nice change.
They walked a few more yards. “I think we’re in for snow by the end of the week.”
Sasha nodded. “Maybe sooner.”
They passed a set of sensors, something Olivia had spotted on her first walk off the driveway path. “Those will have to be changed out before the weather shifts,” she said, pointing.
“It’s on the list. The men will get on it tomorrow.”
That’s good, she thought. Although after a snowfall they’d be able to see if anyone was walking around.
“Are you feeling stronger?” Sasha asked after several more yards.
“Yes and no. I’m doing the exercises and the pain is getting better, but there’s a part of me that keeps telling me to do more.” She looked up and saw a perfect climbing tree. “Like that. My head is telling me to get up there and look around.”
Sasha nodded. “I understand that desire. Probably not the best idea for you right now.”
“You don’t think it’s odd that I have a longing to climb a tree? I’m not twelve.”
Sasha looked up. “The view would be better.”
Olivia laughed as they walked past the tree.
“Tell me, why don’t you carry a weapon?”
“Don’t need it.”
“You’re not afraid someone could be out here watching? Someone with a gun?”
“If I thought someone was out here with a weapon pointed at us, we wouldn’t be out here.” Sasha’s tone was even and without emotion.
That was fair. “Do you believe there is anyone looking for me? For Leo?”
“It’s a possibility. Maybe when you get your memory back you’ll lead us to the shooter.”
“And if I don’t? If I didn’t see a face? How long does this isolation go on?”
Sasha shook her head, kept her eyes on the landscape in front of them. “We will deal with that when it happens.”
“Waste of time speculating, I guess.” Olivia reached down and picked up a long stick that had been on the ground long enough to lose all its foliage. She tested the weight and twirled it around like a baton a couple of times.
Sasha looked at her briefly, then diverted her attention.
Olivia used the stick to walk a few feet before abandoning it.
She heard Sasha sigh.
“I picked something up for you when we were in town,” Sasha told her. From her coat pocket she removed a bag.
Olivia took it and glanced inside. And then she started laughing. “Is it that obvious?”
“Were you trying to be discreet? Because if that’s the case, you suck at it.”
Olivia folded the edges of the bag that held a box of condoms and put it in her pocket. “Leo’s a good man.”
“But he’s still a man, and eventually he’s going to take you up on your offer,” Sasha pointed out.
She knew that, too. “It’s reckless.”
“It’s human. And when all this is behind us, you won’t want complications.”
“Which is your way of saying that Leo and I are temporary.” Why did that sound like nails on a chalkboard?
“Do you feel it’s more?”
“I don’t know. I have nothing to compare it to. I know I’ve seduced men, but can’t see a single face. I know the mechanics behind using these condoms, but couldn’t tell you the name of whoever popped my cherry. Do you have any idea how frustrating that is?”
“No. On the bright side, you block out any of the bad sex you’ve had.”
Olivia laughed. “I think that’s the first joke I’ve heard come out of your mouth.”
“I’m serious.”
And that was hysterical.
“If it’s more than just sex, you’ll know it,” Sasha said.
“Is that how it was with AJ?”
Sasha hedged. “I was definitely using him for sex.”
Yeah, sure. It was more than that. “And then . . . ?”
“He challenged me. Intrigued me. In my head, I told myself it was only sex. You don’t have to have amnesia to not be in control of your emotions.”
This was more of a conversation than Olivia thought she’d ever have with the woman. She liked it. It started out dry and awkward but now felt like an honest exchange. “You two look tight.”
“We are. Caring for someone is always a risk. But the best things in life are on the other side of fear. I never thought I’d say those words, let alone believe them. But between AJ and this team . . .” Sasha smiled briefly.
“You didn’t believe in love?”
A quick shake of her head. “Wasn’t how I was raised.”
Silence stretched in front of them. “It doesn’t feel normal to me. The seduction, yes . . . that feels, well, good.”
“I hope so,” Sasha muttered.
They both chuckled.
“But the other