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I pressed a kiss to his head. “What about you? What do you like to do when you’re not playing with kids putty?”
“I haven’t had much time for hobbies. I worked several jobs all through college and graduate school, but one of my patients from when I worked in Denver is a professional gamer. He asked me about helping design an ergonomic gaming controller that would lessen repetitive stress injuries from gaming.”
“That sounds interesting.”
He nodded. “I don’t know much about engineering, but he has a friend who does. She basically consults with me as she brainstorms prototypes. It got me thinking about other places to consider adapting standard methods to minimize repetitive stress injuries like that. One of my patients owns an antique store that specializes in old clocks. He winds all the clocks, and the twisting motion doesn’t agree with his arthritic hands. I’m trying to come up with a device he can use to absorb that twisting motion. It could be used for people who have all kinds of repetitive twisting motions like with screws, bottle caps, etc.” Winter shrugged. “One day I might have enough extra time and money to take some engineering classes. It would be interesting to learn more about the physics of motion outside of the body.”
After I heard his stomach grumble, I urged him up and back to the kitchen so I could make us something for dinner. We both wore pairs of my flannel pajama bottoms, and Winter had pulled his fleece on over it while I’d grabbed a hoodie.
“I can do a chicken and rice thing,” I suggested from the kitchen. He stood in front of the fireplace holding his hands out to warm them by the flames. “Or pasta? Or a big salad?”
He moved over to join me in the kitchen. “I’d love chicken and rice. Can I help?”
We moved through the small space together, prepping dinner and opening a bottle of wine. When we finally sat down at the small table, I held up my glass for a toast. “Happy belated New Year. To new beginnings and exciting futures. I hope this year brings you nothing but happiness and prosperity.”
Winter grinned back at me as he lifted his glass. “To your swift healing so you can get back to putting beautiful music into the world. And may you have safe and fun travels down under.”
We talked each other’s ears off as we ate. Being with Winter was easy. He was an unusual combination of relaxed and energetic. He told me about seeing me play for the first time when he was in college, and it led us into a conversation about my own time in school back in Houston and how I’d ended up in LA.
“Do you love it there?” he asked.
I shrugged. “I love the convenience of being near the recording studio. And I love the view from my terrace. But I don’t have many friends outside the band and crew because I don’t ever stay in town long enough to make any. And I miss the seasons we had growing up in north Texas. I love snow. It’s one of the reasons I wanted to come here for a visit.”
Winter nodded. “Same. I’ve never wanted to leave Colorado. I love it here. I went to Florida once to see my grandparents, and I hated the heat and relentless sunshine. Not sure I’d like LA.”
I chuckled. “It’s definitely relentless sunshine. But I thought Colorado had mostly sunny days, too.”
“We do, but it’s different somehow. The sky is deep blue, and there’s usually a nice breeze in the mountains. In Florida it seemed hazy and still.”
After a while, we moved over to sit on the sofa in front of the fireplace. Winter moved over to press his body against mine. “I know I only have you for tonight, so I want to make the most of it.”
I pulled him onto my lap. “It’s so quiet in Aster Valley. I feel like we’re the only two people on the planet right now.”
Winter wrapped himself around me and stared into the fire. “It’s not like this everywhere. I live in a… denser area, and my neighbors are assholes. Sometimes when they’re raising hell at all hours, I daydream about having an isolated cabin like this in the woods.” He chuckled and reached for my hand to play with my fingers. “What about you? Is it quiet where you live? Houses on big lots far apart from each other?”
I nodded. “I live in the Hills and have a nice view of the city. Big walls and gates around my property for security. I’m glad the house sits high enough to be able to see over them. Even if I lived in a place like this, I’d probably have to have fences and a gate.”
