19.

"Why not?" exclaimed Peg. "Because it's a carte blanche justification for men to continue controlling things."
Sam stared back at her. They were sitting on a rock near the end of the peninsula that forms Magen's Bay. Peg had brought him to see the natural jacuzzi in the rocks. The tide was low. The hole was empty.
"You lost me on that one," he said. "What does love and inspiration have to do with male control."
"Love and inspiration are fine. It's how you just put it, the whole muse thing. Women aren't the source of your inspiration. That's a male fantasy."
"You're sounding like Corrina."
"Well, Corrina's a pretty with-it woman."
"Yeah."
"Not that she's right about everything. I mean I don't know her very well, but I think she may be a little hyper-sensitive to things. I didn't really get to talk to her very much when you two were down here, but I think she got a little too upset when you weren't always paying attention to her."
"Yeah."
"Remember that talk you and I had that time?"
"Sure. About rolling the ball for people. You were right."
"It's a lot to ask of a lover to keep things going for you in a social situation," she said. "Of course with Paul, and Alec come to think of it, I've always been on my own anyway."
"Corrina has always closed up when we're around other people. We're fine alone, then she withdraws when I talk to people."
"You should never expect someone else to roll the ball for you, and that goes for getting inspiration as well as social situations. You ought to try to be as self-reliant as possible. People are weak. They sometimes fail."
"You sound convinced."
"That's pure Pamela," she said. "She's a hard cookie."
He stared at the ocean, then at her. "You're right. You're both right."