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I pull one knee up and rest my arm across it. “She wants us to keep each other company.”

“Us?”

“Her dolls.”

“And Simon makes three.”

I don’t like hearing his name from Oliver. “Three works better.”

“Of course it does.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Two people can agree.”

I look at the closed door.

“She says two either get too attached to each other or they hate each other.”

“And three prevents that?”

“She chose us because we fit together.”

Oliver takes his time answering. “Who did she praise this morning?”

I know where he’s going before I answer. “Me.”

“Who did she hit?”

“You.”

“You enjoyed both.”

He’s not wrong. “A lot.”

“What happens the first time Simon pleases her more than you do?”

I hate him. “He gets rewarded.”

“And you watch.” Oliver continues before I can answer. “Or when she needs you to watch him earn what used to be yours?”

“I know how it works.”

“I think you do.”

I crush a crumb between my thumb and fingertip. “You sound jealous.”

“She used you to get a reaction from me.”

“She still came on my cock.”

The silence behind the door is worth losing the argument. I eat the rest of my cookie.

Eventually Oliver says, “Those things aren’t mutually exclusive.”

“No shit.” I pick up the second cookie. “You know, for somebody who thinks I’m wasting my freedom, you seem pretty interested in how I use it.”

“I’d prefer you use it to find a way out.”