Here's the next chapter. I hope you all enjoy...


Lexie stared at her reflection in the restroom mirror, trying to normalize her breathing.

Oh God, did she just start crying in front of him? Yes, she did. She just showed him how big of a crybaby she is. And now she's making him wait. Sitting alone at the table, and probably cursing himself for ever deciding to come here.

She found a tissue in her purse and in the most careful way she could manage wiped ruined mascara from under her eyes. After tossing it in the trash can, she looked at her reflection again. Okay, if we exclude a slightly ruined make up, it didn't look like she was crying. Hopefully...

"Hey, I'm really sorry about that." she told him when got out of the restroom and reached their table.

"You're okay?" Mark asked worried, getting up from his chair, so he could take a better look at her face. He could see the slight redness in her eyes, the flush of her cheeks and that was enough for him to guess it took her more than just that one tear he witnessed before she left for the restroom.

"Yeah." Lexie quietly answered, smiling slightly at him. She couldn't figure why, but just the simple fact that he asked her if she was okay made her happier than she'd been the whole evening. He cared if she was okay. And he didn't even know her. Why should he care?

"Good." Mark smiled back at her. Their eyes lock for a second, but she quickly looked away, biting her lip when she felt her cheeks starting to burn. Again. For like thousandth time. Mark grinned to himself and a moment after he reached for his winter coat. Lexie's smile faded away in the painful realization that their time together probably just ran out. He was done. They were done.

"You're leaving?"

She bit her tongue at how disappointed her voice sounded. She knew this moment would come. But that didn't stop her hoping it would never come. She tried to come up with something to say, something that could make him want to stay just a little longer. She didn't want him to leave.

"We're leaving." he corrected her.

Wait, what?

"We are? Like… together?" Lexie narrowed her eyes at him, at what he just nodded. "And where are we going?" After pulling his coat on, he grabbed hers as well and gestured her to turn around, so he could help her put it on. And she did.

Strange tingling ran down her whole body as she felt his hot breath against her neck as he spoke, "For your perfect Christmas evening you planned only one little dinner?"

Mark knew it should end there. And he repeated that in his head again and again. And he knew that for him the best would be to just walk her to the cab, send her home and then go home himself. Watch television or something and just forget about this whole thing. Just forget about her.

"No, not at all." Lexie answered, but her voice cracked as she felt Mark carefully fisting her hair from behind to put it over her coat. His fingers ran through it a few times just to make sure there were no strands that got stuck in the process.

"So where you wanna go?" he asked as she turned to face him again.

Anywhere... Thankfully, her inner filter worked at least good enough to stop that to come out.

"Mark... I enjoyed this so much, I really did. Just a little while ago I thought I would just go home and cry myself to sleep, but then you showed up, and you made this evening... amazing. And I had much better Christmas than I thought I would… but you really don't have to do this anymore, I mean, you must have someone you rather be with..."

"I don't." he interrupted her. Without hesitating. Without doubt. His mind couldn't come up with an actual person he would want to be right now, except her. "And you're right, this, the time we spent together, felt absolutely amazing. I don't want it to end..." From the grimace on her face, Mark knew she didn't expect that kind of reaction from him. Hell, he didn't expect it. He didn't know where it came from. He only knew that he wasn't ready to let her go. Not yet. "So… where you wanna go?"

...

"You couldn't choose a more crowded place?" Lexie sarcastically asked Mark as they walked through snowy trails of Central Park. Predictably, the park was full of life. And at every step, there were some kind of light decorations… around Christmas trees, and in all kinds of shapes such as reindeers, snowflakes, Christmas bells…

"It's crowded because it's Christmas and because it'll be beautiful, come on." Mark persuaded her, smiling widely at her sudden insecurity. "What is it Lex, you're scared I'll lose you in a crowd?" He smirked as his blue eyes mocked her.

"Well, I did get lost in a mall once when I was a kid. My parents had to ask to use an announcement speaker to tell me where we'll meet. And all of that happened because there were a bunch of people. You know, everything was normal and then all of a sudden, I couldn't see my parents or my sister… And I can tell you, it was pretty terrifying." Lexie explained laughing. She tried not to overthink the fact that he called her Lex. Not that she minded. She didn't mind at all. "And that's not the point anyway." she continued, "It's just… we didn't have to come here exactly. New York City spreads over 300 square miles, and you had to bring me to the Central Park?"

"Well, I love Central Park. And you asked for a light show, so you'll get a light show. Stop complaining." When she told him she wanted to go somewhere to watch fireworks the first place he thought of was the balcony of his apartment. There... they could really have an amazing look. And his rule about not spending special nights with no special woman... was no broken here. There was something special about her.

"I'm so not complaining. I'm just saying…"

But before she could even finish that sentence he interrupted her, "Ohhh... come on." Grabbing her hand and tangling their fingers together, he pulled her closer to the lake as fireworks were about to start. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna let you get lost." he added laughing.

And it was beautiful. Absolutely fascinating. The way that every burst reflected in the water made the whole thing even more amazing. Except Mark was barely looking at it.

He was looking at her. Whole damn time. He was looking at how firework reflected in her eyes and over her face. He was looking at how her lips curved into a smile with every new explosion in the sky. How her skin got pale on cold winter air. He was focusing on how her fingers, still tangled up with his, felt against his skin. There were silky and surprisingly warm, and they were firmly holding onto his, not wanting to let go. And he didn't want to let go either.

"Hey, I have to tell you something." Those words left his mouth before he could stop them. That thought had been biting him inside since they left the restaurant. God knows how much he didn't want to tell her that. He could see her letting go of his hand and walking away. After all, she had planned to spend this night with him. And if he did show up a few hours ago like he was supposed to… nothing of this would happen.

"I saw that he called. If that's what you're talking about." she whispered, still looking at the sparkly mottled sky.

Okay... he did not expect that. When did that happen? She saw? And she didn't care? And she didn't call back? And she's actually still here? With him?

"And you're still here?" he managed to ask.

"I want to be here. And anyway, it doesn't matter anymore. It's over. He was kind of too late, don't you think?" Finally taking her eyes off the sky and looking right at him, she widely smiled. Lexie understood why his face had disbelief written all over it. When she saw that missed call on her phone, the first thing that came up in her mind was that she should immediately call back. But that thought, that feeling, that moment passed. Simply as that. Maybe part of her still wanted to call back. But the part that wanted to stay with Mark was a lot bigger. "What?" she asked, her laughter quieting at his serious stare.

"Nothing… Nothing, it's just... you didn't deserve to get stood up like that. I mean it. On Christmas Eve or not. I wouldn't do that to you. For whatever reason." he said, almost whispering, like he was slightly embarrassed by the words he was saying, but he wanted to say them anyway.

"Wow, who would expect that you could talk so romantically." Lexie couldn't help but to take a little pride in his words. For all that she learned about him, he was not a romantic type of guy.

"Because I'm not a man who usually talks like that." he affirmed her thoughts.

Letting go of his hand, but only to put both of her palms against his chest, she got closer to him and smiling tenderly, she whispered, "Then I'm guessing Christmas just brings that out of you."

"Maybe it's not Christmas."

"So what is it?"

His hands found their place on her waist, holding her firmly. That was it, she couldn't run away anymore, even if she wanted to. He gave her more than one chance for that, and she didn't take any of it. If she wanted to get away from him, she would already do that.

As he leaned in towards her, she tilted her head back a little, like she was daring him to come closer. Mark was more than happy to obey to that and the next moment his lips were pressing against hers. He could feel her lips curve into a smile against his at first, but that smile disappeared when his tongue started tracing the seam of her lips. Her fingers curled into the material of his coat as she opened her mouth for him. Returning his kiss passionately, she enjoyed the way his short beard was tickling her skin. One of his hands traveled to the small of her back embracing her tighter.

Her scent, the heat her body was giving away, and her soft lips against his were filling his senses in a way that made him want more of her. He needed more.

When she slowly pulled her head back, she intensely gazed up at his ice blue eyes.

Fingers of her right hand let go of his coat and softly brushing against his neck, landed on his pale and chilled cheek, warming it up. Mark felt how not only the coldness of his skin, but also all the boundaries and rules and defenses he built for when it comes to woman was melting away at her gaze and her touch.

"Anywhere else you wanna go?" He breathed out those words, leaning towards her again. Lexie warmly smiled, brushing her lips against his.


So yeah, they are in New York, not Seattle. And things are heating up, predictably... I'm kind of doubting, whether or not to make the next chapter M rated, so let me know what you think. Also, happy New Year everyone.