The sex had been fast and furious, as only two people who had gone far too long between sessions could accomplish.

Jordan’s body curled up against Carter’s and he noted how perfectly she fit: her leg draped over his thigh, her stomach against his hip, her breasts pressed up against his ribs and her head securely in the crook of his shoulder. It was like two pieces of a puzzle sliding right into each other.

“These sheets are so smooth,” she murmured. “It’s like sleeping on melted butter. I could stay here forever.”

Her eyes got drowsy. She was falling asleep against him, apparently worn out by their session. 1020 thread-count, Egyptian cotton could do that to a person. Eventually, he heard the steadied breathing and knew she had escaped into a nap.

He hugged her closer to him, happy to just lie there like that.

* * *

“What do you think you’re doing?” Carter asked as Jordan slid off the bed and began picking up her sweater.

She had woken up, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, even though it was now dark outside.

“Getting your Christmas gifts. They’re in my bag downstairs.”

“Oh no,” he said sliding off the bed. “If it means you getting dressed again, I’ll be the one to bring your bag up. Besides, I have to get yours from under the tree as well.”

“Okay then, mister, get to it!” Jordan said, laughing as she fell back on the bed, naked as everything and making him forget all about those damn presents for a good hot second.

He two-timed it down the stairs, not bothering to get dressed himself. Already he was eager for round two of what they had just done.

There was only one present under the tree. The only family he would be likely to buy presents for usually took off for warmer climates during the holiday season, all expenses paid by her loving son.

He saw Jordan’s suitcase by the front door and recalled that he hadn’t set the alarm. After completing that task, he grabbed his present and her suitcase and hurriedly carried both upstairs.

He’d had the present wrapped professionally with a thick, white on white, flocked brocade paper. There was a wide, black velvet ribbon tied around each side, meeting right beneath a large bow in the middle which held two silk roses.

“It’s beautiful, Carter!” Jordan exclaimed as soon as she saw it. She hadn’t got dressed, but she had pulled the sheets up to cover her chest as she leaned against the headboard.

“Well, there’s more to it than that,” he said, laughing as he sat on the bed near her, handing it over.

She reached over to give him a soft punch, then examined the box again. “I can’t rip this open. It’s like a work of art.”

“Remind me to keep that in mind next year. It’ll save me a few bucks.”

She gave him a scolding smirk, then carefully removed the roses and untied the bow. It took her almost five minutes of gently peeling the taped paper, all while Carter groaned and moaned, before she finally got to the box underneath.

Inside was a black leather briefcase. As Jordan ran her hand over it with awe, even he had to admit it was impressive looking. It was sleek and sophisticated, with two handles to carry it on the arm. There was an attachable shoulder strap as well. She fingered the gold embellishments and clasp as she opened it.

“I had no idea what to get you so—I just know you want to be a lawyer. I hope you don’t mind it being practical instead of romantic.”

“This? This is better than any sappy romantic thing,” she gushed, then reached over to hug him.

She pulled away and looked at him, beaming.

“Your turn,” she said, getting up off the bed and running over to her suitcase.

“I hope you don’t mind,” she said. “I had to wrap my own gifts. Blame my dad, he likes corny wrapping paper.”

He smiled as he looked down at the green paper covered in multicolored Christmas stockings. “I’m too curious to be considerate of your wrapping,” he said.

She shrugged and waved a hand telling him to have at it.

He ripped the big, store-bought bow off the small flat present and shredded the paper to pieces. He was truly curious. When he got to the white box beneath, he looked up with a grin.

Jordan was biting her lip anxiously as she watched him. He found it oddly endearing.

“I had a star named after you. I figured out too late that it’s only symbolic—in fact I think maybe even fraud on the part of the company I bought it from, but the little certificate looks nice. You mentioned you had a telescope in your room so now, when you look up through it, you can pretend it’s yours.”

She was rambling. It made him smile. The gift made him smile even more. He knew only NASA had the right to officially name stars but the certificate was nice and—more importantly—she’d remembered his love of space. He was genuinely touched and looked over at her with a smile.

“It’s terrific,” he said.

He placed the certificate carefully on the side table next to the bed so that she would know he actually cared about it. Then he moved on to the next gift. Before he could finish opening it, she was at it again.

“It’s the DVD set, Cosmos? With Neil deGrasse Tyson. It’s supposed to be really good and, well, I thought you’d like it. Although in retrospect you probably already have it. What to get the guy who has everything, huh?” She smiled and shrugged.

He reached a long arm around her head and brought her in for a kiss. “It’s perfect,” he mumbled into her mouth. He could feel her smile underneath him and he moved in closer.

“So, what now?”

“Well, I do have the perfect gift and a big TV right in front of us to enjoy it with. And I recall you saying something about staying in bed forever, which is fine with me.”

Jordan laughed. “Sounds like a plan.”

They watched Cosmos until they fell asleep again.