It was nighttime, just after dinner. I'd shown Erik my new apartment, the very one Aunt Marie helped me purchase a few years after I graduated from college. Dinner that night was lasagna, for two, it was just me and Erik. Which made me realize that I'd never actually eaten with Erik before. Sure, he'd come to Aunt Marie's café all the time, but I never actually sat down with him or anything.

The two of us crashed in my bedroom right after dinner, just laying there. I was using Erik's chest as a pillow, listening to the steady beat of his heart, as he stroked my hair with one hand, the other arm around my waist. I looked up at him, smiling. He smiled back.

"It's been too long…" he murmured, bending his head toward mine. I closed my eyes as our foreheads touched, then closed the gap, pressing my lips to his. He welcomed the kiss, pulling me closer to him, one hand now tangled in my hair, the other resting on the small of my back.

We'd only gone far enough once, the night before he was arrested. And that had been, by far, one of the best nights of my life. I shivered at the memory, a shiver of pleasure.

Erik pulled away to look me in the eyes. "I have a question…"

My brow furrowed. "And the question is…"

He sighed. "Do you still… love me?"

"Erik!" I exclaimed, eyes wide. "What kind of question is that?"

"An honest one."

I kissed him again, with all the passion I contained. He kissed me back, a smirk playing across his lips. He slid his tongue into my mouth, and I welcomed it gladly. Before long, I pulled away, suppressing a giggle.

"Does that answer your question?" I asked.

"Yes…" he answered breathily, his lips moving across my jaw. I closed my eyes, breathing heavily. "But I have another…"

"Which is….?"

He pulled away, and my eyes fluttered open. Only then did I realize our precarious position- Erik was nearly on top of me, my legs were wrapped around his waist, and the one hand he had rested on my cheek was slowly moving downward…

"You still have the ring…" he hinted.

I giggled. "My answer hasn't changed since then."

Laughing, he gestured to our current position. "It's a good thing- anyone who saw us at the present would assume we were already wed." I blushed madly at what he implied. So what if I'd slept with him before- it was still an awkward subject.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of," he said, pressing his lips to mine. Pulling back, he shook his head. "But if you do not wish to, then…"

I nodded. "Not tonight… besides, we have all the time in the world."

He smiled. "All the time in the world… I rather like the sound of that."

His smile… ahhh... I nearly melted at the heavenly sight.

Before long I was asleep, still wrapped around Erik. The last thing I felt was Erik untangling ourselves, and as my head fell to his chest with a barely audible thump, I heard a happy sigh.