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Hunting Humans For Sport? Eating Them?" The Bitterness In His Voice Cut Through Me. "yeah, I Caught That Part." "that Doesn't Have Anything To Do With You? He Lifted His Eyes, Gaze Shuttered. "no?" "not Unless Being A Werewolf Transforms You Into A Wolf And A Redneck Moron.

-Kelley Armstrong

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Hunting Humans For Sport?

Kelley Armstrong

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Hunting Humans For Sport? Eating Them?" The Bitterness In His Voice Cut Through Me. "yeah, I Caught That Part." "that Doesn't Have Anything To Do With You? He Lifted His Eyes, Gaze Shuttered. "no?" "not Unless Being A Werewolf Transforms You Into A Wolf And A Redneck Moron.

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And Stop Doing That,” He Said. “backing Away, Giving Me That Look.” Like You’re Scaring Me? Maybe You Are.” He Stepped Back So Fast He Wobbled And Caught Himself, And The Look On His Face—it Vanished In A Second, The Scowl Returning. I’d Never Hurt You, Chloe. You Should Know—” He Stopped. Paused. Then Wheeled And Started Walking Away. “next Time? Handle It Yourself. I’m Done Taking Care Of You.

Picture A Place Called The Karma Kafe And It'll Save Me The Bother Of Describing It. There Was Nothing In It You Wouldn't Expect, From The Buddha Flowerpots To The Wallpaper Decorated With Symbols That Probably Said, "if You Bought This Just Because It Looked Pretty, May Buddha Piss In Your Coffee, You Culturally Ignorant Moron.

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Yes You're Getting Your Tattoo." I Threw My Arms Around Dad's Neck. "thank You!" "hey," Mom Said. "i'm The One Who Had To Persuade Him It Wasn't Turning His Little Girl Into A Streetwalker." "i Never Said That," Dad Said. "no?" I Said. "cool. Cause I've Decided To Skip The Paw Print. I'm Thinking Of A Tramp Stamp With Flames That Says 'hot In Here.' No Wait. Arrows. For Directionally Challenged Guys

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I Called. Why Wasn't Anyone Here?"- Elena We Were Here." Clay Said. "around, Anyway. You Should Have Left A Message." I Did. Two Hours Ago." - Elena Well That Explains It. I've Been Out, By The Gate All Day, Waiting For You, And You Know Jer Never Checks The Machine."- Clayton I Didn't Know How Clay Had Known I Was Coming Back Today When I Hadn't Left A Message. Nor Did I Question Why He'd Spent The Entire Day Waiting At The Gate. Clay's Behavior Couldn't Be Measured By Human Standard's Of Normalcy... Or By Any Standards Of Normalcy At All. Bitten

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And The Bad Guys Love To Pick On The Defenseless Necromancer. This Time, Though, I Swear I Won’t Get Kidnapped Or Possessed. ~jaime Vegas

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Derek Caught My Arm Again As I Started To Move--at This Rate, It Was Going To Be As Sore As My Injured One. "dog," He Said, Jerking His Chin Toward The Fenced Yard. "it Was Inside Earlier." Expecting To See A Doberman Slavering At The Fence, I Followed His Gaze To A Little Puff Of White Fur, The Kind Of Dog Women Stick In Their Purses. It Wasn't Even Barking, Just Staring At Us, Dancing In Place. "oh, My God! It's A Killer Pomeranian." I Glanced Up At Derek. "it's A Tough Call, But I Think You Can Take Him.

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He Lifted His Brows. "if I Really Thought It Was The Absolute Best Thing For Our Kids, You'd Have Had A Battle On Your Hands. That Was Just A Debate." "with Chair-throwing." "heated Debate. Fights Involve Chair-breaking. Chair-throwing Is Just Getting Your Attention.

I Hear Voices. A Shout. A Laugh. Clay's Laugh. I Strained To See Through The Night. Fog Had Rolled In From Lake Ontario, But I Could Hear Him Laughing. The Concrete Turned To Grass. The Fog Wasn't From The Lake, But From A Pond. Our Pond. I Was At Stonehaven, Bounding Through The Back Acres. Clay Was Running Ahead Of Me.

We'll Meet You Here. Hopefully Everyone Will Be In Human Form." A Wry Smile. "though I'll Warn You, He's Not A Whole Lot More Pleasant That Way. At Least As A Wolf, He Can't Talk.

When Rae Got Back, She Spread Her Empty Hands Wide And Said "okay, Guess Where I Hid It." She Even Turned Around For Me, But I Couldn't See A Bulge Big Enough To Hide A Flashlight. With A Grin, She Reached Down The Front Of Her Shirt Into The Middle Of Her Bra, And Pulled Out A Flashlight With Flourish. I Laughed. "cleavage Is Great," She Said. "like An Extra Pocket.

Wish All My Corpses Would Do That.

The Upshot Of Her Tirade Was That I Was The Devil's Spawn And Should Be Locked Up In A Tower Before I Unleashed Hordes Of The Living Dead To Slaughter Them All In Their Sleep. Well, Maybe That's An Exaggeration, But Not By Much.

I Let Out A Laugh That Sounded More Like The Yip Of A Startled Poodle. "superp-powers? I Wish. My Powers Aren't Winning Me A Slot On The Cartoon Network Anytime Soon... Except As A Comic Relief. Ghost Whisperer Junior. Or Ghost Screamer, More Like It. Tune In, Every Week, As Chloe Saunders Runs Screaming From Yet Another Ghost Looking For Her Help." Okay, Superpower Might Be Pushing It.

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I Was Very Strict On That Point. No Devouring Classmates." Jeremy Rolled His Eyes. "other Parents Warn Their Kids Not To Talk To Strangers. I Had To Warn Mine Not To Eat Them.

There Are Just As Many Bitches Out There As Bastards. Equal Opportunity Asshole-ism.

Isn't It Possible That I'm Not Feigning Interest? That I Really Do Want To Know More About You?" "you've Never Been Interested In Me Before." "you've Never Been Interesting Before." -cassandra And Paige

...in Some Ways I Relied On That- Someone To Keep Me Thinking, Keep Me Striving To Do Better, Keep Me From Burying My Head And Praying It All Worked Out.

I Saw My True Power. The Darkest Power. The Greatest Power. ~jaime Vegas

Demon, Angel, All The Same Thing If You Go Back Far Enough, Or Cut Deep Enough.

I Let Her Through. She Checked Derek's Pulse And His Breathing, Saying Both Seemed Okay, Then Leaned Down To His Face. "nothing Weird On His Breath. Smells . . . Like Toothpaste." Derek's Eyes Opened, And The First Thing He Saw Was Tori's Face Inches From His. He Jumped And Let Out An Oath. Simon Cracked Up. I Madly Motioned For Him To Be Quiet. "are You Okay?" I Asked Derek. "he Is Now," Simon Said. "after Tori Jump-started His Heart.

At School, Our Classroom Had A Small Rodent Zoo Consisting Of Two Rabbits, Three Hamsters, A Litter Of Baby Gerbils And A Guinea Pig. At First, I’d Thought The Teacher Was Raising Snack Food, Which Impressed Me, Being The First Sign Of Intelligence She’d Shown. Soon, Though, I’d Figured Out The Animals’ True Purpose And Left Them Alone, Though I Would Never Understand The Appeal Of Petting And Coddling Perfectly Good Food.

Then He Reached Up And Tore My Shirtfront Open. "not Much To See, Is There?" I Said, Struggling To Talk With A Crushed Windpipe. "i Know, I Know, They Can Fix Things Like That These Days. Call Me A Feminist, But I Think A Woman's Worth Should Be Defined Not By The Size Of Her Bust, But - " I Rammed My Fist Up Into His Adam's Apple. He Grunted And Stumbled Back. "- By The Strength Of Her Right Hook.

Nothing Screws Up A Séance Like The Appearance Of A Real Ghost. ~jaime Vegas

Tori Joined Us For Dinner --in Body, At Least. She Spent The Meal Practicing For A Role In The Next Zombie Movie, Expressionless, Methodically Moving Fork To Mouth, Sometimes Even With Food On It.

The Rottweiler Stood His Ground And Waited For Me To Take The Next Step In The Dance Of Ritualized Intimidation. Instead, I Leaped At Him. Screw Ritual. Now Was Not The Time To Stand On Ceremony.

One Second He Was In My Face, Making Me Feel Stupid And Useless. The Next He Was Like This: Hovering, Concerned, Worried.

He Looked At Me. " I Do Know How To Deal With Demons, Savannah." "i Know. Sorry." "so I Get A Hug?" "no, But I Won't Smack You, And We'll Call It Even.

Clearly It Was Time To Consider Rescheduling That Optometrist Appointment I'd Missed Last Fall.

I Leaned Forward And Kissed Him. His Eyes Widened, Then His Lips Parted And He Kissed Me Back, Mouth Warm And Firm Against Mine And That Floating Feeling Washed Over Me And Through Me, And It Was So Amazing That When It Ended, I Just Stayed There, My Face So Close To His I Could Feel His Breath, See Those Incredible Amber Eyes, And That Was All I Could See, All I Wanted To See.

The Stairs Aren't Challenging Enough Anymore?" He Asked. Antonio Laughed. "challenge Has Nothing To Do With It, Jer. I'd Say It's The Big Bad Wolf Huffing And Puffing At Her Door Up There.

Believe Me, I Have Better Things To Do Than Sabotage Your Friendships. No One Else's World Revolves Around You, Cassandra." -paige To Cassandra

Sometimes Humans Hit On A Moment Of Profundity More Complete Than Their Dim Minds Could Comprehend, And They Took That Nugget Of Truth And Dumped It In The Refuse For The Bards And The Poets To Find, And Mangle Into Yodeling Paeans Of Love.

He Looked Like A Yanni Fan At An Iron Maiden Concert.

He Wore Sweatpants And A T-shirt And Had Stopped In The Middle Of The Hall, Furiously Scratching One Bare Forearm. "fleas?" I Said.

Rafe Grinned. "so We Are Dating?" "no. You Have To Pass The Parental Exam First. It'll Take You Awhile To Compile The Data. They'd Like It In Triplicate." I Turned To My Parents. "we Have Kenji. We Have My Cell Phone. Since We Aren't Officially Dating, I'm Sure You'll Agree That's All The Protection We Need." Dad Chocked On His Coffee.

How Long Could We Do This Before You Started Bitching?" Simon Said As We Turned Down Another Street Of Apartment Buildings. "what?" "we've Been Walking For Two Days Now, And You Haven't Complained Once. It's Damned Annoying, You Know." I Looked At Him. "if You Don't Complain, Then I Can't Complain. Not Without Sounding Like A Whiny Little Snot.

And Unless I'm Remembering It Wrong, Mermaids Don't Sing And Sirens Don't Swim." "ariel Sang In 'the Little Mermaid'," Corey Said. Sam Came Over To Join Us. "do I Even Want To Know Why You Remember Her Name?

That's What Being Crazy Was, Wasn't It? You Thought You Were Fine. Everyone Else Knew Better.

We Have Kenjii. We Have My Cell Phone. Since We Aren't Officially Dating, I'm Sure You'll Agree That's All The Protection We Need.

His Cheek Twitched. With Jeremy, This Was The Equivalent Of An Emotional Outburst.

Emotional Outbursts

How'd You Communicate?" "paper And Pen. Amazing Inventions. Anyway, Once We Were In Buffalo, I Led Him Here. We Couldn't Figure Out A Way In And He Got Stressed And Apparently That" -- She Waved At Him--- "is What Happens When A Werewolf Gets Stressed. By Then, The Garage Door Was Open, Some Staff Guy Bringing In A Car. He Took One Look At Derek And Decided It Was Time For A New Job

Hunting Humans For Sport? Eating Them?" The Bitterness In His Voice Cut Through Me. "yeah, I Caught That Part." "that Doesn't Have Anything To Do With You? He Lifted His Eyes, Gaze Shuttered. "no?" "not Unless Being A Werewolf Transforms You Into A Wolf And A Redneck Moron.

His Gaze Travelled Down Me, Then Zipped Back To My Face. "sorry." "focus, Rafe." "i Am. Just On The Wrong Thing.

If There's Anything I Can Do- I Know There Probably Isn't, But..." Just Be Here

There Was No Closing My Eyes And Sliding Back Into That Blissful Dream Of Normal. This Was My Normal Now.

This Is The First Adventure I’ve Survived Without Being Kidnapped, Attacked, Knocked Unconscious Or Possessed By Evil Spirits. A Ripped Blouse? Ruined Skirt? Bad Hair? I’d Call This Progress. ~jaime Vegas

Bigger Room, Darling. Like I Said, We Need A Bigger Room.

Yes, I Can Talk And Think At The Same Time. Most People Can, Though I Suppose You Wouldn't Know That From Personal Experience. Elena (bitten)

You Wanna Fight?" I Asked. He Looked Up At Me And, For Just A Second, Hesitated, Then Said, "yeah. I Do." "well, I'll Save You The Trouble. You Win.

Did You Use A Chainsaw?" Joey Said. "i Seem To Recall You Like Chainsawa." "there Wasn't A Power Outlet." Clay Turned To Me. "that's What I Want For Father's Day, Darling. A Gas Powered Chainsaw.

I Must Have Been Sound Asleep If I Missed All That Shouting-simon What Shouting?-derek You Mean That Chole Just Told You She Followed A Ghost Onto A Roof, And You Didnt Blast Her All The Way To Canada?-simon He's A Little Off This Morning-chole More Than A Little I'll Say.-simon

I Was...a Journalist...though My Typical Beat Was Freelancing Articles On Canadian Politics, Which Never Included Any Mention Of Demonic Phenomena, Though It Might Explain The Rise Of The Neoconservatives.

Yes," I Said "you Were Saved By A Girl. Horrible, Isn't It?" He Slid Out And Looked Down At My Bare Legs. "not Just A Girl, But A Half-naked One. Now That's Hot. If I'm Still Unconscious, Don't Wake Me, Okay?

Elena?" "yes, Unless Nick Found A Woman In The Forest, Which I Suppose Wouldn't Be Too Surprising.

I Don't Read Much Of What I Write Because I Worry About Unintentionally Borrowing Something.

I Slid Closer, Feeling His Arms Close Around Me, Tightening. Our Lips Touched-- "derek?" His Dad Called. "chloe?" Derek Let Out A Growl. I Laughed And Backed Up. "we Seem To Get A Lot Of That, Don't We?" I Said. "too Much. After We Eat, We're Going For A Walk. A Long Walk. Far From Every Possible Interruption." I Grinned Up At Him. "sounds Like A Plan

What's This?" Nick Said. "bedtime?" No One Answered Him. I Kept My Eyes Closed. You Look Positively Content, Clayton," Nick Continued, Thumping Down On The Floor. "that Wouldn't Have Anything To Do With The Fact That Elena Is Cuddled Up With You, Is It?" It's Cold In Here," I Murmured. Doesn't Feel Cold." It's Cold," Clay Growled. I Could Start A Fire." I Could Start One Too," Clay Said. "with Your Clothes. Before You Get Them Off.

Jeremy Had A Plan For Getting Clay Back And I Wasn't Allowed To Know Anything About It Or Allowed To Help Him Carry It Out. As One Might Expect, I Accepted This News With Grace And Understanding. "that Is The Stupidest Idea I've Ever Heard!" I Snarled For The Dozenth Time That Hour. "i Won't Just Sit Here And Do Nothing.

Maybe I'm Being Selfish, But I Choose You." He Leaned Over, Lips Brushing Mine As He Whispered, "i Always Choose You.

On That Walk Around The Building, Two Sets Of Cops Coming Out Stopped To Tell Our Guys To Hustle Us Inside So They Could Head Back Out On The Road. Accidents Everywhere. A Pileup On Each Of Two Major Roads. “welcome To Winter,” One Said. “when Fifty Percent Of Drivers Should Have Their Licenses Temporarily Suspended.

I Understand That I May Make Mistakes With Characters Who Don't Share My Own Background, But I Commit To Doing My Best.

What Am I? Let's Just Say I Won't Fetch A Stick For You. I Won't Beg For Treats. And, No Matter How Nicely You Ask, I Will Not Roll Over And Play Dead.

All I Could Think About Was Him, And How Much I Wanted This, And How Incredibly Lucky I Was To Get It, And How Tight I Was Going To Hold Onto It.

First You Buy Me A Mocha. Then You Let Me Help You Hide A Body. Now You Take Me To A Biker Clubhouse. Best. Day. Ever.

Was It A Camp?" Daniel Asked. Sean Nodded. "a Naturist Camp." "maya Will Feel Right At Home", Corey Said From His Spot On A Wooden Lawn Chair. Daniel Sputtered A Laugh And Sean Tried To Hide His. "naturist, Not Naturalist," I Said. "it Means Nudist." Corey Leaped Up And Spun. "you Mean Old, Naked Butts Sat On Those Chairs?

I Want You To Have Big Dreams, Big Goals. I Want You To Strive To Achieve Them. But I Don't Want To See You Beating Yourself Up Every Time You Make A Mistake.

Missing Someone

Chloe? It's Me." After A Pause, He Added, "derek," Like I Could Mistake That Deep Rumble For Anyone Else, Like I Could Mistake That Little Part Of Me That Perked Up Like An Eager Puppy Saying, "it's Him. Quick! Go See What He Wants." God, How Had I Been So Blind? It Seemed So Obvious Now.

A Stereotype Becomes A Stereotype When A Significant Percentage Of The Population Appears To Conform To It.

Kids Who Don't Eavesdrop On Adult Conversations Are Doomed To A Childhood Of Ignorance.

I Called Clay From The Suv. "how'd It Go At The Paper?" He Asked. "she Called Me Perky." "ouch.

I'd Always Thought Of Myself As An Open-minded Person. I Had No Patience With Anyone Who Put Down Other Kids Because Of Their Race, Religion, Or Sexuality. But That's Just One Kind Of Open-mindedness. There's Another Kind, Too, The Kind That's Willing To See People For Who They Really Are And Admit When You Were Wrong About Them. That's The Part I Still Need To Work On.

Maybe My Expectations For Honesty Are Too High.

Dearly Departed, Scarcely Lamented, Deeply Demented.

Einstein Theorized That Time Travel Was Possible, But He Was Looking At It As Unidirectional, Going Forward. Traveling Into The Past Is Much More Problematic, As Countless Stories Have Demonstrated!

Young Writers Need To Be Encouraged To Write - Just Write - With No Restrictions On Form, Style Or Content.

One Of The First Lessons A Necromancer Learns Is The Art Of Playing Dumb. Of Course, One Problem With Playing Dumb Is That Is Seeps Into Your Everyday Life. ~jaime Vegas

I'm Behind You." I Spun To See Derek. "i Can't Win," He Said. "you're As Skittish As A Kitten.

Undying Grattitude?" Simon Looked At Me. " Cool. Dosethat Come With Eternal Servitude? If So, I Like My Eggs Sunnyside Up." I Smiled," I'll Remember That.

What's The Woman Doing There?" He Asked. "covering A Scratch On The Hood. She Was Cheaper Than A New Paint Job." He Flipped Through A Few More Pages Of Barely Dressed Women And Classic Cars. "nick Used To Have Magazines Like This When We Were Kids. But Without The Cars." He Rotated A Photo Sideways. "or The Bathing Suits.

Before We Left Town, Antonio Pulled Into A Strip Mall And Went In To Get Subs And Salads, Leaving Clay And Me Half Naked And Bleeding In The Car, And Cain Unconscious In The Trunk. No Wonder I Was Anxious To Get Back To Toronto. Spend Too Much Time Around These Guys And You Become A Little Too Nonchalent About Blood-soaked Clothes And Bodies In The Trunk

Nuh-uh. No Deals With The Devil. I’ve Learned My Lesson On That One. ~jaime Vegas

The Truth Is, If A Werewolf Behaved Like This Psychopath It Wouldn't Be Because He Was Part Animal, But Because He Was Still Too Human. Only Humans Kill For Sport.

So I Was Right, Wasn't I? It's Still You, Even In Wolf Form.' He Grunted. No Sudden Uncontrollable Urges To Go Kill Something?' He Rolled His Eyes. Hey, You're The One Who Was Worried.' I Paused. 'and I Don't Smell Like Dinner, Right?' I Got A Real Look For That One. Just Covering All The Bases.

When I Leaned A Little Too Close To The Doorway, My Inner Voice Piped Up, Telling Me Not To Be Stupid. The Guy With The Bionic Senses Was Better Equipped For This.

What's Next? If There Are Vampires In There, They Probably Drink Artificial Blood Plasma Substitute.

There Are Risks You'll Take For Yourself Because You Know That If Your Plan Goes Wrong, It'll Be Too Late For Regrets. But If You Risk The Lives Of Others And Fail, You'll Have A Lifetime To Regret It.

But Was It Wrong To Put Yourself First? That’s Called Survival, Right? If You’re Running For Your Life, You Don’t Get The Luxury Of Being Nice. They Were Going To Learn That. It’s Fine To Wave The Pompoms For Teamwork—all For One And One For All—but When Push Came To Shove, These Guys Wouldn’t Be Risking Their Lives For Chloe, Maybe Not Even For Each Other. I Was Sure Of It. Once Things Got Worse, It Would Be Every Kid For Himself. It Always Is.

Oddly Enough, I Find The Best Hostages Are The Live Ones. - Karl

He Was Tall And Scrawny With A Face That Could Be Mistaken With Keith Richards On A Bad Day.

We Had One Gun, One Werewolf, One Poltergeist, One Supercharged Spell-caster, One Not-so-supercharged Spell-caster, And One Perfectly Useless Necromancer, Though Liz Was Quick To Remind Me That She Needed Me To Relay Her Words. - Chloe

Speaking Of Death, Leblanc Boasted He Could Kill Me In The Waiting Room. I Broke His Wrist. He Wasn't Impressed.

He Obviously Needed More Practice, But No Matter How Often I Abandoned Him Out There, His Sense Of Direction Never Seemed To Improve.

I Remember Hearing Myself Start To Whimper, A Five-year-old, Crouched By The Side Of The Road, Staring Into My Father's Eyes, Whimpering Because It Was So Dark And There Was No One Coming To Help, Whimpering Because My Mother Was Back In The Crushed Car, Not Moving, And My Father Was Lying Here In The Dirt, Not Answering Me, Not Holding Me, Not Comforting Me, Not Helping My Mother Get Out Of The Car, And There Was Blood, So Much Blood, And Broken Glass Everywhere, And It Was So Dark And So Cold And No One Was Coming To Help.

Where's Simon?"..."is He Okay? Why Isn't He Here?" She Glared At Derek. "where'd You Leave Him?" Passed Out In An Alley." Derek Frowned In Thought. "not Sure Where, Though.

Uh-uh" Clay Drawled Above Me, "elena's Played With You Long Enough, Its My Turn

Who Cared Whether You Could Change Motor Oil When You Could Snap A Rottweiler’s Neck In 2.8 Seconds? Now There Was A Practical Skill.

The Part About Me Being An 'okay Sorcerer'? 'not Great'? No I Believe I Missed That. -lucas Cortez (dime Store Magic)

I'm Just Saying It's Not Time For That Either. We Need To Focus And Having Maya Moon Over Rafe Is Making Everyone Uncomfortable." Rafe Grinned. "doesn't Bother Me.

Some Women Just Aren’t Cut Out To Be Mothers, And Unfortunately It Had Taken Susanna Three Kids To Realize She Was One Of Them.

He Glanced Down At The Blood-smeared Cut On His Side...and Realized He Wasn't Wearing Any Clothing. I'd Be Lying If I Said I Hadn't Realized It Already. Kind Of Obvious. It Wasn't Like He'd Been Going To Take Time Out To Find His Clothing Before Stopping Liam.

Derek? Derek!-chole Chole! What Are You Doing Out Here? I Said We Will Check It Out Later. Key Word We-derek Oh, Yeah I Decided To Come Out On My Own. Thats Why I Was Calling Your Name Repeatively- Chole

Never Go Easy On Allies If You Ahve To Take Them Down. Especially Allies. You’re Already Fighting The Urge Not To Hurt Them. Counteract That And Hit Them With Everything You’ve Got.

God, I Loved Him. I Could Insist I Was Okay With Just Being Friends, That I'd Find Someone Else And Get Over Him, But I Was Fooling Myself. There Was No Getting Past This. I Loved Him, And Fifty Years From Now We Could Be Married To Other People, Never Exchanged So Much As A Kiss, And I'd Still Looking Into His Eyes And Know He Was The One. He'd Always Be The One.

Last Time I Was Sick, The Guy I Was Seeing Brought Me A Bottle Of Ginger Ale… And Expected Me To Pay Him Back For It. ~jaime Vegas

The Secretary Moved In To Block Simon As I Followed Thierry Into The Office. As The Door Closed, I Heard Her Whisper, "i Think It's Very Sweet, You Sticking Up For Your Brother Like That." "i'm Not Trying To Be Sweet," Simon Said, Raising His Voice So Thierry Could Hear. "i'm Trying To Be Fair. But Apparently No One's Interested In That.

Don't Talk To The Crazy Kids. I Longed To Shout Back That We Weren't Crazy. I'd Mistaken Her Kid For A Ghost, That's All. I Wondered Whether They Had Books About His Sort Of Thing. Fifty Ways To Tell The Living From The Dead Before You Wind Up In A Padded Room. Yep, I'm Sure The Library Carried That One.

It Reminded Me Of What Dad Said After Every Snail’s Crawl Home From Albany When Snow Hit.“it’s New York, People. It’s Winter. We Get Snow. If You Aren’t Prepared To Deal With It, Move To Miami.

And The Lesson Is That I Should Always Wear These, So No One Asks Me To Do Anything Crazy Like Climb Onto A Roof. ~jaime Vegas On Why She Wears Three Inch Heels On A Mission

He Said "cool" Like I Say A Spanish Word When I'm Not Sure Of The Pronunciation.

Do You Like Manga?" She Asked After A Minute. "anime?" "anime's Cool. I'm Not Really Into It, But 1 Like Japanese Movies, Animated Or Not." "well, I'm Into It. I Watch The Shows, Read The Books, Chat On The Boards, And All That. But This Girl I Know, She's Completely Into It. She Spends Most Of Her Allowance On The Books And Dvds. She Can Recite Dialogue From Them." She Caught My Gaze. "so Would You Say She Belongs Here?" "no. Most Kids Are That Way About Something, Right? With Me, It's Movies. Like Knowing Who Directed A Sci-fi Movie Made Before I Was Born.

She's Useful To Me, I'm Useful To Her. As Long As That Continues, Rowan Street Is Safe From An Old-lady Smack Down Of Epic Proportions.

Bingo Pup. It's A Lesson Best Learned Early. They're All Afraid Of Us." He Strolled Over To Derek. "you're Trying To Be A Good Kid, Aren't You? You Think That'll Show Them They're Wrong. So How'd That Working Out For You? Guess What? They Don't Care. To Them, You're A Monster, And Nothing You Do--or Don't Do--will Change Their Minds. My Advice? Give 'em What They Want. It's A Short, Brutal Life." He Smiled. "live It Up." Derek Stared Straight Ahead, Patiently Waiting. "he Can't Hear A Word I'm Saying, Can He?" Liam Said. "nope.

Oh, My God! It's A Killer Pomeranian." I Glanced Up At Derek. "it's A Tough Call, But I Think You Can Take Him.

Simon Had Drawn Three Pictures. In The Top Left Corner, Like A Salutation, Was A Ghost. The Middle Had A Big Sketch Of Arnold Schwarzenegger As The Terminator. The Third In Place Of A Signature, Was A Lightning Bolt Surrounded By Fog. Beside The Drawing, Someone Had Scrawled In Inch-high Letters 10 A.m. Tori Snatched It From Me And Turned It Over. "so Where's The Message?" "right There." I Pointed From Picture To Picture. "it Says: Chloe, I'll Be Back, Simon.

Simon's Walls Were Covered In What Looked Like Pages Ripped From A Comic Book, But When I Squinted, I Realized They Were Hand Drawn. Some Were Black-and-white, But Most Were In Full Color, Everything From Character Sketches To Splash Panels To Full Pages, Done In A Style That Wasn't Quite Manga, Wasn't Quite Comic Book.

To Distract Myself From Thoughts Of My Father, I Decided To Check Out The Dead Body.

Urban Survival Rule 22: Never Annoy An Armed Man.

Rafe Didn't Just Flirt-he Charmed Girls Right Up To The Point Where They Fell For Him, Then He Changed His Mind.i Called Him A Player With Attention Deficit Disorder.

When Liam Stepped Forward Again, Derek's Arm Shot Around Me , A Growl Vibrating Up From His Stomach. Liam Put His Hand Out Toward Me. When Derek Tensed He Pilled Back, Then Did It Again, Testing His Reaction, Laughing When He Got One, Untill Even Ramone Started To Laugh. "check This Out," Liam Said. "i Think The Pup's Got Himself A Mate. Isn't That The Cutest Thing?

You're Crying?" He Said. "no, I- " I Tore My Gaze Away. "just Dust. From The Path. Simon's That Way." I Tried To Pass Him, But He Stooped, Trying To Get A Loom Of My Face. When I Wouldn't Let Him, He Caught My Chin. I Jerked Back, Flinching At His Touch, Heart Thudding At It, Too. I Told Myself Simon Was Wrong. I'd Never Be Dumb Enough To Fall For Derek. But I Had. With Him So Close, My Stomach Kept Doing Weird Flips. It Wasn't Fear. It Hadn't Been Fear For Awhile. "you Have Been Crying," He Said, Voice Softer.

I Could Shave My Head And Wear A Sackcloth And Still Get A Whole Lot Of Ghostly Wrong Numbers. Makes Me Wonder If There’s Some Kind Of Ghost-necro Porn Industry Down There. ~jaime Vegas

We’re Not Naked, We’re Skyclad!

Ooh, Big Day In Town For Our Park Warden,” I Said. “they’re Even Making You Wear The Uniform. Hayley’s Mom Will Be Happy. She Thinks You Look Hot In It.” Dad Turned As Red As His Hair. Mom’s Laugh Floated Out From Her Studio. “maya Delaney. Leave Your Father Alone.

He Had A Newspaper Rolled In His Hand, Bearing Down On Me Like A Puppy That Had Piddled On The Carpet. "bad Chloe,” I Muttered. "what?” I’d Forgotten His Bionic Hearing. “bad Chloe.” I Gestured At The Rolled-up Paper And Put Out My Hand. “get It Over With.

I'd Seen More Cops In The Last Few Days Than On A Weekend Law And Order Marathon" - Paigne Winterbourne

Using Supernatural Beings To Build The Perfect Weapon? Intriguing Idea." "not Really," I Said. "they Did It On Buffy The Vampire Slayer. A Sub-par Season. I Slept Through Half The Episodes.

Supernatural Beings

Here I Had A Wonderful Man Who Cared For Me And I Was Screwing Around With A Self-absorbed, Conniving Monster Who'd Betrayed Me In The Worst Possible Way.

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