Even though she’d said we’d have to wait, she leaned over and gave me a second kiss of the night. Unlike the first one, which she’d initiated but had ended before I could react, she allowed me a moment to savor this one with her.

But she suddenly drew back just as I started to push into her mouth with my tongue.

“Harley … Harley,” she said softly, releasing my chin as she pushed me back gently by the shoulders. I shut my eyes to quell my emotions. I heaved a deep sigh and leaned back into the back of my seat.

After several deep breaths I opened my eyes and saw her looking at me with a small smile. “You are one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever met, Harley Barton-Ash. Especially in moonlight. I’m jealous of every lover you’ve ever had who’s watched you while you slept. Even the moon is envious of you. ”

I reached out and caressed her face with my fingertips.

“I’m afraid, Aerin,” I said, after a few minutes.

She picked up my right hand again, kissed it, and slipped the gear into drive. “That song was perfect for us. Or for me, and the way I’m feeling about this,” she said with a smile as she waved her finger back and forth between us.

As I eased the car forward, I glanced quickly at her, and saw we were each mentally gathering ourselves. I reached for an easy, light tone, “we’re under ten minutes away. With the luck you have been having, I’m sure we’ll quickly find parking!”

We did, about a block from the southernmost end of Washington Blvd, which is where the restaurant was.

As we started walking towards the restaurant, I said nervously, “You’ll probably hear a lot of stories about me tonight, about how I was before … before, um …”

She gripped my hand reassuringly, “That’s ok, Harley.”

“And I really haven’t told them much of anything about Vegas or what I’ve been up to …” I continued, looking sideways at her. “I don’t think they know about the circumstances surrounding my dad towards the end, even. Because we’d all gone to school in New York, so the scandal was away from us, and people got busy with post-grad stuff…”