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CHAPTER ONE

There’s a bloody unwelcoht

Ronan Wolvesey wandered into his usual haunt, The Witch"s Breith his twin brother, Raiden, close behind The rowdy London pub always drew a noisy, unusual crowd: athletic types, businessickind"s un its oas pure hu golden curls and enormous blue eyes, as Kari Keswick leaned over the bar, her brief blue t-shirt exposing a band of soft skin at herdark-haired one with gray eyes and the look of a predator Tynan Soust of wind, Ronan slammed the little pub"s door Kari didn"t look his way

Instead, she gripped Tynan"s shoulder as she looked into his eyes and s poisoning his blood was the emotion humans called jealousy He"d rather s battery acid

"Your eyes will burn holes in her if you stare any harder," Raidento Kari"

"Why do you care? It"s not as if you"ll spend tonight alone In fact…" He looked away

"I see two splendid possibilities by theCome on"

Raiden saw such possibilities every place they went, and rarely was he wrong Ronan kneould not spend the night alone…but he fantasized about spending it with Kari If he approached her now, she would likely refuse him--just as she had for the past two years Until now, he"d assumed Kari didn"t want to cross that human-wizard line Given her present company and their coziness, it appeared her refusal was more personal

"In a rabbed his aret her"

Ronan refused to concede defeat "Shove off"

"She"s hardly the most beautiful fe by half What was her nareeary of waking up in a different bed, beside a different body every ickind"s standards He couldn"t live this way for another ten ht or nine centuries

"There"s sooneto discern it"

"The fact she said „no," a word you never hear?" Raiden shrugged "Plenty of other lovelies Pick one and eable For Raiden--and the rest of the Wolvesey clan--

they were

"Chat up the girls by the , then I want to pop over to the bar, say hello"

Raiden rolled his eyes "Be quick Besides, she looks…busy"

At that, Ronan turned back to Kari to find her laying her soft pink lips against the big wizard"s cheek She looked so delicate and fair against his strong, sun-bronzed jaw Then Tynan grabbed her hand and squeezed

The sight ripped a hole in Ronan"s chest He clenched his jaw so hard, it was a wonder he didn"t grind his teeth into powder

Stalking across the bar, he yanked out a stool near Tynan"s It screeched across the old stone floor Still, Kari did not look his way

To his left, the heat fro winter"s chill

Heavy alternative rock played in the background as sohed at their atteic Hu with stout red wine Ronan scarcely noticed any of it As always, Kari drew hiolden hair Her otherworldly blue eyes seelance at her bowled hi…fresh about her Alure it out exactly, maybe he could rid himself of this odd obsession

"Kari?" he called

She blinked several tiaze fro her per the wanker? In love with hiht screamed across his brain like a battle cry

"Ronan" She sidled down to his end of the bar "A scotch?"

"Double, no rocks" He glanced down at Tynan "New…friend?"

"I see your brother has already ht" She looked just over his shoulder at his brother with a sarcastic twist of her pretty pink lips "I hope you"re in the ht It appears she"s yours by default Raiden always takes the redheads" Then she looked at her watch and whistled "Quick work That"s a record, even for hi here to find women, but his twin insisted nowhere else was et-rich

"I don"t care who Raiden"s found He can have them both I calass on the shelf "We"ve been over this I won"t spend the night with you"

"Why? It"s not because I"lanced at Tynan "Clearly"

"Don"t ask lass on the orn bar between theile, and at aat his composure "You"re like a fever to me I need to touch you"

"That line work for you often?"

Kari thought the admission he"d had to choke out was a ploy? He scowled "It"s not a bloody line"

She shook her head, blonde curls brushing breasts he"d drea, and extracted her hands "Like any fever, you"ll recover frolass, then shoved it his way "Six pounds"

With a sigh, Ronan shoved his money across the bar "I si et ed for the past two years The notches on your bedpost are long, as is the line

I have neither the time nor inclination"

With that, she turned away and headed to the other end of the bar

Bugger!

Raiden lanced at the brunette Pretty enough Nice mouth Small hands Maybe he could close his eyes and pretend she was Kari It would hardly be the first time But now that he kneizards weren"t off limits, he vowed soht