Never Too Late

by Patricia Watters

  "At work," Andrea replied.

  "Why do I even ask?" Bailey said. "But at least he gives us two weeks a year. We have to love him for that." She gave Andrea a worried look, and said, "He did arrange to be away from the office for two weeks, didn't he?"

  "Of course," Andrea assured her, though she dreaded breaking the news that she wouldn't be along... the first time in the twelve years they'd owned the lake house that the girls would have only one parent to fuss over them. But life goes on, she told herself, philosophically.

  The sound of Jerry's SUV brought all heads turning in the direction of the black Mercedes barreling up the long drive. Jerry had barely climbed out when all three girls descended on him, giving him the bear hugs he always got when he arrived home... had been since the girls could first toddle. Which for some reason aggravated the hell out of Andrea today. The girls even had Jerry's hazel-brown eyes, though Megan was the only one with his intense gaze.

  Jerry kissed each on top of the head, and each looked at him adoringly. But then they'd only seen one side of their father. Although it was tempting to tell all, she'd spare the girls that. But Jerry had always been a different man with the girls. With them he'd had the patience of Job. They were his three dancing princesses, he'd called them early on. But with Scott he'd been different. Stern, demanding, expecting Scott to take his knocks and get back up and be a man...

  Jerry looked over Stefanie's head at Andrea, and she saw at once the desperation on his face, and in a moment that reminded her of times past, when they often connected on a higher plane, she knew he was thinking the same as she...

  ...We won't tell them yet. Tomorrow will be soon enough...

  She nodded in agreement, and Jerry relaxed and hoisted Sammie up to sit on his shoulders, calling her his littlest princess. Sammie giggled and wrapped her arms around his head and laughed in childish glee as Jerry galloped off...

  And Andrea knew that Jerry had captured yet another heart. But she refused to let Jerry's charisma with females, young or old, bother her. She would be a grandmother to the children in her own way, and they'd love her as well. Still, she couldn't dismiss the niggling inside that made her wish she'd be the one to be with the girls and their families at the lake house. But as soon as that respite would be over the divorce would be underway. Still, she'd wait a little longer before telling her parents because once her father knew, there would be no turning back. He'd make sure of that.

  Dinner was a noisy, jovial affair. Toddlers sat propped around the dining table in high chairs, and the girls chatted across the table and around their husbands in order to be heard. The room was filled with joking and laughter, and Andrea realized this was probably the last time the whole family would be together. She caught Jerry looking down the length of the table at her, and he clearly shared her thoughts. But then she remembered how it was when the girls were not around, and all the reasons for going their separate ways came back. Jerry seemed to catch her thoughts, or maybe responded to the expression on her face, because in an instant, that steely-eyed look she detested came back, and she was again counting the hours until he'd be gone.

  After they'd finished dinner, Megan tapped her knife against her glass, then pushed her chair back and stood. "Mom... Dad," she said, "we have some pre-wedding anniversary toasts to make." Andrea forced a smile that felt as feigned as it was, and waited. She refused to look at Jerry this time. Their days of exchanging thoughts were over.

  When everyone was quiet, Megan said, "I'll start with you, Daddy." She dipped her water goblet toward Jerry. "I'm speaking for the three of us when I say you were our hero when we were growing up. You gave us love and understanding and direction. And we know that every day you went to work it was so you could give us the things you never had when you were growing up. But you've given us so much more than just this beautiful home to grow up in, and our girly bedrooms, and music lessons, and dance lessons, and private schools, and all the comforts you could possibly provide to make our lives good. You gave us love." She blinked back happy tears and said to Stefanie, "You're on."

  Stefanie raised her cumbersome bulk from the table, dipped her glass first to Andrea at one end of the table, then to Jerry at the opposite end, and said to Jerry, "But it's the love you gave Mom over the years that showed us how to find the right husbands. The three of us managed to find three wonderful guys who have a little of you in each one of them, because you were the standard from which we chose our mates." She turned to Andrea and continued. "And Mom, you showed us how to nurture and love, and how to be patient and understanding when we were in high drama, as girls will be. You were also our mentor. And I hope you see a little of yourself in us when you see us with our children, because you're the model we're using in raising them." She looked across the table at Bailey, and said, "I believe you're on now, Bail."

  Bailey stood, tipped her goblet to each of them, and said, "Mom, Dad, would you stand together for the rest of this. Having you at opposite ends of the table won't work."

  Andrea looked down the length of the table at Jerry, who shrugged, left his place and walked over to stand behind her, hands on the back of the chair, careful not to touch her, she noticed.

  Bailey looked at them soberly, and said, "But the two of you also showed us how to hold things together in the face of tragedy. I can't imagine how it would be to lose a child, now that I have my own, but you lost Scott. Yet, you've managed to keep your marriage together when many marriages fall apart after the death of a child. We all love you, Mom and Dad. And now we come to the crux of this little spiel."

  She opened an envelope and pulled out a travel folder. "We have something to show you both how much we love you, and to give you a second honeymoon. This year you won't be joining us at the lake house, though I know you'll miss all the diapers and confusion and squalling babies. Instead, we've all chipped in and we're giving you a ten-day cruise to the Bahamas. The ship leaves from here in three days, and by the end of the week you'll be sunning yourselves on sandy beaches, and strolling hand-in-hand through quaint villages. But most of all, we want you to have time with each other to share your twenty-fifth anniversary, alone. But when we're at the dock to meet the boat when it returns, we'll be watching for a couple of middle-aged lovebirds to come walking down the gangway."

  For the moment, Andrea was too stunned to speak. Then it all came rushing over her like a tidal wave. Ten days alone with Jerry. Alone in a stateroom to share a bed with the man she least wanted there. And to celebrate an anniversary she dreaded. But there was no way she could disappoint the girls...

  "Mom?" Bailey said. "Are you all right?"

  Andrea realized she'd pressed her fingers to her temples. "Oh... yes. I'm fine." She blinked to hold back tears of desperation and guilt. Desperation that she'd be trapped with Jerry for ten miserable days, and guilt for being mad at her daughters for putting them in this position. But she also felt wretched because she had the three most wonderful daughters in the world, who thought they were giving their parents the ultimate gift for their anniversary, and she felt like tearing up the tickets and throwing the pieces away.

  Jerry touched her shoulders lightly, and said to the girls, "I think your mom's just overwhelmed."

  "It's okay, Mom. We understand." Bailey picked up a sealed envelope that had been sitting on the table in front of her. Her face sobered, as she said, "We also know that what would have been Scott's eighteenth birthday will come during the cruise, which will be hard for the two of you that day, so we want you to open this envelope then and read the letters inside. It's sort of an eighteenth birthday gift to Scott from his three sisters." She handed the envelope to Andrea, who looked at it anxiously, then glanced at Jerry, who held her gaze, face hard, eyes reproving.

  She knew that look, the look that said, he'd still be here if you'd stopped him that night...

  Then Jerry stepped from behind her, opened his arms to the girls, and said, "Come here my three precious princesses." The girls left their places at the table
and rushed into Jerry's arms. And Andrea knew, at that moment, that there was no way on God's earth she and Jerry could disappoint their daughters. But once aboard the ship, she and Jerry would go their separate ways, a natural transition to their new and separate lives.

  ***

  Alone in their bedroom that night, Andrea said to Jerry, while sorting through the clothes she'd be taking, "The first thing I plan to do when we board the ship is to see about getting a second stateroom. Since the girls will be leaving tomorrow for the lake, they won't be around to see us off, so we can board the ship as singles. That way we won't have to look at each other, or talk to each other, or even acknowledge each other's existence."

  "My thoughts exactly," Jerry replied.

  Odd how they were finally agreeing for the first time in years. First to the idea of getting a divorce, then to this. But it was easy now that the end was in sight.

  From the depths of the walk-in closet, Andrea retrieved a green and tan sundress that had been there for some time, and standing in front of the mirror, held it up to herself. It was a daringly low-cut, halter top dress, with built-in support that lifted and squeezed, creating a deep cleavage. It used to drive Jerry to distraction, and whenever she wore it, the night always ended with a hot and heavy session in bed. She glanced up to find Jerry watching. "Don't worry," she clipped. "If I bring it along, I won't be wearing it for you."

  "You can wear anything you damn well please as far as I'm concerned," Jerry said. "Just keep in mind that if you strut your stuff like you were once a master at doing, you'll be expected to put out, which you've long since forgotten how to do."

  Andrea let out a little cynical laugh. "With the right man, my memory might return," she quipped. She pulled open one of the built-in drawers in the walk-in closet and rummaged through the scanty, lacy bra and panty sets Jerry bought for her on various occasions over the years, and which had been folded, nearly untouched, for the past two years. Removing the entire stack, she set it on the bed. She lifted a black half-bra with peek-a-boo lace that barely covered her nipples, if she remembered correctly, and draped it across the front of her. Peering into the mirror at Jerry's reflection, she said in a tone intended to aggravate him, "After nursing four kids, it's probably too small, but I'll take it along with the rest. I might find an occasion to wear it."

  Although she couldn't imagine wearing any of the skimpy things now, she'd pack them if only to make Jerry wonder. And who knows? Maybe she'd take a lover. The idea might be worth considering, now that she and Jerry would be going their separate ways. She needed a little spice in her life. Maybe a hot and heavy session in bed with a man who might turn her on again. She barely remembered what that was like. But when she turned to pack the lingerie into her bag, she saw that Jerry had his own plans for the cruise. In his oversized tote lay the assortment of bikini briefs she'd given him over the years, skimpy briefs covered in cupids, and a pair with a target on front and words written across the waistband that read: I'm cocked and ready, and an especially skimpy pair covered in bright red hearts.

  She remembered the Jerry Porter Style Show he'd performed after the kids were tucked in bed, the night of the red-heart briefs. With a rose clamped between his teeth, plucked from the bouquet he'd brought her, Jerry strutted his stuff across the room, bumping and grinding while humming The Stripper. Then he inched off the briefs in a great display of teasing and taunting, and twirled them around the tip of his finger while swaggering back and forth across the room. She'd been near hysterical with laughter, then overwhelmed with passion. Back then Jerry had the most incredible body she could imagine a man having—a broad chest with a matt of dark hair she couldn't resist running her hands over and an impressive male member she couldn't refrain from ogling and fondling and showing him what it was really for.

  That was the same night she conceived Scott. She'd suffered from terrible morning sickness with him. And after he was born, their life changed. Jerry had not worn the briefs since. But after years of being packed away, he clearly planned to wear them again. But not for her.

  Yes, she decided, she would seriously consider taking a lover.

  CHAPTER 2

  Three days later, while standing in the doorway to their stateroom on the cruise ship, Andrea stared at the queen-size bed with the quilted white bedspread covered with red hearts. On one pillow was a fresh red rose tied with a satin bow, a vivid reminder of the night of the red-heart briefs and Jerry's performance. She glanced at Jerry and knew he was envisioning the same image as she. From his expression, he was as humiliated with his behavior back then as she was embarrassed now by hers, as well as the wild uninhibited lovemaking that followed. But now the distressing episode was eclipsed by the knowledge that they had created a son that night who had, little by little, torn them apart. Scott was the son they tried just one more time to have. Yet each failed attempt created a daughter who would bring them nothing but joy. And still, they wanted a son. But when Scott finally came to them, they were at a loss what to do with him...

  She turned her attention to the glass-enclosed shower for two, with contoured seats and sliding mirrored doors on a closet facing the glass enclosure, and almost laughed out loud at the irony of it. The girls had reserved the honeymoon suite. She glanced at the bed again and said, "You can't stay here. You need to see about getting another room. The girls will never know."

  Jerry walked up to the shower and opened the door. "That's your problem, not mine," he said. "You find another room. You can put it on my tab. It's worth it for ten days of peace and quiet. Besides, you won't need a shower for two, given your aversion to sex."

  "This may come as a surprise to you, "Andrea said, "but I don't have an aversion to sex, only to sex with you. I saw any number of attractive men when I came aboard who looked interested in me. One even winked and smiled."

  "Sure," Jerry said. "Gigolos are waiting to get in bed with a naïve woman like you and play you for all you're worth. You're a prime target."

  "Maybe from your perspective," Andrea said. "But did it ever occur to you that some men might find me attractive, even if I am in my mid-forties?"

  "Yeah well they'll find you attractive until they hop into bed with you, then they'll wonder what in hell they're doing there when you turn your back to them and curl up in a ball and pretend to be sleeping."

  "I've heard enough remarks for one day," Andrea said.

  Before she could storm out of the room, Jerry yanked off his wedding ring, grabbed her hand, and said, "Here, take the damn thing and do whatever you want with it. I won't be needing it." He smacked the ring against her palm.

  Andrea stared at the ring. For twenty-five years it had never left Jerry's finger, just as the ring he'd given her had never left hers. But he was right. The marriage was over, for all practical purposes, so the rings had to go. She dropped the ring in her handbag, along with her own, and stalked out of the stateroom, slamming the door behind. As she marched down the corridor in long, angry strides, a steward approached her, and said, "Is there something wrong, Madam?"

  Andrea glanced back at the closed door to their stateroom, and said, "Would it be possible for me to get other quarters? I've been booked into the Honeymoon Suite with a man I do not wish to be with. Do you understand?"

  The man looked at her with a blend of curiosity and compassion, and said, "Yes, Madam. I'll see what I can do. But it is my understanding that the staterooms are all booked. Would you be willing to share one if it can be arranged?"

  "I'll do anything to get out of staying in a room with the man I came with."

  "Very well, Madam. If you'll come with me."

  Andrea followed the man down the long passageway, up a flight of stairs, and down another long passageway to a small sitting area with a row of chairs, where he motioned for her to wait. He disappeared behind the closed door to an office, and after a long period of time, appeared in the doorway and announced, "I've found a stateroom for you with a woman whose traveling companion was unable to come
at the last minute. She's willing to share the room with you and divide the cost. It's a spacious stateroom with twin beds. If you'll follow me, it's just down the passageway from the honeymoon suite. I hope you will enjoy your cruise."

  "I'm certain I will... now." Andrea followed the man to the stateroom, where he gave her the key and left. She glanced around the small quarters then returned to the honeymoon suite to get her bags. Jerry was gone, but she saw that he'd unpacked his bags and stowed his clothes in the double-wide closet and large dresser. In the top drawer, along with his white tee shirts and briefs, were the bikini briefs she'd given him. She looked through the stack and noted that the briefs with the target were missing. He certainly wasn't wasting any time.

  Poking her head out the door, she motioned for the steward to come for her bags then followed him into a nicely-appointed stateroom. She had no idea what to expect of her roommate, but from the look of the sexy lingerie hanging in the closet, it was obvious what the woman had in mind for the cruise.

  Andrea had just finished unpacking her bags and was in the process of hanging her dinner dresses in the wardrobe when a stunning-looking woman, who appeared to be in her early twenties, walked into the room. From the top of her chic ebony hair, to the tips of her Italian stiletto heels, the woman was pure class. Why she was willing to share her stateroom and split the cost was a puzzle.

  After exchanging names, the woman expanded on that by saying, "I go by Valerie when the name suits the occasion, but most of the time I'm just Val." She stripped off her white linen designer blouse to reveal a scant lace bra, filled to capacity and overflowing with the help of silicone implants, and said, "So, you're recently divorced and are looking for a little excitement and romance at sea."

  Andrea stared at the woman, surprised at her insight. "What makes you think I'm recently divorced?" she asked.