Summer in New York was one of Alex's favorite things. Gone were the blustering winds that rolled through the streets off the East River. The days were longer, and a relaxed atmosphere settled over their Bay Ridge neighborhood.
Alex loved these long, hot days of summer. Her affinity for the season, she told herself, had nothing to do with how scant Piper's clothing got this time of year.
Mmm, Piper.
Alex yawned and rolled over in their bed. Without opening her eyes, she reached over to pull her wife's body against hers. Disappointment washed over her as her hand made contact with empty, cool sheets.
Blinking herself awake, she grabbed her glasses from the nightstand and padded down the hall where she figured she would find the blonde.
Though she knew what to expect on the other side, Alex's breath still caught when she pushed open the door to the nursery. Piper was slowly walking the length of the room, gently bouncing their infant son in her arms. The soft morning light filtered through the curtains on the windows, bathing both mother and son in an ethereal glow.
It was a tableau Alex had seen a dozen times since they first brought the boy home from the hospital. And yet, it was one that always shook Alex. She reached for the door frame, the nearest solid object, and squeezed. After all this time she needed proof. Proof that this life - this perfect life - was real.
Piper must have heard her then because she turned and greeted Alex with a heartbreakingly sweet smile.
"Morning," she whispered.
Alex crossed the room and kissed her wife gently. She ran her fingers lightly over the sandy-colored hair that dusted the sleeping boy's head.
"I didn't hear him on the monitor."
"He wasn't crying. I just missed him," Piper admitted sheepishly.
Alex smirked and kissed her wife's neck, causing goosebumps to erupt across the blonde's skin.
"And I missed you," Alex breathed into her ear.
"Al, we're having skin-to-skin time. It's very important for his development. Didn't you read the books I-."
Alex cut her off with a slow open-mouthed kiss.
"I think some skin-to-skin contact could lead to very interesting developments between us, too," she rasped, slipping her hand into her wife's tank top.
"Not in front of the baby!" Piper whisper-shouted, shoving Alex away.
Piper's protest was half-hearted and whispered through a barely contained smile. That smile that never failed to turn Alex's insides molten.
She pressed another quick kiss on Piper's jaw line before taking the baby and settling him in his crib.
"Sleep tight, kid. Mommies need some alone time."
Piper moved to her side, peering down at the boy.
"Your mom is like a horny teenager, Dane. I hope you aren't like this when you grow up," the blonde joked.
At the sound of the his name, Alex bent down to plant one more gentle kiss on their son's head. Piper had insisted they name him after Diane, Alex's late mother, and Dane seemed like a good fit. Every time they said it, it was like a little reminder of her.
I hope I'm half the mother she was, kid. For both our sakes.
Piper cleared her throat.
"You mentioned something about skin-to-skin contact," she said.
Alex spun around, drawn by the need in her wife's voice. She was met with Piper's blue-eyed gaze, boring into her expectantly.
She rushed forward and grabbed the blonde's hand, pulling her toward their bedroom.
