Slow Spinning Redemption

Wednesday December 15, 2010
Paris, France
La Termoille
7:45 pm

“So where are you today?”

Isolde adjusted the screen on her computer so she could look at Jussi clearly and shifted on the couch. “Beautiful Paris.”

“Work?”

“No.” Isolde laughed. “It’s a birthday present for my neighbor.”

She watched as Jussi raised an eyebrow. “Fancy birthday present if the hotel is any indication.”

Isolde looked around their hotel room at La Termoille; a five star hotel that Althea had chosen. A large king-sized bed, which had Althea squealing in delight, with a deep green comforter and matching tufted head board. Pristine white carpets with black furniture and a couch at the end of the bed that wasn’t quite made for sleeping, but Isolde was making due.

“It’s what I get for letting a newly nineteen year-old pick the hotel and not setting a damn limit.”

Jussi chuckled. “That’s nice of you.”

“Can I wear this?”

Isolde turned to look at Althea, clad in one of her dresses. “I said no.”

“But it’s my birthday week!”

“Althea, take my dress off now.”

Althea frowned down at herself. “I think I look nice.”

“She does,” Jussi input, causing Isolde to glare at him.

“Don’t encourage her.”

“Oh! Who are you talking to?” Althea asked, skipping forward and bending over the couch to look at her computer screen. “Ooo! Who are you?” Althea asked she looked back up at Isolde. “He’s cute.”

“Yes, he is,” Isolde said with a nod. “Now get the hell out of my dress; it took me hours to convince Ben and Josef to buy that for me.”

Althea looked back at the computer screen. “Are you the one she’s sleeping with?”

“Blunt, like Isolde.” Jussi chuckled.

“Althea!” Isolde repeated “Get out of my dress!”

“I think it looks better on me,” Althea said, putting her hands on her hips.

“And what have I told you about lying?” Isolde smirked. “Take it off. That’s not a dress you want to go clubbing in.”

“How would you know?” Althea asked with a raised eyebrow.

Isolde sighed, looking at Jussi. “Give me a minute.”

“No please, I’m quite interested.”

Isolde gave a quiet laugh before leaning up onto her knees in front of Althea. “The sequins of the dress are going to bother you late into the night, and it’s much too tight for you.”

“We have the same body type,” Althea argued.

“No,” Isolde laughed. “We don’t. The dress is meant to fall mid-thigh, but because of our height difference it’s nearly at your knee. And I had this thing tailored before leaving New York. So no, our body types are not the same. It’s not going to be comfortable, Althea, as cute as it looks on you. You’re being a brat because it’s your birthday. Now take the dress off, put it back, and put on the black one I left on the bed.”

Althea sighed and turned, grabbing the dress off the bed. “Fine.”

“I’ll try and find one like that the next time I visit Josef!” Isolde shouted after her.

“By the time you go back the dress will be out of season, you only go over there once a year!” Althea shouted back.

“Don’t say I didn’t offer!” Isolde yelled. “I’m trying to be nice here!”

“And that’s oh, so rare! Oh! Can I borrow your shoes?!”

“Just not the silver ones!” Isolde yelled. “Those were also a hassle to get the boys to buy me and I haven’t even worn them yet!”

“I wasn’t even looking at the silver ones until now! They are cute!”

“Althea, I swear if you stretch them out with your huge ass feet, I will kill you!”

“Then I’ll haunt you for the rest of your life and my ghost feet will stretch out your shoes!”

Isolde groaned. The chuckling behind her got her attention, causing her to turn and grin over at Jussi, who was laughing at her. “Finding this amusing, Vuori?”

“Very much, I don’t think I’ve seen this side of you.”

Isolde smirked, settling down on the couch. “Lots of sides of you haven’t seen of me.”

“So when will I be getting to explore these sides of you again?” Jussi smirked.

Isolde sighed as she shrugged, the neck of her oversized sweater falling off her shoulder. “I have no idea. We’re here for the next couple of days, then I’ll be in Prague until just after Christmas… then, who knows. My manager and I aren’t on speaking terms at the moment, so I have no idea what he has planned for me.”

Jussi laughed. “I have a feeling there’s a story attached to this.”

Isolde shrugged. “I was already annoyed, Ivan annoyed me more and I hung up again…it pissed him off and now he’s taking time to cool off before he calls me again.”

“Meaning you’re ignoring his phone call until you’re ready to talk to him.”

“You know me well.” Isolde grinned.

“I have a feeling you’re his most frustrating client,” Jussi teased

“Believe it or not, I’m actually not. He has one client that throws things at him if he doesn’t get her good jobs. I’m actually one of his tamer ones.”

Jussi shook his head in amusement. “Of course you are.”

“Now where are you?”

Jussi looked around his surroundings. “I’m in my flat. We’ve got a gig in a couple of days, but we had a few days in between so we decided to come home, rest and then head back out tomorrow.”

“So spending Christmas on the road?”

“Not this year.” Jussi grinned. “We’re done in a few days. Get to come back home and spend Christmas with our families, and then we head back out mid-January.”

“Nice long break.”

“It will be.”

Isolde laughed. “You’re already anxious to get back on the road!” she teased.

“It’s not like I’m not happy for the break, I have shit to do here, but…”

Isolde laughed. “You get anxious; feel like you have nothing to do.”

Jussi sighed and nodded. “I really do, but it’ll be good, Bam and I are hosting a Christmas party next week, and Ville and Soya are trying to get everyone together for New Year; it’s Soya’s first time seeing the fireworks in thirteen years, so she’s very excited.”

Isolde laughed. “So you’re spending Christmas with your family?”

“I am. I think the Christmas party next week is going to be our big gift exchange between friends. What about you, any plans?”

Isolde shrugged. “Like I said, not really. My parents have this giant Christmas party every year, but it’s not mandatory for me to go this time. I do have to be at their house Christmas morning, though that’s just tradition. After that I ride over to Josef’s parent house and spend the rest of the day there. Josef’s siblings have adorable children that I can’t help but spoil.”

“Okay!” Althea said coming out of the room. “How do I look?”

“And then I have this one that demands to be spoiled,” Isolde said with a roll of her eyes, causing Jussi to laugh. She turned back and nodded at Althea, who was in a black dress with a tight corseted top, a plaid bow covering the bust. The skirt was a bubble mess of tulle that gave a glimpse of the girl’s long legs, ending mid-thigh. Her shoes caused Isolde to wince, mostly because they were hers and the price tag on them flashed through her mind: black Louboutin platform six inch heel and a thin ankle strap to keep the shoe in place.

“Out of all the shoes you had at your disposal, you chose the most expensive ones.”

“I’m sorry, are these silver?” Althea asked with a teased grin.

Isolde sighed. “You break the heel on those…”

“You’ll kill me, blah, blah, blah,” Althea said with a roll of her eyes and her hand mocking a talking mouth. “I’ve heard it all before.”

“You’re turning into me Althea.”

“I know, isn’t it wonderful!” Althea grinned. “What about you, computer man? How do you think I look?”

Jussi smirked. “I think it would look better on Isolde?”

Althea laughed. “Well Isolde has you trained well, doesn’t she?”

“Yes, I have.” Isolde grinned. “You look wonderful though, Althea.”

“Thank you!” Althea grinned. “Now where’s my present?”

Isolde blinked. “You mean to say that an all-expense paid trip to Paris, raiding my closet in Prague and my suitcase here, getting to wear my clothes and borrow my shit, as well as claim the bed, isn’t enough of a present?”

“You don’t sleep on beds,” Althea pointed out.

Isolde rolled her eyes. “You’re so lucky I like you.”

“You love me,” Althea teased. “Now where is it?”

“Under the bed. It’s from Josef and Ben as well!” Isolde shouted over Althea’s squealed rushing to look under the bed. Isolde heard the ripping of paper, tissue being rustled and the loud squeal of a nineteen year-old.

“What did you get her?” Jussi laughed, amused by the reaction he was hearing.

“A clutch she’s been wanting for a while now,” Isolde said with a roll of her eyes. “Althea has expensive tastes.”

Jussi chuckled as Althea came back to hug Isolde. “Thank you!”

“Make sure you call Ben and Josef and thank them too,” Isolde said, patting the girl’s hand. Althea leaned down and kissed Isolde’s cheek.

“You’re the best, you know that?”

“Yes, I actually do know that,” Isolde laughed. “Now go; your friends are waiting.”

“I’m going, I’m going!” Althea said, grabbing a black shrug from the couch next to Isolde. “Now, I’m coming back tonight, so don’t do anything…” Althea waved her hand over the couch. “Dirty or anything.”

“Leave,” Isolde said, pointing at the door.

“Fine. I just don’t want to walk into anything, you know?”

Isolde shook her head. “Please, just leave.”

Althea laughed as she moved away from the door. “Fine, I’ll see you later.”

“Althea,” Isolde called back, causing Althea to turn back to look at her, her loose red curls bouncing at the action. “Be careful, yeah? And if you need anything don’t hesitate to call me.”

Althea blinked before a slow grin made its way across her lips. “You’re worried.”

“You’re nineteen and going clubbing for the first time and I’m not going with you. Please be careful. Groups are your friends.”

Althea skipped back over and leaned over the couch, kissing Isolde’s cheek. “I promise I’ll be careful, stay with my group, and call if I need bail money.”

“Thank you,” Isolde said with a relieved sigh. Althea shook her head before leaving, her laughter echoing around the room. Isolde turned back to Jussi with a smile.

“You worry for her.” Jussi said with a teasing smile.

Isolde sighed, but gave a smile. “I’ve known her since she was little; I love the girl to death.”

“She looks up to you.”

“Unfortunately,” Isolde laughed. “She could have better role models than a fuck-up like me; and while I’ve tried to talk her out of it, she continues to look up to me. I try my best to set a good example for her, though.”

“You’re not a fuck-up, Isolde.”

“Kind of you to say, but flattery won’t get you back into my pants,” Isolde mocked.

“Of course it does,” Jussi teased.

Isolde gave a nod. “True, it does.”

“You should come out here, Isolde.”

“To Helsinki?” Isolde asked, confused by the sudden shift in conversation.

“Yes, to Helsinki. We’re having the party a few days before Christmas, so you’d still be able to make it back to Prague for the holiday.”

Isolde blinked. “So you want me to fly out to Helsinki for a weekend, then fly back home.”

“Well I don’t want you to fly back home, but you’re adamant that you need to be back by Christmas,” Jussi pointed out.

“That’s quite an expensive getaway,” Isolde pointed out.

“I’ll take care of everything,” Jussi said with a shrug.

“Hotel too?”

“Hotel too, can’t say anything about the standard of hotel, though; I’ve been thinking about role-playing a bit,” Jussi said with a lascivious grin.

“I swear, if you’re thinking the rich diplomat and streetwalker, I am down for that. I have the dress and fuck me boots for it.”

“Amazing how you can read my mind.”

“I do expect to role play to the littlest details, so payment for my services is also required.”

Jussi laughed. “So, Helsinki; yes, no?”

Isolde smiled softly. “This is going well, isn’t it?”

“What? Us talking?”

Isolde nodded, resting her head on the back of the couch, still in frame with the computer’s camera. “Yeah, I mean…it is, right?”

“Yes,” Jussi nodded. “It is, but I figure since we both have a bit of time off it’d be nice to have these talks in person…maybe even not have sex over the camera anymore.”

“It is getting a bit tiresome, isn’t it?”

“Not to say watching you isn’t hot as hell. I’m just saying, might be nice to have some skin-to-skin contact for a change.”

“Is your hand starting to chafe? Because there’s some really good aloe vera for that.”

“Funny.”

“I know, I’m hilarious,” Isolde grinned.

“I’m still staying you should come.”

“If you take off your pants, I just might.”

“Isolde,” Jussi sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face.

“Fine, fine.” Isolde groaned. “I’ll think about it.”

“You will?”

Isolde nodded. “I will. Now can you take off your pants?”

Jussi laughed. “I would. I really would, but I can’t.”

“Tease.” Isolde laughed. “So, where you off to?”

“The bar. I have some shit to get down over there before I leave again,” Jussi said with a smile. “I’ll be back a bit later tonight if you want to talk again.”

“Maybe.”

“I’ve scared you off with the offer,” Jussi sighed.

“No! No! Not at all.” Isolde said quickly. “I just…I really do need to think about it, is all. I’m not used to…this.”

“What do you mean?” Jussi asked, tilting his head to the side in curiosity.

“This…friendly thing we have going. I just…I know we’ve had sex, and I know we’ve been sharing on the internet too, but…I don’t want to ruin this….I think?” Isolde said with a frown. “I don’t know; my mind’s kind of a mess right now.”

“Because I asked you to come to Helsinki for a while so we could stop fucking over a camera?”

“Yes?” Isolde asked with a wince. “I don’t know, you haven’t scared me off or anything. I’m made of tougher shit then that,” Isolde laughed. “But I just…I need to think.”

“All right. Well you think; I need to head off to work. Call me when you’ve made your decision.”

Isolde nodded. “Fine, but you owe me a sex session over the camera.”

Jussi laughed. “If you came to Helsinki, I’d deliver tenfold. I’ll talk to you later, Isolde.”

“Bye, Vuori.” Isolde laughed as she ended the conversation and closed her computer. She sat on the couch, staring at the top for a while before turning away and turning on the television to fill the silence that was filling the hotel room.

She didn’t quite know what to make of Jussi’s offer. It wasn’t like he was forcing her, and he did make a good point; it was getting a bit tiring to be intimate in front of a camera. As turned on as they got when they did get intimate, she knew, based on experience with Jussi already, that if they got together and had skin to skin contact, the release would be a hundred times better.

They’d been getting better too, Isolde thought as she absently flipped through the channels, not really paying attention to what was on the TV. Ever since their fight the month before and their subsequent solution to their fight, then the mini-fight they’d gotten into after that when Jussi had admitted he’d lied to her, they’d been better.

She’d been angry he’d lied. Oh she’d been so angry; she who lived by a truth policy, had been lied to. For some reason, even with Richard’s betrayal in her past, Jussi lying to her had hurt her so much deeper. He’d told her that he was angry, and just like she had said things out of anger, he had as well. She hadn’t forgiven him right away, just as he hadn’t forgiven her at a snap of her fingers. She’d told him it’d take a while to let go, and he’d agreed.

While the fight hadn’t been as serious as fights she’d had with Richard, it had still cut her rather deep; just as it had obviously cut him. They hadn’t talked for nearly a week before she finally gave in and called him again. The conversations had started off tense, short; sharing their days with each other, Isolde took pictures, Jussi played the drums. Slowly, funny little anecdotes would be shared; Bazie had tripped up some stairs, which had had Jussi laughing, Isolde had accidently elbowed her photo director’s crotch during one of her shoots.

Their conversations got longer, then shifted from the phone to video chats. One lonely night, her sitting on the bed of one of her hotels, Jussi on his own bed in his own hotel, dirty words had been shared, clothing had been removed, and next thing she knew, she’d been laying on the pillows, staring at the ceiling, panting. Jussi’s quiet and exhausted laugh filled the room over her computer.

Their…relationship -if that’s what Isolde really wanted to call it- had in fact gotten better. Teasing had come back to their conversations, it had gotten ten times easier to talk to Jussi and because of it, their conversations flowed as they had back in Helsinki.

She was just…hesitant to meet up with him again. She was afraid of hurting the sweet Jussi beyond repair. Which confused the shit out of her, as she had never really…cared before. She cared for the men she slept with; proof lay with Alex on that one, she thought with a roll of her eyes. But she figured the men in her life knew what they had signed up for with her and because of that, they were able to take care of themselves. Though, logically, she knew Jussi could take care of himself and wasn’t easily hurt, it still scared her to be the thing that broke him.

“I think way too highly of myself,” she muttered, putting her computer on the coffee table and pulling the comforter from the end of the couch over her body as she lay down, staring blankly at the television. She settled on some type of French soap opera. Scrubbing her face, she made sure to put her phone next to her ear in case she fell asleep and Althea called.

Maybe meeting up with Jussi would be a good thing. She bit her bottom lip as she thought about it. Sex aside, seeing him face to face, talking to him face to face, might take away the last layer of awkwardness that was always at the surface of their conversations, just waiting to bubble up. Put them back into that place they were at when they first started their relationship. Chewing on her lip, she played with her phone...Unlocking her phone and letting it lock before repeating the process.

Unlock.

Lock.

Unlock.

Lock.

Unlock.

Lock.

Unlock.

She clicked on the messaging icon, stared at Jussi’s name.

Lock.

Unlock.

Lock.

Unlock.

Lock.

Unlock.

She clicked on his name and stared at the blinking cursor, shifting so she lay on her back, the phone in front of her. She chewed on her bottom lip again, repeating the process of unlocking and locking her phone.

Lock.

Unlock.

Lock.

Unlock.

Lock.

Unlock.

“Argh,” she groaned, hating her reaction to Jussi before typing out her response, this time not hesitating when she typed and hit sent.

Fine! I’ll go.

The response from Jussi was almost so instantaneous that she didn’t have a chance to go through the process of locking and unlocking her phone.

Perfect! Give me a few minutes and I’ll send you the details.

Isolde stared at the phone, letting it lock and not bothering to unlock it. She laid the phone on the pillow and closed her eyes instead. He was falling, Isolde thought. His excitement was so obvious over the text that she wasn’t sure how she should take that. Yes, they hadn’t really…seen each other in nearly a month-and-a-half.

She’d gone longer without seeing her lovers before. But with Jussi, her stomach was already filling with nerves at the idea and though she knew deep in her mind that maybe the ‘relationship’ was going a bit fast and going way too deep for her liking, she couldn’t stop the slow little grin that spread across her lips as she thought about seeing the man. She also couldn’t stop those stupid butterflies that were setting up shop in her stomach, or that tingly feeling in her body, already humming with obvious sexual arousal at just the idea of seeing him again.

She knew she should end it. She was getting too attached to him, already breaking a lot of her self-imposed rules for him. He was getting too attached. But she couldn’t quite make herself do it. Every time they talked and obviously grew closer, she couldn’t bring herself to start the conversation that would effectively end them. She was selfish, she thought as she closed her eyes. So, very selfish to want Jussi. Damn the consequences, but it was a good selfish. Everything, as far as she could tell, was still casual on both their parts. The need he had to get her to Helsinki was purely sexual, not based on the need to actually see her. She felt her phone buzz against her pillow and unlocked it to see the message.

Flight leaves on the 22nd in the afternoon. Meet me at Bäkkäri and I’ll take you to the hotel after the party.

She responded with an ‘okay’ before settling her phone back on her pillow and turning her back on the TV. Purely sexual, she thought, sending herself reassuring vibes. Purely sexual.

XxxxxxX

Wednesday December 22, 2010
Helsinki, Finland
Bar Bäkkäri

“Are you greeting everyone at the door or are you just anxious to see us?”

Jussi looked away from the street he was looking down at before looking up at his friend and his friend’s fiancé with a grin. “Only the best for Valo and his future bride.”

Ville laughed, dropping his arm around Soya’s shoulders, pulling her closer to him. Soya’s arm wrapped around the man’s waist to keep her balanced on the heels she was wearing.

“Well, aren’t you looking like Christmas,” Jussi smirked, eyeing the low cut green dress Soya wore underneath the bright red pea coat, and her black tights and bright red heels, all topped off with the Santa hat that sat on her head.

“Well, 'tis the season, right?”

“Right.” Jussi laughed. “Here, I’ll take your coats; it’s getting hot inside.” He gestured for the coats they wore, eyeing Ville’s burgundy button up shirt that Soya had most likely forced him into before leading them inside.

“So who are you waiting for?” Soya asked as she handed him her red pea coat with a grin.

“No one, just looking.” Jussi said with a shrug, accepting Ville’s coat. “I’ll put these in my office.”

“Thanks,” Ville said, his hand on the small of Soya’s back. “Staying here or…”

“Just for a while longer,” Jussi said with a nod, opening his office door. “I’ll probably go hang out in the green room in a bit before I have to go DJ.”

Ville nodded. “We’ll see you out there, then.”

“Ah, and Bam is looking for you.”

Soya snorted. “He’s always looking for Ville.”

Ville grinned down at her. “Come on; let’s get you something to drink.”

Jussi watched the couple walk away before heading into the office and setting the coats on the couch with the rest of his friend’s personal items. He turned towards the door, only to stop and swallow harshly when he saw the blonde leaning up against the door, blocking the exit.

He took his time drinking her in: Mary Jane heels on her feet, giving her a semblance of height, but still keeping her just a bit shorter than him. Her legs were bare, but the high-waist green skirt she wore was tight to her body, hugging her curves in all of the right places and ending at her calves. Large black buttons trailed down the middle of the skirt. Tucked into the skirt was a black silk camisole, and he could see the hour glass figure she had even underneath the red cardigan she wore. She was the perfect Christmas gift, just waiting to be unwrapped.

Her hair was loose and in those large ringlets that he wanted to pull like a second grader, just to see if they would bounce back. That thought was immediately replaced with an image of his fingers running through the curls, gripping and tugging, Isolde’s neck bare and his lips on that long line of pale skin. Her large blue eyes pinned him in place, and it was the curve of those red lips (natural, he’d figured it out after spending a night nipping at them) that got him to move.

“Glad you could make it,” he said his hands settling on her waist. Her hands settled on his chest before moving lower, just hitting the waist of his dark jeans. Her fingers flicked the button before moving up and settling just over his shoulders, fingers linking loosely at his neck. He could feel the tips of her fingers playing with the spikes of his hair, like little nerve endings that caused goose bumps to break out all over his skin.

“You paid; of course I was going to make it,” she whispered, leaning in and nipping the lobe of his ear. “This place sound proof?”

Jussi smirked. “Yes.”

“Good,” she whispered before their lips attached and Jussi was lost, all coherent and logical thought left at the feel of her mouth against his. Fingers tightened around her waist, around his neck. He felt himself push her against the door, only allowing one of his hands to loosen its grip on her to brace himself against the door.

Her body arched against his, her chest pressed against him, and Christ, she was so fucking warm compared to the Helsinki winter raging outside the bar. She was even warmer than the crowd that was currently inside of the bar itself. She warmed him from the inside out, and he couldn’t help but pull the silk camisole out from under her skirt, his hand finding its way underneath the silk to touch the even smoother skin of her back.

Fingers traced her spine, causing her to lowly moan against his mouth as his fingers moved to her sides, tracing the swells of her lace covered breasts. Her shoulders pushed away from the door, fingers tightened on his neck as she pushed him backwards. They stumbled until he fell onto the couch. Isolde paused to pull her skirt up until it was at the top of her thighs, allowing her straddle him. Then their lips were attached again.

Her fingers moved to unbutton his shirt, and his hands pushed the red cardigan off and let it plop onto the floor. The strap of her camisole fell off of her shoulder, and then disappeared all-together when she took the shirt off.

“Thank God for front clasps,” he muttered, his fingers easily unsnapping the front clasp of her bra as she pushed the shoulders of his shirt off. He tugged his arms free before his fingers molded against her breasts. Their groans echoed around the room; hers at being touched, and his at having his pants unbuttoned.

They didn’t bother taking the jeans off, only allowing him to lift his hips long enough to slide them off of his hips and to his thighs before she settled herself on top of him. And bless the woman for thinking ahead, as she wasn’t wearing any underwear. One minute she was straddling him, the next she’d rolled a condom onto him and he was inside her tight heat. His groan echoed while Isolde laid her forehead on his shoulder; he could feel her panting breathes on his chest.

“Fuck,” she mouthed against his shoulder as she started to roll her hips. Jussi quickly found the rhythm she had set and moved with her, fingers digging into the skin at her waist. He resisted the urge to roll her onto the couch so he could have the upper hand and set the rhythm himself, as the one Isolde had set, was much too slow, tortuously so. Instead, his fingers skimmed down from her waist, over the material of her skirt, before finding purchase at the back of her thighs. His fingers skimmed the ankh on her inner thigh and the hilted gasp Isolde gave against his shoulder had him repeating the motion. Her hips jerked, and a moan filled the air.

Christ, the way she tightened around him, both his shaft and body. Isolde’s fingers latched onto his upper arms; her blunt nails, which she chewed, left little crescent marks on his skin. Her head moved from his shoulder to rest against his own forehead. Her blue eyes met his, nearly black in lust, he thought, as his hand came up to grip at her hair and keep her in place. Their lips skimmed one another as their hips moved against each other. He felt her fingers unlatch from his arms and move up to cup his face, the rhythm increasing. He watched her eyes start to flutter closed, only for his fingers to tighten in her hair. Her eyes opened wide as her breath stuttered, his name slipping out of her mouth, broken, as she found her release.

He took control then, gripping at the small of her back and moving her so she lay against the couch. Her head rested on the arm of the couch as he settled the best he could inside her open thighs. He pushed his jeans down further so he could thrust into her, deeper, faster. He felt her hands running up and down his back, before digging in as she came again, this time with him following him, her name a gasp on his lips.

He rested his head against her breast, feeling her fingers slide carefully through his hair, before she let out a sigh.

“So much better in person.”

“Getting tired of your fingers?” he murmured, kissing the side of her breast.

“Fuck that, I was getting tired of a battery operated toy,” Isolde said, her fingers dancing across his shoulders. “You’re much better than a toy.”

Jussi snorted, lifting his head up to look at her grinning face. “Good to know.” He lifted himself off of her, running a hand over his face before getting off of the couch to take care of the condom.

“Well,” Isolde started as she stood from the couch. He inwardly grinned when he saw her legs wobble a bit before she got her balance. “It’s good that we had the sense to move just the slightest to the left or else your friend’s coats would have had a very nice imprint of your ass on them.”

“Eh, I have a nice ass; they wouldn’t have cared.” He said, pulling his jeans up.

Isolde laughed as she undid the zipper at the back of her skirt before picking up her camisole from the floor and pulling it over her head, tucking it the hem before zipping her skirt back up. “So I’m sure that fucking me wasn’t the first thing you wanted to do when you saw me.”

“I’d like to point out that you came to find me in an empty room, so I’m pretty sure you fucked me,” Jussi said, pulling his shirt from the couch cushions and turning it outside in before pulling it on.

“Technicalities,” Isolde waved off as she pulled her cardigan on.

Jussi snorted as he ran his fingers through his hair, making a note to go to the bathroom to check it, only for Isolde to grin at him.

“It looks fine. I swear, you care more for your hair then I do mine,” Isolde teased, walking over to him and wrapping her arms around his neck. “It doesn’t look sex-a-fied at all. I was very careful as to where I ran my fingers.”

Jussi winced. “I don’t think I was,” he said, pulling at one of her curls.

Isolde shrugged. “So people will know we had sex, it’s not like it’s some type of big secret we’re fucking.”

“No, no it’s not,” Jussi agreed.

“Good.” She kissed him lightly before stepping away from him. “So, when do I get my present?” she teased.

Jussi snorted. “Come on, I need to take up the DJ spot soon.” He pulled open the door, only for Isolde to grab a red purse that he hadn’t seen before.

“Dropped it when I came in,” she said, noting the frown he made.

He nodded and led her out of the office, locking the door behind him as he led her through the crowd toward the green room where he saw Soya, Ville, Jyrki and Rosalind talking. He led Isolde inside the room, his hand on the small of her back. Soya caught sight of them first, grinning and giving a finger wave as Isolde smiled back.

“What are you doing up here?” Soya asked as Isolde walked over to her and kissed her cheek. It was nice to see a familiar face other than Jussi’s. Though she knew it was a gathering of friends, she liked knowing Soya was there.

“Jussi asked me to come,” Isolde said with a shrug. “I was a bit lonely in my flat, and Jussi is a sure thing.”

Soya laughed. “Josef said you liked spending Christmas with your family.”

“Oh I do,” Isolde said, stealing Soya’s drink, not caring what it was and taking a sip. “I leave in the morning; I only came up for the sex. And it’s mostly Josef’s family I love spending time with, not so much my own. Do you mind if I keep this? He wore me out,” Isolde said, pointing towards a smirking Jussi.

“Keep it,” Soya laughed, “I really wasn’t planning on drinking, anyway.”

Isolde nodded as she looked around the club. “I’m going to go wander,” she said, having not had the chance when she’d met up with Jussi at Halloween. “Jussi, you said you needed to DJ,” Isolde reminded as she walked out of the Green Room.

Jussi stared at Isolde’s retreating form, her lips wrapped around the straw as she wandered away, disappearing between the mass of bodies. He looked back at her friends once she was out of sight to find them all staring at him. “What?”

“You called the woman from her home in another country so you could have sex with her?” Rosalind asked in disbelief.

“In my defense,” Jussi smirked, leaning over the back of the couch. “I didn’t call her solely for the sex.”

“Of course you didn’t,” Rosalind said with a roll of her eyes before looking at her boyfriend. “Come, dance with me.” It wasn’t a request but a demand, which caused Jyrki to put his beer down and follow his girlfriend out onto the dance floor.

“You really like her, huh?” Soya asked, slipping from Ville’s lap onto the free space next to him to look up at Jussi.

Jussi nodded slowly, noting the way that while the obvious contact had been severed from the couple, Soya still kept her fingers tight on Ville shirt, while Ville’s own hand was on Soya’s knee, his thumb rubbing little circles. “I tried to convince her to spend Christmas here and she laughed at me.”

Ville chuckled. “You only met her a couple of months ago, Jus. I think spending Christmas together is still a bit far off, especially if your relationship is based off of sex.”

“It’s not like I want it to be just sex.” Jussi looked behind him to make sure Isolde wasn’t anywhere nearby as he spoke. “She’s really stubborn about not wanting it to be more, but the sex is way too good to pass up. If you knew what we-”

“We don’t want details,” Soya laughed, putting her hands up. “Seriously, we don’t”

Jussi raised an amused eyebrow over at Ville before straightening, looking back at Soya. “I’m taking advantage of the time she’s giving me, even if it is 24 hours. I really do like her, though.”

“Well if it makes you feel better, I think she’s half in love with you already,” Soya laughed.

Jussi grinned, leaning down to kiss Soya’s cheek. “It’s a lie, but a wonderful lie. Thank you. Now, I have to go DJ for a bit, see you later.”

He watched as the couple turned to each other, grinning, before he left the room. He walked around, greeting some of his friends as he encountered them, stopping to talk for a few minutes. He would idly search the crowd for Isolde before focusing on his friends once more. He noted some of his friends on the dance floors, some talking along the walls or in the booths, but no sign of Isolde, who was floating around the masses. He excused himself from his friends and searched once more, before heading up the DJ booth, replacing Bam, who’d been at it. He figured Isolde would find him when she was done wandering around, and focused on the music.

XxxxxxX

“Hey.”

Isolde blinked from where she was watching Jussi to look over at the voice that had spoken. She smiled when she focused on Soya.

“Hey yourself.”

“Mind doing me a favor?” she asked with a sigh.

“Depends,” Isolde laughed.

“Ville’s trying to get me drunk for whatever reason, and I need you to covertly switch my drinks with regular tea instead of the Long Islands he keeps ordering me.”

Isolde laughed. “Or you could tell the bartender to switch them without him knowing, as I doubt Ville’s actually tasting them.”

Soya blinked, before grinning. “Oh, well that’s even more brilliant.”

“I know; I’m a fountain of good ideas,” Isolde teased as the bartender came over to hand Isolde her own drink. Soya spoke to the man, letting him know that she did not want any more alcohol-filled drinks and to switch it when Ville came asking for them. The bartender just grinned and nodded, agreeing to help Soya.

“So, any big plans for Christmas?” Soya asked, accepting the iced tea the bartender put down.

“Not really,” Isolde shrugged. “I don’t work the next couple of weeks; my own personal rule, as I hate working during the holidays. So I’m free until the 3rd of January. Maybe I’ll go back to New York…”

“Josef told me you went to go visit,” Soya said. “You could have slept in my room; I was horrified by Josef’s manners when he said you slept on the couch.”

Isolde laughed. “No, no, he offered your room. I have a thing against beds.”

“It is a bit weird to sleep in someone else’s,” Soya said with a nod.

“Oh, I could give a fuck about that. I just have a thing against beds in general,” Isolde said with a grin. “Really, if you’re not fucking on them, I find them kind of pointless.” Isolde had the pleasure to see the bright red stain on Soya’s cheeks, causing Isolde to laugh. “Oh, you’re adorable.”

“Thanks,” Soya said with a smile.

“Soya! Let’s dance!”

Isolde grinned as Soya nearly dropped her glass as a brunette pulled her away from the bar. She could already hear Soya reprimanding her obvious friend at how rude it was that she was pulled away. The reprimand went unheard as Soya got dragged to the dance floor anyway. Picking up her drink, Isolde pushed away from the bar before wandering back into the Green Room, peeking in to see Ville on one of the couches, oddly by himself. He was facing the floor with a small smile, obviously watching his bride-to-be.

“I hear congratulations are in order.”

Ville looked up and smiled as Isolde took a seat in the chair next to the couch. “Thanks,” he said.

“Jussi and I totally called it back in October when we met.”

Ville raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

“Sure,” Isolde shrugged. “I’ve got an eye for these types of things. You can always tell when people are engaged; it’s a different type of look in their eyes.”

Ville smirked. “I didn’t realize you look for that when taking pictures.”

“I always look for things like that when I’m taking pictures, especially since those pictures I took are your engagement photos.” She opened her purse and pulled out an envelope, handing it to him. “Josef said you needed these.”

Ville blinked, putting his soda down and grabbing the envelope from her hands. He flipped it open, grinning at the pictures. “Thank you so much. I just got the pictures Josef sent earlier today; it’s been hell trying to hide them from Soya.”

“Josef told me about what you were doing. It’s a really good idea.” Isolde smiled. “Very…personal.”

Ville smiled at her before putting the pictures back and setting them on the couch next to him. “It was meant to be, I just hope she likes it.”

“Soya seems like the type who likes sentimental crap.”

“You’re not?” Ville asked with a raised eyebrow.

Isolde shrugged. “It depends, I guess. I don’t know; I’m never really in a relationship long enough to really think gifts through.” She watched as Ville tried to hide a smile. Instead, he took a sip of his drink, his eyes drifting back to the dance floor. “What?”

“Nothing, I just...I saw a box in your purse that looks an awful lot like a present.”

“So?”

“I’m assuming it’s for Jussi,” Ville said, laughter in his voice.

“And…?”

“And nothing,” Ville chuckled.

Isolde sighed. “It’s nothing big! You know, just something I saw when I was shopping in New York. Thought he’d like it. It’s just very convenient that I happen to come by on Christmas, otherwise I would have just chucked it at his head.”

Ville snorted. “That’s a good gift giving method.”

“Not a gift,” Isolde said quickly. “A nice gesture wrapped up in a pretty box for the sake of Christmas. The shop I got it from had free gift wrapping.”

Ville laughed. “Of course.”

“I’ll take it as a sign of friendship that you feel comfortable enough to tease me.”

“As you should,” Ville nodded. “Soya likes you, trusts you.”

“She trusts everyone.”

Ville chuckled. “True enough.”

“But you don’t trust me.”

Ville shrugged. “I don’t know you. But, because Soya likes you and you haven’t done anything to offend me, I like you well enough.”

“But we won’t be having game night together any time soon,” Isolde laughed.

Ville raised an eyebrow. “You don’t seem like a game night type of person.”

“Neither do you for that matter, but it didn’t stop Josef from telling me about your Monopoly night.”

Ville laughed. “It’s hard saying ‘no’ to Soya and Aida when they both turn the puppy dog eyes on me; it’s how I ended up getting a damn dog for Soya today.”

Isolde grinned. “Now that is love, putting your bride’s happiness over your allergies.”

Ville snorted. “Is it? Well now I know what the next album will be about; stuffed up noses and hives, all for the sake of love.”

Isolde laughed. “I’m sure Josef and Soya will enjoy it as long as it’s your crooning that’s on the album. Now, I’m going to go bother Jussi. Oh! Good album name! ‘Stuffed up for Love’!”

Ville burst out laughing. “I’ll note it down and see what the guys think.”

“You do that and give credit where credit is due!”

“Noted,” Ville chuckled just as Soya flounced back towards him. Isolde watched as Ville hid the envelope with the pictures under a stray coat on the couch before letting Soya pull him up.

Isolde smiled lightly before wandering over towards the DJ booth where Jussi was. She didn’t bother him, but just sat on the steps and watched him. He cast a glance at her, smiling at her lightly and sending her a wink before his focus went back to the turn table in front of him.

She wished she had her camera, she thought ideally as she watched him. His body moved with the beat of the music he poured into the speakers, his own vibrant and natural energy that never seemed to leave him transferred itself into the crowd; they moved and swayed against their partners, all because Jussi told them to. She wished she could capture it with her camera. Instead, she settled on digging for her phone and taking a picture -surprisingly clear for a phone- and then set it as his contact picture.

She sat watching for a half an hour, the music shifting from what Jussi wanted to play to regular dance music that was preset on the laptop in front of him. She turned when she felt a presence in front of her.

“Wish I had my camera,” she sighed, loud enough for Jussi to hear as he came down to stand next to her.

“What’s up?” Jussi asked, looking at his friend.

“Soya and I were wondering if we could borrow your office for a few minutes?” Ville asked.

Jussi chuckled, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m not letting you and Soya have sex in my office.”

“Yes you will,” Isolde laughed, not bothering to stand as she dipped her fingers into his back pocket in order to get the key out, and handed it to Ville. “Just keep off the door and the couch; that’s where Jussi and I fucked.”

“We’re not going to…” Ville started, a faint red of a blush starting on his cheeks.

“Sure you’re not.” Isolde said with a smirk. “That’s what I told Jussi and trust me that room got good use. Just give the key back when you’re done.”

“You know, my office is not my friend’s personal hotel room,” Jussi said, glaring down at Isolde.

“No, but apparently it’s yours,” Isolde said with a roll of her eyes before looking back up at Ville. “Feel free to use the desk; good leverage.”

Ville turned, not bothering to respond to Isolde’s comment. Jussi looked down at Isolde. “Not cool.”

Isolde snorted as she stood up and shrugged. “I’ll buy you a drink and fuck you when we get to my hotel. It’ll help you get over the fact that your friends are having sex in your office.”

“I work in there; I’d really like it if the sex happening in there was limited.”

“What? To only you?” Isolde asked as they made it to the bar, Jussi eyeing the door to his office before looking over at her.

“Well, yeah.” Jussi sighed. “That and the idea of Soya having sex is like knowing my little sister- who will always be a virgin in my eyes- is getting violated.”

Isolde snorted as Jussi ordered two beers. “Let’s just say you do not want to know what’s going on in there.”

Jussi looked over at Isolde. “And you do? What, do you have a video feed of what’s happening in there?”

Isolde laughed. “God, no! Who do you think picked Soya’s shoes?”

“Soya’s shoes? What?” Jussi asked with a frown.

Isolde rolled her eyes. “Josef’s Christmas gift to Soya was her outfit. In an effort to be more adventurous with her sex life; missionary and a bed can only be exciting for so long.”

“True, but you don’t know what their sex life is like,” Jussi pointed out. “And I really don’t want to know what their sex life is like.”

“I know what my sex life was like when I first started having sex,” Isolde pointed out before taking a drag of her beer. “It gets predictable; Richard was a one-trick pony.”

Jussi chuckled. “I’m sorry.”

Isolde shrugged. “He tended to get uncomfortable pretty quick when I wanted to try something new. Quite the prude, he was. But Ville doesn’t seem that way and if anyone is going to get Soya out of her comfort zone with sex, it’s Ville, and a good pair of heels. I helped with the heels.”

Jussi laughed. “So you’re helping Ville and Soya’s sex life.”

“Hey! It’s good to experiment early in the relationship and not just settle for one thing, trust me.”

“Oh, when it comes to sex, I will.”

Isolde nodded. “Good.”

They spent a good twenty minutes at the bar, idly talking and drinking before Jussi’s friends found him. Jyrki clapped Jussi on the back and settled in next to him, while Bam found a comfortable place next to Isolde.

“Have you seen Soya and Ville?” Jyrki asked. “Rose wants to say bye to her before we take off.”

“You guys leaving already? It’s not even midnight yet,” Jussi pointed out.

“Yes, but Impi is with the grandparents tonight, and they want me to pick her up before midnight. So, off we go.”

“They’re in there,” Isolde said pointing to the office. “Have been for the past twenty minutes.”

“What for?” Bam asked.

Isolde smirked and raised an eyebrow. “What do you think?”

Bam smirked. “Go, Ville.”

Isolde snorted. “You mean, go Soya. She lured him in there.”

“With what? A magic vagina?”

“A good pair of heels, asshole,” Isolde snorted.

Bam grinned and turned to Jussi. “I like her. Keep her.”

“I’m not a possession,” Isolde said before Jussi could respond.

“Don’t be a bitch,” Bam grinned.

“Remove him,” Isolde said, looking at Jussi while pointing at Bam.

“Leave her alone, Bam. There’s only so much of your snark Isolde can take,” Jussi grinned, glad his friend got along with Isolde.

“Fine, I’ll leave. Tell Ville to find me when they leave the room,” he said, leaving the bar with a parting wink to Isolde.

“Hey! Any sign of Ville and Soya?” Mige asked, coming up to the bar, settling where Bam had just been. Rosalind trailed up behind him, inserting herself between Jyrki and Jussi. Jyrki smiled down at her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

“Isolde, I don’t think you’ve met Rosalind,” Jussi said, introducing them. “Rose this is Isolde; Isolde, Rose.”

“Good to meet you,” Rosalind smiled, shaking Isolde’s hand.

“Likewise.” Isolde smiled, before taking another drag of her beer.

“So have you seen Ville and Soya?” Rosalind asked.

“The question of the hour,” Jussi chuckled before pointing at the office door. “They’re in there.”

“Doing what?” Mige asked.

“Not talking,” Jyrki smirked.

Mige winced. “Ah, do not tell Linde that Ville and Soya are having sex in a public place; he’s still on the fence about the whole engagement thing. Knowing Ville’s defiling Soya in public might just send him on a homicidal rage.”

Isolde raised an eyebrow. “Really? Linde seems like a calm type of guy.”

“He is, but Soya’s like a sister to us. It’s weird, though good for Soya, going out of her comfort zone and all.”

“Still weird,” Jyrki agreed. All of them turned when the doorknob to the office started to move. Ville’s form took up the frame as he fixed his shirt. They all had the same idea as they started clapping, causing Ville to look up and Soya to hide behind Ville with an embarrassed grin and her perpetual blush on her cheeks.

“Really, I didn’t know Soya had it in her. Sex in public? Really?” Mige teased with a chuckle.

Soya bit her lip before responding. “How do you know we even did that in there?” she asked, peeking over Ville’s arm as he brought her out from behind him, though his arm stayed wrapped around her.

“Please,” Jyrki chuckled. “The room may be soundproof, but if you’d just wanted to talk, a dark corner would have done.”

“And you both have sex hair,” Rosalind laughed. “Oh, you have no idea how proud I am of you.”

“I’d also like my key back,” Jussi said, holding out his hand. Ville sighed, pulling the key out of his pocket and handing it to Jussi. “And again, my office is not your personal hotel room, contrary to popular belief,” he said glaring at a smirking Isolde.

“I think it’s cute.” Isolde laughed.

“Well, now that we’ve been embarrassed, Ville and I are heading home,” Soya said with a roll of her eyes. “Unless you’d all like to get your last shots in?”

They all looked at each other, jokes all on the tips of their tongues, but both Ville and Soya were red enough that they silently let it go, though continued to laugh.

“I think we’re good for tonight,” Mige chuckled. “But don’t think any of us are forgetting this.”

“In this group, nothing is forgotten,” Jussi warned, causing Soya to laugh.

“Oh yes, I know.”

“Come on, get your goodbye hugs; Jyrki and I are heading out too, and I’m not seeing your precious face until after Christmas,” Rosalind said as she hugged Soya, who finally left Ville’s side.

Isolde watched as the friends said their goodbyes, Jussi telling Ville to find Bam before they took off. Soya grabbed their jackets from the office, handing Ville his before slipping her own on.

“I’m going to go find Bam real quick,” Ville said, kissing the top of her head.

“Tell him bye for me,” Soya called as Ville disappeared in the crowd. She looked at Isolde and settled on the bar stool next to her while Jussi talked to Mige.

“Are you going to see Josef’s family anytime soon?” Soya asked.

Isolde nodded. “Always for Christmas; I practically live there.”

Soya laughed. “I hoped so.” She opened the clutch and pulled out a red envelope. “Mind giving this to them? From Ville and myself.

“Of course!” Isolde said taking the envelope and shaking it, causing Soya to laugh. “What?”

“I do the same thing to my presents. It’s nice to know I’m not the only adult that does it,” Soya grinned.

“Sounds like gift cards.” Isolde said with her own smile as she shook the card again.

“Unfortunately,” Soya sighed. “I usually get something bigger and send them off with Josef or the post, but I didn’t want to burden you with my presents.”

“You should have!” Isolde laughed. “I literally only brought this bag and it only has my phone, keys, passport and a pair of jeans to change into tomorrow. I would not have minded you sending presents with me.”

“Well, I know for next year then,” Soya said, only to stop and stare at Isolde. “I mean, not that I expect you to be around next year, but I mean we wouldn’t-”

“It’s fine.” Isolde laughed, enjoying Soya’s inner panic. “I know what you meant. I’m against settling, and yes, making plans for the future -especially that far-off future- but I know what you meant.”

“Okay,” Soya sighed.

“Again, you’re adorable Soya,” Isolde said, resisting the urge to pat her head.

“Thanks?” Soya laughed, looking up when Ville came back and kissed the top of her head.

“Okay we are set to go,” he said with a smile.

“Good, Merry Christmas, Isolde.”

“Merry Christmas Soya, Ville.” Isolde smiled.

“Merry Christmas, Isolde. Hey Jus, we’re going,” Ville said, patting Jussi on the back, causing Jussi and Mige to break from their conversation and say their goodbyes. Isolde watched the couple go; they were whispering to each other and both were loaded down with gifts that had been exchanged throughout the night. She turned back to Jussi, who was back to talking to Mige, though their conversation seemed to be winding down as they both said their goodbyes.

“Isolde, good to see you again,” Mige said, patting her back. She smiled at him and said the same before he left.

“So, stay here or head to your hotel?” Jussi asked, looking at her.

“I am perfectly content here for the time being, and I’m not even tipsy yet.”

“Then we’ll stay here,” Jussi said, ordering another round of beers. Isolde smiled lightly as they sat at the bar for hours, doing exactly what they would do online or over the phone; talk. He was easy to talk to, Isolde thought, as he spoke of Christmas with his family. Either she was getting soft, or the amount of alcohol she’d drunk throughout the night had finally taken affect, but she cut Jussi off with a kiss, causing him to kiss her back and his fingers to tangle in her hair.

“Want to get out of here?”

“Please,” Isolde muttered against his lips.

“Let me go grab my jacket,” he said, kissing her once more before sliding off his stool and going into his office. He came back a few seconds later, shrugging on his black jacket and holding out his hand for Isolde as he came back around the bar.

Isolde smiled, and in rare act, she accepted his hand as she slid off of her stool and followed him out of the bar, trying not the stumble as they reached the sidewalk. She failed in keeping her balance and burst out laughing when she nearly tripped. Jussi grabbed onto her hips, his deep chuckle vibrating against her back as he pulled her against his chest.

“We had exactly the same to drink and you’re a mess.”

Isolde laughed. “I’m always a mess! Now, off to the hotel.”

“Fine, let’s just stop at my place real quick.”

“Why?”

“Because I smell of spilled beer, sweat, cigarettes and bar, and I’d rather do the walk of shame in the morning smelling clean than like the fucking pig I smell like now.”

Isolde turned and buried her face in his chest, causing him to laugh and wrap his arms around her back tightly as he walked them backwards, steering her. She smelled him. “I don’t know; you smell pretty fucking amazing to me.”

“Only because you smell the same,” Jussi laughed.

“For someone who tours constantly and smells like shit on a pretty much daily basis, you have a really weird sense of cleanliness.”

“Hey, I’m home. I have a fucking shower to use. If I can smell good, I will.”

“Like sleeping in a bed!”

Jussi laughed and kissed the side of her neck, still walking her backwards. “Yes! Like sleeping on a bed; I have one, so I should fucking sleep in it.”

“Are we walking there?” Isolde asked. “Because if not, this would be a good time to find a cab.”

“Right,” Jussi nodded. “Let’s get something warm to drink down the street and I’ll get a cab to pick us up.”

He led her to a coffee shop, luckily still open, he thought, as he called the cab and Isolde ordered some coffee. He gathered the cups and sat them down on the table. Isolde fell into her chair less than gracefully and grinned at him before wrapping her hands around her cup, a happy hum leaving her lips and a bounce in her seat before she took a sniff.

“Shit, this is strong,” Isolde murmured. “I feel sober just smelling it.”

“Puts hair on your chest,” Jussi teased, taking a drink.

Isolde grinned up at him, all full lips and pearly white teeth, before taking her own sip. “Warm.”

“I should have warned you about the weather,” Jussi said to her, his voice apologetic.

She waved him off. “I should have known better; I’ve spent winters here before.”

He stared at her as she took another sip, her eyes scanning outside as the snow fell lightly. He spoke before he had a chance to filter. “You should stay with me tonight.”

Her cup stopped midway to her lips as her eyes darted back over to him. She brought her cup up to her lips, taking a sip of her coffee before setting it back down and speaking. “Why do I get the feeling there’s no hotel?”

“No, no, there’s a hotel,” Jussi said, setting his cup down. He rifled through his jacket pockets, pulling out a folded piece of paper and handing it to her. “That’s the hotel confirmation.”

“Room with a view, huh?” she said, eyebrow raised as she read the e-mail. She handed it back to him and shrugged. “I don’t do flats.”

“Your self-imposed rules,” he gently mocked.

Her eyes narrowed. “They’re there for a reason, Vuori.”

Jussi shrugged. “I’m not saying they aren’t.”

“I don’t go into guys flats and guys don’t come into mine.”

“That’s fine,” he said with a shrug again. “It was just a thought.”

“A stupid one.”

“Obviously,” he muttered, taking another drink of his coffee and looking away from her.

Isolde shook her head, looked out the window to see a cab and got up from the table. “Cab’s here,” she told him as she threw away her coffee. Jussi stood, throwing his own cup away as he followed Isolde outside the coffee shop and into the cab.

He told the cab driver his address and turned to Isolde when she made a huffing sound. “I still need to stop and get shit, Isolde.”

“It’s fine,” Isolde said quietly, staring out the window. She chewed on the inside of her lip as she thought of Jussi’s offer, Josef and Ben’s words of ‘letting go’ in her mind. She tried reminding herself that she had her rules for a reason. Staying at someone’s place was a level of intimacy that Isolde had never been ready or willing to broach.

It wasn’t like she was staying for a long time, though; it was only a few hours. And it wasn’t like she and Jussi were planning on sleeping anyway, as her flight left mid-morning and they’d both wanted to get their fill of sex in before they went another few months without seeing each other.

She felt the cab come to a stop and Jussi pull open the door, telling the driver to wait, before turning to her. “I’ll be right back.”

Isolde nodded slowly, watching him go before making a quick, and possibly stupid, decision. She opened her purse and looked at the fare before handing the money to the driver and getting out of the car, letting him know it was fine to leave.

She bit her lip as she stared at the doors to the apartment building and waited outside, not knowing which floor Jussi was on, let alone which apartment. Chewing on her lip, she pulled her cardigan closer to her and bounced on the tips of her toes, only for Jussi to come out, t-shirt in hand, and stop short when he saw her.

“Where’s the cab?”

“Told it to go,” she shrugged.

“Why?”

“Because I’m drunk and when I’m drunk I tend to make stupid decisions. And it’s even worse when you’re involved,” she admitted with a wary smile. “I’m really fucked up, Vuori. You don’t even know. When it comes to intimacy I have my standards set because of one idiot. He really screwed me up,” she said with a helpless shrug.

“You need to stop comparing me to other men.”

“I’m trying,” she admitted. “It’s slow going, but…” she gave a sigh. “Baby steps, right?”

Jussi nodded slowly. “Yeah.”

“So…offer to stay the night still open?”

Jussi nodded slowly and took her hand. “Yeah, it is.”

“Okay,” Isolde nodded, accepting his hand and squeezing his fingers. “But if your place is a fucking pig sty, we’re going to the hotel.”

Jussi laughed, pulling her towards the building. “Lucky for us then that I just cleaned.”

They walked to the elevator. Jussi pushed the button and leaned back against the wall. “Don’t worry,” he said, looking over at her, noting the tense way she held herself. “I don’t think this means anything, Isolde.”

“What?”

He nudged her shoulder with his. “It’s sex, right?”

Isolde smirked. “This isn’t an open invitation into my apartment.”

“And I’m not taking it as one.” Jussi shrugged. “I get why you have rules, Isolde, but I’m not taking this as some type of sign. Just sex, right? That’s what we agreed on?”

Isolde nodded, though she smirked as she lopped her arm through Jussi’s “Well, sex and good conversation, right?”

“Right,” Jussi chuckled as the elevator doors opened. He led her out and down the hall towards his apartment, using his free hand to dig into his jeans pocket for his keys and unlocking the door. He let Isolde in first, locking the door behind him. He leaned up against it, watching as she set her bag on the couch, shed her cardigan, and laid it on top. Her heels clicked on his hard wood floor as she wandered around the apartment, looking at the picture frames that sat on his bookshelves. More frames than actual books, he thought, as she leaned forward to look at a picture.

He took off his jacket and threw it on the couch before heading to the kitchen. He grabbed two beers from the fridge and walked back to see Isolde looking at the movies piled on his coffee table. She looked up at him and accepted the drink with a smile.

“Nice place.”

Jussi shrugged. “It’s home. It’s 2 bedrooms, but one of them is for my drums.”

“Get the urge at two in the morning?” Isolde asked, following him down the hall and taking a drink of her beer.

“Sometimes; I had to soundproof the room when I first got the place.”

“Aw, you’re a nice neighbor!” Isolde laughed as he opened the door and let her peek into the room. The walls were covered in layers of grey egg crate foam. His drums were sitting in one corner, while the surrounding walls had amps and stray guitars resting on top of them. “You play?”

“Badly.” Jussi chuckled. “Sometimes the guys leave them here when we fuck around for a bit; Ville sometimes picks up whatever’s laying around if he’s here for a while.” He snorted. “Sometimes the room’s filled with toys rather than instruments.”

“Toys?” Isolde asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Mmm, Impi likes to play in here when I babysit her.”

“She’s…?”

“Rosalind’s daughter. She’s five, she’s easily entertained.”

“So, how are you with kids?” Isolde laughed.

“Why, you hiding some away?” Jussi smirked.

“God, no,” Isolde snorted. “I just can’t see you with kids.”

“I’m good with kids.” Jussi shrugged. “I think. I don’t know; Impi likes me, that counts for something, right?”

“I don’t know,” Isolde laughed. “She could just have horrible taste in babysitters.”

“Or her parents could,” Jussi laughed. “No, I’m good with Impi, but I’ve known her since she was born,” he said, closing the door and tugging her towards his own bedroom. “So I like her. I mean, I let her play with my drums, so that’s something.”

Isolde snorted. “I don’t know; you could let any girl play with your drums.”

Jussi groaned and gave a wince. “Ah, now you’ve made it dirty.”

Isolde gave a look over her shoulder. “How much weight do you think that drum stool can take?”

Jussi paused outside his room, looking at the door before smirking down at her. “We could give it a try, but fuck up my drums…”

“You’ll fuck me,” Isolde said with a dramatic sigh. “I know, I know. It’s just a punishment I’m going to have to take, I’m afraid.”

Jussi chuckled as he opened the door to his bedroom, only for Isolde to pull away.

“Wait, I’ll be back,” she said, going back to the living room, only to come back with her purse. “Okay.”

“What’s with the purse?”

“Condoms,” she said, waving it in front of him and pushing him into the bedroom as she toed off her shoes.

“I do have some here, you know,” he teased.

Isolde snorted. “Not these, you don’t.”

Jussi raised an eyebrow. “Did you get special Christmas condoms?”

“Something like that,” she said, dropping the bag on the floor. “You’ll find out in a few minutes. For now, you get to kiss me.”

Jussi smirked, taking their beers and setting them on the dresser before taking her hips in his hands and dragging her closer. She tilted her face up, her fingers fisting his shirt at his sides, Their lips touched together, gently at first, before he felt her smile into the kiss and push them together firmly.

He groaned and hugged her body tighter to him, making his way to his bed. He felt a shirt underneath his shoe and tried kicking it out of the way in order to make a clear path to the bed, only for his shoe to get caught and send him tumbling to the ground, ass first.

Isolde yelped as she fell onto Jussi’s hard body. Her elbow hit his stomach, causing him to grunt as he laid his head on the edge of the bed.

“Fuck,” he muttered, kicking the shirt off his foot and toeing his shoes off along, with his socks.

Isolde laughed. Her lips left a trail of soft kisses on his neck. “Your ass okay?”

“Not the first time I’ve fallen on it.”

Isolde snorted, pulling away. “And you said you’d cleaned.”

“Clean enough,” Jussi groaned. “I think you rearranged my organs with your elbow, though.”

“Such a baby!” Isolde teased. Her fingers ran up the buttons of his shirt before popping them open. “I guess I can check it and all.” She placed a kiss on the skin she revealed, her fingers working the buttons slowly.

Jussi groaned when her fingers reached the last button and her lips kissed his navel, only for her fingers to run along his stomach, pressing lightly. “How are the organs feeling?” she asked.

Jussi snorted. “I don’t know; hurts a bit down lower.”

“Oh, that’s just cheesy,” Isolde laughed. Her fingers trailed down anyway and undid the button of his jeans. “I don’t know,” she teased. “It looks all right to me.”

“All right?” Jussi groused. “It’s not just all right!”

Isolde shrugged. “Eh.” She squealed when his arms banded around her waist. She fell onto her back, laughing, as Jussi hovered above her.

“Take it back.”

“Your penis is marvelous.” Isolde laughed, only to groan when she shifted, digging out a shoe from under her back. “Bed.”

“Bed it is,” Jussi chuckled. He moved off of her and stood up, holding out his hand for her to take in order to help her up. He watched as she reached for the back of her skirt and shimmied out of it, leaving her in only her camisole, before that was also stripped off.

“You,” she said, moving past him to sit on the bed. “Are looking mighty overdressed.”

Jussi watched as she scooted to the top of the bed. He stripped off the rest of his shirt before kicking off his jeans and getting on the bed, straddling Isolde. He grinned when her arms wrapped around his neck and tugged him down for a kiss.

There were chests pressing together, legs entangling, with fingers tracing, gripping and tugging. Moans and gasps echoed around the room, and the sheets and blankets got kicked off the bed. Her knees tightened at his waist, rolling them around so he lay on his back. He tightened his fingers Isolde’s blonde locks, nipping at her lips. His free hand molded itself against her breast, fingers playing with her nipple, which caused her to gasp against his lips. Her hips rocked against his, and a hiss rented the air as she ground just right.

“Christ, if you don’t get a condom now Isolde…” he warned, stilling her hips with his hands.

Isolde chuckled, leaning down to kiss him quickly before leaning over the edge of the bed and grabbing her bag. He heard her rustle through it and closed his eyes when her body wiggled against his. He heard a box being ripped open and the crinkle of foil against foil. Then Isolde was back on top of him, looking down at him with dark blue eyes and a mischievous smile on her face.

“Well,” he said, gesturing for her to put the condom on him.

“Close your eyes,” she teased. He raised an eyebrow and noted her hand was behind her back.

“Why?”

“Close your eyes,” she laughed. “I promise it’s worth it.”

Jussi sighed before rolling his eyes and doing as he was told; throwing an arm over his eyes and closing them. He heard the crinkle of the foil once more, and then her fingers were on him, causing him to groan. And he was possibly just a little glad that he already had his eyes closed as she rolled the condom on. Then, nothing.

“Well, you have to open your eyes so I can go ‘ta da’,” Isolde said with a laugh.

Jussi uncovered his eyes and stared before looking up at her. “What. The. Fuck?”

“Ta da!” she laughed.

“What did you….what is that…Why is my dick green!?”

“You’re dick is not green!” Isolde argued. “The condom is green.”

“Why is the condom green? Why is it…is it glowing?”

Isolde giggled as she ran a finger down his length. Jussi dropped his head back onto the pillow with a groan. “It’s a night-light condom.”

Her finger ran itself up, and even through the latex he could feel the warmth. “Shit…Isolde.”

“It’s like a little light saber,” she giggled.

“I resent the word lit-” he trailed off with a choked groan as she gripped him, her laugh ringing through the room.

“Whoosh, whoosh.”

“Isolde!” Jussi choked out in a half groan, half laugh as he felt her moving his shaft back and forth as if it were a light saber. “Fucking…”

He opened his eyes to find her leaning over him, her eyes alight with laughter and her mouth twisted into a grin. “Should I put you out of your misery now, Vuori? Just fuck you already?”

Jussi grinned, moving his hand from where it was gripping her hip to tangle in her hair, bringing her down to kiss her. “By far the most interesting woman I have ever met.”

“Good, I like keeping you on your toes,” she said before lifting her hips and fitting them together with a groan.

He let Isolde set the pace, her hips moving against his. Though, he couldn’t help but stare at the glowing that would appear then disappear with every shift of their hips. She leaned down and kissed the side of his neck before her laughter filled his ear.

“At this point I’m doing all the work here, Vuori.”

Jussi blinked and turned towards her, kissing her soundly before laughing. “Sorry, I’m just-”

“Distracted by the condom instead of me,” Isolde laughed.

“It’s fucking glows, Isolde.” Jussi groaned when she stopped moving.

“You don’t pay attention to me, I don’t move,” Isolde teased.

“It doesn’t seem right, it glowing,” Jussi pointed out.

Isolde snorted. “It’s just a fun condom, like those flavored ones or those warming ones. For her pleasure,” she teased. “Now let’s switch positions so that your dick can stop distracting you and you can do the work, because I’m getting tired up here.”

Jussi laughed and wrapped his arms around her waist before turning her over. “It’s going to distract you now.”

“Please, I’m able to multi task,” Isolde grinned. Her legs ran up his side, and her knees tightened on his waist. “And unlike you, I find it amusing.”

“I find them amusing!” Jussi laughed, leaning down to nip at her neck. He slowly moved his hips as her arms wrapped loosely around his neck, fingers playing with the ends of his hair.

“Mmmm,” she groaned. “You find them ridiculous.”

“I must be doing something wrong,” Jussi chuckled.

“Why’s that?”

“You’re still able to think,” he teased, thrusting against her harder.

“Oh god, I think you’re fixing that,” she laughed, her fingers leaving his hair to rake down his back.

“Good,” he whispered.

They didn’t speak after that. Instead, they pulled each other tighter, hands groping at skin, nails -both blunt- left red lines on their sides and backs. They gasped against each other, driving the other higher. Names were whispered, her dropping his surname in favor of his first; a sign that she was close the edge. He doubled his efforts with a smirk, resting his forehead against hers, watching as her eyes widened before closing with a moan.

Her back arched, pressing their bodies closer. Her fingers gripped at his back, while her other hand roamed the front of his body before her fingers reached where they were connected. He quickly grabbed, her hand causing her to whine, entangling their fingers and bringing it above her head. Settling his weight, he used his hand that had been on her hip to move between their bodies, finding the sensitive bundle of nerves she’d been reaching for.

Her legs wrapped around him and she cried out his name as she came. He felt his hips stutter and felt his orgasm rush through him, gasping out her name against the skin of her shoulder. He rested against her, her hands running up and down his back, trying to regain his breath before she started chuckling.

“Blow to the ego, Isolde.”

“No, sorry.” She giggled. “It’s just, you’re still glowing.”

Groaning, he rolled out of her and sat up in the bed, running a hand through his hair. “I’ll be right back.”

Isolde nodded, biting her lip as she watched him leave.

“We’re using regular condoms next time, too,” he muttered as he left the room, causing her to laugh. She sat up with a groan, reaching over and bringing the top sheet to cover herself from the sudden chill that crept into the room now that Jussi’s body wasn’t on top of hers.

She heard a curse coming from the hallway and the running of water, causing her to smile lightly as she looked around the room. Simple enough, she thought; just a dresser with some of the drawers open, showing the mess inside of them. The top of it held some pictures of what she assumed were close friends or family members. The open door in the corner led to a closet, and clothes were semi-strewn on the floor, along with socks and shoes.

The bed she sat on was a dark wooded frame. Sturdy, she thought, casting a glance at the headboard with a grin. The mattress was comfortable as hell. The sheets were black, and if she was correct, so was the comforter. She looked over the footboard at the blanket and comforter that had gotten pushed off. Yep, she thought pulling them up; soft, warm, black blanket and heavy down comforter.

“We’re not using those condoms again,” Jussi announced as he walked back into the room. “So get rid of them.”

“Why?” she asked. “They were fun.”

He pointed down at himself, causing Isolde to look down and snort. She covered her mouth to keep her laughter in. “No, they’re not.”

“So you’re a little…green,” she said, not being able to keep a straight face and burying her face in her knees as she laughed.

“Never again. Flavored, fine; glow in the dark condoms, never the fuck again,” Jussi warned, sitting on the bed next to her and pulling the sheet over himself.

“Oh, stop whining. Here, I got you something; it’ll make up for it.” Isolde laughed as she leaned over the side of the bed, grabbing her bag.

“I don’t want the box,” Jussi warned. “Actually, I do. I want to see what the fuck was on those.”

Isolde rolled her eyes, throwing the box of condoms at him. She winced when he turned on the light on his nightstand. She watched as he sat up against the head board, staring at the box of condoms, reading the script. Digging through her bag, she found the present and sent it flying to land on his lap.

“Hey, what’s this?”

“You have to open it.”

“You got me a Christmas gift.” It was a statement rather than a question.

“I got you a gift. It could be a Christmas gift; it could be a ‘sorry I turned your dick green’ gift.”

Jussi snorted, throwing the box of condoms on his nightstand. “You don’t get those back. I’m throwing them away.”

“I didn’t buy them anyway, so no harm to me,” Isolde shrugged.

Jussi chuckled before opening the drawer of his nightstand. He pulled out a small box and placed it in front of her. “To make up for them, anyway.”

Isolde frowned at the box in front of her, absently hearing the ripping of box and rustling of tissue paper, before Jussi’s surprised laugh rang in her ears and she looked up at him.

“Misfit gloves!”

“I…” she shook her head and smiling lightly. “You complained during one of our chats that yours are wearing thin. I saw those at a shop in New York and thought you’d need them.”

“I do! Thanks!” Jussi grinned, slipping the fingerless gloves onto his hands and flexing his fingers. “I got a hole in my old ones the other day.” He looked down at the box and nudged it closer to her. “You can open it, you know.”

“What?”

“The present.” Jussi laughed, looking back down at his gloves before peeling them off.

“Right,” she said, shaking her head and looking back down at the box. “You didn’t have to get me anything, you know.”

Jussi shrugged, putting his new gloves on the night stand and watching her slip a finger under the tape to lift up one of the corners of the wrapping. “Not really that big of a deal. Jyrki was shopping for Rosalind and I got dragged along. Saw that in one of the shops we went to, thought you’d like it…and need it.”

Isolde chewed on her lip as she peeled back the paper to revel the box and blinked. “A USB hub.”

“It’s from the show you never shut up about,” Jussi teased, leaning forward to kiss her forehead. “I’m going to grab some water, you want anything?”

Isolde shook her head, looking up to smile at him, only to catch his back as he slipped out of bed again and left the room. Looking back at the box in her hands, she turned it, looking at all the sides. A four-port TARDIS USB hub, she read with a weak smile. The light bulb on top lit up and made the TARDIS sound when plugged in, and…it was perfect.

“So, can you use it?” Jussi asked, getting back in bed and twisting off the cap of his bottle. “I figured with your work you probably could.”

“No, I can. I will.” Isolde nodded. “Ben was just bitching about the lack of ports on our last shoot, thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Jussi nodded before giving a yawn.

“Sleep,” she said with a laugh. “I leave in a few hours, anyway.”

Jussi shook his head, “No, it’s fine I’ll stay up.”

“Go to sleep. I’m going to go snoop around your living room and I can’t do that with you hovering.”

“You’re going to go sleep on the couch,” he muttered.

“Yes I am,” she laughed.

Jussi rolled his eyes. “At least take a blanket out there with you.”

“Do you one better; I’ll steal a pillow too,” she said, grasping at the pillow he was about to lay his head on. She climbed off of the bed, leaving the sheet and looking at the floor.

“Not cool,” Jussi muttered, grabbing the other pillow and stuffing it under his head as he lay down. “What are you looking for?”

“A shirt I can steal.”

“What is it with women and stealing shirts?” Jussi asked as she picked one up.

“Have a lot of women steal them, do you?” Isolde teased as she pulled the shirt on.

“Rosalind’s stolen a couple,” he admitted.

“I just need something to wear,” she laughed, “I promise to give it back.”

“Keep it, looks good on you,” he said, his eyes fluttering closed.

Isolde frowned at him before pulling the blanket from the bed. Biting her lip, she covered him with the comforter before moving to the living room. She dumped the blanket and pillow on the couch before scooping up the remote from the coffee table. Fiddling with it for a second, she got the TV turned on and to a channel that was showing some mindless feel-good movie that had the ability to put her to sleep. Perfect.

She wandered to one of his bookshelves, taking pleasure in seeing the pictures Jussi had framed. Pictures that he was proud of or had sentimental value, as that was the only reason people put them up, she thought, smiling at a picture of him and what she assumed was his mother after what she also assumed was one of his concerts, as he was shirtless and had drumsticks hanging from his fingers as they both grinned.

In her own flat she never really thought to put pictures up proudly display them. She had her own work on the walls, some of her favorite places, and yes, they also held a more personal value to her, which was why she enjoyed looking at them. Her family pictures though, she winced; they were all at her parent’s house, and most of those pictures were stiff professional photos with fake smiles and for appearance’s sake. The few candid’s her parents did have were from her youth, and those were in photo albums that sat on the bookcases in the family room. They were only taken out when Isolde brought a boy home, which hadn’t happened since the first time she’d brought Richard home, or if her mother was feeling sentimental; like the time two weeks ago when she’d called and told her she’d been such a beautiful child.

Isolde rolled her eyes, looking at another picture of him and a young girl who couldn’t have been older than three in the picture. She was settled on his hip, her hair a dark brown and eyes a bright blue. They were grinning at each, other and Isolde couldn’t help but smile at it. Impi, she thought, remembering all the wonderful things Jussi said about the girl.

There were pictures of him with his friends, his family, and his band mates; there was always a smile on his face. She noted, happy moments that he remembered and cherished. The books he had in between the pictures were biographies of rockers that he admired and enjoyed, a few travel guides, a couple of kid’s books, and -she raised an eyebrow- a worn copy of Lord of the Rings. Well, he was just full of surprises, wasn’t he?

Pulling away, she noted the movies that filled another bookcase; mostly all horror and cult films, she noted as she ran her eyes over the titles. She wasn’t surprised to find that the only movies that were organized were his vampire and monster flicks. There were a lot of action movies as well, she noted as she ran a finger over the James Bond movies, both original and remakes. He had the Jackass movies and TV series along with the Viva La Bam sets, though she figured that was mostly a gift from Bam than anything else. The Notebook was stuffed in between Nightmare on Elm Street and Clockwork Orange. Odd -the placement- not the movie, she thought before moving away from his movies.

She looked back at the coffee table. He’d been babysitting Impi -he’d told her as much; Disney movies were stacked on the coffee table, making up the empty spaces in his bookcase. Papers; both crumpled and stacked. A coffee mug that was empty sat on a flowered coaster. Not his; most likely a woman’s touch. Someone that took care of him from time to time. Mother, she grinned, as she doubted Soya -who took care of her friends- or Rosalind -who visited the apartment frequently enough to steal his shirt-, would care if he got rings on his table.

Leaving the living room, the movie playing quietly behind her, she wandered into the kitchen and opened the fridge. There were water bottles and a case of beer, left over Chinese food that was starting to take on an interesting odor, and an apple. Taking a bottle of water, she closed the door again and looked around the kitchen; a few dishes stacked in the sink, more in the drying rack.

A small table sat off to the side, with used plate on top and a half filled juice glass. There was a magazine open halfway through, and an unopened newspaper sat next to it. Again, his mother had probably been by, as a small vase with nearly wilting flowers sat on the table.

It was a typical man’s apartment, she thought, as she wandered back, taking a sip of her water before setting it on the coffee table and sitting on the couch. A couple of pairs of shoes were stuffed under the couch, with only the backs visible, from where he toed them off. A jacket was thrown on the love seat next to the couch, knick knacks covered available surfaces.

She moved the pillow to the arm of the couch and fixed the blanket to cover her before laying back and staring at the TV.

“Are you done snooping?”

She sat up and looked at Jussi as he leaned against the entrance of the hall. He was wearing nothing but a pair of briefs, and even then, they were so low on his hips that it made her lick her lips in anticipation. Anticipation that she really shouldn’t be feeling. “What?”

“I’ve been waiting for you to stop rustling around. Are you done?”

“I’m done.”

“Good,” he muttered, turning off the light she’d forgotten about and moving towards the couch. “Budge over.”

“What?”

“Scoot over; it’s freezing in my room and I’d like a warm body.”

“We don’t cuddle.”

“It’s not cuddling; it’s for the sake of heat. Move.”

Isolde sighed, but moved to the very edge of the couch, creating enough room behind her for Jussi to fit in. He moved around, shifting the blanket, causing her to pull it back around her.

“Oh come on, give me some.”

“You’re taking it all with your large-ass body,” Isolde complained.

“Weren’t complaining about it earlier,” Jussi muttered.

Isolde snorted. “You weren’t hogging the blankets earlier; my toes are freezing! Don’t you have a heater in this place?”

“Sure, but you’re better.”

“Ass.”

“Fine, here.” He moved the blanket with his feet so that it was covering her up, before entangling their feet together, his warms ones covering her cold ones. “Fuck, you’re cold.”

“No shit.”

“So what are you watching?” he asked once the blanket was over them. One of his arms was under his head, propping it up so he could see the TV, while the other ran lightly up and down her thigh.

“It’s one of those movies that’s supposed to make you feel better about your life,” Isolde said vaguely, her shouldering lifting in a shrug.

Jussi watched the TV for a minute, only to raise an eyebrow when the woman on screen picked up a gun and started shooting. Curious, he leaned forward, causing Isolde’s face to smash into the pillow and a muffled groan to cause him to chuckle as he grabbed the remote off the table. He leaned back against the couch, Isolde elbowing his stomach.

“Jerk.”

Jussi smirked, pulling up the information page on the channel, curious as to what exactly they were watching. “After her son gets killed and police refuse to investigate, a woman goes on a rampage to find her son’s killers. Based on a true story.” Jussi raised an eyebrow. “This isn’t a feel-good movie.”

“Really? Because it makes me feel a hell of a lot better about my life.”

Jussi laughed, dropping his elbow and laying his head on the pillow she had commandeered. “Fine, watch your movie; wake me up when we have to leave.”

“I can leave on my own.”

“No, I’ll take you to the airport. I brought you out here, I’ll see you back. I’m a light sleeper too, so don’t even try to leave.”

“Liar. You sleep like the dead.”

Jussi snorted, but she felt the yawn against her back. “True, but with you this close, I’ll feel it.”

“I’ll wake you,” Isolde whispered.

“Many thanks,” Jussi sighed. She felt his hand still running up and down the top of her thigh, but felt him find sleep when his fingers rested against her skin and his breathing evened out. He found sleep quicker and much more easily than she did.

She wasn’t lying to him the first time they’d slept together; she didn’t cuddle. She wasn’t used to the warmth against her back or having her legs entangled with someone else. She wasn’t used to sharing space with another person or feeling their skin against hers, their breath against her neck. Any other time she would have moved…well, she wouldn’t have allowed it in the first place. Jussi though…

She slowly felt herself loose the tension in her shoulders. She relaxed her body against his and leaned back against his chest. His arm dropped and tightened around her stomach. Instead of moving it, she left it there and let her head drop to the pillow. She made sure her alarm on her phone was set before relaxing into Jussi.

She told herself it was only this once; that it was only because he’d refused to turn on the heater and he was warmer than the blanket he was currently hogging. It ]i]was not because she was content in his tight embrace. It was not because she felt safe. And it definitely was not because for that moment as she started to fall asleep, her eyes fluttering closed, she felt wanted.

XxxxxxX

Thursday, December 23, 2010

“Have a good Christmas,” Jussi said as he handed Isolde her bag.

“I will, I get spoiled rotten,” she teased. “Thanks for bringing me out here, even if it was for your libido’s selfish reasons.”

Jussi frowned, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “Isolde I really hope you know that-”

“Ah, don’t ruin it,” Isolde said quickly, covering his mouth with her hand. “Please, just…don’t.” She felt Jussi sigh against her, but watched as he nodded and slowly removed her hand. “I should board,” She said, thrusting a finger behind her to the line of people already boarding the plane. “Have a good Christmas, Vuori.”

Jussi smiled and nodded. “I will.”

Isolde rolled her eyes and leaned up to kiss him. It was innocent, short, lasting, she thought, as their lips pressed together, moving against each other before she pulled back. She was tempted to touch him, pull him closer and keep him there. Stay, she thought. She was tempted to stay.

“I’ll text you when I land; I bet you’re a worrier.” She smiled.

“I’d appreciate it,” Jussi nodded. He leaned forward and kissed her cheek before turning her around and sending her towards the line of people. “I’ll talk to you later.”

She looked over her shoulder, ready to tease him, only to see his back as he left the waiting area. Running a hand through her hair, wincing as her fingers caught a tangle, she reminded herself that she wasn’t disappointed that he hadn’t stayed to see her all the way off. She reminded herself that she wasn’t disappointed that she was going back to Prague for Christmas with her family.

Turning back, she reached into her bag to pull out her ticket and passport. Her fingers ran over the box that held the USB hub in the shape of a TARDIS. A smile flitted over her lips before she tugged out her papers out and handed them to the flight attendant. She was happy, she reminded herself, as she took her seat. She was seeing her family; she was seeing her friends, and they more than made her happy.

She was not disappointed about the fact that she was not spending Christmas with a man she had met two-and-a-half months ago. She wasn’t.