"I'm halfway there already," he muttered.
"Let me go!" She strained at his grip on her wrists.
"If I release you, ye'll knee me. And I'm rather fond of my balls."
"The feeling isn't mutual."
He smiled slowly. "Ye took a long look. Ye must have liked what ye saw."
"Ha! You made such a small impression on me, I can barely remember."
He chuckled. She was as quick mentally as she was physically.
She looked at him curiously. "You smell like beer."
"I've had a few." He noted her dubious look. "Okay, more than a few, but I was still able to beat you."
"If you drink beer, then that means you're not…"
"No' what?"
She looked at him, her eyes wide. He had a sinking feeling that she thought he was mortal. She wanted him to be mortal. And that meant she knew about Vamps.
He studied her lovely face—the high cheekbones, delicate jawline, and beguiling green eyes. Some Vamps claimed mortals had no power whatsoever. They were wrong.
Their eyes met, and he forgot to breathe. There was something hidden in those green depths. A loneliness. A wound that seemed too old for her tender age. For a moment, he felt like he was seeing a reflection of his own soul.
"Ye're no' a thief, are ye?" he whispered.
She shook her head slightly, still trapped in his gaze. Or maybe it was he who was trapped in hers.
"Ian." Footsteps approached them. "Ian, what the hell are you doing?"
He dragged his gaze away from her and saw Phineas standing beside them. "What?"
Phineas gave him a confused look. "Why are you beating up on Toni?"
He blinked and glanced at the woman he'd pinned to the floor. "Ye're…Toni?" Their new guard was a woman?
"You're Ian?" Disappointment flickered in her eyes before she looked away. "You're one of them."
That hurt. For centuries he'd been judged too young, and now, after all the pain he'd endured, he was still found wanting. His jaw shifted as he ground his teeth. "Ye have something against Vamps?"
Her eyes flared with anger. "Yes. I tend to get really pissed when they attack me."
"She's got a point, bro," Phineas muttered as he adjusted the tie around his purple satin bathrobe. "You shouldn't attack her. She's our friend."
Ian moved his weight off her. "Friendship is earned."
She scooted away from him and sat up. "I'm not here to be your friend. I'm your guard. That's all."
He stared at her. Connor had hired a woman to guard men? This was unheard of in the vampire world. A mortal woman wouldn't have the strength…unless she was a shifter like Phil and Howard. "Are ye—" How could he put this when shape shifters were a secret? "Do ye change a bit at a certain time of the month?"
She gave him an incredulous look. "Are you asking me if I get PMS? Are you serious?"
"Nay! I dinna mean—" Ian stopped, interrupted by Phineas's laughter.
"I know what you're thinking, man, but she's normal."
"Normal?" She glared at Phineas. "I nailed your ass earlier this evening."
Phineas held up his hands in surrender. "Don't hurt me, sweetness. You're a strong, beautiful hunk of woman."
She inclined her head. "Thank you."
"Connor told me on the phone that he'd hired a Tony," Ian muttered. "I thought ye would be a man."
Her eyes narrowed. "I thought you would be somewhat intelligent."
"Snap!" Phineas grinned. "She got you good, bro."
Ian scowled. "It was perfectly logical to assume Tony was a man's name."
She lifted her chin. "Is it logical to attack people without talking to them first?"
"In this case, aye, it was. The window was 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." Phineas made some hissing sounds.
Ian shot him an annoyed look, then resumed his explanation. "The window sensor triggered the alarm, and when I investigated the matter, I found you looking at verra expensive books, dressed like a cat burglar."
"Yeah, you do look like a hot and sexy Catwoman." Phineas clawed at the air. "Meow! Hiss!"
Now she gave Phineas an annoyed look. "These are my workout clothes." She switched her green-eyed glare to Ian. "And I never heard an alarm."