It was one of the stranger dates Nick had ever been on. He wasn't used to this at all. He was a quiet person, he knew, more content to listen to others than to talk and even less comfortable talking about himself. But that seemed to be all he was doing here.
Jennifer asked him all sorts of questions over their meal. About where he'd grown up and his family and his job. And it didn't annoy him, strangely. He was happy to tell her about his parents and his younger sisters. His dad had died when Nick was fifteen and his sisters were much younger, so Nick took care of them all as the man of the house after that. He'd become a cop because he had grown into that role of helping and protecting others. He had always possessed an inquisitive mind, wanting to figure things out and work to understand. Becoming a detective was perfect for him in that regard.
For her part, Jennifer was fascinated. She did not know much of the human world, as she'd spent so little time in it. The entire idea of the police was so strange to her, that people had so many problems that they needed a whole team to help with them. The fairy realm was so small in comparison. The warriors of the Royal Guard were there to protect and assist Queen Bernice and attend to any sort of external threat, but within the realm, they did not need to be protected from each other. Maybe that was what had led to fairies cutting off all contact with humans. Maybe Jen was in more danger than she realized by spending this much time amongst them.
But she put that out of her mind rather quickly. She felt extremely comfortable with Nick. And she loved hearing him talk. He lit up when he spoke about his job, as concerning as the reality of it was to her. He had a team that he worked with who were his friends. His superiors were people he respected and admired. And he had the gift of knowing that the work he did was truly important. She was mortified to know that humans very regularly killed each other, but Nick's job was to find who did it and how and why, and those answers could help bring peace to the loved ones of the dead. It was plain to see that Nick was proud of his work, and Jen thought it was beautiful to see.
"Enough about me," he finally said, realizing that their entrées had just been cleared from the table and he'd been talking about himself since they sat down. "Tell me about you. Your job and whatever else."
There was a reason Jennifer had kept the focus on Nick. She did not know how to answer those questions. She really did not want to lie to him, not now that they were having such a nice time and she liked him so very much. But she could not tell him the truth. Not yet, at least. And, frankly, she did not know if she could ever tell him the truth. She had to try her best at being vague and hope he didn't press her too much. "My job's sort of odd, actually. In my…company…" Yes, company, that's what she could call it. "In my company, there are people who work in public and those who are more background. And I sort of do both."
"Oh? How so?" he asked.
Really it was nice that he was interested, that he wanted to know her. She just hated not being able to let him. "I do security and I'm also an assistant to our leader. I started in security, but she took a liking to me, so now I spend a lot of my time with her in between patrols."
"You work in security? I never would have guessed that."
Jen frowned. "Why not?"
"People in security tend to be either really intimidating or else inconspicuous to fade into the background. And you're neither."
"You don't think I can be tough?" she challenged.
Nick knew he was on shaky ground now. "I know you can. But you don't come across threatening and I don't know how anyone could not notice you immediately."
"And why is that?" Jen pressed.
He felt his ears grow a little hot as he confessed, "Because you have a…a glow about you. You're so just…so beautiful."
She smiled at that, happily accepting the compliment. "Thank you," she said softly.
Nick found himself at a bit of a loss. He was transfixed by her gaze. Her eyes seemed to be slightly different every time he looked at them. That first day in the woods, they had been a mesmerizing blue green. That first time she kissed him, they had looked more green gray. And now, he could not quite tell what color they were. Only that they were beautiful. She was beautiful. This golden glowing beauty he still could not quite believe was real. But she was real, and she was sitting right here talking to him and having dinner with him.
Jennifer took a sip of her wine, breaking that momentary spell. "This is nice," she said. "Good choice."
He nodded. "I'm glad you like it. I don't really know anything about wine. Usually too fancy for me."
"What do you usually drink?"
Nick shrugged. "Whatever beer's around. I'm not picky."
Jen had never had beer before. Wine was something they had in the fairy realm, but it was different than what Nick had ordered with their dinner. She quite liked trying new things, particularly with him. "Maybe we can have some beer the next time we go out," she suggested.
His whole face lit up. Perhaps he'd not realized she would want to see him again. But why wouldn't she? Even with the fact that Terry wanted her to watch him and get to know him and figure out why he seemed to be important to Jerry, Jen had more than enjoyed her time with him. He was smart and strong but gentle and soft. Not to mention the fact that he was absolutely gorgeous.
Nick had been about to respond when the waiter came by with the bill, and he was distracted by quickly paying it. And after that, Nick was struck by an altogether new problem he'd not considered before now.
"Jen," he began.
She smiled. "Yes?"
He did not ask whether it was alright to call her that. Her name was Jennifer, but the shortening just seemed natural to him. If she minded, he assumed she would correct her. She did not seem the sort to be shy about things like that. But that wasn't the issue for the moment. "Erm…can I drive you home?" he asked awkwardly.
Jen shook her head. "You can't drive to where I live."
"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked.
She paused, not knowing what to say. "I mean, you driving me home wouldn't be a good idea. I can make my own way back."
His shoulders slumped in defeat. That was a pretty clear declaration of the end of their date. "Right," he replied, just to say something.
"It would be easier, though, if you took me back to your house. I don't actually know how to get back home from here," she explained. And that was true, she'd not been paying attention as he drove her through the city. This restaurant was lovely but she had never been so far from the forest before, and she did not know if she'd be able to find her way at night while flying and keeping herself invisible. Not to mention the fact that she'd had quite a lot of wine and that made any sort of complex thought quite difficult.
Nick was cheered by the idea of driving her back to his house. Though he did not know if she meant just what she'd said, that it would be easier for her to go back home from his rather than the restaurant, or if she intended to come inside. And if she did intend to come inside, how far would things go? He'd not really planned on further intimacy with her so soon, though he would be lying if he said he hadn't thought about it. She was so beautiful and if kissing her was good, he could only imagine how incredible the sex could be. But this was just their first date, and he had no expectation for anything. He just wanted to be ready for whatever it was that she was expecting.
They walked back to the car, holding hands. She'd been walking very close beside him and her hand was right there, so he had reached out to hold it. She had smiled at him and given his hand a little happy squeeze.
The drive was quiet. Nick had some radio station playing, but he wasn't paying attention to it. Jennifer was looking out the windows and humming softly. At every stoplight, he watched her. She was so beautiful, he could hardly take his eyes off her.
When Nick parked the car in his driveway, Jen found herself filled with regret. She did not want the evening to end. But it had to, she knew. She needed to get back home and deal with things in her own life and give this whole situation quite a bit of thought. All of that required that she leave him.
She turned to smile softly and say, "Thank you so much for everything tonight. I had a really lovely time."
Nick noticed that she made no move to get out of the car, so he did not either. "I'm glad we got to do this. It was nice to spend more time together."
Jen's eyes sparkled dark blue in the dim lights from Nick's porch. He leaned in, hoping she would reciprocate. And she did.
The kiss started out gentle and soft like the others, but did not remain that way. Nick unbuckled his seatbelt so he could have free use of his arms and hold her tight. Her dress was cut very low in the back, which let him feel the smooth warmth of her golden skin. Her tongue stroked his in a way that made him growl with want and redouble his efforts in kissing her. A fire inside him was being stoked hotter and wilder. He wanted her. Christ, did he want her.
Jen clung to Nick as though his kisses were more precious than the air she breathed. And in the moment, they were. The electric hum of her body sparked with every touch of his hands and his lips. She had never had such a soaring feeling when she was standing—sitting, rather—on solid ground. And she never wanted it to stop. She wanted to touch him and feel him and explore him and be closer to him. She wanted more and more and more.
But now was not the time for that. It was not a step she could take just yet, she knew. If she did not stop now, she might not be able to. And so she pulled back, her whole being screaming against it.
Nick relented when he felt her pull away, but he could not quite let her go just yet. Their foreheads rested together and his arms were still around her as they panted to catch their breath. "When can I see you again?" he asked, knowing that this was where the night had to end.
She smiled. "When can you come back to the woods?"
It was a little difficult to think clearly just then, but he knew when his next day off was. "Saturday."
"If you've got the day free, we can have lunch," she suggested.
"Picnic with beer?"
Jen laughed lightly. "That would be perfect. I can come meet you here again and we can go together." That would be better, she thought, to be able to be alone with him in the woods where she was most comfortable.
"Okay," he agreed. He leaned in again and kissed her, though not deeply this time.
She forced herself to pull back again. "I have to go."
"I know." Nick finally let go of her and sat back in his own seat.
"Goodnight, Nick."
"Goodnight, Jen," he answered.
She unbuckled her own seatbelt and got out of the car. Nick waited a moment, taking a couple deep breaths. When he got out of the car, he found that she was already gone.