8. Fate
EIGHT
FATE
I’m leaning against the side of the rental, wearing a polo shirt and shorts. My initial plans were to relax in my cozy cabin alone and enjoy the weekend without any responsibilities. Chuckling at myself, I realize that changed the moment I saw Amy at the front desk yesterday. I still don’t have any set plans, but after listening to the three women, I accept that my life needs to change. The last thing I want is another empty day of avoiding my humdrum workaholic lifestyle.
“Oh gosh, I hope I didn’t take too long,” Amy exclaims as she hurries down the path from the lodge.
She’s wearing an unbuttoned plaid shirt with rolled-up sleeves over a snug, forest-green t-shirt. I can’t help but enjoy the way her full breasts stretch the material as they bounce, unhindered by a bra. Her cargo shorts show enough of her legs to remind me how they felt around my hips as we enjoyed our unexpected reunion yesterday.
“I’m not in any hurry, for once.” I grin as she slings her arms around me, pressing her full breasts into my chest. Wrapping her in my arms, I feel a sense of belonging as we kiss lightly, then with passion as we both respond to our arousing chemistry. Pulling away, I look into her eyes, which are dark with need. “Are we still going to the lake?”
“Right,” she breathes and taps my chest. “Yes. I want to spend time with you in nature.”
“It’s so beautiful here,” I say staring at her as she winks and walks around to the other side of my car. “I guess I picked a nice weekend.”
She laughs, her red curls bouncing as we slide into the car together. I close the doors before tapping my pocket, checking for the rental fob, and pressing the button to start the engine. Turning down the radio, I grin at Amy as a song from the eighties plays on the satellite radio station.
“I remember that song,” Amy says, bopping her head to the rock music I was listening to on my drive up from the valley. She leans and kisses my cheek, her hand rubbing my chest. “Scorpions, right?”
“That’s right!” I nod and turn to look out the rear window and back out of my parking space. “I remember listening to this sitting outside my stepdad’s mobile home by the river. We had our first date the night before.”
“The drive-in? Oh, gosh, I don’t even remember what movie was playing. That tracks, though. You were also a borderline headbanger.”
“I’ve evolved and enjoy many types of music, but this channel brings back many memories. This song is a happy memory.”
“Not all of them are happy?” Amy asks, sensing the frown, I try to mask.
“My senior year of high school wasn’t the best.” I nod, turning to give her a wry smile. “You left, and my friends ghosted me. It was hard initially, but I learned I was responsible for my happiness and no one else.”
The car is quiet, and I process my solitude since high school while listening to “Rock Me Like a Hurricane.” Amy runs her hand down my arm before resting it on the console between us. She twists my wrist and then entwines her fingers with mine, allowing the quiet to pass without getting weird.
“That must have been hard,” Amy says. “I know when I divorced, I thought I’d never fall in love again. I guess I forgot that I was before I met him.”
“Oh?” I ask as we listen to the muted rock song I’ve always associated with her.
“Yes.” Amy squeezes my hand. “I was too young to recognize what I felt for you back then, but now I realize I was in love. I never told you that, and I should have.”
“Yeah,” I agree quietly. “We got close so fast, and we had sex so soon, and then you were gone. I don’t think I’ve ever known what love is.”
The song changes, and I grin as Foreigner’s “I Want To Know What Love Is” starts playing, and I have to laugh. Amy joins in and squeezes my hand.
“Take the next left.” Amy interrupts the trip down memory lane and points to a small sign. “The entrance sneaks up on you, and it’s steep until you reach the lodge.” I feel her looking at me before she responds. “I don’t believe in coincidence. I believe in fate.”
“Fate? I didn’t think you were still religious.”
“I’m not, or at least not organized. I believe the universe isn’t random and that our paths through life are meant to help our souls grow and learn. How else do you explain this?” she asks, letting go of my hand to wave between us. “I think the universe is giving us another chance.”
“That explains us, but what about Leah and Paige?” I ask, still weighing my surprisingly deep bond with Amy and how it’s mirrored with her friends.
“The three of us fit,” Amy confesses. “They were there for me when my marriage ended. They supported me and shared parts of their lives with me. We grew closer. Culture is changing fast, and I know what we’re exploring would have been suppressed thirty years ago.”
I follow the narrow road that switchbacks down a steep incline, then drive into a gravel parking lot that pulls more memories into my mind. I shake my head as I reflect on the past yet again.
“This hasn’t changed,” I say, looking at the lodge on the bank of the lake on one side and a row of tiny cabins on the other. I point at the rowboats floating against the dock extending along the lodge’s side. “Those boats have been here forever. I have photos of my grandparents in those boats when they courted. It had to be in the thirties.“
“See?” Amy smiles. “Fate!”
When we get out, I tap my pocket, feel my wallet, and click the fob to lock the door.
“Fate? How?” I ask as we hold hands like we’ve done this for years.
“Your grandparents were married a long time, Kurt. They had a special relationship. I saw them here and there around the lake. They recognized me from our short time together. They’re gone now, and I went to their funeral. But before they died, they left part of their inheritance to support this community, including my campground.”
“I didn’t know that,” I admit. “When I left, I stopped noticing what was happening here. My mom kept trying to get me to visit all the time. When she died, I regretted that I distanced myself. All of this brings back how vital family was back then.”
“Don’t you feel the ripples of fate?” Amy asks, leaning against my side as she lets go of my hand and wraps her arm around my waist. “I don’t know what the universe taught you while you wandered in solitude. I think it’s prepared you for a better life, right?”
I wrap my arm around her, pull her body against my side, and smile. “You’ve always had a different perspective. I appreciate what you are saying, but fate? I’ll keep an open mind, but I don’t think I’m that important to the universe.”