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"In this case, aye, it was The as open--"

"I opened it," she interrupted "It was as stuffy as a tomb in here, and I was hot" "Sweetness, you’re so hot, you’re sizzling" Phineassounds

Ian shot him an annoyed look, then resuered the alar at verra expensive books, dressed like a cat burglar"

"Yeah, you do look like a hot and sexy Catwoave Phineas an annoyed look "These are lare to Ian "And I never heard an alars can hear it"

"Oh Which one are you?"

"Snap!" Phineas slapped his leg "She’s killing you,to have a conversation here" He turned to Toni "I’uard a houseful of men Ye see how Phineas reacts to you"

"He’s a lot nicer than you are!" Her eyes glinted with anger "And it’s not s I can do this job, with or without PMS I beat Phineas earlier, and I would have pinned you down, too, given more time"

"Lass, ye would never pin me" He leaned toward her "I like to be on top"

Her eyes flashed with green fire

"Good one!" Phineas shook a fist in the air "You’re ," Toni gruh, Phineas!" Ian glowered at hih escaped from Toni, but she quickly squelched it and frowned at him

She had a sense of hurand schee to ain, or at least make her s aallant bow "I apologize for attacking you I hope I dinna hurt you"

Her frown relaxed slightly "I’arded hi to tell Connor to firesettled in his gut Why on earth would a lovelyvampires? "I’ll let ye stay if ye answer a few questions honestly"

A guarded look flitted over her face, then she shtly and took his hand "Sure What do you want to know?" She rose gracefully to her feet

His hand tightened around hers The uncertainty in his gut twinged He knew she wasn’t going to be entirely honest Her smile was too forced, and her heartbeat had just speeded up

"Why do ye want this job?" he asked quietly

She pulled her hand froet free room and board, which is worth a fortune in Manhattan"

"And ye get stuck in a house all day with some dead carcasses"

"No job is perfect" She folded her ar a diaper change, so it’s easier than the usual babysitting job"

Babysitting? Now that was bloody annoying

Meanwhile Phineas was snickering "Yeah, take care of e bath And so a bit chafed, if you knohat I ? That irritated hi his teeth "We’re no’ babies We’re seasoned warriors"

She affected a big shudder "Ooh, I’m scared"

Did she doubt their prowess? Ian moved closer "Lass, ye have no idea how fierce we can be" Her smile withered, and a pained look crossed her face "I know that too well There’s no need to remind me"

"Were ye attacked?" Ian looked at her neck, but couldn’t see any sign of bite h neck of her black outfit "Is that how ye found out about us?"

The stubborn lift of her chin indicated her refusal to divulge more inforet pissed whenever va soon, and Ian and the other Va they would lie defenseless and vulnerable And their guard appeared to hold a grudge against them

"Lass, why should I trust you to watch over us?"

Her brows lifted "Are you worried about what I ht do when you’re totally helpless and at rabbed her by the shoulders "Are ye threatening us? I could erase yer ht now"

"No!" Now she looked panicked "Please I--I really need this job I promised Connor that I would never harm any of you Ask him He believes me"

Ian released her and stepped back "I will ask hie into my uniforetting sleepy Good night, sweetness" He extended a closed fist toward Toni

She responded with a s"

Phineas grinned, then sauntered toward the stairs "Yeah, that’s " He descended the stairs to the base toward theot the cure"

Ian could feel the pull of death-sleep, too, but as an older Vamp, he was able to resist it better than Phineas

"Perhaps we should start over" He extended a hand "I’ave hiripped his hand, quickly let go, then headed for the stairs

He followed her "I really did think ye were a thief I doona norry" She started up the stairs

"I doona attack for food We have evolved past that"

"Yeah, right" She continued up the stairs without looking back

He clied "I’ve seen your kind drink from bottles"

"Then ye knoe’re different froripped the banister hard Then she released it and ascended ather your noble nature is somewhat new Before the invention of synthetic blood, you ritted his teeth "I never used violence"

She reached the landing and whirled around to glare at him "Did you use mind control?"

He flinched "Ye doona understand"

"Oh, I think I do Mind control made it easy for you to manipulate people" Her eyes narrowed "But they were still victi them"

"We were never like the Malcontents Those bastards are murderers We never killed for food" "Okay You weren’t killers You were just parasites" She turned to continue up the stairs He grabbed her arm to stop her "If ye hate us, why have ye taken a job to protect us?"

She pulled away and started ascending the stairs "I don’t hate you And I have my reasons" "What reasons?" He stulanced back "Why are you following o to the base there"

"But I’ve seen your coffin down there" She gave him a wry look "It looks so cozy" "Then ye sleep in it"

"Over my dead body Oh, wait a minute It’s your dead body In about five ed up the rest of the stairs

Saze slid down to her round, firh to turn hi her hips sway as she strode down the hall She stopped at a door on the right

He paused beside her "I outgrew it"

"What? Your ego?"