Page 67 of Seasoned
Hector set down his utensils and studied her from across the table. “Are you my ex-wife, or has someone else invaded her body? Someone completely fine with casual sex and no commitment?”
Adelaide smiled. “It’s absolutely me. I’m just surprised. I really wasn’t sure what happened. It’s not as if we planned last night.”
“Or this morning,” Hector added, heat in his voice.
An answering throb bloomed between Adelaide’s thighs. “Or this morning,” she agreed.
“We can’t pretend that we didn’t make love, but I admit, in a weird way, this is all new—practically groundbreaking.”
Adelaide nodded her agreement and rested her chin in her hand. Her heart hurt because this was the man she had married and raised children with and had expected to spend the rest of her life with in this house. Now he was here again, but not as her husband. Simply as a lover. She wanted to grab onto him and what she was feeling, but at the same time she was afraid and wanted to let go so she wouldn’t be hurt again.
“Maybe this is a way for us to fix what was wrong between us,” Hector said.
“Sex doesn’t fix problems.”
“I wasn’t talking about using sex to fix our problems, although more sex would be perfectly fine by me.” Hector’s lascivious smile made her blush. He reached across the table and took her hand. “I want to continue making love to you, and I want to date you, too.”
“Date me?”
“Yes. Are you open to that?”
“Yes,” Adelaide said softly.
His lips expanded into a winsome smile. “Okay then.” He sliced into a piece of French toast.
“When?” Adelaide asked.
“Let me worry about that,” Hector said, and popped some of the tasty bread into his mouth.
12
The sun was setting as Adelaide and her best friends strolled onto the outdoor patio with beverages and snacks in hand. They sat at the rectangular glass table, Jackie and Adelaide at one end and Renee at the other.
“Who wants to go first?” Jackie asked.
“I have nothing to share, except Clive and I are still going strong,” Renee said.
Jackie raised her hand. “I’ll go next.” She grinned, blushing a little. “I met someone, and he’s younger than me.”
Adelaide rested her chin on her hand. “Oh.”
“How much younger?” Renee asked.
“Almost thirty years younger.”
Adelaide and Renee gasped.
“You’re fifty-five years old! You’re practically robbing the cradle,” Renee exclaimed.
Jackie rolled her eyes. “No, I’m not. Anyway, he’s wonderful. Tall, dark, handsome, young, and malleable. How we met is absolutely hilarious.” She proceeded to tell them how she ran over the young man on her bike while riding in the park.
When they finished laughing, Renee pretended to write a note. “Buy a bicycle and run over a hot man with it,” she murmured.
Jackie cackled and shoved her friend. “Stop! We all know you’re doing no such thing because you’re happy with your quarterback.”
“Tight end, and I am,” Renee admitted, with a serene smile.
“Is your relationship with this young man serious?” Adelaide asked Jackie.
