She was sound asleep. I had been reading a book and I rolled over in the bed to check on her. She looked so peaceful. I brushed the hair out of her face and kissed her on the cheek. All was well in the world.
Otis, our Boston terrier, jumped up upon the pine trunk at the foot of our bed making a clamorous noise. He had been outside to relieve himself. You could hear the flap of the dog door as he came back in.
“Shhhhh,” I said as I grabbed him with my arms. “Momma is asleep.”
He snuggled up close to me and scurried under the covers. Rachel stirred.
“What are you two up to?” She asked sleepily as she rolled over slightly.
“Hey, doll,” I said as looked down upon her. “Your two men are fixing to head to bed.”
“Good, you know I have to work early tomorrow,” Rachel said as she rolled back over.
I kissed her again on the cheek and said good night. I reached over and turned off our bedside lamp. I pulled Otis close to me and pulled the covers over us. I laid there in the dark as the ceiling fan went round and round. I felt a hand reach across the bed and fumble for mine. I grasped it tightly and squeezed it.
“I love you,” Rachel said as she grasped my hand.
“I love you too, sweetheart,” I replied. “You go to sleep.”
I often wonder if things could have been different. I wonder if our marriage could have worked. That fumbling hand in the darkness still strikes a strong chord within me. I would love nothing more than to wrap a beautiful woman in my arms now and to go to bed. Times past; times lost; such is life.
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