Taxi to Paris by Ruth Gogoll Page A

felt with her lifestyle. It was so strange, so new and unfamiliar. But what could I ask her that wouldn't make me sound like a cheap, nosy tabloid reporter?
    "You don't have to talk about it," I said, embarrassed by my own curiosity.
    "Oh, it's not so bad," she said, once again passionless. "Don't worry about it." She reached for her glass and took another sip.
    "I'm sorry," I said, shaken by her indifference and the pain I sensed it concealed. "But you get something out of it too -". Dammit! I bit my lip. I was confused and had groped for something pleasant to say. It just slipped out.
    "You think I...?" She looked at me somewhat sympathetically. "I think you have the wrong impression of what it is that I do. I don't get satisfied, I satisfy others. Often I don't even bother undressing."
    "I - I didn't mean... I'm sorry..." I was stumbling around in the darkness and couldn't find the way out. What a mess! "I just thought..." Yeah, thinking is a matter of luck, young lady. Sure, you insult me now, too!
    Apparently, she had more sympathy for me than I had for myself. She went on, "If you really want to know, last week I had my first orgasm in two years."
    I stared at her, dumbfounded.
    She laughed. "Incredible, isn't it?"
    That was certain! "You mean with someone."
    "No," she said. "At all."
    Now I was truly speechless.
    "Believe me," she continued, as if this were ordinary small talk for her, "when you have ten women in a row, you no longer feel like doing it yourself."
    "Ten?" The idea just about bowled me over.
    "Well, not every day. But some days, sure." She laughed when she noticed that my mouth was still hanging open in amazement. "You never in your wildest dreams imagined a day like that, am I right?" She sobered. "I think that's enough for today."
    It sounded so final that I didn't dare contradict her, although I had the feeling that it might get interesting if she continued. I had to doubt that I would catch her in such a candid mood again soon.
    She rose. "I think you'd better go now," she said.
    I didn't want that at all, but I didn't seem to have a choice in the matter. I felt wretched. But wasn't that my own fault? "So I guess dinner wasn't such a good idea," I suggested.
    She shook her head. "Oh, no, I wouldn't say that. Normally, my clients don't even say hello to me when they see me on the street. And I act like I've never seen them before, either. You're a big improvement."
    I felt like someone had struck a giant gong right next to my ear. That's what I was to her: an improvement in the quality of her clientele!
    She looked at me as if stunned and took a step in my direction. "Pardon me," she said. "I didn't mean it that way." She put her hand under my chin and lifted it gently. "I get to spend so little time with people who..." She couldn't say it out loud, so she kissed me. She spoke that language flawlessly! It was a very cautious kiss. It was probably only supposed to be a little goodbye kiss. But during the course of the evening, so much had built up inside me that my desire awoke immediately and with all its might the moment her lips brushed against mine. She freed herself from my mouth again and stepped back. Should I leave now? I sighed. "I admire you," I said. "How can you always stay so calm?"
    "I can't." Suddenly, she got very daring. She took a quick step toward me and kissed me again, for real this time. "I want you to stay," she whispered in my ear.
    She had set me completely on fire, and I couldn't imagine anything nicer. Still, I hesitated. If I stayed, that would have serious consequences.
    "Only if you want to, of course," she added immediately, noticing my hesitation.
    I shook myself. Who could ever really know what would become of any given situation? "I'd rather stay, too," I admitted.
    She didn't show any particular reaction, except that she smiled a little. "I'll be right back," she said, as she turned and walked away from me. With that, she disappeared into her bedroom and left me alone