“She took me to a mall yesterday"' Lachlain sounded as if he'd just stifled a shudder. "And she pointed to a boy and said, 'I think I want one.' So naturally, I start thinking, Where can I get a wee mortal? But she meant a bairn—our bairn.”

“Why was she doing this to herself? She was too young to be locked away in this grim castle, weighed down with responsibility that was not hersto shoulder. She should be at parties, being feted, dancing, and enjoyingherself. Or be surrounded by bairns. My bairns, he thought fiercely.”

“I didn't want to think about the fact that she could smell me, or that she just joked about eating me. At least I hoped she meant it as a joke.”

“If I die," he whispered in the dark, "dinna follow me. The bairns will need ye. Stay for them. I can wait.”

“I want you to know, chickens aren’t sexy. Not to me.”This was met with silence.“Are you there?” She was slurring her words now, which was embarrassing, so she took a deep breath. “Cam? Can you hear me?”“Yes, chickens aren’t sexy. Uh…I don’t think they’re meant to be.”

“I seem to remember sitting on a golden bench, and she started chattering about the sunset, or something. She seemed quite happy so I let her get on with it. Then she got hold of my hand and asked me what I was thinking about. So I said, "The treatment of anal fistulae".”