Making love work. It can be read two ways. You'd think that something that can be so easy shouldn't require concentrated effort, but sometimes it does. Six months into my current relationship, Cade and I have just recently been to the point where we've both thought that life might be easier single.

But God, I don't want easy.

I want the company and the stimulation. The inside jokes and the assistance. And the challenge. Stress from one area of life spills into others, but Cade and I are sopping up the stains, stretching what little club soda we have, planning on artistic rearrangements of furniture and accessories in case life never looks quite like it did before.

Saturday we met in the middle. Sunday we met in the middle of Central Park West. Cade and I walked and walked before heading to dinner at a Peruvian restaurant where we fed on roast chicken, rice, and plantains. The sun was shining, but chilly nips were sprinkled throughout the walk. Leaves are beginning to crisp and change colors.

New York City is falling again; we haven't stopped.