Wiggles hissed as I crossed the floor toward the throne. She fixed me with her empty hateful eyes and smelled the air, her long tongue shiveringthrough the slit of the lipless mouth. Nice to see you too, sweetheart. Remember my cattle prod?

He smiled at me, turning into the old Sean Evans. The transformation was so sudden, I blinked to make sure I didn’t imagine it. “Because you’re a carebear.

You want me to go back into that house protected by a magic sticky note?”“Don’t even start,” I told him. “It’s working. If it weren’t working, you couldn’t drag me into that place.”“What did you write on here? ‘Don’t die’?”“No, I wrote, ‘Don’t be an a-hole!’” I headed for the house.“On yours or mine?”“On yours.”“Well, in that case, your magic isn’t working. I’m still an asshole.

Hey, would you look at that shit?"I turned on my heel. The patrons who’d fled at the first hint of trouble had come back and were enjoying the spectacle."Clear out!" I barked.They paid me no mind. Asshole innocent bystanders.

Arabella did not need backup. Most of the time she was the backup, the field artillery, and the air support, but Nevada taught me to always have an exit strategy.

The Beast Lord walked out of the warehouse. The screen went dark.My knight in furry armor.Saiman opened his mouth. "This is why I didn't. Personally, I think your smile is inappropriate.

I would try being friends with her, but she's too busy being a smartass.""Now you know how the rest of us feel," Jim said.

Tension fled from me. Tomorrow I would worry about Hugh d’Ambray and Andrea andRoland, but now I was simply happy. Aaahh. Home. My place, my smells, my familiar rug under my feet, my kitchen, my Curran in the kitchen chair . . . Wait a damn minute.“You!

A massive beast dashed along the mountain apex.Astamur reached for his rifle. “A demon?”“No, not a demon.” I might have preferred one . “That’s my boyfriend.”Atsany and the shepherd turned to look at me. “Boyfriend?” Astamur said. Curran saw us. He paused on a stone crag and roared. The raw declaration of strength cracked through the mountains, rolling down the cliffs like a rockslide. “Yep. Don’t worry. He’s harmless.