A Town Without Honor Ch. 05

"No talk of that, BB. Please."

She nodded.

We were quiet as I fucked her perfect ass one last time. I could hear her gentle sobs, but I knew it wasn't pain. At least not physical pain. It broke my heart. I'd loved this woman so deeply and for so long that her pain still was mine. I felt my own tears running down my cheek as I recalled so many things. Our first time. Our honeymoon, when she initially gifted me her ass. Our graduation cruise. I didn't want to think about how she ruined it or why. I didn't want to think of anything.

When I came, it was different. I thrust deep and quietly emptied what was left in my pipes. She sobbed loudly as I finished. I kissed her neck and rolled off of her, leaving her lying on her belly, trembling.

"You know I'll always love you, BB," I said.

"I know, Honor," she finally answered several seconds later.

She took a few minutes to wipe her face and butt with the wet wipes. She sat at my waist and cleaned me as well, before putting the dirty wipes in the ever growing pile in the corner.

I pulled her in close, kissing her face after I'd covered her up with the top quilt. Her skin was cold to the touch. I did my best to warm her up, and she clung to me.

I was half asleep when I heard her whisper "Thank you for tonight. I'll always love you, Honor. Always."

* * * *

I slept like a rock, only awakening when Beth kissed me. I slowly opened my eyes, and she was dressed. "Good morning, sleepy head. Daylight's burning."

"Morning. Ugh."

She laughed and gave me a poke. "Up."

I got dressed and climbed out of the tent to take a leak. Beth handed me a bottle of water when I returned. She was already rolling up the sleeping gear, and I took down the tarp.

"How are your feet?"

"Much better. I put on the moleskin like you showed me. I'll be fine."

We didn't talk much as we finished breaking down our little camp. She had her little pack on her back waiting for me patiently, while I adjust the insides of my backpack. Once I stood, she handed me one of our meal bars. That and a Snickers. I'll give her full credit for bringing those along.

"We can have breakfast on the way," she said, taking off and leaving me in her dust.

I caught up with her quickly. The trail was wide enough to walk side-by-side. "Are you okay?" I asked, wondering about the changes I was seeing.

"As good as I guess I'll ever be from now on," she said. "Don't dawdle; I miss my babies."

We'd only been walking for a few minutes, still stretching our muscles out when she started talking.

"I knew it, you know. I tried to lie to myself, thinking everything would work out in the end. But I knew deep down inside. Once I was with Fred that second time, it was all over. You'd never take me back. You're too black and white, too right versus wrong. I'm pretty sure that's part of the reason I didn't stop. I was still feeling guilty as hell, but in my heart, I knew that I'd blown it. I'd given you up through my own stupidity."

I was tempted to let her continue to vent, but I wanted to speak my piece as well. "I'm not sure that's true, BB. I think we might have worked it out if it was just between us. If you had messed up that one trip and no more. But bringing my mother and sister in on it, allowing the whole town to see what was going on, and repeating your mistakes when I went to China, and even after I came home, it all became too much."

"Maybe. Who knows, maybe you would have taken me back, but it would never be the same, would it?" she asked.

"No. Probably not," I admitted.

Our hike that morning was more of that. Quiet during the more strenuous portions, interspersed with brief discussions. A lot less vitriol.

There was one last thing that really irked me. I knew that I'd have no real peace until I dealt with that.

"Tell me about Fred," I said.

"That asshole? He's gone. Left two days after you did. He abandoned his wife and kids and disappeared. The last I saw him was when I fired him for cause, for lying on his time sheets about where he was while you were on your trips. I knew for a fact he hadn't put in forty hours a week at work. Hell, I don't think he put in twenty."

She chuckled, which I found weird. "Fred tried to argue until I threatened his life, and I meant it. He got angry, so I had to kick him in the balls a few times and call security. Apparently the next day a few of the guys from work found him alone and beat the hell out of him. I'm told they promised to do it every day he stayed in town."

"Do you know where he went?" I asked.

"Not a clue. Don't want to know. That slimy bastard ruined my life. I know it's not all his fault, but if not for him I never would have screwed around. You pick some lousy best friends, Honor."

After the next long silence, it was Beth who began.

"How long are you back for? Have you given any thought to your old business?"

"I'm not sure. I have some ideas, but they don't involve Honor Energy. I'm done with that. I'm considering starting a new business, but I'll be a lot pickier about who I hire."

"I'm done with them too. I tried so hard, but nobody appreciated me in the least. I could hear the comments behind my back. I'm not going to make the effort anymore, so I guess they're done."

She slowed down until I caught up to her, and we walked side-by-side while the trail opened up. "Will I see you at all?"

"You're the mother of my kids. While I'm around, I'll be nearby. I figure we'll be seeing a lot of each other," I said.

"But you won't be living with us anymore."

"No. I have my own place."

She sighed. "I sometimes wonder if it wouldn't be easier if you just left and didn't come back. Then I could move on, and get away from all my mistakes."

"They're my kids too, BB."

"I know, Honor. I'm glad you've pulled your head out of your ass and remembered that much. I'm not going to keep you away from them, never. My house will always be open to you. Always."

It was interesting to hear her new attitude. It was her house now, not ours. I think we were both coming to grips with the way things needed to be.

We came out at where the trail met the parking area. I stepped out from underneath the canopy of trees. Beth stood at the edge of the macadam.

"I'm parked right over there," I said.

"This is it. Isn't it? It's over. As soon as I get in that damn truck, it's over. The trail was a brief fantasy. Now it's back to my shitty life."

"It'll get better. The kids will be missing you terribly. We still have a fifth birthday to plan for this weekend," I said.

Beth nodded. I watched her breathe deep, bracing herself, then take one step forward. It took a few more seconds for her to regain control and she plastered a fake smile on her face. Then she strode past me to the truck, shrugging off her pack and throwing it in the back.

"I'm not getting in that damn thing until you promise me something," she said, leaning up against the side, her arms crossed in front of her.

"What?"

"You need to feed me. When we get out of this park, I need a serious feeding. I'm starving."

"I think we can manage that," I said.

My pack joined hers in the back, once I'd extracted my wallet, keys, and phone. I unlocked her door for her, and she climbed in, immediately taking off her boots.

I got in on the opposite side, started up the truck and plugged in the phone charger. "We need to call your family. Are you up for it?"

She nodded. She grabbed the phone and made the call. I was only privy to half of the conversation.

"Mom? It's me."

"Yes Mom, we're on our way back."

"No, I'm not going to talk about that now. Honor and I are driving back, and we can talk then."

She turned to me. "How long before we get back?" she asked.

"At least seven or eight hours. It's two-twelve now."

She put the phone to her ear. "I figure between ten and eleven tonight if nothing goes wrong."

"I don't know," she said. "Like I told you earlier, we'll talk when we get back. Let me speak with the kids."

She spent a good ten minutes chatting with Marie, and even Billy somewhat, while I headed north. I even got a few words in on speaker phone. When she hung up, she was crying again.

I patted her on the leg. "Things will be fine."

"No, they won't. They might get a little better, but it'll never be right again. Can we not talk about it? At least not until I've had some food."

"What about my car?" she asked.

"Don't worry. I'll have someone pick it up. It'll be delivered home within a day."

The trip home was anticlimactic. We had a huge meal in Front Royal, and she slept most of the trip. While she was snoring, I made a couple of calls of my own, to Darren letting him know that I would start working on the business, and to Janie to get her caught up. I promised her a longer call the next day. A couple of hours later I woke Beth for another feeding around seven o'clock.

At ten forty-five I pulled up in front of our old home. As you might expect there was a big teary greeting and some difficult words. The kids woke up, and we spent a few minutes with them before putting them back to sleep.

It was after midnight when I drove away to spend the night at my house in town. Alone.

On my way out the door, I got a hug from Beth. "Goodnight, Arnold. Thank you for coming to get me. Maybe you can stop by tomorrow to see the kids, and we can make some plans for Marie's birthday."

"I'll do that."

It struck me that it was the first time in her life that Beth called me Arnold.

I guess Honor no longer fit. And I have to confess, a large part of the reason for that was my own. Still, it hurt.

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Thanks for sticking with me this long. The end is near. TTT