Vicarious (The Vicarious Trilogy) Read Free Page B

lit from behind before it closed again.
    “In the dark, we reached for each other. Between rough, deep kisses, he frantically ripped open our clothes and picked me up. I wrapped my legs around his waist as he entered me. It took just a few thrusts to bring us both to a shuddering climax. We clung to each other for a few moments, panting, before he staggered over to the table and let me down slowly.
    “We put our clothes in order, and his breathing finally slowed enough to ask me if I was all right.
    “’Yes, fine,’ I whispered. ‘Just a bit…you know...’”
    “ ’Yes,’ he said, ‘I understand.’
    “He fumbled around and found a box of tissue, which he handed to me before he left the storeroom. Mercifully, he did not turn on the lights.
    “I stood there, waiting for my pulse rate to slow before I turned on the light and smoothed my hair back into a ponytail. I wasn’t a virgin, but I had never had a one-night stand or a fling or an encounter like this. I didn’t know what to think about my behavior, or his, but I knew I couldn’t be nonchalant about what had happened between us.
    “Do you know, I never went back? I was too embarrassed to even resign. My final paycheck finally came in the mail, and he had added an extra $500. To this day, I still have the check in its original envelope.
    “My own work was, of course, very much affected by this experience, but I couldn’t do anything so overt. Howev er, critics often call my work ‘sensual’ and ‘erotically charged.’ A nipple might be silhouetted unexpectedly or we will wax a surface to achieve a soft gleam, or glaze an object with oil…fashion photography is seductive, of course, but no one is wearing a latex penis, I assure you. Well, one season in Milan, I did ask the models to wear athletic supporters weighted with silicone inserts. We wanted to bring some edge to their runway walks for a line of beautifully tailored tuxedo trousers. The designer thought I was brilliant to suggest it, and I laughed it off as an inspiration from a popular movie about baseball.
    “It is odd that we never bumped into each other, the photographer and I. We both worked with many of the same agencies and magazines. I nervously scanned industry magazines and conference materials for his name for the first few years, but then stopped worrying that he would confront me, or tell others what had happened between us. My secret, our secret, was safe.
    “When I look back, I sometimes wish I had returned to the studio. Would we have become lovers? The inexplicable biological force that brought us together has had a great impact on me...I often think of that night, knowing that it was impossib le, in the moment, to resist.
    “You may think it strange, but before I get in bed with a lover, I sometimes perform a little ritual. I excuse myself for a few minutes. I pull on a pair of gloves that I keep hidden in my closet. I turn out the lights, and I lightly stroke my face, my neck, my breasts with shiny black vinyl hands until I’m aroused and ready. And every time, it brings back some of the thrill, a hint of the passion that overcame us that night.”
     

Chapter 4: South Beach Threesome
    I struck up a conversation with a woman while we stood in the security line at the airport. We continued on toward our adjacent gates, talking easily, when I revealed that I was researching women’s tales of sexual adventure. Her face was lit by a radiant smile.
    “Do you have a story you’d like to share?” I asked.
    “Well, I don’t mind sharing it, but I wouldn’t want it to end up in a book.”
    “Of course you wouldn’t. I’m fascinated by true stories but I’ll write my own sex scenes for the novel. Part of the writers’ code of ethics,” I smiled and handed her my card.
    As she tucked it into her wallet, she said, “I supp ose I shouldn’t be so trusting.” She tapped her lips with one fingertip, considering. “Alright, I’ll tell you my best story from my single