Page 69 of Restrictions

“Ash, we’re friends first, who live together and both take care of a certain young man.”

“Who?” I smirk. She releases my chin and shoves my chest playfully. I like that I can mess around with Viv, just be goofy and shit. I also kinda fucking hate that she brings that out in me. I’m more comfortable being the broody shithead.

“Baz has a request for Halloween, and it’s only a few weeks away.”

“Okay? What does he want?”

She sighs and lays back in the crook of my arm. “Wizard of Oz. He’s obsessed, and I have no idea why.”

I laugh. “We may have watched that a couple of times.”

She shakes her head. “He loves that it’s in Kansas, and I didn’t have the heart to tell him it’s aboutleavingKansas.”

“Hey, there’s no place like home.”

She laughs at that, an adorable, light laugh, and it’s good to see her relax. “Right. Well he wants to be the lion.”

“Of course.” The kid walks around the house roaring like a liondaily. I should have seen this coming.

“And he wants me to be Dorothy.” Her head tilts up toward me, and I know where this is fucking going.

“What? Oh come on, I haven’t dressed up for Halloween since I was like eight.” She pushes her bottom lip out, visible in the dim moonlight, and I lean down and bite it gently, then releasing it but speaking against her parted lips. “And what do I get? If I dress up as one of the remaining characters?”

Her plump lips press to mine as she speaks against them. “Anything you want.”

I pull her body onto my lap, holding her hips with my hands. “Anything?”

She pretends to think about it, bringing one finger to her chin and then nods. “Yeah.”

“So... after the kid goes to sleep on Halloween, I get to take Dorothy to my room?”

She smiles, shaking her head, her hands resting on my shoulders. “You have a fucking Dorothy fantasy?”

I never had one before, but picturing her in anything gives me a fucking hard-on. She’s fucking intoxicatingly sexy in any outfit. “I guess I do now.”

“I can do that.” One of her hands slides down my chest that’s currently clad in a t-shirt and a jacket. Damn fall crisp night. I’m wearing too many layers. “So which one do you want to be? The Tin Man or the Scarecrow?”

“I am, without a doubt, the Tin Man.”

She studies me, analyzing my choice, and I don’t think she likes it. “You think you don’t have a heart, Asher Sterling?”

“If I do, Vivienne Crenshaw...” My hands smooth over her back as I lay a kiss over her heart. “It’s black.”

“I’ve seen your heart, Asher. It’s not black and cold, no matter how much you want people to believe it is.”

“I’ve done some pretty bad shit.”

“Haven’t we all?”

I shake my head. “No. You haven’t.”

“Asher.” She rests her hands on the sides of my face and implores me to look at her. “I had sex with someone I knew had a girlfriend because Iwanted to feel in control of my own life for once. I started you all on a horrific path because I wanted it, because I’m a thrill-chaser.”

I look into her eyes in the dark night and feel a connection to her that I fear deeply. “You let yourself do that once.”

“It was big.” One hand slides down my throat to the middle of my chest. “And no...” She bites her bottom lip again and edges closer to me. “I’ve found a new thrill.”

A replacement.

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