Before he'd left her on Saturday evening, Daniel made plans with Lelah to meet her at Teas N' Tomes for coffee.? There wasn't enough time for any kind of formal date; it was more just an hour or so chat with a friend.? She did, however, invite him over for dinner on Thursday night, dinner that she would cook.? He readily accepted, of course.? She was an intriguing and highly attractive woman, after all, and he wanted desperately to come back to something resembling a normal life.?
Between Monday and Thursday, he spent a great deal of time talking with Riley and David.? Catching up on the past, what had gone on since he left RhyDin.? News of David's murderous alternate universe counterpart Luo had left him wondering if everyone had counterparts like that.? He told them stories about his time in Burma, avoiding the worst of them, though, the ones that were so full of bad memories.? Their account of the time in the wrong Japan was fascinating and lead to even more speculation about whether or not they all had other universes versions of themselves. He visited Riley's dance classes, and David's baguazhang classes, and spent some time in the Bodhi tree catching up with Anisha, who had been very happy to see him back in town.
When Thursday evening finally came, he dressed in a pair of navy blue cargo shorts and a blue t-shirt featuring a battle between Dracula and the Wolfman on it, and went out to the Marketplace to pick up some flowers to bring to Lelah.? Something exotic, he decided.? He'd seen tulips all over her place, but a Cat couldn't just go along with the crowd blindly.? He wanted to stand out, to bring her something different.? Eventually, he settled on blue Himalayan poppies; simply, yet lovely flowers.? He had them put into a glass vase that he thought would go well on her dining room table.? Then he bought a six-pack of good Windhoek lager to go with their meal.? Ready now, he went out to the carriage house.
When 7:45 rolled around, Lelah checked her appearance one last time in the mirror in the living room.? She'd chosen khaki linen shorts, and a halter top with a brown and red floral print that left her back bare to her waist.? Going with artfully minimal makeup, she'd pulled her hair up and fastened it in a ponytail, further underscoring the curves of tawny bare skin of her shoulders and spine.? Then she went to pull out the tarte au pistou from the oven, light some candles, and give Oscar a bone to chew contentedly in her bedroom...with the door shut.
Agonizing for approximately ten minutes over what music to play, she finally went with Azam Ali's bands Vas and Niyaz, putting the three dics in the changer, turning the volume down to a soft level and putting shuffle mode on.? Then she took a deep breath and forced herself to relax.? It was just a date.? She'd been on plenty of dates.? She could do this and not utterly freak out or turn into a hormonally driven nymphomaniac.
At 7:55, he knocked on her front door, carrying vase in one hand, and the six-pack tucked under his arm.? With his free hand, he smoothed his hair back while he waited for her to answer.? He was curious to find out what exactly she'd be cooking for them; she'd only said something French, and recommended lager to go with it.? Through the closed door, he could hear music playing softly, a lovely-voiced woman singing something that sounded very Arabic.?
She opened the door and released the scents of chicken, sausage, bacon, tomatoes, onions, and beans, mixed with herbs and pastry crust.? Giving Daniel a big smile, she glanced between his shirt, which was funny, the beer under his arm, and the flowers, which were stunningly beautiful in their simplicity.? "Hi," she said and stepped back, giving him room to enter.
His nostrils flared slightly as the delicious wave of flavors rolled out from the door, almost eclipsing her own scent, which tonight was composed of bergamot, rose, vanilla, and balsam.? He like the way she smelled every time they met, especially that orange hint which was always present.? His eyes traveled slowly across the deliciously bare skin of her shoulders and leg, enjoying the tawny color of her, and the smooth, very female curves.? Leopard growled his appreciation in the background, and he stepped forward to brush his cheek against hers with a soft purr before offering her the vase of flowers.? "Hello yourself," he said, smiling back.? Two weeks in RhyDin without much worry had done wonders for his demeanor:? Much of the haunted, hunted look had left his posture, leaving him looking casual and almost relaxed.
She took the flowers with a soft, grateful smile and went to put them on the table.? "These are gorgeous.? I don't think I've ever seen blue poppies before."? She arranged the flowers and then glanced up at him.? "They are poppies, right?"
"Yes, Himalayan poppies.? They grow in the park in India where I was born."? He stood close enough for his shoulder to press against hers as he continued.? "They're exotic and beautiful...just like you."
That brought a flush to her cheeks and she kissed his mouth softly, almost chastely, before pulling away and reaching for the beer.? "Want one of these now or with dinner?" she asked, moving away to the kitchen to check on the cassoulet that was still in the oven.
He forced himself to respond to her kiss in just as restrained a manner, knowing that it would only lead to more awkwardness if he let his control slip even a little.? "I'll wait for dinner, I think.? It smells divine, by the way."?
"It's all simple, French country cuisine.? We'll start with a tarte au pistou, then a chicken and sausage cassoulet - because I didn't like the look of the duck at the butcher's today - then a creme caramel for dessert."? The cassoulet was just about ready so she turned off the oven so it wouldn't burn if she got...distracted.? "Does that sound good?"
Between Monday and Thursday, he spent a great deal of time talking with Riley and David.? Catching up on the past, what had gone on since he left RhyDin.? News of David's murderous alternate universe counterpart Luo had left him wondering if everyone had counterparts like that.? He told them stories about his time in Burma, avoiding the worst of them, though, the ones that were so full of bad memories.? Their account of the time in the wrong Japan was fascinating and lead to even more speculation about whether or not they all had other universes versions of themselves. He visited Riley's dance classes, and David's baguazhang classes, and spent some time in the Bodhi tree catching up with Anisha, who had been very happy to see him back in town.
When Thursday evening finally came, he dressed in a pair of navy blue cargo shorts and a blue t-shirt featuring a battle between Dracula and the Wolfman on it, and went out to the Marketplace to pick up some flowers to bring to Lelah.? Something exotic, he decided.? He'd seen tulips all over her place, but a Cat couldn't just go along with the crowd blindly.? He wanted to stand out, to bring her something different.? Eventually, he settled on blue Himalayan poppies; simply, yet lovely flowers.? He had them put into a glass vase that he thought would go well on her dining room table.? Then he bought a six-pack of good Windhoek lager to go with their meal.? Ready now, he went out to the carriage house.
When 7:45 rolled around, Lelah checked her appearance one last time in the mirror in the living room.? She'd chosen khaki linen shorts, and a halter top with a brown and red floral print that left her back bare to her waist.? Going with artfully minimal makeup, she'd pulled her hair up and fastened it in a ponytail, further underscoring the curves of tawny bare skin of her shoulders and spine.? Then she went to pull out the tarte au pistou from the oven, light some candles, and give Oscar a bone to chew contentedly in her bedroom...with the door shut.
Agonizing for approximately ten minutes over what music to play, she finally went with Azam Ali's bands Vas and Niyaz, putting the three dics in the changer, turning the volume down to a soft level and putting shuffle mode on.? Then she took a deep breath and forced herself to relax.? It was just a date.? She'd been on plenty of dates.? She could do this and not utterly freak out or turn into a hormonally driven nymphomaniac.
At 7:55, he knocked on her front door, carrying vase in one hand, and the six-pack tucked under his arm.? With his free hand, he smoothed his hair back while he waited for her to answer.? He was curious to find out what exactly she'd be cooking for them; she'd only said something French, and recommended lager to go with it.? Through the closed door, he could hear music playing softly, a lovely-voiced woman singing something that sounded very Arabic.?
She opened the door and released the scents of chicken, sausage, bacon, tomatoes, onions, and beans, mixed with herbs and pastry crust.? Giving Daniel a big smile, she glanced between his shirt, which was funny, the beer under his arm, and the flowers, which were stunningly beautiful in their simplicity.? "Hi," she said and stepped back, giving him room to enter.
His nostrils flared slightly as the delicious wave of flavors rolled out from the door, almost eclipsing her own scent, which tonight was composed of bergamot, rose, vanilla, and balsam.? He like the way she smelled every time they met, especially that orange hint which was always present.? His eyes traveled slowly across the deliciously bare skin of her shoulders and leg, enjoying the tawny color of her, and the smooth, very female curves.? Leopard growled his appreciation in the background, and he stepped forward to brush his cheek against hers with a soft purr before offering her the vase of flowers.? "Hello yourself," he said, smiling back.? Two weeks in RhyDin without much worry had done wonders for his demeanor:? Much of the haunted, hunted look had left his posture, leaving him looking casual and almost relaxed.
She took the flowers with a soft, grateful smile and went to put them on the table.? "These are gorgeous.? I don't think I've ever seen blue poppies before."? She arranged the flowers and then glanced up at him.? "They are poppies, right?"
"Yes, Himalayan poppies.? They grow in the park in India where I was born."? He stood close enough for his shoulder to press against hers as he continued.? "They're exotic and beautiful...just like you."
That brought a flush to her cheeks and she kissed his mouth softly, almost chastely, before pulling away and reaching for the beer.? "Want one of these now or with dinner?" she asked, moving away to the kitchen to check on the cassoulet that was still in the oven.
He forced himself to respond to her kiss in just as restrained a manner, knowing that it would only lead to more awkwardness if he let his control slip even a little.? "I'll wait for dinner, I think.? It smells divine, by the way."?
"It's all simple, French country cuisine.? We'll start with a tarte au pistou, then a chicken and sausage cassoulet - because I didn't like the look of the duck at the butcher's today - then a creme caramel for dessert."? The cassoulet was just about ready so she turned off the oven so it wouldn't burn if she got...distracted.? "Does that sound good?"