Chapter 24

Departure and Homecoming

Barb and Jake helped us pack and get everything in the SUV from the cottage. We said our goodbyes with lots of kisses and hugs. Brad and I were sure that we would see them again after the camp closed for the season. I know I said the next few weeks would be a cooling-off period, but I think it will be more like an ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder period.’

We were packing up cabin number 10, and I was walking down to the SUV with a suitcase when I noticed the girls in cabin number six were also packing to go home. I told Brad that I would be back in a few. I went over to say goodbye to Gail and Marie, gave each of them a hug, and assured them we would see each other again.

As I walked back to finish packing, I patted the pocket with the slip of paper with their address and phone number that they gave me yesterday.

We left a few minutes before check-out time at noon, and I let Brad drive. I was exhausted from all the marathon lovemaking and packing up. I just wanted to close my eyes, sleep, and wake up at home, sweet home.

I woke up when Brad stopped for gas, and we had a bit to eat. Carel drove the rest of the way home.

We finally had all the bags and dirty laundry moved into the house. Steve was on his way home, none the wiser of what Brad and I had done practically under his nose. We made a pot of coffee, and the three of us sat at the kitchen table with our private thoughts about this year’s vacation and the future.

I would have to make room in my bathroom and bedroom for Brad to keep a few things he might need in the morning. Barb and Jake would be home after closing the camp in a few weeks. I had to make a note on my calendar to call Gail and Marie at the end of next week. We were going to a gay rights rally in Cambridge. After that, we would be going to their apartment for some wine. I had started to love my life again and thanked God for the two most wonderful and understanding kids a mother could ever ask for.

It took about a year and a half before Jake and I realized we were in love and tied the knot. Barb and Brad got married right out of college. Even Carol settled down and married a real sweetheart guy about a year after Barb and Brad were married.

Then, the day came in 2010 that Jake and I knew was inevitable. Brad and Barb came over, sat us down in the living room, and said we could no longer have sex with them. Of course, we immediately thought we had done something wrong. Until Brad said Barb was off the pill and they were trying to have a baby. I started crying my happy tears as Jake jumped up, grabbed them both in a bear hug and told them how happy they would make him if they gave him a grandchild. My thoughts about sex with Brad immediately evaporated and were replaced with thoughts of pink and blue paint chips and baby names.

It has been over five years since Jake and I had sex with Barb and Brad. I still take my vacation in August, as do the kids now that they are all well-established in their careers. Carol, her husband Paul, and her little boy get cabin number 10. Barb, Brad and their twin girls are in cabin number 9. I turned fifty-three in May and got my first pair of reading glasses last year. My husband, Grandpa Jake, is fifty-five and is building a dollhouse and a rocking horse in our cellar. I still occasionally have a glass or two of wine with Marie and Gail, much to Jake’s amusement.

If you’re wondering what goes on when Jake and I are babysitting and fussing over our grandchildren. We call it our family indiscretions.