He looked up when he heard Elizabeth clear her throat. Jason had always been a man of few words. But this time words were not an option. He simply stared at her, rendered speechless by her beauty.
Elizabeth did a slow turn, "What do you think?" she asked. The look on Jason's face said it all, but she wanted to hear him say it.
"Um, uh," he stammered. Liz laughed as he tried to find the words. "Breathtaking," he finally managed. "Absolutely breathtaking."
Elizabeth had let her hair dry naturally, giving her a disheveled, yet sexy looking hair-do. The dress she had purchased looked fabulous against her slightly tanned skin, and she was lucky enough to have found a pair of mules to match the dress, and complete the ensemble.
She blushed, "You don't look so bad yourself." The white shirt also complimented his tan. She had never seen him in anything other than jeans and a tee shirt, so she was impressed that he cleaned up so well.
He held out his hand, "You ready?"
She tried to calm her nerves by taking a deep breath. Placing her hand in his, the night began.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He led her to the patio outside his room. While she had been shopping, Jason set up a table for two, and candles, for them to have a candlelight dinner. He had time it perfectly so they could also watch the setting sun. He stood behind her while they watched the sun slip away. He felt her lean against him, and it felt so right. Jason had to fight the urge to put his arms around her.
When the stars started to come out, he guided her to the table. He pulled out the chair for her, and she giggled nervously.
The whole thing was beautiful. Jason had asked for lobster tails for the main course, along with a couple of side dishes, followed by dessert: chocolate mousse.
The wasn't much conversation between the two as they ate. But it was an easy silence, just enjoying each other's company. The few times that their eyes met, the sparks flew.
As they finished up, Jason stood up and held his hand out to Elizabeth. "Care to take a walk?" He looked into her eyes, enchanted by the light that sparkled inside them.
She nodded as she stood up to take his hand. He started towards the beach.
"Wait." She sat back down to remove her shoes. "I want to feel the sand between my toes."
Jason nodded and followed suit.
As they made their way towards the water, Elizabeth took a deep breath. "Jason, I think there are some things we need to talk about."
He nodded, "So do I."
Elizabeth shivered. He stopped and turned towards her, "Are you cold?"
Liz nodded.
"Here," he said, unbuttoning the last few buttons of his shirt. He helped her put it on, resisting the urge to kiss the back of her neck.
They continued to walk down the beach, hand in hand. She started talking again.
"Jason," she tried to think of a more subtle way of saying it, but nothing came to mind. "I broke up with Lucky." She paused, then suddenly everything came pouring out. "I broke up with him just before I received Sonny's call. We're different people than we once were. I didn't... I don't love him like I did. I love him, but I'm not in love with him. Does that make sense? No, maybe it doesn't." She sighed. "We've both changed since the night of his fire. I've grown up, moved on. I can't cling to what we had, because it's not there anymore." She looked up at him finally, "Jason?"
His mind was reeling. This was not what he had expected she would say. He figured she would apologize for kissing him, but that she still loved Lucky. But she wasn't. He stopped walking. "Elizabeth, what are you trying to tell me?"
She stood in front of him, taking his hands in hers and looked him straight in the eye. She waited a moment to make sure she had his full attention.
"I'm falling in love with you."