jeans. Only a pair of jeans. His feet and chest were bare. He was towel-drying his hair. And to her surprise, he’d shaved. He’d been handsome before, but something about his clean-shaven face and the fact that he was currently half-naked really got her attention. She compulsively inspected every square inch of his body, from his broad, muscled chest to those rock-solid arms that had been laced around her less than half an hour before, all the way down to his bare feet, which she found inexplicably appealing. His feet, for God’s sake. She couldn’t remember ever thinking a man’s feet were sexy, but she sure was thinking it now.
When her gaze traveled back up again, she saw that he’d stopped drying his hair and was staring at her. All at once she realized how long her visual tour of his body had taken, and how obvious it was that she’d been gaping at him. She looked away and ran a hand nervously through her hair. Her cheeks grew warm, and she hoped she wasn’t blushing.
John went to a closet, pulled out a worn flannel shirt, and put it on. He tossed the towel back into the bathroom, then buttoned the length of his shirt as he walked over to her.
“That sofa is a Hide-A-Bed,” he told her. “The only bed.”
Renee had figured as much, since she didn’t see a bedroom, but still she’d hoped that maybe this was a remote Holiday Inn and any minute a bellboy would be bringing in a roll-away.
“And I don’t think you’re any more eager to sleep on the floor than I am.”
“You mean...you want us both to sleep here?”
“Look, if I’d wanted to take advantage of you, don’t you think I’d have done it by now? You stay on your side, I’ll stay on mine, and we’ll both be comfortable. Any problem with that?”
Yes. She had a big problem with it. She’d just been admiring him with the intensity of an astronomer who’d discovered a new celestial body, and now she was supposed to sleep with him? She could deal with her erotic thoughts as long as they were vertical, but horizontally she wasn’t so sure.
“No. No problem.”
She got up from the sofa. He tossed the cushions aside and pulled out the bed, then got two pillows out of the closet. For its being such a big sofa, she was amazed at how small the bed version of it appeared to be.
John lifted the covers on his side, lay down, and slid beneath them. Renee approached the bed tentatively, then kicked off her shoes and lay down on the other side, thinking that if he was beneath the covers maybe she’d better stay on top.
“The fire will die before morning,” he told her. “You’ll get cold like that.”
She paused a moment, then decided that after everything that had happened it would seem pretty ungrateful to imply that she didn’t trust him. She slipped beneath the blankets. He turned out the lamp on the table beside the sofa and lay back on his pillow. Left with nothing but firelight, the room took on a lazy, golden glow. And even though they lay a foot apart, it wasn’t long before the heat from John’s body mingled with hers.
“Alice?”
John’s voice, deep and melodious, broke the silence. It took Renee a moment to realize he was calling her by the phony name she’d given him.
“Yes?”
“Why didn’t you tell me about your boyfriend sooner?”
Because I hadn’t made him up yet.
“I don’t know. I guess I was afraid to.”
“Afraid? Why?”
Renee paused. “After all that stuff I said to you in that diner, I was afraid of what you’d do if I told you I didn’t want to...to go through with it.”
“What did you think I’d do?”
Renee was silent.
“Did you think I’d hurt you? Is that what you thought?”
She shrugged. “Well, you did yell a lot—”
“That’s right. I yelled. Because you were driving me nuts. Because you wouldn’t tell me the truth. But yelling’s all I did.” He paused. “It’s all I’d ever do.”
Renee heard the note of insult in his voice, and all at once she realized he
When her gaze traveled back up again, she saw that he’d stopped drying his hair and was staring at her. All at once she realized how long her visual tour of his body had taken, and how obvious it was that she’d been gaping at him. She looked away and ran a hand nervously through her hair. Her cheeks grew warm, and she hoped she wasn’t blushing.
John went to a closet, pulled out a worn flannel shirt, and put it on. He tossed the towel back into the bathroom, then buttoned the length of his shirt as he walked over to her.
“That sofa is a Hide-A-Bed,” he told her. “The only bed.”
Renee had figured as much, since she didn’t see a bedroom, but still she’d hoped that maybe this was a remote Holiday Inn and any minute a bellboy would be bringing in a roll-away.
“And I don’t think you’re any more eager to sleep on the floor than I am.”
“You mean...you want us both to sleep here?”
“Look, if I’d wanted to take advantage of you, don’t you think I’d have done it by now? You stay on your side, I’ll stay on mine, and we’ll both be comfortable. Any problem with that?”
Yes. She had a big problem with it. She’d just been admiring him with the intensity of an astronomer who’d discovered a new celestial body, and now she was supposed to sleep with him? She could deal with her erotic thoughts as long as they were vertical, but horizontally she wasn’t so sure.
“No. No problem.”
She got up from the sofa. He tossed the cushions aside and pulled out the bed, then got two pillows out of the closet. For its being such a big sofa, she was amazed at how small the bed version of it appeared to be.
John lifted the covers on his side, lay down, and slid beneath them. Renee approached the bed tentatively, then kicked off her shoes and lay down on the other side, thinking that if he was beneath the covers maybe she’d better stay on top.
“The fire will die before morning,” he told her. “You’ll get cold like that.”
She paused a moment, then decided that after everything that had happened it would seem pretty ungrateful to imply that she didn’t trust him. She slipped beneath the blankets. He turned out the lamp on the table beside the sofa and lay back on his pillow. Left with nothing but firelight, the room took on a lazy, golden glow. And even though they lay a foot apart, it wasn’t long before the heat from John’s body mingled with hers.
“Alice?”
John’s voice, deep and melodious, broke the silence. It took Renee a moment to realize he was calling her by the phony name she’d given him.
“Yes?”
“Why didn’t you tell me about your boyfriend sooner?”
Because I hadn’t made him up yet.
“I don’t know. I guess I was afraid to.”
“Afraid? Why?”
Renee paused. “After all that stuff I said to you in that diner, I was afraid of what you’d do if I told you I didn’t want to...to go through with it.”
“What did you think I’d do?”
Renee was silent.
“Did you think I’d hurt you? Is that what you thought?”
She shrugged. “Well, you did yell a lot—”
“That’s right. I yelled. Because you were driving me nuts. Because you wouldn’t tell me the truth. But yelling’s all I did.” He paused. “It’s all I’d ever do.”
Renee heard the note of insult in his voice, and all at once she realized he
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