Karen believes that she has to like what he likes and he has to like what she does. Brad counters that by saying what about personal likings and individual freedom? In "This Side of Paradise" (1979), Ryan responds to the same query by saying if two people are of the same mind, then one becomes superfluous, Gina's tentative answer to which is that one can agree to disagree. Men, as sexual drivers, are the quickest to recognize the significance of sexual compatibility so to use it like a mantra over and over in Kay Thorpe's stories that as long as the couple is sexually compatible it is a foundation from which they can build on. For example, in "The Man From Tripoli" (1979), Bryn expresses this sentiment to bolster up a simple marriage of convenience. Hence, the consensus that Kay establishes across her stories is that without sexual compatibility, there is no man-woman association to begin with. However, Steve in "Full Circle" (1978) tells Sara that a man can have sex with a woman with no strings attached. Therefore, for such an association to mature into any kind of relationship, women have to realize their own sexual potential to the fullest. Cynicism notwithstanding, Nick in "Storm Passage" (1977) tells Tara that it is not enough that she makes herself available but that she needs to be all woman in order to let their sexual chemistry work for the benefit of their marriage. As in the matching libido found between Jaime and Liam in "Bitter Alliance" (1978), when men find their own libido matching with that of the women, only then the relationship promises to be a lasting one. An older Annette in "Sawdust Season" (1972) tells young Toni that men are not the marrying type; that they only choose to do so when they find a woman whom they can't get out of their skin. Towards this end, Ross in "Dividing Line" (1979) tells Kerry that what she perceives as love is mostly made up of sexual attraction. Ross would not be appealing to Kerry if he couldn't arouse her sexually. While Dave in "Win or Lose" (1986) tells Sara that she is there with him to get laid, Dave in "Iron Man" (1974) accuses Kim of not confusing "that" kind of feeling with love. This reciprocal exchange of sexual needs places both men and women on an equal plane. However, Steve in "Full Circle" (1978) also tells Sara that a vast majority of women cannot have sex with men without being emotionally attached.