Occurs directly after Betrayal. If you have not read or finished reading the fourth book of the Cainsville Series, please do not go further – SPOILERS.

All rights to characters, places, and story themes belong to the author of the Cainsville Series, Kelley Armstrong. I am merely borrowing them.


She questioned him all the way from his office to his car. She loved his jag, and loved even more when he let her drive. And he loved how much she loved it. This was not one of those times, however. He usually let her drive outside the city. He knew how much she loved to go fast, and it was difficult to maneuver in the city at the speed she preferred. It's why he convinced her to take her father's Maserati. He didn't understand, however, why she preferred to drive the Jetta. Maybe some day she'd allow him to replace it for her.

"Why won't you tell me where we're going?" She demanded from the passenger seat. He loved it when she was put out. The flush in her cheeks turned her fair skin to a bright pink, the flash in her eyes betraying an underlying passion. He was now able to enjoy these little qualities that made her unique without guilt. He had gotten a condensed version of the story yesterday from Don - not the detail, which he didn't want anyway - but she was no longer in a romantic relationship with Ricky, that's all that mattered. His chance had finally come. When he left Don's company yesterday, and got back to his car, before even pulling out of the Satan Saint's parking lot, he was on his phone making an appointment. He knew it was unconventional, but he wanted undivided attention.

As he pulled up to the most expensive furniture store in Chicago, the confusion was rolling off of her. When she looked over to him, there was a twinkle in his eye. Without saying a word, he got out of the car. She followed slowly, trying to figure out why they would have come here. Did the owner find a dead body sleeping the eternal sleep on his most expensive bed? Was this business run by fae who curses the families who buy their merchandise? She ran to catch up.

"Well?" He asked when she joined him and a sales consultant named Joseph.
"Well what?" She demanded. "Have you lost your marbles Gabriel? We're in a furniture store."
"Don't tell me you forgot... The bigger sofa and fireplace? I would appreciate your help picking them out." For once, her face was blank. He smiled at her. A rare occurrence that she basked in.
"You want me to... What stipulations do you have?" She remembered now - that's why they had ended up on the floor that night, the sofa Gabriel had wasn't large enough for him to sit comfortably and turn to face her on the other end. She remembered joking about a semi-circular sofa circa the 1970s.
"The only stipulations I have is that I need to be able to fit on it comfortably, and it has to match the colours of the room. You are NOT picking out anything that is neon, or is from the 70s." She laughed at that.
"We'll see about that Mr. Walsh." She called back to him as she strode away towards the living room section.

After sitting on dozens of sofas, arm chairs, and the like, Olivia had finally chosen a sofa she loved. It was a black leather love seat that had build in recliners and a compartment in the middle with drink holders and a place to put phones and remotes. Gabriel moved from foot to foot, and she could tell he thought it was frivolous, but agreed to purchase it anyway.
"Now onto fireplaces." She said exclaimed excitedly. "Can we set them up in front of this sofa so we can see if it's the right height?" She was always pushing the limits. A strategically slipped $100 bill from Gabriel had Joseph putting each type of fireplace they had on a trolley, and rolling them in front their sofa.

Once a fireplace had been chosen, Gabriel got ready to leave.
"Would that be all?" Joseph asked while checking his watch. Olivia thought he was acting rude. They were the only customers in the store at the moment, and he would be getting a huge commission off of them, well, off of Gabriel.
"No." She said in her most condescending voice, "Do you sell rugs?"
"Rugs?" Asked Gabriel, "Why do we need a rug?"
"In case we end up on the floor again?" She said pointedly.
"I thought the point of the new sofa was to keep us off the floor." He said, logically.
"Well, what if you get so drunk next time and fall off your chair and can't get back on?"
"That will be you not me, and I will be there to pick you up when it does happen." She blushed at that. God, he was acting strange. It was almost as if he were flirting with her, she thought, as she busied herself re-reading the tag on the sofa. And then it hit her - he knows! Damn Ricky! Damn, damn, damn. She really thought Ricky was sensitive enough to know that she would want to tell Gabriel herself. Her plan of surprising him with the new garden setup and telling him when he was off his guard and more receptive to news was no longer necessary.
"Olivia?" She started when she heard her name. "Do you still want to look at rugs?" Gabriel was looking at her like SHE has lost her marbles.
"Rugs? Yes, bring them on." She said, swinging her legs up across the sofa.

After assessing the seventh rug in between the couch and fireplace, Gabriel needed to sit down. He had no idea what was so important about the colour, texture, whatever about rugs. As long as it fit, he was happy. He lifted Olivia's feet up and sat down, placing her crossed feet across his lap. It was a warm day for fall, and Olivia had worn a long black skirt with a slit up the side. The slit in her skirt fell open with the movement and he noticed there had been a new addition to her ankle. A sun adorned it just above and to the left of the moon. It still resembled the Matilda symbol, but the two halfs weren't connected. She must have changed it after the break up, he thought. It looked new. He didn't know anything about tattoos, but this one was starting to scab over.
"Does it hurt?" He inquired. She had been off in dreamland, waiting for Joseph to bring a few more rug choices to her.
"Huh?" She looked over at him sharply, like he caught her doing something he disapproved of. Then she realized her tattoo was showing. "Oh, no it doesn't. It did when I got it finished, but it just itches now. The guy said that was normal."
"Finished? I thought it WAS finished - a tribute to your relationship with Ricky?" The moment he said this, he regretted it.
"No, not at all. I had always planned on finishing the Matilda symbol, I just couldn't afford to do it all in one shot." The lie came easily. She had been telling herself that for months. She knew he didn't buy it.
"Well I'm glad you finally got it done. I like the slight change you made to it. From afar it'll look like the original symbol, but up close, you can tell that the two parts are separated. I like it this way." He was trying to make up for the Ricky comment. He couldn't tell whether he succeeded. His heart soared when he realized the sun was meant for him, and when he had said he liked the tattoo, even if he didn't understand permanently branding yourself, he hoped she believed him.

By the time they were done at the furniture store, they had missed lunch, and a good part of the afternoon. Gabriel suggested grabbing an early supper, wherever she wanted, and then they could head to Cainsville and do some work there. He didn't mind missing a full day at the office since he got to spend it with her, but he had a bad habit of falling behind on cases on which she was not working.