Chapter Text
Alice fell back in the chair, already feeling exhausted. The treasure hunt hadn’t started yet but already there was so much to keep in mind. She really should have expected chaos when everyone strong-armed their way into the hunt. The young lawyer had expected a date with Marius in the wilderness, one of his usual extreme sports weekends. Instead, they were preventing what was probably several murders, probably cracking open a cold case and this was the farthest thing from the semi-relaxing weekend she had been expecting.
Following practiced movements, she disassembled the pistol she had picked out from the armory, glad that Artem had helped her get her carry license a few weeks ago. Alice cleaned and polished each piece, letting practice take over as she allowed her mind to wander. There was so much to consider, and she really hoped that she wouldn’t have to use the gun. It was an absolute last resort but she would rather have it than not in the situations they were likely getting into-
Alice jumped, knocking her knee against the table when she felt the pressure on her shoulder. Rather than standing and turning like she wanted to, she fell to a kneel holding onto her banged knee, cursing under her breath.
“Alice! Are you ok?” The panicked face behind the familiar voice, kneeled down beside her, hovering. Marius helped her back onto the seat, before speeding off to the ensuite refrigerator to grab some ice.
She waved off the ice pack, glaring up, “You should have knocked!”
“I did, Aly. For about a minute. And I would check your phone too.”
She blinked, reaching over for her phone, seeing the near dozen messages from Marius, “Oh.”
“Yeah, oh.”
Alice slumped, sighing, “Sorry, I was distracted.”
“Lost in your thoughts?” He put on that oh-so-characteristic smirk, and leaned in from where he was sitting, “Thinking about me?”
“No!” The brunette flushed and grabbed the pillow next to her and weaponized it, whacking the CEO in the shoulder, “Don’t think I’m thinking about you 24/7!”
“Hey-!” Marius grabbed his own pillow to use as a shield, “Denial is not just- OW!”
Alice stuck out her tongue at him, successfully having hit him through the pillow, “That’s what you get for being such a narcissist!”
“Ooh, harsh words, Aly.” Making a show of rubbing the hit shoulder, Marius looked over the disassembled pistol on the table, “Doing your own inspection?”
“Always double check your equipment; that’s what Ar-Mr. Wing taught me.” She righted a few pieces that had fallen over in the scuffle, feeling nervousness return to the forefront of her mind, “Sorry, I must have been too focused on not messing up the pieces.”
Alice could see the CEO hold himself back from reaching for the pieces himself, instead focusing on her, “That’s fine. I was just worried when you didn’t answer, especially since you seemed out of it later.”
“Just a bit overwhelmed,” She bit her lip for a moment, stopping herself from grabbing one of the pieces to fidget with it, “Wasn’t expecting this weekend to be so...”
“Exhausting? Convoluted? Chaotic?”
“All of the above?”
“All of the above absolutely works.” Marius let out a sharp laugh, leaning in to wrap his arm around her, “We’re partners so you’ve got me if you need anything, so don’t worry too much, alright? Ask if you need anything.”
Alice felt a little tension leave her shoulders, but only a little, “I just don’t want to hold you back when everyone’s already busy with their own work. Everyone needs to be on their game tomorrow.”
“And we will be. But-“ He booped her nose, making her giggle and flush a bit, “There’s two of us on Uncle Bryce for a reason. Let me do what I do best and you do your best and we meet in the middle for anything we don’t know, alright?”
Unable to find the words to respond, Alice nodded, appreciative of how Marius had caught on to her nervousness and was addressing it, she felt a lot more tension leave her shoulders as he stood up, “Finish up and try and get some rest, alright Aly?”
“I’ll try. No promises though.”
Marius reached the door, looking back with a wink and mischievous grin, “Good night and don’t let those adorable pajamas go to waste!”
Alice looked down, heat rushing to her face, realizing she was just in a baby blue cami set, “Marius!” She threw a pillow at the aforementioned idiot just as he closed the door with a laugh.
“And stay out!”