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“No,” I said

I thought, Nicky is my Bride, as in Brides of Dracula Brides of Anita just didn’t have the saroo If I’d been a real blood-sucking vampire, Nicky would have been a vampire, too, but a weak one who obeyed my every whim I didn’t want blind obedience, lucky for hi in love, which is so you’re never supposed to do with vampire Brides They’re supposed to be cannon fodder you sacrifice to save yourself as needed You can always make more

Leduc said, “So if he’s not what Callahan and Jean-Claude are to you, what is he to you?”

“He’s ht not to squirm

I really hated introducing people like that, because it iers Nicky and others in our poly group thought lover meant love as well as sex, so that e’d settled on Nicky would have been fine without a specific label, but et weird as the weddings approached since eren’t putting rings on ers If they couldn’t be

“And what are you, Petra?” Olaf asked

The woman seemed to shrink in on herself from just that much attention I’d seen her pound the hell out of people in fight practice back home, but now she played the ood she was at it It madeOlaf when he’d been behaving himself admirably

“I am a friend with benefits,” she said as if it was just true with no ees of our poly group She and her , she didn’t really want to be dating anyone else I was good with that; I was dating enough people

“And what are you, Angel?” Olaf asked, and ed to hty one

She gave him that mischievous sht he had started it I knew that Olaf didn’t see what he’d done as starting anything

“I’m fabulous How are you?”

Custer laughed, and I sighed I did not want Olaf to think ere ot the joke and upped the ante

“I’ood,” he said, and his voice was even a little lower as if he could make his testosterone rise at will I wouldn’t have put it past him

The corner of Angel’s mouth dropped, and she suddenly had a look I’d seen before as she worked her way through the dating pool in St Louis, both male and female, because she was as bisexual as her brother It was a considering look, a can-you-back-up-the-brag? look She kneho and what Olaf was, so she should have known better, but the look seeenuine

If we’d been alone, I’d have asked her what the fuck she was thinking, but eren’t alone, so I concentrated on business “Otto, are you co with me to question the witnesses?”