~ Shards of Sapphire ~
He knows their relationship has hit a turning point when he can kiss her without it necessarily being the prelude to something else. When he wakes up to see her face just inches away from his on the pillow and closes the small distance between them to kiss her softly, and he feels her smile against his lips... when he breaks the kiss and she presses her forehead against his, and her whispered "good morning" carries no lewd implication, he knows that something has changed between them. A wall has come down, boundaries have shifted.
She allows herself to accept - and even express - tenderness now. That is what's different.
~oOo~