“Um, sort of?”
Pete gives Stephan a secret look, and they both smile at each other.
“Save that… save your salary… Think about what you want to do with your life. You have any big plans?”
Her eyes go bright with wonder as she considers the possibilities.
“Big plans? Well, I bet I can come up with something.”
“I bet you can,” Pete smirks, all smug.
Finally, Stephan can’t stand it anymore. He has to see what she is going to say.
“Really… so… we good here?”
She shrugs one shoulder. “I need to get those ribs marinating pretty soon. What do you have in mind?”
His mouth twists in a triumphant smirk. “Well, are you up for another surprise?”
Chapter 17
PETE
Getting rid of Roger feels like a breath of fresh air. I knew he was going to show up again. I wasn’t sure when, and I wasn’t sure how, but I knew that guy was not going to just disappear just like that from our lives.
I think it is outstanding that he disappeared today.
I know he won’t be back. I could tell from the look on his face that he is one of those chickenshit dudes who only feels like a man when he’s pushing some woman around. He can’t handle being confronted by real men. Much less three of us. He probably lost two inches off his dick today.
It was just one more thing that could have derailed our situation that totally sorted itself out.
I can see Olivia is relieved too. She looks a little bit taller. It’s a weight off of her shoulders.
“So, are you ready for the surprise?” Stephan asks her.
She claps her hands daintily under her chin.
“What kind of surprise?”
“Can you close your eyes?”
Obediently she closes her eyes, her mouth open in a fake smile. I can barely restrain myself from taking her in my arms and covering her beautiful face with kisses. She is so trusting; she brings me such happiness just to be around her.
But I have to control myself. We take her gently by the hand to lead her to the staircase, counting out the stairs one by one. Step… step…. She is so good, she keeps her eyes closed the whole time, and doesn’t even cheat. Trigger comes up behind her with his hands gently cupping her bottom. It seems unnecessary, but he is enjoying it.
“Okay, we are at the top of the stairs. Just keep walking forward until I tell you to open your eyes.”
“Okay,” she giggles.
Step by step, we near the far end of the hall. It’s just a few more paces, and Stephan reaches out and pushes open the door, gently bringing her over the threshold. She walks forward on tentative legs, feeling the rug beneath her with her toes. Cute little toes. Cute little pink, painted toenails.
“Okay, open your eyes…”
We all take a half step away, and she stands there with her arms out. She gasps a little, then turns.
“What is… What did you do? What is this?”
“It’s for you,” Trigger answers with a smile.
She takes a couple of tentative steps forward, then turns around and gazes at us with a huge smile on her face.
“This is… for me? All for me?”
“Well, we would like to share a little bit,” I remind her.
“But this is all my stuff!” she exclaims happily.
Gathering speed, she begins to circle the room. Yesterday, it was just a store room. Now it’s basically a smaller replica of her old apartment. Minus the kitchen, of course.
“You guys painted! It’s pink!”
“Actually, Stephan painted,” I answer. “It was his idea.”
She rushes over to him, leaping up so that he has to catch her in midair.
“Thank you!” she gushes. “Thank you! Thank you!”
“I didn’t want you to miss your stuff too much,” he explains shyly. “I thought you would like a space of your own.”
“Really! It means the world to me,” she says sweetly.
I can tell it really does. Her eyes are misty, and her expression is earnest and soft.
“You guys do so much for me,” she continues, her voice full of emotion. “I mean… How did you even think of it?”
“It just seemed right,” he answers honestly.
It does look good, I have to admit. At first I thought this room was just going to store her stuff, but then Stephan suggested that we convert the whole thing. It came together really fast. She has nice things, and there just seemed to be a good place for all of them. Anything that couldn’t fit anymore, we could store it in the stable.
“So I’ll sleep… here?” she asks innocently.
“I think we should set up a schedule,” I announce, clearing my voice.
Everybody turns to look at me.
“I’m not kidding,” I continue. “Everybody has needs. We should set up a calendar. Say, Trigger first, then Stephan, then me. Rotating. Maybe with a day off.”
She raises her eyebrows imperiously.
“Oh really?” she challenges me. “You think you just get to decide? Just like that?”