I woke up with a start.

  Wiping my face, I opened my eyes and looked around. The walls were painted wooden paneling.

  Wooden paneling?

  I wracked my brain. A thought oozed its way into my mind. It wouldn't have been my first choice, but the previous owner apparently loved it since they covered every wall with it. I hadn't had time to fix it, but I would one day. When I had time.

  Moonlight filtered in through the small window above my front door. I couldn't help but smile. After years of struggle, I finally got it all. It wasn't much, but it was more than enough for me.

  I tried closing my eyes again, but my phone vibrated on the coffee table. The screen flashed, illuminating the living room. Groaning, I reached out and picked it up.

  "Hey babe, I'm outside. Can you let me in?"

  Who would call me babe? I looked at the name, but all it said was "My Honey" followed by four peach emojis. Opening the contacts list didn't give me any more information.

  "You're probably asleep. I'll let myself in." I heard keys rattle outside my front door, then the knob turned. A short, slim figure slipped through the front door and kicked off their shoes. Hooking their keys on the hook I'd installed next to the door, they turned, and a feminine voice called out to me. "Hey, sleepyhead. Looks like I was right." She flicked a switch next to the front door, and a dim light illuminated her. It was Devon.

  "Devon?"

  She smiled and pulled out her headphones, strolling to the kitchen and pouring herself some water from the pitcher in my fridge. "How'd you sleep, honey?" She emptied the glass, placed it in the sink, then walked over to me.

  "I..." How did I sleep? I didn't even remember what I did that day. "Good, I think."

  "That's great." She patted my legs, so I gave her space on the couch. She sat down next to me. Snaking her cold feet under the thin blanket I'd been sleeping under, she giggled when I flinched at her ice-cold toes finding their way under my shirt.

  I pushed myself back. "What... How'd you get in?"

  She scrunched her lips. She always did that. "You gave me keys months ago, dummy. I practically live here now."

  She reached her icy toes toward my nipples, but I pushed myself away from her. Something felt off. "Why would I do that?"

  She cocked her head, and a worried look crossed her face. "Because we're dating. Duh." She pulled her feet back and crossed them. "Are you feeling okay?"

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  I looked down at my hands, flexing them one after the other, then I rubbed my chest. This was real. I moved my arms. Everything worked as it should, but my left arm didn't feel quite right. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Did I really give her my keys?

  "What day is it?"

  "It's Friday. Well, Saturday now. It's late." She yawned. "Come to bed."

  "Not tonight. I want to sleep on the couch." I'd always been a couch sleeper.

  She shrugged. "Okay. Then we'll sleep on the couch." Scooting forward, she planted a kiss on my cheek. "But first, I'm going to take a shower. But don't fall asleep just yet." Her eyes promised something good. My heart skipped a beat or three.

  "Yes ma'am."

  "Good boy." She gave me a long, deep kiss, patted my cheek, then stood and walked down the hall.

  I listened to the sound of clothes rustling, and the shower started. I could smell the smell of lavender wafting out of the open bathroom door. That was her favorite smell. She hummed some pop song she'd fallen in love with as she washed herself. I couldn't help but smile.

  Memories filtered into my mind. They were hazy, but they slowly filled my head the more I thought about them. We'd had a long talk after... after some night. What happened that night? We decided we'd give it a shot. One date turned into several, then we started dating. It was going great. That was six months ago.

  Dave decided to step back when Carla left him, so I took over half the business. That earned me enough money to buy a small house closer to work. With more time, I got antsy. Devon encouraged me to go back to school. She said one mistake shouldn't define me, and that it wasn't a mistake anyway. Defending someone was never wrong. I applied to a local college and got in. I was taking classes again. It wasn't much, but it was a start.

  I'd met her parents. They actually liked me. Her folks were pretty religious, so they asked what my intentions were. I told them that, if that's what she wanted, I was serious about her. When she said she felt the same way, they gave us their blessing. That was a big day. Kind of terrifying, in a good way. She stayed with me most nights since that day.

  My thoughts were drawn back to the present when the shower turned off. There was some rattling, followed by hair brushed, then I heard fabric rustle around. I could see her toweling herself off in my mind. It was a good sight. She entered the hallway, and her footsteps grew distant as she walked into my room. A moment later, she came back to the living room wearing one of my shirts. She knew I loved it when she wore my clothes.

  She smiled her mischievous smile at me as she snaked her way onto the couch. "You've been working so hard lately. Work in the evenings, school in the mornings, and your incredible girlfriend at night. No wonder you're all worn out." She giggled and inched closer, placing several kisses on my neck as she did.

  "You're a menace, you know that?" I ran my fingers through her wet hair. Pulling her face to mine, I pressed my lips to hers. She smelled amazing.

  "Always." She put her hand on my jaw and pushed my lips away. Kissing down my neck, she whispered, "And, while I've also been such a good girl lately, I think tonight I'll give my handsome boyfriend something extra special for all the hard work he's been putting in lately. I think he's earned it..." She slipped off the couch and dropped to her knees between my legs...

  ...

  My eyes flew open. Where was I?

  I scanned the room. The walls were stone. The large holy symbol was on the wall in front of my bed. I could see the wheat swaying in the breeze out in the fields, and the call of a goat filled the night air.

  I looked down at my left arm. Red scars crisscrossed their way up it. I flexed my fingers. They didn't want to move in the cold night air. I bench my knee. It was tight.

  Wiping my face, I tried to shake the dream off. It had been so real. Every part of it, of her, was so real.

  I took a deep breath. Heavy in the night air was the smell of incense. From the smell of it, the stick had just gone out. It was lavender. Her favorite.

  My plan is to always put romantic moments into their own chapters,

  that way readers can read or skip to their own taste. There won't ever

  be any information in the chapters that will be essential to the main

  plot. Instead, they're for character growth and relationship building.

  I thought about posting them here in full, but I decided to keep them

  off RR to avoid any controversy. I know this website isn't the most

  open to romance, and I don't want to break any rules. It's just easier

  and less anxiety-inducing that way IMO.

  I'll post full intermission chapters on my Patreon when I finish

  setting it up, and they'll also be included in the final manuscripts

  that I put up on Kindle Unlimited. I plan to have three to five spicier

  intermission chapters per book.