Esme felt a extra dose of excitement as she headed home in the late afternoon hours. She managed a few private smiles - genuine smiles. It had been so long since she had felt something that triggered such a natural, uplifting response.

She had only spoken to him once.. well twice, now. But there was something in Carlisle that Esme was drawn to. He was handsome, yes; but his outlook on life, the little snippets of conversation they'd had and just a bit of mystery that hung on the air as to why he was in the woods combined to make an intriguing cocktail.

And he doesn't have a wife, Esme reminded herself. Had Carlisle been married she would have felt a let down; though she managed to put those thoughts right out of her mind. He wasn't married. She wasn't married.

Oh Esme you're marrying him in your mind already? She practically rolled her eyes at herself but managed to stay positive.

When she arrived at her home she changed out of the heavy dress she had on in favor of something casual and lighter. The air was thicker that day and a bout of humidity had sunk in. Even as daylight began to bid its mighty farewell, the summer heat had made itself known on that day.

After washing up a bit and relieving herself of that sticky, sweaty feel that often accompanied the summer months, Esme took a deep breath and awaited the three knocks on her door.

..

Carlisle, for the first time in a long time, found himself looking forward to something other than his work. The art of medicine had been his life. It was his life. There was nothing else he had put all of his focus and efforts into. Even as a vampire he vowed to live a life of service to others. He wanted to help people - even if they would have gladly hunted him down, or tried to, if this true identity was ever revealed.

That evening he didn't think about that. He thought about Esme on his trek home. The racing heart rate, her pulse increase, the swell of her pupils. Their brief conversation, her openness to despising the hangings in town, the brave nature of her being to venture into the night alone despite all of that.. it was appealing, to say the least.

The women and men in town loved to boast of their involvement or approval of ridding the town of witches and outcasts. Even moreso, those who made the accusations felt as though they earned some honor. Carlisle couldn't stand it. It was almost enough for him to leave town permanently; though he knew he would be turning his back on people who needed help; who needed a speck of hope in the dark.

Esme.. her name was on repeat in his quiet thoughts. She was that speck of hope. She could be the start of making a difference. At the core of their respective moralities, Carlisle knew they were likeminded individuals.

He took a deep breath in as he passed by the last of where Esme's scent lingered. Carlisle had never done that - not since his earliest days of being immortal, at least; and the deep inhale was for very different reasons. There was no blood lust for Esme Platt; though he knew her scent would never leave his brain.

If she knew what you were thinking she would turn and run, Carlisle told himself as he closed in on his house. And if she knew what you were.

He was ashamed of it. Carlisle hated being a vampire. He wished he could live a normal, simple life. Work hard, raise a family and turn gray while his children grew up and had children of their own.

Was that too much to ask?

Again, Esme was his constant that day. She would have been someone who caught his eye.

She is catching your eye, his inner monologue reminded him, adding, it can never, ever happen.

How could it? Why was he even entertaining it? Why had he asked Esme to meet him that night? Carlisle knew that had no future together.

You know how to turn something good into something solemn, he scolded himself now as he entered his house.

Despite all of that, Carlisle would never stand her up. They would meet, they would walk, they would talk and they would be.. friends.. acquaintances.

The second word made him scrunch his nose as it passed through his mind. Carlisle knew deep down that his intentions for asking for her company were for more than that.

And they're selfish, he added.

Carlisle was no mind reader but he was well aware that Esme's increase in heart rate wasn't because she was scared of him. It was the exact opposite and he knew it. She was attracted to him. For the first time in his life, Carlisle felt that same feeling in return - and it scared him.