She waved her hand to his cowboy reference, dismissing the excuses with a smile. There were other times that would be better for indulging him in a solid conversation about cowboy culture, but she certainly wasn't put off by the idea of picking up the conversation at another time.

Her own thoughts feel a bit too muddled to stay on that topic. The way he watches her pulls her in and she tries to pinpoint how it makes her feel. Safe keeps coming to mind and it's a turn around from the way she had felt over the years regarding him. Even if she hasn't been able to kick the vulnerability and apprehension of letting him in emotionally again, she feels relatively sure that he will have her back. At least sure enough to bring him into the web of her work again.

For her part, even when he wasn't right in front of her, he was on her mind consistently. Had been for month, with a growing intensity since August. There are moments where she finds she wants to just watch him. She's been hyper aware of his body lately and the way he moves. His own eyes are too easy to get lost in, and she's thought multiple times about how much she wants to kiss him again. Feel his mouth on hers and his beard brushing against her skin.

While she waits for the answer to her question, she grows a bit lost, so when he asks her about being hungry she snaps back to herself. "Hungry?" Was he asking her to dinner? Probably not in the that sense of the word. But dinner with him sounded great. "Yeah...I could eat. Skipped lunch holed up down here. You want to go get some food?"