The Sundress

When I first met Keri, I knew right then and there she was going to be my wife. Of course, this was in the third grade and I actually had no idea what marriage really was. I just knew that it was a thing that occurred between two people who loved each other. The funny thing is, Keri and I didn't even start dating until high school, despite being good friends ever since our first meeting.

Keri was the typical girl next door for me, beautiful, with long dark hair, brown eyes and the kind of athletic body that all the boys loved. She was exactly my type, an athlete with a good brain and a sense of humor. The problem is, I was never her type. I was the skinny boy who played the only sport our town didn't care for, Baseball, and liked video games a little bit too much. Sure Keri and I were friends, but that's how it remained for years.

That all changed in our sophomore year of high school. It was your typical Friday night for the two of us, hanging out on the top of my car - an old Impala handed down from my parents - in our neighborhood park while music blasted from the radio. She had just broken up with her latest boyfriend and my last girlfriend ended up cheating on me. Despite the heartache, this remained our weekly ritual. Everything changed that night though, for the both of us.

She had made the off-handed suggestion that we should make a pact. That if we hit 30 and were still single, we'd marry each other. Like the madly in love fool that I was, I agreed. After a few moments of silence, I spoke up again and pulled quite arguably the smoothest move I had ever thought of. I said to her that if we were to get married we should at least know how to kiss each other. She laughed of course, but agreed to a practice kiss regardless. That chilly Friday night, we shared our first kiss on the top of my car. There was a spark there, I felt it and she must have felt it too. Less than a week later, Keri and I were official.

We stayed official ever since. We were inseperable, and our like for each other soon turned into a true love for each other. Everything we could do together, we did and we got married almost immediately after graduation. A few months after that, she was pregnant with our daughter.

Fast forward 19 years, and Keri and our daughter, Hannah, were basically twins. Hannah loved everything about her mom and had even been picking up where she left off in regards to sports. A star athlete like her mother, Hannah had been awarded a full sports scholarship for basketball and had even committed to the school Keri had always wanted to go to. Part of me always felt guilty that Keri never went to college, I didn't force her to not go, but she was pregnant almost right out the gate and had opted to raise our baby girl while I worked.

We had a system, and life was perfect. Keri and I were about to have the house to ourselves and Hannah was going to be the first in either of our families to go to college. But fate had a different plan for us.

One stormy summer night, while helping Hannah pack for her flight, I got the phone call that shattered my world. Keri was in a car accident, a truck driver had fallen asleep at the wheel and hit her head-on. She died instantly, not that that was of any relief to me or Hannah.

Life went into a downward spiral for me. I simply stopped caring. My heart had been shattered and it was like my brain was just making me go through the motions. The funeral, the family gathering, the packing of her stuff, I remember doing it all as if someone else had taken control of my body. I was there in every sense but emotionally.

I was so caught up in my own grief that I didn't register Hannah's grief. It had been only two weeks since the funeral, and I was sitting in my room when I saw Hannah walk past my door with one of Keri's favorite dresses. At that moment, I snapped out of whatever dead-to-the-world trance I was in and perked up.

"H-hey!" I called out, my throat dry from lack of water during the day. I stood up from the edge of my bed and walked towards my doorway.

"Yes, daddy?" Hannah called as I poked my head into the hallway. Even now, she still called me "daddy" despite being grown. If it wasn't for that one little word, I would have believef I was staring at Keri herself.

I meant it when I said Hannah was her mother's twin. Same toned body, dark hair, and tone of speech, and the dress Hannah chose to wear only made matters worse. It was a blue and white striped sundress that hung just above her knees.

"Is that..." I paused as I tried to find the right words to say to Hannah. "Is that your mom's dress?" I finally asked. I could tell Hannah had been crying, her red eyes and sniffling nose was the dead giveaway. A quick look down the hallway in the direction she had come from told me she was coming from the bathroom when I spotted her.

"Yeah I... well I know mom loved it so I thought I would keep it." Hannah answered. "You're not mad at me are you?" For the first time in weeks, I felt my face form a smile and I shook my head.

"Not at all babygirl," I answered. "Help yourself, it's all going into storage otherwise." Hannah flashed a bright smile at me and practically ran towards me. She hugged me tight, her arms wrapped around my neck and her body pressed hard against mine, just like Keri used to hug. I hugged her back and as Hannah buried her face into my neck for the embrace, I lowered my head into hers.

It was then that I noticed Hannah was also wearing Keri's perfume. I was taken aback for a moment, but the intoxicating smell only spurred me to hold the embrace even longer. God, I missed her, her touch, her scent, her voice.

"Thank you daddy," Hannah said, her voice almost a whisper in my ear. Hearing her speak broke me out of my haze and I tried to step back, but Hannah only held onto me tighter and pulled me back into her. "I know there isn't much I can do, but I am here to help."

It both hurt and helped to hear my daughter say that. I should be the one consoling her, not the other way around. Yet here she was, taking that first step and being the one to start the healing. Just like Keri would have done. After another few seconds, Hannah finally let me go and stepped back. She looked up at me and smiled before giving me a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Your scruff feels good." She remarked before turning around. I couldn't help but smile at that. It was funny, Keri actually hated facial hair so I usually shaved. But weeks of being lazy and drowning in my sorrows meant I was lacking on certain things like shaving. Once I heard the door to Hannah's room close shut, I moved towards the bathroom with a smile on my face.

It felt good, seeing my daughter in good spirits despite everything going on. Seeing her staying strong in front of me pushed me to start my own self-healing process, and it started with a shower.

The hot water was soothing in an almost magical kind of way. As it hit me, I closed my eyes and let my mind drift. I couldn't stop thinking about Hannah, about how strong she is, about how I wouldn't have been able to make it if it wasn't for her words. Then my thoughts shifted.

The dress and the perfume, my mental image was of Keri once again and despite my vow to start moving on, I didn't want to lose her just yet. As I continued to reminisce about that one fleeting moment, I felt my blood begin to rush down to my cock. I missed Keri's touch, missed her soft hands as they explored my body every time we were intimate as if it was our first time. I missed her and Hannah had very briefly brought my wife back to me.

"Daddy, I'm going to bed now!" Hannah's voice coming from the other side of the door snapped me out of my thoughts and I cut off the shower.

"Ok, goodnight sweetheart." I called out as I looked through the steam at the door. There was no response from Hannah, simply a creak in the floor as she walked away. With a deep breath, I stepped out of the shower, grabbed a towel and dried myself off. Without the mental stimulation, my boner subsided and I walked out of the bathroom with the towel around my waist without sporting a tent.

As I headed to my room, I stole a quick look down the hallway and saw Hannah had her door closed, but the light shining through the bottom of her door revealed she was still awake. She was probably getting herself ready for bed. Without a second thought to it, I entered my room, closed the door shut behind me and got dressed for bed.

I was never one to wear much to bed, half the time I wore nothing but underwear. But tonight I opted to wear black basketball shorts. Shirtless, I flopped onto my bed and was asleep within seconds.

I don't know how long I was asleep before I woke up. I was always a light sleeper and the slightest sound would pull me out of my slumber for a brief moment. Tonight, that sound was that of my door opening. I let it go, convincing myself that I just hadn't closed it all the way. For the first time in weeks I was sleeping good and simply wanted to get back to it.

But then I felt movement on my bed. It couldn't have been Hannah, she was usually asleep by now. Unless I had only been asleep for a few minutes? I heard the sound of a head hitting the pillow beside me and felt a soft hand rub my back. In that moment, I had to turn around. If it was Hannah, I was going to tell her to go back to her bed, that she was too old to be sharing a bed with her dad. But when I turned around, I found myself staring into the face of Keri.

My breath caught in my throat. I had to still be dreaming, there was no way this was real. Instinctively, I pinched my arm to wake myself up, but the pain suggested I was awake.

"Wha..." I started to speak but her finger was on my mouth before I could finish the first word.

"Hi Jayce." She said, her voice hushed as if she wasn't trying to wake up our daughter down the hallway. It was weird hearing my name come from her, but nice at the same time. I remained speechless as I looked at Keri laying right next to me. Despite all the signs pointing to me being awake, I refused to believe this was anything more than a dream.

"Am I dreaming?" I asked after a few moments of silence. It was a stupid question, of course I was dreaming. Ghosts weren't real, and if they were, they certainly didn't come and lay down with you in your bed. Keri remained silent, not answering vocally, but by shrugging instead, as if to tell me to figure it out myself.

I looked over her as she continued to lay down beside me. She was wearing her favorite sundress. The blue and white striped one that hung just above her knees. Though with her laying down, the dress had hiked up a bit, revealing her toned thighs.

"I miss you so much," I said softly, feeling my heart pound within my chest. Keri smiled at me and placed a hand on my cheek.

"I'm here now," She responded. Her fingers gently rubbed my cheek and I closed my eyes to the sound of her softly scratching my scruffy beard. "I like your scruff." She said, causing me to open my eyes and look at her.

"I always thought you hated it," I said. Keri shrugged once again.

"A girl can change her mind, can't she?" I laughed softly at that and lifted my hand out towards her. I was hesitant, afraid that if I tried to touch her my hands would fall right through her and hit the bed instead. Much to my relief, my hand hit solid, warm, skin instead.

I let out a relieved sigh and rubbed her arm. It felt good to touch her again, even if this was a dream, or some weird apparition from the afterlife. Like I said, I don't believe in ghosts, but right now it was hard to remain a non-believer when I was staring at my recently deceased wife in person, in my bed.

As I rubbed her arm, she lowered her hand and placed a hand on my chest. She looked at me with her brown eyes as her hand explored my torso. I felt my skin prickle with goosebumps and I felt my shorts begin to tighten as I began to sport a tent.

"Baby I... I don't know what to do." I said to her. Keri's fingers continued to trace figures up and down my chest, moving lower to my stomach now.

"How do we usually end our Friday nights?" Keri asked. I smiled at that. She remembered our Friday night routine, this was my Keri, it had to be. Whether this was a dream or something different, I didn't want it to end.

My hands moved down her body and to her waist. I cupped her butt and pulled her in closer. A soft moan escaped her throat and our lips met. Just like always, her lips were warm and soft to the touch. Our kisses were soft at first, a string of quick playful pecks that soon evolved into deeper, more powerful kisses. Our tongues tasted each other and her perfume filled my nose.

"You smell good," She said, breaking the make-out session. I smiled back at her.

"I was going to say the same thing. I showered tonight." I remarked. Keri smiled and placed one hand on my cheek again.

"Wow, all by yourself. I'm proud of you." She responded sarcastically. I rolled my eyes at her and she chuckled before leaning in for another kiss. Our tongue-filled kissing resumed and I squeezed her butt hard. I knew she loved it when I did that, and I always loved touching her ass whenever I could.

She pressed into me hard, her breasts pushing into my chest and my cock poking her through my shorts. As we continued to kiss, her free hand not on my cheek slipped into my shorts and I felt her fingers wrap against my hard cock. I let out a deep breath as she started stroking, her thumb running across my head and smearing my pre-cum across the tip.

I returned the favor by sliding my hand under her dress and softly rubbing my middle finger across her slit from behind. She moaned at my touch and I responded with a soft groan. She was already wet, and as I continued to run the tip of my fingers across her folds, I could hear the sounds of her juices.

"Take me, Jayce." She whispered into my mouth. Most times she was one to take charge, but every so often she let me, and I was always happy to oblige.

I quickly rolled on top of her and she gasped at the sudden motion as she was moved onto her back. Her legs spread out and she continued to stroke my cock inside my shorts. With her other hand, she traced her fingers down my body and to my waistband. Continuing to kiss her, I pulled up her dress even more, exposing her stomach and she pulled my shorts down.

Not wanting to break contact, I pushed myself up with my toes and let her slide my shorts down to my ankles. Breathing heavily against each others lips, we continued to kiss while she guided the tip of my cock to her own entrance. I paused for a moment before I slid inside, taking in the beauty of my wife. I still couldn't believe this was happening. Couldn't believe that she was here, and that we were making love like we always do.

I pushed into her and moans escaped both our lips at the same time. Her wet folds enveloped my cock, practically sucking me in. I sheathed myself inside her and held still for a moment, burying my face into her neck. It didn't take long for Keri to start moving her hips, forcing my cock deeper into her while simultaneously rubbing her clit against my hips.

Her moans spurred me into action and I kissed her neck as I started to move my hips. I began pumping my cock into her slowly, savoring every inch of her tight, soaking wet, tunnel. I loved going slow with her, and she loved it as well. Every slow stroke into her set the nerves of my cock on fire and caused her to moan.

Her fingers ran up and down my back and I began to pump a little bit faster.

"That's it baby." She whispered into my ear, egging me on. I ran my hand down her body as I continued to pump into her at a steady pace. I hooked my arm under one knee and lifted her leg up so it was wrapped around my side. "Oh fuck yes!" She exclaimed.

Keri was never much for foul language outside of the bedroom. But whenever we had sex, it always seemed to bring it out of her. It all served to spur me on.

"You feel so good," I moaned into her ear as I kept up the rhythm we had going. I thrust into her with my full body, causing both of us to rock in sync with each other. Our breaths were heavy and I felt my body begin to grow damp with sweat.

If this was truly a ghost, then everything I had seen about them were wrong. She felt as real as ever before. If this was a dream, then there was no way I would ever want to wake up.

"Fuck me, I'm cumming." Keri moaned into my ear. I felt her hands grip my butt tight and she dug her nails into my flesh. I groaned myself, the pleasure beginning to become too much. I guess this was real, because in my dream I'd have lasted longer.

I felt her walls tighten as she climaxed. Her own juices flooding out around my cock still hilted inside her. I groaned with pleasure, her moans growing loud enough I was afraid Hannah would hear us with our door wide open.

I pumped faster into her, feeling my own orgasm building.

"I love you, Keri." I moaned out.

"I love you too, baby." She responded.

Her voice, full of passion and love, pushed me over the edge. I slammed my cock into her as deep as I could as I hit the breaking point and held still. My cock flexed inside her and I moaned into her shoulder as I shot rope after rope of my cum into her.

Keri moaned and ran her hands up and down my body as I let my orgasm finish. After finishing what felt like the biggest load I'd ever had, I let out a deep breath and lay against her.

The room was silent with the exception of our heavy breathing. Keri continued to rub my back, not caring that I was laying on top of her. After a few seconds, I felt my now limp cock slip out of her and I lifted my head to look at my lovely wife.

"Don't leave me." I whispered. Keri simply smiled up at me.

"I'm always with you." She responded.

I smiled at her and finally rolled off from on top of her. She let out a sigh of content and fixed her dress while I grabbed my shorts and pulled them back on. I fought back tears as I rolled onto my side. A dream meant that I would wake up and she'd be gone. If she was a ghost then that would also mean that I'd wake up and she'd be gone. Either way, she wouldn't be here in the morning and it was a lose-lose for me.

"Just sleep, baby." Keri said from behind me as she wrapped her arm around me. I felt her snuggle up against my back and I grabbed her hand with one of mine, squeezing it tightly.

Heeding her words, I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. She would be gone when I woke up, I knew that much, and I had no choice but to accept it. My wife was no longer with me, there weren't going to be anymore mornings where I'd wake up to her still cuddling me. I had told myself that I would move on, maybe this was just the universe giving me one last time with her.

I wasn't sure, not completely. But as I drifted off to sleep, I told myself that I would enjoy this last night in her presence.