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She’d noted Mal’s penchant at hoht So to the cats calling across the island during their nocturnal wanderings She thought of his childhood, how he’d run away, but they’d caught hiain, and locked him up

The covers were half-off of him, his upper body twisted so his back was to her The sheet was low enough she could see his hip, the rise of a buttock, for he slept naked, God bless every fine inch of hiot the chance to ogle without interruption, though she kneake--e her

Given everything she’d learned about predators, if not for their aversion to light, vah invulnerable, at the top of the food chain No wonder they preferred to keep their existence a secret froions of va daylight, when ones like Mal eakest

She didn’t like that thought But then so she hadn’t considered before That was one of the reasons a vampire had a full servant, her senses enhanced so that she could hear the movement of household staff on the upper and lower floors, could scent the lingering traces of anyone who’d passed by this rooht of herself as anyone’s protector, certainly not a formidable vampire, but she’d been equipped to be just that Well, protector was a little strong More like a s, one ould , if ever his senses were thrown off

"Yappy guard dog? Like one of those fuzzy ht?"

"Those fuzzyto Nadia’sfor Lord Marshall, because she’s a very accomplished bookkeeper and secretary She’s nother here anyway after Nadia lost her third baby"

Mal rolled over then, raising a brow "You could have been an intelligence operative during the War"

"Who says I wasn’t?" She struck an exotic pose at the door "Don’t I look like Mata Hari? Her maid, at least Or her maid’s maid"

The skin around his eyes creased with a sirl who needs a spanking And you would have been barely out of short skirts during the War Come here"

She considered his near nakedness, too well hidden by the blanket now that he’d turned over He’d been so serious in the car, so one, but she thought she could drive theet far ure that?" His brow arched, his eyes taking on that wicked glint her body recognized, already war after me, which means you’ll have to juirl has to get her thrills where she can That’s what Danny always says Or at least she said it when she caughtup behind the house, because he’d spent a day in the bush and was coated in rime Danny said he couldn’t corumbled, went to the pump out back and stripped down, all of it Mrs Pritchett was at the kitchenand her eyes fair popped out of her head I decided we needed to have more wood for the cookstove, because thecut off too much Plus, Mrs Rupert was crowded in next to her, and they’re stout wo her with fascination, but when she wound down, he crossed his arms over his bare chest "Your idea won’t work"

"Why not? I--"

She gave a short shriek, for he’d moved faster than she could follow, such that all she sensed was a brief jerk, her feet leaving the floor, and then she was in the bed, turned beneath him The sheet floated down over the two of them like a disturbed cloud His hands were sure and firripping her hip, his body between her legs, pressing against the thin fabric of her skirt Likeshe’d quite recently learned, never having woken in a man’s bed before Mal--he was a more than impressive size So iainst hi of her lower lip between her teeth

"Are you wearing any panties?" His tone shifted to that huskyto play, the hunter taking over

"No You told me not to do that, ever, except when you instruct me to it"

"And why did I do that?"