Allowing her to help him was completely wrong, but he could see how much it meant to her. And the last thing he wanted to do was to break her heart.

"All right. But I insist that-."
Her fingers went to his lips to silence him. "Shhh..."

He watched as she opened her purse and removed her checkbook. "Do you have a pen?"

"Um... yeah." He said quickly searching the end table drawer. "Here you go."
"Now... How much do you need?"
"Daphne... I can't..."
"Nonsense. I know it makes you uncomfortable so I'll just look for meself."

When she rose and walked over to where the pile of bills lay on the table, he began to panic.

"Daphne, please-."

She shuffled through the bills pulling out a few. "All right, these should do! I'll just write out a few checks and you'll be paid in full."

To his amazement, she wrote several checks and put them in the envelopes.

"There... I'll just pop these into the mail on me way back home."

When he saw her writing on a piece of paper, his eyes widened. "Wh-what are you doing?"

"I'm writing a note to the heating company, explaining why you weren't able to pay your bill. I'm quite certain they'll have your heat on in no time."

She slipped the note inside the Puget Sound Energy bill and sealed it shut.

"And if they don't turn it back on soon, I'll call them meself and give them a piece of my mind!"

He stared at her, this goddess whom he loved deeper than he ever thought possible and in one fluid motion he rose from the sofa.

Not realizing he was standing behind her, she turned in surprise.

"Niles..."

Overcome with love, he took her in his arms and kissed her passionately.

"What was that for?" She asked, looking as though she might faint.

"I love you, Daphne..."

She leaned her head against his and touched his cheek. "I love you too,

Niles."

"I-I can't thank you enough for this... No one has ever been so kind and generous. You truly are an angel. I promise I'll pay you back, just as soon..."

"Shhh..." Enough of that. It's a bit chilly in here, wouldn't you say?"

"Oh, Heavens! I'd almost forgotten! Just let me get a few things together and we'll be on our way. You can watch TV if you'd like."

She smiled as he disappeared into the bedroom to pack his clothes. Settling herself onto the sofa once more, she turned on the television.

"Okay, I'm all ready to go." He said from behind her.

"Me favorite Christmas movie is on... I haven't seen this in years. I tried to watch it at your brother's house so many times but he complains so much that I end up turning it off."

He sat down on the sofa next to her. "Oh... I remember this one! Mom used to love this movie! Dad would always put his arm around her like this while they watched it."

Daphne snuggled against his chest. "Mmmm... This is nice."

"Daphne, you're freezing. We should probably get going. Frasier's bound to wonder where we've gone."

"Actually I have a better idea."

He watched in confusion as she rose from the sofa and looked through his closet until she found what she was looking for.

"Here we are..."

He turned to find her holding a large blanket.

"Daphne, what-."

She covered him with the blanket and then walked into the kitchen.

"Do you have any tea?"

"Yes, it's on the top left hand shelf, but I-."

"What about your tea kettle?"

"Oh...I don't have-."

"That's all right. I'll just use the microwave. There's more than one way to heat water."

Within minutes she brought over two cups of hot tea, handing one to him.

"Thank you, Daphne."

"Now... we'll just cover ourselves with this blanket and watch the movie, shall we?"

He sighed when she rested her head on his chest; happier than he'd ever been in his life.

A few hours later, he opened his eyes, startled when he realized that they had fallen asleep while watching the movie.

A glance at the television told him that the movie had been over for a while. What would Frasier think?

He gently nudged her awake. "Daphne... Wake up!"

Her eyes fluttered open. "What's wrong?"

"We should probably get over to Frasier's. He's probably wondering what happened to us."

Instead she sighed and put her arm around him, drawing him closer. "I'm fine."

"But it's freezing! Wouldn't you rather be at home in your nice warm bed?"

She kissed him tenderly and gave him a heartwarming smile. "No... I have all the warmth I need right here in your arms. I love you, Niles."

"I love you too, Daphne." He replied, kissing her once more.

And as they held each other, the night didn't seem so cold after all.

THE END