19 comments/ 35855 views/ 41 favorites Right Under His Nose By: BrettJ Elliot Baxter walked into his office early Monday morning. He was still a bit bleary-eyed and before he could even call for his assistant, she was there with a cup of steaming, hot coffee. How great was that? Most assistants wouldn't even go for coffee these days and Colleen made him a fresh pot every day. She truly was one in a million and he reminded himself that he was damned lucky to have her. "Morning boss," Colleen smiled at him as he sat behind his large oak desk in his large, new chair. Both were recent acquisitions presented to him on his 10th anniversary with the company. He enjoyed both gifts because he knew darned well he had earned them. He looked up at Colleen and smiled back at her. "Morning yourself," he said to the young, attractive blonde as he put his feet up on the desk. "So, how was your weekend?" Colleen asked him as she sat down across from him and sipped her own coffee. No matter how hectic their day was going to be, they always shared coffee at the start of it. It was a ritual that had been going on for almost the entire 10 years Elliot had been working for his brother's company. "Didn't you have that big date with the lingerie model?" She questioned him. "How did that go?" "Jennifer, right," he sighed. "It was okay, I guess. She was pleasant enough company and she was interesting. Yeah, she was pretty ..." "Here comes the but ..." Colleen said, knowing something was about to follow. "... BUT she had a big ugly tattoo above her backbone," Elliot told Colleen. "Why do all these gorgeous women do things like that? I thought she might be the perfect girl and then we get into bed and she has this ... this ugly tramp stamp on her body!" Elliot complained. "You have to stop looking for perfection, Elliot," Colleen cautioned him with real concern. Elliot knew she meant every word; she had always looked out for his well being ever since he started with Josh's firm after college. "You know you're never going to find it." "Why can't I? My parents did, my sister did. What's wrong with wanting to find that perfect someone to spend the rest of your life with?" Elliot asked Colleen. It was true. His parents had been married for 40 years and his younger sister had been with Josh for 16 years, ever since they had all been in high school together. Elliot had looked for years to find that someone he clicked with and not succeeded. A few near misses and yet, they might have been as far away as Mars. Colleen put away their coffee mugs and shook her head. "I think you're seeking an ideal and maybe you've built her up too much in your mind," Colleen said, almost lecturing him as if she were the older one in their lengthy relationship. "You're 35 and you've been with several beautiful women and I know you haven't been a monk. You slept with Jennifer, didn't you?" Elliot nodded. "See? Why can't you look past the imperfections and just find someone to share your life with?" "I don't know," Elliot admitted honestly. "Girls like her are fun to date, but for the long term, I just want something more. Not someone who has had their nose done or their boobs made bigger. Not someone who has a lot of piercings or a tattoo here, there, everywhere. Someone real and sexy and sweet and with substance. Someone who doesn't care about how many cars we have or how big a house we have. I want someone who is supportive of me and I can support. I admit it, there's nothing wrong with a good sex life, but at the old fossil age of 35 ..." Colleen rolled her eyes as her boss went on with his rant "... I want more than sex. I want romance, is that too much to ask?" "Aww, that's so sweet," Colleen smiled and gave him a quick little hug. "No, I guess when you put it that way; it isn't too much to ask. I just hate to see you so frustrated; you've been looking ever since I came to work here." "She's out there, I know she is," Elliot told her. "Maybe she's in the Witness Protection Program, but she's out there. Okay, how was your weekend? What did you do?" "Went out with some girlfriends, had a few drinks, danced a bit, rented some videos, nothing special," Colleen shrugged. Elliot looked at her and shook his head. "I will never understand why you aren't with someone special either," he told her. "You're bright, funny, pretty, you're sassy and you make a nice living," Elliot said. "I hear you can even cook," he teased her. Colleen loved to cook and had taken several cooking classes. She often brought him lunch and not once had it been anything less than excellent. She always seemed so pleased when he praised her efforts. She had been almost as responsible for Elliot's success as he was himself and he knew it. Straight out of university, Elliot had come to work for his brother's company and he had known he was a fish out of water. He had intended to teach journalism, but Lisa wanted more for her big brother and persuaded Josh that a little nepotism wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing. Elliot was at the top of his class and he knew good literature. So Josh had offered him a job as an associate editor with his publishing firm. He knew Elliot would work hard and hoped he would find his way. Elliot had done his very best. Elliot fumbled his way through his first month and then, Colleen applied for an internship. She was assigned to the "new guy" and that's when magic happened. They were both fumbling their way through. Elliot had an eye for talent. Colleen had an eye for details. She caught the things he missed. She shored him up and when he would pour over manuscripts for new talents, she would then meticulously go over them for grammar and syntax errors and all the minute details Elliot would never have had time for. From their initial pairing, they were a perfect team. Colleen was a perfectionist and highly supportive of her boss and friend. Elliot made sure to compliment his assistant as much as he could and take an interest in her life. He encouraged her to be more outgoing and he believed it was working. In their nearly ten years working together, Elliot and Colleen had discovered over 30 successful authors for Josh's firm. From the little fish in the big pond, Elliot was now a shark. Only Josh himself was more successful than his friend and protégé. "You didn't wear that tie to dinner with Jennifer, did you?" Colleen said as her boss took his feet off his desk and prepared to start his work day. "I keep telling you it's an ugly tie; you should have worn the paisley." "My mother gave me this necktie," Elliot looked up at her with a grin. "Marie's a wonderful lady and a great mom, but she has lousy taste in ties," Colleen grinned back. "Next time, wear the paisley." She left the office just as Josh was entering and smiled at him. "Great girl, that Colleen," Josh said to his brother. "Giving her the job as your assistant was the best move this company ever made." "I'll second that, she's a peach," Elliot smiled at Josh. "I'm surprised other companies haven't tried to poach her." "Who says they haven't?" Josh answered. "I don't that know for sure, but I do know one thing -- that girl would never leave you, not ever. She's loyal to a fault. She's almost as responsible for your success as Lisa is for mine." Lisa had encouraged her husband to buy the failing publishing house some 15 years earlier. By focusing on avant-garde authors, new romantic writers and erotic fiction written for women bywomen, the company had been making a profit by its second year. Many of their more recent acquisitions had come at the suggestion of Elliot and Colleen. "I should probably give her a raise," Elliot grinned at Josh. "Better watch that or she'll be making more than you do," Josh laughed. "I think you're being a bit too free with MY money." "Don't worry about it, if we spend too much, we'll just find you another author and make more," Elliot retorted. "So, what did you want to see me about?" "Lisa wanted me to invite you to dinner on Sunday," Josh told him. "She told me to tell you that your niece and nephew are starting to forget what you look like. She also added that it would be nice if you brought a date some time -- her words, not mine," Josh chuckled. He might have been big in the publishing world, but it was Josh's 33-year old wife who ran their home and kept it running like a Swiss watch. "Lisa has been looking out for me since she was ten years old," Elliot said. "Would you please remind my sister that I'm the older brother?" "Oh no, I'm not getting in the middle of you two again!" Josh laughed. "Last time you and my wife got into one of your little spats, it was at the Christmas party and she didn't like your date -- a Playboy model, wasn't she?" Elliot shook his head. "Former adult film actress." "Whatever. As I recall, Lisa was going at you and Colleen saved your butt." "Yeah, she did, that's another one I owe Colleen," Elliot said. His sister was not at all shy about vocalizing her opinion. Colleen seemed to be the one person on earth who was not afraid to challenge her or calm her down. His sister and Colleen got along extremely well and lunched at least once a week. "My ears are burning, you two must be talking about me," Colleen smiled as she entered the office. "Boss, I just wanted to remind you that you have a 12:30 PM lunch date with Darenzia LaSalle." Josh spun around and looked at Elliot. "Darenzia LaSalle? My God El, she's the hottest thing going. How the hell did you manage to get a lunch meeting with her?" "She's not happy with her publishing house, she told me that she didn't think they promoted her last book enough and were chintzy when she went on her last book tour," Elliot said. "Plus, they dated for a few months," Colleen added, taking a small jab at her boss' track record. Josh looked at his brother and his tongue was almost hanging out. Darenzia LaSalle was a stunning woman, a leggy black beauty who had modeled before becoming a successful erotic author. "Promise her whatever you need, sleep with her if you want," Josh said, not quite meaning that. "A woman like Darenzia LaSalle can make or break a company like ours." When Josh left, Colleen gave Elliot some materials he would need for the meeting. She smiled as she looked into his brown eyes. "You did sleep with her, didn't you?" "Several times," Elliot said honestly. "She's pretty good, as I recall." "Should I clear your schedule for the afternoon?" Colleen asked drily. "No mother, I promise to be a good boy," Elliot told her as he looked over the notes and things he needed for his lunch. "You never liked her, did you?" "It wasn't that, she wasn't good for you," Colleen said as she started back towards her desk. "So who IS good for me?" Elliot asked. "I hope you figure that out someday," Colleen retorted. Just before he was to leave for his lunch, Colleen came back into the office and handed him a paisley tie. "You are not wearing that ugly thing to lunch," she told him as she helped him off with the other tie. "You want to make this deal, not have her running for the hills." Elliot was halfway to lunch when he realized his paisley tie was at home. She had gone and bought him a new one, likely with her own money. That was Colleen, always making sure he was at his best. He really believed she was deserving of a raise and he'd see that she got one. He made it to lunch and met Darenzia. She was as beautiful as ever in a form-fitting, leopard print dress with a high slit on one side. He let the lunch go casually as he tried to woo her over to their company. From her nods and chuckles, he believed that he was succeeding. She always had been highly susceptible to flattery when they were dating. "I think I'm ready for a change," she told him as she flashed him her winning smile. She was quite possibly one of the most beautiful women he had ever known and he couldn't remember at that moment why things had not worked out between the two of them. "Send me the contracts and I'll sign them." He reached into his briefcase. "I just so happened to bring them with me," he smiled back and put them in front of her. Darenzia read them over and then signed in the places indicated. "You were that certain that I'd sign them?" "I know you pretty well," Elliot grinned confidently. "Part of you had already made up your mind when we talked last week." "You're right, I had," she said as she finished signing the contracts. "Perhaps we can go somewhere and have a more ... intimate celebration?" She asked. He wanted to let Darenzia down easy and Elliot shook his head. "I don't really DO that anymore, although I'm flattered." She pressed her point. "Why not? There need be no strings attached and as you recall, I'm very, very good in bed." Elliot was beginning to remember why they had broken up. Yes, she was stunning and yes, the sex was remarkable. However, Darenzia was the kind of woman who didn't like to hear "no" and got a bit snippy when she did hear it. He had to handle her with kid gloves and let her go away with her ego intact. "I'm looking for strings, actually," he said. "I am on a quest, if you want to call it that, for someone I can marry. I want someone to share a life with and not just a bed. I hope you can understand that." To his great surprise, Darenzia placed her hand on top of his and nodded. "I can and I think it's admirable. I'm only sorry that I can't be that woman, but I don't want marriage at this point. You know what my last two were like. I wish you luck finding her and whoever she is, she's a very lucky woman." She gave him a kiss on the cheek and signed the last few documents. Dinner with Lisa and Josh a few days later was a win-lose. Josh was thrilled at Elliot's success in signing Darenzia LaSalle to a three-year contract. Lisa was not at all thrilled that her brother had come to dinner alone. "When are you going to find someone you can bring to dinner?" Lisa must have said that to him about five times in the course of the evening. "When I find someone I think is special enough that you'll approve of her," Elliot countered. "Colleen thinks you're too picky," Lisa shot back. "Colleen hasn't liked any of the women I've gone out with either," Elliot said. "Look, don't you think I want someone amazing? I've been looking for years, but our parents and you; you've set the bar too high. I deserve someone as much as you do and when I find her, I'll bring her in along with the Hallelujah Chorus in behind us. Until then, there is nothing you or Colleen can do about it." "You should ask Colleen to find someone for you, she knows you better than anyone," Lisa insisted. "When we got to lunch, sometimes I have to get her to stop talking about you. You're my older brother and I think that she knows more about you than I do. I hope you value what a great assistant you have in her." "I'm always telling her I couldn't do it without her, I asked your husband to allow me to give her a raise," Elliot laughed. "Josh? Josh, let Elliot give Colleen a raise," Lisa called out. "Okay, no problem." Josh shouted back from the kid's room where he was putting them down for the night. "There. Wasn't that simple?" Elliot laughed. As strong a boss as Josh was, Lisa was the woman behind the man and he knew it. It made things so much easier for the both of them. "Valentine's Day is coming up next week, are you getting anything nice for Colleen?" Lisa asked. "We usually go to lunch together," Elliot answered. "She brings muffins for breakfast and we have a late lunch at a diner we both like and then, we knock off for the rest of the day." Lisa shook her head and brushed some of her auburn curls from her forehead. Curly hair ran in the family, although Elliot's was more of an ash-blonde. "She's worked for you 10 years at the end of February, you should make some kind of grand gesture. Lunch isn't enough Elliot, go whole hog." "What do you suggest?" Lisa rolled her eyes. "I shouldn't have to do all of your thinking for you. You have a week, think of something on your own," she said as she made the after-dinner coffee. Elliot spent the entire week looking at Colleen and wondering what to do for her on the 14th. He didn't want to simply offer her a cash bonus and a stupid card along with their usual lunch. Lisa was absolutely right, Colleen was special. She always had his back and he had to do something really unexpected. He called one of the ritziest restaurants in town and made reservations for 1 PM on Valentine's Day. He made sure to send his best suit to the cleaners and called a florist and made other arrangements. He knew Colleen would be bowled over. Colleen came in early on Valentine's morning and saw her desk and the card. She looked at everything and came in to Elliot's office. Her reaction was NOT anything at all like he had expected it would be. "What's this?" She asked as she held up the card. "What's with the roses and this sentimental card? `Love, Elliot'? We don't have that kind of relationship," she chewed him out before angrily returning to her desk. Elliot felt like he was in some surreal movie. He had no idea why she was acting like this, it was entirely unlike Colleen. She had been really upset. "COLLEEN!" he shouted to get her back in the office. "What was that all about?" He asked her. "You didn't like the flowers or the champagne?" "You've never once sent me flowers, not even on my birthday," Colleen said to him. "Why on Valentine's Day? Why now?" "Because I thought you're special and it might be nice if someone sent you roses on Valentine's Day," Elliot told her. "You always spoil me. It always makes me feel special." "Then there's the card ..." She started to leave again so Elliot moved in front of her and blocked her exit. He closed the door behind them and looked at her. "What about the card? It's a nice card." "It's a lovely card and they're nice roses and ..." "So what is it that has you all ..." Elliot stopped speaking and heard her. She had told him minutes ago and he just hadn't heard her -- until now. "Is it that I said love? Of course I love you. You're the most ..." He stopped speaking again. Something told him it would be the prudent course of action. He looked at Colleen. She looked up at him. He looked back at her and then, he finally GOT it. "Colleen, how long have you been in love with me?" Colleen looked up at him and started to speak. At first, it looked like she was going to deny it and then, she finally said "Since about 15 minutes after I came to work for you, you big dummy." She tried to leave again and Elliot stopped her. He looked at this lovely, magical, special, funny girl who had always been his ally and wondered how he could have been so incredibly stupid. Wrong or right, even if it blew their friendship, he had to know and he had to now right now! He pulled her close and before she could stop him, he slid his arms down to her waist and pulled her close and kissed her. She was startled at first and didn't kiss him right back, but that didn't last. She put her arms around his neck and started kissing him back. The kiss felt like it went on for an hour, although it was only a few minutes. "I've been an ass." "I'm not going to argue with you," Colleen grinned, wiping some stray tears from her eyes. "Why didn't you ever tell me?" Elliot wanted to know. "With all the gorgeous women you dated? I wouldn't have stood a chance," Colleen said, lightly thumping on his chest, but allowing a small smile for the first time. "Yeah, you would have," Elliot said, pulling her back and hugging her again. "I never got serious with any of them, did I? I always said I was looking for ..." "... the perfect girl. In case you haven't noticed buster, I'm not perfect." Right Under His Nose "Yes, you are. For me, you are. Don't you get it? You're pretty, you're real, you dress nice, you have a good heart, you watch my back, you support me, you're funny, you give me a kick when I need it, you're sexy ..." "Okay, you can stop. I'm sexy? Really? You've never told me that." "Well yeah, we do work together and I am your boss." "You could have slipped it in somewhere," Colleen smiled a bit more. "I think I just did. Oh hell, am I crazy or ...?" "What?" "If I say it out loud, that makes it real." "Say what out loud?" "That --- I think I love you, too." Colleen's smile almost outshone the sun at that moment. This time it was his assistant who kissed him and she kissed him hard. He felt it, that feeling you get when you're kissing someone who means the world to you. Someone that feels right when you're together. Not once in his life had he ever experienced that. He didn't want their kiss to end, but they did have work to do. "Okay, that was nice, what next?" Colleen said. She was still wearing the goofiest smile and he wondered if she knew how sexy it made her look. "Now? Now, we should get to work, we have to finish before lunch." Colleen let out a big sigh. "All that and he STILL acts like a doofus. I meant NOW as in us. Where do we go from here?" "You're always going to bust my chops, aren't you?" "When you need it. Someone has to," Colleen smiled. "Am I going to get an answer?" "We can talk at lunch since we won't be coming back to the office," he told her. "You know, you should wipe that smile from your face, people will think I gave you a huge raise or something." Then he remembered. "Oh, by the way, Josh told me I could give you a $50 a week raise." "That's supposed to make me stop smiling?" Colleen giggled. "No, it's just your alibi if anyone asks why you're grinning like the Cheshire Cat," he smiled as she returned to her desk. Elliot sat behind his desk and kept looking out at hers. How had he been so stupid for so long? The girl he had always been looking for had been right under his nose. He wasn't going to blow this, he would take it slow and make sure he didn't let her get away. Through the entire morning, he found it hard to focus. He kept looking out to Colleen and wondered what she was thinking. Ever the model of efficiency, she kept working. She did smile when she caught him looking, but she had done that most times anyway. At 12:30, he knew he was going to be useless at work. He grabbed his coat and went out to her desk. "We're leaving early," he told her. "Log off your computer, grab your coat and the champagne, we're gone for the day." Colleen smiled and for the first time, she linked her arm through his when they left the office. She didn't care if anyone saw them and neither did Elliot, if he was being honest with himself. He was too darned happy. When they passed their usual 1950's diner, Colleen wondered what he was up to. As they neared Chez Richard, she didn't dare hope, yet that's where he led her. Meals there were very expensive and incredible. They were about to be seated when he asked if they could have somewhere more intimate. The Maitre D' nodded and led them to the back. Instead of sitting across from Colleen as he usually did, Elliot sat right beside her. He put his hand on top of hers. "I can answer your earlier question, I think. Where do you want it to go from here?" Colleen furrowed her brow and said "Won't people talk if we start going out?" "I bet a lot of people think we're dating anyway and just not telling anyone," he answered with a chuckle. "Besides, I'm the boss' brother and you've been with the company for a decade, doing exemplary work. No one's going to accuse me of favoritism." "You think we can make it work?" Colleen asked him. "I'd hate to lose our relationship." "We've had each other's backs for ten years, why would that ever change? Yes, we can make it work. It might be weird at first, but you're my best friend and I'm yours. Isn't your partner supposed to be your best friend?" He responded to her question. His answer was in her beautiful smile and a simple nod. "What should I have for lunch?" "Why do you always ask me? I give you three suggestions and you never take any of them, you always find something on the menu and say that looks good and order that," he told her. Colleen laughed. "I do that, don't I?" She smiled. "We do know each other really well. Give me your ideas, I'll listen." He gave her three ideas and then she saw that they had Chateaubriand and suggested that they order that. "Elliot, it's a meal for two," she smiled and put her hand on his. The meal was good and the company nicer and they enjoyed a nice bottle of wine. The two of them talked about their feelings and yet, didn't speak in generalities. They were both nervous as all of this was so new to them both. It was 6 PM when they called it a day and Elliot paid the bill. "Do you want me to drive you home?" He asked. She smiled and nodded yes. It wasn't far to Colleen's apartment, about ten minutes. He had driven her home several times when they'd had to work late. This time, she asked him in. She had never done that before. Once inside, she pushed him against the door. It slammed behind him as she kissed him. "Wow, we've set a record today," he smiled when they broke the kiss. "We've kissed ... three more times than we have in the past ten years," he told her. She punched him in the arm playfully. "Sit down and get comfortable, I want us to talk some more," Colleen told him. "I just want to get out of this dress and change into something else." "Sure, take your time," Elliot said. "This is a nice place, I've never seen it before." "Thanks," she called out from the other room. "It isn't huge, but I like it. Okay, I've changed." Elliot turned around and that was the understatement of the day! Her dress had been very attractive, but now she was wearing a slinky black negligee and high heels and had her hair slightly tossed so it made her look a little more wild. She walked over to Elliot and sat by him on the couch. She grabbed his tie and pulled him in for a fourth kiss. "I thought you wanted us to talk," he breathed as their kiss ended. "I do and we can talk as much as we like," Colleen smiled, running her fingers through his hair. "We've got all night and as much time as we'll ever need. Right now, I want us to make love. I know it's sudden and maybe I'm coming on too strong and ..." Elliot reached out and stroked her cheek. "You need to let me get a word in edgewise. I said yes, like, a minute ago." He stood up and took Colleen's hand and let her lead him into the bedroom. She started to undress him and noticed for the first time that he was wearing the paisley tie she had bought for him. "Wow," she smiled as he got his shirt off. "Have you always had such a nice build?" "I don't know, I guess," Elliot said. "You know, I never realized that you were almost as tall as me." "I guess we never noticed a lot of things," Colleen smiled as she tugged his pants down. His boxers followed and now he was naked in front of her. It was a bit intimidating to be in front of someone he had known for so long and in an entirely different way. Elliot knew he would get past it. Colleen's beauty would make that simple. Standing in front of him in the filmy negligee, she was absolutely perfect. "You know, this isn't fair," Elliot said to her. "You get to see me naked and you're wearing a negligee." "Don't you like it?" She asked. With Colleen, you sometimes couldn't tell if she was teasing or being coy. This was one such time. "Yeah, I love it, but it might be hard to make love to you if you've got it on," he said. "Good point," Colleen said and she let it drop to the ground. She was tall and slender, with beautiful breasts and a smooth, flat stomach. Colleen picked it up the negligee and put it on a nearby chair. She was wearing a pretty black thong and the heels and Elliot was already getting past his earlier intimidation. She sat on the edge of her bed and he sat beside her. "You're beautiful and incredible and I've been such an ass ..." "Not going to argue with you," Colleen said as she stroked his cheek. "You have your good points. You're good looking and loyal and friendly and you're a good boss and ..." Elliot kissed her to silence her and the next thing he knew, they were both tumbling over and on to the bed. Their kiss grew more passionate and they were rolling around, her on top, Elliot on top and then, side-by-side. Never once did they break their kiss. It only grew hotter and sweeter and now their hands joined their lips in touching each other. "Wow," Colleen said as they broke apart, panting. "Who knew? My boss is also a stud." She teased. "That was amazing and we were only just kissing," Elliot laughed gently. "Okay, well I think I can take care of that," Colleen grinned playfully. She pushed him down on his back and started kissing him with a passion no other woman had ever displayed. Her mouth seemed to be everywhere and it was soft and hot and talented and a million other adjectives. She was almost like a tornado as she flitted over Elliot's body and yet, she still remained loving and gentle. He felt himself heating up and he would reach out and touch her every so often, as if to reassure himself that this was not merely some wonderful dream. It wasn't, it was all too real and he had to actually restrain himself from saying something stupid in all his joy. "Wow," he finally sputtered out. "I sure didn't see that coming." Elliot knew that Colleen had dated a lot of interesting men and had experience. He remembered the Irish journalist last year, who he thought was a smug little bastard. Elliot hadn't really liked any of her boyfriends. Had he been jealous all this time and unaware of it? "I don't think I did either," Colleen smiled as she snuggled in close for a minute. "I just know that it felt really, really good to finally be able to show you the way I feel about you." "You shouldn't be the only one," Elliot told her. He smiled and kissed her softly and then he moved down her body. He knew that their future depended on his proving to Colleen that he was up for anything. All of her beautiful body became his playground. He kissed and he licked and he touched and he did as much of that as she would let him until her fists were thumping on his back and her moans were sexy little gasps and shrieks. He didn't stop until he had licked her beautiful pussy. He loved the pretty face she made during climax, he could have looked at that all day. "Make love to me Elliot, please, now?" Colleen asked. She reached for a condom in her nightstand and he put it on. He kissed his beautiful Colleen a lot more times before he entered her. Her walls gripped tight around his cock as he moved in and out of her. At first, Elliot took it slow but after she locked her legs around his back, he began to increase his tempo. Soon, the lovers were working in unison, much as they had over the past decade. In bed, they complimented each other as much as they did in their careers. If Elliot made a move, Colleen instinctively made one that matched it. They weren't afraid to laugh and talk and tease each other while they made love. Elliot was a bit surprised that his new lover could be so naughty and Colleen was a bit surprised that Elliot was surprised. It didn't matter. They would have all the time in the world to adapt to each other and find new quirks they had previously been unaware of. Elliot was positive he wanted her as his partner now in every sense of the word. Colleen was positive that she wanted to support him in all the ways a good woman supports a good man. On Easter Sunday, Lisa was surprised that her brother accepted her invitation to dinner. She was further surprised when he told her that he would be bringing a guest. She was even MORE surprised when Colleen showed up on his arm. "You brought your assistant?" Lisa quizzed him as he hung up their coats. "No, I brought my fiancé," he smiled as Colleen flashed her newly-purchased ring. Lisa gasped and hugged her soon-to-be sister while Josh thumped his brother-in-law on the back. Elliot and Colleen had been very careful while they had been dating these past few weeks and were very glad that they could finally share their happiness with people they loved and trusted. Valentine's Day had been the beginning of what both knew would be a wonderful life together.