second chances (closed)

[a_libertine]

As we went toward the tables, our hips brushed and it was like a fire bloomed from the innocent touch and raged straight to my loins like a crownfire. As much as I wanted to wrap my arm around her waist, I managed not to.

But my arm moved before I could stop it, so, I reached back and pulled my wallet out, handing Alison a $100.00 bill. "The hundred is yours to play with, anything you win over that we split, no strings attached."

We stopped and I leaned over to her, allowing our shoulders to touch, and the same fire flared again and the heat scorched through my body again. Clearing my throat, "What is your game? I always liked craps when I have company."

 

[AlisonMarch]

"Then craps it is," Alison said, with a smile. She held the hundred dollar bill folded discretely in her palm, as they walked to the table. He hadn't moved away, but he hadn't made a move to get closer as they came to the casino area. He spoke like a man who was holding back, though, and she couldn't blame him.

She wished she hadn't told him everything up front like that. It was a stupid mistake that she only made because she hadn't been on a date since high school. She should have whet his appetite before she laid everything out. Still, she thought, he hadn't run away yet. It wasn't too late. She just needed a little luck.

She had done casinos with John, and she walked by the $2 and $5 tables. There was no thrill from betting small money. She didn't want to burn through the hundred in a few bets, either, though, so she picked a $20 table and lay the bill down for the dealer to change for chips.

The guy rolling gave her a once over and a smile, but she turned to look at Buddy, letting everyone know she was spoken for. The roller sevened out, and chips slid across the table to the dealer. When the dealer called for new bets, she leaned over the table and slid a twenty dollar chip onto the passline.

 

[a_libertine]

Truth be told, I don't and didn't know squat about gambling. It is a fool's errand if you ask me, but it did buy me more time with Alison, so what the hell. Craps was the only game I knew the name of off the top of my head, so it came out.

Alison on the other hand appeared to have it under control and looked like a pro placing her bet. When she won, I smiled and said, 'You got the luck so keep at it, and I will watch."

The waitress came around and I ordered a bourbon on the rocks and asked Alison, "What would you like? On me."

 

[AlisonMarch]

"Gin and tonic," Alison told the waitress, and then smiled at Buddy. "Thanks."

They played for a while. They hit a hot streak and they were up, and then their luck inevitably started to turn. Alison swept up her chips before they were wiped out completely and held up the twenty dollar chip that was left.

"Well, it was fun while it lasted," she said, flipping Buddy the chip. She smiled. She had never been bothered about winning at the tables. The point was to have fun, and for an hour or so, they'd had a good time.

 

[a_libertine]

Buddy caught the chip in mid air then flipped it toward the waitress without looking at the value of the chip. He offered Alison his arm, almost gallantly. As her hand slid inside the crook of his arm, they started to leave the floor.

"What are you doing tomorrow," he asked. "If you are up for it, I can pick you up early in the morning and we can head to my cabin for the remainder of the weekend."

 

[AlisonMarch]

She put her hand on his arm and let him escort her out of the casino. As they walked, she wondered what she should do. It was time to call it a night, they both seemed to recognize that, but she had no idea what was going to happen. She had been so thrown off by her random date being Buddy, she'd ended up telling him far more than she had planned on. Now the cat was out of the bag, and she had to figure out a way to make it work, or hope the world of internet dating had another guy who wasn't a complete psycho.

"Cabin?" she echoed. The rest of the weekend. That wasn't a casual date. She bit her lip and thought as they stepped out into the humid night air. Saying no would shut the whole thing down.

"Yeah," she said, and gave him a friendly smile. "What time should I expect you?"

 

[a_libertine]

The giddiness that run through Gil was unexpected as she agreed. "7:00 AM. That way we will get there around noon."

He stopped at the curb and said, "You will need casual clothes and a swimsuit to wear. There is a pond we can swim in. I should warn you there is no phone or cell coverage. Not much for tv either though I should look into getting satellite television."

He turned to her taking her hands in his, "What is the address? "

 

[AlisonMarch]

Alison gave him the address and then went back to her dingy little apartment. Tomorrow morning would come early. She set her alarm for 5am, to give her plenty of time to get ready.

She packed a nice bikini that showed off her figure without being sleazy, and a couple of cute tops and pairs of shorts. She brought some nice underwear and an oversized t shirt to sleep in, and a pair of flat sandals to wear if he wanted to drag her through the woods. She wore heels and jeans and a tank top, and was waiting in front of the building by 6:55.

 

[a_libertine]

Buddy drove home whistling the entire way. When he arrived he parked his Lexus next to his old truck and went into the house. He packed his bag for the weekend and slept restfully.

He woke early and showered while the coffee brewed. Dressing in jeans shorts and a golf shirt he poured the coffee into a thermos and tossed everything into the bed of the truck except for the thermos which he put on the seat.

He drove over to Alison's place, sipping on the hot life giving liquid. He turned the radio on to a country and western station. He pulled into the apartment complex and saw her almost immediately. He pulled up and got out of the truck. He walked up to her, "You are as beautiful in the morning as you are at night."

 

[AlisonMarch]

"Thank you," Alison blushed at his compliment and her twang thickened, as if just being near his old pickup truck coaxed the country girl side of her to the fore. She tossed her bag into the bed of the truck and climbed in.

"This is a different side to you," she said. "I like it." She did. She was glad she'd seen the other car last night, or she'd have started to have real doubts about him. As it was, the pick-up and the country music on the radio just put her in the mood for a weekend at his cabin. She slipped her sunglasses on and her shoes off, propping her feet up on the dashboard.

 

[a_libertine]

Buddy offered Alison a cup of coffee, "you can use the thermos cup if you like, sorry there isn't any cream or sugar though."

They drove 45 minutes along rural state highways chatting amicably about the people they had gone to school with. Most had settled in the area, something about home always bringing people back.

He pulled into a Walmart explaining, "We need to get food, unless you want all of our food to come from a can over the two days."

He gave her a sheepish grin, "Not like anyone else has been out to the cabin in years."

 

[AlisonMarch]

"I'm ok, thanks," she said, passing on the coffee. She watched the woods get thicker and the little towns get smaller and farther between as they drove out into the country. As they drove, they gossiped, and Alison was surprised to find out how many of the old crowd was still hanging around town.

When they stopped, she laughed. Walmart was one inescapable thing about life, but it was comforting in a strange way. She hadn't been in one the whole time she was married, but since John passed, she had gotten to know her way around the places since. They were all about the same, she'd learned.

"Well," she said. "Cabin's making me think steaks on a grill." As they meandered through the store, they talked about what to eat, and what else they might need. It felt nice, almost like they were a couple. Not that she'd ever gone grocery shopping as a couple before, but it seemed like something people did.

"OK," she said, when they had food for the weekend. "How bad is the place? Will I need a hazmat suit, or is it just like, woodsy bachelor pad?"

 

[a_libertine]

Buddy laughed, "My truck is a 1972 Ford which runs like a champ and is the same truck I had in high school. The cabin is in better shape."

They hopped back into the truck and spent the next hour on two lane roads then another fifteen on dirt roads. Getting to the locked gate to his property he hopped out unlocked it and drove through. He left it open and drove to the cabin.

The cabin was a forty foot by forty foot building with a covered porch that encircled the entire building. A shallow pond lay on the far side of the cabin with a gazebo sitting g on a pier in the middle.

The cabin itself was divided into four quadrants. Closest left was the sleeping area dominated by a king sized four post bed. Each side held a heavy dark maroon curtain to block out light. Closest right held the living area which consisted primarily of two chairs, a couch, and some lamps. Farthest left was the bathing area with a clawed ironed tub, with a shower head above it, a curtain could be pulled around it keeping water from the hardwood flooring. The far right area held the modern kitchen which held all of the latest gear for cooking.

Dead center of the cabin was the main heating source. A pot belly wood burning stove, which when stoked to a full roar kept the cabin warm, almost hot, with little effort.

"Be it ever so humble, welcome to my home. "

 

[AlisonMarch]

Alison grinned as they pulled away from Walmart. It was going to be an adventure, she told herself. She had done plenty of things with John that she hadn't particularly wanted to that turned out to be fun, and she'd learned that almost anything could be borne for a weekend. She was along for the ride with Buddy, in a truck older than either of them.

They drove on, into wilder and more remote country, and Alison watched the scenery flying by. She started to have second thoughts when he had to open a gate, but a few minutes later they came to a cozy looking cabin in the woods. She hopped out of the truck and let him show her the place.

"You made it sound like this place was a wreck," she said, shaking her head. There was no doubt that it was a man's place, but it wasn't pretending to be anything else. It was all about comfort and utility, with nothing much to make it pretty. It meant there hadn't been anyone serious in his life for a long, long time. Maybe ever. After a tour of the house, Ali sat on the porch looking over the pond.

One bedroom. She had a pretty good idea what his plan for the sleeping arrangements were, and it worried her a little. Did he expect her to put out tonight? Was that what people did now? She'd been a high school student the last time she'd dated, and she had only had sex twice before her wedding night, both times with a guy she'd been dating for months.

She looked at Buddy and blushed. It wasn't that there was anything wrong with him. She just didn't want to get used and tossed aside. On the other hand, they'd come all the way out here, and they were going to stay the weekend. She didn't want to start it off with something as uncomfortable as a The Sex Talk.

 

[a_libertine]

Buddy almost bust out laughing as Alison blushed. He decided then and there to not mention anything about sleeping arrangements until later. Instead he said, "Give me a few minutes to get things set up. If you want to unload the truck it would be a help."

He went out the back door and turned on the hot water heater, then opened all the windows to the house. The three fans and four ceiling fans were turned on as well, to air the house out.

He pulled a pan off the rack over the stove, and filled it with water. Looking over his shoulder, "Do you know how to make sweet tea? If not, come on over, and I will show you."

 

[AlisonMarch]

Alison brought things in from the truck while Buddy brought the cabin to life. She unpacked the groceries, and left the bags by the door. He wasn't saying anything about it, but it had been hard to miss the look on his face when she realized there was only one bedroom. It was his house, and she was his guest. How he treated his guest this weekend would tell her pretty much everything she needed to know.

"Sweet tea?" She had learned how to make sweet tea as soon as she was big enough to pour it. She smiled and leaned back against the counter. "I guess I'll learn how you make it."

Even with the fans going, the day was hot enough that she knew they'd be glad for the cool drink soon enough.

 

[a_libertine]

Buddy dropped a couple family sized tea bags into water and popped it onto the propane fueled stove and turned it on a medium high heat. While it started heating he pulled a bowl out and put two heaping cupfuls of sugar in it. Checking the water he saw that it wasn't boiling yet, so he grabbed the bags of groceries by the door and began putting the food up.

He grinned, "The secret is to put the sugar in as it is boiling, gets the sweetest."

He started feeding sugar to the water after it began to boil, until it began to thicken. He poured that into a gallon pitcher and added water slowly, stirring the entire time. "That will almost hurt your teeth when you drink it," he said in a mock sage voice.

He fixed a glass for her and passed it over to her. As she took a sip he waited for her reaction, and asked, "What did you and your husband use to do in your downtime, your weekends?"

 

[AlisonMarch]

She watched as he prepared the sweet tea and nodded at appropriate times. When he poured her a glass, she sipped dutifully, almost able to taste a hint of tea in the sugary concoction.

"That is the sweetest tea I've ever tasted," she said, smiling.

"My husband and I?" she said. She closed her eyes, trying not to let the sorrow flatten her. She took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling, distracting herself by contemplating the beams for a moment. "We traveled a lot. He liked to go on cruises and group tours, so I've been a few places. He loved speed, so he'd take any chance to get behind the wheel of a fast car or a fast boat. We'd go out to eat and to parties. Sometimes, we'd just sit out by the pool. Pretty normal stuff." As she spoke, she thought about the life she had lost. It had been good, fun, easy. She had been angry that John had lied to her about the money, and she would never entirely shake it as long as she was struggling to get by with nothing, but she wouldn't trade it.

"I'm sorry, it's still pretty raw." She looked at Buddy, gave a half smile, kicking herself. She wasn't helping herself out any by getting sad about things. She grinned sheepishly. "Anyway, that's the past."

 

[a_libertine]

Buddy reached out and laid his hand on her upper arm, caressing it with his thumb. "I ask because this is more or less my life," he said as he waved an arm around the cabin.

He poured himself a glass of tea, then continued, "I don't go on cruises, I don't party, and I don't go on vacation other than to come here. I spend a week a quarter out here recharging, and in December I come out around the fifteenth and stay until the Monday after New Years."

He watched her face carefully as he concluded, "On the other hand, I am on track to retire at 50 if I choose to, but will likely work anyway because I love what I do, and the people for whom I do it."

He gave her a sheepish grin and quipped, "Have I scared you away yet?"

 

[AlisonMarch]

She gave a little chuckle when he asked if she was scared.

"Not at all," she said, looking around her. "This is a beautiful place. I can see why you would come here." She put her hand over the hand that was touching her arm and smiled. "Most of that travelling was his thing. I mean, when I wanted to go to places, he'd take me, but it was usually his idea. And, you know, now I've been everywhere that people go, so I got that out of the way."

She looked down at the counter, wondering what it meant that he was telling her about his life. At first, she had been afraid he was bringing her up here because he thought she'd be an easy weekend of fun, but it didn't feel like that anymore. Was he inviting her to join him, or was she just seeing what she wanted to see? She looked around. It was a nice cabin, but it was clearly a man's place. She could see him bringing buddies up to hunt or fish, but it was not a honey-trap. There was nothing seductive about it, which made her think this might be what she had hoped it was.

"You haven't brought a lot of girls up here, have you?" she asked, trying not to sound too hopeful.

 

[a_libertine]

Buddy looked around the cabin a moment and saw what she did. This was his place untouched by another. He looked back at her, "No, I haven't. "

He sipped at the tea and sighed heavily. "I got engaged five years ago. I had dated her for eighteen months. About two weeks before our wedding I caught her with another man."

He put the glass down and shrugged, "Haven't had much stomach for a serious relationship since. Mostly I have been mad, and in the last year decided that was giving her more power over me than she deserved."

He looked at her, "Enough of that."

He lifted his glass to her, "Here is to a new era."