He scratched behind his ears with his free hand, before settling back down, bringing Poppy's hand up to kiss it.
The dog laid down with a sigh, and Poppy stirred slightly, her free hand shifting on his chest. She blinked and looked up at him sleepily. "Oh, damn," she said. "I'm sorry. Did I fall asleep?"
"Good. Good." She rested her forehead against his neck, the grass tickling her cheek lightly. "I'd be sad to watch you go."
She laughed and kissed his jaw. "I left so that you wouldn't lose your job, Craw," she said softly. "Don't mess that up now."
"I'm the head of the department," he said smoothly. "It's just stuff that I can do whenever, and if it needs to be dealt with, then I'll know."
"Hm," she murmured, her forehead resting against his temple. "You know, you've changed drastically since I first met you."
"Better," she said quietly. "I think, anyway. Maybe you were always like this and I just didn't know you well enough. I'm not sure."
She laughed lowly, shaking her head with embarrassment. "You're a flirt," she said quietly, watching him with affectionate eyes.
She kissed the tip of his nose, her lips soft against his skin. "So," she said, "maybe you haven't changed as much as I thought."
"Well," she said, drawing out the word. She kissed his cheek and continued to kiss him between each sentence. "You seem to be kinder, and less sarcastic," she said, kissing his jaw. "And you're more open with me, although maybe that's to be expected." She kissed the tip of his nose. "You're more empathetic, and you're less oriented around your work." She kissed his temple. "You're more thoughtful, and less impulsive than before." She kissed his chin. "And you care about things more than you did. Things mean more to you now than before." Her lips found his, and she gave him a lingering kiss, pulling away with a small glint in her eye. "Does that work?"
