"That's my sweetie." Shanna kissed the top of his head, then walked over to Vanda. "Thank you for watching Sofia." She gathered up the baby, who was now sleeping soundly. "I never realized how good you are with children. You should do like Maggie and adopt one."
Vanda's mouth dropped open.
"What a marvelous idea!" Maggie clasped her hands together, grinning.
"No way," Vanda protested. She winced at the amused look on Phil's face. "I run a strip club, remember?"
"What's that?" Tino asked with his mouth full.
"And I have an anger problem," Vanda continued. "Not to mention the fact that I'm dead half the time." She glanced at the boy. Hopefully, her undead status didn't come as a shock to Tino. He had to know that his father was dead during the day.
She wondered briefly if the little boy ever acted up when he knew his dad wasn't there to stop him. She could just picture Shanna telling him, Just wait till your father wakes from the dead. You'll be in big trouble then.
Vanda slowly realized that everyone was quietly staring at her. "What?" She glanced down at her dress to make sure she wasn't covered with baby spittle.
"You just admitted that you have an anger problem," Phil said, his pale blue eyes twinkling. "That's the first step toward improvement."
"Exactly." Shanna nodded. "You can't fix a problem until you admit it exists."
"Well, isn't that special." Vanda stood and slung her evening bag onto her shoulder. "I've had enough fun for one evening. Shall we go, Maggie?"
"We haven't met Lara yet," Maggie reminded her.
"And you haven't talked to me," Phil said.
"I don't—" Vanda started.
"Excellent!" Shanna interrupted. "I'll tell Roman that you're following the court decree and having a meeting with your anger management sponsor. He'll be so impressed."
Damn. Vanda couldn't see a way out of this one. But the last thing she needed was another encounter with Phil. She had no self-control around him.
"Come along, Tino. Let's find your dad." Shanna grabbed the diaper bag, then glanced at Maggie. "I'll call you." She walked away with the baby. Constantine waved good-bye, then ran after his mother.
"I need to finish my rounds," Phil said. "I'll meet you back here in fifteen minutes." He hugged Maggie, smiled at Vanda, and strode away.
Vanda couldn't help but admire his gorgeous backside as he crossed the room. Still, she wondered why he'd hugged Maggie and not her.
Of course! He was guarding her at the townhouse and sponsoring her in anger management. He was forbidden to have a relationship with her, and most of these Vamps in attendance knew it. So, as long as she stayed here in the banquet hall, surrounded by other Vamps, he'd have to keep his hands off her.
She would be safe from his seductive maneuvers. And from her own weakness. Vanda smiled to herself. Suddenly, the party didn't seem so dismal after all.
CHAPTER 9
What exactly does a bomb smell like?" Phineas asked.
"Trouble." Phil strode through the parking lot outside Romatech, sniffing each car to make sure the Malcontents hadn't planned a surprise for the Vamps.
"How did you learn how to do it?" Phineas followed him. "Did you train with the canine unit at NYPD?"
"Very funny." Phil gave the young black Vamp a shove. "The lot is clear. Let's go back inside."
They headed for the front door. Because of the party, the door was unlocked and anyone could walk in. The guests had been instructed to drive to Romatech, so they were first vetted by the guard at the entrance station. Then Connor checked everyone in the foyer. Howard Barr was in the security office watching the monitors to make sure no one teleported onto the grounds.
Phil and Phineas had taken turns roaming the grounds and the facility. So far, everything had gone smoothly.
Phil had reserved a conference room close to the banquet hall. He'd called the priest earlier in the day to explain his theory about Vanda's past, and Father Andrew had wanted to see the DVD of Vanda's interview. He was in the conference room now, watching it.
Phil strode into the foyer. "All clear," he reported to Connor.
"Good," the Scotsman replied. "Ye can take a break now." He gave Phineas a stern look. "Doona drink too much, lad."
"Aye aye, Captain Connor." Phineas saluted him, then dashed into the banquet hall.
Phil strolled into the noisy hall and glanced at the far corner where he'd discovered Vanda earlier. He smiled to himself, remembering how beautiful she'd looked in her silver dress, how sweet with a baby cradled in her arms. She had so much love to give, if only she could get over the pain from her past.