"Your phone's ready." Carlos strolled into her bedroom.
She jumped. Good grief, he was too good at sneaking up on people. She dropped the cell phone into her suitcase, next to her box of daily contacts.
Carlos wandered over to inspect her clothes closet. "Hmm, this is too frumpy. Oh my God, I love this black leather vest. What a shame it's too small for me." He took the vest out to admire it. Toni smiled as she emptied her underwear drawer in the suitcase. She had missed Carlos.
"By the way, I did a quick check on Dr. Proctor's financial records. He's in debt up to his greedy little eyeballs. Been living way beyond his means."
Toni's mouth fell open. "You were gone twenty minutes, and you learned all that?"
Carlos shrugged and hung her vest back in the closet. Then he gasped. "Girlfriend, hasn't anyone ever told you never ever wear horizontal stripes?" He pulled out the offending T-shirt. "This should be burned."
"Thanks. I was looking for that." Toni whipped the T-shirt out of his hand and tossed it in her suitcase.
"Humph." Carlos proceeded to her dresser to check out the rest of her clothes. "Now this is nice. You should take this." He pulled out a skimpy red satin teddy.
"It's December. I'm taking some flannel pajamas."
"But menina, don't you want to look sexy for him?"
Toni slammed her suitcase shut. "You have definitely gotten the wrong idea about him."
Carlos's amber eyes twinkled. "Are you sure? I only need to mention him, and your cheeks bloom like a red rose."
"That's irritation, not attraction." Toni pulled her suitcase off the bed and rolled it from the room. "I've got to go, Carlos. Take care of Vanderkitty."
"Will do. And I'll see what else I can find out about Sabrina's uncle."
"Thank you." Toni stopped to give him a hug. "I don't know what I'd do without you."
He grinned. "Now hurry on back to him."
"Stuff it, Carlos." She left the apartment to the sound of his chuckling. Hopefully, Ian would be busy all night pursuing Vamp women. If she was really lucky, she'd make it back to the townhouse and her bedroom without having to see him at all.
Chapter Six
Ian approached the bed where Toni was sleeping. Her heartbeat was steady, her face calm and peaceful. He hoped she was having sweet dreams. Connor had described the attack on her. She'd be lucky if it wasn't giving her nightmares.
He thought back to the last time he'd had a dream. It was the eve of the Battle of Solway Moss in 1542. He'd slept fitfully the night before his first battle, and he'd dreamed of shallow mountain streams turning red with blood. He fell into the stream, and it suddenly became bottomless, sucking him under, drowning him in blood. The very next night, he'd joined the ranks of the Undead when Angus had found him dying on the battlefield.
Ian snorted. At least in the last four hundred and sixty years, he'd greatly improved his fighting skills. He'd never been seriously injured since that first fateful night. And he was no longer plagued with nightmares before battle. He no longer dreamed at all.
He'd begun his investigation at Romatech by having Connor tell him about the attack Monday night. Connor had overheard the Malcontents' mental voices as they controlled Toni, and he'd used those voices as a beacon to teleport straight to the scene of the crime.
When Ian examined her personnel file, he'd been surprised to learn that she had an apartment in Greenwich Village. He'd also been surprised by the bachelor's degree in general business and a near complete master's in sociology. Why would someone that smart take a dead-end job, guarding the Undead? Was she conducting a study?
Connor didn't believe she was using them for research. After all, she couldn't have known about their existence before the Malcontents had attacked her. He had run a background check, and her only offense was a traffic ticket for speeding. Like Dougal, Connor had asked Ian not to chase her away. Until Phil returned from Texas, they were in desperate need of a day guard. What Ian hadn't said was that he was in more danger of pulling her close than pushing her away.
"Doona pester her," Connor had ordered. "The lass needs time to recover."
So Ian had gone to the Horny Devils for his two dates. The women had been pleasant enough, but his mind kept returning to Toni, and the inconsistencies between her personnel file and what she'd told him.
He glanced at the digital clock next to her bed. Six-thirty. Thursday morning. Shouldn't she be waking soon? He paced about the room. His gaze continued to wander back to her, all snug and cozy in her bed. With his superior vision, he could still see her well in the dark room. She was lovely, the way her golden hair spilled across the pillow, the way her delicate hands curled close to her face.
Bloody hell. He paced away. He had to stop thinking about her that way. He'd already decided he wanted a Vamp woman who was honest, loyal, intelligent, and pretty. Toni wasn't a Vamp. And he had serious doubts about her honesty and loyalty.
But she was very intelligent and pretty. Not to mention intriguing. She seemed to ignite all his senses at once, and it was such an intoxicating feeling, he found himself looking for any excuse to be with her.
He stopped. Was that why he felt this compulsion to investigate her? He mentally reviewed his suspicions. No, his questions were legit. It was his attraction to her that was way out of line. She was a guard. She was forbidden.
When the alarm went off, he zipped to the bedside table and turned it off.
With a little moan, she stretched. Her eyes opened.
"Good morning, lass."
She gasped and pulled the covers up to her chin. She quickly looked around the room, then focused on him. "What are you doing here?"
"We need to talk."
"Now?" She squinted at her door, still closed and locked. "How did you get in here?"
"I teleported in. Yer door wasna damaged."
"That's not the point. You invaded my privacy."
He shrugged one shoulder. "Do ye no' look at me when I'm in my death-sleep?"
"That's my job."
"And investigation is my job. I have a few questions regarding yer employment application. First off, I noticed ye dinna give yer complete first name."
She gave him an annoyed look. "I have to go to the bathroom. And you need to do your vanishing act." She slipped out of bed and waved a hand at him. "Hocus pocus, disappear."
He stepped back as she strode to the bathroom, and he couldn't help but notice how her br**sts jiggled slightly beneath her red T-shirt. No bra. With his superior vision, he could detect the exact location and shape of her ni**les. When she passed him, he turned to watch her from behind. Her pajama bottoms were red with little black and white penguins. They fit snugly around her hips and rounded bottom. When she paused at the bathroom door, he quickly lifted his gaze so she wouldn't catch him ogling her.
She glared at him. "Why are you still here?"
"We havena talked yet."
With a groan, she entered the bathroom, then shut the door in his face. He paced about the room. He didn't want to question her through the door. He needed to see her face to help him decide if she was being truthful. He glanced at the clock. He didn't have much time before the sun reached the horizon.
He raised his voice so she could hear him. "I wanted to thank you for the wee practice session. I felt more comfortable talking to my dates."
No answer.
He moved close to the door and heard the water being turned on. "The ladies were verra pleasant to talk to. I enjoyed their company, but...it just wasna right. There was something missing, some...je ne sais quoi."
"Chemistry," she said, then muttered a curse. "Idiot. Don't talk to him," she whispered to herself. He grinned. "After my dates, I came back here to go through the phone messages. I found three recordings where the ladies actually admitted to being Vamps. So I called them back and arranged to meet them tonight."
No answer.
There was a brushing sound, followed by some spitting. He figured she was brushing her teeth.
"Ye'll be happy to know that I phoned all the mortals who called during the day. I told them I was verra sorry, but I was already taken."
The door opened, and she gazed at him, her pretty green eyes wide with surprise. "You called all of them?"
"Aye. Some of them werena home, so I left a message."
"There were hundreds of them."