Smitten

Chapter 13

Eliza stares at her bedroom ceiling and catches her breath. She turns slightly to glance over at the clock beside her nightstand. 8:30. "Holy fuck," she thinks to herself. She covers herself with more of her sheets and turns toward Aaron, who takes her in his arms.

"Hi," Eliza says softly, leaning more closely into his chest.

"Hi," he replies, kissing her forehead.

"I think it's safe to say our reservation is gone...?" Eliza questions, both of them laughing softly afterward.

"I'd say so," Aaron says, looking down into her eyes and moving her hair from her face. "You are seriously so beautiful."

"Thank you, Aaron," she says, hugging his waist more closely. They lay like that for a few more minutes before sits up, grabs Aaron's quarter zip sitting on her feet, and throws it on as she heads into the bathroom. She soon returns. "Soooo, we still have to eat. Pizza?" She asks.

"Sounds great," he says, now getting out of the bed and throwing on pants. He dresses and starts to speak. "Come here to me."

She moves toward him, and he pulls her toward his chest as she hugs his waist. He holds her there for a minute before asking, "Can I have that back now?"

"In a minute," she replies. She walks over to retrieve her dress to put away before changing into something else and observes it. "Aaron!" She exclaims.

"What is it?"

"You—you ripped my dress," she says, blushing. "Wh—when did that happen?"

"Honestly, I don't know...sorry."

"No you're not," she says, smiling.

"You're right; I'm definitely not," he says with a smirk. They both laugh as she moves toward her closet to change. She emerges in another big tee, yoga pants, and her glasses. She also redid her top knot bun, the original now long gone. She notices Aaron gawking at her again, and she walks up to him, handing him back his quarter zip before taking his hand. "Come on, Agent," she says, dragging him downstairs so they can order dinner.

-

The pair have dinner and drinks in the living room, chatting about various things and enjoying one another's company.

"I was going to ask you on this Sunday, but what was your dissertation on?" Aaron asks.

"I looked at how involving students in the philanthropy cycle contributes to greater campaign success and better student outcomes," she replies. "The timing couldn't have been better, since GW just entered a campaign when I started, so it worked super well. Basically, I think I was trying to see if the path that I ended up on could be something quantifiable and increase the likelihood of a student getting a good job or going to graduate school. And bring the school more money to continue to bring students in. Sweet Lord, I sound like Spencer, don't I?"

"A little, but it's cute," Aaron smiles. "What did you find?" He asks, intrigued.

"Campaign wise, it worked. More donors resonated with student-facing messaging and engagement in all of the areas of giving. In terms of the student aspect, that was more inconclusive."

"When did you defend it?"

"Last Friday," she says.

"You didn't mention that before. Does everyone else know?"

"Now that I think about it, I don't think they do...I guess I was still in shock that it was over," she says.

"That's got to be a good feeling."

"You have NO idea," she says. "There is something *else* you can be the first to know about, too."

"What is it?"

"Well, I got a call at work today. I've been asked to be the student speaker at the doctoral hooding ceremony," she says.

"That's so great," he says, beaming. "Are you going to do it?"

"I am," she says. "I am nervous as all hell, but I'm going to do it."

"When is it?"

"It's May 20. Commencement is that Saturday." Aaron then takes out his phone. "What are you doing?"

"I'm putting it down on my calendar...I can't miss that for the world. That is, unless you don't want me to come..."

"Don't be ridiculous...of course I want you to come," Eliza says, looking up at him with a smile for the second half of that reply.

"I just hope we're not on a case."

"So do I; I need you there! I don't wanna go through that with just my mother," she laughs.

"Won't your one friend be there, too?"

"Madison? From SoulCycle? Maybe. She's a great person and all, but we really don't hang out outside of there."

"Oh," he says.

"What is it?" She asks with a laugh.

"She uh—she...wasn't my favorite."

"It's understandable," Eliza assures. "She can be a little much sometimes." They both laugh, and Eliza pours more wine for them both. They continue talking for a long while, Aaron talking about his adventures in coaching Jack's soccer team with Dave, and Eliza sharing funny stories about some of her nights out with the team. After a while of talking, enjoying some ice cream from Eliza's freezer, and cuddling watching TV, Eliza checks the clock.

"Oh my God, it's 2 AM!" She exclaims. "Where did the time go?!"

"Well you know what they say about time...it flies when you're having fun," Aaron smiles.

"Right you are, Agent," she says. "So does that mean you're going to stay?"

"As much as I would love to, I have to get Jack to a friend's house first thing in the morning," he says.

"Ugh, you remind me of my own responsibilities tomorrow, gross...I have to work before girls' night," she says. "You ok to drive? You did have a lot of wine."

"Yes, I am fine...I can take it."

"You definitely proved that to me earlier," she says with a smirk, which Aaron finds irresistible. "Although, I'm not sure if you can say the same for me," biting her lip.

"I can definitely say the same for you," he tilts her chin toward him and kisses her softly. "Goodnight, E."

"Sweet dreams, Aaron," she says with another kiss as she sees him out the door. She locks it and leans back against it, memory flooded with everything that had happened that night. "I can't believe he ripped that fucking dress," she says with a smile, gathering up all the dishes to put in the sink and heading up to shower.