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Show 185 g i r ls sprawled in front of him with an elaborate story that seemed to draw them helplessly through f i t s of the giggles. Lorin had never understood Noel's charm. He was small and fine-boned with a pale unblemished face that reminded you of a v e n t r i l o q u i s t ' s dummy, but to Lorin's certain knowledge at least five g i r l s of t h e i r mutual acquaintance had had their way with Noel during the last year. It had to be something in the image of vulnerability he projected. Women wanted to protect those childish limbs, so they took them to bed. Paul, with his ascetic face and hard black beard and recently smoldering eyes, was much handsomer, but did not seem to attract women who wanted his body. Lorin watched Paul for a few minutes. He was s i t t i n g on the couch talking to Sharon Sands, who had shared Lorin's locker in the art department one year. Paul's feet were extended and he stared at the ceiling as he talked, his head tipped back and resting on the back of the couch, and now and then he glanced over at Sharon to see i f she was following him, and Sharon sat sideways with her legs under her, nodding and not taking her eyes off Paul, but you could look at this satisfying picture all night and know that neither would maul the other's body i f the lights suddenly went out. Lorin suspected Paul was lonely but enjoyed being mysterious and therefore would never admit i t. The wall was s t a r t i n g to hurt his backbone and he realized he had been slumping. He sat up and took another sip of wine and looked around. Shannon was s i t t i n g on a wooden chair that made him look b r i t t l e and even more angular than usual. He was t a l k i n g to a slender Negro g i r l whose gleaming hair was piled high and who leaned forward on her ottoman to l i s t e n , l i f t i n g her chin and stroking her throat with the backs of her curled fingers. Harry was out of sight in the kitchen, arguing with someone who thought Adlai Stevenson was a weak s i s t e r . Other people whom Lorin knew either from the |