“Not a lot. Just when I feel useless and look like a cow.” Rina paused. “That’s not totally true. I do think about how I look. Every woman does. Just because I have a ring on my finger doesn’t mean I don’t take pride in my appearance. Don’t you?”

Decker said, “Truthfully, I don’t give it a whole lot of thought. Just as long as I’m clean…maybe I should. Do you have any complaints?”

“No, Peter, I don’t. And that’s the problem—the unfairness of it all. Men appraise, and women are appraised.”

Decker slipped under the covers and wiped a tear off his wife’s face. “One of the nicest things about my position at the department is, I don’t have a lot of people standing over my shoulder…checking me out. Sure, I have bosses, but I’ve got a lot of independence. I’d hate to have people judging me all the time. I guess in a way, you have fifty percent of the adult population always judging you, although I dare say your ratings are always superior. Even so, that’s pressure that most men don’t think about.”

“And it’s out of our control. We can’t help what we look like…how we age…if we get a hysterectomy…”

Decker cuddled his wife. “All I can say is I love you, not your uterus, and I think you’re beautiful. And by beautiful, I mean the inside kind as well as outside. I was attracted to the outside beauty, no question about it. But I fell in love with the inside beauty. And I’ll think you’re beautiful even when you’re old and wrinkled.” He paused. “Because however old you are, I’ll be twelve years older.”

Rina slugged his good shoulder.

“So for the past three years, you’ve looked like my daughter. How about you giving me a break and start looking like what you are. My second and younger—much, much younger—wife.”

Rina was quiet for a minute. Then she said, “We’d better get some sleep.”

“You mean you don’t want to engage in mad, passionate sex?”

Rina broke into laughter.

“Just trying to make you feel good about yourself.”

Rina shook her head, then kissed his lips. “I love you. Thanks for talking to me.”

“Honey, it’s my pleasure.”

Rina flopped down on the bed. “I’m exhausted. Good night.”

“Good night.” Decker fluffed up his pillow. Infinitely better than a tree trunk.

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