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Peeling the cucumbers from her eyes, the woman leaned forward, then used her cane to push herself out of her chair. Courtney’s gaze fell to the head of the cane and what appeared to be a penis. She choked back her laughter, coughing into her hand in an attempt to disguise the sound.
“Do you want to have sex with him?” the old woman asked.
“I . . .I,” Courtney stammered.
“She hasn’t had sex since her husband died,” Ashley offered.
Courtney swung her head to the side to glare at her friend. “Would you please?”
“I’m sorry,” Ashley lied. “Do you just want to pretend you’re celibate for fun?”
“I’d prefer not to discuss my celibacy with strangers in a freaking spa.” Or anywhere else for that matter.
Ashley waved off her concern and turned her attention back to the older woman, but the woman was studying Courtney.
“You’re a widow?” she asked, some of the joviality missing from her voice.
Closing her eyes, Courtney nodded. This was exactly what she didn’t want—the compassion, sympathy, and pity everyone bestowed on a young widow. She just wanted to be normal again.
“Me too, almost fifty years now.” The woman offered a weak smile.
Fifty years? Though old, the woman couldn’t be more than ninety, probably more like eighty-five. That would mean she’d been a young widow too.
Before Courtney could comment, she continued, “If you’re waiting to get over him to move on with someone else, you’ll keep waiting.”
Courtney almost flinched as the words struck at the heart of her fears. “I’m not waiting. I’m just not ready.”
Sex meant something to her. Even when she was young, with a much younger body, being naked with someone else, letting them see her and touch her intimately were acts that took a great deal of courage and trust for her. She’d never been able to separate the act from her emotions. But in truth, she’d never tried. Before, she hadn’t been worried about falling in love, in fact, she’d embraced it. Now, the thought terrified her.
When she looked back at the old woman, a smile had turned the octogenarian’s overly lipsticked lips up. “You will be one day. When you are, you’ll know.”
Tears stung Courtney’s eyes. From the old woman’s mouth to her libido’s ears.
“That’s all?” Ashley’s head swiveled as her gaze swung back and forth between one widow and the other. “She’ll just know when she’s ready? How? Will it be like a sign from God or something?”
The old woman laughed and pointed the head of her cane at Ashley. The younger woman’s eyes widened.
“You already know, honey. Go ahead and have some fun and stop worrying about that one.” She swung the head in Courtney’s direction before placing the cane back on the ground and wobbling out of the spa.
Courtney had to bite back her laughter until the old woman was out of hearing range.
Ashley turned to Courtney, her blue eyes still dramatically wide. “Did Betty White just point her penis cane at me and tell me to have sex?”
Courtney laughed until tears streamed down her cheeks. “I don’t think it was a penis,” she lied. “It looked like it could be a bird.”
“Yeah.” Ashley wiped at her eyes. “It was quite the pecker.”
The two of them fell against each other laughing.
* * *
So far, Seth’s plan to hang out with Courtney and get to know her better wasn’t going well. Though their group had spent the day at the pool where he’d been granted ample opportunity to ogle Courtney in a bikini that made him thank God for his 20/20 vision, the two of them hadn’t been alone since breakfast. Which he supposed went along with the deal they’d made. He’d offered to pair up with her for couple events and keep her company when their roommates were occupied. Unfortunately, today none of those scenarios had played out. They’d hung out at the pool as a group. They’d eaten dinner as a group.
And now, well, now he was watching her dance with someone else.
After dinner, he’d had to check in with the director of an upcoming competition. He’d assumed the call wouldn’t take long, but as usual he’d underestimated the pleasure some people gained from talking about themselves. When he’d told the trio to go on without him, he’d expected them to get some drinks and grab some seats where they could sit and watch the action. He had not expected to find Zack and Ashley practically dry-humping on the dance floor while some asshat had his hands all over Courtney’s waist.
Not that he was jealous. She could dance with whomever she wanted. Though he would like to point out that this guy, though not as big as Seth himself, was definitely an overgrown man-child.
