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I should take you home to my family this Christmas, she said My mother would adopt you in a heartbeat

The war her feel close to every part of who he was, and so glad to be here with hi you is to realize that a house not only shelters you froht, hold it He teased back a loose lock of her hair A nd Id love to meet your parents I dont think you realize how brave you are, Chloe

Brave enough to go into your house at the very least, right? She h Ive heard horror stories about your laundry A nd shoes like spiders Maybe Ill sleep in the car

I keep the laundry safely locked away so it cant harm the innocent, and the spider shoes only appear for h, but then he sobered Please co to a sensual lided to the pulse in her throat so that she lifted her chin to give hiers from his hair to his shoulders, then down to clutch his shirt, holding tight as that brief touch threatened to send her floating away

Okay She ed it on an indrawn breath Youve bullied me into it

Dontaround to the other side He was a little less put together at three am

than hed been in his chain mail But she liked the look of him in worn jeans and his faded Cirque du Soleil T-shirt with a fire breathing dragon

Unshaven, his hair tousled, he looked a little rough and unpredictable as he came around the vehicle It wasnt a bad look for hi

He opened the door, helped her out, ready if she was still unsteady on her feet She had an a to carry her for the next decade if she needed it A t the sa brave, she didnt feel as if it stole any strength froested she still had soht off, hope it would have grown in size byher bag, which he set down in the entryway Feel free to look around anywhere, he said Ies

She nodded as hespace was comfortable, a male abode with masculine furniture, but a style that underscored Brendans background in theater art There were earthy blends of color with splashes of war rooraphs, artistic renderings of two nudes, a male and fe, head to his knees while the wo hair, a rich brown, draped over hi , her body the slender trunk arched backward over him In the next, the two models lay on blue velvet, the only color, as their black and white figures spooned together The s and torso flush against one another

The other two photos had a siuided the eye to a er centerpiece for the same series, positioned alone on the wall over the sectional

This one only showed the two from shoulder to hips They were back to back, seated, the point of their buttocks on grass, ain the green was the only color, the humans in black and white Their heads were averted from the camera and so emphasized the jaw lines, the arch of their necks turned from the viewer and each other But their bodies were pressed so close their hips and so emphasized the jaw lines, the arch of their necks turned from the viewer and each other But their bodies were pressed so close their hips and shoulders touched, conveying connection and separation at once

Several cushions and a woven blanket had been tossed across the sectional On the side table was a pyra a sculpture of photos

Drawing closer, the first one she identified was Marguerite and Brendan, a shot taken of theht suerites peace and happiness had been obvious that night, enough to make Chloe smile now in remembrance

The bride leaned into the curve of Brendans body, as if the picture had been taken while they were dancing, the fairy lights and silhouettes of the large oaks in the background

A nother pair of pictures were soldered at the corners to link the couple with a boy of about four The father squatted with the child between his knees while the woh, her hand on her husbands shoulder, two of her fingers firmly clasped by the child as she leaned over them The other photo was a depart older couple with an adolescent Brendan, their hands on his shoulders, a solidly middle class picture

My parents andfrom the kitchen to stand behind her I was very lucky to have them both