Second Chance At Love Pt 01

Twenty-twenty was quite a year, I inadvertently got a second chance at love!

I'd lost my wife to cancer in January, and my good neighbor moved away after selling his place to an idiot in March. The Coronavirus struck; to top it all off, I was an evacuee from one of Oregon's September forest fires. Luckily, my son had a place far away from the danger zone, so I could stay with him and his girlfriend, Sandra. Keith is a firefighter for the city; he was called into work right after we finished moving all of my valuables to his place. I'm retired, so I had all day to pack and move things. Sandra is a fitness instructor, and with the smokey air all of her appointments were canceled.

My evacuation wasn't a frantic nightmare. There was plenty of time to gather things, lock up valuables, and transport everything worth saving to Keith's place. He and Sandra helped pack and load with me, including my tractor from my property.

I live on ten acres next to a state forest about thirty minutes from town. Our property was my dear wife Jeannie's special place. She had always wanted a place to garden to her heart's content. Flowers, vegetables, you name it, she grew it. Luckily, she spent a few years doing just that before she passed.

I had parked my travel trailer near Keith's house and plugged it into the garage dryer outlet. I hooked up to the outside hose bib for water. I used their bathroom and ate with them, using my trailer primarily for sleeping and giving them some privacy. It wasn't that bad; I'd socialize with Keith and Sandra in the evenings, then spend most days reading or talking with Sandra, who was out of work due to the virus.

The evacuation lasted two weeks; Sandra developed a workout routine for me. Not that I was that far out of shape; working on my ranchette keeps me reasonably fit. Her workouts discovered muscles I'd long forgotten.

Poor Keith was putting in long hours filling in for other firefighters defending their homes or helping out other evacuees. We saw him twice during the two weeks, a quick hello, shower, sleep, then back at it. I felt sorry yet proud of him; he loves his job.

I hadn't spent a lot of time around Sandra before this crisis. We spent time talking, working out, reading, and getting to know each other during our two weeks. I found her to be very articulate, fun, and caring. After the first week of idle chit-chat, we began in-depth talks about our lives and histories.

We both came to tears when I talked about Jeannie. She lamented that she wasn't pleased with Keith being away so much and the hours he kept working for the fire department. But she knew he loved doing what he did, and this was a freak fire and situation. Sandra also wished she could get back to work to help pay the bills. I know she didn't mean to talk about their money situation, so I bought groceries as often as we needed them.

Sandra is a great cook; I didn't mind doing the dishes since she cooked better, healthier meals than I did for myself. She told me about her college roommate, Lan, who got her into Asian cooking. I'm surprised I didn't gain any weight while staying there. By the time I left, I had the basics down when it came to Asian cooking.

When the fire danger had passed, I semi-reluctantly moved back home. This time, only Sandra helped put back pictures and clothes and helped me clean up the ashes off the deck and front porch. I was going to miss my time with Sandra. She'd become a friend in such a short time; I could see why Keith liked her.

Previously, Sandra had been to our place several times for dinner with Keith. This time she wandered about, marveling at how quiet and serene it was. She loved Jeannie's garden even though I hadn't kept it up like it should have been. She offered to help with it the following Spring assuming she wasn't too busy working. As we talked while walking around the property, she again opened up to me regarding her relationship with Keith.

She confessed that this emergency had opened her eyes to Keith's devotion to his job and its dangers. She wasn't sure she could deal with it all. I didn't know what to say except they needed to sit and talk about it. She agreed, sighing as she did. To change the subject, I mentioned I had an idea about putting a workout course on the property. Her eyes lit up, and I could see the cogs in her sweet brain turning.

We walked out to one of the pastures that used to house our steers. I'd gotten rid of them after Jeannie passed because I had enough work to do around the place. Sandra suggested a few things, pull-up bars and posts for stretching. I could use them when it wasn't raining to help keep me in shape. Working out had become a new habit for me, along with eating better.

Looking around after making her suggestions, I heard her sigh. I asked if everything was alright. She looked at me, doe-eyed.

"Yes, I love it out here. So quiet and peaceful. The garden your wife had is amazing. I could grow most of what I eat here. The commute to work would be a pain, though."

I laughed, "You're welcome to garden all you like. I have a brown thumb. I'd keep an eye on it for you if you want."

She smiled, walking towards me. Her arms opened up, and I got the biggest hug ever. I hate to admit she felt good in my arms, so soft; her breasts pressed into my chest. It had been a long time since I'd felt that way. I almost felt guilty about the feelings she gave me below the belt.

She released me, giggling, "I may just take you up on that offer, Ray."

I smiled, "I hope you do."

We walked back to the house; she said her goodbyes, then I made a list of things to get at the lumber yard.

Her body against mine wandered around my mind for quite a long time. I hadn't thought about dating since Jeannie had passed, feeling it was way too soon. I missed her, along with the intimacy we shared.

In early October, I had my par course set up. Sandra came out to inspect, giving me another big hug for doing it. She walked me through the various exercises, watching me perform them and correcting my errors as we went along. She'd show, then I'd do, correcting me, then taking pictures of me with my phone so I had a reference. We finished walking around the property; Sandra was like a child in a toy store. She'd look around, marveling at the birds flying over, listening to their songs, watching squirrels run around the trunks of oak trees chasing each other. I remembered that look when Jeannie and I first walked the property before buying it.

My heart skipped a bit when she stopped in her tracks. Arm outstretched, she stopped me to point at a cottontail rabbit on its haunches sniffing the air. The look on her face was priceless. If she hadn't been Keith's girlfriend, I would have wrapped my arms around her to hold her as she watched the rabbit.

A semi-dry October turned into a wet November. My poor miniature par course got minimal usage. I could feel myself slipping back into a rut, not working out, and getting softer than I had been. I called Sandra to ask if she had any indoor workouts I could do. I knew there were tons online, but I hadn't seen or talked to her since she inspected my course.

Her voice was music to my ears. I could picture her sweet facing smiling as we talked. I mentioned Keith, which caused a long silence. I asked if I had said something wrong, and hearing a sniffle, she told me they had split up, surprised he hadn't said anything.

I mentioned I hadn't talked with him recently. He'd just texted me that he was busy at work. I felt sorry for Sandra. Keith was a fool.

She thanked me, mentioning the problem with him working so much, their finances, and a bit of straying on his part caused the falling out.

I was shocked, mainly about the straying part. I didn't ask, figuring it must have been one of Keith's fellow firefighters. I knew they had some pretty and fit women working there. I couldn't bring myself to believe Keith would cheat on Sandra. I didn't raise him to be that kind of man.

I went on to tell her that Keith was somewhat like I was at his age. I was working my butt off to give him and Jeannie the things they wanted. Somewhat like that song, 'Cats in the Cradle'. It wasn't until he'd moved out that I realized what was happening, and I've regretted it ever since.

She said it wasn't my fault, explaining further that she was back to work, but it wasn't enough money to cover her part of the expenses. I told her I should talk to Keith.

She thanked me and said not to. I felt sorry for her. I asked where she was staying. I wanted to take her out to lunch. She mentioned something about 'couch surfing,' which she had to explain. She was currently living with a girlfriend who was also a masseuse, which was great with Sandra got a little sore from work. They'd been college roomies, and she had a room.

I told her I still wanted her to have her garden and that she was always welcome here. I suggested she 'surf' at my place if she thought she was taxing her friend's welcome.

She laughed, "Lan is a doll. She owes me anyway."

I replied, "Lan? Oh, the girl you roomed with in college. Now I remember."

"Yes, she taught me a lot about Chinese herbs also."

"She sounds nice. I'm glad you landed on your feet. You'll have to bring her out sometime with you."

"She'd love that, I'll ask her. Thank you, Ray."

We talked a little more. I made some notes about workouts and told Sandra I'd call with ideas for lunch. She thanked me, reminding me not to be hard on Keith. It was over; the cheating thing was the last straw.

I seriously thought about calling my son to chew his ass out for screwing around on Sandra. I decided to call but not mention her unless he did. We talked for a few minutes, and then he said he had to run. Yep, my son was just like me.

A week later, I called Sandra to meet her for lunch. She asked if she and Lan could come out instead, and they'd make me lunch. I couldn't argue with that, so I asked if there were anything they needed me to get. She said 'nothing,' asking if I had a wok. I didn't, so she said they'd bring one.

I do like Chinese food, and home-cooked would be a new experience. My mind wandered. I couldn't think of anything that I'd consider as healthy Chinese. Vegetarian was what kept going through my mind knowing Sandra and probably Lan were health freaks. I know I should eat better, but cooking for one sucks.

I kept an open mind about lunch, promising myself not to offend and eat everything in front of me.

About an hour later, I got a message on my phone app someone was heading down the driveway. I'd changed into decent jeans and a shirt, not wanting to look like a bum.

I walked out to greet them. Sandra was driving. She got out of her little Honda Civic dressed in a sweatshirt cut so exposing one shoulder. I thought I recognized one of her sports tops underneath. Yoga pants covered her legs, showing off those fantastic thighs and calves. Her blonde hair, tied back in a ponytail, swished back and forth as she bounded out of the car, a massive grin on her face, her arms wide to hug me.

I embraced her tightly, enjoying the feel of her younger, fit body against me. When she'd had enough of me, she turned, holding my hand in hers to introduce me to Lan.

My mind had gone blank as she held me in her grasp. That yearning for female companionship swept through my mind once again. Thankfully, the thoughts didn't make it down below quickly enough to give me an erection, which would have been a bit embarrassing right then.

I'd completely forgotten that Lan was with her. I looked over to my left to see a goddess. Standing around six feet tall, the same height as me, about six inches taller than Sandra. Her hair was a light brown bordering on red, long and straight, swishing to and fro intermittently as she exited the car. No make-up, just like Sandra, not that either girl needed any; they were both natural beauties.

She was smiling, watching Sandra and I greet each other. Dressed as casually as Sandra, her clothes seemed to hang off her tall body. The thing about her that surprised me was the size of her breasts. They were large and full. They were not at all disproportionate to her body, just large, and I bet they were natural.

Holding a wok and a bag from a grocery store, she walked towards me. I released Sandra's hand to take whatever Lan wanted to pass off to me.

We fumbled around, trying to shake hands as I went to grab the bag or wok from her. Sandra finally grabbed both as Lan and I laughed at our clumsiness. I reached out for her hand; instead, she opened her arms to hug me. Feeling her longer body against mine was different than holding Sandra. She felt just as lovely as her friend. Embracing both young women reminded me I truly missed the intimacy of a partner.

"Pleasure to meet you, Lan." I smiled as we broke our embrace.

"It's nice to meet you, Ray, finally. Sandra has told me so much about you," She grinned.

We walked into the house, straight to the kitchen. I have a propane stove, so the wok should work perfectly. I asked if anything was still in the car, and they thought for a second as Sandra remembered the rice cooker. I walked back out to get them letting the girls get organized. I must have been in stealth mode when I walked in because I caught Lan leaning down, nuzzling Sandra's neck. I stopped to watch for a second, then backtracked to open and close the front door louder so they'd hear me.

The second time I walked in, they were busy laying things out on the counters and heating the wok. I asked if I could help. In unison, they replied, "Nope," and then giggled.

Lan said, "Sit and watch. If we need something, we'll ask."

I smiled, "Yes, ma'am."

That got them both giggling as they scurried around once again.

They worked together as a team, never bumping into each other despite unfamiliar with my kitchen. Lan noticed the pictures on the wall between the dining area and the kitchen. While Sandra was busy chopping or mixing, she'd pause to look at my mementos.

Pointing at our wedding photo, she smiled, "Your wife, Jeannie, was beautiful, Ray. I'm so sorry for your loss."

I thanked her as she continued browsing and prepping our lunch.

It didn't take long before it was all ready to serve. We'd been making small talk, asking questions, and discovering more about each other as they cooked.

I asked Lan about her meeting Sandra, and giggled as they recalled meeting and becoming friends. I glimpsed a couple of blushes on sweet Sandra's face as Lan told a quick story of how they became roomies. Nothing embarrassing, I thought, but Sandra still blushed and smiled.

The aromas from the kitchen were beginning to make me drool. Looking back, I think I was more interested in watching the girls than eating.

They both looked at me and smiled when it was time to grab a plate. It smelled great. I doled a decent portion onto my plate as the girls stood back and watched.

They brought kuàizi, or chopsticks in English. I rarely, if ever, use them, but for this, I was willing to try. I also grabbed a fork, just in case. The girls watched me fumble with the kuàizi for a bit, laughing at my lack of skill; I laughed with them. I thought I would starve to death if I had to use them. The girls, however, showed me how to manipulate them so I could eat. After a few minutes, I was happily eating my lunch.

During lunch, Sandra mentioned that Lan would love to see the garden area.

I smiled, "After lunch, we can take the grand tour."

Lan giggled, "Sandra says it's the perfect size for a small business."

I thought for a moment, "Jeannie loved working out there. It was her happy place. I guess it's big enough, depending on what you grew."

Lan replied, "Would that be something you'd consider? Sandra and I leasing the space from you and growing things for the Farmers Market?"

I smiled, "Take a look at it first then we can talk. I'm not much of a gardener, and it's already become a weed patch."

The girls smiled as Sandra told Lan, "See, he's a sweetheart, unlike someone else we know."

I knew who they were talking about, or at least I thought so. I didn't say anything; instead, I got up and bussed the table of the dirty dishes. The girls thanked me while I countered with thanks to them. The lunch was very nice. I may have to learn to cook more exotic dishes.

We headed to the garden; Lan looked around, making mental notes. Sandra asked how I was doing on the par course and my indoor workouts. I was just about to say something when Lan stopped.

We rounded the corner of my shop when she saw Jeannie's garden. It showed the neglect of someone who wasn't really into gardening, coupled with the memory of my lost love. She looked at Sandra and me; her expression told the whole story. She loved it.

Lan stood looking at the garden, then at us, "What would you say to a partnership, Ray? We grow and sell whatever we produce, and you get ten percent."

I stood there thinking, "What do I have to do? I don't want you two coming in and making me till, weed, or build things for you for just ten percent of nothing. You won't make any money until all the work is complete and you're harvesting."

She thought for a minute, then walked over to Sandra, slipping her arm over her shoulder for a conference. I walked just out of earshot and let them chat. When they'd finished, they approached me both with big smiles on their faces.

Lan offered, "We'll do some more thinking and get a business plan to present to you. It will have everything laid out, what we're going to grow, our expenses, and whatever we can think of to make it work. We'll also need this for our business license before we can sell anything. If you could somehow figure out your costs for electricity for running the well, we can add that into the plan as our expense."

I smiled, "Sounds good to me. Let me know when you have it all ready."

Mid-March, they called to tell me they'd like to come and present their plan to me. I asked if they were making lunch and got a giggle and a yes.

The girls arrived around eleven, it had been a remarkably warm week, and they were in appropriate attire. Shorts, loose tops, and flip-flops looked very good on them. Lan's long legs looked terrific. Sandra must have been back to work full-time because her legs were as taut as ever.

I'd bought a wok since their last visit, so they just packed in a couple of grocery bags and a file folder. We did our hugs and then headed into the house. We all decided to eat first rather than talk business. I sat while they prepared another fantastic lunch. They were slowly converting me into an Asian gourmet, and I loved it.

After lunch, we spread the paperwork over the kitchen table to discuss business. I liked their plan regarding my percentage and what they would like me to do regarding maintenance and prep. It would be all organic, so I had to devise ways to keep the weeds down in the gravel drive and along fence lines without pesticides.

We signed papers before they left, all feeling good about our little venture.

During the week after our agreement, I expanded the garden area with my tiller on the tractor. The girls had thirty yards of manure delivered, which I tilled into the ten thousand square foot area. I had irrigation already in place, which they modified for their plans. They also put up electric fencing to keep the deer out. Bunnies, of course, would slip under the fence, which wasn't a problem for them.

As the weather warmed, their visits became more frequent and their clothes a bit more skimpy. I didn't mind; I looked forward to seeing them sweating in bikini tops and cut-off shorts. I helped when they asked for it, but the weeding and planting were all up to them. I did let them shower afterward in the house.

I cleaned one of the bedrooms for them to use as an office. They'd fix lunch occasionally, and I was permitted to pick whatever I liked from the garden.