Sex had always been a muddy, disconnected experience for Terry. She had never inspired (or felt) the kind of gasping intensity she'd seen in porn, and her self-criticism put a distance between what she was doing and how she felt about it. But with Tom, the triviality of it gave her an excuse to relax. Knowing that he could enjoy it at the basest phyical level, she was able to turn off the internal choreographer, and experience everything in full fidelity.

Tom focused on the aesthetics of the situation. Even without a natural sexual attraction, he could appreciate beauty, and felt genuine happiness to share this bed with her. A respactable amount of time later, he was finished, and it was time to get dressed for their first performance.