Closed; Is It Valentines Day?

[daphne_x]

Something had shifted out in Barcelona with Cormac and it was so faint, so subtle, that Daphne barely even noticed until it happened. After that first night their weekend went on as planned, long days spent rolling around in the sheets with quiet lulls and stolen, softer moments. It was exciting but also extremely comforting, sharing a piece of her

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[mclaggenator]

As Daphne worked at the buttons of her coat, Cormac stepped behind her, his broad hands moving to remove the coat from her shoulders. His eyes took in how busy it was, the chaos hovering in the waiting room as the two of them stood there. His brows furrowed, knowing full well it was a Friday night, but never seeing it this bonkers. He handed her coat and his own to the coat check with a polite nod before turning back to Daphne.

"Brilliant," he said, offering her a warm smile.

He had begun to see her in a different light since Barcelona. Somehow, their quiet conversations in bed had taken his curiosity with her to a whole new level. She was just so mind-blowing- in every sense of the word.

"It's a bit busy in here, isn't it?" he asked. "Don't think I've ever seen it so crowded-"

[daphne_x]

While Daphne knew that Cormac came from a well-off pureblood family, despite the fact that their families had not run in the same exclusive circles, it always took her by surprise that his manners were impeccable. It was surprisingly sexy to have a few doors opened, chairs pulled out, and, now, have her jacket taken care of. They were very small gestures, perhaps forgotten or unnoticed by many in this day and age, but they were important to her and he did because they were second natural, because he grew up in the same world as she did.

"Extremely busy and not the usual crowd," she noticed, side stepping a younger couple that didn't seem to really understand the unspoken dress code, dressed in jeans and trainers.

Daphne took a step closer to Cormac, slipping her hand into his as she avoided being knocked into.

[mclaggenator]

Every one of those gestures came to Cormac like they were second nature, his mother so long instilling those actions into him he hardly thought about them anymore. But if they made Daphne happy, he certainly found no reason not to continue them. When her happiness began to mean so much to him, he wasn't sure.

He gripped at her hand, his other arm reaching up around her waist as she stepped out of the way of the couple moving past them. He all but rolled his eyes at the teenagers, shaking his head with sigh.

"I noticed that as well-" he said, brow furrowing. "Rather peculiar-"

[daphne_x]

"There should be somebody checking dress code at the door," Daphne noted, not even bothering to lower her voice down into a whisper as she looked yet another couple up and down.

Trainers in a French Bistro- really?

As if to prove a point, Daphne ran her hand over her Chanel dress, her favorite little back dress that was tastefully tailored just for her, before straightening out her strand of pearls. Simple, classic, elegant.

The gesture didn't go unnoticed and she held the younger girls' gaze for a long moment, a smirk pulling at her lips.

"Miss Greengrass?" the hostess made her way over to the pair, a bright (and slightly apologetic) on her face. "Your usual table is ready."

[mclaggenator]

There was a tension settling in the waiting room and one that Cormac was relieved to be leaving as the hostess led them to a round table in the center of the restaurant. The dining room was packed, various couples all oohing and aahing at each other over appetizers and wine. He saw a particularly old couple sitting toward the back, nearing eighty or ninety, all wrapped up in each other.

It was odd, but they reminded him of his grandparents.

He grabbed for Daphne's hand, his fingers lacing with hers as they made the short walk to the table.

"Usual table," he teased, raising an eyebrow as he pulled out her chair for her. "Just how often do you make the trek here?"

[daphne_x]

Daphne's favorite table was set back in a smaller dining area of the restaurant which was thankfully away from the majority of the chaos and, in turn, much quieter. If she had to sit around and listen to couples butcher French accents while ordering all night then she was going to lose her appetite.

"Not terribly often-" she grinned, flattening out the skirt of her dress as she took her seat, throwing Cormac a thankful smile over her shoulder.

"Though, I'd like to think that I'm a face not easily forgotten."

[mclaggenator]

Now that she was out of her coat, Cormac couldn't ignore how perfectly the black dress she wore hug her curves. He let his eyes take her in as she sat down, a perfectly content smile tugging at his lips as he took his own seat across from her.

"I can attest to that fact-" he told her, his smile perhaps creeping into a smirk as he tucked his chair in underneath him.

He let his eyes wander one more time around the much quieter dining room.

"I'm happy I could find a moment in your busy schedule-"

[daphne_x]

It wasn't just his manners that were noticed by Daphne, she always seemed to catch those little looks of his. She couldn't help but grin as he looked her over, happy to have gone with such a classic and flattering silhouette. You couldn't beat the classics.

"Well, I did have to move a few things around," she teased, batting her long lashing at him.

"I do hope that I won't be disappointed-"

[mclaggenator]

"No pressure, though, right?" he asked her, hiding briefly behind his menu before winking at her.

He was feeling a bit playful tonight, more so than usual. He felt, after taking Daphne to Barcelona, that there was something different between them. While it tended to scare him when he really focused on it, he couldn't help but feel lighter when he was around her.

[daphne_x]

"You've done so well this far," she mused, meeting his gaze with an amused smile on her lips.

Their dynamic had certainly changed since returning from his family's villa in Barcelona, though she still felt the same heat when their eyes met. Everything about him was enticing, the more she knew the more she wanted to hear more.

The server came around then, a bottle of Daphne's favorite champagne in hand and he began to slowly fill their flutes. It was always refreshing to see a familiar face and she appreciated the quality of their service.

"Miss Greengrass, it's wonderful to see you tonight," he told her. "Is Mr. Boot working again tonight as well? Such a shame that you're not tonight on Valentines Day-"

Valentines Day-

[mclaggenator]

Cormac was appreciative of the champagne, watching idly as he filled their glass flutes. He felt comfortable and relaxed, sitting across from Daphne for a Friday night dinner seeming incredibly natural to him. It wasn't until the server's voice cut through the room that Cormac looked up, eyes briefly passing to Daphne's.

"Valentine's Day-"

He repeated the words slowly, his eyes glancing around the room, taking in the sight of all the couples surrounding them.

He nearly laughed.

"Of course-"

[daphne_x]

Daphne brought her hand up to cover her mouth, clearing her throat in a way that was more like stifling a laugh. The whole thing was so ridiculous that it was actual comical.

"Right- Valentines Day," she said, nodding slowly as she picked up her champagne glass.

Thank Merlin for good champagne.

"Mr. Boot and I are no longer involved. And this isn't necessarily a business dinner-" Daphne turned back to their server, a tight smile on her lips.

"And I think the two of us would like the start with the raw bar platter. Thank you."

[mclaggenator]

Cormac kept as straight a face as he possibly could, watching with pleasure as the server nodded his head, a flush creeping into the man's cheeks before he hurried away. When he was properly out of sight, Cormac nudging Daphne with his foot under the table, a grin spreading across his lips.

"Valentine's Day-" he said, raising his eyebrows at her. "How could we both be so daft?"

He laughed.

"Bloody hell-"

[daphne_x]

"I honestly had no idea-" she told him, pressing her palm to her cheek now as a breath of laughter passed through her cheeks, no longer holding it back now that they were alone again.

She nudged him back until the table, careful not to knocking him with too much force with her heel.

"That would certainly explain a lot-"

[mclaggenator]

"It certainly would-"

The over-abundance of couples, the wishy-washy clothing options and the crowded dining room they waded through. It all made sense.

And frankly, he was rather glad that he was here with Daphne.

"Happy Valentine's Day?" he offered, holding up the champagne glass in a half-assed toast.

[daphne_x]

When she thought back on them, the last handful of Valentines Days had been extremely stressful, coordinating work schedules with Terry and decided who was going to Apparate out to where. Being in completely different countries had taken the romance and spontaneity out of their long drawn out relationship.

This was a welcome change and she found herself thankful to share it with Cormac.

The thought made her stomach twist up a bit more.

"Happy Valentine's Day," she agreed, tipping her flute against his with a ping, holding his gaze.

"What sort of event planner overlooks a holiday? Merlin- you've gotten me all out of sorts-"