Chapter Forty Four

But, that night, the night of Tristan’s birthday, it made more sense than any other night to sit with that coat which still smelled like Tristan. He could not spend time with Tristan on the night of his birthday, but he could let himself pretend that he was with Tristan.

He pulled out the coat, and held himself back from sniffing it for a while - acting on the laws of delayed gratification. And then, when he could not take it anymore, he closed his eyes and brought the coat closer to his face, and then took in a deep breath, alongside the scent of Tristan’s cologne mixed with the sweet scent of his body.

It was the moment in which Roth realized that a lover’s smell could be as overwhelmingly erotic as his look or touch. The scent of Tristan filled his nostrils and caused his cock to twitch, as eyes still closed, he rubbed his cheek on the coat, imagining that he was rubbing himself on Tristan.

Roth kept holding the coat up to his face and inhaled, tentatively at first, but then suc