As Sharon waited for the bathtub to fill up, she studied her profile in the full-length mirror. In her opinion, her chest was too flat, her shoulders too bony and her kneecaps resembled prunes. These were features that had stung her hard during her teenage years; she imagined that the boys in her class rated all the girls and parked her in the “undesirable” category. In defiance, she was fiercely intelligent and outspoken. She could just as easily return the judgement and condemn these academic weaklings. It did not matter that no boys had ever asked her out on a date while she was in high school and junior college. Winning the President’s Scholarship to Yale and leaving these underachievers in her dust were revenge enough.

Sharon poured a generous dose of bath salts into the tub and immersed herself in the steaming water. It was the one indulgence for which Sharon allowed herself no time limit. All the other items on her daily schedule were strictly timed. But when it came to steaming hot baths, she could soak for an hour or longer, never mind the wrinkled prunes that sprouted on her toes and fingertips. It was calming, rejuvenating and sensual. It was better than sex.

The truth was, Sharon’s sex life with her husband was as stagnant as a tub of still bath water. As gallant and charming as Yu Chin was in social settings, he was rather passive in bed. He would often roll over to her side, wrap his limbs around her body, kiss and cuddle and hold her tight until one of them fell asleep. On the occasions that she indicated she wanted to go the full distance, he was overly gentle and hesitant in his moves, as though she were a porcelain doll that he feared he might shatter into pieces. Their lovemaking was never the roar and thunder of a waterfall, but the sluggish currents beneath a serene pond. Sharon had never experienced an orgasm with him.

Yu Chin was an attractive man. He had sharp features, and his jovial personality added to his charm. Sharon had been rather taken by him from their very first meeting. The Overees must have sensed her attraction for they went out of their way to create opportunities for the two to interact. Christina would claim to be too exhausted to attend a charity dinner and so pass the tickets to Sharon and Yu Chin. Or something unexpected would pop up in Elvis’ schedule, and he would ask Sharon to keep Yu Chin company at a game of golf. It wasn’t long before the two began to date exclusively.