“Wow, you said that with none of the vitriol I expected.”
“What can I say? I’ve been practicing.”
Movement at the door made both of them turn that way. The others had unknowingly arrived and were watching them. Their expressions slack as if they’d walked into a lab and discovered clones of themselves. Presumably, because she and Silas were actually talking.
“Morning,” Raven said to break the silence.
But it didn’t jolt them out of their stupor, so Silas dramatically cleared his throat and said, “Hear ye! Hear ye! Raven and I have decided to be friendly and cordial.”
“Just like that?” Halo asked, brows pulled in.
“Yeah, he practically threw an olive branch at me,” Raven said with an exaggerated shrug.
“Well, you got skunked,” Silas said, a smile briefly appearing on his face. “It would’ve been cruel not to offer you the comfort of being in my good graces.”
“A philanthropist, folks,” Raven said.
Halo and Doc still seemed skeptical about the change-up, but Bodie approached Raven and Silas with a megawatt smile. “I’m happy as a clam in chowder about this,” he said before opening his muscular arms and pulling the three of them into a group hug.
“What is chowder? Is it technically a soup?” Halo asked from the other side of the room where she was storing her belongings.
“Yeah, it’s just a thick soup,” Doc said.
“What's chili then?” Halo asked as everyone congregated around the table.
“Chili is chili,” Bodie said.
Unconvinced, Halo pulled out her phone. “Hey, Siri. What is soup?”
The conversation topic continued and revealed passionate opinions, but Raven felt a calm settle over her. Relaxed chatter had returned. It gave her hope that things would only go up from there.
* * *
When Silas entered the cabin midmorning, Raven’s spirited laugh was the first thing he heard. She stood behind the reception, setting up their new office computer and talking to Christian.
Silas shouldn’t have been surprised to see his client flirting with Raven because he’d barely been able to shut up about her the last time. And Christian was definitely flirting. His chest was puffed out, and he flexed his bicep every time he went to sweep his hair back.
They didn’t immediately acknowledge him, so Silas politely stood there.
“A lumberjack, huh? Does that mean you chop wood in plaid?” Raven asked as she stapled the papers in her hand.
“Sometimes, but that’s my regular wardrobe,” Christian said with another hair rake-arm flex combo, and Silas wondered if Raven was actually receptive or simply humoring Christian.
“You ready go?” Silas asked, interrupting the conversation.
The two turned as if just noticing Silas, and the smile Raven gave him had his palms tingling.
It was a few days into Operation Cordial and Friendly, and the morale around the cabin and among the staff had improved, but Silas was also blaming the new dynamic for all the looking he was doing. He found himself cataloging what exactly he found alluring about Raven on a particular day. Today it was the high ponytail that exposed the elegant column of her neck and the shiny berry color on her lips.
“Give me one second. I have something to ask Ray,” Christian said.
Ray? They were on shortened-names basis?
“Are you single?” Christian asked Raven as he leaned over the desk separating them.
Something in Silas's stomach rolled.
“Why? You trying to ask me out, Christian?” Raven said, her voice dropping.
