Read Online Skintight by Susan Andersen - Free Book Online Page A

first sight on either side. I liked that he wasn’t all over me like so many of the hot-handed Harrys I’d met, and he probably liked the fact that his pals thought I was Grade A arm candy that he was screwing up, down and sideways. I mean, you bought it, and you’re not that easily fooled.”
    â€œAnd that didn’t bother you?”
    â€œNo. He cared a lot what his friends thought, and I think the mere idea of them knowing he couldn’t get it up—or sustain an erection when he did manage to get one—was about the worst-case scenario he could imagine.”
    â€œBut what about you? Didn’t you wonder when he didn’t make a move?”
    She shrugged. “I thought he was just being a gentleman.” And that was the truth, as far as it went. The deeper truth, however, was that she’d been relieved.
    She wasn’t about to admit that to Carly, however.
    It seemed as if every woman she’d ever known—with the possible exception of her mother—adored sex. So perhaps the reason she’d understood Big Jim’s reluctance to have his friends learn of his dysfunction was because she had a serious disinclination of her own to share just how lousy she was in the hootchie-kootch department.
    She didn’t understand it. She certainly loved the kissing and the foreplay. But when it came to the main event, she just didn’t get the attraction, even though she liked an orgasm as much as the next woman. She’d even been known to help herself to one on occasion. She and the handheld shower massage were on very close terms.
    But with men—well, she had a small…issue…with losing control, and apparently that was a prerequisite to attaining a guy-sponsored climax. So, as much as she hated to admit it even to herself, she was a bust in bed. One guy she’d slept with had gone so far as to tell her she was about as much fun in the sack as a cadaver.
    â€œI can’t believe you married the guy without sampling the merchandise. What was the attraction for you if it wasn’t the sex?”
    â€œHe seduced me with his attentiveness.” She laughed at the expression on her friend’s face. “I know, I know, it doesn’t sound like much. But believe me, given the way I was raised it was actually quite a lot. There was just something so great about being more to him than tits and ass. He actually listened when I talked. He noticed the things I liked. Paid attention to details. You’ve met my mom and pop. They’re good people who love me without question. But they’ve had a rough life and were always too beaten down just trying to survive to fuss over things like birthdays or holidays.”
    â€œOh, man, not Big Jim.” Carly laughed out loud. “Your thirty-fourth birthday party will probably go down in infamy.”
    â€œYeah, he made it one of the most special nights of my life—and he’d already found out by then that his cancerwas back and had begun feeling pretty lousy. He did a lot of stuff like that for me. My favorite thing, though, has to be the way he made me laugh. I never knew how much fun everyday life could be until I met him.”
    â€œHe was a sweetheart.”
    â€œYeah. I know a lot of people think I married him for his money—and I can’t deny it was fun not having to worry about finances for a while. But the real reason I married him was because he kept telling me how much he wanted to take care of me.”
    â€œThat had to be a first for you.”
    Stretching out her leg, Treena nudged her friend with her toe. “I love that I never have to explain things to you. But, yeah, it was. I’ve taken care of myself for as long as I can remember, and Jim’s wanting to give me a break was more seductive than all the money in the world.”
    â€œSo how unfair is it, then, that instead you ended up taking care of him?”
    She hated to admit it, but she’d