Matching Hearts

At that moment, his thrusting stopped, with him as deep inside her as he could reach, and he gazed at her with his mouth wide open.

"Oh, that's beautiful!" she said, realizing at once that she'd never had any idea how a man looked when he came. Now she did.

He gave her a triumphant kiss. "You were, too!" he said.

* * *

Lindsay didn't know how long she'd been sitting on her bed, staring at the wall in the cold electric light. Finally she turned back to Barry, who was still looking smug in her desk chair. "Why'd you have to do this, Barry? If you had a problem with the way we run our traditions, why not just tell me to have some other guy invite the others and fix the matches?"

"Remember freshman year, Lindsay?"

"You weren't one of the losers, I remember that much! Even then I thought you were gorgeous. Believe me, I'd have remembered if you'd been lined up, even though I was smart enough to know already it was fixed."

"You're right, I wasn't," Barry said. "Remember who was?"

"I remember the jerk I got matched with. Patrick something. I told him I didn't even want him touching me, and he didn't. Maybe I was cold, but at least I was honest."

"Remember who got sent home with the Playboy?" Barry asked.

"Oh, God, yes." For the first time since she'd come upstairs, Lindsay smiled. "Keith! Yuck. Pot belly, stringy hair, probably couldn't talk about anything but computers if you paid him...ew!"

"Did you ever try talking to him about anything but computers?"

"No way I'd ever say two words to him anyway!" Lindsay retorted.

"Yeah, well, you're right, he did go on forever about computers. Did I ever tell you I took a computer science class freshman year?"

Lindsay shook her head.

"Well, I did. I really tried to like CS well enough to major in it, 'cause, you know, that's where the money is. But it just wasn't a fit. Halfway through that semester I was on track to flunk the class, actually. If I had flunked, I'd have lost my scholarship and had to drop out. I almost flunked out my very first semester!"

"But you didn't, obviously. You passed."

"Know why I passed, Lindsay?" Barry stood up and pushed the chair back under the desk. "My lab partner took me under his wing and tutored me. He took hours out of his schedule every weekend to get me up to jack. There was nothing in it for him except the satisfaction of knowing he'd saved me from flunking out."

"I'm happy for you, Barry, but what's this got to do with Keith?"

"Who the fuck do you think my lab partner was, Lindsay?"

"That's what this is about?!"

"That's what this is about. Or not just that. You ever seen a man cry, Lindsay? Thanks to you, I have. I've never seen anyone so humiliated. I mean, he was fresh off twelve years of being bullied at school because he was funny looking and bad at sports and too smart, and just when he thought he was free of that at last, the very first party he's invited to at college, look what he gets!"

"Barry, does a guy like that even want to have sex? Even if he does, does he really think he stands a chance with a KKG girl? If he did, he was delusional! He ought to thank us for bursting his bubble. Besides, I was only a freshman, I had nothing to do with who got invited."

"Right," Barry said. "You just couldn't wait until you would be calling the shots."

"Yeah, whatever." Lindsay felt a little better now that they'd talked it out. "Look, if you want, I can apologize to Keith."

"I don't think you'll have to do that after tonight," Barry said. "I think we can agree it's even now."

"Right." Lindsay's desire for Barry was finally returning, and she let her flirtatiousness take over. "Barry, you're lucky you're so gorgeous." She stood up and took her top off. "Bring that over here and let's have some fun, huh?"

Barry looked past her, at the far wall. "Put your shirt back on, Lindsay. I wouldn't make love to you if you were the last woman on this campus."

* * *

Most of the visitors went home after their hostesses were done with them, but James stayed the night. In the morning Faith longed to welcome him to the shower with her, but he pointed out that some of her sisters wouldn't appreciate a man in their bathroom. "You're right," she admitted, and reluctantly she got out of bed. She stretched, inadvertently giving him quite a show.

"Nice view," he said.

"Thank you!" she dissolved into nervous laughter, realizing this was his first time seeing her naked in the light of day. "I love how comfortable I feel this way with you!"

"You and me both," and he pulled the covers back to reveal he was hard again.

"Sorry about that," she said. "Would it be too much if I asked you to fasten my bra?" She already had it on by then, and presented her back for him to do the honors. As he fastened it, he nuzzled her neck playfully and kissed her ear. "Oooh, now you've got me all wound up too!" she squealed.

"Lucky us." James gathered up last night's clothes off the floor and set about putting them on. "Are you free for dinner this week? And for some fun afterwards?"

Shortly thereafter, Faith told Nancy all about their plans for the next date over breakfast. "Thank heavens he picked my heart!" she gushed. "How was your night? Sorry! If I shouldn't ask..."

"No, it's fine," Nancy said. "I guess you know Ben?"

"Slightly, yes. I was kind of hoping I'd get him, actually, but..."

"I get it," Nancy said. "In any case, he was great. Really sweet and innocent and just shy enough for it to be endearing. Most fun I've had in a while." She leaned over and whispered in Faith's ear. "But I wouldn't ask some of the others how their night was!"

"I can only imagine with some of them," Faith said.

"Here's one we don't have to worry about asking, though," Nancy said as Lindsay came shuffling into the dining room, looking like she'd had no sleep at all. "Looks like Barry wore you out, sis!"

"Fuck you," Lindsay grumbled as she flopped down to pour herself some coffee.