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"You don&039;t like being a va to humor a lunatic

He shook his head, then dropped down onto the chair across from her "I didn&039;t want this life It was thrust upon ht washed across his irl&039;s ainst a wall, held his in Ramsey&039;s throat It had been Chiavari who had pulled Kristov off hih the other vampire&039;s heart Ramsey remembered no more after that until he woke in Chiavari&039;s ar him to drink from the cut in his wrist Chiavari&039;s voice had been soft yet co as a ed Drink your fillAnd Ra his depleted body with the accursed vampire blood until Chiavari jerked his arm away He remembered the confusion that followed, the horror he had felt when Marisa told hi him over, but it was Chiavari he bla if he would rather be dead, and his own sharp reply: Of course I would ! Now, as then, he wondered how he could feel the same and be so different

Stunned by what had happened that night, he had thanked Chiavari for saving his life, and then left the house Thanked hi hiht hihts were having on the girl, he cut the connection between hisback on the sofa, her eyes closed, her face drained of color

"Kelly, are you all right?" he asked "Kelly?"

Her eyelashes fluttered, and then her eyes opened She sat up slowly, looking at him as if she had never seen him before "You really are a vaame you play"

He nodded "Will you help me?"

"I can&039;t Not like that Not not kill you I&039;m sorry"

"Damn it, why not? I&039;ll make it worth your while"

"Because it&039;s murder"

"How can it be murder," he asked bitterly, "when I am already dead? Hell, there won&039;t even be a body if you drag rew even more pale

"I&039;m sorry," heher to do what he hi a a vampire?"

"I was born to hunt theenerations It wasAnd now" He laughed bitterly "Now I a And you ask if it&039;s awful?" He laughed again - a cold bitter sound, like leaves fluttering over a grave "You wanted to die when I found you Noant to die Perhaps we couldto even think of it And so are you Suicide is a sin My granny taught me that life was precious, and not to be wasted I I never thanked you for saving , she crossed the short distance between them, hesitated a moment, then bent down and kissed his cheek "Thank you"

He looked up, his gazehers "You&039;re welcome"

She smiled down at hih to kiss her, just once

Ramsey took a deep breath, afraid he was about tohe had been blessed with Chiavari&039;s innate char" When she started to speak, he held up his hand to silence her "Please, hear me out I know you&039;ve had a hard time lately, that you&039;ve been unhappy, and that you think you have nothing to live for"

"How do you know all that?" she demanded "Did you read my diary?"

"I read your mind"

She blinked at him, then sat down hard "You did what?"

"I read your mind when I took your blood"

"That&039;s terrible! How could you do such a despicable thing?"

He felt a sudden urge to laugh "Please, just listen I am about to make you a proposition"

"I already told you, I&039;, either"

"Damn it, woman, just listen!"

She made a face at him, then folded her hands in her lap "Go on"

"I want you to move in here with me Purely platonic," he added quickly

"You need a better place to live, and I I could use so the day I&039;ll make it worth your while It will only be for a few months Six at the most"

She shook her head "Thanks, but I don&039;t think so" She looked at hiarded him steadily for several moments "You don&039;t want a housekeeper; you want a companion, don&039;t you? Someone to keep you company in this mausoleum"

"Yes"

"How do I know I could trust you to behave?"

"You have hed out loud "What about your word as a variain? And that you&039;ll stay out of hts?"

"Yes"

"I must be out of my mind," she muttered "Totally, completely bonkers"

He leaned forward "Then you&039;ll stay?"

"For a week," she said "We&039;ll try it for a week"

"A ht about it for a ht One month" She tilted her head to one side "Do you sleep in a coffin?"

"No"

"I thought that wasonly Hollywood and old-world vampires are into"

"Where do you sleep, then?"

"In a roo hts, but he refrained fro so

"Okay," she said at last "I&039;ll move in tomorrow, if that&039;s okay with you Could you call ? It would probably get stolen before the engine cooled off"

He grunted softly He had never been particularly concerned about material possessions, probably because he&039;d never owned much more than a beat-up Chevy and the clothes on his back, but he was fond of the Porsche

He called for a cab, walked her to the door when it arrived, then stood there, watching her drive aondering if she would come back