2012 [Loetud lehekülgi: 10 322]

“You're mine, Angel," he murmured, brushing the words across my jawbone as I arched my neck higher, inviting him to kiss everywhere. "You have me forever.”
*
“Don’t start. I saw Marcie climb inside your Jeep.”
“She needed a ride.”
I adopted a hands-on-hips pose. “What kind of ride?”
“Not that kind of ride,” he said slowly.
*
Vee came to a halt. "What is THAT?"
We were standing in the parking lot behind the bookstore, a few feet from the Neon, and we were staring at a large piece of metal attached to the left rear tire.
"I think it's a car boot," I said.
"I can see that. What's it doing on my car?"
"I guess when they say all violators will be towed, they mean it.”

“He inclined his head at my dress. "What's the occasion?"
"Homecoming," I said, twirling. "Like?"
"Last I heard, Homecoming requires a date."
"About that," i hedged. "I'm sort of...going with Scott. We both figure a high-school dance is the last place Hank will be patrolling."
Patch smiled, but it was tight. "I take that back. If Hank wants to shoot Scott, he has my blessing.”
*
“I don’t like the idea of dragging you into something that could get messy fast. If you need one more reason, I love you. This is uncharted territory for me, but I need to know that at the end of the night, I have you to come home to.”
*
“One last thing," he said. "Stop looking for me."
"I'm not looking for you." I scoffed.
He touched his index finger to my forehead, my skin absurdly warming under his touch. It didn't escape me that he couldn't seem to stop finding reasons to touch me. Nor did I miss that I didn't want him to stop. "Under all the layers, a part of you remembers. It's the part that came looking for me tonight. It's that part that's going to get you killed, if you're not careful."
We stood face-to-face, both of us breathing hard. The sirens were so close now. "What am I supposed to tell the police?" I said.
"You're not going to talk to the police."
"Oh, really? Funny, because I plan on telling them exactly how you rammed that tire iron into Gabe's back. Unless you answer my questions."
He gave an ironic snort. "Blackmail? You've changed, Angel.”

Tristan smiled weakly. "I suppose I must be thankful for once that you're a stubborn Frenchman who refuses to obey orders."
"And rightly you should be," Jules grunted as hesauntered into the room. "You had him at your mercy, and instead of running him through as the bastard de­served, you gave him your back for a splendid target. By rights, it should have been you lying in a pool of blood. You're so damned smitten with that girl that you run to her at the slightest cry. The wench will be thedeath of you yet."
*
"But I made this gown for the same purpose. It doesn't bother you now?"
"You made that gown to marry a man you had nevermet. I am that man."

“If you run from me, I will chase you, and I'll find you....”
*
“Don't kiss me like a woman if you're going to treat me like a child.”
*
“Aside from the obvious, Francesca, what do you want in return for supplying information?” Bones asked, getting back to the subject.
“You to take me,” she replied at once.
“Not gonna happen!” I spat, squeezing him possessively. Three sets of widened eyes fixed on me. That’s when I realized that what I had a firm grip on was no longer his hand.
*
“Lucifer’s bouncing balls, Kitten, not again! You’re not a woman, you’re the Grim Reaper with red hair! Come on, Kitten, let’s go. Before you murder someone else.”
*
The clock struck eleven and cat the vampire huntress was on the loose, except my battle armor was a push-up bra, curled hair, and a short dress. Yeah, it was a dirty job, but I was going to do it. Come one, come all, bloodsuckers! Bar’s open!
*
He muttered something foul and then climbed the stairs, rapping twice on Timmie’s door.
“Right, then, mate, terribly sorry for my unspeakable rudeness, and I do beg your pardon,”
he said with admirable humbleness when Timmie cracked it open. Only I could pick up the
slight edge to his voice as he went on. “I can only say that it was caused by my natural
affront to the notion of her as my sister. Since I’ll be shagging her tonight, you can
imagine how I’d be distressed at the thought of rogering my sibling.”
“You schmuck!” I burst as Timmie’s jaw dropped. “The only thing you’ll be shagging
tonight is yourself!”
“You wanted sincerity,” he countered. “Well, luv, I was sincere.”
*
“I will never stop loving you. No one can change that. No matter what happens later, I’ll still love you.”

Juan gave Bones the most admiring look he’d bestowed on him yet. “You talked her into going without panties all these years? Madre de Dios, now that’s impressive. I could learn a great deal from you, amigo.”
*
“Do you know what you’ve done?” I asked in a bland tone. Annette gave me
an inquiring look. “You’ve gotten on my last nerve.”
The table went crashing into her before she could blink, and then my fist found a home in her perfectly arranged hair.”
*
“You called her Kitten? And she let you? She put me in a coma for three days when I called her that? My balls never recovered from her smashing them into my spine?"
"And well she should have," Bones agreed. "She's my Kitten, and no one else's”
*
“You know what your problem is, Justina? You're in desperate need of a good shag. "Not that I'm offering you one myself, mind. My days as a whore ended back in the seventeen hundreds."

The gin was abruptly sucked back into my lungs as I gasped. He did not just tell my mother about his former profession; sweet Jesus, let me have heard incorrectly!

I hadn't, and Bones went right on. "... But I have a friend who owes me a favor and he could be persuaded to... Kitten, are you all right?"

I'd stopped breathing as soon as he casually admitted to his prior occupation. Add that to the liquid stuck in my lungs, and no, I wasn't all right.

"Look, then, and see if you know them!" she ordered harshly.
"Brenna, calm yourself," Linnet said, though her own voice betrayed her anxiety.
Fergus went to the window, and it took only a second for him to recognize the tall chieftain of the Haardrad clan. Anselm the Eager stood before his men shouting orders.
" 'Tis not possible!" Fergus cried, facing the small, terrified group in the room. "He gave his word!"
Another boulder against the door prompted Brenna to action. "Wyndham, are you with us or with your
treacherous kinsmen? I would know before I turn my back on you."
He looked sorely affronted. "With you, my lady. I do not claim kinship with these Norsemen who do not
honor their word."
**
"I am curious," Hugh continued. "They say one was a small man with very long black hair. You have
enough male slaves. Why bring this one?"
Anselm chuckled, the corners of his eyes crinkling. "The one you speak of is also a woman. In truth, she
is the one they would have wed to your brother."
"Eh? The Lady Brenna? I am eager to see that one."
"She had courage like I have never seen in a woman. She fought us with sword in hand, and wounded
Thorne. Her spirit was magnificent to watch."
"I want her."
"What?"
"I said I want her," Hugh replied. "Garrick hates women, and you have Heloise. My wife is timid, as are
my slaves. I want a woman with spirit."
"You have not even seen her yet, Hugh," Anselm remarked, his lips turning slightly upward. "This little
beauty has more spirit than you would want. She is viciously hostile, filled with bitter hatred."
**
"My God, Brenna, what have you done?"
She opened her eyes and stared at him in confusion. "Why do you speak to my god? Your pagan gods
will be angry."
"Does it matter which god I speak to?" he asked angrily. "They are one and the same, I think. But I ask
them and you, why did you try to kill yourself?"
"I am not dead," she said in a soft whisper before her eyes closed in sleep again.
Garrick's face was ashen. "You will be if you do not fight this, Brenna. Wake up!"
**
"First the fever, then she nearly dies of cold and starvation, and now this! How many times can she face
death and survive?"
**
"Where did you leave him? With Erin?"
"Nay. Just as I left your house with him, Yarmille came, to bid you farewell, she said. I asked her to take
him to my parents."
Brenna's blood turned to ice. "Garrick—nay! Say you jest!"
"What is wrong?"
Brenna jumped to her feet. "She is going to kill him! She went there to kill you both!"
Garrick did not stop to doubt her words. They both ran to the stable for fresh horses and rode with
terrifying speed to Brenna's house. Behind her house, Garrick found the trail of Yarmille's horse leading
into the woods, not to his parents' house.

Royce asked the dreaded question: "How many of our men killed?"
"Only two."
"And wounded?"
"Slightly more... eighteen, actually."
"Eighteen!"
"The Vikings fought like demons, milord—giant demons," Seldon said defensively.
Royce's expression grew taut and forbidding. "Let us be on our way, then, and I will see to
the rest of those bloodlusting pirates."
"Uh, milord, Lord Alden was . . ."
"Not dead?" Royce groaned.
"Nay," Seldon said quickly, for he knew how close the cousins were. It was reluctantly that he
had to add, "But he is sorely wounded."
"Where?"
"In the belly."
*
“You are not my wife yet, to concern yourself in my affairs."
"And when I am your wife?"
His conscience pricked him, making him snap, "You will learn not to question me."
*
“Defeat held no honor.”

-

-

Bayard viskus põlvili kahvatu poisi kõrvale, kes lamas kinniste silmadega. "Frederic!"
Nimetatu avas silmad. Tänu jumalale oli ta elus, kuid võis olla tõsiselt viga saanud. "Kas ma olen surnud?" küsis ta oimetult.
Kergendustundest, et poiss on teadvusel, laskus Bayard istuli ja otsis vereloiku või murtud luid. "Kas sul valutabkusagilt?"
Frederic üritas istuli tõusta. "Ei.." Ta pilgutas silmi ja kortsutas Averette'i lossi poole kulmu. "Miks loss liigub?"
"Sul on peapööritus."
"Ah jaa, selge pilt," kostis poiss. "Peapööritus. Loss liigub juba aeglasemalt."

“You like hamburgers, right?”
“We have seriously got to go over the right and wrong times for small talk. Dinner party, yes. Five minutes from a vampire ambush, no.”
“Hear me out. Would you eat a hamburger if there was any chance it could punch you in the face?”
“How is a hamburger supposed to punch me in the face?”
“Just say that it can.” This was no time to bicker about metaphors. “Would you bother? Or would you eat something else?”
Lucas considered this for a couple of seconds. “Leaving aside the weirdness of a hamburger that can attack—which is a lot of weirdness to leave aside—no, I guess I wouldn’t.”
“And this is why most vampires don’t attack humans. Humans hit back. They scream. They throw up. They call nine-one-one on their cell phones. One way or another, humans cause more trouble than they’re worth. It’s a lot easier to buy blood from butcher shops or eat small animals. Most people always
take the easy way, Lucas. I know you’re cynical enough to understand that much at least.”
“Nice and practical. I bet you told me just the way your parents told you. But you never said that killing people is wrong.”
***
“If you loved someone, you couldn’t let lies come between you. No matter what happened—even if you’d already lost each other forever—you owed each other the truth.”
***
“What had seemed like love was betrayal”