Masuk“You’re his secretary, you already spend lots of alone time together.” Lynn leans against the kitchen doorway, arms folded, amusement written all over her face. “With all this alone time,” Glenn adds, his grin slow and knowing,“It must be disappointing you have nothing to show for it.”I turn to him, offended.“You have no idea how hard I’m working to give both of you a niece. Or several.”“Ew!”They say it at the same time.Lynn’s face twists as she clamps her hands over her ears. Glenn follows a second later, groaning like he’s in actual pain.I stare at them, wide eyed, a hand coming up to my chest.“Are you mocking my efforts here?” I ask, wounded. “ Are you disgusted that–”“We don’t want to know how many times our brother has sex! Seriously!” Lynn cuts in, squeezing her eyes shut.I pause.Tilt my head.Consider.“We haven’t had that much sex actually,” I say slowly.Maybe that is why it’s not working.”“Oh my god–Carson Bitters!!” Glenn drags a hand down his face. I grin. Go
The twins let out a sigh of some sort, and I couldn’t help but feel I disappointed them with my response. Blinking, not quite sure what to make of this situation. I’m saved when Asher announces that the food is ready, the twins let out celebration sounds, rushing to the kitchen immediately. His food is very good, so I understand their impatience. They sit facing him, and I sit next to him, I have a feeling they wanted it this way.“Oh heavens,” Glenn groans, eyes shut as he inhales deeply.Lynn fans the steam from the food towards herself dramatically, eyes shut as well. I watch them, amused. “You guys act like you don’t have food back home.” Asher sighs,Glenn’s eyes spring open and it’s actually wet with tears, I immediately worry about their living situation and want to ask why they’re living on their own. “You sent two kids to live alone in the woods with rusty cooking skills, aren’t you glad we survived this long?” Glenn says, wet eyes shining as he looks at his older brothe
“Relax old man.” A boy snorts, walking past the girl into the living room. I only have to look at them through squinted eyes to know exactly who they are.They have matching bleached hair with each other, but they share a similar nose and eyes, both of them obviously younger than I am.“I’m the only one permitted to call him that.” I say with narrowed eyes at Asher’s siblings.The boy’s eyes finally sees me, he eyes me suspiciously, looking from his older brother who has me caged in between his body and the counter. He doesn’t care that people can see this. I don’t know how to feel about that. “Goodie, another old man.”I blanch. Old?? I have never been accused of being old.“I’m not old.”The girl, Lynn, I’m guessing, regains her composure, walking into the house with a sly grin, eyes twinkling, her eyes are pinned on me. “I gave you the keys for an emergency only, and can you please stop kicking my door every time you come over?” From the exasperation in his voice, I know thi
Tears prickle the back of my eyes when I wake up pressed firmly against Asher’s chest. This used to be a dream, an impossibility, but it’s here, it’s real. I mean, we stayed up most of the night, curled into each other, talking about nothing, no single word about work, my father, or even his ex wife. We just talked, or I talked and Asher listened intently, eyes on me the whole time, like he was genuinely interested in my theories on the disappearance of all the pen covers back in our shared office. Every pen in our office currently has no cover, no idea where they all disappeared to. My current working theory– a honorable mention, my victims pray for the inks to all our pens dry up. I mean, we all know the best curses to lay on someone are the ones that causes minor inconvenience to the bearer of the curse. He gave me a cross between a laugh and something else on his expression as he shook his head.I carried on, rambling about Skittles, and the horrendous taste of the red flavor,
From the stiffening of Asher’s spine, I make an accurate guess of who’s going and my blood runs cold. Not from fear, but from anger. He’s not even here and he’s managing to ruin something so important to me. Asher swipes accept but doesn’t leave the room, so I make myself busy, just to seem like I’m not eager to know what Crawful wants to say to him.Then he surprises me by putting the call on speaker phone. When I meet his eyes, unspoken words pass between us. An understanding. I swallow, and there’s the taste of him on my lips and in my mouth.“Hall,”“Yes sir,” Asher is using the professional voice he’s long lost with me, and I’m gad he has, he doesn’t sound like my Asher. “The boy won his case?”I send a confused look at the phone, then at Asher who has his lips pressed together, like he’s embarrassed on my father’s behalf. He’s not the one calling his only child, ‘the boy’, there’s no need to be embarrassed. Plus, it could be worse, he could call me, ‘the money maker’, like I
I don’t remember exactly when I started to prefer the cold over warm. But I know my preference was strange. Coldwater is suspended in a state of perpetual cold. Most of the residents seek warmth like their life depends on it. I don’t do that. The only warmth I’ve liked is hot chocolate.Until Asher has me wrapped in his arms. He’s naturally very warm, like almost hot blooded, and in Carson speak, I’m supposed to be on the other side of the bed, away from his smothering body heat. However…I snuggle deeper into his hold, pretending to be asleep as I burrow into his chest. His possessive hold around me tightens. It’s difficult to go to bed. I have this now, but when will I have it again? Would he mind if I sleep over again? His breath is warm.I want it. I want to taste him again. Glancing up at him, eyes shut, like I should be doing.Wow– I think to myself– he has such pretty lashes… his straight nose bridge is unfair. He’s so perfect. My eyes fall on his mouth, my breath catche
“To the nuthouse!” Asher’s eyes roam my face, then my body, bringing his eyes back to my face, brows curled in concern, but for my mental health. “I didn’t ask that you touch my nuts,” Then I wiggle my brows.“Although…” I start, running a finger up the length of his arm, feeling the muscles unde
“First, let’s eat. I’m starving.” I breathe out, looking away from his eyes. A glance at his plate, and the greens sitting in it tells me I’ve played the wrong card. “I want some sausages.” I say, rubbing my hands together.“I wanted to eat some earlier, but Warden Hall wouldn’t let me.”Even wit
“I want sausage for breakfast.” I announce. Asher, who had gone to sleep in the guest room last night after my question– looking so distracting-ly good by the way, this would be the first time in five months I’ve ever seen him look ‘just rolled out of bed’ and by god, he makes it so fucking sexy.
Asher drops my hand, extricating himself from me.I whine from the lose of his body warmth. He couldn’t just do that and leave! Nobody does that.But he does.And just like that, the tension snaps, left hanging with nowhere to go. “It might be scary,” I start softly, “I know mine was. But yours e







