(Daphne's POV)
She was getting quite good at her American accent, even if Frasier thought she was daft. And she decided to try it on his unsuspecting brother. So when he turned around after talking to his brother, she came up behind him, grinning. "Hey Dr. Crane, how's tricks?" She said her voice as low as possible.
He turned around, screaming in horror when he saw her. This definitely wasn't the reaction that she'd been expecting.
"Daphne, dear God, what are you doing?"
"I'm trying out my American accent!" She said in the same low voice.
"Well… stop it!" he yelled. "Stop it right now! Can't you see how insulting that is?"
Startled by his harshness, her smile disappeared. He'd never reprimanded her before and she felt strangely small. "I'm… sorry Dr. Crane. I didn't mean to offend."
"Well… you did… so…. We Americans are sensitive to our crude speech patterns!"
"I'm… I'm sorry." she said in her wobbly, yet normal voice.
"Just… don't let it happen again, all right?"
She nodded wordlessly, wondering why she was stung by the way he was speaking to her so harshly. She'd spoken to him in the same manner many times before, mostly in regards to his brother. But now it felt different.
"I-I'm sorry…"
"Fine…"
She turned to leave but stopped when she felt his hand on her shoulder.
"Daphne wait…"
Slowly she turned around, afraid to meet his gaze. "Dr. Crane… I can explain…"
"There's no need. I'm sorry, Daphne. I didn't mean to yell like that. I was just…"
"I was just trying out me American accent."
"Where… Where did you learn to speak that way?"
"From television. You pick up a lot of things watching American television."
"Well, it's… unbecoming!"
"Unbecoming? Dr. Crane, really! I'm not a bloody child!"
"No, I didn't mean it that way! I just meant…"
Now she was annoyed, and rightfully so. Her hands went to her hips and she glared at him. "What? What did you mean?"
"I…"
"Come on, out with it!"
"I just meant…. Well… Your own accent is so beautiful and…"
Immediately she softened, as tears sprang to her eyes. "Yes?"
"I love listening to you talk."
Her heart warmed. He'd never said such a thing to her before. "You do? Because your brother…"
"Forget about Frasier. Your accent… it's beautiful. I could listen to it all day."
She couldn't believe what she was hearing. And before he could say anything more, she engulfed him into her arms and kissed his cheek, just inches from his lips. "Thank you, Dr. Crane. You have a beautiful voice too."
In response, he hugged her a little tighter and rubbed her back. "Thank you, Daphne. And... you're welcome.."
Oh, how she loved him.