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"No" He dropped a kiss on the top of her curls, thankfully not insulted "Turning someone is a bitas you are the Chalice The Phoenix would do whatever necessary to protect itself"

Reassured that she wasn’t about to led closer to his hard body

"I e could just stay here"

"Hide from the world?"

"At least an extended vacation" She pulled back her head to aze "I think we deserve a few days off, don’t you?"

He regarded her with a hint of regret "I can’t think of anything that would please me more"

"But?"

He blinked "How did you know there was a but?"

Abby heaved a sigh "In my world, there’s always abut"

"You’re a very odd woeous and sexy as hell?"

"All of the above," he swiftly agreed, a faint s about his lips, "and occasionally odd"

"Rather ironic co from a vampire"

He bent down to press a swift kiss to her lips Too brief

"As er"

That wasn’t what she wanted to hear Not when she felt warm and fuzzy and, best of all, safe

"We have to leave now?"

"It’s too risky to stay here for long If the house is being watched, then we could find ourselves surrounded by the sort of nasties that no one wants to et in here, could they?"

He gave a lift of his shoulder "Probably not, but we’ll eventually have to leave"

Dante rolled off the bed, and before she could even appreciate the sight of his hard, alabaster body, he was i Gucci yu to be a real sore spot with her

"If we’re safe, why do we have to leave?" she deave a lift of his raven brow ’You don’t want to be locked in a roory vampire, lover Even if I can’t drink huet a bit testy Besides, I doubt that the witches will be considerate enough to h, Abby sat up and pushed her tangled curls out of her face "Fine, go ahead and make sense At least you can hand me the clothes you ripped offbow, he bent to retrieve the clothing that had been scattered across the floor

’Isn’t that what a genie is supposed to--" Her teasing words trailed away as she watched Dante scoop the clothes in his hands and then slowly stiffen With a strange expression, he pressed her shirt to his nose ’Dante? Are you sniffing low It smells of demon"

Abby stiffened Did he just say she smelled like a demon?

She had probably suffered worse insults, but she couldn’t think of one at the moment

"Excuse nize the breed, but you have definitely been close to a deinally

"Yeah, I’ve been close to a delance "About as close as I could get You don’t remember? I know you’re old, but holy crap"

His expression remained closed Hard "A demon, Hot a vampire"

His blood stirred within her She could easily sense his lethal focus A predator on the scent

’That’s iroused She would have known if so on her shirt That wasn’t so a normal woman… "Oh"

"What?"

Abby slapped her forehead with her open hand Christ She e woman who interrupted my spell," she confessed

"Upstairs?" ’Yes"

Abby shivered as Dante’s blood heated with fury "What did she look like?"

She struggled to recall She had been just a little preoccupied at the tiraceful than any "

"She had the shape of a human?"

"Yes A beautiful woold eyes Oh, and her skin had the strangest bronze glow to it"

His eyes widened as he lifted the shirt to his nose once again "A Shalott deht they had all fled this world She attacked you?"

’Yes… no"

He stabbed her with a piercing gaze "Abby?"

She gave a helpless shrug "I think she was just trying to stop the spell She could have killed me while you were out, but she ran off She said so her"

"Dae of the bed "Is she dangerous?"

"I don’t know, and that’s what is driving ave a sharp shake of his head "We ?"

"To see if I can pick up the trail of the Shalott When they were in this world, they were assassins If we can trace her back to her e here"