Summary: Alise wakes up at Owen's just in time for them to watch the sunrise together. Owen cooks her breakfast and takes her to the raptor enclosure before taking her home. Charlie gives Alise a surprise she'll never forget.

I woke up the next morning to the sound of Owen's heartbeat. My head was on his bare chest, his arm was wrapped around my shoulders and my palm lay flat on his abdomen. I saw Owen move his free arm, scratching his head out of the corner of my eye. I tilted my head up, seeing that he was wide awake. When he realized I looked up, he looked down at me.

"You woke up just in time." he smiled.

"Just in time for what?" I asked groggily as I yawned. Owen nodded his head towards the window of his bedroom and I looked over. It was a picturesque view of the sunrise, the sun slowly allowing more light to the world as the seconds passed.

"Wow, it's beautiful." I whispered in the silence.

"Yeah. I love watching it in the morning." he said, his voice hoarse. I glanced at the time on the nightstand clock: 6:03 am.

"Why are you even awake so early?" I laughed a little. It was a reasonable question, he was wide awake at 6 am and looks like he's been up for quite some time.

"Internal body clock. 12 years of waking up before dawn in the Navy programmed into me is a hard thing to kick."

"So you're up every day with the sun?" I asked, not able to hold back my yawn.

"For the most part. I do tend to fall back asleep some of the time though. You can go back to sleep, I see you're tired." he said.

I smiled, "You don't have to tell me twice." I laughed lightly, putting my head back down on his chest, letting his heartbeat and steady breath lull me back to sleep.

My stomach grumbled as my nose filled with the wonderful smell of bacon before my eyes fluttered open. I was laying on my stomach, my head on the pillow Owen had his head on earlier and my hand resting on the empty mattress.

The curtains were drawn, unlike earlier when we watched the sunrise. The bedroom door was wide open and the smell of bacon was taking over. I glanced at the time on the nightstand: 8:10 am. I saw Owen's shirt on the bed next to me, so I put that on, figuring it's more comfortable than my clothes from last night.

I walked out of the room, the sound of bacon sizzling and the faint noise of Owen softly singing to himself as he stood in the kitchen by the stove in shorts and no shirt. That sight alone made my morning.

"Mornin' sleepy head," Owen said as he looked back at me. I barely made any noise and he still managed to hear me. He'd mentioned how he had hypersensitive hearing and I was beginning to notice it.

"Mmm, is that bacon?"

"Yes it is, bacon and pancakes. I didn't have eggs." he said.

"Bacon and pancakes sound amazing right now." I said, sitting down at the small kitchen table that already had pancakes on it. He was just putting the bacon onto a plate.

"I also have fresh strawberries, I know how you love those," he said, bringing both the plate of bacon and the bowl of freshly cut strawberries over. I smiled at the fact that he remembered that I had once said that I loved fresh strawberries.

"This looks so good and smells delicious." I said, my mouth watering as I stuck my fork in a pancake and slid it on to the empty plate in front of me.

The only thing that would make this perfect was coffee, which I saw a mug placed right next to my plate. I sighed happily, adding some sugar and blowing on it lightly before taking a sip. It was the perfect temperature.

Owen chuckled as he sat across from me while I worked on cutting up the pancakes.

"My shirt looks good on you." he said, taking a bite of bacon.

I blushed, "It was the first thing I saw. More comfortable than my clothes." I shrugged, pouring the maple syrup onto my pancakes before taking a bite. They were amazing. Better pancakes than I could ever make and I was pretty good at making pancakes.

"I especially like when you don't wear pants with it." he smirked.

"Of course you do." I laughed.

"Because you have such a cute butt." he grinned.

"Shut up and eat your bacon." I said, rolling my eyes. He chuckled and grinned even more before taking a bite of his bacon.

"So, I was thinking we could stop by and see the girls before I drop you off?" he asked. I knew he was talking about the raptors.

"Sounds perfect." I smiled.

We got to the enclosure around 10 am. After we finished breakfast as he was bringing our plates to the sink and I said that he had a cute butt too and that he'd look better without any pants. One thing lead to another and we were both tangled in the sheets, we finally got out of the house by 9:50 am.

Owen and I got off his bike and walked over to the holding area where Barry was strapping Echo into her the metal harness, the other three girls already hooked up.

I could tell it was Echo because she had a scar across her face, which Owen told me was there because Blue and Echo once fought for dominance about a year ago and Blue won, but Echo was left with a permanent scar and a dislocated jaw as a result. Her jaw healed up on its own, but the scar was forever. It made sense after he told me that because Echo was always reluctant to listen to Blue but usually gave in eventually.

"Do you have to be home anytime soon?" Owen asked me as we walked over.

"I have to be at work at 2, so I'd like to be home by 12." I said.

He nodded, "Wanna watch us do a scent drill?" he asked.

"Sure, that'll be cool!" I said. I've never watched them do a scent drill before, but from what Owen has told me about it in the past, it sounds really interesting.

"I thought you were gonna be here at 9." was Barry's greeting when Owen and I walked into the holding area. He had a small smile on his face, indicating that he was just busting Owen's chops.

"We were a little busy this morning. Didn't get out until 9:45." Owen smirked. Barry chuckled, catching onto what Owen was insinuating. I rolled my eyes.

"Charlie wants you," Barry said, looking at Owen. "She's been chirping ever since you got out of the car."

"What does this silly girl want?" Owen laughed, walking over. He put his hand on her head and she shook against the cage, seeming annoyed. "Whoa, whoa…" he observed her reaction and studied her face. Then he looked at me. "I think she wants you." he said.

I raised my brows, "Me? Why?" I asked in shock. Why would Charlie ever want to see me?

"We'll find out." Owen shrugged. I walked over and put my hand on Charlie's head. She immediately let out a chirp and started purring. "She recognizes you. She knows you made her leg better."

I looked at him in shock, "How would she know it was me? She was sedated every time?"

"She probably saw you before she went out and she can pick up your scent, even when she's asleep. The girls probably communicated with her about you too."

"They were probably like "this is the bitch that knocked you out and went poking around in your leg"." I laughed to myself, still petting Charlie's leathery skin as she was still purring from my touch.

"They must not have because she really likes you."

"She's so sweet." I said. Owen smiled at me.

"You ready to do the drill?" Barry asked.

"Let's do it." Owen nodded. I smiled and watched them do their thing.

I gathered that a scent drill was basically hide and go seek, where Owen would have them smell something and then hide it in the enclosure somewhere for them to find. They did it a few times, Blue getting to it the first two times and Delta finding it the last time.

Owen got me home by 12 and I got ready before work. I knew today was going to be a long day and that was confirmed when I went in and saw the appointments I had set up for the day. Screenings for the virus were still underway and it looked like I was the one finishing them up.

Well, work was exhausting. I didn't get home last night until 11:30 pm. We only had 2 more diagnoses of the viral infection after screening over 100 dinosaurs, which wasn't necessarily bad. It could have been worse. We put them into quarantine to see what else we could do for them to limit their pain while waiting for the infection to run its course and to prevent them from passing away.

I was surprised to see a text from Owen that came in about an hour ago.

Hope your day went well.

It was short, simple and to the point. Very Owen. I texted back, not expecting a reply anytime soon.

It was a looong day. I just got home actually. Tired and in need of a drink lol

I walked into my bathroom and got ready for a shower. I needed to get all the dust and smell of dinos off of me. I was surprised when I got a text back just a minute later.

Well I would ask for if you wanna meet for a drink, but you said you're super tired.

I smiled and answered.

And normally I'd say yes, but I have to be at work tomorrow at 9 am so I'm ready for bed lol

I put my phone on the sink counter and began to brush the dust out of my hair as I waited, hopeful for a quick reply before I had to get in the shower. I waited about 5 minutes and didn't get one, so I figured he was busy doing something, so I hopped in the shower anyway.

I got out 20 minutes later, taking a little longer than I needed to because I was so relaxed soaking in the steam and warmth of the water.

I looked at my phone, noticing a text that was sent 15 minutes ago and then one that was sent 5 minutes ago, both from Owen.

The first one read: More fun with the dinos, bright and early. I bet you're going to be drinking lots of coffee for that one.

The second one read: You've probably gone to sleep, so goodnight and sleep well. Talk to you tomorrow.

I smiled, for not being much of a texter, he was texting quite a lot, I guess that was a good sign.

As Owen predicted, I needed 2 cups of coffee before I even got out of the house, Owen texted me right as I was on the shuttle at 8:35, saying: Good morning sleepy head, you on that caffeine high yet?

I smiled and answered: 2 cups in. Goin for more when I get to work.

He responded back a minute later: Hope it helps for the day. I'm about to head out to see my raptors. We both have a busy day ahead of us it seems.

I smiled, texting back: Seems like it! Have fun with the girls!

He texted back less than a minute later this time: I will. You have a good day too, I hope to hear from you about how it went later.

To which I answered: You'll get the full report lol

He answered seconds later: I'll look forward to it :)

I smiled as I got out of the car and headed straight for the cafe for that third cup of coffee that would definitely be needed today. I would probably even need a drink by the end of the day as well, so I texted Lucy to see if she'd meet me at Three Horns right after my shift and thankfully, she could.

Of course, Lucy's first question was about my date with Owen and said: "tell me everything!". I didn't tell her everything, but I told her the majority of what happened, keeping the juicy details to myself.

"Hey ladies. What's up?" Lachlan asked as he walked over to our us, putting three shots on the table.

"Hey, Lach. Not much, just girl talk." I smiled at Lucy. "What'd you bring us?"

"It's tonight's special. Big Fat Elvis."

"What's in that?" Lucy asked, confused by the light brown, creamy texture of the shot.

"I have no fucking idea, but it's amazing!" he said, knocking his head back, letting out a satisfied, "Ah!"

Lucy gave me a hesitant look.

"It's just bacon whiskey and peanut butter amaretto. I've never had it." I shrugged, taking the shot. It wasn't half bad. Lucy drank the shot and pulled a face and I laughed. She wasn't much of a drinker.

"We missed you last night, Lise. The party was a rager!" Lachlan said, referring to the party he had at his apartment last night. I was kind of happy I wasn't there, to be honest, it was just a bunch of people getting drunk and playing party games, that was stuff I did in college. I'm over it at 28.

"Alise was on her date with Owen." Lucy smirked.

"You finally get that D?" Lachlan smirked at me.

"Yes, actually, I did." I admitted, taking a sip of my beer with a smirk.

"Oh wow, you didn't tell me about that. Do tell!" Lucy exclaimed.

"And I'm out. You ladies enjoy that conversation." Lachlan said before walking away. I laughed and looked at Lucy.

"All I'm going to tell you is that it was really good and that man knows exactly what he's doing. I'm not giving you any of the juicy stuff."

"Thank god. Please keep that to yourself, I was just saying that to get Lachlan out of here." she laughed, taking a sip of her vodka and cranberry.

"My lips are sealed." I smiled as Lucy started in on the french fries, she was looking over in Lachlan's direction. "So, is any of that in your future with Lachlan?"

"Any of what?" she asked, genuinely confused.

"You know… doin' the dirty, bumpin' and grindin'..."

"I cannot believe you just said that!" Lucy blushed.

I laughed, "I know. I'm embarrassed. But seriously, when are you going to get on that?"

"I don't think anytime soon." she sounded defeated.

"Why's that?" I asked curiously, eating a couple of french fries.

"Well, you see how he's been hanging out with Amara so much?" she said, eyeing Lachlan again. Amara just so happened to be with him.

"I thought that was just a fling?" I asked.

"He called her his girlfriend the other day." she looked down.

"Wow, that was fast," I thought out loud. Lachlan has never seemed like a "lock it down" kind of guy. More like a "one and done" kind of guy. "Hey, I'm sorry Luce. From what I've seen, it doesn't seem too serious." I said, trying to make her feel better.

"We'll see." she said, still defeated. I let out a sigh, decided I'd better change the subject as not to dwell on Lachlan anymore.

Owen texted me, around 7 saying: I hope your day went well and you didn't die of a caffeine overdose.

I laughed and texted back: My day is almost over and I survived (barely) but I'm still kicking! I met Lucy at Three Horns and we're having a much needed drink and dinner.

Sounds like fun. Text me so I know you got home okay.

I smiled replying: Will do! Before getting back to my dinner. Lucy guessed that I was texting Owen because I couldn't stop smiling, but I couldn't help it. It's what the damn man does to me!

I decided it was an early night for me and I got home around 8:30 pm. I was too tired after getting out at 6 pm to do anything other than have a few drinks and eat dinner. Of course, Lachlan tried to convince me to stay out with them and Lucy gave me begging eyes as well. I felt bad leaving Lucy with Lachlan and Amara, but a girls gotta sleep.

On the way home in the shuttle, I texted her a list of excuses she could use to leave, though. I think she ultimately went with the easy one that her stomach was bothering her, so she left. It made me feel a little less guilty leaving her there, knowing I had given her many ideas for an out.

The second I got home, I kicked off my shoes and I texted Owen: Just walked through the door, made it in one piece. Might have had a littttle bit too much to drink but I had fun so that's all that matters lol

Glad you made it home ok. You goin to bed now?

Not yet. I'm not tired enough. Oh! And I still have to tell you about my day!

I sent back, throwing my phone on the bed and changing into pajamas. I heard my phone vibrating and I was surprised to see Owen was calling me.

"Hello?"

"Hey… talking on the phone is a lot easier than texting. I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"Not at all," I couldn't help but smile. "Is that the only reason why you called me?"

"Well, I wanted to know how your day went…"

"Really? Because I think you called because you know I'm tipsy and I'll admit more embarrassing things about myself." I laughed.

Owen chuckled, "That could be another reason," he admitted. "But it's also nice to hear your voice."

I blushed, biting my bottom lip, "Well, it's nice to hear your voice too, Owen."

"Good," he chuckled again. "So, how was your day?" he asked.

We ended up staying on the phone until midnight, when I realized had to be up in 7 hours and he was probably going to be up in 5 to watch the sunrise as he usually did. We reluctantly got off the phone, the last thing I heard before I went to bed was "Sleep tight Alise, talk to you soon."

The next morning I decided to text Lowery and ask if he wanted to get coffee at 8:15 am before both of our shifts started at 9 am.

"So, what is this for? Do you need me to do something for you? Break into the control room? Let you take the Gyrospheres out after hours again?" Lowery asked suspiciously.

I laughed, "No, I just wanted to see how my little brother was! Why do you always assume the worst from me?"

"Because you're a troublemaker, that's what you do. Drive me crazy and make me cover for you."

"Well, that's not entirely my fault. You're the one who actually does cover for me." I pointed out, taking a sip of my coffee.

"True, I have to stop doing that." he thought out loud.

"Butttt, we both know you won't." I smirked. My phone buzzed in my pocket and it was a text from Owen, asking me what time I was going on lunch and if I wanted to grab some with him. I couldn't hold back the huge smile that crept on my face.

"Who's that?" Lowery asked. I looked up.

"Uh, just Owen."

"Oh, cool," I could hear his voice fall as he looked down at his coffee. I sighed, putting the phone back in my pocket. He still wasn't okay with us dating, I could tell. "So, how was the date?" he surprised me by asking.

I raised my brows, "Why?"

"I'm just trying to make conversation…" he trailed off.

"Well, it went really well. He has a really nice bungalow, it's right on the water and you can watch the sunrise right from his bedroom window, it was beautiful."

"God, Alise! I didn't want to know that much information!" he scolded.

I smirked, "You asked."

"Right, well next time don't go into so much detail."

"I could go into more detail if you want, like how we got to his bunga-"

"No, no, no, stop it. Stop it now!" Lowery covered both of his ears and I laughed.

"So, you're not gonna ask me about my dates with Owen anymore?" I asked.

"Hell no," he said, looking at his watch. "I'm gonna go throw up before work now."

I shook my head, "So dramatic." I drank my coffee as he walked off.

Now I could answer Owen and tell him lunch was on. I still got excited and there were butterflies in my stomach. I felt like a high schooler going on a date with my crush. I had to get my head into work, so I pushed it in the back of my mind, for now, still excited to see him later.