Wilderness Resort

"Danny?" She asked.

"Yes, honey?"

"Do you really want me?"

"More than anything in the world!" I told her.

"Can I get into bed with you?"

"You never have to ask me that!" I told her, pulling the covers back. She jumped in, tugged the covers up and pressed against me.

She was completely naked.

Familiar, sweet. Those are the words that are close. Sharon lay back basking in our bodies still touching, both of us soaked in sweat.

"Am I still pretty?" She asked.

"You are the most beautiful thing in the world to me."

"It's you I love, Danny. Only you!" She said.

I leaned down and kissed her. Life was all right again.

+++

Europe was beautiful, a year went by seeing the sights of the world. Sharon's mother passed away, that took over another year, it was a long and drawn out affair, painful. We spent the last months living with her, taking care of her.

The lifestyle was a total change after that, it became parties, travel, strange hotel rooms. I felt myself becoming unhappy, missing the life we had before, but did my best to not let it show. Sharon began to go to gyms regularly, struggling in the losing battle against the ravages of time.

She began to be gone more and more, finally one day I felt a nagging suspicion. Nearly a decade had gone by, now 58, I no longer had the same virility I had before. Sharon had convinced me one day that she needed plastic surgery, I finally reluctantly agreed.

The results were amazing, a few months later her breasts were once again high and firm, her face looked to be in her early thirties. I stared in the mirror one day and knew that I looked at least twenty years older.

Twenty years? I was being kind to myself. It explained why we now appeared to be heading in different directions.

I took a taxi down to her gym one day, just curious. She wasn't there, I looked in by the pool and out in the main weight room, no sign of her. I was just about to ask someone when a door opened and she walked out. The man right behind her was tall and dark complected, he obviously spent a lot of time working out.

She was smiling, then she turned and stood on tiptoe and kissed him. His hand reached out and stroked her waist.

The smile left her face when she turned away from him, having just ran her fingers up and over his chest and spotted me. She just stood there in surprise, there was nothing she could say of course.

I turned and walked out the front door. She didn't come hime that night.

She never came home again.

Life is full of temptations, it seems. After that was a whirlwind of bars, gambling, drinking. Years were gone, not wasted really. The times together had been good, just those upsets mixed in there.

Six months after the divorce was final, I realized the check on the contract was late by two weeks. I called, a woman answered the phone. She insisted the check was in the mail.

The next month it still had not arrived, I contacted an attorney and began foreclosure proceedings.

When I drove into the parking lot at the resort, it was empty. It didn't take long to realize things were a mess. The carefully blocked out parking spaces had grass growing up around the posts, several of the Pine logs were knocked off their pillars. Bits of paper and garbage was everywhere.

Inside was not much better, the main lodge looked dingy, dirty. The outside doors to the cooler hung precariously from just one hinge.

An older woman was behind the bar, no one else was there. I looked over and saw a row of video poker machines setting there.

"Whatcha need, bud?" She asked.

"Is the management around?"

"Naw, they don't come around much. Anything I can do?"

"No, that's fine." I turned and left. I already knew what the problem was, and I knew what the outcome would be.

Three months later the legal portion was done, I picked up the keys at the lawyer's office, got into the old Impala that I had placed in a storage lot, and drove over.

Looking around, I moved into the old main quarters and started there. A couple came by looking for work, I hired them and put them to cutting the grass, cleaning up the rentals. I put the main lodge back into shape myself, it took two full months.

There were a few guests, not many. Then when the restaurant was back up and running, things began to slowly improve. I was around 300 grand in the hole by that time.

The State came in and took out the video poker machines, I can't say as I really cared. Things like that just didn't fit in with what the place should be like.

The day an old station wagon rolled up, and I saw Carlos and Maria get out was a bit of a start. They were looking for work, of course. There were a few moments of discomfort, but they were also excellent workers, so once again I hired them.

Maria did ask me if anything was going to be different, I knew what she meant.

"Do your thing, it will be fine." I told her. I also told her she now had the evening shift.

She grinned at that. Within a few weeks she had the bar singing, the place was going right back into the black again. I hired an older woman to run the kitchen, she was magic in there.

Now that meant I could do what I always did best, wander around and look for things to fix.

One day Carlos and I were moving some lumber off a trailor into one of the storage sheds. He asked about Sharon.

Oddly, I had not really thought of her much, I was far too busy. Busy was my best asset, it meant no time for thinking.

"She is fine, I guess. I am not sure where she even is at the moment."

"Well, I am sorry about that, Boss. You two always seemed to get along great, I was really surprised that day when she...." He saw the look on my face and stopped.

"Now you had better tell me." I said.

"That was a long time ago, Boss. That day when she and that Karen woman were out sunbathing? That night she came into the house, she looked...It was just one of those things, I couldn't say no. I'm sorry, I hope that wasn't what caused the trouble."

I just nodded. Oddly, somehow I already knew deep down inside, and somehow it didn't even matter. I had slept with Maria, his wife, and that didn't matter now either.

"Let's get this done." I said, reaching for another board.

October the 24th was my birthday, I took the day off and just sat around. Winter was coming fast, we had already had one light snowfall that didn't last long. I was sipping some red wine, then bored I wandered over to the lounge to see what was going on.

Maria was at the end of the bar, talking to a woman. There was no one else in the place. I walked over and sat down.

"Hi, Maria. Slow tonight, huh?"

"Yes, it's been quiet. Look who is here!" She flashed me a smile. I looked over at the woman sitting there, long dark hair, well dressed. Then it hit me.

Karen! She looked different..older? But then it had been nearly 15 years.

"Hi, Dan." She smiled. Her soft voice sent that same almost forgotten shiver though me.

"Hello, Karen. What are you doing back here?" I said.

"I just wanted to stop in and see the old place. I came by five or six years back but it had really changed. No one would tell me where you were, so I just moved on. I heard that you and Sharon..broke up. I would never have believed that."

"We just went two different ways, I guess. Are you married?"

"I was, it only lasted 3 months. I seem to have bad luck with men."

"I used to think I did fine with women, but now I wonder."

"Danny, was that real?" She asked suddenly. I noticed Maria had drifted off to the other end of the bar.

"Was what real?"

"You..and me. For a few weeks there, I was the happiest I have ever been in my life. I wanted the snow to stay there forever."

"I guess I was happy, too. I know that sounds odd, but I didn't even feel guilty until..."

"I sure didn't! She smiled brightly.

We sat and sipped our drinks for a long time, both of us were thinking.

"Say, do you have a room for the night? I don't feel like driving on into town."

"How about you stay with me?" I asked her.

"I think I would like that...very much!" I looked down at Maria, if she was leaning over any further she would have fallen down.

"You can lock up, OK?" I said to her.

"Sure thing, Dan." Then she grinned hugely.

I got up and held out my hand, Karen reached out and took it.

Hand in hand we went down the hallway to my quarters.

"I'm older now, and it's been a very long time." I whispered to her.

"So am I, but I bet we can manage!" She giggled.

In my room, I looked out the window. It was snowing lightly. I looked over at Karen, she was already naked.

That really wasn't a surprise.

Beautiful!

The world was getting better again.