COPYRIGHT@GERRYROSE

 John arrived back at his flat at around 9am. He didn’t think that at the age of 78 he had anything new to learn about sex. He had been very wrong. Marie had led him to her bedroom and that’s where the magic took place. When John married June she had been a virgin. John was not. June got pregnant on their honeymoon. John realised that their sex life from then on was one of consideration and gentleness. Their first son was born after a long labour and a difficult birth. June suffered and never felt comfortable about sex again. John considered himself to be a decent man who could never force himself on a woman. Perhaps he didn’t have the strongest libido and certainly never strayed. He felt fulfilment in other aspects of their life together. June was a homemaker and she was a wife in the old fashioned sense of the word. She had read the advice about placing her husband the centre of the home. They all revolved around him and made him feel appreciated. She encouraged him to have hobbies such as golf and was always sunny and pleasant. When their eldest was 2, June told him that she wanted another child and their relations began again. However, John always felt somewhat like the bull who is introduced to the cow for the purpose of insemination. June was not a sensual woman and once their first child was born he never saw her naked again. When their second son was born they very rarely had sex and he always felt that June thought sex in a marriage was to be endured. Although they were young in the 1960’s a lot of the sexual revolution passed them by.

 So what had happened in Marie’s bed had been enlightening. He knew she was a Psychotherapist but had not realised that she was also a sex therapist. Marie had a very open attitude to sex. Once he entered her bedroom he was in her territory and on her terms. He was quite surprised when she asked him very directly if he wanted to fuck her. He told her that he wanted to make love to her. He was surprised by how the conversation progressed.

‘So John you want to make love to me, but what will that involve?’

‘Well I am not too sure I am 78.’

‘Ok let’s have no expectations then, but let’s talk boundaries and set some ground rules. I am French and I have a bidet and I will use it and you should too. I think we should be aware that if we make love this does not mean we are in a relationship.’

‘I will be led by you love.’

John felt this was all a bit too clinical, but times have changed. He knew that a lot was spoken about gaining consent before having sex. Marie was the expert and he would be led by her. She offered him a spare toothbrush and a fluffy white towel too. Once their ablutions were over. Marie led him to her bed which was a magnificent king size mahogany French Lit Bateau bed with crisp white linen sheets and a silver silk bed runner. She had a pillow which was obviously custom made for her bed, as it stretched the entire width of it and appeared to be made of silk. When he had remarked on it, she told him it was a divorce pillow. She said she had it made after her divorce, when she didn’t see why she shouldn’t sleep in the middle of the bed. She said single pillows forced you to sleep on one side of the bed. She definitely was in charge. She asked him if he wanted to undress her, or did he want her to strip for him. John felt a stirring and realised that he wanted her to strip for him. She looked him directly in the eye as she unbuttoned the cream silk blouse she was wearing. She removed it to reveal a very beautiful lace bra. The sight of her pert breasts with her dark nipples aroused him further. She unclasped it and her breasts were perfect. He could never imagine June behaving this way. He remembered kissing her and laying her gently back on the pillow so that he could caress her breasts and he felt pleased when she appeared to be enjoying this. He removed his shirt and vest and the sensation of skin on skin as they kissed was marvellous. He felt that the years seemed to float away and in his mind he was a young man again excited by a lover’s body.

 He felt elated as he was able to give her pleasure and he was surprised by how they connected and both seemed to know how to please one another. Whilst he felt young in his mind his body remained 78. He regretted not being able to sustain his erection. He was encouraged to give pleasure in other ways and he felt he did.

 Now he was home he felt sad, he was leaving Hove just when the most exciting thing had happened. However, a bit of him knew that this was his leaving present. Marie who was usually so confident and contrary had let her guard down. She would not want him to feel that he was anything more than a friend. He knew the phrase friend with benefits and did not feel that that would ever be enough for him. He imagined that they would stay in touch and he hoped she would visit him and that he would be able to visit her. He knew that he could not expect more than this. Before he left she gently raised the subject of Viagra and he took this as a sign that she wanted to continue their sexual relationship. He wished he could discuss his experience with someone. He really didn’t feel that his old friend Godfrey would be the best person to discuss it with.

 He didn’t really know what to do next. He looked at the photo of his wife June and wondered what she would do. He felt somewhat guilty even thinking about what she would think. However, strangely a thought entered his head.

‘A gentleman always sends their lover a single red rose.’

He remembered that this is what he had done after meeting June at the department summer outing. They were not lovers but he felt that June might be guiding him.

It struck him that this was indeed the best thing to do. He took a walk to the florist in Richardson Road. He felt a little silly asking for a single red rose with a card to be sent to Marie. The young girl in the shop did not seem to be phased by this. She asked him to pick a rose, choose a card and write his message.

He wrote.

‘My dear Marie, here is a token of my love and regard for you. Please stay in touch. Your John x’

 He felt this would hopefully be appreciated by her and would show that he held her in high regard. Before returning home he made an appointment with his G.P. on the following day to ask for a prescription for Viagra. He felt quite elated when he realised that he might be able to see Marie before he left and would have his tablets tomorrow. A bit of him felt foolish. The phrase ‘no fool like and old fool’ kept running through his mind. He decided that he didn’t care. His encounter with Marie had been the most thrilling thing that had happened to him in a long time. When he got home he texted her to say it would be nice to meet up before he left and suggested the following night that he repaid her invitation and invited her to his flat where he would cook her a real Yorkshire meal! He felt like a teenager as he waited for her reply and just hoped she would accept. He looked at June’s photo and wondered if things could have been more sensual between them. He remembered a conversation they had before she died. She had described herself as a bit of a ‘fuddy duddy’ and told him that he was to make sure he lived his life to the full after she was gone. June was a very solid and reliable person. They had led a life which was comfortable and to some a little dull. John felt it was time for him to be a little reckless and to explore his sensual side. He felt grateful to have met Marie and just hoped she would agree to see him the following night. His phone pinged and he had a message from Marie. He hardly dared look. How was it that he could still have these longings at his age. He realised that whilst his body had aged, his mind hadn’t. Well not yet. He still had longings and desires.