This week, the author responds to a reader-submitted sexual inquiry.

Q: I'm having a serious problem with my boyfriend. I think he's only aroused by material things or money. He always gets excited when he buys something, or even if we see an expensive car on the way home. When we're fooling around at my place, he always wants to face this photo I have of my dad's sailboat, and if he can't face that way he can't get it up. Also, a couple times I found soggy $20 bills in the trash can in my bathroom. I think he's using them to masturbate. What do I do?

A: Well, there's one of two things happening here: He's either Patrick Bateman in the flesh, in which case look for human heads in your freezer, or he's got a fetish. I'm leaning toward the latter. A fetish, by definition, is an object or situation that causes sexual arousal. Your boyfriend seems to fetishize wealth. Some fetishes, like seeing your partner in stockings or leather, are simply added arousing elements to the standard sexual repertoire. But when someone can't get aroused or can't come without that object or fantasy, that's a fetish of a different color.

Fetishes, of both kinds, can work fine in relationships if both partners are ready and willing to adopt them. However, it sounds like you aren't quite ready to start giving blowjobs as Mr. Monopoly, so you'll have to do what you do in any good relationship: talk. First, you need to decide if you're willing to accommodate the fetish. If you think you're up for it, tell him how you feel and show him you are open to compromising on it. It may prove difficult at first, but who knows, maybe you'll learn to love having sex in a pile of money, Scrooge McDuck style.

Meg Augustin is a freelance journalist with a master's in human sexuality education. Have something you'd like to ask our sexpert? Email her anonymously at megan.augustin@citypaper.net.