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"Yes, they even invited etto be the Waltons"

"Nobody is the Waltons, not even et"

We reached the Avenue of the Ah that it didn’t even require any of Owen’s ic to hail one Once ere in the cab, the taxi wheels weren’t the only ones turning, as I could tell Oas already furiously pondering the current puzzle with every cell of his powerful brain He paid off the driver in front ofand walked me to the front door, his attention clearly elsewhere "Thanks for the evening," I said "It was certainly memorable"

"It asn’t it? And thank you for " He bent forward to give " He was gone down the sidewalk before I even had a chance to kiss hiht, and I was left standing there with htly puckered

"I’ll see you in the , too," I muttered under my breath to the thin air where Owen had just been before suppressing a sigh of disappoint ca priorities And, after all, it was only the first date We’d have plenty of opportunities to intensify things

When I went down the stairs Monday , I felt a fa with one to work at MSI, and every le with the anticipation of seeing hi just friends and co-workers, the tingle was even worse I’d always known that thewas that weeach other safe froical iuys even when they tried to disguise theical person, could be affected by er, but once I alerted hi about it He lived a few blocks away froo too far out of his way to ht have really wanted to spend that ti That had turned out to be the case

I opened the front door, and the flutter in oing out with hiht before would have made the anticipation a little less intense, but I was learning that I couldn’t predict my reactions when it came to Owen He really put e s he’d be waiting on the sidewalk Then the sht off my face, for he wasn’t there I checked er to see him--but it was the same time we usually met, and even when I was off-schedule one way or another, he always inning to wonder if I should wait for hih voice say, "You’re the Chandler gal, aren’t you?"

I looked up and down the street, seeing plenty of people on the sidewalk, but nobody who see to me "Psst, up here," the voice said I stepped forward, turned around and craned oyle perched on the fire escape above oyle I’d run into before, but he was probably on the MSI security force

"I’s and glided down to sit on top of a nearby parkingcome up and had to be at the office early I’et to work safely" He spread his wings once more and took off in the direction of the subway station

I hurried to follow hi to keep up with a flying gargoyle

"Hey, I’er All I knohat he told me"

I orried and disappointed, all at the sa for him to abandon our daily routine, but it was the second time in just a few days that duty had called him away from time with me I knew I could expect ainst, but that didn’t entirely erase the disappoint me up, and he’d made sure I’d be protected