Stevie had told Russell she would bring dinner on New Year's Eve. His eyes lit up when she arrived with Chinese carryout.

"Don't get your hopes up. I got everything steamed instead of fried."

"Come in anyway."

They ate on the sofa, from the coffee table, but didn't do justice to steamed dumplings, brown rice, beef with broccoli and shrimp with vegetables. They were too aware of each other. They gave up on the food, hungry for something else. They kissed - and more - but it didn't satisfy them for long.

When Stevie reached for his jeans Russell took her hand and said, "Upstairs."

On the way up she pulled off her sweater and dropped it. She started on her jeans but Russell stopped her again. "I want to do that. But first …" He hesitated. "My room or the guest room?"

Stevie knew he was asking if they should use the bed he and his wife had made love in. "It doesn't matter to me. Whatever you want." She leaned in to whisper, "I'll fuck you anywhere, Russell."

He pulled her into the master bedroom, threw back the bedcovers and opened her jeans. He pushed her onto the bed, peeled her jeans off and followed her onto the bed. Stevie straddled him and pulled his shirt up and off. She slid down, opened his jeans and pulled them off as he had done with hers. He reached behind her to unhook her bra and tossed it away.

Stevie tugged at his boxers as he was sliding her thong off. He was ready and, since his hand was between her legs, he had to know she was, too.

Russell reached for a condom and Stevie helped with it. Then he was in her and they moved together. His mouth found one nipple and his fingers the other. Stevie came quicker than she expected, she had been on the edge for long exquisite moments and then she was suddenly there. And it didn't stop. Russell hadn't come yet. With every thrust he sucked and pinched and she kept quivering. She knew he was close. She clenched around him and they came together.

As their breathing and heartbeats slowed Stevie remembered Russell's heart and turned to look at him. He was watching her. "Don't look at me like that. If I was going to have a heart attack, it would have happened by now."

"Besides being glad that you didn't, it would have been embarrassing to explain naked CPR."

Stevie didn't like to think of fully-clothed CPR either. Those agonizing moments when she had been so afraid that it was all over for Russell. All of this with him would have been wiped out and she would never even have known what she was missing.

Russell put on a robe and gave Stevie another one of his. They went down, warmed up the food and finished dinner. It was almost midnight. They watched fireworks from the bedroom balcony then went to bed.

Russell thought about Stevie's body. Tall and slender, long legs and slim hips, small breasts and large nipples. She was much younger but they fit together well and everything they'd done worked in a way he hadn't experienced before. This was not a negative reflection on Carol. They had had a good sex life although it had slowed down the last few years. At some point there had been an unspoken agreement to focus on quality rather than quantity. But it wasn't just about sex with Stevie. And it wasn't gratitude for saving his life. She was mature for her age. He liked the way her mind worked. He liked talking to her. They were friends and Russell didn't use that word lightly with anyone.

Stevie thought about Russell's body. He wasn't young but his body didn't look or feel old. And he was seriously skilled at sex. It was the best experience of her life. Her previous boyfriends were younger and she had always felt she had to hurry up because they were trying to slow down. She had enjoyed sex with them and she had climaxed, but it didn't compare to being with Russell. And it wasn't just sex. She had liked being with Russell for years without sex. There had always been a connection between them whether they were working, talking, eating or walking. She enjoyed his company more than anyone else she knew.

The next morning was even more satisfying than the night before. There was already a familiarity and ease between them that made it better. They showered afterward but separately.

"I don't trust us naked with water," Russell said. "And we need to talk soon."

Downstairs, fully dressed, at opposite ends of the sofa, Russell said, "I'm rarely surprised but this thing between us surprised the hell out of me. I never thought of you like that until a couple of months after Carol died."

"I haven't been lusting for you either until recently."

"What do you see happening now?"

"Whatever we want to happen?"

"If we continue, you're out of my office tomorrow."

"Why does the woman always have to be the one to leave?"

They looked at each other for a few moments before laughing together.

"I hope you inherited your sense of humor from your parents but I doubt they'll think this is funny."

"I can handle them."

"Really?" Russell sounded skeptical.

"You'll see. You said 'If we continue'. Is that even a question?"

"Not for me."

"It isn't for me either."

"How long do you think this will last?" Russell asked.

"Honestly, I don't know. But however long, the same things will happen: I stop working for you, we tell my parents, and we put up with a lot of crap when people find out. After going through all that, I don't intend to give up on us easily."

"I love you, Stephanie McCord."

"I love you, too, Russell Jackson."

"I still love Carol."

"I know. And you should. Forever. It doesn't take anything away from us."

"You know I was married before and divorced?"

"Yes, you once mentioned years of misery because you let her dog get away."

"Yeah. We never see each other. I think she lives in New York."

"Is she going to look you up now that you're on the market again?"

"She remarried and had a family, same as I did. As far as I know they're still married. And for the record, I'm not on the market."

Stevie smiled.

"What about your boyfriends? Will Harrison want to get back together? Will the Brit challenge me to a duel? Will Dmitri play Russian roulette for you?"

"You forgot Arthur. He was only nineteen years older than me."

"He'll be looking pretty good to Bess and Henry when they find out about us."

"All of them are long over. I'm off the market, too."

"What about children? That could become an issue."

"Children aren't guaranteed for anyone. I'm not sure I want kids anyway."

"I was going to suggest that if we're together and you want them, a maximum of two before I'm sixty."

"You can have kids?"

"The condoms were birth control. I didn't think either of us had a disease."

"I thought you would have had a vasectomy."

Russell winced. "I don't like sharp objects in that area."

"This is very generous of you. A lot of men wouldn't consider a second family."

"Don't feel you have to take me up on the offer but I don't want to deny you motherhood because I dated out of my age group."

"When should we tell Mom and Dad?"

"When do they get home?"

"They said by six."

"So we'll go to your house and wait for them. And Stevie, let's not talk about kids."

"Of course not. Unless they ask."