Third Try's a Charm

On the way back to my place Shannon asked if I'd like to have a drink with her later. I told her I'd get my neighbor to watch Robert and Carla and would see her about eight thirty.

I was sweating tacks by the time I pulled up to the inn where she was staying. "Just don't get into an argument," my brain kept saying over and over again. There was a pub four doors down from the inn and we headed towards it, walking together but apart. We always, and I do mean always, held hands. It was foreign walking along beside her without slipping my hand into hers.

When our drinks came we just looked at one another, neither one knowing what or how to begin to say it. At the exact time we both started talking, not once but twice. We laughed. Shannon told me to go ahead.

"I'm sorry I snuck out and left you and the kids. I was angry and a million things were going through my mind, none of them good. Looking back I see it was childish. Maybe my insecurities were showing through, but after all I'd been through because of that man, I just wanted to kill him and hurt you in any way I could in the process." I don't know if it was psychosomatic but my legs started to stiffen up.

"Like I e-mailed you, it wasn't intentional by any means, and if you would have stuck around you would have seen that. Hell, I didn't even know you were there. For all I knew, you never showed up that night. It wasn't until Sue called me did I realize what had happened. Well, you got what you wanted; you hurt me beyond all belief. We were getting back together one day and the next you were on your way to England. I thought you had turned that position down weeks ago—guess not. But even more you hurt Robert and Carla to the core. They kept asking me what they had done to drive you away. For the longest time they wouldn't believe it wasn't them. Like you said, they are resilient, but they're your kids not some cat or dog that eventually gets over you not being around. They miss you every day you're not with them. The video camera helps, but it's no substitute for you being there."

If I felt like shit before, I felt ten times worse now. I knew she was right. I looked at her, then hung my head, trying not to let the tears I felt gathering in my eyes fall. "They're great kids, you're right, they didn't deserve it." I needed another drink.

We talked until almost eleven. We said things that should have been said months ago, in person, before I had left. By the time we were done, we both had said 'sorry' a couple dozen times to each other.

"I'll talk to Robert and Carla in the morning. It's long overdue; hopefully they will forgive me."

"Steve, of course they'll forgive you, they're your kids, for Christ sakes. They love you to death." I knew she was right again, but I wasn't looking forward to it anyway.

"I think I'd better not have anymore to drink, they don't take kindly over here to drinking and driving." I paid our tab. "Let me walk you back to your room."

As soon as we started walking our hands joined. I don't think it was planned, but it happened and neither one of us pulled away. I think we were finally at peace with one another. I was going to give her a kiss on the cheek but she turned her head and our lips touched. One kiss went to two and then three, we began making out like a couple of teenagers on her parents' front porch. She was the one to pull back.

"I think I'd better go in now, your sitter is probably wondering where you're at about now." I'd forgotten all about her. "We can talk more tomorrow if you'd like." With one more kiss she was inside.

All the way back to my apartment I replayed what had just happened, especially during the last half hour. I was sprouting a huge hard-on and needed to get myself under control before I walked through the front door.

"Sorry, I'm so late. We let the time get away from us," I told the sitter, falling all over myself.

"Don't worry, the young ones are dead asleep. If you need me again, please, just let me know." She smiled, and walked down the hall to her place.

I didn't get much sleep that night. I rehearsed over and over what I was going to say, not only to Carla and Robert, but also to Shannon later in the day.

"Guys, I want to say how sorry I am about leaving without talking to you first. You had nothing to do with why I left, and I should have explained that to you months ago. I love you more than you can imagine and miss you both terribly." Tears, hugs, kisses, and then laugher erupted as they forgave me, both telling me to never let it happen again.

"You should talk to Mom too. She feels as bad as we do about your leaving." When I explained to them that I had already talked to their mother last night, they were all smiles again. "What time are we picking her up?"

A picnic lunch was on the agenda for Thursday, our last full day together. We picked up an assortment of meats and cheeses along with some fruit and drinks. We went out into the country, found a nice area by a large stream, and were having a grand time. Shannon and I watched the kids throwing rocks into the stream, all the while running up and down the bank watching the fish swim by.

It was out of the blue and totally unexpected when Shannon moved over and kissed me. It wasn't a thank you kiss; it was more one with a lot of feeling behind it. When the initial shock wore off, I returned her kiss and moved in tighter letting my hands roam a bit.

"I've got a proposition for you," is how she started it. "I don't want your answer until tomorrow morning, agreed?"

"Okay, what is it?" I asked, sitting up now.

"You've got fourteen months left on your initial contract. What I'm proposing is that the kids and I stay with you until it's complete. After that, we see where we're at and make another decision at that time. This way it won't be so hard on our children. I've been offered a temporary position, and the kids can go to the local school. We'd have to get a larger place, but for now we could make due with what you have." I was in shock.

"This isn't a spur of the moment plan, is it?" She shook her head, no.

"No. Not all of it. I had already looked into a few things even before we left the states, but wasn't too sure of anything until our trip to London. I didn't expect us to connect as well as we did. I wasn't sure I'd love being with you again, but I do. My one and only condition is we live like a family for the next fourteen months. After that we can either stay together or split up for good. It's our last chance to get back to where we were, or begin the permanent start of our lives without one another. However, if it is a no, the kids come back with me, that isn't up for negotiation." I was at a loss for words. She gave me one more kiss on the lips. Now what?

"Who else knows about this?" She smiled, and I remembered Sue's last e-mail.

"She said it couldn't hurt to ask and if you said no, well, it wouldn't be any different then it is right now. We thought it could be a win win for all of us, you, me, and the kids."

I began to wonder to myself if this whole trip was a setup? I wasn't sure how I was feeling right now, elated or duped.

Shannon continued to explain her plan. "I have checked around, a school for Robert and Carla would be easy, there are three good ones in the area, but finding a comparable job for me was a lot harder. I've got two decent offers on the table and both pay at least what I'm currently making. I told them that I'd let them know tomorrow." She got up to check on the kids.

For the rest of the afternoon our eyes never left one another. We ate, talked to the kids, and had a wonderful time. When it started to get a dark we packed up the car and headed back to town. Shannon grabbed my hand and held it as we drove. I dropped off her off at the inn with a big kiss, a hug, and a lot of indecision.

"One way or another you need to pick me up no later than seven thirty because our flight leaves at ten fifty-five. If you want to call me tonight you know where I'll be." She blew us a kiss before walking into the inn.

Robert and Carla were more subdued than any night before. I think they wanted to tell me how sad they were, but were putting on a brave face for all of us. I had to fight with them a bit to get them to go to bed. Like me, they didn't want this night to end.

***************************** So here I sit, in this chair, watching them sleep. I lightly touch their hair being careful not to wake them. I'd forgotten what it was like to have them with me twenty-four seven. Shannon was right—they weren't pets to be shuffled from one parent to the other—they were indeed two little parts of me. I watched the downtown lights and somewhere between three and six o'clock in the morning I fell asleep in that damn chair. But I had made my decision.

Carla was the first one up telling me she was hungry. Robert started to move shortly thereafter. Pancakes and sausages were what they requested. I told them we had a lot to do this morning and there would be no time for dilly-dallying. By seven forty-five we were in the car on our way to pick up Shannon.

She was waiting for us in the lobby, suitcase in hand. She had this hopeful look on her face until she saw that our children were dressed in the same clothes they had arrived in. I held the door open, she got in, and I put her suitcase in the trunk of the car and started to drive.

She never said a word. I was kind of waiting for her to lash out at me, but she didn't, probably thinking what was the use. The kids were wild. I had to tell them twice to settle down. I backtracked through town cursing myself for taking the main road, because now we were stuck in rush hour traffic. Two quick rights and a left and I was flying down one of the back streets. I noticed Shannon look at her watch.

"Don't worry, we've got plenty of time." She still didn't respond. Five minutes later we were pulling into the parking lot. I quickly opened my door walked to the rear door, opened it, and told my kids to get a move on. We took two steps before I turned around. "Aren't you coming?" I asked Shannon.

"Steve, what are we doing here?" She said, standing next to her open door.

"They can't very well start school until we register them, can they?"

It was like the smile exploded onto her face as she ran up to where we were standing, kissing me with tears pouring down her cheeks.

"Asshole, why didn't you tell me?"

"Why didn't you ask?"

I was afraid to and when you didn't say anything, well, I just assumed."

"That, my love, has been our biggest problem all these years. We just assume the other can read our mind, and then we make assumptions based on what we think we know. From now on, if either one of us has a problem with the other, it's to be put out there and talked about. There is nowhere to run to here, so I guess we'll have to talk out our problems from now on."

"Steve, there won't be any problems anymore."

But, of course, there were, and like I said we handled each one as they came up.

After we registered the kids at school, we went back to my place to make some major modifications until we could find a more suitable home for us.

I called my sister, no e-mail this time, and raked her over the coals for not telling me about her and Shannon's little plan. In the end, though, I thanked her.

"Where are these two companies you're looking at, and are we going to need to buy a car?"

"Both are about fifteen to twenty minutes by bus. There is no way I want the expense of buying a car, however a good umbrella is sure to be high on my shopping list."

By Friday afternoon Shannon had accepted one of the positions.

Our first night all together was a little crazy but nice at the same time. We didn't do the big nasty but did some major kissing and other things. Saturday we went looking for a new place and found two within walking distance of our current flat. On Monday we would be taking the children to school, after which we would head out to work and into the start of our new life.

It was close to one in the morning on Saturday. We were supposed to be asleep but neither one of us could really sleep.

"Any regrets so far?" Shannon asked, resting on her hand and elbow looking at me.

"None. Well, not yet anyway."

"Asshole," she said, hitting me with a pillow.

"You do know you're going to have to stop calling me that, don't you? And besides, you're going to have to hold it down, we've got little ones in the next room." I then proceeded to tickle her as she bit on her pillow to try to keep at least halfway quiet.

"Well, let's see how quiet you can be." She pulled down my boxers and engulfed me almost in one motion with her mouth.

"Son of a bitch," my body screamed out as I instantly became hard, and then started coating the back of her throat almost immediately.

"Been a while I see," Shannon said, wiping her mouth and then continuing until I was rock hard again. Moving her panties to the side she threw a leg over me and in one swoop impaled herself on my dick. With slow deliberate motions she ground herself into me throwing off her tee shirt in the process. Reaching up, I filled my hands with her two superb breasts. Warm memories of the past came flooding back.

Neither one of us lasted more than a couple of minutes. I held in my screams, and Shannon put a pillow over her face to muffle her cries of pleasure. She rolled off of me laughing, while everything I'd pumped into her came dripping out.

"It's going to take a little time to get used to this again, but like I said yesterday, we've got all the time in the world." We spent the next hour talking, and talking kiss breaks—as I like to call them—every so often.

We were on vacation for the next year. With the kids in tow we toured Europe, and they got quite an education. Both our companies are now asking if we are going to renew our contracts, and though we've discussed it on more than one occasion we haven't made a decision as of yet. The only thing we're now concerned about is what's under that round belly of Shannon's'. Somehow she came up pregnant five months ago and we're all excited, especially Robert and Carla. Even though we are all a little homesick we love our new life together. When I think back to where we were two years ago my stomach clenches up, but I no longer get angry. Together we started over, and that's the way I plan on spending the rest of my life.

As my sister so eloquently put it, even during our darkest hours, there was still something there between us. All it took was an eight-hour plane flight and four days in London to realize it.