All too soon it was over. Apparently recognizing some landmark Caddie couldn’t identify, Brian headed away from the rocks. Caddie, with a last look at the anemones, went with him. She didn’t know how Brian knew where to go, but she had no choice but to trust him. She made a mental note to ask him about getting around with more than just a vague idea of where the shore was. And now that she thought about it, with the pipe for reference, she didn’t even know where that was. For all she knew, they could be swimming out to sea.

Then the pipe appeared, and she relaxed. The fish was still there, and she winked at it as they passed by. See you later, she thought. Brian, as she’d discovered was his habit, was swimming quickly back to shore. She wished he would slow down, but a glance at her computer showed that she was running low on air, so she increased her pace and swam beside him until, at about fifteen feet, they both ascended.

“How’d you like the metridiums?” Brian asked as they floated on the surface, not far from shore.

“Metridiums,” said Caddie. She tried the odd-sounding word again. “Metridiums. They’re anemones, right?”

Brian nodded. “Good call. We’ll make a marine biologist out of you yet.”

Caddie snorted and started toward shore. This time it was Brian who had to catch up with her.

An hour later they were in Brian’s bedroom. Brian, naked, was stretched on his back. Caddie, wearing one of Brian’s T-shirts, was sitting on the side of the bed, trying not to look at his penis. Soft, it reminded her of a baby rat, all pink and helpless looking. Even Brian’s balls were hairless. She wondered if he shaved them, considered asking, then decided she didn’t want to know.

“Wow,” Brian said, putting his hand on her thigh and petting her like a puppy. “That was something, wasn’t it?”

Caddie grunted. “Mmm,” she said vaguely. She stood up, Brian’s hand sliding from her leg, and walked into the bathroom that adjoined the bedroom. She shut the door behind her and turned on the water in the sink. Then she sat on the toilet, her elbows cradled in the T-shirt and her fists pressed together.

She hadn’t come. Not even gotten close. Brian had pumped away at her, and she’d tried, but she couldn’t. Instead, she’d thought about the metridiums. She’d closed her eyes, imagining she was swimming above them, naked, her skin caressed by their gentle petals. But Brian’s breath on her neck, his sweaty skin sticking to hers, had ruined everything. Finally he had come, shuddering and gritting his teeth in an absurd grimace of release before falling beside her.

“You okay in there?” Brian’s voice penetrated through the door and the sound of the water.