Buried Secrets (AU)

Chapter Ten

Sorry it's been so long since the last update! I've been on a roll with oneshots so go check them out in my other book!

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Courtney was very aware what day it was today. Friday November 29th. It had been looming over her for what felt like years but in reality was only a few weeks. It wasn't even her burden to carry.

At 10am today, Shayne was picking up his daughter from her foster mom, Anna. It had been a tough process but it was final and the day was finally here. Ava was moving in to his apartment.

At 7am that morning, Courtney sat huddled on her bed wide awake, after probably sleeping less than 3 hours that night. She thought about Shayne and what he would be doing right now. Probably sleeping... maybe he was up and preparing his apartment for Ava's arrival.

She has already been over to his house that week and watched and drank a beer, while he built a permanent bed for Ava in his spare room. The room was tiny, a real box room, but it didn't matter. Shayne had made it feel like the best place in the world.

One evening Courtney and him changed into old clothes and cleared the room of all his work out equipment. (They moved it out into his own bedroom.) Then they spent all night painting the walls a brighter white, where they had been dull and grey.

"It looks incredible." Courtney smiled, stepping back and admiring their painting skills.

"Thank you for helping out." Shayne nudged her side and smiled back at her softly.

The next night she returned to his apartment and she was less help than the night before. She sat watching Shayne slave away, building Ava's bed he'd bought from Ikea earlier.

"I don't think it's meant to make that noise." She had said when he was hammering something together forcefully.

"Yeah thanks for the help." Shayne replied sarcastically as he eyed her up, sitting opposite him on the floor, legs crossed, with a beer in hand reading through the instruction manual giving annoying instructions.

"Yeah I'm not all that great at building things." She remarked with a small giggle.

"I can tell." He sighed continuing to laugh with her all evening until the furniture was built.

The next night had been more stressful. Ava was moving in the next day so the room had to be ready. The bed was built, the walls were painted and now Courtney was helping him make the bed, organise some toys and get a small set of drawers filled with her clothes.

Courtney had to assure him that everything was perfect and she'd die for bedroom like this when she was younger.

Now Courtney sat huddled on her bed worried for him. Hoping he wasn't panicked or worried. She resisted the urge to text him as he probably had enough to worry about.

She'd hear from him soon. She has asked him to text her when Ava was settled. But Courtney didn't want to bother him any sooner.

To distract her from her thoughts she got ready for work. Yes, she had to go into the office today, luckily they weren't filming anything on that particular day so her personality didn't have to be fully switched on.

Somehow even after being awake since 7am she was still almost late to the office and she bound through the doors at 9am just in time for a meeting she had scheduled.

It was long, her mind was elsewhere throughout the entire writers meeting as the time ticked closer to ten. All she could think of was Shayne and Ava.

It wasn't her place though, he wasn't her boyfriend she had no right to be there or even think about it really. Looking around the room now she bet Olivia or Ian or even Damien was thinking about it at all.