Young Again Ch. 02

Jerome couldn't stop smiling. He hadn't been this happy in years; the last time he could remember feeling this way was when his youngest child was born, twenty years earlier.

When his wife had left him several months earlier, Jerome had believed he would never be happy again. How could he be, when the woman he'd loved for three decades suddenly told him she didn't love him anymore? For months after she dropped that bomb on him, along with the news that she'd been cheating on him for six months and was leaving him for the other man, Jerome had just barely existed. He'd left his house only to work and run vital errands, he'd spoken to no one but coworkers and store employees. Then Brenna had entered his life.

Brenna. Just thinking about her made Jerome's smile grow, along with something else. It wouldn't have been possible for a young, beautiful woman like her to be attracted to an old fart like him. At fifty, Jerome was fifteen years older than Brenna. But that didn't seem to bother her. Not only was she attracted to him, so much so that they'd made love on their first date, but she loved him. And now she was carrying his child.

Jerome sat at his desk at work, smiling hugely as he went through his paperwork. Brenna worked for the same company, which was how they'd met; they'd known each other in passing for quite a while before she'd persuaded Jerome to go to a bar with her a few other coworkers. That meant that they were able to see each other sometimes during the day, and occasionally sneak a hug or kiss, despite the company's frowning view of public displays of affection. A few minutes earlier, Brenna had found an excuse to pass by Jerome's desk. She hadn't stopped to talk to him, but just the smile she had sent his way had made his day.

"What's with you lately?" Mike, one of Jerome's coworkers, sat on the corner of Jerome's desk. "You're been smiling way too much."

"When I'm happy, I smile," Jerome said.

"I take it all's well in paradise?" Mike said.

"Everything's fine." Jerome didn't like talking about his personal life at work, especially when someone else was involved. Of course, everyone at work knew he and Brenna were together, just like everyone had known about his separation and divorce as soon as they'd happened. That was the way the office grapevine worked. But that didn't mean Jerome wanted to discuss it.

"Glad to hear it," Mike said. "And it's good to see you and Brenna happy. She's been through a lot, and from what I've heard, so have you."

"Yes, but it's over now," Jerome said. "Thank you for saying that. It's good to be happy. Brenna's a wonderful person, and I'm glad I make her happy."

"Just keep it that way. Treat her right."

"I intend to."

"Good." Mike slid off the desk. "Nice talking to you." He walked away.

What was Mike's issue? Obviously he had more than a passing interest in Brenna. Maybe they were just friends, maybe he had stronger feelings. It didn't matter to Jerome, though, as long as Mike didn't try to come between him and Brenna. Brenna was such a sweet person; it made sense that her friends would watch over her. But Jerome knew some of what had happened in Brenna's past; he would never do anything to hurt her.

At the end of the day, Jerome met Brenna in the office lobby, where she worked as a receptionist. She greeted him with a hug. "How was your day?" she asked.

"Pretty good," Jerome replied. "Especially when a beautiful lady walked past my desk and smiled at me."

"A beautiful lady smiled at you?" Brenna said teasingly. "Uh oh, does that mean I have competition?"

"No one could compete with you, silly girl." Jerome kissed her nose. "So how was your day?"

"I felt kind of queasy this morning, but it let up. A couple of clients gave me a hard time, but otherwise things went well." She yawned. "I'm exhausted, though. I could sleep for a week."

"The queasiness and tiredness are normal," Jerome said. "At least, my ex went through the same thing when she was expecting. As for the clients hassling you, just give me their names and I'll take care of them."

Brenna laughed. "My hero. But I don't think we have to go that far."

"All right, if you're sure." Jerome rubbed her still-flat belly. "Want to make sure Junior here is being taken care of. Along with his mommy."

"Junior?" Brenna repeated. "What if it's a girl?"

"Juniorette."

Brenna shook her head. "Men."

"Yep, well, without a man, you wouldn't have that little one in there. Just remember that. I assume you're happy about the little one?"

"Very happy. I still can't believe you asked me to marry you, though. I was so scared when I found out I was pregnant! I thought you would hate me."

"You had nothing to be scared of. I love you, Brenna. Why wouldn't I want to marry you? Speaking of which, are you feeling up to going to dinner and shopping like we'd planned, or would you rather go home and sleep?"

"I'd rather go back to your house and, well, you know."

Jerome grinned. "You know, huh? I think I remember how to do that. Come on, let's get out of here."

Brenna didn't own a car; since he'd proposed to her, Jerome had given her rides to and from work. Brenna had protested at first, but when Jerome pointed out that having morning sickness on the bus might be a bit awkward, she'd stopped arguing. They walked out to Jerome's car, and he held the passenger door open for Brenna. "You're so nice to me," she said, settling herself into the seat.

"You deserve to be treated nicely," Jerome said. "So learn to live with it, because you're going to get a whole lot more of this kind of treatment with me around."

"I think I can deal with that."

Jerome closed her door and got into the driver's seat. "You never answered me," he said as they drove out of the parking lot. "Are you okay for a short shopping trip?"

Brenna rested her hand on his knee. "What about going to your house?"

"Afterward. There's something very important that we need to pick up."

"What's that?"

Jerome covered her hand with his own. "It's been a week since I asked you to marry me. Something belongs on this hand."

"A ring? You don't have to buy me a ring, Jerome. I thought we were just going to keep things small and simple."

"We're going to have wedding rings, aren't we?"

"Well, of course. But that's different."

"Not to me. We're engaged. I want you to have an engagement ring. It doesn't have to be anything fancy, but it would mean a lot to me to buy you one."

"We'll see. We can at least look at wedding rings." She yawned again. "I'm tired, but yes, I'm okay to go shopping with you. As long as we keep it short."

"A few jewelry stores, dinner, then back to my place for dessert," Jerome promised.

"Ooh, dessert!"

Jerome drove to the nearby mall, which contained three jewelry stores. He led Brenna into the most expensive of the three first. After a few minutes of admiring rings, then cringing at their prices, Brenna said, "Jerome, there's nothing in here you can afford. Everything's way too expensive!"

"Had a feeling you might say that." Jerome grinned. "Honey, nothing's too expensive for you. If you wanted anything here, I'd be happy to buy it. But if you don't like any of these rings, we can check the other stores."

"It isn't that I don't like them." Brenna looked at the collection of diamonds in the closest case. "They're beautiful. I've never seen anything like them. But I don't want you to spend so much. With a baby coming, we should watch our money, shouldn't we?"

"Good point." Jerome put his arms around her and kissed her. "You're so smart. Okay, so we'll go look in the other jewelers here and see if we can find something that fits our budget a little better."

They left the store and headed down the mall corridor. "Why are you so determined to buy me a ring tonight, anyway?" Brenna asked.

"Don't you think it's time you had one?"

"It's only been a week. And I haven't officially accepted your proposal yet."

"Which is one reason you need a ring, so I can get down on one knee and give you an official proposal. As long as you promise to help me up afterward."

Brenna laughed. "You aren't that old. I think you'll be able to get up."

"Never know. These old bones and muscles aren't what they used to be."

"I know one thing that's at least as good as it used to be. If only I'd known you then."

"If you'd known me then, you wouldn't have been legal. But I'm glad you think it's good."

In the second store, Brenna found the same problem with prices as she'd had in the first. Although the prices were much more reasonable, she still claimed to be uncomfortable with them. "Do you want a ring?" Jerome finally asked in exasperation.

"I told you I don't," Brenna reminded him. "You're the one who wants me to have a ring. I don't care if I have one or not. I know we love each other; I know we're getting married and having a baby. I don't need some big, shiny, expensive rock on my hand to prove that to anyone else."

Jerome wasn't trying to prove anything. At least, he didn't think he was. But when a woman got engaged, she was supposed to have a ring. Everyone was supposed to know about it. That was the way it had always been with the women Jerome had known. When he'd proposed to Lena, his ex-wife, she'd run around to every family member's and friend's home in the area to show off the ring he'd saved for six months to buy her. Why didn't Brenna seem that excited?

On the other hand, she was right about the need to save money. Jerome had his house free and clear, but there were still bills to pay, and the new baby would bring new expenses. Jerome made a good living and had plenty in savings; Lena had asked for nothing when she'd left him. But it would still be a good idea to watch spending. It had been a long time since Jerome had supported children; he wasn't even sure how much baby food cost nowadays, let alone things like clothes and pediatrician visits.

"Sweetheart, if you really don't want a ring, I won't buy you one," he said finally. He hadn't changed his mind about buying Brenna a ring, but it wasn't important enough to argue about. "We could just choose wedding rings and be done with it, or we can forget the rings altogether and just go to dinner. But I want to know one thing. Do you not want a ring because you don't want me to spend the money, or do you not want a ring because you don't think you're worth the money?"

"I don't think I need anything that expensive."

"So you don't think you're worth it."

"Don't put words in my mouth, Jerome." Brenna hesitated. "I don't know. I'm not used to people buying me nice things. My ex never did, and got angry when I asked for things."

"I would never get angry," Jerome said. "Anything you ever want or need, you just have to ask. You gave me my life back, Brenna. Compared to that, nothing I could give you measures up."

"You gave me back my life too," she said softly. "You gave me someone I could trust enough to love. That's a lot, and that's all I need."

Jerome's heart warmed. He almost wanted to cry; no one had ever said anything like that to him. But he swallowed hard and said, "Brenna, I love you. I want you to have everything good, everything you never had. Let's stop arguing, honey. You don't have to have a ring. It's silly to argue about that. I'd still like to buy you one, but we'll talk about it. Let's just go get dinner and go home."

"Let's just go back to your place and order dinner," Brenna suggested, a mischievous glint in her eye. "Then I can ravish you while we wait for the delivery person."

"Hmm, ravishing sounds fun." Jerome kissed her, flicking her lips with his tongue, though he wasn't about to kiss her the way he wanted to while they were standing in the middle of the mall. "Let's go."

When they got to Jerome's house, he called and ordered Chinese food while Brenna used the bathroom. She came out of the room completely nude. "Do you like my outfit?" she asked.

"It's beautiful." Jerome stripped off his shirt. "Guess I should dress to match, huh?"

"Only if you want the delivery person to see you naked."

"Might be fun, if it's a hot chick."

Brenna giggled. "Yeah, pretty soon you'll need backup, because my body's going to be the least sexy thing you've ever seen when this baby gets bigger."

"Don't say that. Your body's gorgeous, and it's going to be gorgeous no matter how big your belly gets, because that's my child in there. And because I love you."

"I love you too," Brenna said softly.

Their mouths came together, lips moving softly, tongues exploring. Jerome massaged one of Brenna's breasts and she moaned. He kissed his way down her neck to take one nipple in his mouth. "Jerome, I love that!" Brenna exclaimed.

Gently, Jerome sucked her nipple. Curious to see how wet she was, he slipped his fingers into her slit. "Someone's horny," he teased.

"Mmm, yes, someone is." Brenna's hand found the bulge in his pants. "And I'd say I'm not the only one."

"Definitely not. Let me help you with that."

Jerome fingered her clit, loving the sounds of Brenna's arousal. He slipped his other arm around her back to hold her up as he brought her closer to release. After a few moments, she cried out, "Jerome! Oh, my god!" Her body shuddered through the orgasm, then she relaxed so much he almost dropped her.

"Careful there." Jerome helped Brenna to the couch. "You needed that, huh?"

"I've been so horny all day, I couldn't stop thinking about you," Brenna admitted. She kissed his neck. "Now let's take care of you. Fuck me, Jerome. Make love to me."

"Which one?" Jerome teased.

"Both. Fuck me hard enough to make me cum again, and make love to me to remind me of how much I love you."

"I like the way you think."

He lowered her to the couch and, after opening his pants, lowered himself onto her. It would only be a short time longer until they'd have to give up this position; when the baby grew, it would be too uncomfortable for her. But for now, Jerome loved feeling Brenna's body beneath him, loved looking into her eyes as their bodies connected. He entered her slowly, teasing her, but then pulled out and shoved back in harder. "Yes!" Brenna shouted. "Oh, Jerome, that's so good!"

"You want it harder?" he asked.

"Please. Oh, yes, please!"

Jerome obliged, fucking Brenna's sweet pussy as hard as he could, until she cried out again and he felt her pussy contract along his cock. "I love you, honey," he said.

"I love you too. Now for the making love."

Jerome resumed thrusting, this time slowly and gently. Brenna moaned and whimpered at the feeling. Although it was less stimulation than before, Jerome soon felt his balls tighten as his orgasm approached. "Honey, I'm going to come," he said.

"Do it," she replied. "Come inside me, Jerome. I love feeling you come."

"Yes! Brenna!" Jerome felt himself topple over the edge; his cum filled Brenna's pussy as the intensity washed over him. He lay still on top of her for a moment, catching his breath, then said, "I think I need to take naps before we make love from now on."

Footsteps sounded on the porch. "I think you'd better zip up your pants and go pay for our food," Brenna said. "Good timing."

* * *

As usual, that night Brenna asked Jerome to drive her home. She had yet to spend a full night with him; on weeknights she wanted to be sure she got enough sleep to deal with work, and on weekends she said she just wasn't comfortable. "We'll spend plenty of nights together after we're married, but I want to be in my own bed at night for now," she usually said.

The next day after work, Brenna was so tired that Jerome just took her home. It was Friday and they'd had plans, but the plans weren't important. It mattered more that she took care of herself and the baby. "We'll see each other tomorrow," Jerome told her when he kissed her goodbye at her apartment door. "And call me later so I can see how you're doing, all right? I don't want to call you; I don't want to wake you if you're sleeping."

"Are you sure you don't mind?" Brenna asked for the dozenth time.

"Sweetheart, I would mind if you decided to go out with me tonight instead of resting. You need to take good care of yourself. Now, do you need anything before I leave? Or do you want me to stay in case you do need anything?"

"I need to go to the bathroom, but I don't think you can help me with that." Brenna grinned. "I'll be all right. You can stay if you want, but I'm just going to get some sleep. I won't be any company."

"I just want to make sure you have everything you need."

"I just need sleep." She hugged him. "Thank you for being so wonderful, Jerome. I'll be all right. I'm going to take a nap now, and if I wake up, I'll call. But if you don't hear from me, don't worry, okay? As tired as I am, I might sleep through the night."

"I hope you do. I love you."

"I love you too."

She closed the door, and Jerome went back to his car and drove home When he walked through his door, his phone was ringing. He lunged at it and picked it up just before the answering machine. "Hello?"

"Dad, what's going on?" his oldest child, Gillian, asked.

"Not much. Just got home from work. What's going on with you?"

"I'm not small talking, Dad. I heard something about you dating."

"Oh, really? Who'd you hear that from?" Who knew about him and Brenna who might have spread the word to his bossy daughter?

"I have my sources," Gillian said. "Dad, I want to know about this woman, and I want to know why you haven't mentioned her."

"Maybe because I'm an adult and I'm entitled to my privacy on some things. And so is Brenna. That's her name, and that's about all you're getting out of me. Oh, that and the fact that she and I are getting married shortly."

"Married? Dad, are you insane? You haven't been divorced that long!"

"I've been divorced plenty long, Gillian, and your mother, if you recall, left me for another man. Didn't seem to matter to her if there was a time gap or not. So why should I wait?"

"Have you even known this woman long enough to get married? Dad, I'm just trying to look out for you. There are women out there who prey on men with money, and I know you aren't exactly poor."

"Brenna isn't preying on me. I work with her; I've known her quite a while. The woman won't even let me buy her an engagement ring, so I don't think she's after my money."

"Either that or she doesn't really want to marry you."

"That's enough," Jerome snapped. "You might think you're trying to look out for me, Gillian Lynn, but you're still my child, even if you are twenty-eight. I can take care of myself, thank you very much, and I don't need you insulting a woman you haven't even met."

"I'm not insulting her!" Gillian protested. "And if you're marrying her, why haven't I met her yet? All of us should meet her, don't you think? She's going to be our stepmother, after all."

"Good point. Yes, you should meet her." Though Jerome cringed a bit at the thought. Gillian and her brother and sister were good kids, but protective of their mom and dad. How would they react to Brenna?

"Good. So tell me more about her, and then we can figure out a time for all of us to get together for dinner. How old is she?"

"Thirty-five."

"What? Dad, that's only seven years older than me! What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that Brenna's a wonderful woman, and it doesn't matter how old she is. After your mother left, I wanted to just curl up and die. Brenna snapped me out of that. And there's one more thing you should know."

"What's that? She pregnant or something?"

"Exactly. In about seven months, give or take a couple weeks, you'll have a little brother or sister. Congratulations."

"You've got to be joking. Haven't you ever heard of safe sex?"

"I was with your mother for thirty years," Jerome reminded her. "We didn't need safe sex. Didn't think of it with Brenna, though obviously I should have. But I don't regret it, and neither does she. It's no one else's business."