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Major rolled onto his back with a sigh of satisfaction. Getting creative had been more entertaining—and more satisfying—than he had imagined possible. Of course, it didn't hurt that Liv was adventurous and up for anything … even more than she had been before, which was saying something. There was a freedom in her now that hadn't been there when she was human. She was no longer watching the clock obsessively, calculating the minutes until her next shift, determining whether there was time for a Pilates class beforehand. It was easy to forget just how tightly wound she had been, and he vowed to appreciate this new more laid-back Liv for just who she was.

Next to him, Liv giggled, and he couldn't help laughing with her. "Whoo. That was … pretty good."

"Yeah."

"It was almost as good as sex. The difference between a turkey burger and a hamburger."

"When I was thirteen, I would have killed to do what we just did," Major told her. He twined his fingers with hers, stroking her pale skin. "You and I are gonna be fine."

Liv rolled over, tucking one hand under her head as her eyes searched his face, looking for his true feelings. "So you're okay with it? Because if we're gonna do this, we have to be totally honest with each other this time around."

He smiled. "Of course I want to sex you up, girl. You're very attractive, and I very much have a penis." Liv smiled, stroking his arm, and took his hand again as he assured her, "But just being with you's enough. Honestly." He really couldn't imagine being without her, ever again. Look at what a mess his life had been, he had been, without her. He wasn't going back to being that guy. He was going to stay Liv's Major from now on, whatever it took.

Liv's smile had faded, though, as she considered the rest of the ramifications. "But being with zombie me is different than being with old me. It's not just no sex—when I eat someone's brain, it sets up camp in me. It's like I'm always Britney, but sometimes I'm 'Hit Me Baby One More Time' Britney and sometimes I'm shaved head smashing car windows Britney."

Major rolled over to face her. "Real talk?" Liv gave a tiny nod. "I thought both of those Britneys were hot."

She wasn't amused.

"I'm kidding," he said immediately, smiling. Sometimes going for the laugh worked, but other times she needed the real deep down truth. That, at least, hadn't changed. "I know this is serious. But I just want you to know that I can hang with whatever you throw at me."

Liv smiled, a wide, genuine smile, and leaned in to kiss him. She pulled back, anxiously. "You're sure."

"Positive." Major pulled her on top of him, kissing her again. "Zombie Liv is worth putting up with a little crazy for. I'd rather be here with you than bonking anyone else in wild monkey sex." He thought guiltily of Rita, and pushed the image away. No comparison. Forget turkey burgers and hamburgers—even apples and oranges were too close.

"Ew. And thanks, I think." Liv closed her eyes and sighed as he found just the right spot on her neck.

"Besides," he murmured against her skin, "it wasn't always a party in there before. What with the schedules and the color-coding …"

"Hey." She reached for the pillow and smacked him with it while he held up his hands, laughing, to fend off the attack. "You know, you weren't always available either. Football practice, soccer practice, 'me time at the gym' … it's a wonder you got any work in while you were sculpting the golden bod here."

Major arched into her touch as her hands wandered down his ribcage. "I didn't notice you complaining."

"Well, a girl does appreciate a well-toned set of abs." She licked the area in question to prove her point. "Besides, what kind of a trophy husband would you have been if I couldn't show you off to all my sleep-deprived, sex-starved fellow residents?"

"Good point. Now all you have to show me off to is Ravi."

"And don't think he doesn't appreciate the show. Or envy it. One or the other." Liv shifted herself intimately against him, erotic even through both layers of underwear, and grinned wickedly at his groan. "That doesn't sound good. Should we do something about that?"

"If it's not too much trouble." He moaned again when her hands found him, and for a long while neither of them had enough breath or concentration to do any more talking.