It was a cool summer night in late August when she knew the man she had been dating for a month and a half was the one she loved. Yes, they were butterflies that filled her stomach, fluttering all the way up to her chest, filling it with warmth when he cast his intense blue gaze upon her, silently conveying the depth of his feelings without words but it was more than that, so much more. His actions... the little things he did like remembering her favorite tea and surprising her with a box of it or even the grand things he did like surprising her with tickets to see her favorite teenaged musician who happened to be in town last weekend, filling her with nostalgia and new memories. Even then she knew she was falling deliberately for him, but in her mind, she was still on a journey to actualizing her feelings.

"Are you really going to eat all of that?" Olivia questioned Fitz dubiously after their waiter had piled four different plates containing various breakfast foods such as pancakes, hashbrowns, eggs, sausage, and bacon in front of him while she looked down at her plate, waiting on the bottle of Tabasco she had requested for her sandwich. They had just finished a night of dancing downtown and made a pitstop at their local 24-hour diner for nutrients refuel.

"Yes," Fitz responded matter-of-factly with a grin as if to tell her she should expect his big appetite by now.

She shook her head good-naturedly and began eating her french fries, dipping one into the small glob of ketchup on the side of her plate. A moment later, the waiter returned with her hot sauce and she thanked him.

"Tonight was fun," she smiled demurely, replaying the night's activity, they had literally danced the night away and ushered in the early morning. They had started the evening at one bar seizing the opportunity to dance to 80s and 90s throwback music but when they had had their fill of it, they moved on to another bar that had an extensive mixture of beats. From Drake's singing-rapping to Beenie Man's lewd dancehall rhythms. And after two long island iced teas and a shot of patron Olivia was more than ready to let loose on the dance floor. Fitz did his best keeping up with the smooth movements of her lithe waist, choosing to hold onto her hips, following her lead. She remembered how good it felt to be held in his strong arms while the music blared from the speakers. There were moments when they got lost in each other and even though the beat was going fast they slowed down to a diminuendo and Olivia would turn to face him and he would hold her so close that there was barely room for air to pass between them. Her head was light from the alcohol but her heart was full from the affections she held for this kind, sweet, handsome man who stumbled into her life a few months ago through a mutual friend. The night was perfect despite when someone bumped into her and accidentally spilled some of their drink onto her shoes or when that girl tried to sandwich Fitz from the back while Olivia was at his front, the gall of some people! didn't deter her from enjoying herself.

Coming out of her thoughts, she listened as Fitz told her how much fun he had dancing with her and that they should do it more often to which she agreed. For the next several minutes they regaled some of the funny stories of the night, like the older man who thought he was the best thing since sliced bread when it came to the ladies or the scantily dressed woman who was preying on unforeseen men to the rhythmless dancers to whom took center stage to entertain themselves. It was all good fun.

She shouldn't be surprised when Fitz was finishing up his last plate while she was still working on her moons over my hammy sandwich but she was. Standing at 6'2" he was well built. Lean but muscular with a rigid midsection she noticed from the many times she was leaning upon him.

"What?" Fitz asked, noticing her stare.

"Nothing," she shifted her attentions back to eating, sprinkling some more Tabasco sauce on her sandwich before taking a sizeable bite.

Fitz continued, "Meanwhile you're looking at me crazy when you're throwing on hot sauce like it'll be your last time having it," he teased to which Olivia burst out laughing in response. She was obsessed with the slightly spicy condiment he had come to realize.

"Shut up," she spluttered between laughter.

"I'm just saying." Fitz raised both hands in surrender to Olivia's amusement.

"You want to hear something naughty?" She asked, her laughter had since subsided and now morphed into a mischievous grin.

"Of course," Fitz returned eagerly, giving her his full attention.

Looking down as she dipped a semi-soggy fry into her glob of ketchup, swirling it around as she murmured, "sometimes when I eat out, I take the bottle of Tabasco home with me." It was now Fitz's turn to burst into a bout of laughter.

"Oli-Liv, Livvie, are you serious?" Fitz rumbled through his laughing spell.

Olivia chanced to look up at him and nodded her agreement.

"So you're telling me, you could potentially be arrested for theft of a bottle of hot sauce?"

"Ha. Ha. Ha. Funny..." She muttered humorless, fighting back her grin. "It's just something my sister and I did in our earlier 20s that never quite left me," she explained. "It was our thing."

Fitz sobered up a little, "I see."

She conceded her smile when she saw no judgments on his face.

"So what other naughty things do you do?" He followed up and from the sensual peek of his tongue as it swept over his bottom lip she could tell his curiosity was piqued. Leaning over the small table she whispered, "one day I'll show you." His eyes gleamed excitedly and before he could respond, she stood abruptly and excused herself to the ladies room. She felt his gaze on her backside as she sauntered away in her tiny leather skirt and off the shoulder top.

A few minutes later, she returned and finished the remainder of her food while Fitz took care of their tab. Once their bill was settled, they walked out of the restaurant, Fitz opening the door for her. Chivalry wasn't dead after all, something he reminded her constantly. They held hands as they made their way to his vehicle. Once again, Fitz held the door open for her as she climbed into the midnight blue truck. "Thank you, kind sir," she beamed.

"You're welcome, my lady." Her eyebrows raised at his choice of words but he was already closing her door and didn't see her reaction. His lady, she liked the sound of that. A lot.

Fitz hopped inside his truck, closing the door and turning the keys in the ignition, inviting a burst of cool air out of the open ventilators; seconds later, the low volume of the radio strumming some overplayed song for the umpteenth time filled the cabin. It was a nice ending to a perfect night out. The clock read 2:30 AM and she prayed she could wake up in time for the 10:30 church service, if not, she would catch it online.

Before pulling off she noticed Fitz reaching into his back pocket only to produce the bottle of Tabasco sauce a moment later, the one she had used at the restaurant.

With a hand to her mouth muffling her gasp, she let out a loud chortle. "Fitz!"

Fitz grinned, handing over the half-filled bottle to her. Olivia stared in disbelief because she had no idea he had done this. "When did you swipe the hot sauce?"

"When you went to the bathroom." He playfully winked, backing out of the small parking spot.

Olivia held the bottle between both palms, staring at it in disbelief. She couldn't believe he did it. As if reading her mind, he said, "there isn't much I wouldn't do for you." It was at that precise moment she knew she was in love with him. As mundane and ridiculous her guilty pleasure low-level criminal activity was, he indulged her. How could she not allow him to occupy full residency in her heart? She loved this man, simply and purely, and knew in her heart that there was room to love him more. Glancing over at him, she reached for his free hand and held it over the console and quietly whispered, " I love you." Even if he didn't respond with the three special words, she knew he did for his love was spoken in his actions.

Disclaimer: I may or may not swipe restaurants' hot sauces.