Caitlin Snow (doomed_love) wrote in doorslogs, @ 2012-10-09 14:58:00 |
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Kevin wasn’t all that interested in telling Tess who he had in his head. That was due in part because he wasn’t entirely convinced. The hyenas and Gotham’s cityscape out the windows hadn’t been much to go on but Google had other ideas. ‘Gotham’ and ‘Hyenas’ led to a woman named ‘Harley Quinn’ and the cursory glance he’d given the Wikipedia page was more than enough to make him stop reading. He wasn’t interested in anyone who ended up with finger shaped bruises around his neck, and he sure as hell didn’t like it. Tess was safe behind her fairytale door and that was important because he didn’t think for a second that Harley would do anything to help whoever Tess was through the door, not even if hell froze over and the world stopped spinning. All he honestly wanted to do was enjoy an evening with his ex-wife and maybe, if he played his cards right, he’d get a taste of the past. Something to make this whole damn thing worth it. Dressed in a high-collared blue shirt (to hide said neck bruises), tan slacks, and a navy blue blazer, Kevin actually looked fairly decent. It didn’t matter to him that the tags were still on the jacket and the pants, ready to be returned in the morning. Money was money after all, and dinner was going to be expensive. He had it taken care of already, of course, but he was going to have to think of something before the end of the month. His charm only worked for so long and, as wise or poor as the decision was, Kevin was using his given name. This mattered for now, until she gave him a reason to never be Kevin Moore again. The reservation was at 8pm at Spago, but he showed up at 7:30 and had a drink at the bar first before allowing the hostess to seat him at a fairly secluded table for two. He didn’t even try to flirt with her. Expertly, he kept his gaze on the entrance, waiting to see Tess, without actually appearing to be looking at all. Tess also arrived at Cesears early but she didn’t make her way to Spago immediately. Dressed in a little black dress, hair falling over her shoulders in waves, she sat for an hour playing penny slots and drinking free cocktails. It was stupid to be so nervous, she knew that, and yet there she was trying to drink and ignore the anxious flutter in her stomach. This was different than the last time. It was pure chance they had run into each other; nothing calculated on either of their parts. And chatting via journals was harmless, just words on a page. But this was effort. This was a decision. She was making a conscious decision to see her ex-husband and she wasn’t entirely sure how that sat with her. She couldn’t come to a definitive conclusion on the way to the casino and thought that ignoring it would make that unsettled feeling go away. An hour later she was no better than before and she left the mini games and free booze and headed to the restaurant. She followed the hostess quietly, sparing the restaurant a smile touched with awe. Kevin always did have nice taste, even if they could never really afford it. When she showed her the table she turned her grin to him, letting it soften with no feigned fondness, even if the anxiousness rolled through her once more. “Hi,” she said as she slid into the seat across from him. “Been waiting long?” He was glad that he had a few moments to look at her while she looked at the restaurant. He’d chosen it because it was upscale without being black tie and he loved it when she dressed up. It would’ve been nice to buy her a dress, but there were lines he wasn’t supposed to cross now and besides, he didn’t know where she lived. Kevin wasn’t above much, but he was above stalking his ex-wife. Some things were better off being done the old fashioned way. Tonight would be a good gauge to see how they were doing, what, if anything, could come of this weird situation. And those journals, that hotel, the crazy person in his head? They all constituted a weird ass situation. As soon as she got close enough, Kevin stood, intending to move to pull her chair out for her, but the waiter had already swooped in to do so. He gave the man a somewhat frosty look for the briefest of moments before sitting down again and smiling at Tess. “Not at all,” came his smooth reply as the waiter brought over a bottle of wine and poured them both liberal glasses. There was a menu for her to look at already opened over the plate in front of her. “You look beautiful, as usual, Tess,” Kevin added, giving her a sly look over the top of his own menu as he perused for the tenth time. He already knew what he wanted, of course, but every action had a point to it. “How are things?” He was honestly curious about her life here but given their past, he didn’t think asking her outright would be the best course of action. There was also that pesky issue of him not wanting to reveal too much about himself as well, though that was primarily because he’d changed, for better and for worse, and she didn’t need to know about that. “You’re not looking so bad yourself.” Tess was never sly and she let her eyes rake over him with a grin. She didn’t know if he planned to keep it or not, not really caring one way or the other but still, he looked good in it. She took a sip of her wine, humming softly in approval, as she gave a cursory glance to the menu. “Things are… things,” she said with a laugh, finding what she wanted on the list and setting her menu back down on the table. “Things are good. Working now so it’s keeping me busy. And family. Sam’s here. Do you remember Sam?” Her sister was so young, it seemed, when they got married but out of all her siblings, Tess had been the closest to her. “So it’s not too bad, even if it’s hot as hell out here.” She wasn’t ready to talk about the journals, not yet, as there were certain things to take care of first. Thankfully the waiter reappeared as Tess took another long sip of her wine and she turned a sunny smile up to him when he asked if they were ready. “Actually, we wanted to look at your dessert menu first.” Her grin widened at the momentarily confused expression on his face. “We have some celebrating to get out of the way first.” She turned her smile in Kevin’s direction as her foot gently nudged his leg. Family. Kevin had left his behind after their divorce but it was only his parents he’d stopped talking to. He’d nearly forgotten about her siblings. “Sam’s here?” he asked, arching a somewhat disinterested eyebrow. Though he couldn’t say he remembered the girl with any real clarity, he wasn’t going to give that impression to Tess. “That’s good then, and that you’re working. You went back for a degree then?” It was a reasonable conclusion to make, unless the work she was doing was prostitution and Tess wasn’t the type. “I don’t know. The heat’s not too bad,” Kevin added, far more interested in this particular avenue of conversation. Hot weather meant scantily clad girls by the pool and those were always the easiest to charm drinks out of. When the waiter came over and Tess asked about the dessert menu, Kevin chuckled. “Yes, my w-friend and I have some celebrating to do. I believe I promised you chocolate cake hmm?” The near slip, while completely unintentional and probably a mood dampener, was forcibly forgotten in favor of chocolate cake. “Two slices of your Valrhona Chocolate Layerd Cake, and then we’ll order dinner.” It was very much a dismissal and although the waiter looked a bit surprised about that, he scurried off. “Now. Where were we?” Kevin gave her his most charming smile, not reacting more than that to the nudge. This was a delicate balance and he didn’t want to upset it too quickly. “Yeah, she’s here.” The smile turned fonder, as it often did when discussing her sister, this time with an added pleasant surprise that Kevin remembered, or at least he said he did. “Went back to school. Took fucking forever.” Though her tone was light before she couldn’t help a touch of frustration creep back in. Getting her degree was an accomplishment, but it sure as hell hadn’t been easy between all those jobs. But as quickly as it came, it went, in favor of an incredulous chuckle at his insistence that the weather wasn’t so bad. Oh she knew exactly why he liked it, but decided to take a deep sip of her wine instead. Tess could barely contain her joy at hearing him go along with the dessert plan. She had no idea what he was ordering but the chocolate was there and he knew her taste well enough. The slip made her look away, seeking some distraction to help forget the soft surge of nervousness that came when he almost called her his wife, and she took another drink before flashing the waiter a smile as he left. “You were going to tell me how you were doing. And tell me more about your headcase.” They might be having dessert but this was still dinner, and promises were promises. It seemed Sam kept her happy then, and that was the important part. He’d made do over the past five years and he’d continue making it work. “I can only imagine. You got through it though.” Kevin managed to stop himself from asking how she paid for it, or if she had loans that still needed paying. Wasn’t his business anymore, but he couldn’t help thinking that if she said she’d wanted to go to college, he would’ve found a way to make it happen back then. Even if he thought it was stupid. He still hadn’t finished his GED, but that didn’t bother him. He had plenty of street smarts and that was what mattered more than book smarts. Kevin lifted his glass up and tilted it toward her ever so slightly when he took a sip, toasting her for her accomplishment. She’d done so much better without him. “Oh right,” Kevin replied, as if a lightbulb had just gone off in his head. “I’ve been good. Traveling mostly, after I wore out AC. There’s a surprising number of casinos between Jersey and here. I was only planning on stopping for a little while, get some cash, before heading out to California. Trying to readjust a bit now that I’ve got some company.” He pointed to his head, indicating his headcase, as she liked to say. “Remember how I said I didn’t want a chick with a death wish? Seems like that’s exactly what I got.” Kevin was playing it off though, intentionally trying not to take it seriously in front of Tess. He didn’t want to have to face her not worrying about him and he didn’t want her worrying about him anyway, so it put him in a bit of an awkward spot. She tried not to look so wistful at hearing of his exploits between Vegas and Jersey but the wine and her earlier antics didn’t help. It had been fun with him then and hearing it now reminded her of it. But she had wanted something more stable, that kind of life couldn’t last forever, and she was glad for the conversation shift that didn’t allow her thoughts to stew so badly. “What?” If he didn’t want her worrying he was in for a surprise. She couldn’t help it, the bad habit of caring too ingrained to be erased even after all that time. The change in her expression was quick, fierce, the traces of casual merriment melting away. “Are you ser—Are you okay?” She didn’t know the world his door lead to, just the titular character of the comic and movies and the occasional bit of information on the ridiculously over the top characters in that world. Nothing helpful so she searched him for anything she could see, suddenly now irritated that his clothing covered up so much. “What happened?” He saw that wistful look and wondered if she missed the life they'd had after all this time. Did she need some excitement in her life? The thrill of the con maybe? But any chance of casually prodding that line of thought was dropped when he saw how quickly she shifted to worrying. That was surprising and the simple fact that she was worried made him smile ever so slightly. Tess shouldn't have to worry about him, but that she did made him wonder if maybe she didn't hate him all that much anymore. "Calm down, it's okay," he promised her, leaning forward and covering her hand in his reassuringly. "I'm fine, honestly. No worse for wear," Kevin said, and it was mostly true. Bruises weren't all that bad in the grand scheme of things. "Just some bruises," he added, because she'd push if he didn't give her something. "I'm not Batman, remember? No way in hell could I come see you if I was in bad shape." He wanted to think that he'd still manage if he promised he'd be there but it was unlikely. He'd just need to be careful about any future dates. Giving her hand another squeeze before releasing her, Kevin leaned back, just in time for the waiter to come back with their slices of cake, disappearing a moment later for fear of another icy glare from Kevin. She hadn’t registered they were holding hands until the waiter came and Kevin let her go. The movement of adding the dessert allowed her to mask her surprise, at least she thought so, and as the man scurried away she found herself on steady ground once more, no confusing surprise hand holding to throw her off. “You’ve scared him,” she scolded, lifting her fork to wag once at him before cutting into the cake. “We’ll never be able to order real dinner at this rate.” She lifted her fork and ate a piece, letting a happy sigh escape her. Maybe that was fine. Who needed real food when there was chocolate? “Okay so,” another bite, “You’re not Christian Bale. You’re a chick and you got fucked up a bit. So is she? And you still haven’t told me what happened.” “Have not,” Kevin replied automatically, rolling his eyes as she wagged her fork at him. He took a bite of his own cake, making sure to get a spoonful of the Guinness ice cream to go with it. A low whistle escaped him and he flashed her a grin. “How’s that for a chocolate cake, hmm?” There was a self-satisfied look on his face, proud that he’d obviously picked a restaurant with an amazing chocolate cake (purely by accident). It was always better to get credit for it, even if he hadn’t intended on it working out so well. He took another bite when she brought the door up again. “It’s fine, Tess, seriously. You don’t need to worry about it,” he insisted, taking another bite of his cake. “So, Disneyland huh? Sounds like the novelty wears off after a few trips. At least parking isn’t a bitch and you don’t need to deal with tourists. Could be good though. I remember when we went to Disney World, down in Florida. We got a ton of free stuff that trip.” Of course, that ‘trip’ had been their honeymoon, or one of them, but that was neither here nor there. “Disneyland was going to be my first stop in California. See if what they say about it is true.” “Have too,” she insisted though the heat melted in the presence of ice cream, more soft happy sounds pouring from her she enjoyed their dessert. “You did good, honey,” the pet name slipping before she could stop it but she refused to break her stride, focusing on the food rather than him, lest they make light of her mistake. Of course the mood vanished as quickly as it came, his insistence that she stop worrying making her bristle. He was right, damn him, because she was falling back into old patterns and worrying wasn’t something she had to or should do anymore. Not for him. Thankfully he was turning the conversation over, albeit back to the old days, and so her smile, though fond, remained small. “I remember. Think it’ll be that different from the one in Florida?” Kevin just smiled and enjoyed how vocal she was over dessert of all things. He remembered being the cause of such vocal appreciation in the past, but he pushed those thoughts away. For as much as he wanted her, wanted to see her happy, wanted to change a bit more for her, Kevin wasn’t going to risk whatever lunacy Harley got up to. Girl was a maniac and in love with a psychopath. There was no way that would end well and where would that leave Tess? But once again, mind and body disagreed and his hand oh so casually ended up an inch closer to her the next time he lifted up his glass. It was a calculated risk, talking about the old days, but that trip had been one of their earliest ones and by far one of the best. They’d gotten buttons proclaiming their ‘just married’ status, matching bride and groom mouse ears, and they’d been invited to be grand marshals in one of the numerous parades in Magic Kingdom. Nevermind the free champagne and desserts they got just about everywhere. He’d even managed to get them a couples day at the spa, where she’d been pampered from head to toe and they’d had fantastic sex quite a few times between massages, wraps, and soaks in a private hot tub. That part had been his favorite, just holding her in the hot tub, talking about dreams they both had, wants and desires. How could Disneyland compare to that? Kevin just shrugged. “Dunno. People say it’s smaller, more crowded. Could be fun though. Won’t know until I go.” Obviously she hadn’t been if she was asking his opinion on it. “It’s not too far from here. Couple hours drive maybe.” The unasked ‘Did you want to go?’ more than evident in his tone as he innocently continued eating his cake. Tess was equally lost in the memories of that trip to Florida. Their honeymoons were always fun and though they had so many, that particular trip had been early enough that it stuck out. Those sunny days and warm nights always brought a smile to her face, this evening no exception even as she took another spoonful of ice cream and cake. She hadn’t heard the unasked question, busy adding her own observation, “Bet you could drive in the night and be there right when it opens,” before realizing what was being said in the silence. Tempting, tempting, to fall back in this trap but she was soon saved from answering when the waiter appeared, and she flashed him her most dazzling smile in case Kevin decided to scare him away. He graciously refilled her wine, listened as she sang the praises of the dessert, and was amused when she finally got around to ordering a real dinner, complimenting her choice of salmon. She turned back to Kevin, patiently waiting to hear his order, her foot gently brushing his ankle just in case he decided to throw a frosty glare in the other man’s direction. Kevin hid a grin in his wine glass, taking her reply as more of an answer to his unasked question than an observation. He’d keep the victory to himself though, primarily because there was a part of him that worried it might have been a fluke. They could talk more about it later, possibly, and thankfully the waiter appeared before he had a chance to put his foot in his mouth. For some reason, Tess had always been more immune to his charms than anyone else, or at least she was more able to see through it when she wanted to. for now though, she was back in his life and that was the most important part. The rest would just fall into place. It always did. He ordered the red wine braised beef short ribs, managing a polite tone despite the fact that he didn’t particularly care for the man waiting on them. In response to her foot against his ankle, Kevin widened his legs just slightly and nudged her foot with his own. The waiter left and Kevin didn’t waste any time picking up the conversation. “What’s this work you’re doing then? What you wanted, or just something to get by until something better comes along?” “Oh, just something to help pay the bills.” Truth be told, Tess wasn’t sure what she wanted. Going back to school had been something to accomplish, something to prove. But when she was done she had no inkling in any real direction and it was luck that landed her a job to help pay off those student loans. “I’m working with my brother,” she started before a wide grin bloomed across her face, tongue tracing the edge of teeth. There had only been two girls – well two girls who stayed – in Tess’ family and some of her brothers had been a protective sort, which she was sure Kevin remembered. She let that sink in for several moments before she threw him a bone. “You haven’t met this one, though. He doesn’t know about you.” His nudge demanded another one of her own, and she grinned as she took another long sip of her wine before glancing around for any of the wait staff nearby. “So why do you want to murder our waiter? And don’t deny it. You’re very grr tonight.” Kevin scrunched up his nose in distaste. “Your brother?” he asked, more than a little unthrilled at the prospect of being taken in an alley and beaten up for cheating on Tess. Not that he didn’t deserve it, it just wasn’t all that high on his ‘Things to do in Vegas’ list. Thankfully, she was kind enough to mention that this brother didn’t seem to know about him and he grinned, obviously relieved about that. His tone was teasing as he asked, “So who else doesn’t know about me?” It was his roundabout way of asking if he needed to watch his step with anyone. He just thanked his lucky stars that he’d not seen hide nor hair of the redhead since the day Tess found him with her. That would just make things grossly uncomfortable. Her nudge was returned with a very casual caress from her ankle to calf with the top of his shoe and he winked at her across the table. Oh, this was great fun and he was glad she’d agreed. “I thought you liked it when I was grr,” Kevin replied, leaning forward again with his elbows on the table and his chin propped up on his knuckles. “I distinctly remember there was a like for the grr.” And now he wished they were sitting next to each other instead of across, wanting to touch her and tease her and remind her just how good they could be together. Tess could spot that tactic a mile away. Though Louis and Iris knew nothing about her ex-husband, unless Sam told them, they might in the future. She didn’t know her newly found siblings enough to get a feel if they were the protective type to handle Kevin themselves or hire someone to. So instead she shrugged, the thing strap of her dress falling off her shoulder once she relax. “That’ll be my little secret,” she added with a coy smirk before righting her dress and pouring herself more wine. But maybe more wine was a bad idea considering how cozy they were getting. Playing footsie under the table did little more than deepen her smirk, and she leaned forward as he did, voice lowering a touch as if imparting a great secret. “So?” The simple confirmation came with a little laugh. “Still doesn’t explain why you’re acting like the waiter owes you money.” For his part, his eyes drifted only briefly from her face to her shoulder and his gaze was on her before she even finished putting the unruly and ever so kind strap back in its place. He didn’t even recall the many times he stood behind her, his fingers helping along the straps of her dress, of her bra, running his fingers over the smooth skin of her shoulder. No, he wasn’t thinking about that. He was thinking about that coy smirk and her keeping secrets. “Fine, fine. Keep your secrets. Be mysterious.” Kevin was almost pouting. “Secrets look good on you, though. Guess I can’t complain too much.” There was a returning smirk with that one, and amusement sparkling in his eyes. He doubted her siblings could do any worse than Harley would no doubt get up to. Kevin’s smirk broke out into a wide, satisfied grin when she admitted that she had liked the grr. He also took it to mean that she still did, particularly if the footsie and smirks were any indication. “Like I’d borrow money from a waiter,” he countered, the ‘pft’ written clear across his face. “Just don’t like him. I’m allowed to not like people, right?” Like he was going to admit that he didn’t like the way the waiter was making eyes at Tess. He knew most of his tells too, so he carefully constructed his body language and facial expression so that she couldn’t easily read that small bit of information. “Why are you so curious about the way I’m looking at him?” Tess merely basked in the compliments, mock mirroring his pout and before taking a sip of her wine. “Sure you can hate, if there’s a reason. But I haven’t seen any so I’m curious. He hasn’t done anything but be nice to me.” She regarded him with a cool look, brow quirking as she set down her drink and her two hands, palms flat on the table, as if to give weight to an upcoming question. “Jealous?” Though he was hiding all the signs, an air of nonchalance brewing about him, Tess couldn’t help but throw in a small tease. It was merely for conversation, never mind how close or far she was to the mark. Kevin dropped his hands so that they were resting in the crooks of the opposite elbows, causing him to lean forward just a fraction of an inch more but it was more teasing than flirting, like two old friends instead of ex-lovers. “Hardly,” he replied, looking her square in the eyes. His inner-Kevin was jumping up and down, waving his hands wildly in the air, shouting ‘Yes! Yes! A thousand times yes!’ but Kevin was ignoring him. Inner-Kevin was way more annoying than Harley was and he wasn’t so sure which one he’d rather deal with. “He’s not even your type. If I was going to be jealous, it’d be over someone who actually had a shot.” He turned the question right back on her, a curious smirk on his lips. “Why? Want me to be jealous?” She laughed softly when he reminded her that the waiter wasn’t her type. Of course he wasn’t. He was cowering from a frosty glare of a stranger. She liked a lot more spine than that. But she wasn't about to freely admit that, not when Kevin was challenging her and the urge to meet it headlong was high. “If I wanted you jealous, it could be easily done.” She wasn’t sure if he had seen any news of her partying around town. Pretty she might be, she wasn’t some famous socialite, and celebrating in the exclusive company of her sister’s rich “roommate” would only get her name so far. And that idea had been put into motion long before she had drinks with her ex, and before she agreed to have dinner. That didn’t even take into account the occasional date she had. He grinned when she laughed, counting it a victory and it was something he could still do even after all this time. "Uh huh. Sure," came his mock disbelief. He didn't doubt for a second that she could, but that street went both ways, didn't it? Kevin wasn't so sure he really wanted to test her, but it could end well. Or it could blow up in your face moron, came inner-Kevin's voice. "I guess it's a good thing you haven't got Pinnochio. Wouldn't want his nose growin every time you told a lie," he teased, smirking. Unfortunately, the waiter with the worst timing ever decided to bring them their food just then. He also made the mistake of setting Kevin's dish down first, which resulted in him getting another pointed look. Kevin almost felt bad. Almost. The thought of her nose growing made her set her wine glass down, two hands covering her face as she sheepishly looked up at the waiter and his interruption. She could easily see the glare Kevin gave and she gave him a swift nudge with her foot, the point of her shoe poking his calf, as she set her hands down on the table, flashing the other man a flirty smile and cooing her thanks. She might have seen a flattered grin sent in her direction and she kept her coy expression firmly in place even as he left their table. “So now that you know who you have, does that change anything? About you staying in Vegas?” She kept her tone cool, neutral, seemingly not caring either way on his answer as she cut into her food. Kevin laughed, obviously amused when she covered her face. “Your nose is perfect, Tess. Stop your worrying,” he replied, teasing her for even worrying about her nose in the first place. She was too cute sometimes. The nudge he got made him frown at her and that frown nearly turned into a scowl with the was she was flirting with the waiter. He had to remind himself that he wasn’t jealous of the stupid waiter and a carefully neutral expression was firmly in place by the time the man left their table. Her question had him looking at her, trying to discern whether or not she cared if he stayed. Honestly, having Harley in his head probably should’ve been an automatic ‘leave Vegas’ sign, but Tess changed things. At the very least, Vegas presented a chance to try and make it up to her, or at least not make it worse. Kevin shrugged. “Not really. It probably should, but it doesn’t. I need to stay long enough to get the funds to leave anyway. Puts me here at least another couple weeks, maybe more depending on how it goes.” She could take that they whatever way she wanted. He started in on his short ribs after that. Kevin hadn’t taken the bait, remaining unimpressed and unbothered by her flirting and that was fine, and she certainly paid no attention to the the harder-than-intended cut into her salmon. She was quiet as he spoke, seeing that nonchalant shrug of his, meeting her even tones and gave a half hearted frown before she took her first bite, stern expression melting away into a satisfied smile from the dinner. That took care of the knife edge irritation and when she regarded the man across from her with some warmth again. “Still going to slum it at Excalibur?” Even though he noticed the way she cut her salmon, he pretended not to. Jealousy between the two of them had to be a good sign, right? Well, or a really bad one, but they were always two extremes, weren’t they? Kevin busied himself with his short ribs, a similarly satisfied smile on his face to replace the slight concern he had over Harley being around. “Dunno. It’s cheap, but not the cheapest. Figure if there’s a month to month place to rent, that might work better.” He regarded her for a moment. “You wouldn’t happen to know anywhere that’s fairly cheap, would you?” Kevin could understand her not suggesting where she lived, since she probably didn’t want him that close, but she had probably looked at a few places before settling wherever she was living now. He finished the wine in his glass and poured himself some more from the bottle that had been left at their table. “Freemont’s got a few places,” she replied, the night of wine loosening her tongue. She did manage to catch herself before she rattled off the name of her apartment complex. “At least I think they do.” She wasn’t about to tell him and even if she asked that he not move there, she had no right to and he might just do it to get under her skin. Instead she kept it vague, “Month to month or week to week, you’ll find something. How’s your meal?” Maybe changing the subject would help. “Right, cool. Thanks,” he replied easily, seemingly brushing off the name. He’d find something, certainly. It was what he did. How many times had they just found a new city on a whim and had a roof over their heads that evening? Sometimes it was hotels, other times it was vacation homes and week to week rentals. He survived, but it was nice to have the rec. He’d check it out and see where it led. There wasn’t any harm in that. A soundless chuckle came to his lips at the not so subtle change of subject. “Delicious. Yours?” And he oh so casually refilled her wine glass before Mr Charmer over there could even think about coming over to do it himself. She was sure he’d land on his feet, he always had, when they were together and when they weren’t. Of course he could easily fall in with certain crowd, charming the right people or the right woman. The thought crossed her mind but before the frown truly settled he was filling up her glass once more. “Wonderful,” she said of her salmon before turning an almost admonishing look to him, nearly ruined by the playful glint in her eyes. “Kev, are you trying to get me drunk?” "Good," he replied warmly, when she said her salmon was wonderful. It was the least he could do. Kevin looked at her with mock surprise and innocence. "Me? Get you drunk?" He paused for effect, setting the bottle down and taking another bite of his short ribs before leaning in. "I don't know...Is it working?" There was a playful smile on his lips as his toe nudged hers. Wine usually helped but he wasn't so sure a bottle could make her forget that day five years ago. Maybe it could help her remember the good times, the nights they'd stayed up over bottles of wine and just talked. “Maybe,” she replied coyly, drawing the word out before taking a drink. Her thoughts did indeed stray to better times. She would never forget, or really forgive, the slight that lead to their divorce but it wasn’t there at the forefront of her mind. Instead it was all the other times, in nice restaurants or cheap motels, expensive wine or cheap bottles. The old times hadn’t been all bad. “My tolerance is complete shit now. I don’t get drunk much anymore.” It had been nothing but a steady diet of work and school for so long that it was only in Vegas that she was finally remembering how to unwind. And the steady stream of drinks were helping her along a bit. “But you won’t let anything bad happen to me when I’m like this, will you.” Maybe was probably one of Kevin's favorite words. It was a yes disguised as a no as far as he was concerned and when it came from Tess? There was almost always a good time that followed. "Is that so? I guess that means you're cut off for awhile," he teased, though it didn't mean much because the bottle had just about a glass left in it. Instead of replying further right away, Kevin busied himself with his short ribs. "Course not," he said after he finished chewing. He accompanied that with another nudge of his foot. Suddenly, it seemed a lot more likely that they'd be able to continue their evening after dinner. "Never would," he added, his own tongue loosening with the wine. "You know, I distinctly remember something about dancing after drinking but I can't remember if it was you who insisted that, or me." Oh that was a bad idea, an absolutely terrible idea, but it was hard to resist his smiles and the nostalgia’s pull. “Does it matter,” she asked over the rim of her glass. Still, she had some of her wits about her, reminding her that maybe indulging too much fun with her ex was a bad idea. “One dance, though,” she replied almost solemnly, a slow nod of her head to show she was serious, even as her foot nudged his. “And then I’ll have to head home before I turn into a pumpkin.” “Not at all. Just pointing it out,” Kevin replied with a light smirk, hidden partially behind his glass of wine. He’d take what he could get and honestly, it wasn’t like one little dance would be the end of the world. His smile was genuine when she agreed and he laughed. “Is that a not so subtle way of saying you’ve got Cinderella? Or did you just want glass slippers?” He was thinking mostly of Disney’s tale, of a rags to riches kind of story and he could see Tess like that. “Eat up then,” he teased, giving her another nudge. “Wouldn’t want you turning into a pumpkin and all.” “Please,” she scoffed, though if she had heard his train of thought she would have agreed. Cinderella was more up her alley but neither of them were much like their head cases, not that he would know it. His insistence that she hurry made her turn up her nose, mock indignation running through her as she slowly, oh so slowly, cut into her food. “Wouldn’t want you missing your dance, you mean.” Just for that, Tess was going to take her sweet time. Kevin just laughed. It was like there wasn’t five years and a mistake of a redhead between them. He was more than pleased that they were getting on so well and even if she didn’t have Cinderella in her head, he’d still find her glass slippers of some kind. It’d be fun. He’d just need to figure out where she lived without going through the tedious, not to mention creepy, process of stalking her. “I don’t know. I think the pumpkin turning happens after the dance. Bet if Cindy there hadn’t danced right away, she would’ve had more time at the ball.” With anyone else, he probably would’ve been in more of a rush to get them liquored up and dancing, but Tess was different. And she’d already promised him one dance, so if she took a little longer to eat, it would only prolong the time she was spending with him. “And who could blame me? Not wanting to miss a dance with you,” he teased, not so much as an ex-lover but as someone interested in her flirtatiously. “Wouldn’t want you giving it away to penguin over there,” Kevin added, good naturedly mocking the waiter. Tess scoffed, lips turning into a pout as she stole a glance over at the waiter currently helping a nearby table. “You’re terrible,” she teased, though she was hard pressed to act like she didn’t enjoy the attention. “Just for that, I’m going to be extra nice to him when he comes on back.” “But you love it, Tess, and I wouldn’t expect anything less from you.” |