Frost & Flames | Soulmate AU 2 |

Twenty-Two

It's with fingers carding through my hair that I wake up, humming a little at how nice it feels. Sunlight is streaming in through the slats of the blinds hanging before the two windows of our bedroom. I'm lying on my back in bed, and I can feel Rowan lying beside me.

"Hey," Rowan says when he notices I'm awake.

"Hi," I whisper back, the corners of my mouth tugging up with an involuntary smile. "Good morning."

He chuckles lightly, shifting aside when I roll over so I'm facing him. My body automatically gravitates towards him, the product of many mornings previously spent just like this. Our job allows for late mornings and extra time spent lazing around in bed, and we're very fortunate for it.

"Good afternoon," he corrects.

"What?" I say, confused. I usually wake up when he leaves to bring Bella to school on the days when it's not my turn. "What about Bella?"

"I dropped her off ages ago," he replies. "You were totally out."

"Wow," I say with a small laugh, rubbing at my nose to itch it.

Rowan sits up suddenly, the blanket that had been covering him falling down to his waist.

"I have a plan for today," he informs me. I prop my head up with a hand on my cheek and an elbow on the bed, raising my eyebrows in surprise.

"Oh yeah?" I reply.

"Yeah," he says. "We're going on a date."

"Ooh, a date?" I say. "Where to?"

He smirks, leaning towards me to peck my on the lips before sitting back.

"It's a surprise," he replies. "An all day affair."

"We have to pick up Bella by six," I deadpan.

"An until-five-o'clock affair," he amends without missing a beat. I snort and then laugh loudly. It's so easy to forget how terrible yesterday was, somehow. Being around Rowan tends to have that effect on me.

"Okay," I say, nodding in agreement. "I'm interested, I'm invested."

"Good," he chirps before jumping up from the bed in a flurry of movement. He offers me a hand to help me up, which I accept. He pulls me close into his chest, smiling as his face comes a few mere inches from mine. "Get dressed, we leave in ten!" Then he's off, rifling through his dresser for clothes. I shake my head a bit in amusement. God, I love him so much.

Rowan leads me out of the tower with a grin, holding my hand and tugging me along. We sit down for lunch at this little café we frequent about a block from the tower.

"Did Scofield ever reassign an investigator?" I say tentatively when we both dig into our sandwiches.

"Yeah, he did," Rowan says with a nod. He takes another bite and chews vigorously, swallowing before he speaks once more. "They woman he appointed, Anne, or something, has been poking around the tower with a buddy of hers since ten a.m."

"So today's date day was an elaborate way of getting me out of the tower?" I ask.

Color blooms across his cheeks as he shrugs sheepishly.

"Not exactly, no," he replies. "It's a plus, but I just thought a day out to some nice places would be fun. A nice change of scenery."

I eye him suspiciously.

"I'm still wondering what you have planned," I say.

The sheepish expression on his face is quickly replaced by a bright, cocky smile.