guest bathroom and grabbed the two hand towels hanging on the rack. When he came out to the living room, he saw that she was no longer on the couch. Instead, she had put on his shirt and stood by the baby grand piano in the corner of the living room, her fingers running over the ivory keys.
“It came with the apartment,” he said.
“Oh, so you don’t play?”
“Well …” Striding over to her, he sat down on the bench, then pulled her to his lap, arms on either side of her. “The opportunity to work in the mountain came at such short notice, so I had no choice but to find a flat online before I got here. It didn’t matter to me which one, but the piano definitely cemented my decision to rent this one.” His fingers landed on the keys, as he began to play the very first piece he’d learned “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.”
“Wow,” she said, leaning back into him. “You’re good.”
“My grandparents insisted I learn during the summers spent with them, among other things. Chess, languages, different sports. They wanted to make sure I received a well-rounded education.” He switched to a more complicated piece, one of his favorites: Liebesträum No. 3 in A-flat Major by Franz Liszt.
“That’s so beautiful.” She rubbed the side of her cheek against his arm. “But so sad. Do you know anything happier?”
He smiled to himself, then transitioned to Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 16 in C Major, following it with “Flight of the Bumblebee” just for fun, which was a feat considering she was between his arms, but he managed to finish the piece.
Turning in his lap, she straddled him so they came face-to-face. “Show off.” She smirked at him. “Do you know anything from the last century?”
“Ah, that I can do.” He kissed her nose, then put his fingers to the keys again and tinkled out an intro that he hoped she would recognize.
Instantly, her mouth formed a perfect O, and her breath hitched. “That’s my dad’s favorite song,” she breathed, her eyes shimmering. “New York State of Mind.”
“I figured it would be.” It wasn’t hard to figure out, with the posters in the office, but he was glad that he, as the Americans would say, nailed it.
Silently, she wound her arms around him and lay her cheek on his shoulder. He continued playing until he finished the song, and silence filled the room when the last echo faded. They sat there, unmoving, listening to the sound of each other’s breathing and heartbeats.
“Thank you,” she finally said. “That was … amazing.”
“You’re welcome.”
“You don’t sing, do you?” she asked, pulling away and looking up at him. “Because that would be so unfair.”
He laughed, then moved his hands from the piano to her thighs, pressing them tight around his waist before standing up.
“Where are we going?”
He maneuvered them around the piano and began to walk toward the direction of the master bedroom. “As much as I want to admire your naked bottom as you’re bent over that magnificent instrument, I’d also like to see what it’s like to make love to you on a proper mattress.”
She laughed. “All right, Romeo. Take me to your bed.”
Waking with J.D. every day for an entire week was perhaps the best feeling in the world. It was even better this morning, because neither of them worked today, he could quietly admire her without worrying about having to get up and get ready. She looked gorgeous, all that messy curly hair spilled over his arm as her nose nuzzled at his side, the curves of her body fitting perfectly into him. He loved to watch her, trace his eyes over her perfect skin and the green ink of the leaves curling around her bicep. When he’d asked her about it, she didn’t hesitate to tell him that she’d gotten it in memory of her beloved mother, Ivy. After her father died, she added a few vines that spelled out “J.D.”, which had also been his initials.
There was a contentment inside him he’d never felt before. His polar bear, too, let out a satisfied rumble.
Yes, this was all worth it. Even doing all the Christmas stuff with her. J.D. just about tried his patience, wanting to go to the Winter Carnival nearly every night, gorging on sweet and fried snacks, buying all kinds of Christmas ornaments that they would eventually hang on the already heaving tree at her house. When she ran out of space on her tree,