Her cheeks flush and the most girlish giggle I’ve ever heard from her bursts from her lips. Her eyes widen and she clamps her hand over her mouth to stop it.
Alex and I stare at her with dropped jaws.
“Did you just giggle?” Alex asks in awe.
Ollie shoots him a glare. “We’re forgetting this ever happened.”
A slow grin creeps across my face. “Oh, no, princess. I’m going to make it my life’s mission to have you giggling again.”
“Not going to happen.” She hurries out of the kitchen like the hounds of hell are snapping at her ankles. Too bad for her; that won’t stop me.
I turn to my best friend. “You want to make a bet?”
Alex grins. “Bring it on.”
True to his word,Rhys gets most of Haven outside digging in the dirt while the security team rolls barbed wire across the top of the wall. It takes just over a day to get both the pits dug and staked and the wall lined. While most people were happy to help keep themselves and each other safe, to no one’s surprise, there were a few complainers.
Rhys quickly put those people in their place, and with the sun shining, it isn’t a terrible way to spend the day. Not that I could help much. While the doctor said I shouldn’t be able to rip my stitches out anymore, anykind of heavy labour is still out of the question. So I spend most of my time supervising or carving pointy sticks to go into the pits.
The highlight of the day is when I rope Rhys into helping me and Alex make Ollie blush as much as possible by removing our shirts and flexing while working. It works a treat. Our girl can’t stop staring, to the point Rachel tells her to grab a chair and watch since she isn’t helping with the digging. No giggles, unfortunately, but I’m not giving up.
Once our extra defences are done, I turn my attention to something far more important to plan: a date with Ollie.
Since she’s returned, we haven’t spent much alone time together. That’s mostly my doing since I wanted to give her and Alex as much couple time as possible. The big guy deserves it after everything he’s been through, and he looks so much happier and at peace with himself.
But after nearly a week, I’m getting antsy. I need alone time with my girl.
I stride into the communal dining hall and beeline straight towards the industrial kitchen. Since it’s after lunch, the place is quiet, meaning I can sneak in and take some things for what I’m planning.
Opening the door, I find Alex kneeling in one of the storage rooms, a clipboard in hand as he frowns at the various food supplies in front of him. He glances up when I walk in.
“Can I grab some things for my date with Ollie?” I ask, motioning towards the fresh bread beside him.
His brow furrows, and I tense, wondering if the reminder that he’s not the only one with Ollie will set him off. While he hasn’t said or done anything to show that he’s unhappy with our relationship, I’m still worried that her recent kidnapping may have triggered him somehow.
Thankfully, I don’t need to worry because a huge smile stretches across his face.
“You’retaking her on a date?” he asks, a teasing lilt in his voice. “You?”
I frown at him. “Why are you saying it like that?”
“Because you’re one of the least romantic people I’ve ever met. Your idea of romance is lighting a few candles before you give a girl a hard fuck and kick her out of your bed the next morning.”
I scowl and cross my arms over my chest, even though he’s dead right. I’ve never been one for romance, mostly because the people I’ve been with haven’t needed or wanted it. Ollie, however, deservesallthe romance, and I intend to give it to her. “Well, I’ll have you know I can be romantic as shit.”
“I’ll believe it when I see it,” he says before turning his attention to the bread I pointed at. “You can take half a loaf. I’m pretty sure there’s some cheese and cured deer in the cooler and some tinned sundried tomatoes and pickled veggies that need eating soon.”
All of that sounds great. “Got any wine?”
He snorts. “Does this place look like a vineyard to you?”
“Worth a try.” There’s some hard liquor we can drink instead. Although never thought there’d be the day where I’d miss wine.
I grab the half loaf of bread and move to get the rest of the food. With my goods procured, I shout my thanks to Alex and head back out into the afternoon sunshine.
A few people frown and glare at the food I’m carrying, but I don’t pay them any mind. I’m too excited, plus Alex wouldn’t tell me to take food that we need.
Back at the cabin, I grab a blanket and shove that, along with the food, into a backpack. I then grab a bottle of whiskey, two cups and some plates, and cutlery. Once packed, I give a sleepy Harlow a pat and head back out in search of Ollie for our date.
