"Shanna Swendson - Damsel under Stress" - читать интересную книгу автора (Swendson Shanna)

positively heartbroken. тАЬWhatever you think is best,тАЭ she said, her tone chilly, but with enough breaks in
her voice to make it clear that sheтАЩd put on the ice as a way of covering her hurt.

I couldnтАЩt stand to make an old womanтАФfairy godmother or otherwiseтАФcry. тАЬI suppose if it starts to
be a total disaster, then maybe I could give you a call.тАЭ

She brightened immediately. Her book disappeared, and a golden heart-shaped locket appeared in
her left hand. тАЬYou can contact me through this,тАЭ she said, handing it to me across the table. тАЬOpen it
when you need me. YouтАЩll know what to do from there.тАЭ And then before I could ask any questions, she
was gone, vanished into thin air, along with her tea set.

As I dropped the locket into my jacket pocket, I felt a gust of cold air and thought for a second that it
was an aftereffect of her vanishing spell, but then I realized the door had opened. I looked up and saw
Owen entering the coffee shop. I wasnтАЩt the only one gazing at him. He looked like a celebrity
heartthrob, he was so ridiculously handsome. I could practically hear the other patrons trying to
remember what movie theyтАЩd seen him in as he spotted me and hurried across the room to fall into the
seat Ethelinda had just vacated.

On this particular morning, he looked like something out of a paparazzi photo of a celebrity in his
off-hours. His nearly black hair was still slightly damp, as if from a shower, and it curled up a little around
his ears and at the back of his neck. There was a faint shadow on his strong jaw, and his dark blue eyes
were hidden behind wire-rimmed glasses.

I might have been put out that he hadnтАЩt made at least some effort on our first official date if he hadnтАЩt
appeared so flustered. тАЬSorry IтАЩm late,тАЭ he said, slightly out of breath. тАЬThereтАЩs been a bit of a crisis.тАЭ

тАЬWhat is it?тАЭ I asked, immediately concerned.

A paper cup bearing the shopтАЩs logo appeared between his hands, and he picked it up and took a
long sip. I noticed then that a similar cup had appeared in front of me, so I got a little caffeine into my
system while I waited for him to answer. Cups appearing out of nowhere were practically normal in my
life, especially around Owen, so IтАЩd long since gotten used to it.

тАЬAri got away last night,тАЭ he said at last, sounding like heтАЩd finally caught his breath and settled down
some. Ari was the wicked fairyтАФand my ex-friendтАФwhoтАЩd been helping our companyтАЩs enemy by
spying and sabotaging from within Magic, Spells, and Illusions, Inc., the company where both Owen and
I worked. WeтАЩd exposed her at the company party the night before, and sheтАЩd been taken into custody
by the company security forces.

тАЬHowтАЩd she escape?тАЭ I asked.

тАЬI donтАЩt know. But IтАЩm going to have to go to the office and see if I can detect any remnant traces of
spells that might have been used. IтАЩm sorry to have to bail on you like this.тАЭ

тАЬDonтАЩt worry about it,тАЭ I insisted. IтАЩd never been the type to stamp my feet and demand that a man
make me his number-one priority in life, so I certainly wasnтАЩt going to start now when my dateтАЩs other
priority happened to be saving the world from bad magic.

тАЬIтАЩll make it up to you,тАЭ he promised. Then he tilted his head and gave me a smile that would have
made me agreeable even if I had been throwing a hissy fit about his priorities. тАЬCare to walk me to the