Chapter 8Ever since Nathan had changed the term of their arrangement and begun taking him to bed, Friedrich had come to look forward to his appointments with a mingled swirl of anticipation and dread. He loved spending time with Nathan, whatever they were doing—he loved Nathan, full stop—and he definitely loved the way their bodies moved around and against each other. The appointments themselves were always fun and light.
But it hurt, to watch Nathan leave every time, without taking him into his arms and kissing him breathless and confessing how he really felt, the way he simultaneously wanted to do and feared doing.
So it was with mounting confusion, worry, and bitter disappointment that Friedrich realized, as the town bells tolled the half-hour before the end of Nathan’s next scheduled
