The daylight was apparent through her closed eyes as she awoke. The smell of rot was enough to tell her that she was outside and not safely in Nick’s house. But she felt safe. She also couldn’t feel Faenus under her. She felt plastic that wasn’t part of her weapon. It was flatter, with cracks and holes pressing against her cheek. She could feel a pressure against her back and another against her left arm. She felt safe and satisfied in a way she hadn’t felt in a very long time. The night before floated back to her mind. She moved her arm out to make sure she was right.

  “Good morning, Beautiful,” Nick’s voice drifted through her half-conscious mind.

  Isabel became fully awake and moved her head so that she could look at his face.

  “You’re still here,” she said to him.

  “Did you think I was the kind to screw and bolt?”

  “More like I was afraid I was waking up from a very pleasant dream,” she admitted before shifting to kiss his mouth.

  “How did I get to be so lucky?” he asked.

  “By being the most beautiful man in the world.”

  She laid back down on his body, she just felt content. She could spend the rest of her life there and be perfectly content. She felt his metal hand stroke her hair. “Everything okay, Doll?”

  “Just enjoying being where I am,” she said running her hand against his bare chest. She felt the bumps and ridges under her fingers. She adjusted herself so that she was still laying in his arms, but able to look up at his face. “Do these hurt?” she asked gently running her fingers over some cracks and missing pieces of his chest.

  “Do they bother you?”

  “More like I’m afraid of accidently hurting you,” she replied.

  His smile was so soft. She loved seeing him smile like that. Like he wasn’t just enjoying the moment, but he was happy. It was the kind of long term happy that people tend to have when they think in terms of years and not days. He took her hand and kissed it before placing it on his chest between their faces, laying his own hand on top.

  “They did hurt when I got them. But now they feel more like scars. Sometimes they itch, and I do get fantom pains from them. But don’t worry about hurting me, Doll. There’s nothing I enjoy more than your touch.”

  Isabel couldn’t help but blush at his comment. She found she enjoyed being with him. Even if the touch wasn’t as intense as the night before, she still loved feeling his touch, too. She lowered her chin and rested it on his chest.

  “Are you going back to sleep?” he asked, stroking her hair again.

  “I’m still not sure if I’m awake,” she admitted. “The things you said last night. You know, it’s okay if you want to take them back. It’ll be too late when we enter Diamond City.”

  His hand stopped stroking her hair, and he placed his hand on her cheek. “Isabel, no. What I said may have been in a moment of panic, but it was still true. The only thing I regret is making you feel pressured to say it back. I do love you, and I hope you love me, but I’m not going to force that on you, Sweetheart. If you say it because you feel forced, you’ll have some doubt for the rest of your life, and I don’t want to do that to you. But I don’t mind if all of Diamond City knows how I feel. Maybe I should announce my feelings to Piper.”

  Isabel laughed, “I can see the headline now. ‘Fem fatale lures beloved detective to his eventual doom.’”

  Nick laughed in return. “You are beautiful enough to be a fem fatale, but I still think it’s worth taking my chances on you.”

  His hand reached behind her head, and she took his hint, moving forward until their lips touched. They kissed twice before she moved back and laid her cheek on him.

  “I’ve been thinking,” he told her. “I want you to move in with me.”

  She was shocked by his request and pulled her head away to make better eye contact.

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  “Now hear me out,” he pleaded before she laid her head back down. He gently stroked her back and shoulder as he talked. “I know you’re wanting to get back to your job, and believe me I understand that need, Darling. But I also know what you have been doing for me, now. More specific, our mutual clients.”

  Isabel looked away ashamed. She should have told Nick what she was doing, that so many of his clients were hand delivered by her. But she didn’t know how he would handle the news, and it would sound like she wanted money instead of helping people.

  He gently touched her face and moved it where she had to look at him. “It’s okay, Honey, I understand. We both want what’s best for our clients. The problem is you paid a hefty price for them. I don’t want that to happen to you again. First, I’m going to talk to the Bobrov brothers. I’m going to get a system set up with them where clients will be staying on my dime, not yours.”

  She opened her mouth to protest, but he gently placed his thumb on her mouth.

  “It’ll be better if I pay for their room and board. I can add that to their fees when I collect payment. Second, when you are in town, I want you to break your rule of not sleeping in settlements and stay in my house. It’s warmer and safer, and I wouldn’t mind having a break from my cases for a few hours to see you. We can get you a business license so you can work from my office, and you and Ellie can even set up a dummy payment system to keep McDonough off your case about taxes.”

  “And all I have to do is move in with you?”

  “If you want to? I wouldn’t mind having you help me with the occasional case, but I really want to know you’re safe.”

  Isabel played with the idea of moving in with Nick. Instead of working in the open all the time, she could work from his office. Let clients come to her instead of her running around begging for a job or a meal. The idea should appeal to her. But she kept looking at the beautiful man begging her to be safe. She thought of all the times he looked at her with concern and compassion, and the thought of how he would react to finding out she wasn’t coming home scared her.

  “No,” she said quietly. The pained look on his face was just as she pictured how he would look if she did die. “It’s not that I don’t want to be with you, Nick,” she explained. “Because I really, really do. It’s just, the reason why I’m a good bodyguard is because I don’t care what happens to me. I can take a bullet for someone else without a thought. But I don’t think I can do that anymore. I just can’t do the bodyguard thing anymore.”

  He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her with so much affection. “It’s okay, Doll. Move in with me. You can be my partner until you get bored of me and decide what you want to do with your life. My home will be yours as long as I own it.”

  Isabel smiled at him. How could someone like him love someone like her? He insisted he did, and she couldn’t figure out why he would lie about it.

  “Okay, but I want you to do regular diagnostics checks. At least one per case. We come home, close a case, and you go to bed.”

  “There’s a problem with that. There’s only two beds in my house, and I’m not going to force Ellie to share hers.”

  “We can share a bed. I have a feeling we will be doing more than sleeping in it.”

  “Ms. Monroe, you drive a hard bargain,” Nick agreed.

  Isabel moved herself towards him and sealed the deal with a kiss. They kissed long and passionately, until her rebellious stomach started making noise. She pulled away so they could laugh.

  “This wouldn’t happen if you didn’t feed me so much,” she told him.

  “I plan on making sure you get three meals a day from now on,” Nick told her. He patted her on the backside, “Now, come on, it’s almost noon and we need to get that first meal in you.”

  She slid off him and the bed. The two rummaged around, searching for their clothing and putting each piece on.

  As she collected her pieces, slipping the armor into her backpack, she thought about what Nick said. She never really had a home before. Members of the Brotherhood of Steel always had to be ready to move. The members were only guaranteed a 24-hour notice before a long-term move. One hour if the move would last less than 90 days. Settling down never appealed to her after she left. Home was just something to get attached to. Something to miss you when you’re not there.

  Somehow, it wasn’t Diamond City that felt like home to her. The whole place could burn to the ground for all she cared. What she thought of with that word was a sense of safety. Like she could sleep all night without worrying about waking up with a death claw drooling over her. Like how she felt anytime Nick watched over her.

  She slung her backpack on and grabbed Faenus. She checked its chamber and then slung it over her shoulder. She then approached the synth in the room. He was fully dressed and quietly waiting for her.

  “Nick?” she said, touching his arm.

  “Is everything alright? Is something on your mind?” he asked.

  It seemed like all he cared about was her. How could she have been so selfish all these weeks, and all these months? How many times did she hurt him with her careless behavior? How many times will she continue to hurt him until she learned to stop being so careless with her own safety?

  She placed a hand on the back of his head and pulled him down while she raised her own face for a kiss. He grabbed her waist for balance while their lips pressed against each other for a few seconds, and then she pulled away.

  “I love you,” she said. It sounded more like a question, but the realization that she could love someone was new to her.

  “Glad you figured that out,” he said, wrapping his arms around her waist under her backpack. “Let’s get some power noodles. You can take your time figuring out what you need when we are in the field and unpack everything else. I have never been happier than I am right now.”

  He leaned down and kissed her mouth again. Then he pulled away and led her out of the apartment for the next drifter to inhabit. She was going to work with the man she loved.