“K, boys, it’s shirts against skins. Lose ‘em,” Lucy said, pointing to the guys and ignoring Thad.“I beg your pardon?” Thad said, aghast.“Why do we have to be skins?” Josh complained.Lucy looked at Erin and they both shrugged and grabbed the hems of their shirts, preparing to haul them over their heads.“Whoa!” Sable said, covering his eyes immediately.“Wait,” Josh, Angelo, and Thad said at the same time.“Hell, yeah,” Blaze chimed in.The girls stopped right before they fully exposed their chest. “What? You guys act like none of you have ever seen a pair of boobs in a bra before. Josh saw mine a few hours ago and I know, for a fact, that three of you have seen hers outside the bra.” Lucy looked pointedly at Thad, Blaze, and Angelo.Erin’s head snapped in Josh’s direction. “JOSH!” she screeched, accidentally letting loose a snap of electricity.”

“Ty pointed his beer at Josh. "Want to know what I think?""No," Josh said."I think you have a case of being a little girl. Maybe you should prescribe yourself a heavy dose of man-the-fuck-up.”

“Lothaire said, “I have a much better plan.”“Why help him?” Thad asked pointedly. “When you don’t help anybody else?”Lothaire exhaled ruefully. “Incurable romantic.”

“What's the problem?" Josh demanded. "I can used my aura and just...""..just reveal our location to everyone," Dee snapped. "No, I forbid it.""Well,if you have a genius plan, now's the time to reveal it," Josh said nervously.”

“Josh, you saw him," Tally says, "What did he look like? Did he look nice?""He looked like a person," Josh grunts."Don't be a spoilsport," Tally says, and Caid hears her smack Josh on the arm."Shortish, blondish, thinish," Josh says."Thank you, Josh," Caid says, "Your way with words astounds me yet again.""Well, whatever," Tally says. "What did you guys talk about? You said he's nice?""We talked about a lot of things. And yeah, he's—I mean, we traded numbers, so hopefully he'll call.""I hope so, too," Tally says. "I'm glad you have somebody to hang out with now.""Because I was such horrible company?" Josh says, voice thick and deep like he's got a mouthful of ice cream."I wouldn't say horrible," Caid says. "Unbearable, maybe. Like one of those YouTube videos that never loads." And with that, he shoots a shit-eating grin in Josh's direction, and shovels a spoonful of ice cream into his mouth.”

“Vampire females are as good as extinct.”Thad was aghast. “No females?”Natalya patted his shoulder. “You can date other species, Tiger. Don’t you worry. I’ve already thought of some ladies to relieve you of your big V. One’s a nymph—”“Over my dead body,” Regin said. “Two-bit hookers, every one of them.”Thad scratched his head. “Mr. Lothaire said every male needed a purring nymph or two chained to the foot of hisbed. As pets.”Natalya gasped. “All right, lad, no more talking to Lothaire.”