She falls asleep in her coat. He takes the glasses from her face and carefully puts them in their case.
Waking, she immediately looks for an excuse, the old reflex of someone accustomed to turning every kindness into a debt. He does not present a bill. He lets a small act of care remain simply care.
Later, she sets her book on the floor. He sits beside her and rests his head on her shoulder. She could pretend she sacrificed her reading for him, but only smiles: she was not reading anyway.
The central rule of this closeness is simple. She can say ‘no’ and still be wanted and accepted. So when she says, ‘I want you’, he does not have to doubt her words.
She holds him close with two open hands. Nothing owed. Everything chosen.