I woke up slowly, feeling Bill’s hand gently stroking my hair. Outside, it was just becoming light; the only sound the subtle staccato of rain hitting the window. Warm and comfortable in the softness of the bed, I moved closer to him. My eyes barely open, I saw him looking at me with an unusual intensity, his eyes amber in the reflected glow of dawn. As he slowly began making love to me, I relaxed in his arms. It was a transcendent moment of perfection beyond time and place—ethereal yet fleeting in a pure expression of desire and affection.

~ ~ ~

It was light outside when we awoke again, this time to Kraks making noise in the other room. Alarmed, I looked at Bill. He laughed and looked at his watch. It was after eight. “It’s late,” he said, kissing me. “Get dressed and I’ll get him out of the way. I’ll see you later.”

“Okay,” I said, gathering up my clothes.

He put on his pants and left the room. I dressed quickly, cautiously opened the door, and peeked out. Seeing Kraks’s door was partially closed, I ran into the bathroom.

Looking in the mirror, I laughed. I looked happily disheveled. Splashing cold water on my face, I rinsed my mouth with toothpaste and took a comb out of my small bag, running it through my hair until I was presentable. I looked out again, hearing Bill and Kraks talking in the other room. Letting myself out of the flat, I ran down the stairs, thinking I should have just faced Kraks. But after such a perfect night I didn’t want him bellowing at me.

~ ~ ~

The morning was bright but cold after last night’s rain. As I shrugged on my sweater, I couldn’t stop thinking about the afternoon and night. From his asking me to help choose the drawings to what he had said after we made love, Bill had been beyond affectionate, even loving. My only problem was that the intimacy of our hours together was making it almost impossible to control my emotions—emotions I had managed to keep in check for most of the summer. Meanwhile, the pragmatic part of my mind recognized that while the romance was lovely, it was at best momentary. It was the rest of the relationship that was still the problem and always would be. While I consciously savored those moments, I was also aware that it would end all too soon. I would always wish that the fantasy could have become the reality.

But today was for being happy and allowing myself to love him, if only for the moment. I didn’t want to think beyond this week. I put on my sunglasses and practically ran back to the flat, arriving just as Kate was about to leave.


Excerpted from 31 Days: A Memoir of Seduction by Marcia Gloster, published by The Story Plant. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher. Copyright ©2014 Marcia Gloster. All rights reserved.