bordering on hysteria. His whole system was crying for relief, and he would have laughed like a madman at spectacles that his normal attitude would have considered banal. His mind was tired, far more exhausted than the body that sat there expending its energy in reading and studying and turning the pages of a book. A bit of physical effort—a lot of physical effort—was needed to maintain his healthy balance. Norma squirmed into a more comfortable position and Peter's body recognized the probable avenue of physical expenditure and responded vigorously. In fact, his mind (the subconscious side) saw the possibility of taking a rest while the physical went to work and urged him to grab the chance. His conscious mind objected mildly and then went to sleep, so far as any guardianship of his morals and pride were concerned. Peter relaxed with Norma in his arms and enjoyed the pleasant sensation of not giving a purple damn about anything but the high probability of gaining that soft, floating-on-nothing sensation that comes with complete surfeit of all energy.

He sought her mouth and floated.

His mind was a dizzy maelstrom, lucid at times when he recognized her presence, completely foggy at other times when he half-dozed, at which time he dreamed bizarre dreams about strange doors opening and wet flagstone walks that led in aimless courses through formal gardens. When his consciousness came up again he wondered what the symbolism meant but he was too tired to figure it out. Eventually he slept deep and long.

He awoke to bright daylight streaming through the windows of his room. He wondered how he had managed to cover the couple of hundred feet from the bookshelf in the laboratory to the studio couch in the back room, and then he came a bit more alive and remembered Norma. Had she—?

"Awake, Peter?" she called from the doorway.

He fumbled for an answer, not only to her question because he was not sure, but also to the more important question that he posed for his own mind.

"Ah—er—"

"You're a sleepyhead. A hell of a fine lover you are." Norma laughed. "I come to give you a half-million bucks, and all I ask is that you pay attention to me. What do you do? You accept my half-million in a half-conscious manner and then you go to sleep."

"Norma, I—"

"Peter," she said sternly, "for five hundred thousand clams, the least a girl should have to do 

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