[She frowned softly, but saw that he was backing down a little bit. It seemed like the closest thing she would get to an apology with him. He was somehow even cuter to her now, backing down a little so that his bark matched his bite.]

So what you're saying is you just don't want me to say it in a weird way? So what if I called you "Handsome", then?

[She let go of his arm, not needing to make him any more uncomfortable. She didn't want to upset him or alienate him, and so she had to know her limits. Spending most of her adult life in Europe had caused her to forget how shocking physical contact can be, especially from a stranger. (an attractive stranger if his light blush told her anything.)]

If you want to apologize to me, then let me go with you to feed the ducks.