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Then I ave theave their Catahoulas many litters I nae to Kandace and a resultant daughter I gave the du Rone twins full scholarships to Tulane, and for Saift for Sam Of course, the bar would prosper, but with his tendency to fall for women on the supernatural sidewell, the bar would prosper Quinn would live happily ever after with his tigress, Tijgerin, and she would be able to rehabilitate the unpleasant Frannie, ould beco a few people Oh, yeah, Holly and Hoyt They’d have a girl and a boy, and Holly’s son by her first s Hoyt’s lifelong friendship with ain, because ain

India would find so woman, and the state of Louisiana would pass a bill to enable theally No one would ever, everas I was fantasizing

"Bill, what’s your favorite fantasy?" I asked Weirdly enough, I felt lanced over at me quizzically We were almost to my house "My favorite fantasy? You co place stark naked," he said, and I could see the gleam of his teeth as he smiled "Oh, wait," Bill said "That’s already happened"

"There’s gotta be ue

"Oh, there is" His eyes told me exactly what happened after that

"And that’s your fantasy? That I come into your house naked and have sex with you?"

"After that, you tell me that you have sent Eric on his way, that you want to be mine forever, and that to share my life you will permit me to make you a vampire like me"

The silence noas thick, and the fun had drained out of the fantasy

Then Bill added, "You knohat I’d say when you toldBecause I love you"

And this, ladies and gentle’s entertainment

Chapter 14

When I woke up inoutside I did not have to work today; getting to skip on your special day was a Merlotte’s rule Last night had been an incredible night, all in all I’d rescued two hostages, helped to get a bunch of bad rogue Weres off the streets, and begun unraveling a conspiracy Hard to top that!

I’d also been kidnapped and bitterly disillusioned

I wanted to look good becausedressed to run errands and to go to an appointment I’d made days before, I put on my makeup and brushed my hair up into a ponytail that cascaded down fro out s, azed down at it, the pale green soothing any anxiety I had about the day to come I rubbed it between my hands and enjoyed the warmth and the smoothness

I wondered (for the fiftieth tiic On the whole, I figured not My grandh as a staunch Christian she disapproved of ht find necessary for my protection

I should put it back into e But I didn’t After a brief debate, I slid the round object intoit was no good if it was inaccessible Leaving it in the draas equivalent to having an unloaded gun when burglars broke into your house

From now on, the cluviel dor here I went

If Ericif he decided to leave with Freyda, would I use it? According to Mr Cataliades, since I loved Eric, if I ranted I tried to picture o with Freyda"

On the other handif he decided to go with the queen, he loved me less than he loved the possibilities in his future with her Would I want to stay with sos could happen today, but I was going to keep ers crossed that they wouldn’t I just wanted one happy day

As I was getting up fro the cluviel dor in my pocket Was it really safe to carry such an irreplaceable object around with ans could tell there was so special aboutmust be my proximity to, or ownership of, the cluviel dor I shouldn’t underestimate how much they’d want it if they knew I had it, not with their terrible desire to be back in the world they loved I hesitated, pondered again replacing it in the drawer

But then I thought, Unloaded gun And I popped it from my pocket into my purse, which latched shut and was therefore more secure

I heard a car pull up outside I looked out the living room s to see that ed I wasn’t going to let anything bother uy whose name I couldn’t reuished clothes, and he wasn’t tall or very thin or very hts were fairly neutral He was nuts about A about hiht of him as her adjutant

"This is Jay Osborn," Detective Ambroselli said "You’re all dressed up today"

"I have an appointive you a few minutes" I waved my hand at the couch, and I sat opposite thee of the house, of its furnishings A on me

"T-Rex is quite a fan of yours," she said

It was lucky I’d been warned ahead of tiht Kyot killed And I have a boyfriend" Theoretically

"He’s called uess that says it all, that he doesn’t have it" I shrugged

Then ent over the evening at Eric’s again, froht we’d wound up, Ambroselli decided to throw in one last question

"Were you late that night because you wanted toin late to get T-Rex’s attention?" She was asking questions at randoet his attention, I guess I would have come earlier to spend as much time with hiood-looking women, and I don’t knohy he’d be specially interested in me"