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"You know," I said to hi or send Cooper to check on me every time I have a little emotional blip"

"Ablip" The word sounded funny in hisand Emmy’s char one evocative eyebrow

"It’s okay," I said "I handled it By the way, this is my friend Jen Jennifer Cassopolis, Stefan Ludovic And" I looked around for Jojo, but she’d made herself scarce "Um, never mind"

Stefan dismounted from his bike in one fluid htly "It is a pleasure, Miss Cassopolis"

Jen gave me an uncertain look With a sister in thrall to a vampire, she tended to be wary of predatory eldritch species, although a bit less so since learning that Cody was a olf It h school

"It’s okay," I said to her "Stefan’s got centuries of self-discipline under his belt"

She relaxed "Nice toher hand, Stefan nodded at the items on the sidewalk "This is the work of the sorceress Cooper encountered last night, I take it?"

"Yep"

He ain and this tirave breach of protocol, Daisy Johanssen For an outsider to enter a coent of the resident deity is tantaured" I prodded the pile of dirt withher"

Stefan inclined his head "I remain in your debt My services and my forces are at your disposal"

"Thanks," I said "But I’d like to try to handle this discreetly"

He s in the creases of his smile "I can be discreet"

I flushed and cleared my throat "Umyeah, no doubt But it’s complicated She’s, um, actually kind of my boyfriend’s sister"

"Or more accurately, her kind-of boyfriend’s actual sister," Jen added, not entirely helpfully I shot her a quick glare She responded with a "What?" face

"As you wish, Hel’s liaison" Thank God, Stefan chose to ignore our silent but not exactly subtle interplay "The decision is yours, of course When it’s convenient, there’s another ht" Belatedly, I reht "Sorry, I’ve been distracted"

"For obvious reasons," he acknowledged "Call me when you’re less distracted"

So could be a bit much "Can’t you just tellI can tell you, Daisy It’s so I wish to show you I believe it will help in the e undertook together"

Oh "Okay Will do"

He inclined his head again "Until then"

Jen and I watched hi it with easy grace before putting his wraparound sunglasses back on, kick-starting theaway

"Da"

"Nope," I said "I was not"

She punched me in the ar together? What’s his story anyway? I thought ghouls--excuse ross redneck bikers that fed on the pathetic es of skanky meth-heads"

"Ow!" I rubbed my arm "I don’t know He hasn’t told s on his turf And he told houls in America tend to come fro about a conjunction of extrenorance and extreme faith I think it’s different for some of the old ones from back in ye olden times"

"Huh"