"Daphne, what are you doing?"

At the sound of Roz's voice, Daphne jumped, nearly spilling her champagne.

"Roz... God, you scared the daylights out of me!"

Roz's eyes narrowed. "I noticed. Why are you so jumpy? I thought you were going to

talk to Niles."

"W-well I am, but-."

"But what? Are you that worried about what Donny will think? Look, it's not that hard.

You've known Niles forever, and I've dumped guys that I barely know. Just tell him what you told me. That you're flattered he feels that way about you, but that you don't feel that way about him. And then you can get on with the rest of your life. I know I'll be glad about that."

Daphne swallowed hard. "Dr. Crane is me friend, a-and I can't just blurt it out like it's no big deal. He's always been so kind and I don't want to hurt his feelings."

"Niles has enough problems-Mel for one-and I'm sure he'll be glad you told him the truth. At least it'll get him out of your hair."

"But it's wrong, Roz! He's so sensitive and if I say it like that, he'll be crushed! Up until a few days ago, I had no idea the he felt that way about me.

Roz rolled her eyes. "Oh please, the man can be so annoying! Trust me, he'll get over it."

"I-I don't know..."

"Daphne, why are you making this so difficult? To be honest, I'm tired of listening to him pining away for you and watching him follow you around like a lost puppy. It's pathetic!"

"He's not pathetic! Daphne said quickly, wishing that Frasier had never invited Roz to his party. She could feel her cheeks burning as she glanced at Mel and Niles who were engrossed in conversation.

"Look at him..." Roz said, thankfully oblivious to Daphne's staring. "Are they the worst couple in the world or what?"

Daphne tried to hide her smile, for Roz had successfully read her mind.

"They look very happy together."

Once more, Roz rolled her eyes. "Or maybe he's just pretending. I don't see how anyone could be happy with that woman."

"Well, I'm happy for Dr Crane, even if Mel's not the right person for him. He's my friend and he deserves to be happy. He's been through so much lately."

As soon as Daphne said the words, she could feel Roz's eyes on her.

"Is there something you're not telling me?"

Daphne's heart beat faster and she rubbed her neck in an almost unconscious gesture.

"I-I don't know what you mean."

"Hmmm... I think you do."

Leave it to Roz to say something completely insensitive.

"Roz, that's ridiculous. Ni-Dr. Crane is my friend."

Her mouth was dry and she was sure that Roz could hear the sound of her rapid heartbeat.

"Yeah, you mentioned that... several times, in fact. So are you going to tell him?

Because if you don't, I will!"

Daphne gasped in horror.

"Roz, no! Just... leave him alone. I'll do it."

"Well you'd better do it quick before Donny finds out that Niles has feelings for you. And believe me, he will."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Donny's no idiot. If he suspects something's going on between you and Niles, he'll find out."

Daphne sighed deeply; knowing that was Roz was saying was true. It was nearly impossible to keep anything from Donny because he always knew what was happening. Always.

"I know he will. Just... give me a few minutes to figure out what to say to Dr. Crane."

"I don't know why you're making such a big deal out of this and... Whoa..."
Daphne looked up sharply.

"What?"

Now it was Roz's turn to stare into the distance.

"Who's that?"

"Who?"

"Over there..."

Daphne followed Roz's gaze to an attractive man with dark hair, standing by the bar. It was a man she'd never seen before but had a feeling she'd be seeing a lot more of him, thanks to Roz.

She also knew that this ridiculous conversation she'd been having with Roz was now over. Once a handsome stranger entered the picture, Daphne knew that she'd lost all hope of hearing more advice from Roz.

But now she was grateful for this distraction. Roz had completely lost her mind. How could she even think that Daphne had feelings for Niles? He was her best friend!

"Excuse me." Roz was saying, oblivious to Daphne's presence. Daphne watched Roz cross the room so gracefully that she could only stare at her friend in wonderment.