Virginia sat with Emily on the couch after fetching her things from the dumbwaiter.

The walker was even parked nearby, momentarily forgotten. River was curled up against Emily, still purring. Her mistress' guest was delightful. And so comfortable.

Within reach was an attractive coffee table. It was here that Emily had arranged her bags for presentation. She still hadn't said what was in them.

And Virginia was dying to know.

Emily broke through her thoughts. "Have you been wondering about the bags I brought?"

"Yes. I have been wondering."

"Here." Emily produced a brightly-colored box and set it on the table. "That's for Zion. I did promise little bird I'd bring him something."

Virginia was very touched that Emily had followed through on her promise. "What's in the box?"

"I didn't forget what you said about Zion thinking that your cooking is 'run-of-the-mill,' so I got him a chef coat, hat, and pants. It also came with a cookbook. Maybe he'll start taking you seriously about food now."

"Those are incredibly thoughtful gifts," Virginia was beaming. "And he will definitely give me a good chance now."

"The cooking gear also happens to be decorated with elephants." Emily added. "What do you think?"

"I think that Zy is going to love you." Virginia told her.

Emily presented her with a box wrapped in green foil. "That makes this one yours, Ace."

"And this is yours." Virginia was holding out a gift bag she'd been keeping on the end table closest to her.

Emily accepted her gift graciously, although she felt very surprised. Her date had had the same idea about first date presents. Could they be any more alike?

"Wow. This is really thoughtful."

They opened their gifts together. Emily was pleasantly surprised to find a cozy purple muslin scarf bedecked with a pattern of silver elephants. The mighty creatures were fast becoming 'their thing.' She'd never had this with anyone before.

"Great minds think alike, I see." Virginia was investigating her own gift. "I love this."

They actually could be more alike. Virginia had also received a scarf. This one was made from fine cotton, and set against a purple background was a print of golden aces. Emily hadn't had the willpower to pass it up because it had been too perfect a chance.

"I love my scarf, and I was actually just thinking that I could do with a new one. Do you like the aces on yours? I know that you're about preserving your anonymity, but your name is just so cool... and you are my Ace."

Emily was totally rambling, but Virginia found it very endearing. She even moved closer to her.

"It's perfect. It's also just subtle enough that only those closest to me would make the connection." Virginia said. "And I will always be your Ace."

Emily gave a nod of acknowledgement, but felly silent. Virginia was holding her gaze just then and she was truly captivating. Her eyes were also a deep green. How hadn't she noticed before? The depth of her eyes were endless, like Virginia had truly seen some horrors and wonders of the world. What were they?

Virginia was having a similar thought process about Emily's eyes. She also wanted to jump her bones. Wondering about Emily's ring size was also part of her train of thought. She moved closer. Would she kiss her? Maybe.

But—

BZZT!

Virginia stood and positioned herself in her walking frame again. "The food is ready now."

Emily also stood. "Where's the dining room?"

"This way, my dear."

Virginia showed Emily to an area astride a huge picture window that looked out on to the street below. Underneath a wrought-iron chandelier sat a large splendid oaken dining dining table. It had been set for two people, but something about the size of the table compared to the space of the room it was in didn't add up.

"There are two extending leaves missing from the table." Virginia explained, as if reading her mind. "They go in when the rest of my family is here."

"How many people are we talking?" pressed Emily.

"A lot. Everyone is going to love you when I introduce you to them."

Virginia said this with such ease that it gave Emily a small turn—she really liked her if she already wanted to introduce her to her family. She felt the same way about wanting to introduce her to her own extended clan. It all made her heart skip a beat now that it had all been said aloud. Where had this gem of a woman been all these years?

"Emily, you can sit in either spot. It doesn't matter."

She took the chair closest to the window. "Need any help?"

Virginia set her walking frame by the other chair. "No, but thank you. Just enjoy yourself."

Emily watched her set out a series of covered dishes, full water glasses, and some kind of red drink in a pair of highball glass tumblers. All of the material seemed like the kind of thing one would pull out for special occasions. Emily also had a feeling that with a toddler around, Virginia didn't have much cause to eat off things that were breakable. She was really going all out.

The impressed look on Emily's face told her that she'd gone in the right direction. A lot of thought had been put into the night.

Emily tasted the red drink and found herself to be further impressed. "Is this a raspberry mojito, but with no alcohol?"

"Yes." Virginia confirmed. "All pregnant mamas need to have some fun."

"I like the way that you think." Emily lifted the glass in a toast. "The drink is very good."

"Excellent. Check this out."

Virginia began pulling the lids off each dish. In turn, Emily discovered Virginia had made a large Caesar salad, a full bowl of roasted potatoes, and even whole dish full of pasta-stuffed peppers. Everything was picture-perfect and smelled very delicious. The whole spread also just happened to be exactly what Emily had said she would love to have after a day at the office.

"You remembered!" she cried in surprise.

"I did." Virginia made Emily a full plate and handed it to her. "Going to the grocery store was part of those 'other errands' that I couldn't tell you about."

Emily took plate. "Because you didn't want to ruin everything you'd been working on."

"Bingo." Virginia served herself and took the other chair. "Did things get any more exciting at work?"

Emily sighed. "Uh-uh. You were the most exciting thing at the office."

"And I wasn't even there." Virginia laughed. "You said that your team is having a housekeeping week, right?"

"That's right. We were hit with a storm of things recently, and then my partner has just returned from being knocked out of commission."

Virginia gave a sympathetic wince. "Yikes. What happened?"

"The short version is that both of her little boys got her sick."

"That's a total bummer." Virginia said with more sympathy. "Zy has done that to me more than once. All is well now?"

"In more ways than one—our director us keeping us local for the next two weeks, thanks to how crazy-busy things have been."

"I'm guessing it means they want you all to catch your breath, but also catch up on paperwork?"

"That's a gold star for Ace." Emily praised. "We're also getting out early."

"That must be so nice. I do not miss those kinds of hours." Virginia sighed. "But... all of this does mean that we have more opportunities to do things together."

Emily's heart flipped at that. "Would some of those things be able to include Zion?"

"You bet."

"Tell me about what he likes do."

Virginia thought about it. "Zy loves books, and he loves to watch people down on the street. He also really loves to learn. Experimenting in the kitchen and making new 'creations' for me in his play class downtown are also high on his list of top ten favorite activities."

"I will remember all of that." Emily promised. "It also sounds like he's on the go all the time."

"When he is in his element, it's like hanging out with an Energizer Bunny who sees me as his best friend in the whole world."

"Wow..."

Virginia nodded sagely. "That's just life with kids."

Emily thought quickly. "Then how do you think he would feel about a trip to the U.S. Botanical Garden?"

This was a world-famous conservatory not far from where they were at the moment.

Virginia lit up. "He would have a ball. He's never been. When do you want to go?"

"Saturday?" Emily said hopefully. "Do you two have plans for then?"

"Uh-uh. What do you want to do?"

"Hang out at the garden for a few hours, and go to lunch after?"

"Perfect." Virginia touched her hand to the tabletop, as if sealing the deal. "That sounds like the perfect way to spend a Saturday."

"Fantastic. It's a date."

Both pleased that they already knew when they were going to see each other next, Emily and Virginia just tucked into their food. But they were happy.

When the meal had finished, Emily was feeling warm and at peace. For dessert, Virginia had even made them two perfect strawberries and cream mug cakes. Bliss. She wanted to stay in this moment forever.

"All of that was very tasty. Thank you." Emily said as put down her spoon after she finished her last bite of cake. "I loved all of it."

"That makes me very glad." Virginia rose to her feet and began collecting their dishes. "Don't you lift a finger. Tonight, you are a guest."

So Emily watched Virginia's backside. (The writer was delightfully aware) Emily didn't even see a woman with a limp. Just a woman who was incredibly beautiful, and already the keeper of her heart. Little did she know that Virginia already thinking the same of her.

"Will you go get Zion's present?" Virginia asked when she'd finished taking care of everything. "I want to give you a house tour now. You can put the box in his room."

Emily was quick to follow through.

It even looked like she was pulling herself along as they ascended the stairs. "You know that I can walk because you're seeing me now, but there are some things that I just can't do as well as I used to before I got hurt."

"Does cold weather make things worse?"

"Yes, but I have a lot of support, and I'm lucky that Zy is patient. He's a good boy."

Emily nodded. "He is, and you'll never get any judgement from me. I'll give you support in whatever fashion you need or want. That's a promise."

Virginia wanted to kiss Emily right then and there on the stairs. People usually just pitied her when they looked at her. Emily just saw her. That was everything.

"Thank you, Emelise." she finally said. "That's incredibly sweet."

Emily could only stroke Virginia's hand with her thumb because she was just so fit to burst with emotion. Her skin was also very soft. Virginia also seemed to like being touched because her breath hitched slightly. She also understood what Emily was trying to convey.

Where have you been my entire life? she thought. I'm already in love with you.

Virginia's crutches were leaning against the wall when they reached the top landing. They would make navigation easier.

Emily looked around. The second level of the Rainer house was composed of a main hallway with numerous rooms on each side.

"My whole building used to be offices, way back when." Virginia told Emily. "Turns out that my place was the executive floor. It was converted to homes in the spring of 1999. But I hadn't come to D.C. yet."

"Where were you before that?"

This was answered this inquiry with one of her own. "Where were you?"

"That was during one of my stints in England. London, to be precise." Emily pointed to the nearest door, which stood closed. "What's over there?"

"Just the laundry room." Virginia shrugged. "There's nothing special inside. Should that blizzard ever come, we'll have to make sure you already have some of your things here. Winters up here are brutal."

"You're telling me—and I was born during a storm in Kiev. They hadn't seen anything like it in a century."

Virginia cried, "Say again?"

"You heard me. I'll tell you later, and I will also remember what you said about keeping clothes here." Emily looked at the door again. "Is the room shut away to keep River out?"

"Yes, actually. My cat acts like a kitten instead of the five year old that she is."

"Does she get into trouble?"

"Oh, the stories I could tell." Virginia pointed to the door beside the laundry. "Mine and Zion's reading room is through there. He's convinced it's a library, so he calls it that. I think you might like it."

Emily could see why Zion thought of the place as his own private library. The half of the room that catered to Virginia was full of plants, shelved books, and cozy looking armchairs. A window by one shelf looked out across the rooftops outside.

Zion's half of the room was a tad busier. He had books and kid-sized furniture, but there were other fun things around. Posters of animals and landmarks. A world map. A numbers and alphabet poster. There was even what looked like an extended family portrait. Everything was at Zion's height, all for him to admire or study. There was even a little desk with books piled on it near the far wall.

"I love all of this." Emily pointed to the desk. "Does little bird like to look at books while you are?"

Virginia nodded. "Yep. Other than the kitchen, this is his most favorite room in the house."

"Is he working on learning how to read? I think I saw informational books about the Middle East. That isn't material that wouldn't normally appeal to a three-year-old."

"Zy still peruses books that kids his age do, but he never does anything small. That's because of a family trait that he's gotten the full brunt of. I'm not even sure if that's good or bad."

"What's his area of interest?" Emily asked. "Maybe I can help."

"Of all the places in the world, he wants to learn about Saudi Arabia."

"I lived there before. Morocco, too."

"Zy saw Aladdin when he was hanging out with my sisters a little while back." elaborated Virginia. "I told him he has to learn the whole alphabet and things like that so he can further his interest. He took me very seriously. Sometimes I catch him reciting the alphabet out of order."

Emily's grin grew. "I love that kid even more. And did you know that I'm a hyperpolyglot?"

Virginia knew that complicated word to mean one that was fluent in at least six languages or more. "Fitzhugh and Elizabeth told me that you're very smart, but they never said anything about language. How many do you speak?"

"Half a dozen. Arabic is my third, but English isn't even my first."

Virginia was hanging on to everything. "Will you tell me is at the top of your list?"

"Not yet," Emily said playfully. "But I would love to help Zion with reading, and I could teach him about the country he's been studying."

Virginia had to once again fight back the impulse to kiss Emily. She really wanted to, but there were still things they wanted to address before the date was over. Kissing would just derail everything.

She went with giving Emily a look full of love. "Zy will be enamored by the idea. He might actually talk himself hoarse."

"That will be another thing to help him through." Emily motioned to the hallway. "Will you show me the rest of the floor?"

Emily was treated to two more bedrooms, a secondary bathroom, a linen closet, and a playroom before they stopped in front of yet another door."

Virginia pointed. "Our little bird sleeps in here."

Emily pushed this door open to show the bedroom to reveal the bedroom of a little boy who loved animals. Even his actual bed was shaped like an elephant. The whole theme of it all was very adorable. For a second, Emily wondered what kind of nursery theme would be coming down the road for the baby. She'd have to ask Virginia for ideas at some point.

Remembering her gift, Emily crossed the room and set it on Zion's bed, right beside the felt letter Z. There was no way he would miss it when he returned the following morning.

"Emily?"

Virginia was watching her from the doorway, a tender look on her face this time. She had her own spot of brief imagining of what it would be like to look in to this room sometime soon to see Emily playing with Zion. Or telling him stories about her world travels.

"Yes?" Emily asked her as they went back out.

"You look beautiful." Virginia offered.

"Very smooth, Ace. But that wasn't what you were going to say, was it?"

"No." Virginia coughed and pointed to a door located at the end of the corridor. "The clocktower is through there, but it's more fun to see during the day. I'll show you next time."

"Alright." Emily said. "By my count now, I've seen all rooms… except for where you sleep."

"My bedroom is actually attached to my office." Virginia put her crutches aside, and they worked their way down the stairs. "It really embraces my love of travel."

"If the rest of your place is any indication, then I'm sure it'll be just as beautiful. I also want show you what was in the other bag that I brought."

"Care to share, anyway?" Virginia asked inquisitively.

"Three words—old photo albums."

"That's a fun thing for a first date. I guess this means I have to tell you about about my family, and how a girl from nowhere-Mississippi made it all the way up to the nation's capital."

Emily arched an eyebrow. "Mississippi, huh? That answers that question…"

"You're also not the only multilingual one here. I have the service to thank for that skillset."

"What's on your list?"

"Some things that are probably not on yours." Virginia teased. "Right now, I think you'd much rather hear about when Zy tried to blame a flour spill on the cat, even though there were definitely little boy footprints in the mess."

Emily couldn't believe what she was hearing. "When did this go down?"

"Last Wednesday night, I kid you not."

The scenarios that immediately popped into Emily's mind were very entertaining. "Spare no details. Tell me about the adventures of Zion and River, please."

Virginia turned out to be such a great storyteller that Emily found it another fantastic reason to be falling in love with her. She was also reveling in every moment they'd had together so far that night. Never in her life had she had a first date go this well.

Where had Virginia Lynn Ace Rainer been for her entire life?

Emily didn't know, but she was happy that she was here.