Connie sat with the ease of a transfixed cat. Her fingers held the bowl of her wine glass so effortlessly that to Max it looked as though it might fall from her grasp at any moment.
She swallowed her last mouthful, narrowing her eyes against the dim light. The romantic whisper of an early autumn evening had darkened the room considerably, only the light from a small table lamp on her desk illuminating the room, casting long shadows of everything about the walls.
Max leant against her desk, his eyes moving over the book titles that lined the shelves behind her desk. His foot tapped a light but rhythmic beat against the floor. He glanced at her, hearing her shift in the leather of the chair.
Seeing her empty glass he took hold of the wine bottle that still stood next to him before she could reach for it. She paused, then relaxed back into the sofa.
"Aren't you the gentleman."
She murmured, watching his face as he poured the wine with deceptively steady hands. He topped his own too before placing the bottle back in it's place on the glossy wood of her desk.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that..."
He glanced at her, eyebrows raised, a tentative smile lacing his lips wet with wine.
She smiled, dipping her head.
"So..."
He looked about the room, searching for something to say. He hadn't eaten since breakfast due to the drama of the day and the wine was making his head feel thick.
"How long have you been doing...this?"
He asked, wincing at his own question, realising how lame it sounded as he spoke. She didn't answer for a moment, sipping her drink, eyes fixed on the door as if she expected someone to knock.
"Not long."
She answered eventually, blinking against the trance like state she had fallen into, returning back, eyes again on him, a deep sea green against the mustard yellow light.
"I was in the States before..."
She left the sentence unfinished and dipped her head again to take another sip of her drink while Max nodded, pondering her words.
"It's a different world isn't it...really."
He spoke to no one in particular, except for perhaps himself, but he looked to her anyway. She frowned slightly
"Yours, I mean."
He added.
"Travelling...saving lives..."
He continued.
She smiled again, head tilted to one side, she raised her free arm to rest on the arm of the sofa and pushed her fingers into her hair to support her head. The movement caught the collar of her shirt, causing it to gape open at her collar bone, her freckled flesh a soft tan dipping into dark shadow.
"Mmm."
She merely murmured in response.
"I can't even imagine..."
He glanced again at the books whose authors he had never heard of and whose name's he couldn't pronounce.
"Why would you want to?"
She asked, taking him by surprise. He shrugged slowly, unsure of his answer.
"More wine?"
She changed the subject so quickly that his mind fought to catch up, still thinking about her, this office, this life of hers so different from his own.
"In the cupboard?"
He asked, standing up himself and making his way over to the cupboard as she nodded, seemingly amused at his eagerness to get things for her.
He found another bottle of the same, taking the cork screw to it with ease and making his way over to her, reaching out to take her glass from her, but instead she placed her glass at her feet before placing a hand over his own that grasped the neck of the bottle. Her hand was hot and soft. She pulled him slowly closer.
"Thank you for today."
She spoke softly, her hand still covering his.
He felt his back begin to throb, stooping down to her, unsure as to whether or not she wanted him to let her have the bottle of whether she wanted him to keep hold of it.
"I didn't do much...you were the one saving his life."
He loosened his grip underneath her own and she let go of his hand.
"You were pretty incredible."
He added, watching her hand slip away and feeling immediately sorry for initiating the loss of contact between them.
She let her body fall back into the sofa, the wine glass still at her feet.
"Sorry, did you want some more?"
He asked, gesturing hesitantly with the bottle. She shook her head slightly, pursing her lips into a coy smile as he made to turn away to fill his own glass.
"It's much comfier here."
She spoke softly, almost a whisper, placing a hand on the cool leather of the seat next to her.