A Fool No More

She gave me a tiny peck on the cheek and went inside. Turning to me, she said, "Jared, I think I need to rest for a little while. Stay out, okay? I'll see you in an hour or so." She walked in the bedroom and closed the door behind her.

Everybody needs privacy sometimes, but something strange was going on and memories of Jeanie's betrayal came to mind for the first time in a long while.

I fretted.

I worried.

I paced, and I even sweated a little.

My stomach churning as much as my mind, I wondered if it could all be happening again?

Then I remembered something, something very important. This was Brooke, not Jeanie, and Brooke had never been like my ex. And even more important than that, I remembered that I loved and trusted Brooke, even if I hadn't told her the first part and probably hadn't proved the last part to her.

Today, I decided, I would make a change, putting the past and the bad memories behind me in order to make things right for the future. Checking the time, I found that I still had 50 minutes so I whistled a happy little nonsense as I went to work in the yard.

***

Brooke called to me from the porch and held up a glass of water just as I was finishing some trimming. She was dressed in the warm bathrobe she'd frequently worn during the winter as she recovered.

"It's warm today, Jared. You're sweating like crazy and spring's just started," she said. "I'm going to have to ditch this robe and start wearing real clothes again." When all I did was nod, she added, "What do say about calling it quits and coming in to get a shower. We need to talk."

There were those dreaded words, now coming from Brooke instead of from my past and it shook me. The fortitude I'd felt earlier was suddenly gone, that sense of peace and the determination to blaze a new path was gone and all I could do was nod once again. I mumbled a thank you for the water and went in to shower.

Brooke was sitting on the couch still wearing the bathroom when I entered the living room minutes later. She patted the couch next to me and gave me a smile that could have been happy or might have been a cover for some sly plan. I couldn't tell which so I sat where she indicated, hoping for the best even as I feared for the worst.

"Jared, you've been so good to me, so helpful and caring since I've been home, and even before that, really, while I was in the hospital. I appreciate all you've done for me--"

A vision of headsmen's axes, French guillotines, and swinging nooses flashed before my eyes.

"--and how patient you've been while I've been recovering, but we need to make some changes now."

A firing squad dressed in Mexican ponchos and oversized sombreros joined in.

"Doc Ellen says that you can't do it anymore--"

The vision changed to bombs dropping out of the open bay of a WWII bomber. I think I even imagined them whistling as they slipped through the air.

"--that I have to do more for myself since I'll be going back to work soon and you won't be there to help." She grinned at the look on my face. "Jared, she wants to see me one more time before I go back and then only if anything comes up."

"Wait, that's what you wanted to tell me?"

"Ye-ah. What did you think it was? That I was going to break up with you or something?"

My Jeanie-induced neurosis went "POOF!" and I said, "Of course not. Well, maybe a little?"

"Silly man," she said before leaning forward to kiss me. That was different, too. Since the accident, I'd always leaned forward to her for any kisses to keep her from straining herself. Our kisses had become more passionate over the past couple of weeks, but this one was at a level we hadn't shared since that Christmas day several years before.

Brooke pulled away, smiling. "Wow! I'm glad Doc Ellen told me a couple more things last week, too."

I looked at her and raised my eyebrows, refusing to speculate.

"Well, my new prescription was available at the pharmacy--"

"Wait. I thought she was releasing you. What's the new prescription for?"

She bit her lower lip as she smiled at me. "Birth control pills, silly; I'm on them and they're effective by now. The other thing," she said as she stood up and untied the belt on her robe, "was that they were having a good sale at the mall through this weekend."

The robe opened and dropped from her shoulders to reveal a lacy, black babydoll. I'm sure my eyes bulged and my mouth probably fell open but I was too busy staring at her beauty, the lace cups, scalloped along the edges, covering her breasts but doing little to conceal her pink areolas. As she moved, I realized it was a flyaway type, with the sheer black body slit open in the middle and revealing a black lace panty below.

"My God, Brooke, you're so beautiful," I breathed.

Grinning, she stood up and did a very slow, two-footed pirouette-like spin, causing the bodice to fly out from her body, just a little, while also revealing that the panty was actually a G-string set in her wonderfully sexy ass.

"Oh my God," I whispered as she completed her turn and then came toward me, straddling my lap, and putting my face in her cleavage. I cupped her breasts, pushing them to caress my cheeks as I kissed one side and then the other.

"Jared, I won't be able to do much in this position for a while, but there are quite a few others that should work and I'll get stronger with practice. Ellen did say we shouldn't get too rough in any position at first, but that we can make love all we want otherwise and we can be more, ahem, strenuous over time as long as it doesn't hurt."

Brooke writhed slowly on my lap, causing my dick to get quite uncomfortable in the wrong position as it hardened. I slid my hand down to make a correction but felt her mound against me so I rubbed that with the back of my fingers instead. She moaned as I did before shifting to let me undo my pants. I hooked them and my boxer briefs together and slid them down so she could rub her sweet, barely-covered pussy against me.

She made a few passes--it was heaven on earth feeling her soft wetness caressing my skin--and I almost pushed inside but I could see she was tiring. "Sweetheart, let's go to the bedroom, okay?"

"Good idea. Your turn to drive," she added.

I kicked off my pants and she took my hand and pulled me into the bedroom. Once in bed, she pulled her legs up, showing that the G-string had slid between--

"You shaved!" I said in surprise.

"You didn't think I was sleeping a while ago, did you? I wanted it to be perfect for you, Jared."

"Oh, you are perfect, Brooke," I said as I leaned down to kiss her. One hand slid down over her breast, sliding across the lace before dipping inside and cupping her soft boob.

My other hand went lower, sliding over her mound, rubbing her clit. One finger slid under the edge of the lace thong, and then I was rubbing her puffy labia a few times before centering and sliding through her hot paradise.

"Mmmmm," she moaned as I worked back and forth a few times in her wetness before moving back to her clit and concentrating on it. Round and round, over and over I went, causing more moans and a case of serious concentration on her face as she fought to extend the feeling and then to give herself to it. "Ahhhh!" she groaned as her first orgasm in ages swept over her.

She pulled me down beside her where I could wrap myself over her and she could slip and arm around me. Looking me in the eyes, she said, "Jared McClelland, I'm the luckiest woman in the world to have you with me, to have had you stand by me and help me through all I've been through. Jared, I love you with all my heart."

Her words melted mine, warming and filling me with joy, and then her kiss that followed curled my toes and made me hunger for more. I stopped though, and looked into her beautiful green eyes and only then noticed that she was wearing the emerald necklace and earrings that I'd given her that Christmas before things fell apart.

"Brooke, I am the luckiest alive to have you in my life. I love you, too, sweetheart, with all my heart and soul."

"Make love to me, Jared. I want to feel you, to feel your love, and to share mine with you, too."

Worried about hurting her, I lined up and gently pushed inside, little by little, back and forth at first, as her walls spread to accommodate me and grasped to keep me there. A few more rounds and I was in to the hilt, reveling in her tightness around me, luxuriating in her softness caressing me as I withdrew and entered again. I loved feeling her gripping me with her pussy and holding me in her arms, her legs wrapped around mine, pushing me forward as I thrust into her. It truly felt like heaven as we rocked together. Brooke's were gentle due to her condition so I was slow and steady, trying to give her all the pleasure I could.

Her breathing slowly changed, her motions intensifying without becoming too intense, and my own thrusts came faster and harder. "Good, Jared, so good," she moaned, urging me on as the pressure built inside me. I clamped down when it reached the tipping point and delayed that last few seconds until she cried out as she hit her peak and I was able to explode into her.

We lay there together afterward, lost in love and in each other's arms.

***

The leaves were turning colors in the fall of 2012 when I heard rapid, persistent knocking at the front door of our new home; having earned my engineering degree was finally paying off.

I was unpacking one of the remaining boxes stacked in the dining room--there were only six left to go in this room, which was quite encouraging--and Brooke was doing some sort of school work upstairs in her office so I moved to the door and peeked out the sidelight. My good mood soured at once but I opened the door anyway.

"Jeanie, what a surprise," I said, wondering if she'd catch that I didn't say 'pleasant.'

"Jared McClelland! I was just at Ashley's helping plan a baby shower for her when she let it slip that you're--I can't believe I'm saying this!--living with Brooke Woodsen from our old scout troop. You pervert! I'm going to contact her parents and let them know what's going on. When they find out, I swear her father will come and beat the living shit out of you!"

"Jeanie, watch your language or you'll leave right now," I said.

"Says the pervert who's fucking the little girl young enough to be his daughter. I can't--"

"Another word, woman, and you'll be gone," I whispered. "I'll call the--"

"J, who is it, honey?" called Brooke as she came down the stairs. At some point, she'd started calling me her attempted pet name again and now I loved hearing her say it just as I loved her. I smiled at her, walking a bit gingerly, but not because of her old injuries. Jeanie noticed, too, and she clamped her hand over her open mouth.

"You creepy, fucking bastard!" she squeaked. "You knocked her up! Mr. Woodsen will absolutely kill you and I won't blame him a bit!"

Being due just a few weeks after Ashley and Craig's baby and about two months before Brianna and Matthew's, Brooke laughed with joy as she approached holding a book in her hands. "Hi, Mrs. Jeanie. Ash called and told me you'd be stopping by. Nice to see you again after so many years."

"Brooke, honey, are you okay? What did this jackass do to you? Is he keeping you here against your will?"

"I'm doing great, thank you. As for what he did to me, oh, a great many really fun, really naughty things," she whispered, "but I don't want to make you jealous so I'll shut up about that. No, he's not keeping me here against my will, and no, Jared most definitely didn't 'knock me up.'"

She flipped the book, a photo album, around and opened it to show Jeanie a photo of our wedding certificate, properly signed by the pastor and the probate court judge. "It's real, as legal as the day is long. And my dad walked me down the aisle and shook Jared's hand so please don't waste your time bothering him."

Jeanie was looking at it in shock and then saw our wedding photo on the next page.

Brooke said, "That's our favorite photo from the wedding of just the two of us. We're looking at each other with so much love and devotion. I feel so bad for Jared in a way that he got cheated out of that his first time around with you but it made it possible for us to get together and I'm eternally grateful for that."

Realizing what Brooke meant, Jeanie looked shell-shocked and was sputtering, so I'm not sure if she even heard when I said, "Me, too, thank the Lord."

Brooke turned the page and showed her another photo, this one with Caitlyn in her flower girl dress in the middle holding up a little bouquet and grinning at the photographer as Brooke and I, kneeling down with one on each side, kissed her cheeks. "Oh, and this is our daughter, Caitlyn. She'll be five in just a couple of weeks."

Jeanie was shaking her head. "Your daughter? Jared's daughter? No! It can't be!"

"Oh, yes it can," replied Brooke, before adding with a giggle, "though technically he did knock me up with her. Hmm, just like he did you with Ashley, right?"

Jeanie, her face redder than her hair, made an awful snort-like sound in surprise, and I almost laughed, but then I heard a noise behind me.

I looked around to see Caitlyn approaching, carrying her doll in her arms. She had a strange expression on her face as she looked at Jeanie in distress.

"Daddy, who's that lady? Is she okay?"

I almost said nobody, but I wanted to set a good example for our little girl. "Hey, sweetie, this is your big sister Ashley's mommy. Tell her it's nice to meet her and say goodbye because she's leaving right now."

Caitlyn was very polite as she said the words and then turned to me to say, "Daddy, I'm thirsty."

"Go on in the kitchen, sweetie, and I'll be there in a minute."

As she headed that way with her doll in tow, I turned to Jeanie, stepping forward, crowding her so she backed out the door. I said, "Yeah, Jeanie, thanks for letting me have happiness...with Brooke and my children. Maybe we'll see you at the hospital when Ash's baby is born but if not...take care."

I closed the door and locked it behind her as she said something unintelligible outside. I didn't bother trying to catch what she said, recalling instead something about the symbolism of doors closing and opening, the past and the future.

Or some such nonsense like that. Whatever, Jeanie was outside and out of my life.

Smiling at the real love of my life, the woman I truly loved, I took Brooke's hand and we walked to the kitchen and into our future together.

The End

____________________

Author's Note:

Many thanks to blackrandl1958 for inviting me to participate in her When A Man Loves a Woman Anthology. The inspiration is from Percy Sledge's great version of the song from 1966 that was briefly referenced in the story.

Thanks, too, to everyone for reading this and all of my stories. Your feedback in the way of ratings, favorites, follows, and/or comments are greatly appreciated, too.