Ed lingered in the bathroom, feeling oddly reluctant to join Joe in bed. He now blamed his earlier determination to inject more emotion into their relationship on an afterglow high that was now smothered by the embarrassment of his later emotional outbursts. What had gotten into him, crying on Joe’s shoulder like a big baby? Joe’s face had been inscrutable after Bill left. Ed couldn’t decide whether Joe was gloating at clearly winning the battle to turn him into the consummate bottom-boy, or covering his distaste for the whole sordid, emotional mess.
Another splash of cold water did nothing to correct the puffy redness around his eyes. He squared his shoulders and made his way to their bedroom.
A waxing gibbous moon on a cloudless night dimly lit the room, while a slight breeze of cooler
