Happy Endings
By Kevin Canty, first published in New Ohio Review
When a middle-aged widower rediscovers his sexual prowess through happy ending massages, he must reconcile his new pastime with his former identity of a loyal husband and father.
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McHenry is a widowed father who digs wells for a living. When his company fails, he finally feels the absence of his late wife and his daughter abroad. It is only then that McHenry realizes the full extent of his loneliness. When this loneliness manifests into extreme horniness, he gives in to a suggestion he received from a friend—happy ending massages. McHenry pushes through his initial hesitations and goes to a massage parlor. There he meets a masseuse named Tracy and gets a massage. His obsession for Tracy and his newfound sexual release grows, despite his moral preoccupations. Soon, McHenry joins a Christian Singles group where he befriends Adele, an old friend of his wife. With Adele, McHenry finds a non-romantic companion that both reminds him of his relationship with his wife and increases his disillusionment with it. He returns to the massage parlor, and this time accepts a massage from somebody new. After he climaxes, he finds liberation and empowerment about his sexual exploits. His moral concerns clear, and he does not care who knows it.
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