“That’s the first time you’ve admitted what you are.”

My hand smoothed the fabric on the arm of my chair. “It doesn’t change anything.” I had accepted my heritage weeks ago because denying it did not make it go away. That didn’t mean I was happy about it.

“It’s a start.” He put his arms behind his head and gave me a devastating smile that I bet had bewitched more than one female. I felt the urge to throw a cushion at the smug bastard but the challenge I saw creep into his eyes stayed my hand.

“What else would you like to know about the Mohiri?” he asked when I stayed silent. I didn’t want to satisfy him by showing any more interest in his people, but there were more than a few things I was curious about since I could find absolutely nothing about the Mohiri online.

“Who is in charge of everything? Do you have a president or a king or something?”

“Not exactly,” he said with a laugh. “We have the Council of Seven who make up the ruling body and the most important decisions come from them.” He went on to explain that the seven seats represented the seven continents and the members convened once a month, always in a different location. I asked how they were chosen to be on the council and he told me that if someone left the council or died, the remaining members selected someone to fill the empty chair, not something that happened often. The last new member had been appointed to the Seven three hundred years ago.

“Do you want to join the council someday?”

He scowled and shook his head. “Never. I have no time for bureaucracy and not enough patience to endure the long meetings. I am a warrior and that is all I aspire to be.”

I tilted my head sideways. “Didn’t you just say you guys have lots of patience?”

“When something is worth waiting for,” he qualified. “I care very little for political matters.”

His statement did not come as a surprise. I could not picture Nikolas adhering well to rules or attempting diplomacy to please anyone. “Something tells me that sentiment doesn’t make you popular with the folks in charge.”

His eyes gleamed. “They are good at their job and they know that I am good at mine. We differ in opinion sometimes but we all work to the same end.”

“What do they think about you hanging around some town no one’s ever heard of, wasting time with an orphan instead of out doing your warrior business?” I could not see how one orphan’s safety was more important than all the evils out there that needed to be dealt with.

“You think you are a waste of our time?” His voice, though low, had taken on an edge I recognized.

“I didn’t say I am a waste of time. But there must be other orphans who need rescuing more than I do. And since I won’t change my mind about leaving, it doesn’t make sense to stick around.”

“There is an immediate threat here. We were tracking vampire activity in the area before we found you; it was what brought us to Portland that night.” His tone did not soften and I knew my comment had really bugged him. I didn’t bother trying to figure it out because I doubted I would ever understand Nikolas.

That reminded me of something else I had wondered about. “Where are you from? You have this faint accent I can’t place and sometimes I think you are speaking another language.”

“I was born in Saint Petersburg and I lived there for the first sixteen years of my life until my family moved to England and then America.” One corner of his mouth lifted. “My accent is usually noticeable now only when I am aggravated.”

I wanted to say that wasn’t true, that I had picked up on it since the first time he spoke to me but instead I moved to another subject. “And what’s Chris’s story? Is he your partner?”

“I normally work alone but we sometimes work as a team. Christian and I have known each other for many years.”

“Christian.” I repeated the name. “It suits him better than Chris.”

“I’m sure he’ll be pleased to hear that,” Nikolas said dryly.

“Well I aim to please,” I replied just as tartly, relieved we were moving back onto familiar ground. Arrogant, sarcastic Nikolas I could handle.

He actually snorted. I had to suppress a smile because we both knew I’d done everything to thwart his plans since we met. I still had no intention of letting him dictate my life but it seemed like we had reached a truce of sorts tonight.

“Listen, I know you’d rather be off hunting monsters even if you guys feel like you need to be here. And I know you think I’m a pain sometimes but –”

“Sometimes?”

“What I’m trying to say,” I continued, ignoring his interruption, “is that even though you are way too bossy and you can be an arrogant ass sometimes, I guess you’re not all bad.”

His eyebrows rose. “I think that’s the most backhanded compliment I’ve ever gotten. And I will say that you are without a doubt the biggest pain in the butt I’ve ever met.”

I couldn’t hold back my smirk. “The biggest pain, really?”

He grinned back. “Yes, but I do like a challenge.” The gleam in his eyes unnerved me and I knew he would not give up easily. I was loath to shatter our fragile truce but backing down from my own position was not an option.

“I don’t want to fight with you anymore.” The words were out before I knew what I was going to say. I don’t know who was more surprised by my statement. At that moment a gale of wind made the walls creak and the fire dance as if the elements themselves were in agreement.