Better to Seek Forgiveness?

"So then you guys won't mind if I take her out for a few minutes, assuming she says yes?" Marcus asked.

Carol nodded yes and the younger women shooed the two out to the dance floor. He noticed that Carol seemed to be hiding a curvy body under her understated blouse and skirt.

Marcus was not a great dancer, but he wasn't shy about trying. He was much more confident when a slow song came on the speakers, holding the woman close. She enjoyed the strength of Marcus' arms and settled in closer. He noticed, and enjoyed the feeling.

Marcus left the bar with Carol's phone number and a date for the next Friday.

"Way to go, Mom," Marcus heard one of the younger women say as the group left the bar.

******

Traci stopped dating until the divorce was official, figuring that maybe showing Marcus she had stopped would change his mind about continuing the divorce. She never held back on her anger that Marcus wouldn't consider reconciliation after all the years the two were married.

"You cheated on me, first behind my back, then right in front of me, without any consideration for me, for my feelings, for the consequences of your actions. What the fuck, Traci?" Marcus said one time when she begged him to reconcile.

"It didn't mean anything. I just wanted to feel the excitement of new experiences, new people. We had grown... stale," she said.

"It meant something to me, Traci. If you had ever loved me, the least you could have done was divorce me first instead of cheating on me... you self-obsessed bitch," he growled.

******

Carol understood that Marcus needed time to be able to trust a partner again with his heart. She had divorced a cheating spouse 10 years earlier and had experienced many of the same issues Marcus was going through. He found out the caring nature she exhibited with her younger co-workers was her natural motherly instincts coming through, even though she had never had children of her own.

The two had a small wedding a little more than a year after their first date. Six months after the first date, Marcus had proposed, feeling that Carol would protect his heart for the rest of their days.

Marcus son had stood up for his father as best man. One of Carol's co-workers who had been with her when she met Marcus on the first night, was the maid of honor.

Marcus' daughter was not happy that her father was marrying another woman, but she had to admit that Carol seemed to be the right fit.

"Take care of him and Dad will love you forever. He's like a loyal St. Bernard in that way," Layla told her after the ceremony.

The two retired 12 years later and spent their retirement years traveling around the country and visiting their grandchildren. They enrolled in ballroom dance classes and participated in several events in their area. They were rarely apart.

******

Once the divorce went through, Traci went back to dating multiple men, having nothing further to lose. Even though she was still a good-looking woman for her age, she was aging through her 50s, and her dates were no longer the handsome hunks she used to get.

Still, since she was no longer married, she took advantage of being able to spend overnights with her dates. Sometimes she even spent full weekends with her man of the moment. Although she was loathe to admit it, being a slut helped her fill her time.

"I miss him every day," she told her friend, Marianne Looper one day at lunch about five years after the divorce. "I know, you warned me. I should have been happy with the good man I had. I was a stupid, stupid slut."