Page 29 of Restorations

I push the car door open. “I doubt that very much.” I turn back to her. “Thank you for being a friend to me when you didn’t have to be.”

She smiles. “You need to forgive yourself for that.”

She’s referring to Colt. “I didn’t know you, but I still didn’t do it to hurt you.”

She takes a deep breath and then manages a smile. “I loved Colt, but we were the ones who weren’t right for each other. You didn’t come between us because we weren’t truly together. Something was missing.”

I push the door open and climb out, thinking about what was missing with me and Asher and feeling numb because it felt so perfect until it wasn’t.

“Viv?”

I turn toward Penelope before shutting the door. “Yes?”

“The only people who came between you and Ash wereyourselves. The answer is right there.”

I stare at her, unsure what the hell that means as I close the car door, and she waves with a smile before backing out of the drive.

The answer is right there.

What the hell is she talking about.Weare the reason we aren’t together.

Of course, we are. Isn’t that how it works?

14

ASHER

Isit out on the back patio, staring at the ocean in the distance and thinking about what it would be like to wade into the water and never come back.

The dark thought is washed away with the sound of the sliding glass door followed by Viv’s cautious voice. “Asher?”

I don’t turn to look at her. Instead I tuck one hand under the back of my head and continue my lazy gazing toward the ocean. “Yeah, I'm out here.”

I hear her moving, sitting in the lounge chair next to me. “Baz?”

I use my other hand to point to my phone that’s connected to the monitor in his room. He may not be a baby, but that doesn’t mean we don’t keep an eye on him. “He fell asleep like twenty minutes ago.”

Her voice is quiet, and I still can’t look at her. But I hear her shift, lying back further into the chair. “Thank you for taking care of him today. I’m sorry it’s so late.”

“It’s no problem.”

There’s a silence now, a long stretch of quiet I wish I could say was uncomfortable, but it’s not.

“I didn’t intend to be gone all day, but I knew Baz needed it.” She turns, and I can feel her eyes on me. “I knew you probably needed it too.”

My throat is dry, and my voice reflects that when my head slides to the side to glance at her. “Don’t do me any favors, Viv. But yeah, it’s never a problem to spend a day with my nephew.”

She seems defeated tonight. Her fire from this morning is doused, and she looks tired. “You did me the favor today, but I knew Sebastian was in good hands. So, thank you. It’s still not easy for me to leave him.”

Why is she telling me this?I look away and up toward the sky. “He’ll always be safe with me.”

Did she forget about this morning? About the terrible things I said to her? She’s being too kind to me, and I don’t like it. I want to stew in my anger.

“I know.”

I huff and turn to look at her again. She’s still dressed for work in a black skirt and red sleeveless top. She definitely shows a lot more skin these days. “What is this?”

Her face scrunches up in confusion. “What?”

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