The Vogelsangs, punctual as ever, parked outside at nine o’clock on the dot. Lillian was up and ready and hurried out to meet them, waving a cheery goodbye to Mary who had come to see them off, still wearing her pyjamas.

Chuck, still wearing his straw hat even as he drove, pulled the car down the lane and soon they’d disappeared around the bend on their way to Spain.

Mary made her way back into the barn and sat with a mug of coffee, contemplating her own day. Hopefully the exploration of yesterday would go much further. She’d decided to take what was offered and not push for more. She wanted Ben, and she’d take what she could get from him.

Today, as Ben was working, she decided on sunbathing out on the patio with some music and chilled drinks. She still had to get used to the cola they sell in Portugal. It would do but it wasn’t the stuff she was used to, made with real sugar and much different from the cola at home.

Ben had made his way downstairs and out into his courtyard. With a mug of tea in his hand and two slices of buttered toast on a plate beside him, he stared blankly at his laptop. Today, he wanted to write a long and scouring review of a visit to the local hospital he’d suffered a few weeks ago. He wasn’t dying, fortunately, but he was concerned at the lack of facilities for sick people in the area. He couldn’t always write about the good stuff; the stuff dream holidays are made of. There were problems here too, and as a travel writer it was his job to point them out to potential visitors. So he sat and stared. He also knew Mary was home alone. Right next door. Alone. Staring was about as much as he was going to get out of his brain at the moment, so he stood up and went to the gate. He called out her name softly, not wanting to frighten her if she was busy.

Mary heard Ben calling and lifted herself from the couch in the living room and made her way to the glass sliding doors.

“Hi!” she called back. “Mom’s off already, how’s your morning going?”

“Well, slowly. Got a bit of writers block just now but I’ll get it done eventually. I’m just glad to see you again. Thought it might spur me into getting to work quicker,” Ben replied making his way over to Mary.

“Well sit a while and finish your coffee. Then you can go and get your work done and spend the rest of the day with me. Chuck said not to expect them back until late this evening. So it looks like we have to take care of each other today,” Mary replied sitting down beside him.

“She’ll have fun with them. Seville is a fantastic place to visit. This is tea by the way. I am English, you know,” Ben said, chuckling.

“Ah, of course, the famous English tea. How would you all survive without it?” Mary giggled back.

“We wouldn’t,” Ben acknowledged. “Britain would collapse into the channel without tea.”

They sat in silence drinking until Ben stood up.

“Okay, back to work,” he said awkwardly, perhaps hoping for a prompt from Mary. Mary remained seated and smiled at him. She could see he was waiting for some sign of encouragement but was enjoying his nervousness. It made him look vulnerable and human. Not the solid, well spoken, without a care, ex-military chap he usually came across as.

“Okay.” She smiled, a promise lingering in the corners. “You go get finished and come on back. I won’t bother you ‘til your done, honey, but I’ll be waiting right here when you’re ready.”

Ben was smiling as he made his way back to his courtyard and laptop. With a fresh mug of tea in hand, he crashed into his blog with enthusiasm. The sooner this was done the sooner he would be back with Mary, and he would be able to spend the whole day with her without worrying about work. As he typed he hummed to himself. “Laying in the arms of Mary.” He smiled again. Not heard that song in forever, he thought to himself.

* * *

Lillian was having the time of her life. She’d thought Spain was another country a good many miles away and until the accidental train trip made her realise they were almost at the border. Now as they crossed into Spain heading for Seville she was loving every minute of it. As they drove into town she marvelled at the tall buildings and heavy traffic.

“Can get like New York here if you happen to end up downtown at the wrong time,” Chuck noted as he changed lanes to the honking of cars behind him. “Best way to drive here is to relax and just go with it and follow a local. They usually know where they’re going. I sure don’t.” He laughed.

Chuck eventually pulled in to park and they began an exploration of the city. Lillian had never experienced a city quite as big nor as old as Seville. Modern buildings competed with ancient Moorish relics on the skyline. People were hustling and bustling in every direction, sending Lillian into a head spin. Chuck guided them over to a little side street café where they settled down for a coffee and pastries.

“So how you finding Spain, Lillian? Bit more hectic than your little village I guess,” Edna asked.

“It’s absolutely fantastic. Sure bigger than any town I’ve ever been in. Not sure I could live here for long though, I’d go insane with all these people.” Lillian laughed as she looked around at all of the sights and sounds.

“Oh there are much busier places than this! But today, we’ll take our time and see what we can see.” Chuck added ordering them another round of the rich and fragrant coffee.

After coffee they walked. They talked and investigated and joked. Lillian was thinking about Mary at home. She hoped things were going well.

* * *

Mary had settled herself on the sun lounger with an iced drink by her side and her phone playing chilled tunes. She’d found an old tourist book of the places of interest in the Algarve and had settled down to read. Every so often she would change position to check and see if Ben was on his way. So far, no Ben. She would shrug and go back to her book. The history of the Algarve was certainly fascinating. Roman armies and Barbary pirates, the Inquisition and even a revolution not that many years ago, but Ben was far more interesting. He’d be here soon, she thought, getting up to refill her cola.

Ben had been busy typing all morning. The words eventually began to fall onto the page in some semblance of order and he was on a roll. Two more mugs of tea and he was done. He sat back in the chair and read and reread his article. It was good, he thought. He felt inspired for a change. He hit send and took his mug into the kitchen. Time for a quick shower and change. Then round to visit Mary. Hopefully he thought, she’d still be settled on the sun lounger.

Mary struggled to look casual as Ben came through the gate and gave a relaxed wave.

“Did you finish at last?” she said.

“Yes, I’m all done and I brought us a couple of drinks,” Ben said, sauntering over trying too to look as casual as possible. It didn’t last. He placed the drinks down beside the lounger and that was about it. She looked up at him, he down at her and before he knew it they were locked together, their lips fused as their passions took over.

Sun loungers, especially the cheap, plastic ones, were uncomfortable at the best of times and certainly not the ideal place for making love on. This soon became obvious to them both and taking him by the hand, Mary led Ben into the barn and to her bedroom.

He saw a shadow of a doubt in her eyes and knew he felt his own self-doubt. It had been quite a while since he’d made love to a woman like Mary. His wife had been so ill he’d never wanted to bother her, though there had been moments early on when she’d rally and want him to love her. He’d given her whatever she’d asked for, giving her those last moments of peace she needed. Since her passing he hadn’t really thought about sex as anything but an outlet. Standing there with Mary though, Mary’s presence alone had his mind filled with things he hadn’t thought about for years now.

Things that made his knees weak and his body harden with far more than mere need. Ben hoped to take some of the doubt from Mary’s mind by kissing her. He pulled her to him, backing himself up against the wall to the living room. He braced there, slouching, so that he could pull her between his legs. He wanted her close to him. They both knew what was about to happen and they both wanted it. He wanted her, and as his lips met hers and their bodies fused together, he felt a heat explode between them.

Ben could feel a satisfying heat where their bodies met, an ache building up that he knew only Mary could quench. He delved into the silken strands of her hair, holding her face to his as they leaned into each other. Her hands moved on him frantically, pushing his clothes away. He was glad he kept himself in decent shape as her hands roamed over his chest, the flat planes responding to her touch. He loved her long fingers on his skin, and when her hand moved lower, much lower, he gasped.

Ben looked into Mary’s eyes, asking her once more silently if she was sure. Her response was to kiss him again. Mary moaned into his mouth as his own hands pushed at her clothes, the scraps disappearing into a pile on the floor. She was gorgeous, her weight just right to add shape to her body, to soften the angles that would have been hard and sharp otherwise.

Her breasts filled his hands, his work-roughened palms a contrast to the silky smoothness of her flesh. He reminded himself to start using lotion again, Mary deserved soft touches. His lips followed his hands as his fingers trailed over her dark nipples, his mouth hungry for her taste. Mary gave him a satisfying gasp as she felt the intense heat of his mouth on her bud, clasping at his head with her hands.

His fingers trailed down, down to her nude mound, and he gave a groan of satisfaction. She was so ready for his touch! He wanted to drop to his knees, to make her scream his name, but he reminded himself to exercise control. Take it slow, we have all night, he told himself.

Ben used his fingers on her, capturing the tender morsel buried between her thighs, teasing her with two fingers. Pleasuring her. And he knew he was when her head fell back and her hips thrust into his hand. Ben carried on his slow torture, the heat flaring as his fingers continued to circle the bud, pressing gently but with determination.

“Ben, don’t make me wait. I’ve wanted you for so long. I need you now.” She guided him into the bedroom, pulling him onto the bed with her. Naked, they fell together, their bodies entwined as he slid into her and made her his.

They made love with a frenzied passion neither of them had felt before. An intensity that left them both gasping for breath. They’d both been unsure and reluctant to let go of the past, but now they were living in the moment and feeding on every second of it. They were hungry for each other. Hungry and desperate to drive away the demons of old and fill themselves with the overwhelming sense of passion and lust they felt for each other.

Ben found himself buried between her thighs, his tongue tasting her greedily, her moans of pleasure driving him to more daring touches, touches that she gasped at. When his fingers slid inside her heated depths, she almost launched herself from the bed, her back arching.

Ben saw her graceful movements and wondered if she’d ever been a dancer, she moved like one. His own passion, his need to feel her wrapped around his cock, had him on the edge of losing control but he held back, waiting for her explosion to come. Only then would he let himself go, only then would he make her his.

When she came apart, her back arched further, her wet folds pressing harder into his face as his tongue grazed at her clit over and over again. He felt her walls clasping at his fingers and knew she’d reached the peak. He waited for it to end, waited for her moans to turn to sighs before he drove into her, his body beyond all endurance.

He sank into her with a grateful moan of pleasure, unsure he’d ever felt something so perfect as Mary’s grasping walls. They were still pulsing from her orgasm and he loved the feel of it. He paused, letting the feeling wash over him, making him harder, thicker, as he slid out of her only to glide right back in.

“So tight, Mary. Fuck, your pussy is so good. It doesn’t want to let me go.”

She stared up at him, avidly watching his face. Her finger stroked his lip as she watched him.

“That’s because your cock is so good, Ben. So fucking good. Let me have it all now, please.” She was drowning for him, for what he could give her.

“Wrap your legs around my waist,” he instructed, helping her by lifting her calf around his hips. His fingers travelled up her leg, to her ass, grasping it, massaging it as she found a new way to ride him. “Later, I’m going to let you ride my cock until you collapse, but right now, right now I’ve waited too long and I have to come, baby. I just have to.”

She cradled him to her as he began his own ride, thrusting into her over and over, until he stiffened, a cry breaking from his throat as he jerked inside of her, around her. She held him, loving every moment of Ben’s pleasure, loving the sounds he made, loving how he made her feel full and whole. When he finished he rolled to the side, one arm over his eyes.

“I’m going to cook for you,” Ben said, as he lay totally exhausted on the bed beside Mary. “I’m going to cook my favourite meal of all time. Food wise, it is all I can offer to match what just happened.”

“Ben? Are you really hungry? Or are you just trying to get away from me?” Mary asked. She too sprawled on the bed, stunned at the passion of their lovemaking.

“Oh I don’t mean now, baby. I don’t think I have the strength to get to the end of the bed just now. No later, maybe after a shower. Then I’ll cook for you,” Ben replied, rolling over to face Mary and falling in love at the sight of her soft sensuous smile.

“We could shower together,” Mary said, nodding towards the arched doorway into the en-suite bathroom. “But not until I find some more energy too. Then yes, I would love for you to cook for me.”

They showered. They made love in the shower and once again collapsed exhausted on the bed. Eventually, they made their way round to Ben’s apartment and he seated Mary at the table in the garden. Ben reappeared with a plate of olives, cheese and bread and a bottle of wine.

“Just to get us started okay?” Ben smiled as he returned to the house and the kitchen.

Mary sat sipping on the delicious red wine as Ben emerged back into the courtyard, his hands loaded with dishes.

“For you, my princess, my favourite recipe,” Ben announced laying down the dishes on the table.

Mary stared at it somewhat bewildered.

“And what might your favourite recipe be Ben? Sure smells a whole lot like garlic,” Mary said peering into the pot.

“Garlic and shrimp fried in olive oil. Trust me. You have to try it to understand. There’s nothing quite like it I don’t think and I’ve tried a lot of food in a lot of places,” Ben said, gesturing to the pot.

Mary ladled a heap of the shrimp and its sauce onto the plate. She sniffed it some more and then tested a shrimp.

“Oh, wow!” she said as she helped herself to another shrimp and dipped a chunk of the fresh local bread into the olive oil sauce.

“Oh my! Yes, that is absolutely delicious. I would never have guessed anything could taste quite like it,” Mary continued, filling her plate with more.

“Good. I’m glad you like it. It’s my favourite go to comfort food,” Ben laughed as he loaded some onto his own plate.

“Comfort food? Surely you don’t need comfort food after a day with me, Ben?” Mary said looking somewhat crestfallen.

“Oh good grief no! No not at all. Maybe comfort food was the wrong phrase. Maybe “Happy food”? You know food that makes me happy or food I like to eat when I’m happy and yes I’m happy, believe me. Happier than I’ve been in years thanks to you,” Ben stammered and stuttered as he tried to pull it back from the brink.

“Well, I should hope so. I’m teasing. Yes, I love your fried shrimp and garlic and I’m glad you made it for me, thank you,” Mary replied smiling back at him.

* * *

With the table cleared, they spent the early evening talking. Both of them had hopes and plans and both wanted to share. Ben hadn’t even considered a relationship again before Mary had appeared and now he so desperately wanted to show her the rest of this beautiful country, and then the rest of the world. The thought shook him, but for once, he went with it, knowing this was something he’d not quite experienced before.

Mary had been a heartbroken and depressed jilted bride before she’d met Ben. Now she couldn’t imagine a day without him. But could it happen? Would Ben ever consider moving to a retreat in the mountains of West Virginia? Someone so well-travelled? It would drive him insane after a week or two. Instead, she told him how much she would love to see the world with him and travel. She just wanted to be with him forever.

As Ben got himself animated about the wonderful places they would visit and Mary sat in amused wonder at his stories, they heard the sound of a car engine up the lane. Lillian and the Vogelsangs had returned.

Ben went into the kitchen and returned with drinks, glasses and a tray of nibbles. He had no doubt that once Lillian and her friends got themselves sat down, it could be a long night and they’d enjoy the refreshments.