“What?” I said, a little self-consciously.
“You’re cute when you’re feeling guilty.”
“Guilty? About what?”
“Flirting with Terri.”
“Oh, that.”
“Yeah, I noticed. She has a major crush. Oh, don’t act so surprised! You
know she does. Maybe she isn’t the only one?”
I grinned and shrugged.
“I just wish she felt the same about me,” Christy sighed.
“Can you really tell? I mean… just like that?”
“Usually. I just… know. I can’t explain it. And I don’t get a single thing from Terri.”
“Nothing? Not even a flicker of interest that maybe she’s trying to hide?”
“Nope. Nothing. I get one from Marianne, and she’s really good at hiding it. I told you about when I tried to get her to admit it.”
I nodded.
“But I don’t get anything from Terri. She’s a blank wall. At least toward me. Most women are like that.”
“I don’t think you realize how rare it is to find women like you and Wren and Brooke.”
“Oh, I realize it,” she said. “That’s why I’ve always been attracted to them. I know they’re like me. But it really stinks when someone I like doesn’t like me back.”
“No kidding.”
She snorted softly. “Like you’d know.”
“Hey, I’ve liked plenty of girls who didn’t like me back.”
“Name one.”
I fell silent.
“Mmm hmm,” she said after a pointed pause. “I didn’t think so.”
“Just because I can’t name them doesn’t mean they don’t exist.”
“I don’t think you realize how rare you are. You have women falling all over you. It’s infuriating how easy it is for you. The rest of us have to worry about what other people think, while you—”
“Hey, I worry what other people think.”
“Uh-huh. Sure.”
“I do,” I insisted.
“Hey!” Terri said as she joined us. “Sorry to keep you waiting. Ready when you are.” She stopped when she sensed our mood. “Uh… is everything all right?”
“Yeah, fine,” I lied.
“Do you want me to give you a minute?”
“No, we were just talking about our trip.”
She chose to believe me. “Sounds romantic. Christy was telling me about
it in the locker room earlier. Are you sure you have time to give me a ride home? I don’t mind walking. I can—”
“We have plenty of time,” I said. “But we’d better get going. We’re meeting someone at the airport in West Virginia—”
“—and you don’t want to keep them waiting,” she finished. “So, let’s get going.”
She and Christy chatted about dancing on the way out to the car and then during the short drive to Fort Sanders. Terri lived on the second floor of an actual apartment building. It’d been a hotel at one time, until some slumlord had bought it and turned into cheap student apartments, which was pretty common for the area.
“Thanks for the lift,” Terri said as I pulled to a stop in front of the building. “Have a nice weekend. See you Monday.”
“You too,” I said.
She hopped to the ground and closed the car door.
“Nope, not a thing,” Christy said as we watched her go.
Terri climbed the stairs, gave us a friendly wave, and disappeared into her apartment.
“Nothing?” I asked.
“Not a darn thing. She likes me fine, but only as a friend.” She sighed.
“She definitely has a crush on you, though. She even asked about you earlier.”
My eyebrows shot up. “For real?”
“Well, she asked about us, but she really wanted to know about you.”
I pulled out of the small parking lot. “How so?”
“She wanted to know if we had any problems with our size difference.”
“Size difference?”
“You know, in bed.”
“She came right out and asked?”
“Of course. Not in front of a group or anything, but in private. We were sort of comparing.”
“Sort of comparing?”
She grinned. “You’re cute when you don’t know what to say. You just repeat what I said and make it a question. But yes, we were comparing. Our bodies, I mean. Women do it all the time. And you were right, she’s almost exactly like me. Maybe a little curvier, and her chest is way bigger than mine, but the rest is close enough. That’s why she asked about your size.”
“Hold on,” I said, “how’s she even know about ‘my size’?”
“Oh, Paul… seriously? She’s your dance partner. You think she can’t feel you?”
“Not my dick,” I protested.
“Of course she can. It moves around. And we can feel it when we brush against you, especially if you’re hard.”
“I don’t get hard.”
“Okay, semi-hard, but you know what I mean.”
“Can you feel your partners’?”
“Of course. Roberto’s is about average. I don’t think he’s circumcised, though. Oh, please! Don’t look so shocked. I’m an expert on penises, remember? Anyway, Roberto. He’s nothing special. Besides, he isn’t interested in me. He’s a great dancer and we have good chemistry, but he’s happily married.”
“Okay,” I said slowly, “but what about the other guys?”
“Edward— He’s the big guy. His’s about average but really thick. Like, wide-thick.”
“Hold on, can you really tell how thick it is?”
“Paul, dear, can you tell the difference between my chest and Terri’s?”
“I dunno,” I fibbed, “I haven’t felt her up.”
“You’ve felt them against you.”
“So?”
“If we pressed them against you, you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference?”
“Don’t use logic against me,” I grumped.
“You’re really cute when I beat you at your own game. But yes, I can tell the difference between you and Edward. The other guys I’ve danced with are all about the same. I can’t tell exactly how big or small they are. Just general size and shape. Except Jody. He’s really well-endowed, but he’s more interested in you than me.”
“Wait… Jody? Isn’t he the one who’s dating…?” I snapped my fingers and tried to remember her name. “Linda!”
“They are, but she’s just a beard. I don’t think she knows, though. Like me and Simon.”
I blew right past the entrance to the airport.
“Oh,” Christy laughed, “you should see your face!”
I suppressed a grimace and made a three-point turn.
“Yes, I figured out that Simon’s gay,” she said, almost to herself. “I suppose I knew all along, but I guess… No, I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“Wait, what?” I said at last. “Simon was gay?”
“Is, dear. I don’t think he’s changed in the past year.”
“Simon? Simon, your fiancé?”
“Ex-fiancé.”
“But… he had sex with you!”
“Mmm hmm,” she said matter-of-factly. “Although neither of us really enjoyed it. That’s why I was worried I wouldn’t enjoy it with you. And for the record, I’m glad I was wrong. I can’t get enough of you.”
“Hold on, did you just change the subject?”
“Uh-oh, you caught me.”
“Why?”
“Because I don’t really want to talk about Simon. I’ve been thinking about him a lot lately, especially since I figured out what’s going on with Jody and Linda. Some weird part of me will always love him, but I want to put him behind me. I’m with you now, and that’s all I care about.”
“Oh,” I said abruptly. “Well… when you put it that way.”
“Mmm, when I put it that way…,” she agreed. “You’re the most important man in my life, and the only man in my bed.”
“I thought it was ‘our’ bed.”