"I do," Karla breathed. "A lot. But then..." She waved a hand at the rest of the room. Gabrielle was perched on Chaosti's knees, leaning back a little while he played with her hair. Aaron and Kalush were cuddled up on the loveseat, Kalush running her nails down his arm. Morghann and Khary were still at a slight distance from one another; with Morghann's Virgin Night approaching, they were being even more careful than usual. But the look they were sharing was almost as intimate as a kiss.

"It's a thing here," she explained. "You're kind of ruining my composure as you might have noticed. But it's not just how you look in face paint, as absolutely delicious as you do look in face paint."