This dinner was a bubble of lightheartedness, and Vaughn felt incredibly out of place. She was the cold steel that threatened to pop everything if she didn't move with extreme caution. The smiles and the jokes left her feeling anxious, a little out of practice with the concept of friendly. It's been awhile since she hasn't been looking over her shoulder every five minutes.
"Yeah, smells great," she lamely responded. Vaughn was drowning here. She quickly took up her glass of wine from the counter's edge for distraction.