Milkshake Hearts

Chapter 2: Above Board

A/N: For what it's worth, currently in May 2019, but any references to other cast members are random and don't really reflect what their actual presence with the brand was at any point in time. On to the chapter!

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Shayne expected to struggle to sleep, expected his brain to be wired with arousal and anxiety that he did something wrong despite the fact Courtney had indicated everything otherwise, but instead he feels relaxed and content and falls asleep within minutes of his head hitting the pillow. He wakes early the following morning as he always does, sliding out of bed and quickly getting his things ready to head to the gym.

His morning routine is heavily set in stone, rarely shifting from his usual. He can tell he's got more of a spring in his step than usual, though, and while he often uses working out as time to process whatever's going through his head, he can't remember the last time he was attempting to look more angry so he didn't look like a weirdo fucking grinning while he lifted weights.

Courtney, for her part, does struggle to sleep properly – she's a little too disbelieving, mentally replaying the evening's events in her mind to make sure they're actually real. She does eventually fall asleep, though, setting herself up for a late start to Saturday morning and a relatively quiet weekend sorting out a bunch of errands around home.

They maintain a conversation via text with each other over the whole weekend, although the only real difference to their discussions prior to their Friday-night revelation is the 'x' they each add to the end of the occasional text.

Shayne arrives at work before she does on Monday morning, immediately zeroing in on their president when he spots him walking alone out of the kitchen and through their main office space.

"Hey, Ian, can I talk to you for a sec?" Shayne asks him, quietly.

"Yeah, what's up?" Ian asks, matching his quiet tone and walking them subtly away from everyone else's desks, letting the morning chatter amongst the team drown out their conversation.

"So, um, I know there's not like- a rule around cast relationships anymore. But we thought from like a HR perspective and just keeping everything above board we should let you know; Courtney and I are kind of together as of this weekend. Well, more than kind of. Pretty seriously, actually," Shayne tells him, not sure how else to phrase it.

"Finally, so I guess Friday night was a Shourtney date?" Ian's sarcastic grin makes an appearance for a moment before he turns serious, "but, yeah, thanks for letting me know. It's all good though, as long as nothing inappropriate happens on camera we're fine. You planning on telling anyone else?"

"Friday wasn't meant to be a date but... yeah, guess it became one. Anyway. Yeah, we're not going to hide anything around here," Shayne answers, shifting his gaze instinctively to watch as Courtney walks into the office and glances around, immediately beelining in their direction when she sees them. "Not going public at all, though. Just family and friends."

"Morning Ian," she starts as she reaches them. She stands close beside Shayne, although is clearly avoiding touching him. "What are we talking about?"

"You're good, Courtney, he's told me," Ian reassures her, his tone quickly switching from corporate to caring, "and also, on a personal note as your fake older brother Court – I'm super happy for you. Both of you."

"Thanks Ian," she answers, smiling, finally letting herself shift into Shayne's side and wrapping an arm around his back. Ian leaves them be, then, allowing Shayne to direct all his attention to her.

"Good morning, Court," he greets her softly.

"Good morning baby," she replies, biting her lip for a moment to control her smile before she leans up and presses a quick kiss to his lips, which he returns. They both quickly pull away again, knowing they are standing in their very open-plan office, but they're evidently not quick enough. Olivia lets out a surprised yelp from just near them, grabbing their attention and that of a handful of others.