“That was a lot more than a pick-me-up.”
She laughs again. It sounds shy. A register I haven’t heard from her since we fooled around in high school.
“I’ve never sent anyone something so … explicit before,” she says. “Was it too much?”
“Too much? Baby, I want to fly across the country and fuck you so senseless you have to quit your job because you don’t have time to do anything but scream my name.”
“I don’t technically have a job at present,” she says. “But that just gives me more time for screaming.”
I can hear a smile in her voice.
For a moment I’m tempted to actually do it. I could take my chances double-masking on a plane. Or I could drive for two days to LA. But I wouldn’t want to get sick, and then get her sick. So I just say, “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“What are you doing for the rest of the day?” she asks.
“Probably watching your video and masturbating,” I say. It’s sort of a joke but probably also true.
“Me too,” she says.
We both laugh.
“Hey,” I say. “Your email meant a lot to me.”
“Aww.”
Her tone is unreadable. I decide not to press it. “So how are you doing these days?” I ask.
“Hmm,” she says slowly. “Fine, I guess.”
“Fine’s not so great.”
“Is anyone so great?”
“Not especially.”
“I’m slowly losing my mind from being so isolated,” she says. “But I feel like an asshole complaining about it, since no one in my family has gotten sick and I have savings to float me until film comes back.”
I hate to think of her alone in Los Angeles. I find that city lonely enough even when I’m just passing through. Quarantining there sounds desolate, even with the better weather.
“Do you have a bubble?” I ask.
“Yeah, sort of. Some girlfriends and I hang outside. But it’s not quite enough to keep me from being sick of my own company. I’m considering getting a dog, and I don’t even like dogs.”
“You like cats.”
There is a pronounced satisfaction in knowing this about her. In having institutional knowledge that dates back to her teens.
“I know, but dogs are more sociable and less likely to be snatched by coyotes.”
“Ah. We don’t have many coyotes in Chicago. Maybe you should move here.”
“You have blizzards, Seth. Stop bragging.”
“Snowstorms are great for cozy winter sex. In front of the fireplace. With a nice full-bodied cab on the coffee table and a view of the city all the way to the lake.”
“You present a compelling argument for life on the tundra.”
“Well, I am a lawyer.”
“I need to shower,” she says. “But this was…” She trails off, searching for the word. “Fun.”
I could do with a more effusive descriptor—like “mind-blowing” or “life-changing”—but I’ll take what I can get.
“Can I call you again?” I ask.
“Yeah.”
I smile. “Good.”
“Good.”
There’s a click, and she’s gone, and my face hurts from smiling.
CHAPTER 23 Molly
I put my phone down beside me and look at myself in the mirror across from my bed. I’m naked, surrounded by sex toys, and grinning.
Seth is single. And he’s so incredibly hot.
