“My uncle once asked me, ‘Are you a virgin?’ when I was already 27 years old. From that moment, I started to be afraid of him. And a few days later, when he took me to a hotel outside the city, he leaned close to my ear by the pool and whispered, ‘After the pool, come up to my room…’”

He started asking strange questions.

“Did you keep anything from your mother’s old belongings?”

Or:

“Have you ever wondered why your father never liked talking about his younger years?”

Usually, I just laughed and changed the subject.

But then, one day, he suddenly asked me something that made me freeze.

“Emily, are you a virgin?”

For a few seconds, I honestly thought I had misheard him.

“What?”

Richard looked away.

“I’m asking whether you’ve ever had a serious relationship.”

I stared at him.

“What does that have to do with you?”

He immediately changed the subject.

But I couldn’t forget the question.

From that day on, every time he called me, I felt uneasy.

Then, a few days later, Richard called me on Saturday morning.

“Emily, are you free today?”

“I think so.”

“Come with me. I booked a place outside the city. There’s a pool there too. We could relax for a while.”