(Daphne's POV)
She stood in the hallway that led to Frasier's room and leaned against the wall. She took deep breaths, but the actions did little to calm her rapidly beating heart. Her fingertips were still moist from the aloe cream and she closed her eyes, imagining the feel of his skin. It was so soft; softer than she'd ever imagined. She'd held Niles' hand many times before, but this…
When he'd yelped in pain after touching the handle of the hot pan as they were making dinner for Mel, Daphne didn't hesitate to come to his aid. The aloe cream did wonders and seemed to sooth his burn. Luckily the burn wasn't serious (she shuddered at the thought of what could have been), but something happened to her when she began applying the cream.
She found herself looking into his beautiful eyes, wanting so much to kiss him, full aware of how wrong it was to think such things. Martin's unexpected entrance into the kitchen startled her and she jumped, mumbling something about the time (while staring at the kitchen timer of all things) and ran out of the room.
What was wrong with her? If Martin had seen her applying the aloe cream to Niles' hand… She put her hand over her beating heart, imagining it. And Niles… Had he suspected anything? Would he confront her, or worse, say something to his father or brother? If any of them confronted her, what would she possibly say?
She blinked back tears as she stood perfectly still, waiting, worrying… and hoping. But after some time, she realized that no one was coming. And she quickly made her way into her room where she shut the door, finding it hard to keep her emotions at bay.