Proof
Chapter nineteen
Ihadn't sunk into the fog at all today. Just being around Olivia was making a difference, and though part of me wanted to just scoop her up and hold her on my lap all the time and carry her around, I knew it wouldn't be appreciated. Yet.
After our little online shopping spree, I did some shopping of my own. We couldn't take her out in public, but I had some courting to do and I meant to do it very well. Better than Dean. I'd seen him looking up flower delivery. Flowers. She didn't need flowers, she needed normalcy and care.
My special items would arrive the next day, but I needed help.
Feral alphas couldn't leave the house without a chaperone.
It was a rule Kienan had made last year after Dean had a very public rage situation at a gas station.
So, in order to carry out my plan, I needed some help.
My go-to was Kienan, since he and I tended to be closer.
But he was acting oddly today and I wasn't sure he was the right choice.
I managed to corner Zephyr after lunch and jerked my head to the back porch. He followed me out and we settled in the outdoor chairs. The wind was brisk today, but not uncomfortable. We should have gotten her a jacket. I'd lend her mine, I decided.
"Did you just want to look at the lawn or did you have something to say?" Zephyr asked.
"I want to take Olivia on a picnic."
"Sure, that's a great idea."
"But I can't take her alone," I pointed out. "And Kienan is acting weird, so would you be our chaperone?"
"We can't take her anywhere she might be seen," he reminded me, "But, sure."
"I want to go to the lake. Remember that little stream we found a couple years back?"
"Vaguely. That would be a good remote spot, though. Just let me know when."
"Saturday around eleven?"
He nodded. "I'll be there. You seem really lucid today, Vale."
"I think being around her helps," I admitted. "I haven't even felt the feral fog yet."
"Wow. Imagine if this really is the fix we've been waiting for?" Zephyr gave me a tired smile. "I hate to say it, but maybe Kienan had the right idea."
"Taking away her choice and freedom was never the right way."
"No, it wasn't. We owe her a lot. Kienan especially, but he has to get his head out of his ass to see that.
" He shook his head. "Fucker just doesn't get it.
We could have gone to her and asked if she wanted our help getting out, once she knew we were scentmatches, but he went in there with only one purpose in mind.
The fact she was a scentmatch… that was just luck on her part. "
"I don't know if I can forgive him for that, Z."
We sat in silence for a while before he responded. "Me either."
Back inside, I found Olivia digging through the games cupboard that we hadn't touched in years. Not since I'd first started showing symptoms of this virus. We used to have game nights with friends, but all that had ground to a halt when first I, and then Dean, couldn't be trusted any longer.
"Find anything good?"
She jumped at my voice, banging her head on the upper door of the cupboard.
"Shit, you okay?"
"Yeah, sorry. I don't know why I spook like that."
I knew. Her piece of shit exes had scared her and made her jumpy, then the ORC and heat dens had finished the job.
"I was, uh, wondering if you want to go on a date with me."
She stared up at me from her crouched position. "A date? I thought we couldn't?"
"It's not public."
Her lips pursed. I'd scared her again. "It's okay, we won't be alone. Zephyr is coming, too. He kinda has to with the whole feral thing."
"I'll go." Her voice was small. I instantly felt bad for putting her into a situation where she would be afraid. Fuck.
"You don't have to. I get that it's weird. Going out in the wilderness with two alphas you don't really know." I cursed myself internally for asking in the first place.
"Vale." Olivia stood up in front of me, careful to avoid the upper door this time. "I'm not scared of you. I'm not used to alphas doing things for me instead of to me."
"Fuck." The thought of her being forced to do anything made the fog surge in. I bent to nuzzle her neck and inhale that tart lemon scent with the mint chaser until the fog eased away and I could stand again.
"Are you all right?" Olivia put a hand on my face, tilting me slightly so she could peer into my eyes. "I thought you'd changed."
"I did." I blinked at her. "Your scent pulled me back."
Her lips formed a perfect O and she stared into my eyes. "Then let's make sure you're never without my scent. I'll mark something you can carry with you."
I scooped her up without warning and she shrieked and laughed, wrapping her arms around my neck.
"Why can't I just carry you with me all the time?"
"Because that's a bit impractical. And I think the others might want you to share."
"She's right. You can't have her all to yourself," Dean grumbled as he walked over to us.
He took a hank of her hair in his hand and brought it to his nose, inhaling just like I had. "Give him his scent token, omega, but you need to give me one, too. I haven't tested if your scent stops the feral from taking over, but it's worth a try, right?"
"Of course." Olivia kicked her legs playfully. "I'll make you all scent tokens. What would work for that?"
"Maybe handkerchiefs," Kienan suggested from the doorway.
"Are you serious?" Dean shook his head. "Those are for old men. You may be aging prematurely, but I am still in my prime."
"It would be practical," Olivia mused. "Or maybe just some fleece that you can keep in a bag with you. Do any of you work?"
"We're independently wealthy, trust fund kids," I told her with a blank face.
Olivia studied me with gray-blue eyes that narrowed when she spotted a twitch of my lips. "You liar. What do you do?"
"Well, these days, I build furniture," Dean told her. He held up his hands, covered in bruises and cuts. "I used to be a banker, can you believe that?"
"Why didn't you become an accountant?"
"Because I wanted to do something different, something I could do with my hands and see the direct result of my work."
"Where do you build furniture?" she asked curiously.
"Out back. I have a workshop out there. I'll show you sometime."
Olivia nodded and rested her head on my shoulder. "What about you, Vale?"
"I was a football player, but I fucked up my knee five years ago. I coached for a while, but then the virus caught up to me, so now I paint."
"What? Really?"
"My studio is above Dean's workshop," I told her. "It's noisy, but it's mine."
"Kienan?"
The man himself pushed off the doorframe and walked over. "I'm a business owner."
"What kind of businesses?" Olivia prompted.
"He's being modest," Dean told her. "This guy owns five franchise restaurants, a bunch of real estate, and a supermarket."
"Wow." She frowned at Kienan. "So you all really meant it when you said you had money."
"We did," Kienan said. "And Zephyr is an actor. You've probably seen him in a couple of commercials."
"I don't watch television," she said. "At least, I haven't in years, not since…" She trailed off, but we all knew she meant until she'd taken a pack. Or they'd taken her.
We walked further into the living room and settled down in the seats.
I sat with my legs stretched out along the couch so Olivia could stay in my lap, facing the others while she leaned against my chest. Feeling her warm skin on mine made me want to rip the rest of the buttons out of my shirt so she could lie chest to chest with me, but I resisted.
"Did you have any hobbies before the heat dens?" I asked, trailing a finger down her cheek. It was impossible not to touch her. Even Dean came and sat on the floor so he could brush against her leg.
"I cooked and cleaned and tried to make babies," she said, obviously trying to joke. It wasn't funny though and I squeezed her tightly. "There was never time to do much else. Sometimes, if I had a bit of spare time, I'd read or watch recipe videos on YouTube."
"Well, we've got the cooking and cleaning sorted out here," Kienan told her. "We take turns doing the jobs we hate and the rest of the time, we stick to what we enjoy. Like I'm the cook because it's something I like to do."
"Who cleans the toilets?"
"We clean our own."
She nodded. "I like this system, but you have to let me do something. I can't just sit around being treated like a princess."
"You absolutely can," I told her, nuzzling her neck again.
Olivia shook her head. "Nope. I want a job, too. In the house," she added hastily when everyone stared at her.
"We'll find something for you to do," Dean assured her.