Beautiful.

" Alison , I'm sorry. You just missed Louis. He left. " Marylynne hugged her. " Let's have breakfast. "

Alec felt like he was in a dream...a dream he'd waited for for so long. She was infront of him , grown , beautiful...happy.

" Alec , we've been talking non stop. You should join in. " Alison smiled at him. He blinked a few times. God ! He was nervous. " Tell me , what's your favorite meal , hobbies ? "

" I...I like uh...pie. Blueberry pie. " He hoped she remembered her favorite pie at least. She always begged him to get her blueberry pie.

" Really? I didn't know that." Gwen held his hand. She noticed it was cold and shaking.

" That's crazy ! I love blueberry pie ! I'd kill for it. " She laughed cheerfully. Her blue eyes sunk into his own and he smiled back.

" You have beautiful eyes. " Alison poked Gwen. " You hit the jackpot , didn't you ? He's perfect."

" I find your eyes beautiful. " Alec smiled at her. He was flooded with emotions. " Excuse me for a moment. "

The air outside was what he needed. He ran his hands through his hair and shut his eyes. His back was against the wall when he felt arms wrap around his waist.

" What's bothering you?" Gwen held him tight.

" Just...hold me. " He brought her closer and rested his chin on her head. He was happy. Seeing Alison after all this time made him relieved.

" Mmh...mmh..." A fake cough came from beside them. Alison widened her blue eyes and winked. " You guys could've told us you needed some ' alone time ' "

" Then leave... you're interrupting us." Gwen waved her away playfully.

" Gwen ! You're ruining your image infront of Mr. Dreamy eyes."

" Nothing she does will ever change the way I feel about her. " Alec pinched her cheek.

" Aww... it's too much! " Alison clutched her chest. " Alec , Gwen's like a sister to me so from now on , you'll be my brother-in-law. "

Gwen's heart skipped a beat. Brother in law ? Wasn't that too much? Marriage...Her brain stopped.

" Oh look , " Alison gasped. " She's so pale. Gwen , are you afraid of mar-"

" If you're done here , I'll be inside. " She rushed into the house.

Alison laughed. " She's so cute , isn't she? "

" Yes she is. " Her flushed face made him smile. Oh , the things he'd do to her once they were married. Shit! He was getting hard. He pocketed to hide the obvious arousal. He laughed at himself inwardly. Gwen could literally just smile and he'd get hard. He looked up and found Alison staring at him. He had to change the topic since he was feeling awkward.

"You are very close to this family. What's the story?" Alec wanted to know more about her. How was her life ? Who did she live with ?

"Well...I don't really know how I ended up here but I'm glad I met these guys. " She sat on the stairs and Alec followed. " I was adopted by Bain , so I spent most of my childhood visiting Aunt Marylynne's house. I remember feeling nervous and anxious at first but then all of them acted so naturally. They acted like I'd been in the family all along. " She smiled as she rubbed her hands together. " I made friends with Louis quickly because he was the same age as I was and Gwen always scolded the both of us when we got mischievous. "

" Does Bain treat you well ?"

" Understatement of the century. " She sighed. " He is the best dad in the whole wide world. Sometimes I feel like I dont deserve him. He loves me so much...almost too much."

So Bain was taking care of her. Alec was afraid his work with the gang might put Alison in danger. Did she know what he did as ' work' ? He'd take his chances and ask.

"Does...uh...his 'work' affect you in any way? " He lowered his voice.'' It can get pretty dangerous.''

She tensed for a second. He figured that she was surprised that he knew about it.

" It's okay. I know. " He assured her and she seemed to lower her guard.

" I love my dad...I don't care what he does. He always makes sure that I'm protected...but I always tell him one thing everyday. " She dazed into the distance. " Make sure you come back home safe and sound. I'll be waiting. "

" You guys had a long talk. " Gwen put on her boots and threw a leather jacket over her shoulders.

" Yeah . He's a nice guy. I felt comfortable with him...like I've met him before. "

" That's good. " Gwen picked her car keys from the drawer. " Let me drop you off to school . You're gonna be late. "

" Actually..." Alison snatched the keys from her. " Today I'll be the one dropping you off. "

" To where? "

" Dad told me to take you to your new work place. " She shook her by the shoulders. " You're gonna be working at Celric House! "

Gwen nearly screamed. Celric was a big company...well ' big' didn't do it justice. It was a billion dollar company with branches all over the country and beyond but it was more famous for its playboy CEO.

" Let's go. " Alison held her hand but Gwen pulled back.

There's no way she could go out looking like this ! She wasn't in ' formal ' clothes. Well , she'd never had a job but she was sure people had to look presentable in big companies.

" Give me a minute! " She dashed up stairs in less than a minute.

" Be quick ! "

" What to were..." She flipped through her closet like a mad woman. She never hated her fashion sense so much. Did she only have crop tops? She turned to the clothes Bain got her . They were too extravagant. It wouldn't do..Her hand paused over a navy blue cloth.

" Maybe..."

Alison was tired of waiting. She moved back and forth and forth and back. " Gwen ! "

" Alison. " She turned when she heard Alec's voice.

" Yes? " She noticed him holding something. " Is that for me? "

" Yes. I made you some blueberry pie." He handed it to her.

" Really? " She sniffed it and groaned in pleasure. " It smells heavenly. "

" Let's go. " Gwen came down the stairs looking like a whole different person. She was in waist high office trousers and a white tank top. She had a coat over it and her hair was neatly placed in a bun. Her stiletto heels echoed as she descended.

" Damn girl ! " Alison spun her round and whistled. " You might just end up drawing attention. "

" Where are you off to ? " Alec swallowed. She looked so sexy in office clothes . She must have taken time to get that look together. He bet he could take half the time to get her out of those clothes. There it was again...the feeling in his pants.

" I have some work. I have to go. " She kissed him quick and but he brought her lips back to his. His hand slowly undid her bun and her hair poured down her back.

" Alec! " She gasped. " It took me forever to fix that bun. "

" You look better like this. " He kissed her forehead.

" Aww...you guys are making me more aware of my devastating singleness" Alison pulled Gwen from Alec. " Lover boy , just lend her to me for now , okay?"

" Let's go. " Gwen quickly ran her hands through her hair and they walked out the door. Alec smiled and moved to shut the door but was stopped by Gwen's peeping head.

" I forgot one more thing...I love you "