Summary: Owen's plans for Valentine's Day don't go as planned. And neither do Zach's.

Holidays with the Alpha and his Mate
Valentine's Day

He let out a long, loud, relieved sigh as the headlights faded and he was shrouded in darkness. He hefted his bag over his shoulder and turned towards the trailer. The Bungalow. Zach rolled his eyes and walked towards it. He opened the door and stopped. The whole of the tiny space was flooded with low light. Candle light. All around him, on every flat surface, was a candle. Most were flickering lowly, all on their last breaths. Some were already out, just a plume of smoke. But all of them were in varying stages of melting all over the place.

Zach stepped inside and turned to shut the door behind him. He dropped his bag. And something fluttered across the floor. He looked down. The floor was covered with red and pink rose petals. Everywhere. Zach stepped forward, his eyes scanning the whole place. Not just the floor. The couch, too. And a few petals on the kitchen counter. He reached out and grabbed a handful off the counter.

Candles and rose petals. Zach sighed deeply and shook his head. Where the hell was Owen? Zach searched the whole trailer, which took only a moment. Really, he just glanced around. Only the bedroom was left to search. He sighed again as he opened the door and flipped on the light.

And there was Owen, fast asleep and snoring on the bed. He was lying on his stomach, a sheet half covering him. Zach's eyes narrowed into a glare. "O!" He snapped loudly. "Owen!"

Owen jerked and opened his eyes. He blinked against the bright light and rolled over. "Hey babe."

Zach glared and dropped a handful of rose petals on the bed. "Get up and put some pants on." He snapped. "Now!" He turned and stepped out of the room, not giving Owen a chance to respond. He started walking around the trailer, blowing out the candles.

And then Owen was behind him, wrapping his arms around Zach and pulling their bodies flush together. Zach quickly pried Owen's hands off and stepped away. He spun around and glared. "Candles, O."

Owen blinked at him. "Yeah." He smiled and tried to step into Zach's space again. "Candles are sexy."

Zach stepped back and held his hand out. He touched his hand to Owen's bare chest but it was to keep the man back. He was still glaring. "Not when you light a million of them in a tiny, enclosed space and then fall asleep!" Zach snapped.

Owen opened his mouth slowly. "I didn't mean to fall asleep... I was waiting for you..."

Zach shook his head and threw up his arms. "You coulda set the place on fire! You coulda got hurt or worse! What the fuck were you thinking?"

"I was thinking it's our first anniversary and it'd be romantic and you were supposed to be here..." Owen paused for a moment. And then shrugged. "I don't know what time it is... but I'm guessing a while ago."

Zach shook his head. "My flight got canceled. I had to wait at the airport for two hours for another one. Then I had to wait for the ferry. And when I finally got here, you weren't there to pick me up!"

"Uh... Barry was supposed..."

"You were supposed to!" Zach snapped. "I called you! What the fuck, Owen?"

Owen shook his head. "I didn't get any calls." He turned and ducked back into the bedroom. "See?" He called out. "My phone's right here on the stand... and I... oh shit..." He walked back out slowly, his eyes on his phone. "I uh... was playing a game this morning... I turned the ringer off... that is a lot of missed calls and messages..." He looked up at Zach.

"I had to call Claire." Zach yelled. "First time I've been alone with her since what happened at her New Year's party! I had to listen to her lecture me about us the whole time! She wouldn't shut up! I had to lie my fucking ass off."

Owen set his phone down on the counter. He scratched at the back of his neck and let out a sigh. "I uh... I'm sorry... I didn't... I just..." He sighed. "Our first anniversary... I just wanted it to be... special..."

Zach sighed, his anger deflating quickly. He was tired. "I've had a horrible day. I just want to sleep. I don't know why you count today anyways."

"Come on, babe." Owen stepped closer to him again. "You remember. Exactly one year ago today. You asked me out."

Zach rolled his eyes. "I was kidding when I asked you to be my Valentine. We were making fun of the holiday."

Owen smiled. "I know."

Zach looked away for a moment. He could feel his resolve weakening already. He slowly smiled. "Didn't stop you from showing up at my house the next day."

Owen smiled again. "Because you were so cute, drooling and staring at me every time you came to the island."

Zach's gaze dropped to the ground. "I didn't drool." He mumbled.

"Yeah, you did."

"No I didn't!" Zach said, a bit louder.

Owen smiled and tilted his head to the side.

"Maybe a little."

Owen's smile only seemed to widen. "Forgive me?"

Zach breathed out and nodded. He looked back at Owen. "Yeah. I guess so. Just... no more candles for you. Like ever."

Owen rolled his eyes and shook his head. "If anything would have caught fire, I'da woken up when the fire alarm went off."

Zach blinked for a moment. "O, you broke the fire alarm back at Thanksgiving."

Owen opened his mouth slowly. "Oh yeah... when it went off... for no reason..."

"You caught the pies on fire!"

"Uh... no I didn't..."

Zach shook his head. "No more candles, Owen. No more fire."

Owen reached out and grabbed Zach hand. He took a step back, tugging the younger man with him. "If I say yes... can we celebrate our anniversary properly?"

Zach let out a sigh and shook his head. But he smiled. "Fine. Happy anniversary, you fucking dork."

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

Author's Notes: Happy Valentine's Day! DON'T BURN YOUR HOUSE DOWN! Never leave candles unattended!