[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
Or had his own ill-considered words revealed her husband's betrayal? He'd be
delighted to see the ripe bastard shut out of the marriage bed, but Lynnea
didn't deserve having her heart trampled. And it didn't speak well of
Glorianna's heart that she would act the friend while helping herself to
another woman's husband. Which might be Sebastian's fault entirely, him being
the incubus and all.
Fool. You should have held your tongue and just done a little ill-wishing so
Sebastian would get what he deserved.
"Michael?"
At first glance, he thought the person coming into the kitchen behind Lynnea
was a feminine-faced bop, but the voice ...
"Caitlin?" He stepped around Sebastian and the other man. His little sister
was here, alive and well. "Caitlin Marie?"
He knew that particular smile, had looked for it each time he'd come home from
his wandering. Her smile of welcome.
He snatched her off her feet and hugged her hard, feeling laughter bubbling up
while tears stung his eyes. He set her down, and leaned back to get a good
look at her and assure himself that she was, indeed, well. Which is when the
little detail that had caused him to mistake her gender really registered.
"By the Light, girl! What did you do to your hair! You've cut it so short
people will be mistaking you for a boy."
"No, they won't," Teaser said, suddenly appearing in the doorway beside
Lynnea. "Not with a nice pair of tits like she's got."
Michael spun around, pushing Caitlin behind him. "And what business do you
have to be noticing her titties?"
Teaser shrugged. "I'm just saying."
Caitlin gave him a shove, which made him turn and stare at her. Raising her
chin, she said defiantly, "I don't want to look like a girl and I'm not
going to be any man's whore."
Before Michael could roar about that, someone grabbed his ear and tugged him
to a place at the kitchen table.
"Sit," an older, dark-haired woman said, ignoring his yelp when she gave his
ear another tug. "All this shouting over foolishness. And now you've got the
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ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
birds upset."
That's when he focused again on the room in general and realized the noise
filling the kitchen wasn't coming from anything human.
He sat long enough for her to release his ear. Then he popped up from his
chair, intending to give Caitlin Marie and Teaser a piece of his mind.
The dark-haired woman whacked him on the head with a wooden spoon. "Sit!" she
said. "You too, Sebastian. Lee. Teaser." Each name was accompanied by her
pointing to a chair. "Glorianna, you and Caitlin Marie need to talk, so you
girls go into the parlor. Lynnea, you go with them. And the rest of you be
quiet!"
In the hush that followed, Michael looked at Glorianna and recognized a woman
who was working up to being well and truly mad. He figured her anger was going
to be generously heaped on his head for making everyone aware of Sebastian's
infidelity, but he intended to do his best to see that the ripe bastard got a
fair share of it.
"I think the Magician and I need to discuss a few things and clear the air,"
Glorianna said.
"Mud wallow?" Lee asked.
"Lee!"
He hunched his shoulders when the older woman smacked the table with her
spoon. Then she looked at Glorianna. "And I think you need to speak to Caitlin
Marie. You may be a powerful Landscaper and a Guide of the Heart, but in this
house you are my daughter, and you will do as you're told."
The air snapped and crackled between the two women.
Lynnea put an arm around Caitlin's shoulders. "Let's go into the parlor like
Nadia asked." She and Caitlin disappeared into another room.
Glorianna hesitated for one more crackling moment, then followed them.
"You should be ashamed of yourselves," Nadia said, glaring at the men around
her kitchen table. "You're grown men and you're acting like ... like ..."
"Hooligans?" Michael suggested, giving Nadia his charming smile.
She whacked him on the shoulder. Apparently charm didn't work with the women
in this family.
"Hooligans," Nadia said. "I don't know what that means, but it sounds like the
way you're behaving. Yes. Hooligans."
"Thanks very much," Lee said dryly. "Now you've taught her another name to
call us when she's annoyed about something."
Nadia gave Lee a whack.
"He started it," Sebastian said, pointing at Michael. "Coming in here and
acting all pissy. Accusing me of being unfaithful and with my cousin no
less."
Cousin? Glorianna hadn't said anything about being Sebastian's cousin. In
fact, she ... No, a prick of jealousy had spurred his assumption that she was
defending a lover. But after making what he considered to be an honest
mistake, she had helped him down the wrong path by not correcting that
assumption. "She's got some brass to be blaming me," he muttered.
"That's enough," Nadia snapped. She gave each one of them the Stare. "You're
not little boys who can call each other names and waggle your privates at each
other."
"Trust me, Auntie," Sebastian said, "there's no one sitting at this table who
is interested in waggling his privates at another man."
"Sebastian Justicemaker." Sebastian winced.
Michael felt a foolish urge to stick out his tongue and say "Nyah, nyah," but
Nadia was standing next to him and beat his Aunt Brighid by a long arm when it
came to retaliating against male foolishness. He hadn't had anyone whack him
with a spoon since he was fifteen, and he'd figured he'd outgrown that stage
of his life.
Apparently not.
"As I said" Nadia gave each of them another dose of the Stare "you're not
little boys who can indulge in name-calling and taking pokes at one [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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Or had his own ill-considered words revealed her husband's betrayal? He'd be
delighted to see the ripe bastard shut out of the marriage bed, but Lynnea
didn't deserve having her heart trampled. And it didn't speak well of
Glorianna's heart that she would act the friend while helping herself to
another woman's husband. Which might be Sebastian's fault entirely, him being
the incubus and all.
Fool. You should have held your tongue and just done a little ill-wishing so
Sebastian would get what he deserved.
"Michael?"
At first glance, he thought the person coming into the kitchen behind Lynnea
was a feminine-faced bop, but the voice ...
"Caitlin?" He stepped around Sebastian and the other man. His little sister
was here, alive and well. "Caitlin Marie?"
He knew that particular smile, had looked for it each time he'd come home from
his wandering. Her smile of welcome.
He snatched her off her feet and hugged her hard, feeling laughter bubbling up
while tears stung his eyes. He set her down, and leaned back to get a good
look at her and assure himself that she was, indeed, well. Which is when the
little detail that had caused him to mistake her gender really registered.
"By the Light, girl! What did you do to your hair! You've cut it so short
people will be mistaking you for a boy."
"No, they won't," Teaser said, suddenly appearing in the doorway beside
Lynnea. "Not with a nice pair of tits like she's got."
Michael spun around, pushing Caitlin behind him. "And what business do you
have to be noticing her titties?"
Teaser shrugged. "I'm just saying."
Caitlin gave him a shove, which made him turn and stare at her. Raising her
chin, she said defiantly, "I don't want to look like a girl and I'm not
going to be any man's whore."
Before Michael could roar about that, someone grabbed his ear and tugged him
to a place at the kitchen table.
"Sit," an older, dark-haired woman said, ignoring his yelp when she gave his
ear another tug. "All this shouting over foolishness. And now you've got the
Page 91
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
birds upset."
That's when he focused again on the room in general and realized the noise
filling the kitchen wasn't coming from anything human.
He sat long enough for her to release his ear. Then he popped up from his
chair, intending to give Caitlin Marie and Teaser a piece of his mind.
The dark-haired woman whacked him on the head with a wooden spoon. "Sit!" she
said. "You too, Sebastian. Lee. Teaser." Each name was accompanied by her
pointing to a chair. "Glorianna, you and Caitlin Marie need to talk, so you
girls go into the parlor. Lynnea, you go with them. And the rest of you be
quiet!"
In the hush that followed, Michael looked at Glorianna and recognized a woman
who was working up to being well and truly mad. He figured her anger was going
to be generously heaped on his head for making everyone aware of Sebastian's
infidelity, but he intended to do his best to see that the ripe bastard got a
fair share of it.
"I think the Magician and I need to discuss a few things and clear the air,"
Glorianna said.
"Mud wallow?" Lee asked.
"Lee!"
He hunched his shoulders when the older woman smacked the table with her
spoon. Then she looked at Glorianna. "And I think you need to speak to Caitlin
Marie. You may be a powerful Landscaper and a Guide of the Heart, but in this
house you are my daughter, and you will do as you're told."
The air snapped and crackled between the two women.
Lynnea put an arm around Caitlin's shoulders. "Let's go into the parlor like
Nadia asked." She and Caitlin disappeared into another room.
Glorianna hesitated for one more crackling moment, then followed them.
"You should be ashamed of yourselves," Nadia said, glaring at the men around
her kitchen table. "You're grown men and you're acting like ... like ..."
"Hooligans?" Michael suggested, giving Nadia his charming smile.
She whacked him on the shoulder. Apparently charm didn't work with the women
in this family.
"Hooligans," Nadia said. "I don't know what that means, but it sounds like the
way you're behaving. Yes. Hooligans."
"Thanks very much," Lee said dryly. "Now you've taught her another name to
call us when she's annoyed about something."
Nadia gave Lee a whack.
"He started it," Sebastian said, pointing at Michael. "Coming in here and
acting all pissy. Accusing me of being unfaithful and with my cousin no
less."
Cousin? Glorianna hadn't said anything about being Sebastian's cousin. In
fact, she ... No, a prick of jealousy had spurred his assumption that she was
defending a lover. But after making what he considered to be an honest
mistake, she had helped him down the wrong path by not correcting that
assumption. "She's got some brass to be blaming me," he muttered.
"That's enough," Nadia snapped. She gave each one of them the Stare. "You're
not little boys who can call each other names and waggle your privates at each
other."
"Trust me, Auntie," Sebastian said, "there's no one sitting at this table who
is interested in waggling his privates at another man."
"Sebastian Justicemaker." Sebastian winced.
Michael felt a foolish urge to stick out his tongue and say "Nyah, nyah," but
Nadia was standing next to him and beat his Aunt Brighid by a long arm when it
came to retaliating against male foolishness. He hadn't had anyone whack him
with a spoon since he was fifteen, and he'd figured he'd outgrown that stage
of his life.
Apparently not.
"As I said" Nadia gave each of them another dose of the Stare "you're not
little boys who can indulge in name-calling and taking pokes at one [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]