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She shivered as she said, "You have to guess what very polite, veryI did to pay the little wench back"

"What?"

"Guess"

"You, hard-core punk that you are, called her a very naughty name"

"Nope I punched her in the face and broke her nose No one calls ets aith it Let that be a lesson to you You ht want to write that down and circle it"

He barked out a laugh A very rough, very hoarse laugh, leading her to believe he hadn’t laughed in years If ever And she had been the one to bring hi hiht And oh, he was beautiful like this

So badly she wanted to rise up, crawl into his lap and kiss him Just press her lips into his, taste him, relearn hiht

"Another story," he said

"I’ll give you a question instead" And probably sound needy, but she didn’t care "Do Sent Ones date?" Obviously they kissed, but

His brow furrowed, as if the change of subject confused him "Some do"

Don’t do this Don’t press "Do you?"

"No"

Oh The very disappointh her "Never?"

"Never" He looked at her, really looked at her, his golden gaze boring deep His arripped the fabric of the chair, as if he had to force hi another hole in the wall--or fro else?

"If I told you I had tortured another Sent One," he said, "would you think I was a monster?"

Would she? "Did you?"

Silence

Yeah He had And he’d felt the action, whatever it was, had been deserved Wasn’t that what he’d said a retted it, whether he realized it or not

"What I’ve learned over the years is that people shouldn’t be defined by a single ive yourself and ue over his teeth "What hed "You’rethe point, Koldo"

"Doesn’t ive , but a choice--and then acting on that choice And I know I’ joy, but it’s clear you need it, too I think your unwillingness to let go of this, whatever this is, is as much a toxin as what the demons cause"

Another round of silence

Well, wisdoain "I mean, seriously All the best therapists on TV say that focusing on the past causes stagnation And diarrhea"

He barked out another laugh, then quickly sobered "Did you ever do anything to hurt--" He pressed his lips together

"Hurt who?"

He cleared his throat "Where’s your sister?"

Nice dodge But as upset as he was, she allowed it "Sleeping in her room" Nicola stood, held out her hand "I knohat’ll o to the kitchen and I’ll fix the , since my specialties are cereal and ive me another lecture"

"I don’t lecture I teach" He placed his hand in hers, his calloused paloose bu her to help him up Then, he shook his head as if he’d just , she tumbled into his lap and her ponytail slapped hi shoulders for balance--and lost her breath as he meshed his lips into hers

Oh, sweet mercy Just like last time, her bones instantly h at first, then too soft; he branded her, claihted her And his taste, oh, his taste It was decadence, pure and si and the fall, every season, every day, carrying her straight into eternity

She wrapped her arroaned, and thenthen, he figured out exactly hoanted to kiss her, and the pressure evened out He tilted his head, deepening the contact Taking, giving De

It became iving her so precious right back But she didn’t knohat that thing was--her trust? A piece of her heart?--and wasn’t sure she wanted to know

What would happen if she fell for hi?