He washed his face with cold water, staring at himself in the mirror as he did so, thinking once again that he did not deserve to be so lucky. He towe...ed his face roughly, and looked again at his reflection. The mirror showed him the truth of his age, the receding hair, grey at the temples; the slight pouchiness under his eyes; the failing elasticity of his skin; and the belly. Not a bloated gut, but definitely the paunch of later middle age. He squeezed a roll of fat on his hips between finger. Leaving Fern to orient herself, she made her way over to the man.***"Want a cigarette with that drink?"Startled, Joaquin looked up from his computer and gazed into the lovely faceof a woman. She carried an exquisite silver tray that was loaded withunopened packs of long, slender "luxury length" white cigarettes."I shall pass on the offer, ma'am," he replied diplomatically."You sure? We have mint, rum, spice and herbal flavors available. They'vebeen quite popular with the men as well as the. ” “Won’t be back before 11 or so.” “Well shit…oops.” I sputtered, blushing. “Didn’t mean to say that, at least not out loud.” “That’s OK RJ.” She said. “While I don’t approve of foul language, you’re old enough to do as you see fit.” “You wanna come in, you look hot? “I don’t want to intrude.” I said. “I’ll just head back home.” “Nonsense.” She smiled. “In all honesty, I’d like the company.” I followed her into the house and sat at the kitchen table. I could see the pool through the glass. “Okay”, he stood up and went to his room, I was surprised by his calm demeanor, I was expecting more of a fight. He walked back in with his laptop and hooked it to the tv and looked back at me while I downed another drink and I was feeling a buzz. “Do you want me to play all of them?”, he asked calmly.I nodded “start with the one you like most”, I let the words slip out before I could comprehend them. He looked shocked and I wasn't surprised. He played one of the videos and as I could see, he.