Besides, the neighbors aren’t so bad. Occasionally we get invited to a tapas and wine party where every surface in the condo is covered in charcuterie, and I nod through conversations about brewing your own IPAs and frisbee golf, but watching my girl smile and laugh, talk about books and art with people who she relates to, makes it all worth it.

A plus, the only thing we needed to renovate here were the closets and the kitchen.

She said, “We can’t have talks at midnight in an outdated kitchen, can we…” So we changed it.

Wasting no time, I pull the Phish Food from the freezer and a spoon from a drawer next to the refrigerator. I press the ice cream carton to the inside of Winter’s thigh and she yelps and giggles, opening her legs for me to step between them. She peels the carton lid off and I scoop up a healthy spoonful and feed it to her.

“Tell me about your day,” I say.

She smiles and swallows down her ice cream, watching me lick the spoon clean afterward.

“Work was busy as always. We have a few new editors now so it should slow down soon. I met Rebecca for an early lunch downtown, so that was good.” She laughs. “She’s been seeing that guy she met outside of her office. ‘The kickboxer’, she calls him.”

I laugh, rubbing my free hand up and down her warm thigh. Hearing that makes me smile. Winter and Rebecca have grown very close since Winter and I made our relationship official. At first I was worried I fucked it up beyond repair by bringing Rebecca to Preston’s house for that gathering. Looking back on it now, I can’t believe I ever thought that would go over well. Just goes to show how monumentally clueless I was back then.

I wince, thinking about that time in my life. When I thought I had lost the only thing that has come even remotely close to mattering. Thank fuck Winter is amazing enough to move past my screw-ups to let me in. Even her willingness to get to know Rebecca and integrate her into the Fearless Four (which I guess is now the Fearless Five) is so very Winter of her.

Heart on her sleeve, splitting at the seams with passion, ready to love hard… That’s my girl.

“Oh!” she continues. “I found out I have to go to a book signing event in Vegas with Wes next month. If you can get the time off work, you can come with us. Or you and I can fly separately. The signing is on Saturday, and I’ll be there all day, but Wes is leaving on Sunday morning. I can take that Monday off, and we can stay an extra day. A little gambling… All-you-can-eat buffets… Watered down casino booze…”

I smile, kissing the tip of her nose with my chilled lips. I hate Vegas. Old Vegas is too old, and the carpets need to be replaced everywhere you go. And new Vegas isn’t much better with its faux extravagance and night clubs. It’s a breeding ground for poor choices, tacky atmospheres, and food poisoning. But again, there isn’t a thing on this planet I wouldn’t do to make my girl happy. And selfishly, I’ll do it for the rest of my life to see her smile, and experience the glee vibrate from her pores.