Dad, she was irritating and demanding and presumptive, and it was kind of hot. It reminded Gabriel of Kali. Not that he let this on; rather, he just rolled his eyes again, tossed a few last chocolate chips in his mouth and rolled the bag back up again.

"Nope, unless you count the fact my body is one giant ache," he said glibly, then forced himself to his feet with a groan, trying to stretch to loosen his muscles. "So we heading across for a bit first, or straight up?"