The cold storage unit hadn’t been too bad, but after an hour inside, the temperature had permeated her marrow, chilling her from the inside as well as the outside. Joints stiffened, muscles protested movement. It had been a hassle to continue texting. She’d sent the messages. She could wait. They would come. And they had. When they’d returned to Aaron’s apartment, she’d had the hottest bath of her life with candles and red wine. Then they talked. The three of them talked until after two-thirty in the morning, bringing each other up to speed. Drained after her long day, she had almost fallen asleep on them on the couch. Aaron carried her to bed and had been a gentleman all night, not touching her other than to cuddle. They needed personal time to discuss things. Their relationship was and had always been founded on respect, understanding and acceptance. Sex was the glue that kept things together and the oil that kept things moving forward without resistance, but it was never the base.
