“Yes, it is.”

“Why? What do you get from it?”

Trevor thought about it for a minute. “It’s comforting. It reminds us that even if we feel like we’re alone, we’re not. I don’t know . . . Isn’t that why Adam got Eve? Don’t you feel anything when I hold you like this?”

“Wel . . . it’s pleasant,” she said tentatively. “You’re very warm and that’s nice. And you smel really good. I like to hear your heart beating. And to feel you breathing. I’m not sure about it being comforting, but it’s certainly very comfortable.”

“It’d be better if I had some meat on my bones,” he said drily.

She snuggled closer, her firm bel y sliding against his cock. He winced as he swel ed with arousal, unable to hold back his instinctive reaction to her proximity.

Siobhán froze. “Oh.”

But she didn’t pul away, even when he loosened his grip on her wrists.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured, startled that he could become physical y aroused after what he’d so recently been through. He knew it wouldn’t be possible with just any beautiful woman. Only Siobhán made everything else fade from his mind until there was only her and how she made him feel. “Please don’t be offended.”

She was quiet a moment, then: “You like women and you like sex, but you haven’t had either one for a long time. I don’t take it personally.”

He felt his face heat and cursed himself inwardly. Damn it, he was too old to blush like a f**king teenager with his first hard-on. “Siobhán . . .”

It was personal. Deeply so. But how did he tel her that without scaring her off? If she started avoiding him he’d lose it. He needed her.

“You won’t feel these things for me eventual y,” she said softly, as if she’d read his mind.

Then Trevor realized she probably had.

He yanked away from her as if she’d burned him. “Damn it. That’s not fair. You shouldn’t invade someone’s privacy without their permission.”

Her arms wrapped around her middle and she looked contrite. “I wasn’t reading you.”

“Then how do you know what I’m thinking?”

She shrugged, but what should have been a nonchalant gesture came across as an uncomfortable one. “It’s well -documented that intense and traumatic situations often lead mortals to form in-the-moment attachments to others who share the experience.”

“You do feel something for me,” he realized with dawning awe and pleasure. “You’re talking to yourself as much as me when you say I’l get over feeling this way about you.”

Her chest expanded on a sharply indrawn breath. “What way?” she whispered.

He debated his answer, wondering how far he could go. How far he should go. “I’m attracted to you, Siobhán. I don’t know what kind of trouble that’s going to get me into considering you’re an angel but it’s not something I can control. I’m just a man, and you’re a beautiful female with a kind heart and a dazzling smile. You’re also pretty damn scary when you want to be—you’d have to be to do whatever you did to get that blood all over when you found me—and I like that about you, too. I like that you’re tough and strong, and still soft and sweet. And you’re so damn sexy. I can’t figure out why you’d be so sexy unless it’s meant for me to be attracted to you.”

The door opened and a blond guy walked in. He stood on the threshold with his hand on the knob, holding the door open. His eyes were the same blue as Siobhán’s and they raked over Trevor with a hard, assessing glance.

“Should we go out again?” the guy asked Siobhán, ignoring Trevor completely. “Do you need any more sick vamps?”

She shifted, moving around and away from Trevor. “I made a mistake by not bringing some healthy vamps back with us. I should have, so I could interview them about how and when the infected got sick. Now Adrian wants me to find out how quickly the infected lose higher brain function, and I don’t have any healthy subjects to infect and test.”

“So we hunt,” the blonde said.

“The sooner, the better,” she agreed.

Trevor’s shoulders went back. “I want to go with you.”

“No.”

“Malachai,” Siobhán warned softly. “Can you see to the preparations? We’ll take the team out at sundown.”

Malachai stood unmoving for a long moment, his jaw working as if he was forcibly restraining words. “I’l take care of it.”

“Thank you.”

The male angel was closing the door when he abruptly shoved it open again and stabbed a finger in Trevor’s direction. “He’s a major liability, Siobhán.”

“Only if you’re worried about keeping me alive,” Trevor shot back. “And why bother if you just want to wipe my mind anyway?”

Malachai’s gaze narrowed. “Siobhán’s gone to a lot of trouble to keep you alive.”

“Has she?” Trevor looked at his angel, noting how she avoided his gaze. “I’m grateful. But a life worth living is one worth fighting for. I’ve got combat training and experience. It’s nothing compared to you guys, I’m sure, but you can use me for something. I can drive, I’m a damned good marksman and bladesman, and I’ve got good eyes and sharp ears. Use me. Let me earn my keep.”

“You don’t have to earn anything,” Siobhán retorted with a bite to her words. “In fact, you’re owed a great deal for what you suffered, through no fault of your own. We failed you, Trevor. It’s our responsibility to protect you and we didn’t.”

“Okay.” He crossed his arms. “Let me go for my sake, then. I’ve been helpless and useless for too long. It’s time I got a little payback.”

“These are vampires we’re talking about,” Malachai said derisively. “They move faster than you can see. You’l be dead in the blink of an eye.”

“You can move just as quick as them, right?” An idea occurred to Trevor, something he could do that they couldn’t. “Are you raiding another nest?”

She shook her head. “We know there are more out there, but it’s somewhat rare for us to find them. We’ll need to sweep until something flushes out.”

“You’d do better with bait.”

Horrified understanding lit her eyes. “No!”

Her vehemence took both him and Malachai by surprise.

“Why not?” Trevor chal enged. “They obviously like my blood, since they kept me like a damned wet bar for a year. And like I said, I’m not your average civilian. I’m not without skil s. The minute they latch on to my neck, they’re not moving anymore and then they’re vulnerable. I can hold my own against something attached to me if I’m not chained and facing twelve-to-one odds.”

“That’s the most—”

“He has a point.” Malachai released the door and stepped into the room.

“You just said he’d be a major liability!” she protested.

“I’d only considered the idea of him attempting to be useful alongside us. As bait, however, his idea has merit.”