Clifford's Spiral: Chapter 16

Chapters are serialized here for paid subscribers.About This Novel

In Clifford's Spiral, the stroke survivor’s past is blurry, and his memories are in pieces. He asks himself:

Who was Clifford Olmstead Klovis?

Stroke sufferer Clifford Klovis tries to piece together the colorful fragments of his memories. Has he any right to think this way?

Chapter 16

Clifford’s lust for Myra was not diminished because he had zero chance with her. Oh, he was handsome enough for a man of his age. Dress him up in a gray-flannel suit with a crisp, white shirt and yellow tie — and he could pass for some charismatic CEO. Just don’t ask him to give a speech at someone’s retirement dinner. The communication challenge was at the heart of the matter. Despite what makers of cologne and romance novelists who write about animal magnetism might want you to believe, seduction — and even basic attraction — can be all about language. A homely man who can make a woman laugh will almost always have an edge on a lame-speaking hunk, at least after initial impressions have faded into the background.

So, the fact that Clifford couldn’t or wouldn’t speak was indeed a barrier to his success in gratifying his desire. True, he and Myra shared a bond of secrecy. Alone of all the staff, she suspected that he had lucid thoughts — and probably rich, interior monologues — going on inside his damaged brain.

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