He said, “I always did want to make love to someone in a motel.”

“That’s my goal . . . expanding your horizons.”

The motel bed was much nicer with someone else in it.

ten

HOLLIS slipped out at five o’clock. He whispered that he had to go home, shower, and get to work. He kissed me, and I hugged him close for a long moment, wishing he didn’t have to go. Though finesse would never be Hollis’s trademark, either in making love or conversation, that wasn’t a bad thing. He was warm and big, and he had a delicate snore that made me feel all cozy. It was like being in bed with a giant, enthusiastic teddy bear.

I would not mind being with him for lots of nights.

That thought woke me up completely.

I almost never had sex. One reason I picked a sex partner so rarely was the sure brevity of the connection. One-night stands were about scratching an itch, and I’d rather do that by myself than enlist a human dildo. Oh yeah, I knew consenting adults could give and take a little of themselves in one night. I knew it didn’t have to be tawdry and cheap. But most often it was; and it left me feeling a little nauseous and dissatisfied with myself, no matter how satisfying the physical act had been.

This was the other downside. Now, I’d been with Hollis two nights, and already I found myself wanting extended time with him. But I knew damn good and well that the nature of my life precluded more.

It seemed so much easier for Tolliver. He made eye contact with a woman, she agreed to have sex, they did it, and she left. She knew he was leaving town, of course, as suddenly as he’d blown into it. Or did some of these women think, “It’ll be so good, he’ll like me so much, he’ll send his sister away by herself and he’ll stay with me for a while.” Since I didn’t have any women friends, hadn’t had for years, I couldn’t say what other women thought. But maybe, some day, that would happen.

Despite that niggling worry, I dozed back to sleep, but by seven I was in the shower. I was dressed when Tolliver knocked carefully on the outer door to my room.

He looked around quickly when I let him in and relaxed when he saw we were alone. “How was the gospel singing?” he asked.

“Really good. You would have enjoyed it.” I didn’t ask him what he’d done instead. “You ready for breakfast?”

“Yeah. Let’s go to the Denny’s.”