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The clock next to phury ticked over so that the digital readout for

He checked his stash It was getting a little low, and even as cooked as he was, he got a case of the cardio-shimmies As he worked theinto the open Baggie of red smoke for about seven hours now so if he did so to run out around four in the afternoon

Sun went down at seven thirty He could be at ZeroSuht

Four-hour dead zone Or, ht live a little too clearly

If you&039;d like, the wizard said, I could read you a bedti&039;s bollocks Male models self after alcoholic father Ends up dead in an alley Is mourned by no one Classic, practically Shakespearian

Unless you&039;ve heard it before, mate?

Phury turned up "Donna non vidi mai" and inhaled hard

As the tenor&039;s voice soared according to Puccini&039;s dictations, he thought of Z&039;s singing What a voice that brother had Like a church organ, his range went frohs to basses so deep they turned youronce, he could replicate it perfectly Then put his own spin on thewas his forte: opera, blues, jazz, old-fashioned rock and roll He was his own XM Radio

And he always led the chants in the Brotherhood&039;s temple

Hard to fathoain

Or around the house, co anything, probably because worrying about Bella didn&039;t put hi whether his impromptu concerts would return or not

Bella&039;s destiny would be the decider on that

Phury took another hit off the blunt God, he wanted to go see her Wanted to reassure himself that she was okay Visual confirood-news

But he wasn&039;t in visitation shape, and not just because he was toasted Reaching up, he put his hands to his neck and prodded the residual injury fro wrapped around his throat He was a quick healer, but not that quick, and Bella&039;s eyes orking just fine No reason to upset her

Plus Z would be with her, and going eyeball-to-eyeball with his tay too bullet-to-chas had been left in that alley

A rattling sound froht his head up

Across the rooold talis like a beeper He watched as itin a little circle as if it were looking for a partner a the silver brush set he&039;d put it next to

He was so not going over to the Other Side No way Getting bootlicked out of the Brotherhood was enough for one day

Finishing his blunt, he got up and left his room As he stepped into the hall, he looked to Corhtly ajar, which was unusual, and he heard a flapping noise

He walked over and knocked on the jamb "Cormia? Are you okay?"

"Oh! Yes yes, I a further, he leaned in "Your door&039;s open" Well, wasn&039;t he Einstein "Do you want me to close it?"

"I didn&039;t mean to leave it like that"

As he wondered how she&039;d gotten along with John Matthew, he said, "Mind if I come in?"

"Please"

He pushed the door wide¡ª

OhCor her damp hair There was a towel next to her, which explained the flapping, and her robe her robe was open in a deep V, the soft swells of her breasts in danger of being fully exposed

What color were her nipples?

He quickly looked elsewhere Only to find a single lavender rose in a crystal vase on the bedside table

As his chest grew tight for no good reason, he frowned "So did you and John enjoy yourselves?"

"Yes, we did He was quite lovely"

"Was he?"

Cormia nodded as she wrapped a white satin ribbon around the end of the braid In the dilowed as if it were gold, and he hated to see her wrap the long stretch in circles at the base of her neck He wanted to stare at it some more, but had to take solace in the wisps that were already appearing around her face

What a picture shehe had soe she looked different, he thought Then again, maybe it was because there was color in her cheeks "What did you guys do?"

"I ran outside"

Phury felt his frown get deeper "Because sohtened you?"

"No, because I was free to"

He had a quick vision of her racing over the grass in the backyard, her hair strea behind her "And what did John do?"

"He watched"

Did he

Before Phury could say anything, she continued, "You&039;re right, he&039;s very kind He&039;s going to show "

"He is?"

"He taught ave me" She extended her wrist On it was a bracelet made of lavender beads and silver links "I&039;ve never had so like this before I&039;ve always just had my Chosen pearl"

As she touched the iridescent teardrop at her throat, he narrowed his eyes Her stare was guileless, as pure and lovely as the rosebud across the room

John&039;s attention to her lect all the more clearly

"I&039;m sorry," she said in a quiet voice "I&039;ll take the bracelet off¡ª"

"No It suits you Beautifully"

"He said it was a gift," she murmured "I should like to keep it"

"And so you shall" Phury took a deep breath and looked around the bedrooht of a complex structure made of toothpicks and peas? "What is that?"

"Ah yes" She went over quickly, as if she wanted to shelter whatever it was

"What is it?"

"It&039;s what is in my head" She turned to hi I&039;ve started doing"

Phury walked across the rooer down a couple of the links "It&039;s fantastic It looks like the frame of a house"

"You like it?" She knelt down "I really just made it up"

"I love architecture and art And this the lines are great"

Her head tilted as she considered the structure, and he ss

On io down to the hall of statues? I was just going to go for a wander It&039;s past the top of the stairs"

As her eyes lifted to his, there was a knowledge in them that took him aback

Maybe it wasn&039;t that she looked any different, he realized It was that she was looking at him differently

Shit, maybe she&039;d really liked John As in liked John What a wrench that would put into the o with you," she said "I should like to see the art"

"Good That&039;s good Let&039;s go" He rose to his feet and extended his hand for no apparent reason

After a rips on each other, he realized that the last time they&039;d had any physical contact had been that trippyin his bed when he&039;d had that erotic dream and woke up with his hard body all over her

"Shall we," he murmured And led her to the door