She exited the bathroom clad in a towel only. It was much too cold to be wearing so little, but she had been too tired to pick out today's outfit last night before bed. Richard was already asleep when she arrived home and part of her was secretly glad. According to the maid, things had not gone too smoothly in her absence and she was not in the mood to hear about it last night. Thus she had quietly slid into bed next to her husband and left all decisions until the morning.

Among other things to do today, she had a noon lunch with the ladies from the DAR and then afternoon tea with Teensy McMahon and Cookie Sullivan. She didn't particularly enjoy the company of either woman, yet she couldn't really refuse their invitation to join them at the club. It would be impolite.

Running a hand through her damp hair, she tried to work out some of the excess water with the end of her towel. As she walked into her closet, she found a small yellow box on the dressing table. It hadn't been there last night. It was quite a small box and looked to be just the size that she loved the most – boxes this small almost always contained jewelry. Yet she wondered why it was there. There were no major events this month. No birthdays. No anniversaries. Not that Richard remembered anything besides their wedding anniversary. When they were first married, he remembered the anniversary of the day they met, the day they were engaged, the day they first made love, yet all that had ended when the bliss of being newlyweds wore off. He became busy with work and was too preoccupied with insurance matters to remember such trivial things any longer. Truth be told, Emily had forgotten about them, too.

"You're not going to just stand there and stare at it, are you?"

Emily jumped at the sound of his voice. She turned around to find her husband standing in the doorway. "My God, Richard! Don't come up behind me like that!"

"My apologies, dear," he conceded.

She looked at him quizzically, holding up the box. "Richard, what is this?"

"Why don't you open it and find out?" he suggested.

"I just don't understand the occasion for this."

"It's a yellow box, Emily. No special occasion. Just open it." His answer was short and didn't satisfy her. He was behaving oddly and she couldn't figure out what he was up to. It didn't escape her notice that he was dressed, not in a robe or pajamas or even a track suit, but in an actual suit. She was lost in her thoughts until she heard Richard clear his throat.

"Are you going to open it or not?" he asked. The irritation in his voice made her smile inwardly. He had been grating on her nerves for weeks and she had gone out of her way to make sure that she didn't upset him, something that was not an easy task. Their playful bickering and short, biting remarks were the hallmark of their loving banter and it had been hard to break herself of the habit to argue with him.

Emily turned away from him and back to the box. Richard frowned slightly that she was facing away from him and he couldn't watch her response. He could hear the faint sound of her opening the box. After a few moments, she turned back to him.

"I don't understand," she stated flatly, holding a tube of lipstick in one hand and the empty box in the other. "Why would you give this to me?" she asked.

"I wanted to buy you something to wear when we go to Europe next month." He was being coy and it was confusing her even more.

"Next month? Europe…? What are you talking about, Richard? We don't have any plans to go to Europe next month."

"We do now," he informed her. "I made them yesterday."

"Why … why would you do that without asking me first? You know that I have responsibilities here."

Richard sighed heavily. "Asking your wife first ruins the point of a surprise." Her frown quickly faded and Emily didn't look quite as disapproving as she had a few moments ago. "You have been amazing these past few weeks. I know that I have been driving you crazy with my mood swings and my bad attitude. I also missed our anniversary while I was in the hospital and I just wanted to do something to show you how much I appreciate you and all that you do for me."

Emily smiled. "I missed you while I was away with Lorelai and Rory. I realized that I'd rather have a miniature putting range in the back yard than no husband."

"I know how much you love Provence in the spring, so I thought it would be the perfect excuse for us to get away together."

"I think it's a wonderful idea, Richard. But what is this for?" she asked, holding up the tube of lipstick once again.

"It's all you'll need to take with you on our trip. You are not allowed to pack your usual six valises," he informed her.

"And why is this the only thing that I will need? You expect me to walk around France wearing nothing but lipstick?" She raised an eyebrow as a playful smile appeared on her lips.

"Not around France, no. But I don't plan on doing much sightseeing while we're there."

"No?"

Richard walked over to where she was standing. "No," he confirmed, taking the tube of lipstick from her hand. He put it back in the box and dropped it on the dressing table behind her. His hand reached out to trace down her shoulder. Her skin was cool to the touch, but his hand was warm and sent a shiver thought her body. "I think we'll just stay inside our hotel room and make up for lost time."

"We do have a lot of time to make up for," she agreed. Emily smiled and Richard caught a glimpse of the sparkle in her eyes, encouraging him to go further.

He reached for the side of her towel, tugging at it lightly. She tried to stop him, but it was to no avail. The towel fell to her feet. As he stepped closer to her, he brought his hands to both sides of her neck. Emily moaned softly as his lips pressed against hers. It had been quite a while since he had properly kissed her. She slid her arms around his neck, not wanting the moment to end. However, she soon became aware of his body rubbing against her and was reminded of her own growing desire for him.

She pulled away from him and ran her hands down his chest. The material of his suit was rich and it had a feeling of silk against her fingertips. His shirt was crisp and perfectly tailored to fit him. She loved the way he looked in a suit. He looked so strong and manly. The memory of the first time she saw him flashed in her mind and made her heart beat faster. Even after so many years she was still madly in love with him.

Emily's hands found their way down to his trousers as she released the buckle of his belt and began working on undoing the top button. As Richard began to unbutton his shirt, she tilted her head up to look into his eyes. Yet she was nearly a foot shorter than he and thus found herself staring directly at the scar from his recent surgery. It reminded her of how close she had come to losing him.

"Richard, are you sure that you can handle this?" she asked. It would be the first time since his heart attack. Normally such a question might have upset him, but he could hear the love and concern in her voice. He could also still remember the look on her face when she had first walked into his hospital room after the surgery. It showed a mix of relief and thankfulness that he was still alive.

"I'm fine, Emily," he reassured her. "I feel wonderful." Richard pulled her to him, kissing her deeply to show her just how fine he was indeed.

"I just have one question then," she breathed. He sighed, knowing that he would probably have to reassure her a dozen times that he felt fine. "Why am I the only one not wearing any clothing?" she asked.

Richard smiled and pulled her against him for another kiss. Their lips hungrily met and Richard's hands pressed against her back.

Emily pulled away from him to catch her breath. "I never thought that the sight of you in a suit would turn me on as much as it does right now," she whispered breathlessly. She grabbed the lapels of his jacket, pushing the garment down his arms. She then looked up at her husband. He smiled reassuringly, silently promising her that he was ready to make love to her again.

Emily slowly released each remaining button of his shirt, kissing the exposed skin beneath it. She pressed her lips gently against his scar, stopping her movements for a moment as the memory of that night flooded her mind. She felt Richard's hand on her back, his fingers tracing circles against her skin. Emily lifted her head, looking up at her husband as he bent down to kiss her gently. For a brief moment, she fought the urge to cry. Not in sadness, but in the happiness that she had her Richard back again.

After reaching the last button of his shirt, she pushed it from his shoulders. Her hands ran down his strong arms. The touch of her fingers was soft against his skin. It had been quite a while since she had touched him like this. Not that he hadn't made every effort before now, but she had consistently refused to give into his advances. He didn't know how she was able to be so strong when she had clearly wanted him as much as he wanted her these past few weeks.

"No matter what you wear…" He ran his hand along her cheek as he spoke. "Or don't wear…," he added, moving his hand to her neck and down her collarbone. "You are always the most beautiful woman in the world to me." She inhaled sharply when she felt his thumb brush over her nipple. "I look in your eyes and I still see the same woman that I fell in love with forty-five years ago."

Emily smiled as Richard pulled her closer to him, bending down to kiss her neck. She moaned, the feeling of his lips against her neck sent a shiver down her spine. It was hard to even remember the last time that they had been together. Before the heart attack he had been busy with Yale and the insurance company. They barely had time to see each other, let alone make love.

Richard's hands roamed her body. It had been so long since he had touched her and he wanted to savor every moment. She too wanted to draw it out. Emily had been fantasizing about this moment for weeks and she didn't want it to end.

Richard took a few steps forward, pushing her backwards until she hit the closed bathroom door. It was a shock to her body as her head fell back against the door, but Richard's mouth covered hers before she could make a sound. His tongue pushed its way into her mouth. As his body pressed against hers and pinned her between him and the door, she could feel just how much he wanted her. In that instant, she changed her mind. She didn't want him to draw it out; she wanted him right now and she didn't want to wait any longer. It had been too long already.

One of his hands grasped the side of her neck and the other rested against her right hip. "I don't care about the foreplay," she moaned into his mouth. His knee was between her legs, limiting her movements as he pressed her against the door. He moved his left hand to rest against the doorframe in order to support himself as he reached down with his other hand to unzip his pants.

"It's been so long," she moaned, her head rolling back against the door. "Lying in bed next to you every night," she sighed, looking down as his pants finally fell to the floor and he kicked them aside. She ran her tongue across her bottom lip as she caught sight of his erection.

"It wasn't easy for me either, you know," he whispered, his hands moving over her hips and down her thighs. "I wanted so badly to make love to you." His hands slid behind her thighs, lifting her up so that she could wrap her legs around him. As he did so, he slammed her back against the wooden door. She groaned loudly. The feeling of him entering her overwhelmed her senses. She could smell his cologne as his chest pressed against hers. Her skin tingled at the touch of his fingers. The sound of their breathing and panting filled her ears.

Richard began to thrust into her, slowly at first. His eventual change of pace caused her to have to take short breaths of air. He smiled at her shock as he thrust harder against her, her back hitting the closed door each time that he did so. It had been so long and she didn't want him to stop. She didn't want the feeling of him moving inside of her to end. Emily closed her eyes, moaning when she felt her muscles contract as he thrust into her. She pushed every thought from her mind except the knowledge of what he was doing to her. She didn't have to open her eyes to know how their bodies moved together and how they seemed to fit each other so perfectly. Her heart beat faster and she found it harder to breathe as his chest pushed against hers.

Her right hand wrapped around his wrist as he rested it against the wall to steady himself. Emily opened her eyes to look at him. He smiled at her, leaning his face forward to kiss her. "I love you, Emmy," he whispered, his teeth nipping playfully at her earlobe.

"Oh, Richard," she moaned, as her back hit the door once again. She closed her eyes and let herself give in to him, following his movements. The feeling of him inside of her. The cool wood of the bathroom door against her skin. His breath on her neck. The sound of his voice whispering her name in her ear. It all combined together to send her over the edge. Emily felt the familiar sensation overtake her body as she reached her climax. She clung to her husband, breaking their kiss only to allow herself to breathe.

They were both still for a few moments, trying to recompose themselves. Richard held her up as she dropped her feet to the floor. She leaned against the door, requiring a moment to catch her breath again.

Richard reached out to take her hand as he helped her stand up straight. Her legs were wobbly and she swayed a bit. He wrapped her in the towel that had been discarded long ago, then reached over and picked up the tube of lipstick.

"You don't want to lose this," he stated, holding it out to her. She took it from him silently, still breathing a bit more rapidly than normal. Richard kissed her on the forehead and disappeared from the room.

Emily remained standing in the middle of the large closet for a few moments more. Her back and thighs felt sore and his cologne lingered in the air. She was definitely going to have to go take another shower.