Music, Food, and Conversation

Posted on Mon May 6th, 2019 @ 12:03am by Brigadier General Nathan Wolf & Civillian Selyna Braeden

Mission: Interlude 1
Location: Cheyenne Mountain + Nathan's Off Base Quarters
Timeline: Current (Interlude 1)

Nathan was still wearing the OCP (Operational Camouflage Pattern) uniform he'd authorized for base wear except where Class As were required. It was more comfortable and less costly to clean if it got dirty and if you had to slug through the snow to get to work, you didn't have to worry about trashing your Class A's. He'd gotten an after action report from Jake and he'd get more information from the others later. OSI wanted to talk to the team individually, but they wanted time to see what they could find out about the CDC personnel first. So that meant that Nathan had time to honor that offer to Selyna of dinner and music at his place. It was about six in the evening, so she'd been back about six hours and if the report was right, up for twelve. She might be too tired to play music with him, but at least he could offer her food, wine, good music, and company he hoped she'd enjoy. He had an extra bedroom, so he could offer her a more comfortable place to crash than her quarters in the mountain, for the night or for the weekend. He wouldn't say no to sharing his bed with her, but he wasn't going to presume. And if she said she was too tired tonight, the team had at least a week of light duty on the base so maybe they could plan for another night.

Nathan walked up to Selyna's quarters and knocked on the door.

The first thing Selyna had done upon return to the base (except for the required protocols) was take a shower. She was used to being in classrooms or laboratories all day, not being zapped unconscious by artifact-stealing aliens or slowly regressed to her childhood by said artifact. This was going to take some getting used to, this new life path she'd chosen. It was stressful and terrifying and, frankly, messy. But it was all worth it, she told herself, because they were protecting the rest of Humanity from malevolent alien forces. Still, she felt like she could sleep for a week, providing that what she'd just experienced (well, six hours ago anyway) didn't haunt her dreams. No, what she really wanted was to not think about any of it for a few hours. Maybe she could find General Wolf and ask him about that dinner he'd promised her.

No, she decided, that would be rude. Yes, he had offered it, but he had not said when. And Selyna had been raised better than to invite herself anywhere. So she settled for the long, hot shower and sitting in her bathrobe, brushing her long hair dry... until the knock on the door dragged her out of the weird, half-drowsy hair-brushing and made her blink. Was she expecting someone? Had she made plans she'd forgotten about? Might be a good idea to answer it, she told herself, setting down the brush and moving to open the door... only to find herself face to... chest... with the very General she had been thinking about.

A wave of embarrassment washed over her as she both realized that she had been thinking about him and that she was standing there in a bathrobe, hair all down. "Um... hi." she offered lamely.

Nathan smiled. "Hi," he said. "This is where I show I'm a well mannered, mature guy, as opposed to a sex-obsessed 18 year old kid, by apologizing for showing up without warning and offering to give you a minute to get dressed if you'd like, before telling you I'm here to honor that offer to come to my place for dinner."

Selyna couldn't help it; she laughed, though the sound was soft. Then she realized how that must have seemed to him and looked embarrassed again. "Sorry. I wasn't laughing at you; I promise. It's just that I was thinking about that a few minutes ago, then here you are." She chuckled again, then looked down at herself as the rest of what he had said sank in. "Shit..." she muttered, finally remembering she was standing here in her robe. Her eyes came back to Wolf. "Um... yeah... getting dressed is probably a good idea." she said with a small smile. "Won't take me long, though. Promise. Then I would love to join you for that dinner and music!"

"Okay," Nathan said. "Take your time. I'll be here. And, huh, I'm not sure there's a way for me to suggest this couldn't be mistaken for creepy or at least too forward, or not forward enough, but... If you want to pack a bag, I've got an extra bedroom you can sleep in tonight so we don't have to drive back here tonight. The bed's more comfortable than here and you're not required here tomorrow, so you can sleep in if you want."

Selyna had been about to close the door so she could get dressed, but what he said made her pause and blink. She wasn't entirely sure how to read the offer, and she was tired. So she decided to take it at face value, take his words for what they had said, not what they could have meant. "Thank you." she said after a pause and some thought. The idea of a real bed again made her smile. "These bunks are a bit uncomfortable." she admitted, but stopped there lest she ramble. "Five minutes to dress, then I'll get a bag." She grinned at him and closed the door.

Five minutes later, she opened the door, smiling. Her hair was pulled into a ponytail, and she was wearing black slacks and a deep blue faux turtleneck. Her shoes were a black ankle boot with a short heel. "Come on in if you want while I pack?" she offered, stepping aside to allow him to enter if he chose.

"Sure," Nathan said. "You look nice. Selyna, I know this mission was rough. If there's anything you want or need to talk about, I'm not a half bad listener."

She smiled warmly, feeling very complimented. "Thank you." she said as she moved away, after closing the door, to pack. "I'm very grateful for the offer, too. I'm... not used to places like this." she admitted, having heard his offer to listen and therefore not stopped herself. "This place is so... utilitarian." A small smile played at the corners of her mouth to indicate that she wasn't really complaining so much as expressing a thought.

As she talked, she took some clothes out of the small dresser unit and put them neatly into a rolling suitcase. She hated duffel bags as they were all fabrics and could, therefore be more easily damaged than a good, hard-sided case. She followed those with her toiletries and small makeup case. "I'm not sure how you military types do it, sleep on these hard-as-rock mattresses." she half-joked, pausing and looking at him, studying him for a moment. "Please don't think I'm complaining; that's not really what this is. I'm just... well, you said anything." she finished lamely with a small shrug before finishing the packing and closing the case. "Sorry... I guess that was a bit much."

"Not at all," Nathan said. "I did say you could talk to me and I agree with everything you just said. I only sleep here when I have to. You'll have about a week of light duty before we send people out again, and I may not send everyone this time. So you should have at least a little time to start looking for a place to live off-base. Ready to go?"

Selyna nodded, lifting the suitcase off the bed and setting it on the floor on its rollers. Raising its handle, she grinned. "More than ready." she answered. "As to finding a place, I know you told me once who I needed to talk to for help, but I... I'm embarrassed to say I don't remember now."

"We have someone who helps people assigned to Project New Dawn with finding off-base housing," Nathan said. "I'll have them give you a call on Monday." Nathan put on his coat and led the way through the corridors to the elevators and up to the car park. He put on his red Special Tactics beret once they were in the car park. He knew he should put on a real winter hat, but he had so few opportunities to wear the damned thing these days. He'd busted his ass to earn the right to wear the beret, and he would be damned if he wasn't going to wear it every chance he got. He led Selyna to his car. He put her bag in the back and then opened the passenger door for her. Once they were both in, he set his SirusXM to playing the Classic Jazz channel, just loud enough to be relaxing without hindering conversation. "Here we go," he said as he pulled out of the lot and off the base and headed into Colorado Springs.

As Selyna followed Nathan, she thought to herself that he was strikingly handsome. When he added the red beret, she smiled slightly. It looked smart on him, and she considered telling him so, but he distracted her with his chivalry, and she was totally charmed! "I see chivalry isn't quite dead yet. Thank you." she said as she got into the car and buckled her seat belt.

As they pulled out, she smiled at his choice in music. "That's another thing I miss on base." she commented softly. "We can't get the SiriusXM signal in there. Which, to me, seems really odd since we get all kinds of other satellite signals." she commented with a soft chuckle. As he drove, she glanced over and was caught again by the handsome profile and smiled. "I like the beret. It looks very smart on you. Is that a sign of special unit... like the Army and their Green Berets?" She hoped that her curiosity didn't sound stupid to him or annoy him, but he was so approachable that she thought she could take the chance on asking some of her more... mundane questions.

Nathan grinned. "Yes," Nathan said. "I started out as what used to be called a Combat Control Officer. Basically, my job was to lead teams into what we call denied areas, enemy controlled areas, in advance of air strikes. My team would then act as on scene air traffic controllers, making sure there were no mid-air collisions or friendly fire incidents. Sometimes we would guide in air strikes on specific targets. They combined that career field in with Special Operations Weather Officer to make Special Tactics Officer a little while back. The weather jumpers performed a similar job, but involving advising pilots and commanders of local weather conditions. Most of the US Air Force people you'll see on the teams are Special Tactics Officers, Combat Controllers, Special Operations Weather Technicians, Pararescue, and we've got some Tactical Air Control Party guys as well. Basically, Special Tactics and Special Operations personnel."

She listened carefully, trying to commit it all to memory but knowing she would fail given her state of exhaustion. She did have to chuckle at the random thought that crossed her mind at the end of that. "Wow... now I feel kind of under-qualified." she joked lightly.

"Nah," Nathan said, then he looked horrified. "Wait, I'm absolutely NOT saying 'don't worry Little Lady' or anything demeaning like that! Whew, that was close. Okay, what I mean to say is that we all have our contributions to make. When there's a problem requiring the help of an astrophysicist or even a physicist or anything else you've had training in, I'm sure Jake and the other people on the team are going to feel woefully inadequate themselves. I know I would. How I managed to get through not only Combat Control Officer's School, but also Joint Terminal Attack Controller school with my mediocre math skills, I have no idea. When I started that part of my training I discovered I could suddenly do math in my head and keep track of what aircraft and what ground forces were where, how fast they were all moving, where they would all be at any given time. I'd never been able to do that before. But ask me to explain all of that outside of the context of my job back then? No way. I couldn't do it."

Selyna chuckled softly. "Relax. I was teasing. I'm completely fine with it. We all do have our skill sets. Some situations will call for theirs and others for mine." She thought about his talk of math and how he couldn't do it until he went to his military training. A frown slid over her features as she thought through it. "It might have something to do with the way you think on a very core level. When you see it as science or math, it sets off something in your head that refuses to compute it. But when you see it as strategy and tactics and protecting, then your brain releases the aversion to it, re-frames it in a way, to allow you to calculate it more easily." She was theorizing only, and it came throiuggh in her tone and expression. She was not assuming any of this about him but rather trying to give him a plausible psychological reason for it. Of course, her skills weren't in psychology, so she could be way off base too. "Either way," she added, releasing the thought and continuing the conversation, "I understand what you mean. And I didn't hear any sort of demeaning in your voice. There's a tone that accompanies that usually." she assured with a smile.

"I'm glad," Nathan said. "I really try to avoid the whole 'caveman' attitude that a lot of operators have. It doesn't really suit me I don't think. And I never thought of my experience with math and science in that way before. That's a very interesting idea. You sure you're an astrophysicist and not an astropsychologist?"

She shook her head. "It wouldn't suit you. You're too much of a gentleman for that." she complimented, chuckling at his question. "Is that even a thing?" she teased. "But no, I'm not. It just seemed to make sense of the seemingly random occurrence, the underlying order beneath the seeming chaos." she explained.

"I would think finding order in the random chaos sounds like a good job description for an astrophysicist," Nathan said. "There's a lot of stuff out there for you to make sense of, working from what I'm guessing are a lot of unknowns."

Selyna smiled. He got it! "Very true. Most of what we have to work with is theories which are, of course, based on assumptions. There is very little way to test those theories, though. So, yeah... lots of unknowns. We spend a lot of time guessing at why the things we can observe behave the way they do and creating formulas to explain our guesses." She smirked, her expression becoming playful. "This is the real reason we write equations no one else can make heads or tails of." she joked.

Nathan laughed. "I knew it!" he said. "I knew you scientists were hiding something! How wonderfully sly of all of you!"

Nathan pulled into an upper middle class neighborhood and up to the driveway of a nice house, comfortable looking, maybe a little too big for him alone, maybe not, depending on what he had done with the place. He pulled into the attached garage and shut off the car, shutting the garage door behind him. He grabbed Selyna's bag from the back seat and then went around and opened Selyna's door and offered his hand to help her out of the car.

She had been so busy admiring the house that she hadn't really noticed they'd stopped... until he opened her door. She blinked up at him, then grinned. "Such a gentleman. Thank you, kind sir." she said with a grin as she took his hand and allowed him to help her out of the car even though she didn't need any help. It was just so nice to be treated like a lady and not a piece of lab equipment or a soldier. She really hoped he kept doing these things even after the 'new' wore off. "Nice house." she complimented, considering whether she should take her own bag or let him do it. She opted to leave it be and let him be the gentleman he was demonstrating himself to be. Yeah, don't discourage that! she thought to herself.

"Thank you," Nathan said. "It's a little big for just me, but this star on my shoulder means that I may have to entertain and I got a good deal with my military status and my housing allowance and food stipend help a lot, so it's manageable." He opened the door, which led into a 'mud' room. He took Selyna's coat and hung it up and removed his own and did the same, then removed his boots and put on a pair of moccasins, which probably looked ridiculous with his OCPs. "Come on in and have a seat. Can I get you something to drink? Water? Wine? Something harder? I'll get that for you, get a fire started, then take your bag upstairs, then get changed, and I'll do this all in record time in order to impress the Hell out of you."

Selyna chuckled. She knew he was being playful, but it still charmed her. She took her own shoes off, seeing that he had and guessing it was the way he preferred it, no shoes on his carpets. That didn't really bother her. Back when she'd had a house, she'd pretty much walked around it bare-footed too. "Surprise me?" she said in answer to his question of drinks. She suspected from his gentlemanly ways so far that he wasn't the kind to purposely get her drunk. Besides, without knowing what he had, she couldn't really make an educated request.

The mention of making a fire made her smile. "You have a fireplace? I love sitting and watching the fire dance." That wasn't likely something she should have said just then, but it was said now, so she let it stand.

"Well," Nathan said. "It's cold so... mulled wine? Yeah, that'll do the trick. Let me just get it started, then it can just simmer while I get cleaned up." Nathan started gathering the supplies he'd need. A bottle of red wine, nothing to fancy is the flavors would come mostly from what he added to it. He poured the bottle into a medium sized saucepan on the stove but didn't turn it on yet. He sliced a few clementines and gently dropped them in, then tossed in some cinnamon sticks and a few cloves. He put a little honey in, then, as a final ingredient, poured a bit of brandy into the mix. Then he turned the heat on low and started stirring. "I can just stir it till the honey and brandy mix in and then it can just simmer. If you can just make sure it doesn't burn or anything, this will be perfect for cold February night."

Selyna smiled, watching him work. It was somehow pleasant to watch a man so comfortable in the kitchen. Approaching, she sniffed the mixture heating on the stove. "It smells good already." she commented. "Gonna be a bit of sweet torment to just stand here and stir." she joked lightly. "But sure, I can do that. Sadly, I;m not much of a cook, but I can do this much." Put her in a lab with complex equations to solve, and she was golden. Hand her a bunch of ingredients and tell her to make something, and she was lost.

Nathan chuckled. "Don't worry. This should be fine for the time it's going to take me to get cleaned up and changed. Back in a flash."

Nathan trotted upstairs, stripped, showered, and dressed, and was back in time to deal with the mulled wine on the stove. He came down the stairs wearing a pair of comfortable black jeans, a maroon long sleeved t-shirt, and a pair of black leather moccasins with thick natural colored leather soles and a tie on the side to close them. He'd picked them up on the Navajo reservation when in Arizona for desert training.

"Hey," Nathan said. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Let me take care of that." He turned the stove down as low as it would go so it would keep the wine warm until they finished it, then got out two mugs and a ladle and filled both of them. He gave one to Selyna. "There. Try that."

While he had been upstairs, she had watched the pot, stirring it occasionally to keep it from burning or scalding or whatever. When he returned, she couldn't help the smile that slid over her lips. The attire he'd chosen was very flattering on him, and she found the attraction she'd registered before stronger with this proximity and relaxed atmosphere. Or maybe it was just that she was more relaxed and allowing herself to really think about it. Either way, she grinned and stepped back, though not too far.

"I like that look on you." she complimented, motioning at his clothes before taking the offered mug and first sniffing then sipping lightly, trying to avoid burned-tongue syndrome. As the taste slid over her senses, she closed her eyes halfway. "Mmm" she murmured, though that had been wholly unintentional. Opening her eyes, she looked back at him. "Delicious. Where did you learn this recipe?" she asked, curious to know more about this intriguing man.

"My parents used to do things like this on cold nights," Nathan said. "You can do this with apple cider as well, and you either use alcohol or not, depending on who you're serving it to. They used to make the non-alcoholic version for me and for whatever friends I'd invited over. You can do mulled cider in 15 to 20 minutes, but it's best when it simmers for longer. The wine left on the stove now will also taste even better as we go through it." Nathan smiled and took a sip of his own wine. "Hmmm... That really hits the spot. Okay, dinner. If you're in the mood for dead red, as some of my more militant vegan friends called it, I've got a couple of steaks I need to cook tonight or tomorrow, and some russet and sweet potatoes, and some vegetables. If meat isn't your thing, I can make something like vegetarian lasagna pretty easily and quickly and we can sit, talk, drink, and listen to music while it bakes. I can think of something lighter if neither of those things appeals and I take requests so if you have something particular in mind, I'm open to suggestions."

Selyna chuckled at the description of steak. "No, the steak, potatoes and vegetables sounds perfect." she said with a grin. "I love that sort of thing. And if you want some help, I can follow instructions pretty well." she added, really enjoying this. "My family weren't really drinkers. Some of dad's military friends did, but mom always made two versions of some things, one with alcohol and one without, so I get it." She sipped the mulled wine again, letting the flavor swirl over her tongue for a moment before swallowing it. Her eyes never left Nathan though.

Nathan held Selyna's gaze for a moment, entranced by the look in her eyes, and smiled at her. "Um," he said, distracted by Selyna. "Right. Let me get everything out." He turned the oven and the broiler on, then grabbed a good sized russet potato and a good sized sweet potato and threw both in the oven. He took out the steaks and started seasoning them. "So... I'm thinking steamed broccoli with sliced garlic that's been sauteed in olive oil for a vegetable. Sound good to you?"

She had not missed the look in his eyes but chose not to mention it, though it did please her that he seemed to be caught by her too. Instead, she perched herself on one of the stools before the breakfast counter. If and when he needed or wanted her help, she would be happy to move into the kitchen. But for now, this afforded her an unhindered view of him working. "That actually sounds very good. Where did you learn to cook like this?"

"My parents again," Nathan said. "They were both pretty good in the kitchen and wanted to make sure I could fend for myself. Also, and this was surprising coming from my mother the arch feminist, they both insisted that I would impress women by cooking them dinner. At first, I just rolled my eyes at that. Then I developed a powerful crush on Monica Sorensen. It was fifth grade, so it was more emotional than physical, but nonetheless, there it was." Nathan took out the broccoli and cut it up, then started slicing garlic. "Every time I practiced cooking, I day dreamed about cooking her dinner in my own place and--I don't think I really knew what I wanted after that. I mean, I knew that sex existed. My parents divorced when I was four and my mother didn't exactly have hot and cold running boyfriends, but when she didn't want to sleep alone, she didn't have to. She liked sex. When it was good for her, I'm pretty sure the neighbors knew, so you can imagine that I could hear her. Anyway, Monica Sorensen moved to Mexico and I never saw her again. I was crushed. I got over it, of course, but I moped for a bit after she left. I'd been hoping we would go to Junior High and High School together. I knew that High School kids kissed and made out. I'd seen babysitters invite their boyfriends over and do that. I was hoping to make out with her someday." Nathan chuckled. "And that was my first romantic experience."

Selyna leaned on the counter between them, listening intently to his story. It wasn't that it was such an unusual story in and of itself; it was that it was his story. She was only marginally aware that her subconscious was pulling her in this direction, but that small awareness wasn't fighting it in the least. Rather, she found it charming, even sexy, that he not only knew how to cook but enjoyed doing so for someone. And she was flattered that, this time, it was her. And the story itself was one of those cute young people stories that prodigies often missed out on creating because they were too focused on their studies. In that sense, she almost envied him.

"That's sweet." she said with a smile after he'd finished. "I'm afraid my childhood wasn't quite so interesting." she admitted with a little chuckle, resting her chin on the backs of her hands which were folded before her, elbows on the counter. "I was a prodigy, so when I was that age, I was more fascinated with equations than boys. Though there was this boy who I thought was interesting. The problem was that he was a few years older than I was." She shrugged. "And he glazed over every time I talked to him, so..." She chuckled softly at herself. "But that was my fault really. I had no idea what you were supposed to talk to boys about, so I talked about what I knew, and he had the science interest of a rock. But I learned from that mistake, so I guess it's all good."

She realized suddenly that she was babbling and stopped talking, looking slightly embarrassed. "Sorry, didn't mean to ramble."

"Well," Nathan said. "My parents tried, but did not always succeed, to teach me to listen more than I talk and to ask more questions than I answer. So you can talk to me about whatever you want to talk to me about, and I'll do my best to keep up. You don't have to dumb yourself down for me. I like you the way you are."

Selyna's smile became warmer at the last statement. "As I do you." she said, that same warmth in her tones. "And I don't consider translating science-speak into normal-people-speak dumbing down. After all, most of the people who fund our work don't speak the lingo, so we have to make what we do make sense to them so they'll pay for it. But don't worry; I can talk about other things too. I mean, I enjoy my work, but there's more to life than work." She shifted slightly on the stool and sipped the mulled wine in her cup before continuing. Her tone when she did was softer, more... personal. "And I hope that I may make the same offer to you, that you can talk to me about anything you wish to."

Nathan smiled. "I'm glad," he said. "I'll try to take advantage of that offer without resorting to boring you to death with war stories." He put the steaks in the broiler and put the broccoli on to steam. Then he took out a small pan put the heat under it. He added some olive oil, then threw in the sliced garlic. He began to move the garlic around in the pan with a wooden spatula to keep it from burning. "So," he said. "If you want to talk about what you just went through, I'm all ears, said the Jack Rabbit. If you'd rather not think about it tonight, then I'd love to hear more about young, awkward, Selyna, and super smart college Selyna, and brilliant scientist Selyna, and any other version of you that you want to share with me."

What she'd just gone through. In some ways, she really didn't want to talk about it. Hell, she didn't really even want to think about it; but she was fairly sure it was going to creep up on her if she didn't get it out of herself. Still, was this really the time for those things? She sighed then put on a smile and shrugged. "I mostly hid behind one of the standing stones while the people with the big guns did what they do best." she said, trying to sound nonchalant. "What's to tell really?" Even she knew there was more to it than that, but she didn't really want to bring tonight's mood down.

For that reason, she pushed it aside and smiled. "I somehow doubt that your stories would bore me." she said with a smile that was genuine this time. "But I'll make you a deal. A story for a story. How's that?" Her eyes glittered as she looked over the rim of her cup at him.

Nathan smiled right back at Selyna... and almost forgot he had garlic on the stove. "Um, right," he said. "Yes. Deal. Story for a story. If I haven't said this, you have amazing eyes. I've almost drowned in them multiple times already this evening." They looked into each other's eyes a moment more and, after a moment's hesitation, Nathan reached out and gently cupped Selyna's cheek and smiled at her in a way that clearly suggested that if he wasn't on the verge of burning their dinner, he'd have done more. Then he quickly grabbed a bowl from a cabinet, put broccoli in it, and then poured the garlic and olive oil over the broccoli and mixed it in. He looked at the time, then retrieved the potatoes from the oven and the steaks from the broiler. He turned back to Selyna and smiled again. He was going to say something about dinner then stopped. He tried again, but it seemed those weren't the words that wanted to come out of his mouth. "You're a very beautiful woman, Selyna Braeden."

That touch, so gentle and tender, made her heart leap and made her forget whatever it had been that she had been about to say in response to his compliment. She held his gaze, blue eyes locked with intense green. She tilted her head ever so slightly into the touch, welcoming more, inviting it. When his hand moved away to tend to the food, its absence was as keenly felt as its presence had been. She found it hard to breathe, and her hands trembled slightly. She stopped the latter by closing them around the cup between them. But when he spoke again, she found herself caught in a flood of thoughts and feelings. She could see that his intention was not flattery but honest compliment, and it did more than just warm her heart. It set off a reaction that, in truth, she had no right to. "Th-thank you." she started softly, slowly standing and rounding the breakfast counter to stand beside him, reaching out to take something from him, help him carry the food to the table. "And you're very handsome, Nathan Wolf." she said, looking up at him, still into those gorgeous eyes, her smile softer now. As she reached for the bowl, her fingers brushed his, and she froze, breath catching for a second.

Selyna's touch sent shivers through Nathan's body, very, very enjoyable shivers. Every time Selyna looked at him with those lovely, smoldering eyes, Nathan had wanted to kiss her. He'd resisted the urge then, but it overwhelmed him now. He turned to face Selyna. Placing his hands on her hips, he guided her closer to him. When they were close enough, if that was even possible, he raised his hand to her cheek again, leaned in, and kissed her.

If she was honest with herself, she had wanted this since the first time they'd met -- there had been this almost electric spark that had surged through her at that time, but she'd pushed it all aside because even if it had not been improper thought, they hadn't known one another. They knew each other only slightly better now, but that no longer mattered. Propriety no longer mattered either. As he pulled her to him and kissed her, she felt her knees go weak and an exquisite shiver twist its way up from her tailbone to the base of her skull then back down. She put the bowl on the counter beside them with a slightly shaking hand and slid her arms about his waist, turning her head up toward him, welcoming the kiss, returning it with equal desire. Her eyes closed to half-mast -- they would have closed all the way except that she did not want to look away from his lovely green eyes, drinking in the look in them.

Nathan was, as mentioned, completely entranced by Selyna's eyes and also kept looking into them as long as he could, but as their kiss went on longer, he started closing his eyes and just enjoying the moment. He didn't really know how long they stood there kissing, but when they came up for air, they were both breathless. Nathan took a moment to get his breathing under control enough to speak. He smiled at Selyna. "If we keep at this, dinner is definitely going to get cold." He'd wanted to leave it at that and let Selyna speak, but then he met Selyna's sultry gaze again and before he knew it, he was kissing her again. They didn't stop until they were in desperate need of oxygen. "Sorry," Nathan said. And then it happened again and more time passed. "Sorry! I'll let you talk now! I promise!"

Talk? Who the hell wanted to talk, she thought. She had not been trying to get any words in. No, she had been completely fine with the way they'd been passing the time. Her stomach had other ideas, though, and growled. She glanced away from him only long enough to look down at it and tell it, "Oh, shut up. You eat when I say so." Then she looked back up at Nathan, into those deep pools of emerald that she had been drowning in all night. "And you. You don't need to apologize. Did I complain?" she said, a note of teasing in her voice and a glitter of playfulness in her eyes. Her hand came up to rest against his cheek for just a moment as she allowed herself to simply enjoy the feeling of touching him for that moment. "We should likely eat, though. There is plenty of time for... this." She said softly with a smile that was soft and warm.

Nathan nodded. "Right," he said. "Food it is. Help me carry it all to the table?" He kissed Selyna one more time, but hopefully not one last time, then released her. He plated the steaks and the potatoes (one half russet, one half sweet for each of them) and took both plates to the table in the dining room. While he was in the dining room, he turned the lights on low and lit two candles for the table and smiled at the thought of how Selyna's expressive eyes would look in candlelight. He took two cloth napkins from the sideboard and set them out, and, on a whim, got out the nice silverware and set that out, too. "If you could bring the broccoli in, I've got something to serve it with here, and I'll top off our wine if you'd like."

It was an odd thought, but she loved the way he kissed. As he moved away to the dining room, she found herself hoping that wouldn't be the last kiss of the night, or beyond. That last bit made her pause. She was already going there in her mind? Wow... this could be either good or bad depending on the outcome of the evening. But it had started off so damned good! At his request, technically the second, for her to bring in the broccoli -- he'd asked initially for her to help carry the food in, then had to ask her to bring the broccoli -- she blushed just a bit. She'd gotten so entangled in her thoughts of where this might go that she'd been standing like an animated statue in his kitchen.

Grabbing the bowl of broccoli, she brought it to the table, setting it down. As she did, she smiled at the way he'd set the table. It was very... romantic. "This is lovely, Nathan." she said in soft tones, one hand brushing absently over a piece of the flatware as her subconscious admired its workmanship. Her conscious mind was completely on him. "I love the ambiance of candles. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Nope," Nathan said. He had been correct. Selyna's eyes were even more alluring in candlelight. He pulled out Selyna's chair for her. Like her, he wondered where the evening would go. He had been honest (or at least he thought he was being honest) about offering Selyna the spare bedroom for the night, but he had already known at that point that he was attracted to the beautiful astrophysicist, and if he hadn't been sure then, he was damned sure now.

She had been charmed by his acts of chivalry so far, and he continued to charm her now. She smiled up at him as he pulled out the chair for her, then sat. "Thank you. It is so nice to see someone still has such chivalry." she commented as he pushed the chair forward slightly as she sat. This close to him, she was again caught by his scent, subtle but enough to draw her in. She kept her eyes on him as he moved, taking in every movement like a starving woman watching a waiter walk by with a loaded tray of the finest foods. She tried not to let that show, but she was sure that a little of the desire she felt had leaked into her expression.

Nathan sat and looked across the table and met Selyna's eyes. The smoldering desire he could see in her eyes was most likely mirrored in his gaze. Like Selyna, food really wasn't what he was feeling most hungry for. "We should eat so we can get back to what we were doing before, if the mood still strikes you," he said. He smiled slightly with his mouth, more with his eyes. "Of course, if you keep looking at me like that, dinner may have to wait." His original intent had been to lighten the mood, but even he could hear the heat behind the humor in his words.

He was so right! What she wanted just then was not the delicious-smelling food on the table but the delicious offering across the table from her. She forced herself to look away from those beautiful eyes so full of the desire mirroring her own -- and yes, it was an extreme effort. But if she didn't, they would never get to eat this delicious dinner -- and her stomach had already interrupted them once, so it was best that they eat before exertions that were sure to make them hungry again anyway.

After a moment to forcibly control her expression -- was it really all buried again, she couldn't know -- she looked back up. "We should eat this now... before it gets cold and ends up being wasted. Then..." she let the rest hang unspoken between them for a moment before concentrating by sheer force of will on her food. Trying to take their minds off of the 'dessert', she asked, "What made you buy this particular home? I mean, was there one thing that sold it for you?" Yeah... lame.

Nathan started eating. "I just felt right, I guess," he said. "It's a good size, manageable with help." Nathan chuckled. "I admit, though, I did splurge and have someone stage it for me. The previous owners were older and downsizing. They gave me a good deal on most of the furnishings. I let them keep the bed in the master, and replaced all of the mattresses of course. But they renovated recently, planning ahead for selling the house." Nathan looked thoughtful for a moment. "I guess what really sold it for me was that when I imagined having people over, I liked what I saw. I've been living alone a long time. Having a place where I can invite colleagues and friends and sometimes their families, is important to me. It keeps me from feeling lonely. More so when the company is as alluring as the present company."

Selyna couldn't help but to smile at that, flattered and pleased. She knew what he meant about being lonely; prodigies often found themselves alone. Many didn't seem to mind it, but she did. She missed so many of the things that most young people took for granted, and the disparity between her and her classmates in ages had always made connecting with people difficult at best. Even now, she was connected, or trying to, with someone not her age. But this time, she didn't mind that; rather, she wanted it to work out, preferably better than any previous 'connection'.

"I... I can understand." she said slowly, thoughtfully, eyes leaving his for a moment then returning to hold his. "You may not believe this, but I'm not really good with people." she admitted. "In fact, I'm not entirely sure how I got so... blessed to be here now." The smile returned. "So if you know, tell me please so I can reproduce the effect?"

"If you're being yourself now, and have been since I met you, that's what worked on me," Nathan said. "That and those eyes I feel like I'm going to drown in." He reached across the table to touch Selyna's hand. "And I'm the one who's blessed, Selyna. I only hope I'm as good company for you as you are for me."

The touch was electric, and she let her eyes drift to their hands long enough to turn hers over and close her fingers around his. Then her eyes came back up to his. "I'm always myself; I honestly don't know how to be anyone else." she said truthfully. The smile this time was warm and heartfelt. "And you are wonderful company, Nathan. I am really enjoying this time with you." Should she comment on his eyes too? Or would that sound like she was mimicking him? She wasn't sure and so took the 'when in doubt, don't' approach.

Nathan gave Selyna's hand a squeeze. "I'm enjoying this time with you as well," he said. "It's not easy to find someone I click with so well. I'm so glad you said yes when I invited you here." Nathan met Selyna's gaze. The table between them was becoming a damned annoying obstacle. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it, then reluctantly set it free so they could both finish their food.

Okay, it was getting very, very hard to finish this lovely meal. Her eyes kept straying to the man across from her, and she couldn't wipe the idiotic smile from her face. "I'm glad I said yes too.I'm nice to most people, but I don't click with many, and I definitely felt the..." 'click' would have been the wrong word. Electrical surge maybe? "connection." she finished. It was getting harder and harder to take her eyes and mind off of Nathan. He drew her like a powerful magnet, and she loved every tingly second of it! And those charming gestures of his were just about her undoing each time. So why did she fight it? Why not just surrender? She wanted him, and it was damned clear he wanted her.

Finally, halfway through the plate of food, she set down her utensils and looked across into his eyes. Her expression was intense and full of desire. "I know it was my idea to eat first, but I'm really rethinking that choice." She added a small smile.

Nathan smiled back at Selyna. "I'm glad to hear that," he said. Nathan lay down his utensils and wiped his hands and face with his napkin. He stood up and walked around the table and took her hand and helped her stand up. He pulled her in close and kissed her.

As he stood, she also wiped her face and hands and stood with him. When he pulled her in and kissed her again, she molded her body against his, showing him with the movement that she would hesitate no further. The kiss she gave in return was deep and filled with the passion he had seen in her eyes up to this point. She said nothing; nothing needed to be said at that moment. Words would only have gotten in the way, he was sure.

Nathan took the hint and lifted Selyna in his arms and carried her up the stairs to the bedroom.