Ivy looked up at me, her typing stilling as she recognized that something had shifted in the air. Face placid, she glanced at Jenks. The pixy's wings went red in agitation, and he flew to land on the cookie plate and demand my attention. "Marshal called," he said, as if it was the most important thing in the world. "You were in the can. He says he's bringing doughnuts over tomorrow for breakfast if you get out of your thing with Big Al."
"Okay," I said as I scratched Rex's jawline, remembering that Pierce hadn't been my first kiss. He'd been my first done-right kiss, though, and I smiled.
"Trent's coming with him," Jenks said, hands on his hips, "and Jonathan."
"That's nice." I stroked Rex, then brought her to my nose so I could smell her sweet kitty fur. "Such a good kitty," I crooned. "Such a clever kitty to know there is a ghost in the church."
Jenks set his wings to blurring, not moving an inch. "See?" he said to Ivy, appalled. "She likes him. Rachel, he's been spying on us! Start thinking with your head, huh?"
A flicker of annoyance went through me, but it was Ivy who said, "Jenks, get off it," in an almost bored tone. "He's not spying on us."
"But she likes him!" Jenks yelped, wings so fast that the bit of red tape finally flew off.
Ivy sighed, looking up first at Jenks, then at me. "This is Rachel we're talking about," she said with a smile. "I'd give it three months, tops."
"Yeah, but she can't kill this one," Jenks grumped.
That was in extremely bad taste, but I ignored him, just delighted to have the cat finally like me. "Don't you listen to them, Rexy," I cooed, and the cat sniffed my nose. "Rachel is a smart girl. She's not going to go out with a ghost no matter how sexy he is. She knows better. Jenkskie wenskie can just get bent." I beamed at Jenks, and he made an ugly face.
"Rache, put my cat down before you mess with her kitty brain."
Smiling, I let Rex puddle out of my arms and onto the floor. She rubbed against me, then sedately walked out. There was a cheering from the pixies up in the sanctuary, and her shadow slunk past the door to hide under the couch in the back living room.
The more agitated Jenks got, the more content I became. Smiling, I washed my hands and dropped a dozen cookies in a bag for Al, tying it with a little blue twist tie before setting them beside the scrying mirror. Seeing me getting ready, Ivy shut down her computer. "I'll get our coats," she said, and Jenks clattered his wings, angry he was going to be left behind.
"I'm doing this by myself," I said suddenly. "Thanks, though."
"Your aura is thin. Put us in a circle and do it here," Ivy said as she stood.
Putting them in a circle really didn't make them any safer. All Al had to do was shove me into it and it would fall. Same thing with standing in a circle with him. And putting Al in a circle alone wasn't going to happen—not since he'd started treating me like a person after I told him I wouldn't circle him anymore. Second-class person, but a person nevertheless.
"Why chance it?" I said, thinking of Jenks's kids. The demon might turn them into popcorn for all I knew. "You can watch from the windows." Coat…in the foyer. "It's not a big deal!" I shouted over my shoulder as I headed for the front door. My boots were there, too. It was four in the freaking morning, the coldest part of the day, and I was going to go sit in a graveyard and talk to Al. Ah-h-h, I love my life.
Ivy caught up with me as I shrugged into my coat. Grabbing my boots, I took a step, jerking back when I almost ran into her. "I'm coming with you," she said, eyes going dark.
I listened for Jenks's wings, and hearing nothing, I whispered, "Don't you dare make Jenks sit in here alone." She clenched her jaw, the brown rim of her eyes shrinking even more. I brushed past her and headed to the kitchen. "I'm just asking for a night off. It's not a big deal!"
"Then why don't you do it in here?" she yelled back, and I stopped at the head of the hall.
Ivy was standing by her piano. The soft glow lights on my desk made a spot of living green with pixies peeking from every nook. "Because I lost it the last time I thought you two were dead, and I'm not going to risk you if I don't have to." Ivy took a deep breath, and I turned away. "I'll be right back," I added as I paced into the kitchen.
Jenks was still atop Ivy's monitor, his wings a blur and his increased circulation making them a bright red. "Jenks, don't look at me like that," I muttered when I dropped my boots to put them on, and as my heels thumped into them, he turned his back on me. "Jenks…," I pleaded, stopping when his wings buzzed. "I'll be okay," I said, and he shifted his head at the harsh sound of my zipper going up.
"This is fairy crap!" he exclaimed, rising up and spinning around. "Green fairy crap—"
