscles.

Two years ago, he wouldn't have survived the past two days. Yesterday's twelve mile hike with a two-thousand-foot elevation, today's four hours paddling down the river. Two years ago, two years after Sharon's passing, he stepped on the scales after looking at his paunch in the mirror. '198' stared back at him. Twenty-eight pounds over his ideal weight on his five-eleven frame.

Jake spent the next seven months changing his diet, exercising five days a week and spending at least two days a week lifting weights. Not only did this improve his physique, it helped with his depression. He still missed his wife but now spent less time mourning.

As the fifty-year-old man set down in the warm water, he knew he looked ten years younger. Good muscle tone, all his hair with barely a grey hair to be seen. He even got an impish smile from his daughter. Chances are she's already checking out the single women in the pools, waiting for an opportunity to introduce her dad to one of the middle-aged bathers. Since Jake moved to Moab, Beth had fixed him up on three dates; one of whom ended up in his bed a week later.

Nothing like that happened tonight. The four travelers spent the evening soaking and talking. The more time Jake spent around Aaron, the more he liked the young man and he told Beth when they couldn't be overheard. Beth replied with a wide grin and a hug, happy to have her father's affirmation that Aaron was a great guy.

****

After a decent night's sleep, Jake told the three youngsters he planned to spend the day soaking and relaxing while they hiked one of the local trails up another mountain. Once they left in the truck, Jake showered in the lodge before settling into one of the warmer pools. He slipped off his swim trunks, set them on the rock behind him and let his mind wander. It had been ten years since the day he and Sharon spent an afternoon skinny dipping on the beach in Spain. The feeling of freedom was refreshing.

"Do you mind if I join you?" Jake looked up to see a middle-aged nymph standing before him as if she walked out of a Maxfield Parrish painting. Before Jake had a chance to reply, she eased her nude body into the water beside him. "I hoped I'd have a chance to see you again today. I'm Nancy."

They chatted over the next hour, moving from pool to pool. The lady lived in Chicago and was touring the Rockies with three of her friends from college. They compared schools, jobs, children, marital status, she'd been divorced for two years. Nearly everything but politics and religion.

Nancy invited him to her room. They were already naked except for the towels they wore to walk through the lodge to her room. The towels were shed as soon as the door closed behind them.

Nancy wasted no time before pushing Jake to the bed as she knelt down between his knees to swallow his cock and feel it grow until it reached the back of her throat. She continued to suck and used one hand to fondle his balls.

"Damn, that feels so damn good." Jake moaned as one hand guided her head and the other played with her erect nipples. When he squeezed, Nancy responded by lifting her mouth off his cock to urge him on. "Just like that Jake, squeeze them." And he did.

Jake didn't want to cum in her mouth, he wanted to be inside her pussy. He reached under her arms, lifting and placing Nancy on her back. Just before entering her, Jake had a moment of sanity.

"I don't have a condom." He sat beside her on the bed, feeling ridiculous with his hardon pointing toward the ceiling.

Nancy rose up on her elbows. "I can't get pregnant, too old, and I'm ninety-nine percent certain I'm without any diseases; it's been almost a year since I've been with anyone. What about you?"

"I've been with one woman in the past year and I wore a condom the few times I was with her. So, ninety-nine percent certain."

"Fuck me, Jake!" Which he did with pleasure. Enjoying the feeling of bare flesh inside a woman's sleeve for the first time since his breakup with Alisa. Nancy proved to be a great kisser and an imaginative sex partner, changing where her hands, legs and feet played with his body. She ended up on her hands and knees, flicking her clit until she came with a groan and a shout. The grip of her pussy on Jake's cock sent him over the top, he loved the feeling as he shot rope after rope into her womb.

"Son of a bitch, that was good! I forgot how good that could feel. Thank you Jake."

Jake finally caught his breath. "Damn, you're telling me." He rolled her over and kissed her with an open mouth, his tongue teasing hers. As much as he wanted to do this a second time, he needed a little time to recover. "I'm starving, can we grab lunch, then come back and do this again?"

"I'd like that." Nancy replied, pleased Jake wasn't a wham-bang, see ya later kind of guy. She had no illusions of this being anything but a one-night stand, or two if she's lucky, but it made her warm inside to know she was good enough to deserve an encore.

Nancy and Jake ended up spending two nights together, sharing Nancy's room both nights. Jake introduced Nancy to his kids when they returned that afternoon. The five of them ate dinner together. Jake hiked with them the next day while Nancy drove with her girlfriends to spend the day in Telluride before reconnecting for another night of lovemaking with Jake.

After an especially physical bout of fucking, Jake and Nancy lay side by side until his pulse returned to normal and he could speak. "Why me?" Jake asked.

Nancy laughed. "We'll blame your daughter. We were in the showers, Beth overheard me complain to my girlfriends how I hadn't gotten laid forever. Beth interrupted and suggested I seduce you. I saw you in the pool yesterday morning and figured it was kismet." Nancy paused to lean over Jake and give him a kiss. "I owe Beth a big 'thank you'!"

"We both do!"

They slept together that second night and kissed goodbye the following morning. For the rest of the week, as Jake and his kids (Jake now considered Aaron his) roamed the Rockies, Jake caught Beth smiling at him with the same impish grin that had him wrapped around his little finger since she was a baby.

Jake and Nancy never saw each other again; although they did exchange a few letters before Nancy sent a final letter telling Jake she was getting married -- to her ex who obviously regained his senses. He replied with a short note, "Wishing you all the world's happiness -- Jake".

Chapter Two

A week after the trip with his kids, Jake idly cleaned up the papers scattered around his home office desk while chatting with a client. The client had finished reading Jake's audit of their IT department's security systems and was congratulating Jake on the audit's thoroughness.

"Jake, last fall I had another outfit in here and they completely fucked it up. They didn't find either of the security holes you found and, to be quite honest, charged nearly twice what you charged."

Jake smiled to himself. He always tried to sound humble but he knew he was one of the best. "Thanks Mr. Burton, in that case, you won't mind tearing up my invoice and I'll send another with a new total."

Burton took a second to understand whether Jake was serious; then he remembered the man's proclivity for telling bad jokes. At the same time, he realized Jake had done him and his bank a tremendous favor by finding the security risks within the bank's systems.

"Nice try Jake. I believe I'll keep the original invoice, but I will do this. I'm on the board of the Western Community Banking Association. In March we're having a symposium, there will be at least one hundred and twenty CEOs and CFOs attending. Would you be interested if I put you on the agenda? You can do an hour presentation and I'll make certain the attendees know how grateful I am for your expertise. The conference agenda is already complete, but I'm scheduled for a morning talk and I think whatever you have to say would be of greater benefit than what they'd hear from me."

What Mr. Burton didn't say was how he was crossing his fingers Jake would take the bait; Burton hated these talks and only agreed to it because the board had begged him to fill in a timeslot after one of the speakers cancelled.

Jake found his hardcopy desk calendar and checked to confirm nothing was scheduled for the three days of the conference. He agreed to Burton's proposal and the two of them spent another ten minutes exchanging ideas for the talk. Something high-level but meaty without sounding too much like a promotion for Jake's company.

As they hung up, Jake saw Alisa's apology letter under the calendar. He picked it up and sat back in his chair, his eyes closed, thinking about the letter's content, Alisa's attempt to connect a third time. The first time interrupted by Alisa's father who swore Jake would never marry his daughter. The second time when Alisa's daughter made certain Alisa and Tina's father were reunited, leaving Jake out in the cold. In her letter, Alisa alluded to a "third time being a charm".

There was a reason Jake didn't immediately trash Alisa's letter when he received it. Those five months together helped ease the overwhelming loneliness since Sharon's death. It felt good to enjoy a woman's touch, to sleep with a woman, to make love again. Now, all he had to do was pick up the phone, call Alisa, forgive her and she'd be back in his arms. With his eyes closed, Jake imagined how this would feel. He took the letter over to the paper shredder and fed the machine.

Chapter Three

Jake sat down for lunch at the guest speakers' table. To his right sat the executive director of the organization hosting the conference. To his left, a middle-aged woman who introduced herself. "It's good to meet you, Mr. Belzini. I'm Margaret Shalton." Jake recognized the name; she'd be presenting one of this afternoon's topics.

"Please, Ms. Shalton, call me Jake."

"Only if you call me Margaret. I enjoyed your presentation this morning. If you don't mind, can I buy you a drink later? I have a few issues with one of your conclusions and I thought it rude if I asked in front of the crowd."

On the one hand, Jake was put off by the fact she had 'issues', but on the other hand, he appreciated she hadn't contradicted him in front of one hundred and twenty people.

"I'll meet you in the lounge. Does five o'clock work?" he asked.

"Yes, thank you."

Jake turned to his right, the ED's secretary stood there apologizing, asking him to sign a voucher. Jake pulled out his pen and signed after confirming the figures were correct. The secretary apologized a second time and walked away. Jake caught himself before following her beautiful backside. By the time he turned to his left, Margaret was talking to the woman on her left. Jake always hated these functions; he was never comfortable in large gatherings and now both the person on his left and the person on his right were deep into discussions with others, which left him stranded. He picked up his salad fork and began munching on the half-past-fresh lettuce.

Margaret interrupted his daydream. "Jake, I couldn't help but notice. You sign with your right hand, but you eat with your left. What's that about?"

"You're very observant, Margaret. I learned to eat with my off hand on purpose. This way, if my right hand is broken, I won't starve to death."

Margaret looked at him with large green eyes, trying to decide if he was joking or crazy. Jake kept a straight face but couldn't help but stare into those beautiful eyes.

He let her know he wasn't insane. "When my son Lyle was an infant, it became apparent he was left-handed. I decided to do what I could with my left hand for two reasons. One, it would help me understand the challenges he'd face in a right-oriented world and two, I'd be better equipped to help him learn how to do things as a left-handed person."

Margaret stayed still for a few seconds, shook her head and smiled, asking, "Did it work?"

"I think so. We seemed to bond pretty well. Maybe that helped."

"How old is your son?"

"He just turned twenty-three."

Margaret discretely glanced at Jake's left hand, confirming the lack of a ring or the tell-tale pale line where a ring recently had been removed. Margaret would have a tough time counting how often she'd been approached by married men at these conferences; half of them didn't bother removing their rings. Margaret was lucky, early in her career an older, more experienced woman taught her how to avoid the conference lounge-lizards.

"Is your wife at the conference? If so, please invite her to join us this evening."

Jake hated these moments; it always brought the conversation to an awkward pause while the other party searched for the right thing to say. "My wife passed five years ago."

There it was, that pause. It took a few moments, but Margaret finally said, "I'm sorry." then the pause before she looked down at her salad plate. Jake was interrupted by one of the other diners asking a question. Jake's answer started a conversation most of the table joined in. After lunch, Margaret confirmed she'd meet him in the lounge that evening.

Chapter Four

Jake smiled, watching as Margaret entered the lounge, dressed in a rose-colored dress which contrasted with the business suit she wore during the day. Jake hadn't ordered his drink, deciding to wait until Margaret's arrival. He held the barstool and helped her rise with a gentle hand on her elbow with his other hand. When this gentlemanly action was rewarded with a smile from Margaret, Jake was pleased. "Good," he thought to himself, "a woman who appreciates courtesy."

The bartender, being a consummate professional, was immediately in front of them taking their drink order. Jake smiled when Margaret ordered a Manhattan instead of wine or a foo-foo drink; Jake told the bartender to make it two and asked for the top shelf Rye.

"Will it make a difference?" asked Margaret.

"Hell, I don't know," Jake replied, "but you came in looking so nice in that dress and I just figured you deserved the best."

"I was supposed to buy."

"Not going to happen; this is my treat."

Margaret wondered if Jake was a nice guy or just another lothario with bad seduction techniques, or maybe he was out of practice. She'd stay sober and wait to see if he remained a gentleman.

Before their drinks arrived and this woman's green eyes and rose dress turned him into a blithering idiot, Jake addressed the elephant in the room. "What 'issues' did you have with my conclusions this morning? You asked me to have a drink with you to discuss them."

Margaret's face flushed, she hoped he would forget her statement at lunch. It was one of the reasons she wore this dress, similar to an illusionist's trick, to distract him lest he brought it up. Their drinks arrived, each thanked the bartender and Margaret took a sip of the Manhattan. "Oh, that's good."

"You're stalling." Jake didn't taste his drink or let her off the hook. He sat patiently waiting for her answer.

"I am, I owe you an apology. After lunch and before my session I spoke with Jane Goodman. It seems I misunderstood what you said." Margaret looked at Jake, his lips began a grin, which he was fighting, but his eyes betrayed him. Margaret continued, "I didn't cancel our drink because I wanted to spend this evening getting to know you. Maybe it's silly but your reasons for learning how to use your left hand, to help your young son, left me wanting more of your time."

Jake called the bartender over. "Can you get us a table for two in the restaurant, please? As soon as a table is available." He realized his mistake, looked at Margaret and asked. "Is that okay?'

Margaret felt her heart flutter. She's a self-sufficient, successful woman who appreciated the way this man took charge without being aggressive. "Yes, I'd love that."