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His hands were all over me, covering every inch of my skin with a light touch, setting my skin aflame. I touched him as well, and he made a sound in response.

“Too fast? ” he said, stopping.

“No.”

I kissed him again; this time his hands roamed the rest of me, going lower and setting a fire there as well. I ran my hands across his back and grabbed his ass. I’d wanted to touch it for a very long time.

It was well worth the wait.

“I need to get something. Damn I should have thought of this ahead of time.” He glanced over to his dresser, which was several feet away. “You’re coming with me.” He got up and picked me up again, walking with me to the dresser where he grabbed a foil packet from his sock drawer. My chest was pressed to his, and I only wanted to be closer, closer, closer.

“Wrap it before you tap it, ” he said, holding the package in his fist before taking us back to my bed. I laughed as we made our way back to my bed.

It was happening. It was really happening.

Hunter set me back down and made sure the packet was in easy reach for when he needed it.

“Not yet, ” he said.

“Not yet, ” I agreed.

We kissed some more, and he ran his hands all over me. I decided that clothes were highly overrated. They were between me and him, and I did not like them at the moment. I started tugging at his boxers, mad at them for separating us.

“No way, you first, ” he said.

It wasn’t really fair that he would be completely naked, and me not so much at all, so I leaned up so he could undo the clasp of my bra. Of course he got it with one hand.

“I’ve had practice, ” he said as he slid the straps down my arms and removed it. Well, there I was.

He smiled and kissed my lips before moving his mouth lower and kissing my nipples. My breath hissed out from between my teeth and my back arched. Hunter laughed, which tickled in the best way, making things even worse.

“My turn, ” I said, trying to push him so I could kiss his chest. He settled for lying on his side while I was on mine. I kissed his tattoos, one by one. His eyes closed, and he made a contented sound. That made me smile. I kissed my way across his chest as he moved his hands through my hair and all over my back.

We moved our lips back together, and he rolled back above me. I moved my hands down to his boxers, insistent again.

“Taylor, if you touch me there, I’m not going to be able to make it. Just warning you.”

“Okay, ” I said, moving my hands away from that particular area. He pushed against me, and I could feel that he was ready. Was I?

“I want to touch you, ” he said.

“You are.”

“Everywhere.”

I didn’t hesitate. “Okay.”

“Okay? ”

“Yes.” Oh, it was more than okay.

His hands made their way down my stomach and into my shorts. Holy crappity fuck. I’d never felt that before.

Doing it yourself was one thing, but having a man with slightly calloused hands touch you there was something else entirely. It was like he’d taken a class and gotten an A.

I’d had orgasms before, I mean, who hadn’t? Renee had dragged me to a sex toy party last year, and I’d bought a few things, but nothing worked better than Hunter Zaccadelli’s hands.

My back arched and I bit my lip so I wouldn’t be too loud.

“We’re alone; you be as loud as you want, Missy. I plan for this to be a regular thing, ” he said, kissing me. His hand continued to work, torturing me again.

I wasn’t sure how much more I could take. On my own my record was three. I was coming up on number two in a very short span of time.

“I want you so bad right now.”

“Okay, ” I said as another one hit me. That time I made a lot of noise. Hunter kissed me again, and decided that he’d had enough of clothes, too.

The next thing I knew we were both naked, and his entire body was pressed on mine.

“This is going to hurt. If you want me to stop, just say the word and I will. There are plenty of other things we can do, ” he said with a smirk. “But I don’t want this to be a bad memory. I want this to be a good one.”

He kissed me again, and I reveled in the feeling of his warm skin against mine. Hunter pulled away to rip open the wrapper and roll the condom on.

“Are you ready? ”

“Yes.” I was. This was my choice. My body. My Hunter.

He pushed into me, and I tried not to cry out in pain. It hurt.

“Aw, baby, I’m sorry.” He kissed me, and I held onto him until he was all the way in. “Are you okay? ”

“Yeah.” He stayed still for a few seconds, and my body started to adjust. It was a strange sensation, but I didn’t want it to stop.

“Taylor? ” Hunter said, brushing my hair back from my face. “I love you.”

“I love you, ” I said without even hesitating. In that moment, as we were joined together as one person, I did. He pulled out and thrust in again. It hurt again, but not as bad.

“Again? ” he asked, his muscles trembling.

“Again.”

He started going faster, and the pleasure started overwhelming the pain. I moved my hips up to meet him, and he kissed me hard. He groaned a little while later, and I felt him come. He fell against me, exhausted. Hunter tried to pull out, but I wrapped my legs around him so he wouldn’t.

“Not yet, ” I said. I wanted to keep this moment for as long as I could.

“I love you, ” he said, kissing me as he rolled us both onto our sides. We were both sweaty and still a little out of breath, but it didn’t matter. “More than the stars.”

“I love you, too, ” I said, holding him close.

“I believe you.”

We stayed connected as long as we could, but then he had to pull out and toss the condom. When he came back we lay naked for a while, touching each other softly and trying to figure out what we could say that would make sense.

“Did I hurt you? ” he said.

“Yes, but it doesn’t matter.”

“I wish I hadn’t.”

“Don’t un-wish it. It was perfect.”

“Perfectly -imperfect.”

“Like us, ” I said.

“Just like us.” He kissed my nose. “More? ”

“More what? ”

“I have a whole repertoire that I want to use on you. It’s one of my many talents. It’s my goal to satisfy.”

“And I appreciate that. Must be those fingers, ” I said, bringing them to my mouth and kissing them. I rubbed them across my lips.

“Must be.”

I wasn’t a virgin anymore.

“I know I should be freaking out right now, but I’m not, ” I said.

“Good.” He ran his finger between my breasts and flicked my belly ring. “I have to say that I enjoy that, very much.”

“I didn’t get it with you in mind.”

“Why did you get it? ”

I propped my head on my hand. “I always thought they looked pretty, and it seemed daring.”

“I like it on you.” He leaned forward and kissed my belly. I sighed again. God, that felt so good. He felt good.

“Shit, ” he said, pointing to my comforter. I’d sort of forgotten about the bleeding part in the heat of the moment.

“Aw, crap. Guess I’m due for a new one.” My face went red, and I stuffed my face into my pillow.

“It’s okay; we’ll just stay in mine tonight.”

“I should get cleaned up.”

He raised one eyebrow. “Can I help? ” I was about to say hell no, but then I thought of all the times I’d thought about bathing with Hunter. They were too numerous to count.

“To the shower, ” I said, raising my arm. He took the opportunity to tickle me under my armpit as he climbed over me so he could pick me up.

“We can soak that in the tub later, ” he said about my comforter.

There was something absolutely weird about being completely naked with another person and not caring.

He turned the shower on and made sure it was the right temperature before he let me get in.

We spent most of the time kissing, with me trying not to drown under the water and him laughing at me. My hair kept getting in the way. I had way too much of it.

We soaped each other up and had a little too much fun washing special parts. He made me come a few more times, and I had to hold onto him because my legs wouldn’t support me.

“You are really good at that, ” I said after another one.

“You’re easy.” I smacked his chest with a wet slap. “You know what I mean. All those years of not doing anything and you’re all pent up. All I have to do is push the button.” He pushed said button and I cried out, falling against him.

“I told you I was a virgin, not a nun. I know how to make it happen. It’s just better when you do it.”

“I knew girls did that. Most of the ones I’ve been with denied it.”

“Not as much as boys, but we have needs, too.”

“Needy, needy, girl.” He kissed my mouth and moved me so the water pounded on my back. He lifted me up, and I wrapped my legs around him.

I loved him.

Twenty-Five

Neither of us wanted to put clothes on, so we didn’t. We spent the rest of the night in Hunter’s bed, talking and kissing and touching. It was sweet and nice and glorious.

He told me more about his parents and different stories about growing up. I told him about my childhood, about the good times before my dad became a douche.

“So are we going to talk about what happened? ” he said.

“You mean the sex? ”

“I mean the love part that happened during the sex. There should really be a better word for it. Sex sounds so clinical.”

“Canoodling? ” I suggested.

“Making whoopee.”

“Rolling in the hay.”

“Making love.”

We both laughed. He ran his hands across my breasts and up to my face.

“So, the love part, ” I said.

“Yeah. That happened, didn’t it? ”

“Yes, it did. You’re not the only one who said it.”

“I realize that. So what are we going to do about it? ”

“Pretend it was a fluke during the heat of the moment? ”

He thought about that, making a circle around my navel. “Nope, still love you.” He kissed the spot right where my heart beat.

I thought about it, running my hands over his short hair. It prickled against my palm. “Yeah, still love you.”

He looked up with the biggest smile on his face. He rolled over until he was on top of me again and rested his chin on my stomach. “When I used to say I loved my mom, she’d always tell me she loved me more than the stars. I love you more than the stars, Taylor Caldwell.”

I didn’t have a good enough response to that, so I just kept tracing hearts across his back.

He kissed my stomach. “Guess that means I’m moving out.”

“Guess so, ” I said, shrugging.

“I’m going now.” He didn’t make a move. I ran my fingers over his head, enjoying the feel of him. “I swear, I’m going to get up and pack my stuff.”

“Okay.”

“You’re supposed to wail and clutch at me and beg me not to go.”

“I don’t beg.”

“I could make you, ” he said moving his hand lower.

“No, ” I said, grabbing his wrist. My poor, destroyed body couldn’t take it again.

“So here I go.” He moved just a little, and I grabbed him. “That’s what I thought.”

“You said you wouldn’t leave me.” If I’d been terrified of him leaving me before, I was even more terrified now.

“Aw, Missy, I wouldn’t leave you right now. I’m gonna be stuck to you. Just like this.”

“It’s going to be hard for me to go to class.”

“Just throw a towel over me, no one will notice.” I rubbed my thumb over his bottom lip, and he flicked his tongue out and licked it.

It was official. I was in love with Hunter Zaccadelli.

“I love you. Even when you’re an ass.”

“I love you, even when you’re kicking me in the balls.”

“How romantic, ” I said, rolling my eyes.

“Hey, I could sing to you. All you have to do is ask.”

“ Honey Come Home, ” I said.

He started the song, singing it a capella. He slowed it down and kissed me during the pauses. He finished pretending to play chords on my belly. It ticked.

“My personal rock star, ” I said.

“Only yours, baby.”

“What’s up with that? You abandoned Missy as my official nickname? ”

“Baby sounds more girlfriendy.”

“Is that what I am? ”

“Well, I assumed, given the love exchange and the hay rolling.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s what it means.” Huh.

“Don’t look so excited about it.”

“It’s not that. I just never thought it would be a thing I’d be into.”

“You’re not alone in the no-commitment zone. I’ve never really done it either. That’s one of the things I love about you. Everything is new.”

“Yay for virginity.”

“I’d give it a round of applause.”

I rolled my eyes again.

“Yeah, it’s great. I have no idea what the hell I’m doing.”

He shook his head, running his lips over my skin.

“Doesn’t matter. You can learn.”

“You gonna teach me? ”

“Oh, I’d like to see what you can pick up on your own, Missy girl.”

“You’re not into anything weird, are you? ”

“What would you call weird? ”

“I don’t know. Like bondage and leather and crap like that.”

He laughed. “Sometimes I have no idea where your mind is going. When it comes to sex, it’s always different. Most of the girls I’ve been with have been a quick fuck just for the hell of it. I never wanted to stay around them long enough to do other stuff.”

“The feminist in me is really offended right now.”

“They knew what they were getting into. Two consenting adults having a sexual experience. I told you, you’re different.”

“So you don’t want me to wear a cat costume, or kiss your boots or call you Sir or anything? ”

He laughed even harder, burying his face in my navel.

“Stop it; that tickles! ” I squealed.

“God, I love you. I know I’ve said it a ton of times today, but I can’t stop.”

“I’m waiting…” I said, tapping his head.

“We’ll do whatever you want to do. If you want to hang me upside down by my toes, I’m all for it. I would like to try a few different positions to find which one you like. It’ll come in time. Let’s just get the basics down first.”

“Have you always been this open about sex? ”

He shrugged one shoulder.

“Why be closed? Sooner or later, most people in this world will have sex. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Being ashamed of it only leads to people doing dumb things.”

“So, you think you want to do it again? ” I managed to keep my voice at a normal volume.

“I’d say that’s a yes.”

“Good. …So it was good for you? ” I said, voicing one of my anxieties.

“Baby, it was more than good. That blew good up. I would never use good to describe being with you.” He ginned at me, and I smiled back.

“What time is it? ”

“Um.” Hunter squinted at my clock across the room. “Midnight.”

“Jesus. I had no idea.”

“Can you believe we have to go to class tomorrow? ” he said.

“Not really. Can’t we just do this for the rest of our lives? ”

“I’d be content, but we need food and I think after a few days our roommates and my cousin would wonder where we were.”

“Then let’s move to a private island and live out our days there.”

“Can we bring Harper? I’d miss that kid like crazy.”

“Only if she doesn’t interrupt us during lovemaking, ” I said. My stomach growled, and we both heard it.

“Hungry? ”

“If I say no, you’ll know I’m lying.”

“Here, ” he said, reaching over me to grab one of his shirts. “It’s only so you don’t get grease from the stove on your pretty skin.”

I put the shirt on, and he donned his boxers. I grabbed his ass as we trooped to the kitchen.

“Hey! ” he yelled.

“Now you know how it feels.”

We made chocolate chip pancakes, with the dark chocolate chips Hunter had bought last week. It was messy, and we both ended up needing another shower, but we just kissed most of the pancake batter and melted chocolate off. I never knew how much fun it could be, being with Hunter. He chased me around with the spatula and tickled me into submission.

I hadn’t thought about Travis, or him coming after me, for hours. I shoved it aside. I wasn’t going to let it invade our sexy little bubble.

Hunter and I got naked again and finally fell asleep with bellies full of pancakes. He hummed little tunes, and I pulled myself as close as I could get. It wasn’t enough. I wanted every night to be like this. Forever.

*****

I woke up in the morning to lips kissing mine and a male body pressed against me. Warmth swirled through my body, settling several key places.

“Good morning, ” he said, kissing my nose.

“Good morning to you, too, and to your little friend.” I reached my hand down and gave him a little squeeze.

“Hey, hey. Careful with that.” He kissed me again and snuffled in my neck. “How are you feeling? ”

I tested my body.

“Sore. Nothing worse than bad PMS. I’ll live.” I took my retainer out and put it back in the little case.

“Good, because I’d like to do that again in the not-so-distant future. Just tell me when you’re ready.”

My alarm clanged, reminding us that the real world was calling.

“Nooooo…” I said, hiding my head in Hunter’s shoulder.

“Come on, Miss. We’ve got human sexuality to learn.”

“Haha.”

We got up and had toast, with him sitting in his recliner, me in his lap, feeding each other bites. I had about a million messages and voicemails and so forth, but I ignored them. I’d deal with them later. I did message Tawny and my mother back, saying that I was fine. I listened to the voicemail from the assistant district attorney, but I couldn’t absorb the details. Maybe I’d get Hunter to do it for me.

He had class first, so I walked him down and decided to hang out in the Union for a while until my class. He took my hand, and we walked like a regular couple.

“Another date tonight? ”

“Maybe. We should probably, you know, do homework and socialize with other people though.”

“Other people are overrated.”

“Aw, they’re not that bad. We’ll have all the time we need tonight when we’re alone. I’ll tell Renee to wear her earplugs.”

He shook his head slowly.

“Cruel, cruel woman. I’ll be thinking about the possibilities all day.”

“Then I won’t tell you what color my underwear is.”

“White, with little pink polka dots.”

“Damn.” We’d watched each other get dressed this morning. “The mystery is gone.”

“Why don’t you go back to the room, change and then it will be a surprise.”

“Maybe I’ll do that.” We stopped in front of his building, and I gave him a long, steamy kiss. “Just something to remember me by.”

“See you later, Miss.”

“Bye, Hunter.”

We walked until we couldn’t hold hands anymore, and I watched him walk inside.

Damn. How had I not noticed how effing sexy he was, even when he was opening a door.

I stumbled to the Union and called Megan.

“Hey, where are you? ” I said.

“Union. Why? ”

I glanced around and found her flaming hair. “Oh, never mind. I see you.” I hung up and walked toward her, wondering if she would notice, if anyone would notice, that I looked different.

“Hey, how are you? I texted you a bunch of times yesterday. Where were you —” She saw my face and the stupid grin that was plastered all over it.

“Oh my God. What happened? ”

“Um, well. Hunter and I are… um… together.”

“Holy crap, ” she said, grabbing at my hand. “You did not get engaged.”

“Of course not. Oh, I switched it to the other finger yesterday. Long story.”

“We have some time before class. Get to the good stuff! ”

I sat down, leaning forward so no one would overhear. “I turned in my V card.”

Megan gaped.

“So you really, really forgave him.”

“Yeah. He’s one of the good ones. I told him about Travis. He’s up for parole, by the way.”

She gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. “You’re kidding.”

“I wish I was.”

“So what are you going to do? ”

I grabbed a fry from her plate and dipped it in ketchup. “I don’t know right now. I have to meet with the ADA, which should be a great time. I’ll have to get up and speak at the hearing, which I’m not looking forward to.” Understatement of the year.

“Can anyone else go with you? ”

“It think it’s just me and Tawny and immediate family.” I took another fry. “But I don’t want to think about that. I’ve obsessed about Travis for way too many years of my life. I just want to be happy.”

“Does Hunter make you happy? ”

“Happier than I knew was possible.”

“So hold onto that.”

“I will.”

“So, um, I have some news.”

“What? ”

In answer she held up her left hand that had a thin gold band with one square-cut diamond on it.

“Oh my God! ” We both squealed and everyone stared.

“He finally popped the question. It’s not going to be for a while, but at least I have a ring on my finger.”

“It’s about time! ” I gave her a huge hug. “Does this mean you’re moving out of your craptastic apartment? ”

“I’ve been looking for nicer places, and I think I found one. I’ll have to take on another job, but I think we can swing it.”

“Good for you, being all adult-like.”

“Maybe you’ll be next. They say one wedding brings on another. Maybe one engagement brings on another, too.”

“I don’t think so. Marriage isn’t really our thing.”

“Whatever, ” she said, rolling her eyes.

We chatted about my night with Hunter, with me giving her a few details about our night.

“So it was good? ”

“I can’t really imagine it getting better.”

“Oh, it will. Top is the best. Trust me.”

“I’ll put that on the list of things to try.”

“You have a list? ” she asked.

“No, but I’m sure Hunter does.”

We both laughed.

“Boys. They always have that on the brain.”

We giggled some more as she finished her fries and we went to our class. I gave her a few whispered details, and she told me more about her wedding plans while a movie rolled and we pretended to take notes. I had a hard time focusing. All I could think about was being naked with Hunter, and how I wanted to be naked with him again.

I beat him to human sex, so I got out my e-reader and pretended to be engrossed in whatever I was trying to read. I didn’t even know what it was.

“Miss Caldwell, ” a voice said next to me, making me grin uncontrollably. I stifled it.

“Mr. Zaccadelli. How wonderful to see you again.”

“What brings you here on this lovely day? ” He moved past me and sat down, giving me a kiss on the cheek. My lips wanted more, but I didn’t want to look like a slut.

“I am here to study the sexual practices of humans. How about you? ”

“The same. What a coincidence.”

“Isn’t it? ” He kissed my cheek again.

“Hey, baby.”

“Hey.”

“I missed you.”

“I missed you, too.”

He twisted our fingers together as Marjorie walked in and started class.

If I’d thought I’d had a hard time focusing without Hunter in a class, it was even worse when he was there. He kept whispering to me, touching me and making me remember the night before.

“Will you stop it? ” I hissed as I tried to take notes, and he stuck his tongue in my ear.

“Why, does this bother you? ”

“You are interfering with my learning, Mr. Zaccadelli.”

“That’s the point, Miss Caldwell.”

“I’m going to have to report you to Marjorie.”

“Go ahead. I’m sure she would approve of us having a healthy sex life.”

I gave him a good pinch on his leg.

“Next time, I’m pinching something else.”

“Maybe I’m into that.”

I ended it there and went back to my note-taking. “You are a bad influence, Mr. Zaccadelli, ” I said when class ended.

He nodded. “I try to be, Miss Caldwell.” He dove toward me and gave me a huge kiss. I heard someone make a noise of disgust behind us.

“Ready to go? ” he said.

“Sure.”

I walked him to the library, where he had his shift, and then I went back to the apartment.

“Sweet Jesus, is she alive? ” Renee said as I walked through the door.

“Barely.” Through the day, I’d become more sore, especially with sitting down so often. I’d taken some pain medication, but I still had a twinge every time I moved.

“Details, now, ” she said, pointing to the one end of the couch that wasn’t covered in notebooks and textbooks.

“Where’s Paul? ”

“He had a geology seminar, and don’t change the subject.”

“Dare? ”

“At work.” I sat down with a minimum amount of pain. “Little sore, are we? ”

I blushed and nodded.

“Good for you. Means you did it right. I cried after my first time, but that’s probably because I was fifteen and we had no idea what the hell we were doing.” I couldn’t imagine. “You were smart to wait.”

“How did you know —? ”

“Sweetie, I’m not a moron. You had virgin written all over you.” I’d never actually come out and told them, but I guessed it must have been obvious.

“So, how was it? ”

“Good, ” I said, smiling. Hunter would have been mad at me. Good really wasn’t the word to describe it, but I didn’t want to share our special moment with anyone.

“Oh, it had to be more than good.”

“Maybe it was.”

“As I said, just let me know when I need earplugs. This is your place and I’d hope if I brought Paul here, you’d be cool with that.” I’d have to be.

“Sure.”

“Great.” She shut her book with a slam. “I’m so happy for you.”

“Thanks, Nene.”

“God, that nickname is never going to die.”

“I’m baby now, so I know how you feel.”

“Ooohh, baby. That’s so cute.”

“Nobody puts Baby in a corner.”

“Just Hunter.”

“Not even him.”

“Good girl. You wear the pants.”

“I do.”

“Have you seen your doctor yet? ”

“Uh, no.”

“But you’re on the pill, right? ”

“Yeah.” I’d had horrible PMS since I was much younger, so as soon as I could I got on the pill to regulate my hormones. I’d been taking it for so long that it was second nature.

“Well, just be careful. Urinary tract infections are not fun.”

“Ew.”

“Cranberry juice is in the fridge. Go see your gyno. That’s all you have to do. I’m just looking out for your vaginal welfare.” That made me blush.

“Thanks.”

“Anytime, girl.”

She nodded and went back to homework, as if we hadn’t just been talking about my vaginal welfare. I made a note to call my doctor to set up an appointment. You could never be too safe.

I figured homework was a good idea for me as well, so I got a bunch of mine done while Hunter was gone. My comforter was still damp, so I went and threw it in the wash downstairs. I was still going to buy another, because the blood hadn’t completely come out.

By the time he got back from work, it was dinner time and Paul was over. Mase had decided to join us before he picked Darah up from work.

“So, we have an announcement to make, ” Hunter said, grabbing my hand and holding it up for the world to see. “We are together. Aren’t we, baby? ”

“As long as you stop calling me baby.”

“You know you love it.”

“Not really.”

“Okay, okay, enough with the cute, we get it, ” Renee said.

“Aw, come on, Ne. Be nice, ” Paul said.

“I think it’s great. Welcome to the family, Tay.” Mase gave me a huge hug. “Not that you weren’t already a part of it, but I know Hope will be thrilled and Harper will be over the moon.”

“Thanks.”

Hunter pulled me to his chest, rocking me back and forth and giving me another kiss. It was like we couldn’t get enough of each other.

“Okay, dinner. I’ve got rice and veggies and teriyaki sauce. So it looks like stir fry. Anyone have objections? ” Hunter said.

We all shook our heads.

“Stir fry it is.”

Hunter divvied up the tasks, giving me the task of chopping peppers. I was really good at it, apparently. We all bustled around the kitchen, knocking into one another and laughing and generally making a mess.

When we finally sat down, it was pretty late for dinner. Hunter claimed the recliner, and I claimed his lap. Hey, it was the best seat in the house.

My phone buzzed with a text from Tawny. I read it, but it wasn’t anything major.

“You okay? ” Hunter hadn’t seen the text.

“Yeah, fine. I just have to call her later.”

“What are you whispering about over there? ” Renee said, pointing her fork at us.

“Your mom, ” I said.

“Hey, don’t you dare insult my mother.”

“Oh, but it’s fine for you to? ” I said.

“You didn’t have to spend eighteen years of your life with her.”

“True story, ” I said.

I missed Hunter in the shower, but I just didn’t feel comfortable doing that when Renee and Paul were in the living room studying. Hunter also had a lot of work for econ that he’d been putting off. We had another of our study sessions after my shower.

“You know, if I copied my notes onto your skin, I bet I would learn them a whole lot better, ” he said.

“You’d have to write really, really small. There’s not a lot of me to write on.”