It was nearly eight, and she had to be starving. “I’ll fix you something. Is there anything in particular you want?”

Serenity sat up. “Not really. I don’t have an appetite at the moment.”

“I know, but you can’t take care of anyone else unless you take care of yourself.” Gabriel caressed her face and kissed her softly. “I made shrimp and pasta in a white wine and butter sauce for dinner. How about a little of that?”

“Okay.”

He eased her off his lap and onto the chair, then stood and headed for the kitchen. Taking down a plate, he dished up a small portion of the pasta and heated it in the microwave. When it was done, Gabriel put it, along with a glass of wine for each of them, on a tray and carried it to her.

His heart constricted at the sight of her curled up in the chair. Suddenly, Brent’s words came rushing back: You said you didn’t know whether the relationship had the potential for more, but everything you’ve done with her points to exactly that. The knowledge that his friend was right slammed into him and weakened his knees. Gabriel hadn’t hesitated to volunteer to pick Serenity up from the hospital—more like he’d insisted on it. Those weren’t the actions of a man involved in a fling. Neither was cooking for her or going out of his way to find tickets to a concert because she mentioned liking an artist. In fact, every single thing he’d done indicated that this was more. She was more. And the voice that had been whispering in his head for the past couple of weeks that extending his time would be a good thing kept getting louder.

As if sensing his presence, Serenity sat up and smiled at him. “That smells good.”

He placed the tray over her lap and picked up his glass. “Can I get you anything else?”

“No, thank you.” She took a sip of the wine. “I know we’re supposed to have our movie night, but…”

“We’ll do it another time.” He’d been looking forward to snuggling up with her while they watched the movie and enjoyed some snacks, but he understood.

Her face transformed as she ate, softening as a smile curved her lips. “This is wonderful, Gabriel.”