Their first night together was thrilling. Alissa had never had such sensual and attentive sex. He was so giving, and she was so willing.

They began talking every day, and every Friday, he'd take her somewhere new. The first time was at a jazz club in Westwood Denver. She had never seen live jazz music and had so much fun dancing with him. He could really stick with the beat, which was refreshing because not every guy she met could.

He took her out a little bit east of Denver to Aurora one Saturday evening to see a rambunctious improv show at the Vintage Theatre. They laughed their asses off together. It was good to know that they shared the same sense of humor.

The last week in January, he had surprised her, taking her downtown to the upscale and clubby Capital Grille steakhouse. In the two years she had lived in Denver, no guy had ever treated her out to a place so nice. She was really enjoying his company, especially their nights together.

Alissa was spending Super Bowl at Sarah's with Hwan and Grace. Trevor was spending it with his guy friends, Mike, Sean, and Jared, at their favorite sports bar, Jackson's. Alissa didn't mind. Spending every weekend with Trevor these last few weeks, she only ever saw her friends at work now, so it was nice to spend some time outside of work with them, again.

"So, you and Trevor are getting serious, huh?" Sarah asked over the yelling of Hwan at the television.

Grace laughed at whatever demeaning thing Hwan said about the Patriots.

Alissa blushed, "I don't know. He's a lot of fun and really sweet, though."

"Do you have plans for Valentine's Day, yet?"

"He told me he had plans already made and to just show up at his apartment."

"You're not going out?" Sarah asked with an amused grin.

"I don't know," Alissa said with her arms extended out.

This time, Grace yelled at the TV, cursing Manning's name.

~~~

The evening of Valentine's Day, Alissa sat on the hardwood floor of her closet with her arms crossed over her chest and a scowl painting her face. She grumbled how she wished Trevor would have had told her where they were going so she'd know what to wear. But he didn't, so she found herself sitting in her closet pouting.

She could wear a simple black dress, but what if it's really fancy? She could wear her red dress then, but what if it's casual? She could wear dark jeans and her favorite cream sweater, but what if that's too casual? She groaned.

This is ridiculous, she thought.

She decided after what felt like ten minutes of staring laser beams into her closet wall to just play it safe and wear the black dress with black closed-toe heels. She had already straightened her hair, so she only had her makeup left to do. She checked her phone. It was almost 5 o'clock and Trevor had said 5:30. She'd need to hurry if she wanted to get a cab.

After finished her makeup, she grabbed her clutch and coat and waited for the elevator to reach her ninth floor apartment. That was one thing she didn't like about her complex—the elevator took forever. She slipped her coat on and zipped it all the way up. She wondered if she should run back inside and grab a scarf, but the elevator doors chimed as they opened in front of her.

She slid in to find a couple already there. They were dressed quite wealthily in matching black peacoats. The woman had large diamonds in her ears and her blonde hair up in a twist. Her bright red lips smiled at her. She smiled back before looking at the man. His dark hair was slicked back and he wore expensive black leather dress shoes. She wondered where they were off to for Valentine's Day dressed so classy.

When the elevator doors reopened, she let the couple go first. It was already a quarter to; she'd never find a cab this quickly in time. If Trevor had reservations somewhere, they couldn't afford to lose their table for being late. She ended up ordering an Uber. The prices were jacked up, but it would have also been for a cab on a holiday like this during dinner time, anyway.

A silver Chrysler SUV pulled up to the curb and she hopped in the back. She didn't pay much attention to the driver who, luckily, didn't attempt to make conversation with her. When he pulled up in front of Trevor's high-rise, she thanked the driver and stepped out. Just as she was about to take another step, she slipped and landed on her tailbone.

As bullets of pain shot through her tailbone and up her spine, she bit her bottom lip and stared at the front entrance to Trevor's high-rise. The Uber driver had already pulled away. She just sat there as rivets of pain continued to course through her.

The doorman to the high-rise stepped out and slowly made his way to her.

"Are you alright, ma'am?"

She was afraid if she spoke, she'd burst into tears, so she only nodded.

"Let me help you up." He gently held her arm and lifted her off the ground.

Her heels slipped again on the ice, but he adjusted his grip on her quick enough to keep her steady.

He walked her carefully back to the entrance and let her into the warm lobby.

"Are you sure you're okay? Do you need me to call someone for you?"

She finally turned her head to look at the doorman. He couldn't be younger than 65. He looked like a sweet old man with soft graying ringlets on the sides of his head, but a bald spot shining on top. His hazel eyes warmed her.

She shook her head, "Thank you. I'm actually going up to the twenty-third floor."

He smiled, "Ah. Well, I hope you feel better."

"Thank you," she said as she got in the elevator.

"Have a Happy Valentine's Day, ma'am," he said as the doors began to close.

"You too," she replied.

She slowly took her coat off, careful not to turn her body too much, cursing herself.

She got off the elevator and made her way to Trevor's corner apartment. Just as she was about to knock on the door, she smelled something delicious coming from underneath the door. She smiled as she knocked.

A short moment later, Trevor opened the door in black slacks and a crisp white button-up. The top few buttons were left undone. His white teeth shined bright at her as his chocolate eyes lit up. He stepped aside for her to come in.

Once she had stepped inside, she realized the delicious smell was Mexican food.

"You're making us dinner?" she turned around to ask him.

He still had that goofy smile on as he took her coat and tossed it on the couch. He walked behind the kitchen island to stir a pot. She followed him to see the oven had five minutes left on the timer. The glass dining room table was set for two with guacamole, sour cream, salsa, and shredded mixed cheese in small serving bowls.

"Last week you said you were craving Mexican," he said as he poured cooked yellow rice out of the pot and into a large serving bowl. "So, I thought I'd make us enchiladas and just have a night in. Maybe watch a movie or two. I have popcorn in the pantry."

Alissa's smile grew, "But enchiladas are so hard to make."

"Nah, as long as you know what you're doing, nothing is hard to make. It just requires a lot of work," he said as he placed the bowl of rice on the table. "What do you want to drink? We could open a nice bottle of cab?"

"You already know me so well," she smiled.

Cabernet sauvignon was her favorite red wine. To her, it could go with almost any dish.

He uncorked the bottle in front of her and poured two glasses before placing them on the table.

"Sit," he said as the oven beeped.

She cautiously sat on the cushioned chair, wary of her tailbone, as she watched Trevor take the casserole dish out of the oven and then scoop three enchiladas onto their dinner plates.

"You really know the way to a woman's heart," she said as he placed the plate in front of her.

"The way to anyone's heart is with food, Alissa. That's what my mother always told me."

"She sounds like a smart woman," she said as she served herself rice.

He smiled. "She is. She taught me to always treat those I care about as if they're royalty."

"Is this why you've been treating me like a princess?" she asked flirtatiously.

He grinned, "Yes. I know it seems a bit early for this, but I really do care for you, Alissa."

Her heart hammered as he looked into her eyes. Her face paled as she lost her appetite.

"Oh," she said as she looked at her hands in her lap.

"You don't have to say anything back," he whispered.

She looked back up at him. His eyes were wide like saucers, waiting for her to say something with sustenance.

"I really enjoy your company. Thank you for treating me so kindly."

She smiled. He smiled back. They began eating silently for a few minutes.

"Trevor, this meal is delicious. Have you made it before?"

"A few times. It's a mess to make and cleanup, but it's so delicious, so it's worth it." He shrugged.

"I can see," she said as she looked at the kitchen chuckling.

There were three dirty pots and the casserole dish on the stove, two cutting boards and three knives laid out on the counter, and more dirty dishes in the sink.

"Don't worry about it," he said. "So, what movie do you want to watch? We can look through Apple TV and rent something or just find something on Netflix."

"We'll probably spend forever trying to find something good on Netflix."

"True," he chuckled, "Apple TV it is. Oh, there's that new movie I wanted to see... What was it called? Passengers?"

"Oh, that looked really good. Sure," she smiled.

After dinner, they cuddled on the couch watching the movie and eating popcorn. While Alissa was enjoying herself, she wondered if they were moving too fast. She didn't think she was close to caring a lot for him, let alone thinking about the L-word, but she did like him a lot. Just like she had told Sarah at the Super Bowl, he's sweet and funny. He's kind and considerate. He's attentive and makes sure she's happy before moving forward with anything, whether that be when they go out or stay in.

They already knew about each other's families. His parents were divorced, but still were civil with each other; his father living in California and his mother living in Washington. His older brother and sister-in-law just had their first kid together in California. He was so excited to be an uncle. He was flying to California that weekend to meet his nephew.

Trevor knew of her parents, still together in the small town of Mayfield, New York. He knew of her brother, Zack, and his dreadful girlfriend, Hannah. He knew of the moment Grandma Beth asked when she would give her great-grandkids, and they had laughed together about it.

But she was still only twenty-four. He was twenty-six. She wondered what his wants were. What his expectations of this relationship were. While she wasn't seeing another, and she was pretty sure he wasn't either, it wasn't as if they were in a serious, committed relationship. They had only been together for almost two months.

What did she want?

What were her expectations?

As she watched the movie with Trevor, her mind raced with these thoughts.

After the movie was over, he turned to her.

"So, I know it's a Tuesday, but do you want to stay the night?" He smiled at her, his chocolate eyes meeting hers.

She couldn't control the butterflies that fluttered when he looked at her that way. She nodded.

He leaned in and kissed her.

~~~

A/N: What do you think? Are Alissa and Trevor moving too quickly? Or is she just not as ready as she thought she was? What do you think Trevor wants out of this? And please remember to vote! xo