Real silence stretched between them.
Amara played with the rim of her glass. Elias didn't look away from her, but he didn't press either. He just sat there, like a man used to watching people leave.
She finally said, "Do you always tell strangers things that deep?"
She felt a bit inspired by just sitting here with him. She felt the fog from her writer's block clearing gently.
His eyes held hers for a second longer than she expected.
"Only the ones who look like they're trying not to disappear."
Her breath caught.
She looked away, suddenly feeling exposed. Her fingers tightened around the stem of the glass.
He picked up the napkin she'd dropped earlier and laid it neatly on the bar. "Thank you for sitting with me," he said, his voice softer now, like he meant it.
"You didn't do much talking," she replied, fluttering her lashes with an equal amount of flirtation and innocence.
"Didn't need to," he said. "You did the heavy lifting just by staying."
