Nick lifted up a hand and rubbed it against the back of his head as he searched the kitchen in the half-light.
He watched her move to one part of the kitchen and opened up a cupboard. She hmmmed a little and looked over her shoulder at him. "Do you mind if we make this a little silly?"
"Silly?" He chuckled at the idea. "Why not? What do you have in mind?"
Holding the bottle in one hand she reached into the cupboard with the other and pulled out a couple of mugs.
When she brought them over and set them on top of the kitchen island, he had to take a second look before recognizing the shape of the cups.
"Where did you get these?"
She picked up the bottle and opened the top. "My mom is always on the lookout for bakery themed items for gifts."
He watched as she took the tops off of the cups and set them aside. As she poured wine into both mugs, he lifted up the ceramic top of one mug and looked at the brightly painted berries and streams of syrup. "Fruity."
She nodded and picked up his mug and handed it to him.
He took the handle and looked at it, carefully tilting it in one direction. "Pancakes?"
"Yes... Cute, huh?"
He wasn't really looking at the cups anymore.
Her smile and the light surrounding them made a beautiful picture.
"More than cute."
He took a sip and nodded.
"What do you think?" She was holding her cup close to her mouth. "It's Stella Moscato." She tipped her head to the side, hergaze lowering to the bottle. "There are more words than that, but that's what I can remember."
"It's sweet."
"I guess that's where my tastes lean." She sighed a little. "It's probably a little trite."
"Don't feel the need to downplay what you like. If you had wine in your house that you didn't like, then I'd have to worry about you."
"Worry about me?" She leaned her hip against the island, and her gaze touched his face. "I'm okay. I'm always okay."
She lowered her gaze to the top of her cup and for the first time, he saw her less than her bold and bright self.
He could see her hesitation.
No, it was something else... he just couldn't name it.
He wanted to know what she was feeling.
Even more, he wanted to know every emotion and facet to her personality.
He'd always been attracted to her from the first moment he saw her, but since they'd talked... since he'd heard her laugh... since he'd seen her smile...
"Would you tell me if you weren't okay?"
He wasn't sure why he'd asked the question.
No, he knew.
But the timing might be a little off. A little ahead of where she was.
