
“He’s good with his hands,” she said once in response to her friends asking her what she saw in him. He was poor, only slightly above average looking, but fit and an artist, specifically a sculptor. They’d met at the post office. He had a large, heavy package and she helped him with it—one of his works of art that he was shipping overseas. She’d always had a soft spot for artists and the international label and his accent were just too adorable.
When they undressed in front of each other for the first time, she noticed his eyes focused more carefully on her body than guys usually did. And it wasn’t a lascivious stare, it was more than that. It was…appreciative. Inspecting. Approving. They got to the bed and he kneeled down by her head while she sprawled out, comfortable. She noticed he was only half erect and wondered what he had in mind.
Then he touched her and she felt immediate warmth and care. He smoothly applied his rough hands over her body, carefully. He was feeling her. This was new. It quickened her breath. He wasn’t awkwardly mauling her, or trying to arouse her, or paying some kind of toll to get compulsory affection out of the way before sex.
He was touching her. Touching. The way he caressed her jaw, smoothed her breasts, slid toward her sex. Warm, rough, and soft.
By the time he’d completed his tour, he was fully aroused, as was she. Foreplay had been compressed into hand gestures without their lips ever touching. They never said a word.













