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Thirty-Two

Roman

I checked in with Trevor for what felt like the hundredth time today.

I hated missing work, and while I tried to make up some of the time I’d been home with Quinn this week, I knew he already had a lot on his plate with Max’s wedding this weekend.

He didn’t complain about me being gone and assured me that they had everything covered.

Jackson was turning out to be quite the lifesaver these past few weeks with all of the unexpected time off Trevor and I had taken.

I sat on the small loveseat across from the sofa that Quinn and Rosie were cuddled on, watching another Disney movie that Quinn had found. It was boring, to say the least, but I was relieved that we were safe for now. I leaned my head back and closed my eyes.

When I opened them again, I saw Quinn and Rosie in the kitchen, snickering when they looked over at me and tried not to laugh.

I sat up and felt something wet on the side of my mouth, so I quickly wiped it away with the back of my hand.

Apparently, I had fallen asleep and drooled like a freakin’ buffoon.

I got up and stretched before heading to see what they were doing in the kitchen that was connected to the small living room.

“What are you two ladies up to?” I asked, leaning over Quinn’s shoulder as she kneaded a dough ball on the counter.

“We are making pizza,” she said with a huge smile.

I was glad that she had agreed to make a quick stop at the grocery store just outside of town before we got here.

I didn’t want us to be stuck without food or toiletries, especially since we had Rosie.

I could go days without eating, but the thought of letting her go hungry or skip a meal put a vice clamp on my heart and wouldn’t let up until I knew that she would be taken care of.

Quinn had browsed the aisles, looking for something specific, while Rosie and I added a few bits of junk food here and there to the cart.

I knew that Quinn and Rosie used to make pizzas at home a lot before everything happened, so I assumed this was her way of making things feel normal again for Rosie.

“It smells delicious,” I commented. “What can I help with?”

“Do you want to make the salad?” Quinn asked, eyebrows raised.

“Ugh, do we have to eat salad?” Rosie whined with a scrunched face.

“Yes. Veggies are good for you, and we’ve eaten way too much junk food lately.” Quinn pinned her with a look before turning to me and pointing a finger in my direction.

“Hey, I’m not complaining,” I laughed with my hands raised.

“Everything is in the fridge. I found a cutting board and knife and set them by the sink.”

“Cool,” I said with a genuine smile and then winked at Rosie when she made another disgusted face about the salad. “Just wait until you try my salad, you’ll love it!”

“Does it have ice cream or cookies in it?” Quinn joked.

I stopped for a moment and pretended to think about it, which made Rosie giggle. I loved that sound and wanted to hear it forever. I tried to push away the hope that fluttered in my chest that someday I would get to have more of these moments with them.

A few seconds later, I made a sad face at Rosie and started pulling the vegetables out of the fridge.

I checked with Quinn to see what she wanted in the salad and what was being saved for the pizza, then I got started.

We all worked together happily making dinner and not thinking about the cloud of darkness that seemed to be always looming over us.

After we ate, I cleaned up the dishes while Quinn gave Rosie a bath.

She took her phone with her, letting me know that she was going to let her play in the water for a while since she had been cooped up inside for so long.

I was about to remind her that there wasn’t good cell service here when I realized she wasn’t used to being away from it.

It had become like a safety net, and I didn’t want to take it from her.

She held it up and shook it gently as if reading my mind.

“I have a couple of books that I downloaded a while ago and never got around to reading. Figured I’ll have some time to get started.”

I smiled, and she returned it, the weight on my shoulders always feeling lighter when her beautiful face lit up the world around me.

They gave me a few minutes to use the restroom before they went in and got Rosie situated.

I finished cleaning up and sat down on the couch, relaxing for a few minutes.

I thought about going outside to check the perimeter to make sure there weren’t any new footprints or tire tracks but then remembered that Rob had cameras set up, and if he had seen anything, he would have called.

He had also told me where the monitor was in the cabin that would show the live view of the cameras.

I got up and opened the cabinet door, finding it exactly where he said it would be.

The screen was large, with eight different cameras currently showing.

The living room and kitchen cameras showed offline like he said they would.

I looked around at all of the settings, finding where to turn them on if we wanted to.

I needed to talk to Quinn before I did that, but in the meantime, I turned up the volume for the notifications; that way, if anything set off the cameras outside, we would hear it.

They stayed in the bathroom for over an hour before they came out and Rosie was in her pajamas with a big towel wrapped around her wet hair.

“Did you have a fun bath?” I asked, smiling at how happy she looked.

She nodded.

“Mama said I look like a raisin,” she giggled.

I laughed and smiled up at Quinn as she sat down on the couch and pulled Rosie over to her. She rubbed the towel around her hair before she took it off and set it to the side.

“You are the cutest raisin I’ve ever seen,” she said before leaning in and kissing Rosie’s cheek, making her laugh again.

I watched as Quinn combed through her hair, getting the tangles out before braiding it.

“Thankfully, it’s hot enough that her hair will dry quickly, even in a braid. At least this way, we won’t have a mess of tangles to comb through in the morning.”

I wasn’t sure what was going through her mind, but I could hear the hint of uncertainty in her voice about not knowing what to expect. It sucked, always having to be on the lookout and ready to run at any moment.

Rosie curled up on the couch and watched another movie while Quinn hung the towel in the bathroom.

As she was heading back, I heard a ding, and my eyes darted to the cabinet with the monitor.

I had closed it, so Rosie didn’t get curious about it, but the alert meant something had set off one of the cameras. Or better yet—someone.