Carmen didn’t let go of her.

“No, I mean it. Nothing but us”, she said, softly.

Helena shifted from one foot to the other, confused.

“What do I do?”.

Carmen stared at her.

“Just look at me”.

They stared at each other for a fistful of seconds, then Helena slowly arched her eyebrow and Carmen burst out laughing.

“You can’t do it”, Helena grinned, “You flinched, you lose!”.

Carmen tried to pull back, but Helena’s arms were strong around her hips.

“You cheat!”, she objected, still laughing.

Helena didn’t reply. She just kissed her, slowly and deeply.

Carmen rested her hands on Helena’s cheeks, closing her eyes. when Helena started unbuckling the belt of her pants, she let her.

”She’s dressed in black again
And I’m falling down again
Down to the floor again
I’m begging for more again
But oh what can you do
When she’s dressed in black…”

***

Alice was sitting on Dante’s bed, her arms around his neck. She was kissing him slowly and softly on the lips, her fingers tangled through his shortish, messy brown hair.

Dante’s hands slid down, cupping his wife’s firm bottom, and Alice slapped him on the head, breaking the kiss and laughing heartily.

“Bad boy!”, she admonished him, “You can’t do that, it’s disrespectful. We’re in a hospital!”.

Dante grinned mischievously.

“What if I hide under your skirt and we go home?”, he proposed, nuzzling her neck, his unshaven beard tickling Alice’s skin.

Alice tossed her head back and giggled again.

“Uh-uh. Sounds interesting but no, thanks. You have this big scar all across your chest now and I don’t know if I still wanna be married to you”, she joked.

Dante gave her a lopsided look, then pouted.

“See? You’re the reason why my heart is so fragile. You make me suffer all the time. I don’t like you so much right now”.

“Ah-ah, funny guy, don’t blame me for your disgusting food habits. And you should really quit smoking, too. It’s gross”.

Alice scraped the nape of his neck and watched him tenderly.

“I gotta go. It’s late. That nurse out there is gonna kick my ass if I don’t go”, she murmured, placing soft kisses on his lips, “You take care and sleep well. I’ll be here tomorrow morning, with the kids”.