For The Good Times

I laughed and told mom that I had talked to Julie and she said to say hello to her and dad. Of course, Julie never mentioned them but mom was a Hollywood rag paper reader and I wanted her to think that Julie remembered her.

Mom walked away happy as could be. Now she had something new to tell her friends, that Juliette Price asked about her.

I headed back up to the base the following day. The following week when I had to fly from the military airport to the municipal airport, I had some minor electronic repair to do at the terminal. Our small plane landed and as I walked into the terminal, there was a small commotion. I looked up and saw a few cameras flashing. Coming into the terminal was Julie and I guess it was her husband and daughter.

"They must be flying back to Hollywood," I figured. Julie barely glanced at me and looked just a bit startled but didn't say anything to me. Her husband gave me a look of disdain, I think I would call it. He looked to be a good fifteen years older than Julie was, maybe even more. I thought to myself, "a marriage made from money".

Her daughter looked like a sweet little girl. She looked a lot like Julie. She did give me a cute smile. I guess Hollywood hadn't gotten to her yet. Anyway, they went through the gates and headed to their plane.

I was walking through the terminal when I heard a voice. "Jeff, Jeff Wilson, is it really you?"

I turned and saw a good-looking woman. She looked familiar but I couldn't place her. She had on jeans and her hair was in a ponytail.

"It's me, Becky Prouse -- well, Becky Taylor now; Julie's sister."

"Oh, my God, I'm so sorry. You look so different since the last time I saw you. How are you?"

"I'm fine. I just dropped Julie and her family off at the airport. They're flying home today. You just missed them. I thought I'd get a cup of coffee for the drive home."

"I didn't miss them," I said kind of looking away. "If you have a few minutes we can go to the restaurant and have a cup of coffee together."

"Sure, having a cup of coffee with you would be great," she answered with a big smile.

"I guess you got the 'Who are you?' cold shoulder routine that Julie seems to have. I guess her husband Henry is a really jealous man. Sam, her daughter, is a sweetheart though."

She told me that Julie had said she saw me at the reunion and that I said I didn't care much for her career choice. It was funny when Becky told me she didn't much care for it either. She asked me about my life and seemed truly interested in it. I gave her a short synopsis of my life and time overseas. I did tell her I was married once overseas but it didn't work out.

I explained that I was in the process of a career change, that I only had a few months left in the service and was probably going to retire and move back to the hometown to open up a small electronics business. She seemed genuinely happy for me. She even told me she would contact her brother Bill and see if he had any good locations for my business at a reasonable rate for rent.

I asked her about her life and she told me how she always wanted to be a vet. She had this dire need to help animals. I told her I remembered how she would always bring home strays and her mom would get mad at her. She laughed and of course, it made me laugh, just thinking about it.

She told me she was divorced also and had a son Jimmy who was eight years old. I told her I was sorry about her divorce and she told me they just weren't compatible. He wanted the big city life and she was a country girl.

Talking to her was so enjoyable. She seemed so happy and easy to talk with. It was funny that she asked about my parents. Apparently, mom took our dog Gruffy to Becky for his shots. We must have talked for a couple of hours not even realizing it.

She seemed so different from Julie. She was as beautiful but not the glamour sort of way. She was more of the woman who had all this natural beauty. They were both intelligent and knew what they wanted out of life. I found myself talking to Becky and doing all these comparisons. In almost all the cases, Becky won.

"What are you thinking about?" smiled Becky.

"You and something your sister told me last week," I replied.

"You're kidding? Julie actually talked about me instead of herself," laughed Becky.

"Well, I asked about you and she did tell me about you being a vet."

"You're not smiling about me being a vet. What else did she say?" smiled Becky.

"Okay, since you're asking. She told me that you had a crush on me when you were younger. I was just thinking about it while you were talking."

"Oh, God! She didn't? I'm so embarrassed," said Becky.

"I'm, sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned it. Hell, I don't even know if it was true. I apologize."

"It's my fault for asking," said Becky. "It was true, so you know. I always felt that Julie made a big mistake losing you. If I would have only been a few years older."

"Back then four years younger in age made a big difference. It doesn't today you know," I said to Becky.

"What are you getting at, Jeff? You know I'm not my sister and I'm nothing like her."

"I know. That's why I would like to know if you would like to go out with me next Saturday."

"Jeff, are you sure about this?"

"Very sure. All I need is a yes and an address where to pick you up," I said.

She smiled and took out one of her business cards and put her address and home phone number on the back and handed it to me.

"Okay, Jeff, we'll give it a try but no promises. Where would you like to go?"

"Out for something to eat and maybe a movie, but not one of your sister's. I'll tell you what, you pick the place."

I walked her out to her car and gave her a light peck on the cheek. She still looked at me questionably.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" she asked one more time.

"I'm positive. See you Saturday," I said.

I went into the airport to finish my assignment. I really felt good; probably better than I had felt in a long time.

Chapter 2

I went home on Friday night to see my parents. My mom asked me why I seemed so happy. I told her I had a date with a friend from my childhood.

"Do I know her?" asked my inquisitive mother.

"As a matter of fact you do. She's Gruffy's vet."

"You mean Becky? Isn't that Juliette's younger sister?" asked mom.

"As a matter of fact it is. I met her at the airport. We had coffee and talked for a while. She is really a sweet woman, Mom."

"Yes, she is. She's also pretty, smart and can sing like an angel," said Mom.

"What do you mean sing like an angel, Mom? Where have you heard her?"

"They have a karaoke night at the lounge every Saturday night. Your dad and I have been there and listened a few times. Most singers are pretty bad but one night Becky sang and it was beautiful. She won their karaoke contest three times and they told her that she could sing, but wasn't allowed to enter the contest anymore because if she entered, no one else would. They knew she would win."

"That isn't fair to Becky," I replied.

"Oh, she didn't mind. She's such a good-hearted person. They told her that her food and drinks would always be free during the contest. It's more of a fun thing than a real contest. Becky just laughed it off, but believe me, that girl can sing," replied Mom.

I felt pretty good after talking to mom. I may have been thirty-nine but when it came to women and commitment, I still wasn't too sure. "Mom, how did you know Dad was the right one? You two have been married forty-five years and still seem to be in love."

"That's because we are," smiled Mom.

"What's the secret? I mean when did you know he was the one."

Dad walked in smiling. "Oh, that was probably the first time we had sex," laughed Dad.

"Stop it, George. You should be ashamed of yourself." Mom slapped Dad lightly on the arm. "Jeff, when we first kissed there was a spark. I don't know how to explain it. It was something different, something special."

"She's right, Jeff. All kidding aside, we kissed and I knew she was the one. I felt the same sparks that she felt and we've been together ever since," smiled dad.

On Saturday, I went over to Becky's place for our date. She had a nice place in the country: a very nice looking ranch home and a barn. Her animal clinic was next door maybe fifty yards away. She later told me that it kept her close to home and at the same time was far enough away from the barking animals.

A young boy answered the door.

"Hi, there, I'm Jeff Wilson. Your mom's expecting me."

"Come on in; Mom's still getting ready. I'm Jimmy Taylor." He stuck out his hand to shake. I was somewhat surprised with his courteous nature. You don't see too much of that in an eight year old boy.

A lady came out of the kitchen. She was a lot older than when I last saw her. It was Mrs. Prouse, Becky's mother. "Jeffery, Jeffery Wilson, it's been so long since I last saw you. You're still as handsome as ever."

"...and you're still as beautiful as I remember," I replied.

She was a good-looking woman for her age. She always did have a nice personality. I talked with her about my possibly leaving the military and returning home to run an electronics shop. By then Becky appeared. She was beautiful.

I walked up and took her by the hands and told her how gorgeous she looked. She was smiling so I gave her a light kiss on the cheek.

"I see you met Mom and Jimmy. There are like best friends. Whenever Jimmy isn't in school, Mom watches him while I'm at the clinic. Jimmy spends a lot of time at the clinic too. He loves animals and says he wants to be a vet some day also. I'm really proud of him."

"You should be; he's a very well mannered young man."

We said our goodbyes and Becky and I headed out to my parents' car. "I thought you said you owned a Jeep?" asked Becky.

"I do, but I wasn't going to take you out on our first date in an old Jeep," I smiled. "So I borrowed Dad's car."

I was looking over at Becky and she was smiling.

"Okay, what so funny? What did I do wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing, nothing at all. When you said first date, it made me smile. That usually means there will be at least a second," smiled Becky.

"There will be if I have anything to say about it," I replied.

Our date was wonderful. We chose a nice restaurant with low lighting and kind of a soft atmosphere. The food was really good. Becky and I talked about old times. We talked about Julie but it was more on a kidding side. I was looking right at Becky's eyes and smiling when she asked me.

"Okay, you have that little smile again. What are you thinking about?"

"Something my mom and dad told me yesterday. It's something that made me wonder if it could even be true," I said.

"Well, what is it? Are you going to tell me?" asked a smiling Becky.

"I'll do better than that; I'll show you."

I leaned across the small table toward Becky.

"Jeff, what are you doing?"

"I was going to kiss you. I'm sorry, but that is what I talked about with my parents today."

"What? You talked to your parents about kissing me? Are you a nut job or what?" she smiled.

"Kiss me and then I'll explain it to you. If you really don't want to, then I apologize for being so forward."

"No, I want to kiss you -- wait, that's not what I meant to say. Well, I guess it is but...shit, you're confusing me."

"Let's just kiss. No other touching, just our lips," I said as I leaned forward across the table.

Becky leaned forward too and we very gently touched lips. Soft, moist and sensuous is what I felt when our lips touched. It felt almost erotic. We found ourselves applying more pressure and slightly opening our lips a fraction. I felt a light shock; no, shock isn't the word I want. I felt a tenseness making me want more and not wanting it to stop.

"Holy shit!" said Becky. "What was that all about? I've never felt a kiss like that in my entire life. We didn't do anything but kiss and I feel so...I'm not going to tell you."

"I know what you mean. I asked Mom and Dad how they knew they met the person of their dreams. You know, that marriage made in Heaven? They both told me they knew when they first kissed. All I am going to say for now is that I never felt a kiss like that in my life either."

We continued on with our date and we danced. It was so nice. I didn't feel pressured or anything. I was just having a wonderful time. It was getting late and I drove her home. We stood on her porch and we kissed again. I felt it again and she told me she did too. I asked her for another date in two weeks. It would be my next chance to come home.

She agreed to go out again and told me she had a wonderful time. I kissed her one more time and her porch light came on. We felt like two teenagers who just got caught. We both laughed and I told her I'd see her in two weeks.

Time seemed to drag for the next few days. I didn't want to call her when I really didn't have anything to tell her. After about a week and a half I couldn't help it; I called her at the clinic and asked her if our date was still on for Saturday.

"You bet it is. I know we've only been out once, but I miss you. I hope that doesn't scare you away. I'm not usually this forward with men."

"I've missed you too. I can't get kissing you out of my mind. Maybe my parents were right," I said.

"I hope so," said Becky. "I hate to say this but I have a sick dog on the table and I better get back to her. See you Saturday."

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We dated every two weeks. We went to movies, shows, always out to eat and sometimes we took nice long walks. A couple of Saturdays we even took Jimmy with us. He liked the zoo and amusement parks. He told me I was a pretty neat guy and one time when we were on the Ferris Wheel, he told me, "Thank you for making my mom so happy."

It was all he said, but it spoke volumes to me. On our next date, I took Becky to the karaoke bar. I told her my parents said she could sing like an angel and I wanted to hear her. When we walked in everyone greeted us. Becky and I ordered drinks and she told me it would all be on the house.

I didn't tell her I knew about it from mom and I let her explain it to me. Of course she didn't give herself half the credit that mom gave her.

We listened to a number of people sing. Some weren't too bad while others were horrible. Why a guy or woman thinks they can sing because they had too much to drink is beyond me.

While the votes were being totaled up, the DJ asked Becky to sing and told the contestants that she was entertainment and not part of the contest. At first, she wasn't going up till I started clapping for her and so did everyone else so she got up smiling.

She took the microphone and told the DJ what song she wanted. She announced to everyone that it was for a very special friend.

It was 'That's All I want from you.' I remember the song when I was just a kid. She started and had me captivated by the end of the first sentence.

"A little love that slowly grows and grows, not one that comes and goes, that's all I want from you."

Mom was right; she did sing like an angel. It was like her voice and the words went right to my heart. She sang as beautifully as anyone I have ever heard. When she finished I stood up and started clapping for her. I looked around and everyone else was standing also.

She handed the microphone back to the DJ and came back to the table. I couldn't help myself; I leaned over and kissed her. I didn't care who saw us. When she told me she sang the song for me, I knew I was falling in love.

I had one month to go before retiring from the service. I got a call one day from Becky and she told me her brother Bill had a nice office that should meet my needs and if I could come home the following Saturday we could go look at it.

To make a long story short, the office with an extra work area was just what I was looking for, and I put down a deposit for the rent. The strip mall it was in was owned by Bill so I got a really good deal thanks to Becky. I took her out to celebrate. She told me she didn't have to get home too early because Jimmy was staying at her parents that night.

At the end of a wonderful night and after I kissed her goodnight she asked me if I wanted to come in. I wasn't sure what to do. We had been honest with each other since we met so I told her the truth.

"Becky, I think I'm in love with you. I don't know how long our relationship is going to last but I don't ever want you to think I just wanted to take advantage of you."

"Jeff, it's been awhile since I have felt this close to any man. I feel the same about you as you do toward me. I want to make love to you tonight. I've wanted you for quite some time. I still understand that you were Julie's boyfriend and..."

"Forget Julie! I have. It's been you I've wanted since the day we kissed."

With that said, we went into the house and made very sensual love. We started out slow and gradually learned each other's bodies. When she came the first time, she told me how much she loved me. I wasn't sure if it was from the lovemaking or if she truly meant it. I knew that I loved her. All my lovemaking toward her was for one main reason and that was to give all the pleasure I could to Becky. I've never felt that way with other women.

The more pleasure I gave to her, the more I felt I received in return.

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I was on my last week at the base and starting to pack up my belongings when the phone rang. It was Becky.

"Hi, Jeff. You won't believe who I just talked to on the phone. Julie just called. It's the first time I've talked to her since she was here four months ago. She didn't actually phone me but I was at Mom's when she called.

"She told mom she was pregnant. Of course, mom was happy, you know how she loves kids. Anyway, mom told her that you and I were dating. When she asked to talk to me, I was a little nervous, I don't know why. Anyway, I told her how and when we met and she was surprised. She said she remembered seeing you but didn't say anything for obvious reasons.

"Anyway she said Henry is exceptionally happy. He has two grown kids but he is glad to be a dad again. I guess it's a boy and will be here in about five months. Anyway, just thought I'd tell you. I'll see you Saturday when you will finally be home for good. Just want you to know I love you, Jeff, and can't wait to see you more often."

"I love you too, Becky. Who knows, maybe we can think about making some future plans. We're not getting any younger, you know."

After we hung up, I had to think a little bit. Julie's pregnancy coincided close to her being home for the reunion. No, it couldn't be; it must just be a coincidence. As far as I know, she never told Becky about out having sex at the reunion. Becky never even hinted about me having sex with Julie ever. I know she must have known we did it before I went away twenty years ago. I figured for now that I would just let it go. No use opening a can of worms. After all, there might be nothing to it.

After moving back to my hometown, I opened my electronics business. I could repair just about anything to do with electronics including computers. I wasn't big on the programming side of computers but I knew how to make them work. The television industry was changing and I had a lot of repairs there also.

I would talk to Becky at least every couple of days and see her regularly. We became an item and we went out most every weekend. We were taking it somewhat slow but at the same time, we did have sex regularly. I just couldn't keep my hands off of her and she didn't want me to. In that we were in total agreement.

We went to the karoake bar approximately every two weeks. My parents and Becky's parents came to listen to her every once in awhile. My sister and brother even came a couple of times. Just so you know, they didn't all come to the bar at the same time. This was over a number of months that they came to hear Becky sing.