"Are you asking me out? On a date?" Helen blurted out, eyes wide.

There was a moment and she could tell Nikola was assessing the situation.

"Yes," he finally answered.

"Oh." There was a pause. "Why?"

"Well, it's generally accepted as the thing to do if you're interested in a woman," he said with an uneasy grin, sitting back and pulling his hand free of hers.

"Oh." He was interested in a woman. "You're interested in... me?"

"Yes."

"Oh." What? "Why?"

"Why am I interested in you or why am I asking you out?"

There was a pause where she thought about it for a second.

"Both."

He let out a sigh and rolled his eyes before fixing his gaze on hers.

"Because, Helen, while car sex is appealing, I'd much rather work to win you heart and then ruin my seats. I've always adored you, darling, ever since we met that day in Autumn but I was too afraid that you didn't feel the same way," he said with a shrug.

She stared at him open mouthed, unable to do anything except gape at him in the most undignified of ways.

"The truth is Helen, I..." he paused and looked around uncomfortably, swallowing before he continued, "I love you and I've been in love with you for a very long time."

She could see how much such an admission was costing his pride, but all she could do was stare at him, unseeingly. Moments passed and, as Helen flicked her gaze back to his face, she saw that his eyes were once again guarded. She wanted to reach out to him and tell him that she was fine, that they were fine, that she might, possibly, probably, hopefully love him too but she couldn't. She was stuck in place, eyes darting around as tried to force her mind into coherent thought. He... loved... her? He... loved her? He? Her? Nikola? Her breathing got faster and faster as she tried to comprehend what was going on.

"Helen, are you O.K?" Nikola asked, concerned, as he reached across the table to take her hand again.

"Yes, of course... It's just..."

"What?"

"I..."

"Yes?"

"You..."

"Helen?"

"Yes?"

"Are you all right?" There was so much disappointment and fear in his eyes and Helen knew she was responsible for it. Taking a deep breath, she smiled unsteadily and squeezed his hand, forcing out the words she hoped would take away some of the injury she had caused.

"I will be."

Three words but not quite the ones he as hoping for, obviously.

His answering smile was bright but she could still see the sadness in his eyes. Not entirely sure what to say, she reached out with her foot once more under the table and brushed it against his leg in reassurance. He chuckled at her actions before leaning back in his seat once more and relinquishing her hand.

They sat again in silence for a few minutes, Helen too caught up in trying to not only process what their lunch had become but also coax herself into actually saying more than three words in response. Or perhaps all that was needed was three words. Three very specific words, maybe with 'too' added on the end.

She looked down at her hands, noticing that, for the first time in a long time, she'd walked out of the house without putting on her wedding rings by accident. Her long fingers lay bare in her lap, a reminder of where she had been but, more importantly, where she could go. She'd always loved Nikola, he was her oldest and dearest friend and she'd be truly lost without him but... he loved her. He loved her. And, while she knew she loved him, she wasn't yet certain if she loved him.

"Helen," Nikola said softly, interrupting her train of thought. Holding up a finger to silence him, Helen took a deep breath and bit her lip.

"Look, love, it's-," Nikola started again but she shushed him.

After another minute of trying to get up the nerve, she opened her mouth only to have Nikola jump in over the top of her.

"Helen, please don't be-."

"Did I or did I not tell you to shush?" she asked bitingly, staring him down for his audacity.

He smirked weakly at her but didn't say another word. Letting out a breath, Helen looked him right in the eye.

"Say it again," she instructed softly.

"What?"

"Say it again," she insisted. There was a pause and Nikola gave her a quizzical look before understanding dawned over his face.

"I love you."

The words hung in the air and Helen couldn't help but smile.

"Now you... I mean... Will you... Do..." he asked nervously and suddenly her conviction was thrown out the window. If he couldn't be strong, what hope did she have? Licking her lips and steeling herself, Helen found it impossible to look him in the eye. Staring at his lips, she felt a little of her confidence return.

"I..." she tried, swallowing before continuing. "I think... I might be... in love... with... you, that is. But I uh... um..." she trailed off, finally risking a look at his eyes.

His grin could have lit up the entire city and that fear was finally banished from his eyes. Before she knew it, Helen found herself smiling back at him, giddy with the thought that she'd managed to finally say something, and the right something at that. He shifted in his seat, leaning towards her and grabbing her hand, tracing patterns on her wrist with his long, delicate fingers. He chuckled lightly as he beamed at her, as excited as three year old presented with a shiny new toy. And she smiled back, shifting in her seat so that she could reach out and grab his free hand, lacing their fingers together.

They sat like that for minutes, maybe hours, pulling apart only when the waiter arrived back at their table, sending a dirty look in Nikola's direction before asking whether or not they'd like any desserts.

Nikola, who hadn't looked away from Helen's face, smirked broadly at that, making her blush to the roots of her hair.

"No, we've got dessert waiting for us at home," Nikola said smoothly.

"Actually, I think you left it in the car, dear," Helen put in, trying hard to cover her smirk at Nikola's flabbergasted look.

The waiter made a noise of disgust as he walked away to get their bill.

"Cheeky monkey," he chastised and she smirked, downing the last of her wine and crossing her legs.

"You know I hate to wait between courses, Nikola," she reminded him, pleased when he groaned and closed his eyes.

"You're going to be the death of me," he swore as the waiter arrived back at the table, tossing the leather wallet down on the table carelessly.

"If I was you, I'd watch it young man," Nikola warned sternly, snatching up the bill and sliding his credit card into the proper place before Helen could insist that she pay. "My charming companion here managed to get us this table because your boss is terribly fond of her paintings so if you'd like to keep your job, perhaps throwing the bill at us is not the way to go."

"Nikola," Helen admonished, raising her still bare foot to prod his thigh, taking advantage of the white tablecloth that hit the ground. With one hand Nikola handed back the leather wallet and, with the other, reached under the table to capture her ankle before she could pull away. She flexed her foot, silently telling him to let go but, as he listened to the waiter bumble out an excuse, his other hand dropped below the table and, with skilled fingers, he began to massage her foot, slowly sliding his fingertips up and over her ankle, tracing soft patterns on her calf, making her shiver. If anyone had asked why she didn't pull away, Helen would have argued that he was holding her so she couldn't but, so lost in the sensation, she didn't realise that he had in fact let go of her ankle long ago.

It wasn't until a soft moan slipped from her mouth that Nikola stopped his sweet torture. The waiter gave her a curious look and, with one last apology, slipped away from the table. Nikola chuckled at her before running his hand up to her knee, drawing one last flourish on the underside before sliding his hands back to her foot.

Taking her cue, Helen moved her leg from his lap, careful to brush against his crotch as she did so. Nikola inhaled sharply and sat up a little straighter, glaring at her as their waiter returned once more with Nikola's card.

"Ever heard of receipt withholding?" Nikola asked, tutting at the young man as he took back his card.

Ignoring the young man's attempt at an apology, Nikola stood and reached his hand out to Helen.

"Ready for dessert?" he asked huskily and Helen shivered. "She has the worst sweet tooth," Nikola mock whispered to the stunned waiter with a wink.

"You're no better!" she exclaimed, taking his outstretched hand and standing up. "If it had been up to you, we would have had dessert before lunch."

"Don't deny it, you wanted to too," he said as the waiter stepped back to let them pass. Wrapping his arm around her waist possessively, Nikola pulled Helen to his side and, arms around each other, they strode from restaurant.

"I love you," he whispered softly, holding the door open for her and Helen smiled.

"I know, and I'm glad." His face creased in confusion at her words and Helen saw his earlier doubts returning. "It's just a bit much," she confessed softly, reaching out to caress his cheek. Nikola caught her hand and brought it to his lips, eyes asking for more of an explanation.

"This morning you were just Nikola but now you're not and it's a lot of change. I don't not feel that way but..." she confessed with an uneasy smile. "It's hard." He smiled softly at her dropping her hand and leaning in to capture her lips again.

"Well, no matter," he said, lips a hairsbreadth from her own, "I. Love. You." He punctuated each word with a brush of his lips against hers. He tried to pull away but, needing him to kiss her properly, she grabbed his face, crushing their lips together. Nikola caught on quickly, deepening the kiss as he wrapped his arms around her waist. Their tongues danced for what could have been hours, getting them both more and more hot under the collar as it continued. They only pulled apart when another couple coughed at them, sending them a dirty glare for blocking the walkway.

Helen smiled sheepishly at them as Nikola wrapped his arms around her again, ushering her from down the sidewalk.

Sorry for the delay! Without reviews, I, uh, sometimes forget to update. I get distracted by other stories a lot so constant reminding is always good. Anyway, thank you to the lovely anon on Tumblr who reminded me to update and a certain tweeter :)

xx