“I don’t know how I could have been so stupid,” she murmured. “I almost lost you altogether.” “You didn’t,” Brandon said wryly. “I�...��m a fool. I couldn’t have stayed away from you for long.” “You’re not a fool,” she said and he believed her, because in that moment he would have believed anything she said. Her face came closer to his and she kissed him softly. “I love you, Brandon.” Four small words. Words he hadn’t heard in years. Words that made the emotions gush freely from the broken dam. Don't you want to experience the ultimate sensation?''What is the ultimate sensation? You were being vaporized in a nuclear blast! What can top that?''I wasn't vaporized. You pulled me out. Remember?''What! Did you want to die? You have a death wish?''No! Of course I didn't want to die. I had to! It was necessary!''Why? Why should you do something you don't want to do?'Beth sat still. There were tears in her eyes."To atone," she said, finally, speaking aloud. "To atone for what I did ... It was. We enjoyed a superb meal, a smattering of light jazz, and an evening that never faltered. We talked as if we had known each other forever, with no awkward silences or miscues. We didn't dwell much on the current crisis, but our conversation carried us everywhere, leaping from one subject to another like a word association test on steroids.We talked about literature, and she revealed a fascination with poetry: Wallace Stevens and Emily Dickinson, an unlikely pair indeed. I mentioned my own. Inviting Joe to finish in her panties, so she could feel him all day, was her latest effort to avoid pregnancy - she just hoped the cum wouldn't find its way inside. Straightening her clothes out as best she could, she opened the stall door, ignoring the stares of Beth from Sales, and washed her hands. She could smell the sex on her. So could Beth. So could everyone, all day long.As 5 o'clock finally arrived, she grabbed her bag and stood up, ready to go home. Then she saw Joe, crooking his.