“I’m sorry. I should have given you the benefit of the doubt and I didn’t. Is there any chance I can get a rain check on that dinner?”
“Why?” he asked.
“Because when I look at you, I feel the same thing you do when you look at me. Only I didn’t run from you screaming no and trying to wipe off your touch.”
“You saw that, huh?”
She nodded.
“You weren’t supposed to see that.”
“It hurt. When I first looked at you, I thought, finally, and you thought, oh hell no. So, I didn’t want to trust you. I didn’t want to feel not good enough again when you run from me the next time. But it’s hard to keep you at arms’ length. So I have to get snippy to make you stay away.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Me, too. I don’t want to be like that. I don’t like me when I’m like that.”
“Hmpf, I like you all the time. Though I admit tonight you did make me question my life choices.”
“Maybe that’s a good thing?” she asked.
“Maybe, but there were reasons.”
“That’s what Alison said. And Rance, too. That’s why I’m here.”
“This isn’t easy for me,” he said after an awkward silence filled couple of minutes of him looking anywhere but into her eyes.
“I can see that,” she said. “And it’s not easy for me either.”
“Are you hungry?” he asked, finally allowing himself to look at her, to see what emotion her eyes might be holding.
Maeve nodded, her eyes begging him not to let her down.
He reached out, his hand palm up, waiting for her to put her hand in his.
Maeve looked at his hand for a second, then very slowly lifted her hand and laid it on his before looking up and meeting his gaze.
He smiled at her and squeezed her hand gently. “Jett!” he called out, without looking away from Maeve.
Jett looked his way.
“I’m leaving.”
“Don’t know why you came in anyway,” Jett said. “I got this.”
Niko stepped back and let go of her hand as he gestured for her to precede him. He stepped up right beside her, his arm around her shoulders to hold her close against him. A few times people would get in the way, so he ended up putting his other arm out ahead of them to keep people away from her.
They finally reached the door and Niko pushed it open, took her hand again, and led the way out into the parking lot. He got her settled in his car, leaned over her to buckle her in, then walked around and got into the driver’s side. “Anything in particular you want to eat?” he asked.
“Whatever you had in mind to begin with would be fine,” she said.
“It’s about a half hour away. Very quiet. White table cloths, candles…”
“Sounds nice,” she said.
Niko nodded, but didn’t say too much.
“Maeve?” he asked a few minutes after they’d gotten on the road.
