Lucky glanced upwards and away from the eggs that were sizzling under his nose. The soft sounds of her pink flamingo slippers padding against the linoleum beckoning his attention.

"Hi," he said softly. Watching as she rubbed her eyes and stumbled forward. "Aaah," he continued….you need coffee…I can spot withdrawal a mile away."

Gripping the pot of coffee that had just finished percolating, he continued to watch her. She was waking up. Beginning to take in her surroundings. The plant that still lay on it’s side. The chair that had a broken leg now.

He’d done his best to sweep up the dirt from the plant, but he hadn’t wanted to touch too much else…just in case.

His eyes continued to survey her movements as she sunk down into the chair opposite of the one that lay on it’s back. Her eyes were sweeping over everything. It was as if she were just realizing what had happened here last night.

Lucky brought a mug that said Lovin’ Las Vegas over to the table. Sitting it gently on the wood in front of her. The sun shown in through the window across the room, and illuminated the shadows under her eyes.

It had taken forever for her to get any sleep the night before. Her dreams nearly constant. And all he’d been able to do was sit there on the carpet, holding her hand.

"Do you want any cream…sugar?" He asked, moving back into the kitchen.

"No," she mumbled. Sipping at the steaming cup of Jo.

"I made some eggs," he said. Gesturing towards the pan of scrambled eggs that were now simmering on the stove. "I don’t know how you like them, but….scrambled eggs are kinda my breakfast specialty. I was going to make you an omelet, but I didn’t really see anything your fridge besides and eggs and chocolate….and I didn’t think a chocolate omelet would go over too well, ya know?"

She glanced up at him, and made eye contact for the first time. As if seeing him for the first time. Silently, she turned to gaze at the front door – it was fixed.

"I got up early and fixed it," he answered quickly. Predicting the question before she even asked. Although the truth was he hadn’t HAD to get up. He’d been up all night.

"I didn’t," Elizabeth began, clearing her throat. "I didn’t hear you…hammering or anything."

"Oh, I didn’t have to hammer anything," he said grinning. "I couldn’t find a screwdriver though, so I’m afraid one of your knives became a casualty of home improvement…I’m sorry about that."

‘Tough room,’ Lucky thought silently as he brought her a small plate of eggs, taking a seat next to her.

"I was going to clean up a little bit, but I didn’t know if maybe you wanted to…wanted to contact someone – the police…maybe about what happe-

"No."

Without his consent, his hand reached out for hers and she pulled it quickly away. "Elizabeth are you…Are you sure? I mean –

"I said no."

"Ok," Lucky nodded. Not understanding, but knowing he had no choice in the matter. This was her call. A long silence passed as he watched her create funny patterns on her plate with the yellow scrambled eggs that lay uneaten.

"Something you said last night…….do you…….Elizabeth do you think you know who that guy was last night?"

"It doesn’t matter."

"How can you say it doesn’t matter?" He asked. Flabbergasted, but trying to keep his voice in check. He barely knew this woman. He had no right to question her about something that shouldn’t have even been his concern.

But for some reason he felt it WAS his concern, and not only because he’d been the one to throw the guy out of the apartment last night. It was more than that.

"I mean if you know this guy…the cops can –

"I don’t…KNOW him," she asserted finally. Looking up into his crystal blue eyes. There was something honest, almost…innocent about them. "I just…I just had a hunch as to who he might be. But…I mean he had on a mask…and he never really said anything."

"Really?" Lucky asked. "What does ‘really’ mean?"

"It means nothing besides, the usual name calling stuff ya know: whore, bitch, slut…the usual."

"The usual?" Lucky asked. His voice, eerily calm as he repeated the word. "Who usually calls you that?"

"No one," she spat suddenly. Shoveling a forkful of eggs into her mouth. "I’m just…I’m just talking that’s all. I don’t know what I’m saying…I haven’t had a lot of sleep and I’m just rambling about nothing.

"It could have been anyone."

Somehow Lucky doubted that. Somehow he knew she knew exactly who had attacked her the night before, or at least had a pretty good suspicion of who it could have been. But he wouldn’t press the issue.

It wasn’t his place. It wasn’t anyone’s place.

The pink of a flamingo caught the corner of his eye, as he spotted the plastic plant accessory on the floor. Picking it up, he placed it on the table. It had fallen out of the pot when it had been tipped over.

Catching a glimpse of her slippers beneath the table on his way up, he grinned. "Are flamingo’s your favorite animal?"

‘There we are,’ he thought. ‘The first grin…that cute little corner coming up first…just like I remembered it.’

"Yeah…don’t laugh."

"I wasn’t planning on it," Lucky smiled. Moving from his seat to rinse out his plate. He hadn’t eaten a bight, but the conversation from just moments ago had completely demolished any semblance of an appetite.

Turning towards her he grinned again. "You know what they call a group of Flamingos?"

"What?"

"A stand," he smiled widely. Bringing one foot up to meet his opposite knee.

The guffaw of laughter that came from the table, shot through his body like lightening and he bit his lip to keep from shouting with joy.

She laughed…she laughed.

Elizabeth covered her mouth with one hand and took a sip of her coffee. Really GREAT coffee. "How do you know that exactly?"

"Ah…you mean not everyone knows that?" He asked, pulling out his chair once again and sinking down with a sigh. "I actually learned a bunch of stuff like that, helping my baby sister do a report for her science class……….a bunch of butterflies…you’ll never guess what they’re called – it’s great…

"What?" Elizabeth asked. Propping chin on the palm of her hand.

"A glitter."

"A glitter?" She asked. Repeating the word as she watched his eyes do the same. God, the sparkled like nothing she’d ever seen before.

"A glitter," he said again. "I like that."

Nervously pushing a strand of hair behind her ear to avoid his gaze, Elizabeth returned to the mug that she nursed with both hands. "So you have a little sister?"

"Yeah…LuLu."

"That’s a cute name," Elizabeth smiled genuinely.

"Yeah, it’s sort of short for this old family joke…her real name is Leslie Lu – after my grandmother."

"Oh," Elizabeth sighed. Sitting the mug down. "That’s really beautiful."

"It fits her," he answered. Sipping his own coffee now.

"How old is she?"

Lucky gave a long-suffering sigh. "13."

Looking down into her coffee, Elizabeth’s voice hallowed out a bit. "I remember 13."

"Yeah, so do I…I’m actually hoping 13 year old males are a little different these days than what I was."

Breaking out of her fog, Elizabeth smiled weakly. "I’m sure they’re the same…but I’m sure your sister is smart enough to whip them into shape if they give her any trouble."

Lucky grinned widely. "Yeah…actually, she’s got a pretty wicked right hook that we’re all pretty proud of."

Elizabeth thought back to the night they’d first met, and the way he’d been with that little boy. So kind, so gentle, so ALIVE. As if he were a kid himself…or made specifically to relate to them.

For reasons she couldn’t fully understand, a smile came to her face.

"I’m just a little leery of all these dances and stuff she’s got coming up," He continued. "She’s got one in a couple of months that she’s been talking about non stop…jeez."

Elizabeth leaned forward. "Does your family live nearby…I mean in New York?"

Raising his eyebrows, Lucky shrugged a little. "Um, about an hour away – give or take a few minutes……in Port Charles."

"Port Charles…is that where you’re from?"

Lucky chuckled a bit under his breath. "We’re kinda from all over the place…but yeah – Port Charles is pretty much home…or THEIR home at least – I’ve been gone for awhile now."

"New York City."

Catching the slightly wistful tone in her voice, Lucky tilted his head to the side. "Have you ever been?"

"No," Elizabeth answered. Shaking her head. "Originally…well, that was sort of the plan…but…plans change."

"Well," Lucky interjected. Pushing his coffee aside. "That sounds like an interesting story……I have time."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and took her empty coffee mug over to the sink. "It’s really not that interesting."

"Humor me. I’ve spent the last 16 billion hours talking about myself."

His flare for exaggeration made her smile and she moved back to the dining room table. "I wanted to dance."

And with the way her eyes lit up when she said it, he knew it was true. Remembering the way she’d moved across that stage…he knew. He continued to watch her eyes grow more animated as she continued.

"My whole life, it’s been pretty much all I ever wanted to do…as a little girl I thought that I’d save up and go to New York City after I finished school…I mean everything I ever heard was that the city was the place to be, if you wanted to dance…and I wanted to dance," she sighed.

"By the time I left Colorado though…I just…I just wanted to get out, and I didn’t have the cash that I needed to get to or LIVE in New York City…it just wasn’t possible……

"I remembered reading in a magazine once about Las Vegas showgirls…and I thought it’d be a way to make money and get out of my house…get out Colorado…

"I guess I never was as bright as I thought I was – they don’t hire 17 year dancers in Las Vegas Nevada…they don’t even higher 18 year olds in Casinos," she laughed.

The laughing laced with something bitter. Something that really hurt inside.

"You left home when you were 17?" Lucky asked. Knowing he shouldn’t have interjected right then. She probably wasn’t finished…and she’d wanted him to know she would have –

"Yes," she answered quickly.

Told him.

Nodding, Lucky took the hint and clamped his mouth shut.

"Anyway," she continued. "There’s always something to pay for around here…the rent, the car that conks out every time she gets…air conditioning – no time for big city dreams."

"You’re a wonderful dancer….beyond wonderful."

Staring at him for a moment, she averted her eyes to play with some interesting crumb atop the table. "It was a pipe dream anyway…I don’t have any training."

"What do you mean you don’t have any training? Of course you do. I’ve seen you dance…you’ve had plenty of –

"No, I haven’t," she said again. Her expression completely serious.

Lucky’s mouth dropped open a bit. "Then h -…how did you learn how to dance like that…I mean – Elizabeth, that wasn’t your average…

"Stripping?" She allowed, grinning a bit at the stunned look on his face. "I watched through a lotta windows as a kid."

"Wait, wait, wait," Lucky said. Holding up his hand. "You mean to tell me, that your like…self taught?…That your some kind of dancing prodigy or something?"

Guffawing with laughter again, Elizabeth threw her head back. "No," she giggled. "That’s not what I’m saying…I’m just saying I like to dance, but I’ve never had any formal dance training…Maybe one or two as a wee little girl, but my parents couldn’t afford it for long…so after that I just kinda ‘watched and learned,’."

"My God."

Elizabeth blushed. "It’s really not that amazing."

"You obviously aren’t seeing what the rest of the world is seeing when you dance then."

She could have easily made a really crude joke just then…but she didn’t. Somehow she couldn’t. Her tongue was stuck.

There were no words coming out her mouth, so he quickly changed the subject. The air in the room having grown tense again. A different kind of tense this time though.

"So," he began. Glancing around again. "You like flamingos, plants, and teddy bears."

Once again there was silence, and he wished to God that the ground would just open him and swallow him alive. Why the HELL had he mentioned those teddy bears? It was bound to make her think of being back in that bedroom.

"Yeah," she said softly. "Not a lot of people have seen those…if you tell anyone, I’ll have to kill you."

Closing his eyes, he smiled softly. She’d made a joke of his embarrassment, and he was grateful.

"So," she began again. Running a hand through her tangled locks. "Do you have your convention today?"

Were the ends still damp from the night before? Lucky swallowed hard and tried not to stare at her hair, or her eyes, or her hands, or anything else. ‘Look at the table, or something you ass.’

"Um," he swallowed, trying to process her question. Doubly nervous once he did. "Um…no – actually. I…it isn’t for a couple of days."

"Oh," Elizabeth said quietly. Surprised by that answer. "So wait…why…your convention isn’t for a few days, but you got into town last night………And the first person you wanted to see was me?"

It wasn’t any big mystery to HIS ears, but he had to come up with something. Why was he realizing only NOW, how stupid the idea of him coming to Las Vegas specifically to see her, would sound to anyone else?

"Y- yeah," he stuttered. "I…you know. I’m the kind of person that has to have someone to talk to it all times…and you’re the only person I sort of….KNOW in Vegas, so…I decided to find you…I mean I guess I could have called first, but….

‘Fabulous Spencer!’ He thought angrily to himself. ‘Foot meet Mouth – you two will be spending lots of time together.’

Licking her lips nervously, Elizabeth locked eyes with and slid her hand atop his on the table before she had a chance to think about it. "I’m glad you didn’t call first."

Lucky swallowed and tried not to get lost in the deep, vast blue of her eyes. "I’m glad too."

Pulling her hand slowly away, she glanced outside before she returned his face and gathered her strength to say the words…

"Thank you."

He nodded and one corner of his mouth turned upwards in a sad, half moon smile. "You’re welcome."

Elizabeth drummed her short nails atop the table, and grinned a bit. "So where are you staying? The Bellagio again?"

‘Where am I staying? Where am I staying? Where am I staying? Where am I staying?…Shit, shit, shit, shit, shhhhiiiiiiit.’

"Um, where am I staying?…I – yeah…the Bellagio."

‘Oh man, you are really are a piece of work Spencer – you didn’t even reserve a fucking hotel room…Jeez, if the guys could see you now, they’d never let you live this one down.’

Elizabeth smiled warmly, and nodded before rising to take her dish to the sink. "Well…maybe…maybe we’ll run into each other and play a game of Road Fury or something before you have to go back to New York."

"Maybe," Lucky responded. His voice having gone out on him for some reason.

‘Alright Spencer…she’s basically saying goodbye here…you fixed the door – she seems relatively ok, given the circumstances…there’s no reason for you to stay.’

He halted as soon as his hand came in contact with the doorknob. "Elizabeth?" He called, turning around to face her.

Turning the water off, she looked back up at him with expectant eyes. He moved closer as if needing to be nearer again.

"Would you…would you maybe like to…to have dinner or something – tonight?"

The breath that she’d been holding seemed to suck backwards into her lungs even further. Was he asking her out on a date? This man…this beautiful man? This beautiful man from New York City?

Was this for real?

"Um…I – I actually…I’m supposed to work tonight."

"Oh," Lucky said quickly. Shrugging the rejection off as if it were no big deal.

"Oh, but wait!" She called, as he turned to face the door once more. The knob turning in his hand. "I could…I mean…I should probably call in sick or something anyway," she explained. Gesturing towards her busted lip and the darkening cut above her eye. "I mean nobody wants to see this."

Moving closer once more. He reached out to touch her lip, but pulled away before his hand met her flesh. Maybe she wasn’t comfortable with…

"You’re beautiful…a few scrapes would never change that."

Suddenly feeling dizzy, she looked down at her hands and blinked a few times to clear her head. She wanted to splash the water in the sink all over her face to snap her out of this sudden haze her head seemed to be swimming in.

"So," he began again. "Since I’m sure you’re more familiar with this city than I am…you should go ahead and pick where you want to go…and I’ll pick you up around……

"Seven."

"Seven," he repeated. "Ok…lucky seven – I’ll be here."

She smiled, and he felt his heart do this lurchy type thing in his chest. Dear Lord, what was happening to him? This was crazy!

‘Not any crazier than flying all the way here in the middle of the night Spencer. The only thing that’s crazy now is the fact that you were RIGHT. You ARE in love with her.’

As he watched her nod, he walked backwards towards the front door once again. A thought popped into his mind suddenly and he paused once more. "You’ll be ok here, right?…I mean –

"Yes," she answered softly. "I’ll be fine…thank you."

"Ok," he nodded. "Well then, I’ll see you in a few hours."

"I’ll see you," she answered.

When the door finally closed behind him, she let out the breath she’d been holding on a long sigh and braced herself against the kitchen counter.

What the Hell had just happened here?! Her entire body was tingling…This was –

Looking down into the water, she followed her instincts and doused herself with a handful.

She still tingled.

~~~~~~~

Lucky braced himself against the railing that lined the balcony of her apartment and sighed. Rocking back on his heels as he turned to stare at the door he’d just exited.

They were going on a date…they were –

"Holy shit," he whispered. Smiling to himself as he made his way towards the first step downstairs.

~~~~~~~

Elizabeth checked her reflection in the mirror for what seemed the 10 thousandth time in the last 10 minutes. Wiping her sweaty palms against the length of her dress, she smoothed she short black material out against her thighs.

Was that a wrinkle?

No, she’d ironed it a few billion times, right? ‘What the Hell are you so nervous about Webber? This is ridiculous…he’s just some guy…just some guy from New York that you barely even know – what do you care what he thinks? You don’t…you don’t care. Just go out, and TRY to have some semblance of a good time, would you? Ok…’ She sighed aloud. Closing her eyes as she leaned forward to check her lipstick in the mirror.

"Everything’s gonna be fine," she said aloud. "You’re just nervous because it’s been forever since you’ve been out on a date…it has nothing to do with WHO you’re going out with…You’d be nervous with anybody, right?…Right."

Ding – Dong.

She whirled around as the doorbell sounded. Closing her eyes and shaking her hands out one more time before heading for the door.

"Hi."

The silence from the other side of the door, caused her to hold her breath and wait. ‘Is there something in my teeth?’ She thought frantically. Running her tongue along the outside ridge of teeth. ‘Did my mascara get clumpy?’

Just as she reached to touch her eyes, he spoke.

"Wow…I mean. Wow…you look –

"I didn’t know where we were going, so I just…I figured black is usually good for any occasion…and I can put on something else if we’re going some place more casual. Actually," she added, turning around. "Yeah, I can just go change right –

"No."

The word and the act of his fingers reaching out to wrap around her forearm emerged without his permission. He cleared his throat rapidly and pulled his hand from her flesh…so soft.

"Um…I just meant that you look great. I don’t – I don’t think you should change."

"Oh," she said nodding slowly. "Ok."

Her eyes traveled down the length of his body. From the black chords to the blue dress shirt that made his eyes look spectacular against the backdrop of the setting sun. Oh, and what that sun did for the specks of gold at the roots of his hair.

She wanted to touch it.

"You…you look really…nice too."

"Thanks," Lucky sighed. Dragging his hands along the sides of his chords on pretense that he was going to put his hands in his pockets. When the truth was that they were damp as Hell. "You ready?"

"Um, yeah…just let me get my sweater and purse..." she announced. Turning into the apartment to lift her things from the couch by the door. The couch that he’d slept on the night before.

He watched the way her body moved beneath the cool black fabric and inhaled deeply through his nose. It was one of those dresses where the straps were barely there…what did you call ‘em?

‘Spaghetti straps…’

Sure she could hear the sound of his hard swallow when she turned back to face him, he quickly spoke. "So, where are we going?"

Elizabeth ran a hand through her hair as they made their way out of the apartment and down the stairs. Standing back for a moment before she realized he was going to let her go down the steps first. "Um…I probably should have asked what you eat before I did this…but I made reservations at this place right outside of town – it’s kind of a steakhouse but they have like seafood and pasta and…I’ve only been there once, but I remember it being pretty good…or we can just go to –

"That sounds great," he said quickly. Coming to meet her at the bottom of the steps before she could say another word. Was she actually as nervous as he was, or did she always talk this fast and furious?

"Ok," she answered quickly. Nodding instead of saying another word since her mouth was so incredibly dry.

"Ok," he repeated. Moving in front of her to unlock her door. Once again she had to step back to allow him to do it. He kept catching her off guard.

Did guys like this actually exist?

‘Not in your world Webber…he wants in your pants.’

He felt her stillness as soon as he slid into the seat next to her. "What’s wrong?"

She shook her head quickly. "Nothing…did you rent a car?" She asked. Rapidly changing the subject.

"Oh," he said looking around. "Yeah…I went after I left your apartment this afternoon and got one…it’s not really my style, but it’s wheels right?"

‘Not really his style?’ He was rich and it was a BMW. What the Hell wasn’t his style about it?

Lucky heard her sigh as he started the ignition. "Elizabeth…are you sure there’s nothing wrong?…Did I say something? Did I –

"No," she said quickly. Shaking her head. She stared out of the window for a moment before instructing him on how to get to the highway that led towards the non-touristy part of town and to the restaurant.

Moments of silence passed before Lucky reached down to turn on the radio. Her voice came with the sound. "So what would you have rather?"

"Excuse me?"

"You said this car wasn’t your style. What would you rather?"

"Oh! That," he said chuckling a little bit. "I don’t know…I guess I’m not really into these flashy ‘I’m a business man and I want everyone to know it,’ kinda cars. It’s just not me, I guess…I mean there’s nothing WRONG with ‘em. There good cars I guess…I think I’m just missing Mary."

"Mary?"

Lucky laughed and made a right where she told him to turn. "She’s my Mercury…it’s kind of a running joke in my family. I got this red ’55 Monterey when I was 16, and at the time my little sister was going through this phase where she ate a lot of Merichino Cherries…Now, the thing was she couldn’t actually SAY Merichino right. She always thought it was ‘Mary – she knows.’"

Elizabeth couldn’t help but bust up laughing as Lucky continued on with the story. "Anyway, I got this car and my sister thought it looked just like a Mary-She-Knows cherry. So every time she went in the garage she’d call it that, and I just sorta shortened it to Mary…and it stuck.

"Anyhow, I guess I’m missing her a little bit."

Giggling, Elizabeth glanced at him. He was still smiling. "I bet you can’t wait to get back to the city then."

"Oh no, see Mary’s still in Port Charles with my family. She wouldn’t be able to handle the city. Nope…Mary’s meant for the open road. The city would suffocate her."

Elizabeth shook her head and laughed again. He was too much. "Well, I’m sure you wouldn’t want anything like that happening to Mary…and I’m sure you go and visit her just as often as you can."

"Oh most definitely," he said. Turning to smile at her.

~~~~~~~

Lucky leaned back in his chair. "That was great."

Elizabeth smiled as she twirled her fork through the Linguini she’d ordered. "Yeah…they have really good food here…You wanna taste mine?"

He nodded and leaned forward, before realizing there wasn’t another fork. His had steak sauce all over it. When he went to reach for it, she waved it off and twirled her own fork through the pasta once more. Lifting it and placing her other hand under it as she brought it to his mouth.

His eyes closed as the creamy sauce slid against his tongue. "Mmm.."

"Told ya it was good."

Lucky shook his head and swallowed. "Yeah…that was really good. But I make it better."

"What?" Elizabeth asked, tilting her head. "Sure you do."

"Are you doubting my culinary abilities?"

"Well, I can’t doubt them considering I’ve never had them."

"Well, that will just have to be rectified then…one night while I’m here I’ll have to make you dinner."

"What if I don’t let you cook in my house?" She asked teasingly.

"Hmph…you’ll just have to come to mine."

She laughed out loud. Not stopping until the waiter took her plate away and she realized that the man across from her wasn’t enjoying the same amusement.

Under the pretense of refolding the white linen napkin in her lap, she looked down and away from his solid stare. "Do you want dessert?" She asked quickly, looking up.

Realizing he was still staring, he shook off the spell that had just fallen over him. "Um…yeah, but I was thinking maybe we could just get icecream somewhere…I’m in the mood for Rocky Road."

Elizabeth smiled. "Ok, then." Reaching for her purse. She pulled out her wallet and lay it on the table while she rummaged through for some cash.

Lucky placed a hand over hers. "I got it."

"No," she said quickly. Shaking her head. "I can’t let you do that."

"Well, I can’t let you pay."

"What?"

"Ok, I KNOW it sounds chauvinistic…but this is my job."

"Lucky…No." She countered. Pulling her hand and her wallet out from under his. "I’m paying…at least for my own meal."

Sighing, he looked around and ran a hand through his hair. "Ok…fine you can pay – if you get up and dance with me to that song they’re playing in the bar."

A small tug pulled at the corner of her lips, and she slowly turned in her seat to look into the dimly lit bar where no one danced. An empty floor with some slow, jazz song floating through the speakers.

"Then you’ll be quiet about paying?"

"You won’t hear another peep."

Grinning a bit, she stood up and extended her hand.

"Why thank you," he whispered, taking it in his as he stood.

Of course she’d realized it before, but he was so tall…and in the light of the restaurant…his eyes…again….

Something had shifted and he was now holding her hand instead of the other way around. Maybe she’d gotten lost on the way to the dance floor and he’d found her. She couldn’t be sure.

But her head was against his shoulder. And his hand was at the small of her back. It was different this time. Different than the last….it was closer…it was darker in the room. And suddenly they were they only two people in the restaurant – in the world.

She was no longer aware of her feet, or if they even moved. She was only aware of that soft piano emanating from some deep lovelorn place in someone’s heart.

Maybe it was the song that made her feel special. Made her feel like she were on the first date she’d ever had in her life. Made him lace his fingers through hers the way that he was. Lacing and relacing over and over again…like…like their hands were lovers.

Lovers that had found each other after a long, long time.

There was a part in the song, where he could have pulled slightly away to twirl her beneath the shelter of his arm. But he didn’t. He couldn’t.

His body didn’t seem to want to separate from hers. Soft as she was…right as she felt against him.

Was that her cheek? Leaning against their hands that way…the way a kitten sometimes rubbed against your leg, when passing by? He looked down at her to check his tactile sense with that of sight…and she quickly stopped doing it.

He wished to God he hadn’t looked…but they kept dancing.

‘Talk,’ he thought silently. Feeling the way she’d tensed in his arms just then. ‘Talk…’

"I’ve always loved this song."

Her voice was a mere murmur against his chest when it emerged, and he shivered at the heat of her breath. "It’s nice."

"Ellington and Coltrane…it doesn’t get much better than that."

She glanced upwards and into his eyes. This time wearing a smile. "A jazz aficionado who makes great pasta…wow."

He chuckled a bit, and twirled her beneath his arm just this once. "Actually I’m more of a blues man…My dad own’s a club………but this song – this is just a classic."

"Your dad own’s a blue’s club?…In Port Charles?"

"Yeah," he sighed. As her head came back to his chest. "I haven’t been in awhile."

"You miss home."

"Yeah…but this – I’d say this almost makes up for it."

If there was ever any question, the smell of her hair when he got close enough to inhale deeply, more than made up for the missing of anything. The nostalgia of youth. The longing for a dream…she was all he needed at that moment.

She felt his cheek slide against he hair and she pulled back just a bit. "What is this called?"

‘Falling in love?’ he thought silently.

"The song?"

"Yeah."

"In A Sentimental Mood."

"Oh…that’s nice…it…it fits."

"Mmmhm," he hummed, his cheek sliding against those silky strands once more. The notes of the piano were beginning to fade…it’d be over soon. It’d be over soon and he’d have no reason to keep her locked inside the circle of his embrace.

Unless maybe he kissed her. Maybe…

She pulled away as the song ended and he looked down at her. Locking eyes for what seemed like an eternity.

Just one kiss…

‘If you’re gonna do it…do it Spencer and stop thinkin’ about it.’

He licked his lips and moved closer. Lowering his head until –

"Do you wanna go dancing somewhere else?"

"What?"

The one syllable word came out like the croak of a bullfrog and he cleared his throat to ask again. "What?"

Elizabeth rambled quickly as she made her way towards the table to pay the check. She had to get out…had to get air before she started to fall into something she couldn’t claw her way out of.

He paused to collect himself before following. "Sure…uh-huh…dancing…"