Chapter 21
Chapter 21 - The Tub
Alex wakes early and helps with the commune garden before discovering the twins, Karen and Kristen, struggling to fix a sagging gate. He helps them reset the post and realign the gate. Afterward, he and the women lift the fiberglass shell off the trailer and set it onto the frame, connect the water line, and light the firebox for the first real burn. Alex checks the water temperature throughout the day and reports to JJ that it's heating properly. By late afternoon, a group of women gather for the hot tub's first use. While most of the commune is at the tub, Maya pulls Alex aside — she's gotten lubricant from Patricia. They take blankets to the Large Oak, where Alex performs oral sex on Maya before lubricating his fingers and beginning anal play with her. The chapter balances the communal achievement of finishing the tub with the private intimacy between Alex and Maya.
Alex woke at five. The light was thin. The air was cool. August, but the mornings had started to change. Something in the quality of the light. Something in the way the dew sat on the grass. Summer was turning. He could feel it in his bones the way old men said they felt rain.
He pulled on shorts and boots. No shirt. The commune was quiet. The cabins were dark. Eleanor's light was on. He could see it through her window. She was awake. She was always awake before him. He didn't wave. He didn't stop. She'd said her terms. He'd respect them.
He walked to the garden.
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