Demons of Good and Evil by Kim Harrison

            “Sounds good. Keep me in the loop.” Trent shifted to reach for his phone, frowning as he looked at the screen. The subtle tells that he was leaving vanished, and a stab of fear took me.

            “Is it Cassie?”

            “Ellasbeth.” Trent settled his backside against the dresser as he studied the screen. “I should take this.” And then louder, phone to his ear, “Good morning, Ellasbeth. Is the coffee shop going to work to drop off the girls tomorrow? It’s on the way to my appointment.”

            I flung the covers off and put my feet on the floor as the worry line in Trent’s forehead deepened. His appointment was actually a golfing date with Lee, and whereas I might have a problem with him playing golf when a militant Were was trying to abduct David, it was really two drug lords hashing out purity standards to everyone’s benefit. Inviting Lee to the coffee festival, ungodly early or not, had the same kernel of need, and I wondered if Trent might appreciate some added security. I loved Cincinnati’s annual coffee festival.

            “You agreed to take them,” he said, voice hard. “I made plans. Quen is engaged as well.”

            I tugged my robe on as I tried to listen in, but there was only a soft up and down of the prickly woman’s voice. That, and Trent’s pointy ears turning a rosy hue.

            “You agreed,” he said again, following it with “I’m not saying my work is more important than yours, I’m saying you made a commitment—” His words cut off as Ellasbeth interrupted, and he pinched the bridge of his nose. “I arranged something that requires Quen’s presence under the assumption that you would be caring for them.”

            Trent was not a stranger to the word no, but Ellasbeth seemed to enjoy saying it, and I winced when Ellasbeth’s voice became loud enough to hear.

            “I’m not able to schedule my time as freely as you, Trenton,” she said, hitting her faint Seattle accent hard as she was wont to do when feeling vulnerable. “I’m somewhat at the mercy of the university. I apologize, but I simply won’t take them tomorrow. I can’t walk into a meeting with two toddlers on my hips.”

            “But you think that I can?” Trent said, clearly angry, and my pulse quickened.

            “You are golfing with a college friend,” she said bitingly, and I winced.

            “I’ll watch them,” I said as I found my slippers, and Trent’s attention flicked up.

            “I’m meeting Lee at nine thirty. You aren’t even up then,” he said.

            Nine thirty? Save me from crepuscular elves. . . . “That’s okay,” I said, voice faint.

            Trent hesitated for half a heartbeat. “Rachel has offered to step in for you.”

            I forced a smile, cringing inside. Nine freaking thirty? I’d have to get up with the sun.

            “Rachel?” Ellasbeth’s voice had gone high. “You said she was fending off a militant werewolf. You will not endanger—”

            I lurched forward and grabbed Trent’s hand to bring the phone between us. “You got that right, Ellasbeth,” I said, my grip tightening when Trent tried to pull the phone away. “I can watch the girls for a few hours until Trent wraps up his purity standard meeting.”

            Trent yanked his phone back. “I’ll see you Saturday a.m., then, as usual. At the estate.”

            “Saturday,” Ellasbeth agreed, her voice tinny. “Please thank Rachel for me. I appreciate her being so accommodating.”

            Good God, can she be any more passive-aggressive? “I’ll take them to the cider mill,” I said, wondering if I could wrangle Jenks or Ivy into joining me for some added security. Ivy had a bittersweet relationship with kids, having the desire to have children but paralyzed with fear concerning their future. Being a vampire wasn’t much fun when you parsed it all out.

            Trent took a breath . . . only to let it out, his words unsaid. “She hung up,” he muttered as he glanced at his phone and tucked it into a pocket. “Rachel, I can’t thank you enough.”

            “It’s going to be fun,” I said, already dreading setting my alarm tonight. “We can pick out pumpkins and pet the rabbits.” I tugged him into a last hug and kiss, but his thoughts were clearly already with Lee and his meeting. As my lips met his, his grip on me went from casual to possessive. That fast, he was entirely in the room, the scent of snickerdoodles and wine rising between us. A little shiver rippled through me, and his breath caught.