Page 99 of Beyond the Cottage

“Fourteen years. But who’s counting?”

“Damn, girl, that’s a lot of built up steam.”

“Not really,” Gretta lied. “We were friends as kids, but we only reconnected recently.”

Lil’s gaze appreciatively took in Ansel. An extra button on his shirt had come undone, exposing his excellent upper chest.

“I bet you wouldn’tminda little steam,” Lil said.

Gretta shrugged. Why deny it? It jarred her to view her childhood friend in a sexual light, but the evidence of her attraction had more than piled up.

You’re in love with him?Heron wrote.

Gretta started. “Fuck no! I only came around to being friends this afternoon.”

“Goddess forgive me, but love ain’t necessary for fucking, munchkin. Why don’t you make your move?”

“What if he…” Told her to go to hell? Decided getting physical wasn’t worth the headache?

What if heagreedto it?

Much as she wanted him, she’d never fucked anyone she cared about before. Wouldn’t it be reckless to act on her attraction? Add complication to an already complicated situation? Now that she was rekindling the most important friendship of her life,wouldn’t it be smart to avoid messiness? “I don’t know if it’s a good idea.”

“As ifthatever stopped anybody.”

“I’m not sure he even wants to.”

Lil snorted.

Against her better judgment, Gretta glanced at Ansel and River again. River leaned over him with her arms propped above his shoulders, her curly hair hiding his face.

Were theykissing?

Heron tapped her.You don’t look good.

She hardly registered him. Apparently, possessiveness had become another new facet of Gretta’s personality. Between apologizing, forgiveness, and rampant jealousy, she barelyrecognizedherself anymore.

She stared in a daze, and Heron’s arm sympathetically squeezed her shoulders.

Chapter 35

River held up the short cigarette pinched between her thumb and forefinger. “Have you tried it before?”

“Not in years,” Ansel said.

“This stuff’s mellow. It’ll relax you.”

“I’m relaxed already.”

River eyed his bunched shoulders and clasped hands. To be fair, he’d been counting down the minutes until he could politely go to bed. He wasn’t sure what he was doing on these cushions in the first place. He’d returned from the facilities to find Gretta holding hands with Heron, then River had appeared from the ether. At the time, he hadn’t seen any reason not to join her. Now he simply wanted to sleep.

If he could. Perhaps a small drag would knock him out?

“How mellow?” he asked.

“Tell you what. I’ll take a hit, and you’ll breathe what I exhale. It’ll be milder that way, and you can decide if you like it.”

“…Alright.”

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