“I didn’t say that.”

“Then what are you saying?”

“Same thing I’ve been saying all day. Calm down, wait and see what she comes out with.”

The kid grunted. “You could not be more f**king wrong. I thought you wanted to keep her safe.”

“How do you think you got an invitation into our bed in the first place?” Dan snapped.

Finn scowled at him, eyes furious. Yeah, wel . It was going around.

“Her safety comes first with me. Always. Bossing her around wil only drive her away. Trust me, I already tried it.”

An approaching rumble of engines brought the argument to an abrupt halt, as did the cry of the lookout sitting atop the cab of the garbage truck. The truck powered up and slowly reversed, clearing the entrance. A minute later, the first of the vehicles, piled high with supplies, cruised in.

The raiding party was in good spirits. Didn’t last long.

The flow of greetings cut off sharply as the pall engulfed the returning crews. And there she stood, all intact. Oh, thank f**k for that.

Seemed sensation returned where he’d been deaf, dumb and blind before. His girl lived on and all was okay.

Finn marched up to the pick-up truck Ali rode in. She stood in the cage on the back of the bed, hair windblown and nose pink from the sun. She stil ed at Finn’s approach, reading his body language just fine.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“Lindsay’s dead, amongst other things,” Finn said, shoving a hand at her. “Come on.”

“What?” The color dropped from Erin’s face. Her father beckoned her down while Finn cursed in a low voice. Apt, since he had wel and truly messed up breaking the news.

“How?” asked Erin.

“I’m sorry, honey. She kil ed herself.” Santa scowled, helping his daughter down. “I don’t know what to say.”

“She wouldn’t. It doesn’t make sense.” Erin stepped into her father’s waiting arms. “She … No. Why would she do that, Dad?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know.” He wrapped a beefy arm around his child and led her away, holding up an arm to keep others back.

“Come on.” Finn ushered Ali through the crowd as Daniel fell into step by her side, taking the hand she offered. Needing the connection.

Everyone spoke in hushed voices. Like the pro he was, Finn avoided getting them held up by the gathering. They were hustling her up the staircase toward home in no time, the sliding glass door downstairs firmly locked behind them.

The kid gripped Ali’s elbow like she was a criminal about to make a run for it. Nothing Dan could do. This spat was going to happen.

Probably needed to. He had his own concerns with how she had taken off without a word, but going medieval was not going to work.

He stayed close, ready to intervene if required.

“Finn.” She wrenched her arm free and turned about, facing them down. Something in the kid’s face had her flinching, mouth pinched and pained. “Relax, would you?”

“You think this is a joke?” Finn roared. Very young male lion. It would have been funny, except it wasn’t.

Dan opened his mouth to intercede, but his girl held up a hand, flicked him an unhappy but entirely capable look.

“No, I don’t think this is a joke,” she said. “But you do need to calm down. One of us needed to go. I went. End of story.”

“Like f**k. We’re trying to protect you here, Al,” Finn bit out. “You just go ahead and make the decision to put yourself in danger?

Without discussing it with us first?”

“I want to protect you both too. Can you get that?”

“Protect us?”

“Yes.” Al threw herself into the nearest camp chair and started removing a boot with angry tugs at the shoelace. “If I’d mentioned the supply run to either of you, you wouldn’t have let me out of your sight.”

“Babe …” Dan took a big step forward, making to touch her, only to receive the stop-sign hand again.

“No.” Ali wrestled off a boot, dropped it with an almighty thud. “Did you think it would work differently for me? I care about both of you. The thought of either of you going out there … I couldn’t do it. Just couldn’t. It was easier to go myself. I’m not going to apologize.

I’m not going to promise not to do it again.”

“Like hell you’re going out there again,” Finn said. “Ever. Over my dead body, Al.”

“Don’t you get it?” Daniel cleared his throat. “That’s what she’s afraid of.”

His girl glared at Finn, ready to re-launch the war. Shit, enough already. “There are going to have to be rules, for al of us,” Dan said.

“She’l get herself killed!” Finn hissed. “How could you agree with this?”

“‘This’ being our girlfriend? The woman we’re supposed to be in a mature, adult relationship with?” Daniel enquired, tipping his chin at the foxy if furious Exhibit A. “Because we’re meant to be on her side. Within reason. I didn’t talk her down from the roof just to lock her up somewhere else. I do not want to lose her.”

The kid growled, and paced like a caged animal. Up and down, up and down, while Ali watched, nonplussed. “Fine, we’l ease up.

But you do not go out again.”

His girl rose to her feet, radiating fury. Dan was singed just being in the same room. “Not good enough. I won’t be wrapped in cotton wool while you two take all the risks. Do you really believe they’ll let us stay in your precious town if we’re not seen to be contributing?