The restaurant wasn't far away, and he'd even thought ahead enough to make reservations, so it wasn't long before they were seated at a nice corner table and left alone.

Now it was awkward.

Small talk was not Jor's forte. Talking at all wasn't really his forte, unless it had something to do with guns, fighting, or work, and he knew enough to understand that those topics probably weren't acceptable first date material. He tried to think of something to say, and was sadly at a loss. Only after the waiter had (thankfully) interrupted the silence by drink orders did Jor finally get an idea of what to do, and so he leaned his elbows on the table and grinned at her.

"Want to play twenty questions?"

"I'm from a town called Newbury in Ohio. My parents worked at a bed and breakfast there." His look was blank but interested. He's never heard of a bed and breakfast? Oh. Command School. Right. A little disconcerted, she smiled and elaborated slightly. "It's a place to stay, like a hotel, only it's more like house, and they serve you breakfast. It's a lot less crowded and noisy than a hotel. At least, ours was." Her smile turned a little wistful. "We had to sell it a couple of months ago. It wasn't making much money."

That's it, draw him in with your cheerful manner.

"Um, anyway," she added hastily, giving a quick self-exasperated smile, "that's where my folks live, and I guess where I'll go when I get too old to do anything fun. Is it my turn now?" He grinned and nodded, and she dropped her eyes and studied the table while she tried to think of a question. His glass clinked in his hand, and that's when she saw it.

A gold band encircled his left ring finger, free of gems and other ornamentation. Her heart froze and began to sink. He was married. He was married. How the hell had she missed that before? But...but why would he ask her out? And why would he still be wearing it? Didn't cheating men usually take them off? How could she have been so blind? Maybe when she agreed to go out with him he'd thought she'd noticed his ring and didn't care. It didn't make any sense, but she couldn't think of any other explanation.

Am I?

He dropped his attention to his wedding band, twisting it around his finger and studiously avoiding her eyes. The ring was a little tight, and it took a long moment to work it loose, but eventually it lay in the palm of his hand.

I've never taken this off. I never thought I'd have to, or want to, or ever think to. The gold glinted in the light of the restaurant, and as tiny stars twinkled around the edges, he sighed and shook his head. I wonder if she still wears hers. Regardless, we're... we're still... married. Separated. But I don't think she's mine anymore.

"No," he managed finally, looking up to meet her gaze. She was watching him with disappointment painted on her features, and the torturous hesitance to his own expression smoothed away. "We separated. It's why I transferred here."

Then she touched his hand, and even Jor couldn't find it in himself to push her away.

"You sure?" He asked hesitantly, but she nodded at him, and he settled back into his chair with audible relief. His fingertips tapped idly against hers, but she didn't say anything, so neither did he, and Jor watched her from across the table and was grateful for what he saw.

She didn't even care. He was still waiting for a snide look, for a bitter comment, but her hand was still on his when the waiter returned to take their dinner orders.

She pulled back, and Jor smiled at her. Never one to have his appetite ruined by anything, he picked out what amounted to half a dead cow, before looking over the menu with Heather and helping her decide what to choose. They made quiet small talk until their meal arrived, and after a few bites of steak, Jor felt better enough to continue his venture into conversation.

He ate a lot. Heather was impressed. As the daughter of a bed and breakfast owner, she'd seen a lot of people eat a lot of food, but Jor took the cake, ate it, and managed to remain impishly handsome the entire time. She was not so absorbed in her own voice that she didn't notice the looks a few of the other patrons were casting their way - primarily female patrons - and Heather found herself the object of envy - a nearly unique position in her monotone past. Her last boyfriend, Frank, had been a lot like her, too plain to attract attention but not plain enough to draw it.

Once, when he wasn't looking, she pinched her own arm, and was delighted to find she didn't wake up.

When the check came, he picked it up without even glancing at it. Heather smiled. He's handsome, he's intelligent, he's a gentleman, and he's on the rebound. God, please, don't let me screw this up. Please, just a little longer.

He walked her back to her room, and they chatted - mostly about Ohio, since that's what they'd discussed over dinner, but with a few tidbits of contrast with Maui every now and then. Her door came into sight all too soon, and she paused when they got to it and turned to face him with a smile.

I'm not fine. Why are you looking at me like that? I can be in a bad mood if I want. Stop being worried. It's nothing. I just feel like being angry. Why do you care? It's not like you can do anything to help. Maybe Lei's right. Maybe I will go out to tonight. But then you'll be disappointed. Why do you always want me to stay around? I've got to irritate you by now. I'm not hungry.

And with that last mental complaint, Jor set down his fork and picked up his glass, crossing his arms over his chest and staring rather sullenly down into the remains of his dinner.

He'd been feeling cross ever since Lei had showed up in his room, and when he rubbed his cheek, the little stinging cuts there only reminded him of how snappy he felt. He didn't want to see anyone, but he wanted to go out, but Heather wouldn't want to go, and Jor didn't want to upset her, but he was tired of worrying about upsetting her, and all his jumbled thoughts led toward a very jumbled Jor.

Heather didn't say anything more, just sat across the table from him and watched him. Jor glanced up and met her brown eyes, and had the incredibly untimely thought that he liked blue eyes better, and that was the final straw in his distemper.

Jor had been touchy all evening. She'd done her best to be accommodating. He'd suggested dinner and she'd agreed. He hadn't wanted to stop at her room long enough to let her change, and that wasn't a big deal. But every time she agreed to something he seemed to get angrier, and now he didn't seem to want the dinner he'd been so particular about earlier. He looked disgruntled and frustrated, and she didn't know what she'd done wrong, but she knew she had to do something quickly to make it right.

He thought of a few more hours of this, of having to be well-behaved and considerate and gentle, and when all he really wanted to do was break something, the thought of moderation was just more than he could take.

"No," he contradicted himself suddenly, with more vehemence that either of them expected. Her eyes widened, and his narrowed, and some of the callousness he'd acquired during his separation from Wick suddenly resurfaced. It'd been a scarce thing, after he'd met Heather, but old habits are hard to break, and Jor was feeling sharp.

Frightened and dismayed by this display of temper, Heather tried to rally. What they had was too special for a few moments of disagreement to ruin it; whatever it was she had done to put him in this horrible mood, she could fix it. She would fix it. But if what he wanted was to go drinking with his friends, that was his right. She'd been smothering him. She'd been too clingy. He was just feeling boxed in. That had to be it. She could give him space, if he wanted it.

"Pick me up in the brig in the morning."

She blinked up at him with pained confusion. "The...the brig?" she swallowed. It was obvious he was angry with her. She wondered if it would be safe to ask him why. One quick glance at his face told her there might not be anything safe to ask him. "Ok," she said just above a whisper, and with an angry huff he was out of his chair. She watched him leave, uncomprehending, and then bit her lip and twisted her napkin in her lap.