Page 127 of Forgiving Fate

“Raven. Shadow. My headis not a toy.”

“They love you,” Allie says, playing as both the kittens jump to the ground and start playing with the new toys she just dumped on the living room floor.

“Sure. If using my head as a giant cat toy is what love looks like, then yes, I’m smitten,”I say, not looking up from my laptop from my spot on the couch.

A toy mouse hits me directly in the face and I glance up to see Allie smirking. “Don’t be a sasshole. You know you love them. There is no way you’ve spent two weeks with them and haven’t fallen in love.”

“You’ve been hanging out with Noah too much,” I say, adjusting my glasses and going back to my computer.

This has been our routine for the last few weeks. Allie comes over after her therapy appointment and runs to spend the day with me and the kittens. After dinner, she goes back to Lo and Gray’s, the cycle repeating itself day after day.

Being back home has gone better than expected, and I know Allie has been a big part of that. Every day I see her strength andit drives me to keep going. Some days are better than others, but seeing how it feels to have my mind clear, I know this feeling is something I will fight like hell to never lose.

Shadow jumps in my lap and dances over the keys, causing Resilience to shut down.

Grabbing her by the tummy, I hold her to face me. “No dancing on my laptop, please.” I place a quick kiss to her head and set her on the ground.

The moment my eyes lock with Allie’s, I already know what her next words are going to be just by the little smirk on her face. So before she can even speak, I interrupt her. “Fine. They are cute. You got me. Now, can you tell me where you would like to go on our date today?”

“Hmm. I really want to go to Cannon Beach. It's nice out today and I think the drive will be nice. Your mom stopped by and dropped off some apple turnovers in case we didn’t want to go to a restaurant and just have a picnic.”

“That sounds good. We can stop somewhere along the way if you want?”

She shakes her head as she pets Raven, who is now sleeping in her lap. “I am not really up for large crowds today, if that’s okay.”

Shutting my laptop, I move to sit on the floor in front of her. “Whatever you want to do, sweetheart. Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I just feel tired today and a little off. I can’t really explain it.”

“We don’t have to go anywhere. We can stay here.”

“No. I think getting out in fresh air would be good. We haven’t gone on a drive in so long.”

I search her face to see if she is hiding how she really feels. The past two weeks we have spent rebuilding our friendship on a healthier foundation. Starting fresh and making sure we can both stand on our own as well as be there for each other is mostimportant. But I would be lying if I said I haven’t been dying to kiss her.

We sit in silence for a moment before Allie climbs in my lap, resting her head on my shoulder. Wrapping my arms around her, I place a gentle kiss on the top of her head. We sit for what feels like hours until I realize Allie has fallen asleep and my heart fills with pride at the knowledge that she feels safe enough to do so.

As gently as I can, I stand with her in my arms and move to lay her on the couch, covering her with a blanket. I’m about to walk away when her eyes pop open slightly. She looks around, slightly confused for a moment, then moves over, lifts the covers and pats the couch.

I know I should ask if she is sure, but selfishly, I have missed just simply sleeping next to her. Every night I slept next to her was a silent night and although I haven’t been plagued with daily nightmares, I can’t remember the last time I slept soundly through the night.

Tossing my phone to the ground, I lay down next to her, and she moves to rest her head on my chest, my arms curling around her. And because I can’t resist, I place another kiss atop her head and drift off to sleep.

“Lan. Pizza is here,” Allie calls from downstairs.

Pulling on a pair of gray sweats and a white t-shirt and I head downstairs.

Our plans to go to the beach went out the window with the six-hour nap we just took. When we woke up, I could tell Allie was feeling lighter and so was I.

As I enter the kitchen, Allie is plating the pizza we ordered from the diner and I can’t help but take a moment to stare at her gorgeous ass in her skintight black leggings.

One that I’ve had the pleasure of holding my hands as I—Allie’s head whips around and I make no point to hide that I was obviously checking her out. Her cheeks heat as she notices my semi hard dick in my sweats.

“You make it really hard to take things slow when you look like that,” she says, before turning back around to the counter.

Before she can make her way to the stool, I step up behind her, pressing my body against her, and rest my chin on her shoulder. “You’re one to talk, miss I don’t own any pants other than these.” My hands pull at the fabric of her leggings, snapping it back in place.

“Landon.” Her voice is low and sexy as sin and I have to fight every ache and need in my body to not devour her on this counter.

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