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"No She was just shy of eighteen--a senior"

"Ah The older wo you know?"

I s "I picked up a few tricks over the years"

We fall quiet again for a few minutes, and then she asks, "Don’t you want to know about mine?"

Don’t even have to think about that one

"Nope"

Don’t want to spoil the mood, but we’ll pause here a second

When it couy wants to hear about it I don’t care if you’ve fucked one guy or a hundred--keep it to yourself

Let me put it this way: When you’re out at a restaurant and the waiter brings your le person who touched that food before you put it in your mouth?

Exactly

I also think it’s pretty safe to assume that her first time ith Warren--that he was her one and only And he is the last fucking person I want to be discussing at this particular place and time

Now, back toKate Our faces are close, our heads sharing one pillow Her hand’s tucked under her cheek in an innocent kind of way

"There is soh," I say

"Ask away"

"Why’d you go into I-banking?"

I co line of white-collar professionals Alexandra and I weren’t expected to follow in our parents’ footsteps--it just sort of happened that way People always gravitate tohat they knohat’s familiar

Like professional athletes Have you ever noticed how ue baseball? It’s to distinguish the quarterbacks--same deal But I wonder what attracted Kate to invest her adolescent years of petty crime

"The money I wanted a career where I knew I’d make a lot of money"

I raise ly "You were expecting souess I was"

Her s--had ed it to the gills We lived above it It was…small…but nice"

Her smile fades a little more "My father was killed when I was thirteen Car accident--drunk driver After that,to keep herself froain, I put ainst oes on:

"She barely kept us above water I wasn’t deprived or anything, but…it wasn’t easy Everything was a struggle So, when they toldto be Valedictorian, and I received a full scholarship to Wharton, I figured--okay--investing it is I never wanted to be helpless or dependent Even though I had Billy, it was important to me to know I’d be able to support myself, by myself Now that I can, all I really want to do is take care ofher to move to New York, but so far she’s said no She’s worked her entire life…I just want her to rest"

I don’t knohat to say For all my snide cohappened to any one of them

I raise her chin so I can look into her eyes Then I kiss her After a few minutes, Kate turns around I wrap ainst me I press my lips to her shoulder and settle , that’s just hoe stay until we both fall asleep

Every healthywood I’m sure there’s some medical explanation for the phenomenon, but I just like to think of it as a little present froin the day with your best dick forward

I can’t re up beside one, however, definitely has its benefits And I’e of them

With my eyes still closed, I roll over and search for Kate I plan on teasing her awake before giving her a "good " from behind It’s the only acceptable wakeup call, in my book But as my hand slides over the sheets, it finds only empty space where she’s supposed to be I open n of her

Huh

I listen forwater fro, isn’t it?

Where’d she go?

My heart rate kicks up a notch at the thought that she snuck out while I was asleep It’s a move I’ve performed myself--on several occasions--but one I’d never expect froet out of bed when she appears in the doorway Her hair’s pulled up in one of those elastic bands that woray Coluray Columbia T-shirt--and I’le beneath the lettering as she walks

Kate sets the tray she’s carrying on the bedside table "Good et up?"

She laughs "I’ed troll I was going to cook breakfast for us, but the only thing I could find in your kitchen was cereal"

Cereal is the perfect food I could eat it at every meal And not the healthy bran-and-oats shit your parents shoved down your throat I only go for the good stuff: Lucky Charms, Fruity Pebbles, Cookie Crisp My cabinet is a veritable s "I order out a lot"

She hands ood choice Between bites, Kate says, "I borrowed a T-shirt Hope you don’t mind"

I crunch my breakfast of champions and shake my head "Not at all But I really like you better out of it"

See how she looks down? How her lips curve into a soft smile? See the color that rises in her cheeks? Good God--she’s blushing again After last night? After the cursing, the screaht? I think so too

"I didn’t think cooking in the nude was very sanitary"