Donovan took in the new apartment after he helped get all of their things in from the mover ship. It was a surprise to hear that Liz agreed to move somewhere new and with Ares to boot. His little Liz was changing in more ways than he expected. He watched her as she helped Ares position the glass coffee table, smiles on both of their faces. Mac didn’t miss the light touch Ares left on her arm as he passed her to grab the side table.

“This is going to be a really nice place once you get situated,” Donovan said.

Eliza looked at him, “It’s already a nice place.”

He nodded, “Do you two need anything for the apartment that I can pick up on my way to get the food still in your old fridge?”

“Yes. I need a couple of folding partitions to block off a few areas in this main room,” Eliza said.

He looked to Ares who shook his head. “All right. I’ll go grab some and come back in a little bit. I’ll let you know when I’m on my way back.”

“Thanks, Mac.”

Once the cop left, Ares sat down on the couch and propped his feet up on the coffee table. He stared at Eliza as she brought a few of her personal items into her room, adding to her new furniture. When Donovan came by with extra furniture for Eliza, he was surprised. Ares didn’t expect her to hold on to so much when her last apartment was so clutter-free. Her room gained a dresser, a vanity, a couple of old chairs, a bed trunk, and a king-size bed. Her old furniture was given to him as a result. He really only needed the dresser, but he willingly took the bench that used to be in her room and her old headboard. Everything else they took to a consignment shop to make a little extra money.

Eliza walked out of her room and met his eyes curiously. “What?”

He shook his head and stood up. “I’m just admiring the new apartment. I’m going to move the rest of my stuff in.”

“Do you need some help?”

“Only if you want to give it.”

She rolled her eyes and followed him to the hangar where they temporarily stored the furniture going into his room. They maneuvered expertly around the wing of Ares’ ship to bring in his things, taking no time to get his room set up. It was still bare compared to Eliza’s, but it was still homey. Just the way he liked it.

The two of them continued to unpack boxes until Donovan came back nearly an hour later. They changed gears to get all their food put away and set up the partitions near the laundry area and the living space. The paper and black-framed partitions added a little Zen to the apartment and gave them a little more privacy. It was starting to look like a home for the both of the bounty hunters.

Later that evening, Lauren joined them to finish the last of the organizing and unpacking. All four of them collapsed on the two couches afterward to rest. Donovan took up the loveseat by himself while the other three took the big couch. Eliza sat in the middle, facing Lauren to her left and Ares sat on her right, getting a view of the back of her head.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t come around until late,” Lauren started. “Little Jane has been sick with a cold and I had to wait for Henry to get home before I could leave. And of course, his job decided to keep him over tonight.”

“No worries. You were able to help for a time and that’s all that matters,” Eliza said. She leaned back a little to tuck her feet under her and brushed against Ares’ side. She muttered an apology before sitting up straight again. Ares resisted bothering her for the pink dusting the tops of her ears. He could only imagine what her face looked like. Things between them seemed to be going very well. A small smile graced his lips.

Lauren resituated herself to lie down on the couch and she laid her head on Eliza’s lap. “I’m just so exhausted with all the sickness in my house right now.”

“Be careful to not get any of us sick,” Donovan smiled. “Eliza turns into a toddler in her terrible twos when she gets ill.”

Ares sat up. “The great Eliza Kane can’t handle being sick? Oh, now that will be an interesting thing to see.”

Eliza looked at him from over her shoulder, “Unfortunately for you, I don’t get sick easily.”

“The cold is going around, Liz. You’re going to get sick,” Lauren laughed, sitting back up. “It’s only a matter of time.”

“Shouldn’t you be telling me to get plenty of rest and take a lot of vitamin C?”

“Yeah, yeah. Do that. Sure.”

Eliza chuckled and stood up, Lauren’s head falling to the couch cushion. “Thank you, for helping us out today. I hate to leave you out here with him, but I really need to shower and rest. I’ve got to keep the cold away apparently.”

Lauren stuck her tongue out but got up to hug her friend. “It’s always a pleasure to see your cheerful face.”

Donovan didn’t move from his seat, but he grabbed her hand as she walked by, squeezed it, and then let her go. Eliza smiled gently at him. Ares’ eyes followed her until she walked by. He wasn’t surprised she ignored him. It was satisfaction enough to catch her eyes start to trail in his direction but stop before she could actually meet his eyes. He released a short burst of air and looked down at his lap.

She uttered her goodnight to all of them, walking into her room, and shut herself off from the others. A deep sigh left her chest. Her eyes scanned her new room, taking in the furniture she remembered in her parents’ home. It felt so good to be surrounded by familiar things again.

With her wet hair tangled around her head, Eliza stepped out of her room to get a glass of water. Lauren and Mac were gone, and Ares was nowhere in sight. She glanced at his closed door and saw the light peeking out from underneath it. It was a relief because her last bit of clean laundry was an over-sized t-shirt she wore as a nightshirt when she was younger. It didn’t quite reach mid-thigh and there were a few holes in places that didn’t leave much to the imagination in the unfortunate case of someone spotting her.

Hurried, she went to the kitchen to grab a glass of water and then she started back to her room. To her great embarrassment, Ares walked right out of his room and he paused at the sight of her. His eyes met hers and she saw his lips start to curl into a smirk. Eliza glared hard and attempted to get to her door, but he blocked her way.

“You know you can always borrow something of mine if you’re running out of clean clothes,” Ares said, watching her arms cross over some holes on her chest. “It’s not smart for a woman to walk around in something like that with a man around.”

“That’s why I was trying to get back to my room before you could see me.”

“How did that go for you?”

Aggravated, Eliza uncrossed her arms to jab him in the side. Ares’ body moved on its own accord, giving her enough space to slip past him and into her room. She glared at him for a second before she shut the door.

He chuckled, “Sleep well, Lizzy.”

She mumbled something he couldn’t hear, but it delighted him all the same. He stayed until the light in her room turned off. Then Ares grabbed a little water himself and went to his own room. He held a smile on his lips as he crawled into bed, thinking about the cute bounty hunter in the other room who made a great partner.