“So she didn’t struggle? Did nothing to let him know?”

“With a deaf man, even screaming at him that you’ve changed your mind isn’t going to work. But she didn’t know that and tried to be diplomatic about saying no.”

“I would take the diplomatic approach myself. It’s not smart to piss a guy off when he’s that aroused. Man, Wyatt’s so lucky he didn’t get convicted.”

Erin nodded. “Very lucky. Only was he really lucky, Jules? I think he blames himself for all of it and that’s why he’s sworn off women.”

Julie got up to fetch the bottle of wine and refill their glasses. “Another impromptu girls’ night, I guess. I’ll have a headache in the morning and hate you, but what the hell?” As she sat back down, Julie said, “A number of people might not believe Wyatt’s side of the story. Unless you weigh all the circumstances and understand the limitations of someone who’s profoundly deaf, it’s kind of incredible. I mean, how can a guy not realize when a woman is resisting?”

“Oh, but she didn’t resist, not in time to convey her change of heart to Wyatt.” Erin took a sip of her wine. “She only tried to tell him. Reading the testimonies was surreal. At the beginning of the trial, the prosecuting attorney wanted Wyatt’s head on a platter. By the end, the judge, twelve jurors, and many onlookers who were interviewed afterward—I got that information from newspaper accounts—believed Wyatt was innocent. Even the woman—the victim—broke down on the stand crying and said she had no idea he was deaf. That she never would have accused him of rape had she known.”

“Well, we can’t blame her,” Julie said. “I mean, hello, I’ll bet thousands of guys have said they didn’t know their partner had lost her enthusiasm for the activity. Some men get pissed if a woman leads them up to a certain pitch of arousal and then wants to stop at the last second.”

“Yes, but they can hear and deliberately ignore a woman’s wishes. Wyatt didn’t ignore the woman’s wishes. He couldn’t hear what she was saying.”

Julie closed her eyes. “That’s one of the saddest stories I’ve ever heard. I mean, how awful. I’m sure the woman is still finding it difficult to trust men because of it, and Wyatt is undoubtedly afraid ever to be intimate with another woman for fear it could happen again.”

Erin’s heart twisted with pain for Wyatt and for the woman. She didn’t know which of them had suffered more. Obviously it had been a horrible incident for either of them to put behind them. “Since I don’t know the woman, it’s easier to distance myself from what she must have gone through,” she confessed. “But I do know Wyatt. I saw him work with a frightened horse last year. He was so patient and perceptive with that poor animal, and watching him soothe its fears was one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen. He’s a good man, Jules. A kind man. I don’t think he would ever deliberately harm anyone or anything. And suddenly his determination to avoid any kind of romantic entanglement makes perfect sense to me.”