Then

Take me somewhere new. Someplace I wouldn't expect. Show me something I've never seen before.

The request was still ringing in her ears the morning after she came through on it. Today, it felt almost as though she had stepped out of a dream and into the start of the new work week. And as Jack walked into the office, looking for an ear for his trivialities and a good friend, Karen found it hard to concentrate on what was in front of her. How could she, knowing that the gateway to that dream was across the room, putting pencil to paper? She looked at Jack and gave him a friendly smile, hoping that he wouldn't put two and two together. But she couldn't help her mind wandering off to last night, the wonderfully comfortable state that she had fallen into with the woman across the way.

Murmured over faxed paperwork that Friday, she had thought that she had imagined it. But when Grace stepped away from the fax machine, she didn't go back to her desk; she stood beside Karen, willing her to lock eyes. And when she did…god, that smile. Karen had never seen a smile like that before, and she knew she would never see anything like it again. She wanted to burn it into her memory, keep it there for good.

"Are you sure you know what you're asking?" Karen asked. The hint of a smile, mixed with a slyness in her voice that Grace couldn't help but love. Trying to play it off like the red head should be nervous. But she knew she would be safe with her; it was never a question.

"I think I'll be okay. I've known you long enough to know that I can trust you." They set it for Sunday. Grace figured it would give her a day or two to figure out the details; Karen had it already planned as soon as the red head asked.

It was during one of the nights Grace had used the key. She had gotten there early—Will was working late and she wouldn't be missed, wouldn't be questioned if she happened to come in late that night, if at all—and they made their way out onto the library balcony. They kept the door open and Karen turned on the stereo, soft guitars coming to meet them as they bundled against the chill and watched the sun set on the city. Grace buried her way into Karen's arms, rested her head against her shoulder. Even as the cars and cabs drove by beneath them, there was a peaceful lull that surrounded them like a bubble, but it was one that would not break, that would keep them there for as long as they wanted. And Karen was certain that she wanted this as long as Grace could stand it.

She felt Grace's hold on her waist grow a little tighter and heard her voice float in the Manhattan air. "You know I've never seen the sunset on the skyline. I've always been in the middle of the island, I don't go into Brooklyn. I've never really had anything draw me outside of the city in a way that made me pay attention to the outline of the buildings. It's something that I've always wanted to see."

"It's really beautiful when you're out on the water," she murmured into Grace's ear. "Out on a boat in the river. There's nothing quite like it."

"Maybe you could take me out there sometime." And just like that, the conversation was forgotten, fleeing along with the sun, as they retreated back into the penthouse, into Karen's bed wrapped in each other's arms. Karen was certain that she would bring Grace to the marina, take one of Stan's boats and show her how the pinks and oranges of the ending day reflect against the water, shine along the skyscrapers. And when the red head prompted her, she knew that Grace didn't hold that much importance in what she said on the balcony.

She wouldn't see it coming.

When Grace came out of her Riverside apartment on Sunday, she didn't flinch when Karen got out of the cab to meet her and brushed her lips against her cheek. It was the closest to Will they had ever dared to expose their affection, but enough time had gone by now for Grace to slip into a state of relaxation, one that didn't consist of the paranoia she felt so easily in the beginning. The whole point of this was to unwind, to let herself go, let herself slip into the person she wanted to be when she was with Karen. "Where are we going?" Grace asked as she felt Karen's lips against her skin. "You told me to bundle up, make sure I was warm. Where exactly are you taking me?"

"And spoil the surprise? I don't think so. Come on, get in the cab, we're going to miss it if we keep standing around like this."

Karen slid her hand across the back seat of the cab, placed it over Grace's during the ride downtown. Passing Chelsea, passing Greenwich Village, going further downtown than either of them normally chooses to go on any normal occasion. Grace kept her eyes glued to the window on her side of the car. If she was nervous about the onset of things she didn't recognize, she didn't let it show. Karen knew she could look at Grace and pass it off to the cab driver as though she were staring out the window. She felt the warmth radiating from the red head's hand and realized that this is where she should be. It didn't matter if she was in a cab heading downtown, in a small coffeehouse in Chelsea, on the balcony of her penthouse or glancing across the office. As long as she was in a place where she could feel the impact of Grace's presence, she would be fine.

When the cab slowed to a stop at the marina, Karen led Grace out of the car and down to one of Stan's smaller boats. If he only knew what she was using it for. She climbed in and turned around for Grace, standing frozen on the dock, as if she didn't know what to do. Karen put on a smile and held out her hand for the red head to take. "You might have forgotten about your wish, but I certainly haven't. Come on." She helped Grace onto the boat and set sail. When they got to the middle of the river, she reached for the red head, pulled her in close to her chest and sat down with her in her arms.

"God, this is beautiful." Spoken in a hushed whisper, but it slipped its way into Karen's ear in the most peaceful way. It was bitter cold, the water surrounding them freezing the atmosphere even deeper, but it didn't seem to matter at all. They were hypnotized by the reflection of the setting sun on the water, the way the skyline was outlined by the changing colors of the sky. Suddenly, Grace looked into Karen's eyes; she swore she could see the pinks and oranges reflecting off of Karen's gorgeous hazel gaze. "No one's ever thought to do something like this for me. Ever. Why are you doing this?"

Karen smiled and kissed the crown of Grace's head. "Because you asked me to," she joked, before she realized that the red head's question was serious. "Because I was going to do it anyway, ever since you mentioned that you've never seen the sunset over the skyline. Because I wanted to make you smile. Because everyone should see the city like this, and not a lot of people get to. I'm just sorry it's so cold."

Grace watched Karen's breath become visible against the Manhattan air and smiled. She wrapped Karen's arms tighter around her waist. "I don't mind it. I don't mind it at all." They let the silence surround them for a moment as Karen's eyes studied the woman in front of them. Grace let out a soft laugh. "What?"

"Nothing. You're just absolutely stunning right now."

They kissed as the sun went down, pulled up to the dock as the sky turned black. And after they made their way back uptown, Grace followed Karen inside the penthouse and fell asleep in the way that had become so familiar, like second nature: her chest against Karen's back, their legs entwined, their breathing synced up in a way she hadn't experienced before. If there was ever a perfect night, this was certainly it.

Now, as Jack went on about the date he had over the weekend, some guy whose name she probably wouldn't remember even if she were giving him her full attention, she willed herself not to look at Grace. She didn't realize how difficult of a feat it could be. When she woke up in the morning, the red head was gone, and she knew it would be that way. She knew that Grace had to get home before Will woke up, if they wanted to keep their actions a secret. All she wanted to do when she walked in the office this morning was brush her lips against Grace's, give her a proper "good morning" before they started work. But just as quickly as Grace noticed Karen's entrance, Jack walked in, ready to give her every detail of his weekend.

She looked at him blankly as he spoke, hoping that she could play it off as being fully attentive. But he could tell. He caught on.

Jack stopped himself in his one-sided conversation and looked at his friend, tilted his head as if that would give him a better understanding of what he was seeing. He couldn't help but notice the smile on her face that lately hadn't been there. "What's this about?" he asked, gracing her cheek with his hand. "Why such a bright smile?"

Had she really not noticed the beaming grin? She put her hand to her mouth, convinced that Jack was joking, and sure enough it was there. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Grace stop what she was doing; it wasn't hard to overhear the talk at the assistant's desk. Karen wanted more than anything to meet her gaze, but she knew it would give too much away. Instead, she locked eyes with Jack and gave a light shrug.

"Nothing, it…it was a good night last night. I don't get to say that a lot," she said. And when Jack turned away she quickly stole a glance at Grace, saw the red head's sly smile. She gave a playful wink before Jack returned his attention to her.

He didn't notice a thing. And she played along like nothing was out of the ordinary.