“I didn't mean it to sound so challenging, but I needed to try to reassure my friend. Gritting my teeth, I tried to think of some way to placate Gideon. It was as if I was standing in quicksand, the earth slipping away from my feet the more I spoke. A smart man would keep his mouth shut. I wasn't always a smart man.”

“I have doubts, but I'm willing to try. It's the best I can offer. Will you try? I need you, Mira. Try for me.”

“I could feel her wipe away something wet, but I refused to think she had made me cry as well as admit that I was a coward. The League of Men was going to come confiscate my balls at this rate. But it didn't matter. Trixie was worth it.”

“We’ll find a way,” I whispered. “I always do.”Danaus leaned forward and brushed a kiss against my temple, sending a wave of peace deepinto the marrow of my bones, helping to ease some of the pain. “And then we’ll kill each other asGod intended.”

“Fan-fucking-tastic. Not only were Jo and Trixie in danger from this master vampire, but Trixie's beleif in my prickishness was fading fast.Priorities. I need to focus on getting Jo free of Chester permanently while protecting Trixie from any backlash from the master vampire. I could always prove to her later that I was a dick.”

“Flopping down in the chair I had been seating in only moments ago, I put my elbows on my knees and dropped my head into my hands. What a fucking mess!“Women.” A heavy voice sighed from above me. “Who understands them?”

“I wished for my fairy godmother, the good witch of the north, or some other bitch with a wand.”