"So, we're making pasta tonight?" asked Diana, eyeing the ingredients that Steve had laid out on the counter. They had agreed to have dinner together afterwards. She did want to know Steve better after all.

"Yup," he said. "Since you were planning on having pasta, and I had the ingredients available, I thought, why not?"

"I thought people who could cook won't use premade sauces," said Diana, picking up a jar that was filled with a red sauce. She didn't know enough about cooking to tell what it was.

"When we don't have time or energy to cook, we do," said Steve. "But the jar you're holding is not a premade sauce. It's from a batch of sauce that I made a couple of weeks ago."

Diana raised her eyebrows. "A couple of weeks ago?"

Steve nodded. "Yes, I make a big batch of pasta sauce, and I freeze it in these jars. It'll keep for a few months, and I can have several meals from that." He carefully opened the jar. "Well, as long as you store it properly and use the correct containers, it will be good to eat for a few months afterwards." He sniffed at the sauce in the jar. "This is still good."

Diana had no idea that food can be kept frozen for so long. It seemed as if she had a lot more to learn about cooking than she had initially thought.

There were several vegetables in the basket as well; Diana suspected that they would be for the sauce.

Diana took her cutting board and had started to chop the vegetables when Steve stopped her.

She shot him a glare. "I'm competent enough to cut vegetables, Steve," she said.

"I know that," said Steve soothingly. "But there is an easier way to cut vegetables."

A light blush dusted his cheeks. "Um, I would need to put my hands on yours so that I can show you-" The blush on his face intensified. "I mean, I can show how it's done, but I think it will be better- I mean easier for you to pick up-"

It was Diana's turn to suppress a grin. She smiled at him and said, "That will be alright Steve. Anything that will make it easier for me to learn."

She enjoyed how warm his hands were when he placed them on top of hers. And the technique that Steve taught her did make it easier and faster to cut her vegetables.

Over the course of preparing the meal, Steve gave Diana so many tips that her head was spinning.

"You don't need to put oil in the pot to stop the pasta from sticking. Just swirl the water around; that'll be enough."

"You shouldn't cook the pasta all the way in the water; finish it cooking in the sauce."

"You always have to taste the food. Taste every time you add something."

"It's always better to add salt and pepper a little at a time. You can always add more if it's not enough. Not so easy to fix if it's too much."

It didn't take Steve very long to see how overwhelmed Diana was. The blush returned to his face in full force. "Sorry," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I get really excited about cooking. And when I get excited, I ramble a lot. So sorry about overwhelming you."

Diana laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It's fine Steve. I understand."

He gave a sigh of relief and turned his attention to the stove once again. "How about a side dish..."

Diana had planned on just making a salad, but Steve managed - with only the ingredients that she already had in her refrigerator - to make some garlic bread. He ducked his head and shuffled from one foot to the other, his face red when she praised him. He mumbled a thanks and quickly occupied himself with the cooking once more.

Diana found his reactions adorable.

She did manage to make one useful contribution to the dinner, though. She knew a lot about wine. She was tempted to use a bottle of Pinot Noir but decided against it. She would use it once she started dating Steve - if they even get to that stage in the first place. So she chose a Chardonnay instead.

They had a pleasant conversation over dinner, and got to know each other better. Steve wanted to help with the washing up as well, but Diana insisted on doing it herself.

"I feel like I didn't contribute much to the cooking. So please let me do the washing up on my own," she said. It took some persuasion, but Steve eventually agreed.

"Maybe you can come this Saturday to teach me something else?" Diana asked. "If you're free, of course."

Steve pulled out his phone. "Let me just check my calendar first," he said. A few taps later, he looked up from his phone and grinned. "Yep, Saturday works for me. Do you have any dish that you would want to try out?"

"Something simple," said Diana. "I want to start small. But I think it will be better if you pick the dish. I wouldn't know what is simple and what isn't."

Steve laughed. "Alright, then. I'll see you Saturday?"

"Saturday. If nothing comes up at work, that is." She really hoped that her superhero life wouldn't intrude then. Please, Aphrodite, she thought. Just let me have this one night.

Steve nodded in understanding. "It'll be fine if you have unexpected work on that day. The number of times I've been dragged out of bed in the middle of the night is astounding."

After a final round of goodbyes, Steve left.

Diana couldn't wait until morning. She had a lot to talk about during her weekly conversation with Lois.