“You’re definitely leaving?” she asked, her voice going softer.
“It was talked about, but I haven’t gotten the call yet. I’m expecting it, though,” he said.
“Oh,” Alison said, nodding as she looked down into her coffee.
“I am not proud. I can sleep in a sleeping bag somewhere. I just like a roof and air-conditioning,” Niko said.
Alison sat beside Feral, her heart hurting a little after learning that he and his friends would be leaving soon. But thensomething Niko said filtered in to her brain. She looked up at him. “Wait, don’t you have a house on the mountain?”
Niko’s easy going smile fell as he looked at Alison. “I live at Jack’s.”
“I know, but don’t you have a family home here, too?” Alison asked.
“I did. I don’t anymore.”
“What happened to it?” Alison asked.
“It’s not in good shape. It’s not livable.”
“It was really nice if I remember right,” Alison said.
Niko sat quietly, looking at Alison, reminding himself that she didn’t have a mean bone in her body and wasn’t trying to insult him or wade into his personal business in any way. She was honestly just trying to remember. “I haven’t been there in years. I’m sure it’s not livable, and I’m not going there.” It came out a little more harsh than he’d planned, so he smiled at her softly. “It’s just not livable, but yeah, at one point a long time ago, it was nice.”
Alison nodded, realizing she’d stepped on something that wasn’t comfortable to him.
“If you have nowhere else, you’re welcome here until your room is available again.”
“Thanks, Alison.” He looked up at everyone sitting around the table and noted the scowl both Maeve and Feral wore on hearing Alison invite him to stay if he needed to. “But I’ll probably just stay at the bar if it comes to that. Appreciate your offer, though.”
“The offer stands anyway,” Alison said. “You’re a friend, I’d never turn you away.”
Feral’s phone began buzzing, pulling his attention the phone case snapped on his belt. He grabbed it and quickly slid his finger across the screen, reading the message, then replacingit. “I have forty-five minutes then I have to be back at Jack’s house ready to go.”
“Let me check breakfast,” Maeve said, as she got up and opened the oven. “You’ll get to eat! Five or six more minutes and it’ll be ready.”
“Want to take a quick shower before you go?” Niko asked.
“Saying I stink?” Feral asked.
Niko, who’d been staring into his coffee as he sipped it little by little, looked over at Feral. “No, I was genuinely being nice. Might be the last one you get for a while. But, hey, if you think you stink, you might really want to fit it in.”
“Thanks, but my clean clothes are in the Suburban,” Feral said.
“Give me your clothes, I’ll throw them in a quick wash and then the dryer. They’ll be ready in time,” Alison said, standing up and holding out her hand.
“What am I going to wear while they’re washing?” he asked with a grin.
“A bath robe, or a towel around your waist?” she asked. “You’ll still be more covered than most swimsuits.”
“You sure?” Feral asked.
“Of course, come on. I’ll show you to the bathroom, and take your clothes. You hurry and you’ll have time to eat, too,” Alison said.
“Yeah, okay. Thanks.” He stood up and followed Alison up the stairs to the bathroom.
“So, any idea when you’ll be back?” Alison asked.
“We don’t know. There’s not a set return date, where we just return to Alliance when that day comes. And as this is not considered a combat mission, it’s just recon, so we’re not on a firm timetable.”
