"You can deny it all you like," he replied, acting nonchalant. "That still doesn't make it not true." Sookie could be so stubborn, but on the occasion that it wasn't directed at him, he rather quite liked that quality.

"Good idea," he said, his voice husky as she leaned towards him just enough to tease. How very enticing of her. She was lucky that he was good at restraint. "Now you're just being cruel."

Her angry reaction had been somewhat expected - Sookie never liked to be left behind. Eric thought she sometimes forgot how vulnerable she was. How human she was. Despite her fairy ancestry, she was not exactly unbreakable. "It is a bad idea," he urged, clenching his teeth. "If he sees me as a threat, there's no guarantee he won't go after you as well. He could consider you an accomplice."