Chapter 43: In Love At Last

When Brit arrived home, she immediately came over and sat down beside him on the couch, taking his hand in hers. "How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Just fine," he replied. "I had another long nap this afternoon, but no headache or dizziness. Thanks for your concern."

"I am concerned," she said. "I care for you, Jeff. And when you're not feeling well, it bothers me."

"I know," he smiled, putting an arm around her shoulders. "I'm so lucky to have a little sister like you."

She climbed up onto his lap and lay her head against his chest like she enjoyed doing. Jeff wrapped his arms around her. They sat like that for a few minutes until Rachael appeared in the hallway. "Oh, hi Brit," she greeted, coming over and sitting down beside them. "How was school?"

"Fine, except that I was worried about my big brother all day."

"Well, Jeff's doing great. We kept him in bed most of the time."

"Yeah, I'll bet you did," Brit giggled.

"You've got a dirty little mind," Rachael teased. "It wasn't like that at all." Then she winked and added, "Or was it?"

"Probably not. Allison would have kept things under control."

"Allison joined in."

"Oh yeah, right," laughed Brit. "Like I really believe that."

Rachael shrugged. "Suit yourself."

They continued to joke and tease for a while, and even Allison came in and joined in on the fun a few minutes later. Even with her insisting that everything Jeff and Rachael said was true, Brit still didn't believe it, but that was fine. In fact, they probably wouldn't have joked about if they thought she would.

Their teasing mellowed suddenly when Greg arrived home half an hour later, early from work. He wanted to get an early start so Allison and he could get the camp set up before dark and still have time to fix dinner. Fortunately, their bags were all packed; all they had to do was load them into the van. Despite Greg's insistence that Jeff not exert himself, Jeff helped him carry some of the equipment out. He was kind of anxious to get his dad out of there so that they could get on with the fun.

Of course, the fun would be limited until Brit went to bed, but that was all right. Rachael was nice to spend time with even with Brit there to keep them from jumping all over each other.

"Okay, we're going to leave you three now," said Greg as soon as they finished putting the last of the gear in the van. "This is your last chance. Is it still all right if just Allison and I go camping?"

"Go have fun," insisted Jeff.

"We'll see you when we get back," said Allison, kissing each of them on the cheek. Then she followed Greg out to the van. Rachael and the kids stood by the door watching and waving as they drove down the hill out of sight.

As Greg and Allison drove to their favorite campsite, he noticed that she kept staring at him with a smile on her face. It was a little disconcerting; she normally didn't act like that at all. If he didn't know better, he would say she was infatuated with him. Of course, that couldn't be true; they had been married for three years already, and he couldn't think of anything that had changed between them.

He wondered what kinds of thoughts ran through her mind. He never claimed to understand women; any man who did was a liar. So there really wasn't much point in trying to figure out her thoughts. Still, he couldn't help but speculate.

Maybe Rachael's presence had something to do with her mood. Rachael had already joined Allison and him in their lovemaking a couple of times that week. Perhaps Allison was merely recalling those incidents with fondness. Or perhaps just having her sister spending time with them had something to do with it. He knew that Allison and Lissa had become very good friends, and Lissa's departure couldn't have been good for Allison, so Rachael's presence helped to ease her loneliness.

On the other hand, maybe she was just glad that the two of them had this time alone together. With all of the preparations for getting Lissa off to college, things had been really busy that summer. Sure, they had gone camping and vacationed in Hawaii, but at least one of their children had joined them on each of those trips. Now, after all of the preparations had ended and Lissa had gone off to school, they finally had a quiet moment to be alone together, just husband and wife.

God, she's beautiful! he thought as he glanced over at her. At times like these, he remembered the first day he had met her. The rest of the family had changed around them, but even after three years, Allison continued to thrill him. The passion still burned just as brightly as on their wedding night. He couldn't believe how lucky he was to be married to a woman like Allison.

Eventually they reached the parking lot for the campground, and they climbed out of the van. They retrieved their tent and other equipment and headed back to the site. Though they had left late and it was already starting to get dark, they still had plenty of time to pitch the tent and prepare dinner. Allison moved in close and cuddled up next to him as they ate, keeping one arm around him throughout the meal.

He wondered what had gotten into her. She was always been fun to be around, but it seemed that she was acting a lot more affectionate tonight for some reason. Not that he minded, of course. She was very nice to cuddle with, even on a warm day like today.

After dinner they cleaned up the dishes and then sat down again. This time she sat right down in his lap, throwing one of her arms around his shoulder and smiling at him.

"Okay, what's up?" he asked with an amused smile.

"I'm just glad we get to spend this time alone together, and I'm trying to make the most of it."

"Suits me fine," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist.

They snuggled and talked for the longest time, just enjoying each other's company. The setting sun, though mostly hidden by the trees, turned the sky orange and bathed the campsite in warm colors. Greg sat there just gazing upon his wife's face, so close to his own and so beautiful. He thought she looked absolutely divine at these times with the last rays of sunlight illuminating her face and making her skin almost glow.

Soon, though, the dusk faded into night, and the lovely vision before him grew harder and harder to see. Still, as long as he could still feel her body against his own and knew that he would wake up to her face again in the morning, he had no cause to complain.

"You know what would feel really nice right now?" asked Allison.

"What?"

"A late night dip in the pond. Do you want to go swimming with me?"

Greg smiled. It certainly sounded nice; it was a warm night, and he wouldn't mind lying out in the water staring up at the stars. Besides, he knew the kind of swimsuits Allison liked to wear when it was just the two of them together. An image of her standing there, dripping wet in the tiniest little pieces of fabric flashed through his mind.

"What's the matter?" asked Allison. "You're staring."

"Sorry," he replied. "I'm just imagining you in a bikini."

"Well, now imagine me in even less," she said. "Because that's what you're going to see."

"You mean..."

"Exactly. But to make it fair, you're going to have to do the same."

Greg considered. He hadn't been skinny dipping since ... now that he thought of it, he had never been skinny dipping. The closest he had ever come was sitting naked with Allison in the hot tub back home. He wasn't sure if he liked the idea of being exposed to the world like that; there was no guarantee that someone wouldn't happen along and see him. Of course, the last two times they had been to this campsite, they had had it all to themselves, and especially now that the season was pretty much over, that meant even less chance of being spotted.

In the end, the thought of watching Allison frolicking nude in the water outweighed any bashfulness he felt. "All right," he agreed.

They slipped on their sandals, grabbed a couple of beach towels, and then headed down the trail toward the swimming hole. Greg carried the battery-powered camp lantern so that they had plenty of light to find their way, but because the moon was nearly full they really didn't need it. When they arrived at the swimming hole, he hung it on a convenient tree branch as Allison spread the towels on the sand.

They stripped down on the shore, and Greg watched with delight as Allison's body came into view. Though he got to see that sight almost every night, he never tired of it. As he watched the sexy and enticing movements of her body, he couldn't help but grow aroused. His excitement became all too obvious in a moment when he dropped his shorts and stood naked in front of her.

She glanced over at him and grinned. "I'll take that as a compliment," she smiled.

"Oh, it is," he told her. "It's just that you have an amazing body. How did a guy like me end up with such a perfect woman?"

"You just happened to be in the right place at the right time. And you had enough money to attract me."

"Oh gee, thanks," he said. "I was hoping for something more along the lines of--"

"I'm glad you turned out to be the one," she smiled.

"That's better," he replied.

"I know. I was just joking about the first part. Seriously Greg, I took a big risk when I married you for your money, but it turned out to be the best decision I've ever made. If tomorrow you were to lose your fortune and end up homeless on the streets, I would rather stay with you than find another millionaire to marry. The money no longer matters."

"You're really serious, aren't you?"

She strode over to him, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him. Greg held her to him, enjoying the feel of her body. But there was more to it than that, he realized. Sure, she was soft and warm and very nice to hold and cuddle with. Sure, she had a beautiful face and magnificent body. Sure, she was fantastic in bed. But somehow, she was much more than the sum of her parts. Whether he was having sex with her, holding a conversation with her, enjoying a dinner out with her, or just sitting at home watching TV with her, there was something comforting and pleasant about her very presence. It was like all of the fun times they had had together somehow came back when he was with her, as well as hints of fun times to come in the future. He had married her because she was quite literally the most beautiful woman he had ever met, and she really knew how to make him feel good. He hadn't thought much beyond the thrill and excitement of the promise of years of great sex with her. But now he realized that in thirty or forty years when her beauty had faded and all those good times were behind them, he would be just as happy with her as he was now.

What did that mean? Certainly he hadn't felt that way when they first met. Either she had changed, or he had. Or perhaps both. There was a word that he was hesitant to use, because he wasn't sure whether it was true or not. After all, maybe she didn't feel the same way about him as he felt about her. Could those feelings work one way and not the other? Could that word really describe what they had between them?

That word, of course, was love.

Brit had been the first to bring it up. He hadn't really given it much thought until that conversation a couple of days ago, but now he couldn't get it out of his mind. Maybe during this past couple of years, with all the fun he had had with Allison, with everything they had shared, somehow Greg Primdale had fallen in love with his wife.

Allison splashed out into the water, and Greg waded out behind her. She dove under for a second, then emerged with water running down her body. Greg grinned as he stared at her. In the moonlight she looked almost surreal, like a fairy or an elf out of a fantasy world. Or perhaps he had spent too much time in his daughter's art studio lately. Either way, he loved the sight of her nude body.

He followed her out, letting himself gradually get used to the chill of the water. It really did feel nice, he decided. The darkness added a certain adventurous mystique, both eerie and yet peaceful at the same time. He decided that he liked swimming at night. Of course, the presence of his wife really helped as well.

She waded over to him and threw her arms around him again, kissing him passionately. No doubt about it, she was even more affectionate than before. Something had changed in her, and he was just beginning to suspect what that was. Maybe it was the same thing that had changed in him.

Suddenly, she leaped up on him and pressed down, laughing as she tried to dunk him. Somehow he managed to keep from going under, then grabbed her around the waist, lifted her off her feet, and tossed her backward into the water. She shrieked in mock terror right before vanishing under the water.

A moment later, he felt her arms wrap around his legs just at the knees, and she pulled on them, knocking him off balance. He found himself tumbling into the water as well.

They horsed around in the water like children for the longest time, and Greg found himself enjoying acting like a kid again. Once again, Allison brought out the best in him. At the very least, he knew he could just relax and have fun with her, not worrying about acting like an adult.

Of course, their nudity made it a little less innocent than a child's game, and they spent as much time "accidentally" rubbing up against each other's bodies as trying to dunk one another. Once, when Allison was submerged and Greg was standing up, she even opened her mouth and took his cock into it momentarily, giving it a couple of sucks before she came up for air.

Finally, exhausted, they called a truce. They hugged and kissed some more, but if that was meant to relax them after their fun and games, it didn't work. At least, not for Greg. He found himself getting excited at the feel of her body against his.

Then they separated, to his dismay. Allison lay back on the water, and Greg watched her floating there for a minute. Then he too lay back, staring up into the moonlit sky.

It was a beautiful night. He could make out all of the major constellations, and the glow of the moon added its own breathtaking beauty. Lying out like this under the stars, with his ears underwater to dampen the sounds of the forest, he felt an almost timeless peace, as if the universe and he were one and the same. It was the same sky that had looked down on the world from the dawn of man, eternal and unchanging. Now, together with Allison, his wife, the woman he loved, he was complete.

Yes, he loved her. It was that simple. There was no longer any doubt about that, no wondering or analyzing or calculating. It had not happened just since his daughter asked him about it; he had loved Allison for much longer. He just hadn't recognized it until now.

The only question was whether she loved him too. He hoped that her flirting and cuddling and hugging and kissing tonight was a sign of that, but he could not be sure. Though they had never discussed it, now he really wanted to know. He would have to ask her, but only when the time was right.

They had been out in the water for over an hour when they finally decided to wade back into shore and make their way back to camp. Rather than get dressed, Allison merely wrapped her towel around her like a sarong. Greg shrugged, then wrapped his around his waist. They donned their sandals, then Allison took his hand and they made their way back to the camp. Greg noticed that she smiled all the way back, like a schoolgirl holding hands with her first boyfriend. It was the same way she had acted on their honeymoon, all giddy and excited. Once again he wondered what had come over her.

Back at camp, Greg headed for the tent to change, but Allison put her hand on his arm to stop him. He glanced at her to see what was wrong, but she wore a naughty grin on her face.

"There's no one around," she said, but that didn't really explain anything.

"And this is important because... ?" he teased.

"Because no one's here to see me do this!" she replied, then grabbed his towel and yanked it off of him.

"Hey!" he exclaimed in embarrassment. But as soon as Allison took her own towel off, he suddenly didn't mind at all.

"After the cool water of the pool, I feel too hot to go around in stuffy clothes, wouldn't you agree?"

"Uh huh," he said, staring at her body. Despite being exposed to it the whole time at the swimming hole, the thought of seeing her nude all the rest of the evening until they went to bed excited him.

"Good. Then it's settled."

He placed one of the towels on the picnic bench, then sat down on it. Allison came over and sat on his lap again, which was a little awkward this time because he had nothing between her and his growing erection. She wiggled around a little until it found a comfortable resting spot poking up between her legs. Probably deliberately, she had maneuvered her body so that it brushed against her pussy.