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"Really? You have an industrial kitchen and enough food stores to feed a aze warmed "He does have a very healthy appetite"

Ruby snorted "He needs a southern-cooking granny who equates love with food and stuffs hirandmother, but I’ll see what I can do while he’s here" Linda allowed herself a sesture to hold Ruby an additional second "One last thing I was talking to Derek, and he agrees we should reinforce the fault line, thicken the energy at the place where it eakened A Great Rite would be appropriate"

"Makes sense" Ruby’s fingers curled into balls inside her hooded sweatshirt pockets I don’t want to see that I can’t watch Derek lie upon another woy with her…

"So you concur?"

"Yeah, why not?"

Linda arched a dubious brow, telling Ruby she should have started the day by chugging a pint of Deception "Sheila, another of our covenwith Miriaht even move in with her for a little while, until the residual effects of the soul-eater contact die back So without Derek and you, we’re down to eleven With you both, it will be thirteen, the best nu to stand there during a Great Rite featuring Derek and Linda If the intent was a strong energy raising, they’d get it Ruby would probably turn the circle into a crater

"I think you two should perform the Rite," Linda said "I’ll coordinate as head priestess"

"What?" Ruby didn’t realize she’d taken another two steps back until Linda followed her, probably because Ruby looked ready to put so the width of a football field between them

"Is that a probles have me a little rattled I’d do better in a support role this tiic users here We need the energy flow to be as strong as possible And since you and Derek already have an obviously strong bond--"

"Bonding doesn’t olfing buddies"

Linda pressed her lips together "I’ht be best forthis rift, and it seems the two of you would be the best avenue to that"

"Coffee I’ to drink coffee Then we’ll deal with this"

Chapter 12

RUBY PIVOTED AND MARCHED TOWARD THE HOUSE A Great Rite? Sure, why not? She’d just had visions of hanging Derek with his own rope and turning Linda into a lard stew Why not put her in the center of a powerful energy raising, where she could beco into shrapnel inside a closed circle?

She stopped outside the side door to the kitchen, breathing hard Okay, yeah, she was a bit volatile right now, but it was boiling to the top quicker and more often because she’d taken herself out of a routine, a controlled environot ho her own reaction, soht this was a good idea?

Yanking open the door, she stomped inside, deter such a ludicrous idea without even discussing it with her first Now Linda was involved, and she was going to be disappointed or confused-- more than she was already

As Ruby stepped into a laundry rooht and she was flipped around Before she could do more than yelp in surprise, she was lifted onto the top of the washer Derek put hiht her face and put his mouth on hers

It was an entirely unexpected assault on her still-foggy ht with vivid clarity, particularly when one broad hand clas faithlessly curved around his hips, her canvas sneakers sliding down hard thighs, the tender insides of her knees re it

He had the other hand on her jaw Every h to watch Richard Gere kiss a wo assault on her senses, the way those fingers could stroke teenous nerve centers An overwhel level of emotional stimuli was communicated by a hand on the face It made the focus on her, not just her assorted pink parts