It’s slow torture. From the way he kisses down my stomach to the way he nips at the apex of my thigh. For a moment, I forget that it’s December. Because right now, I’m mid-July and it’s a heatwave and I’m praying and praying for the sun to set and for the humidity to break, but it never does. I’m on edge.

But Asher is not. He’s calm and cool and collected, kissing me slow like honey.

It’s agony.

But it’s the kind of agony that I’d suffer through any time, any day, whenever, and wherever.

“Well,” I say after I’ve been sufficiently ravished. Has it been hours? Days? Weeks? Months? Time is a construct. Orgasms are not. “That wasn’t on my Christmas List.”

“You mean you didn’t ask Santa for multiple orgasms? That’s always on my wishlist,” Asher laughs after he crawls back into bed. I waste no time gluing myself to his side. He wastes no time putting his hand on my butt.

“You should mention this in my performance review for Ana.”

“And what a thorough performance review I conducted.”

“It was very in depth,” I say. “You touched on things I didn’t even know existed.”

“What can I say? I take my job seriously.”

“You’re a true professional.”

I nuzzle against his chest and we laugh and laugh and laugh because this feels like the most natural thing in the world, like this is where we were always meant to be.

“For what it’s worth, I’d really like you to come on vacation with us,” he says. “I think it’d be nice to get away from the city for a while.”

I hum. “I think you just want to see me in a bikini.”

I look up at him and he’s still glowing in post-orgasm bliss, his cheeks flushed red. “I mean, yeah, I’m not about to complain about watching you prance around a beach in something tiny.”

I hum again. “Will you take Instagram pictures for me?”

“I can’t promise they’ll be good.”

“Don’t worry.” I lean up and steal his lips, “I’ll teach you my angles.”

“Does that mean you’ll come?”

“Of course,” I say. “Who would say no to Turks and Hot Cocoa?”

He kisses me again and again and again, and we get lost in each other for a second time.

Later, I sneak out of bed to go downstairs. From the window, I watch fat flakes of snow blizzard down from the sky. Asher slips behind me, and I lean into the warmth of his chest as he wraps his arms around me. Together, we watch New York City fall asleep beneath a blanket of snow.

Epilogue

To: WLSI Employee Network

Cc: Ana Loveridge-Herrera, Asher McGowan

From: Olivia Langley

Subject: Ring in the New Year