“That's because I'm made of awesome."
"And dipped in awesome."
"And sprinkled with awesome."
"Gods, I love the taste of awesome.”
“The best way to spell victory? K-I-L-L.”
“When is your birthday?” (…)
Wide silver-gold eyes swung to him. “You don’t know?”
“No.”
Pouting, she twirled a strand of her hair. “How can you not know?”
“Do you know mine?” he asked.
“Of course I do. It’s the day you met me.”
“You are not Kaia the Disappointment. Do you hear me? That’s what I was trying to tell you earlier. You are Kaia the Mighty. How many Harpies out there do you think could have brought down the most badass Lord of the Underworld? The same Lord who also happens to be the strongest, sexiest and smartest. And by the way, in case there’s any doubt, I’m describing me.”
“When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?” (…)
A sigh of longing. “To be honest, I wanted to be ruler of the entire world. Or the ruler’s trophy wife.”
“We were just sitting on the bed, together, and you were just drinking from me, your mouth on my skin, and you didn't have any panties on?"
"You mean you didn't look?”
“Humans had a saying. Mess with the bull and get the horns. Well, Harpies had a saying, too. Mess with a Harpy and die.”
“I hate this Gladiator shit," Sabin muttered.
"Yes, well, where do you think the Romans learned from?"
Sabin sputtered for a minute. "You're trying to tell me Harpies are responsible for this? That the Romans learned from them?"
"I must try only if you are lacking intelligence.”
“She has the heart of a child, you know. Yeah, it's in a box beside her bed.
- Kaia Skyhawk”
“Any tips for winning?” she’d asked.
“Yeah. Do what you gotta do to survive.”
“That’s it? Wow. You suck at pep talks.”
“There was something so best-musical-ever when people screamed and begged for mercy, and she could listen to a good musical all day.”
“Your woman wears underwear out in public,”
Sabin said. “Must be nice. How’d you manage that
little miracle?”
“Only the Deity knows.”
“I plan to let Lysander rip the garment off me, make love to me in the dirtiest way possible, and then, while he’s trying to catch his breath, drop the big, bad bombshell on him and run like hell.
Bianka to Kaia”
“Tabitha blinked innocently. "Why is your consort speaking to me without my having addressed him first?" she asked Kaia. "Have you not taught him the proper order of things?"
So the little man wasn't supposed to speak to the women folk without an invitation? Screw that. "Just stay out of my head, Harpy, or I'll make sure you regret it. By the way, how's the leg?"
She hissed at him.
Win!”
“Speaking of, “When is your birthday?” Strider asked Kaia.
Wide silver-gold eyes swung to him. “You don’t know?”
“No.”
Pouting, she twirled a strand of her hair. “How can you not know?”
“Do you know mine?” he asked.
“Of course I do. It’s the day you met me.
As good a day as any. “No, it’s not, because that was a trick question, baby doll. I don’t actually have a birthday. I was created fully formed, not born.” True story.
“You can be such a moron.” She threw up her arms, exasperated. “Don’t argue with me about this kind of thing. I’ll always be right. Seriously. You were dead until you met me and we both know it. Which means I brought you to life. So, happy belated birthday.”
“I am made of awesome." Kaia the Wing Shredder”
“He willed his body to remain unaffected. Sabin would fuss if Strider sported a hard-on around his precious. And, of course, "fuss" meant Strider would find his intestines wrapped around his neck, breathing a thing of the past.”
“I would have been here sooner but Lysander held me prisoner in our cloud," Bianka said with a grin. "He wouldn't relent until Sabin gave the ok. Which I still don't understand and will continue to punish him for until he spills. Secrets or guts, I don't care which.”
“When I find my consort, I plan to stab him in the heart before he can cause me a moment's unease. -Taliyah”
“No.” He wouldn’t lie about that. Not to her. And not because she’d rip him to pieces when she discovered the truth. “I can’t give you forever.”
The nibbling increased in intensity, leaving a bead of blood in the center of her mouth. “Because we’re not a good match?”
Of course she would remember every insult he’d ever thrown at her. “Yes.”
“Then what can you give me?”
“Here. Now.” Something his body craved more with every second that passed.”
“But if anyone
so much as threatened them because of what Kaia
had once done, she would turn the Slumber Party
Massacre into Blood, Bath and Beyond, a
documentary by Kaia Skyhawk.”
“Ego Check. Damn it. How many would he need in one day?”
“University, he said quietly. It sounded like a dream; it tasted like damnation.”
“I recognized no obstacle to miraculous change but the incredulity of others. This was an idea that died hard, if it ever really died at all.”
“If she’d known what a good shot you are,” he whispered past the unfamiliar tightness in his throat, “she’d never have dared.” His hand lifted to her wet cheek, holding it pressed against his chest. “You could always call her out, you know.” The spasmodic shaking in Elizabeth’s slender shoulders began to subside, and Ian added with forced tightness, “Better yet, Robert should stand in for you. He’s not as fine a shot as you are, but he’s a hell of a lot faster…”
A teary giggle escaped the girl in his arms, and Ian continued, “On the other hand, if you’re holding the pistol, you’ll have some choices to make, and they’re not easy…”
When he didn’t say more, Elizabeth drew a shaky breath. “What choices?” she finally whispered against his chest after a moment.
“What to shoot, for one thing,” he joked, stroking her back. “Robert was wearing Hessians, so I had a tassel for a target. I suppose, though, you could always shoot the bow off Valerie’s gown.”
Elizabeth’s shoulders gave a lurch, and a choked laugh escaped her.
Overwhelmed with relief, Ian kept his left arm around her and gently took her chin between his forefinger and thumb, tipping her face up to his. Her magnificent eyes were still wet with tears, but a smile was trembling on her rosy lips. Teasingly, he continued, “A bow isn’t much of a challenge for an expert marksman like you. I suppose you could insist that she hold up an earring between her fingers so you could shoot that instead.”
The image was so absurd that Elizabeth chuckled.
Without being conscious of what he was doing, Ian moved his thumb from her chin to her lower lip, rubbing lightly against its inviting fullness. He finally realized what he was doing and stopped.
Elizabeth saw his jaw tighten. She drew a shuddering breath, sensing he’d been on the verge of kissing her, and had just decided not to do it. After the last shattering minutes, Elizabeth no longer knew who was friend or foe, she only knew she’d felt safe and secure in his arms, and at that moment his arms were already beginning to loosen, and his expression was turning aloof. Not certain what she was going to say or even what she wanted, she whispered a single, shaky word, filled with confusion and a plea for understanding, her green eyes searching his: “Please-“
Ian realized what she was asking for, but he responded with a questioning lift of his brows.
“I-“ she began, uncomfortably aware of the knowing look in his eyes.
“Yes?” he prompted.
“I don’t know-exactly,” she admitted. All she knew for certain was that, for just a few minutes more, she would have liked to be in his arms.
“Elizabeth, if you want to be kissed, all you have to do is put your lips on mine.”
“What!”
“You heard me.”
“Of all the arrogant-“
He shook his head in mild rebuke. “Spare me the maidenly protests. If you’re suddenly as curious as I am to find out if it was as good between us as it now seems in retrospect, then say so.” His own suggestion startled Ian, although having made it, he saw no great harm in exchanging a few kisses if that was what she wanted.”
“Being part of a secret is a great source of strength.”
“Love - true love - is a precious thing. It is painful, uncomfortable, makes fools of us all, but it is what breathes meaning and color and purpose into our lives.”
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