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“Which is presuming I’d actually want you in my bed by then.”
Amusement crinkled the corners of his eyes. “Of course you will. I’m a magnificent lover, and we both know it.”
“What you are is conceited, Lucian Dupont.”
“It is not conceit when it’s the truth.” But he removed his hand and took a drink of wine. His gaze, I noted, went to Lauren, almost as if he were daring her to react.
She didn’t.
“However,” he said, after a moment, “we are not here to discuss my bedroom skills, but rather the ward. And I reiterate, it cannot harm you to simply look at it.”
That statement should not be taken at face value when dealing with someone involved in the dark arts, Azriel commented.
I know that, Azriel. I’m not a total ignoramus about magic, so please don’t treat me as such.
I merely comment. It was not a rebuke.
Well, it sure as hell had felt like one. I drank some Coke, then met Lauren’s gaze and said, “I thought you said it had to be fine-tuned?”
“It does. To work fully it has to be tuned to your energy.”
Energy, or aura? I very much suspected the latter, and that had my doubts rising even higher. “Where is it?”
“In my purse. Lucian?”
He rose and walked over to the bench. I put my Coke down and followed. I wanted some distance between me and Lauren when I studied her creation.
Her purse was black leather, and was about as far from feminine as you could get. In fact, it looked more like an over-the-shoulder briefcase than an actual handbag. Lucian gamely delved into it, and his hand came out holding what looked like an oversized die. Only there were no dots on its black surface, which held an odd sort of oiliness that gleamed in the sharp overhead lighting. He set it down on the counter in front of me.
I leaned closer, but didn’t immediately try to touch it. Despite the oddness of the surface, there was no sense of energy radiating off the black stone. It really could have been nothing more than a numberless die.
“It won’t bite,” Lauren said, amusement clear in her voice. She hadn’t moved, but I had an odd sense that she missed nothing, despite the fact that I had my back to her.
“Forgive me for not taking you at your word.” I shifted around to study the other side of the die. It didn’t look any different, and I wasn’t entirely sure why I’d bothered moving.
“Here, look.” Lucian picked up the die and deftly tossed it from hand to hand. “See? Nothing bad happens when you touch it.”
“Agreed, nothing bad happens when you touch it,” I muttered, my unease growing as I watched the toss of the stone. “But this thing is supposed to tune itself to me, and I’m not exactly believing everything will be fine and dandy when it does.”
“Oh, for the love of . . . Nothing is going happen.” Exasperation rode Lauren’s voice. “Lucian would not allow it, even if I had wished you harm.”
I glanced at her sharply. “Since when does a dark sorceress take orders from someone she barely knows?”
Lauren’s smile was thin and unamused. “Come now, Risa. You saw us arguing and you are no fool. Please do not take me for one.”
“So you are lovers?” My gaze went to Lucian. “Why didn’t you say that up front?”
“Because it wasn’t pertinent.”
I snorted softly. How could the fact that he was fucking a dark sorceress not be pertinent information? “And just how did you come to that conclusion?”
“Who I spend my time with is nobody’s business but my own.” The comment was decidedly barbed, and I couldn’t help glancing at Lauren. If his words annoyed her, she wasn’t showing it. This time. “The only reason Lauren is here now is because she is powerful.”
“Maybe, but it does make me wonder what else you’re not telling me, Lucian.”
“It’s no secret that my life revolves around the need for revenge—”
“Yeah,” I interrupted, “and it’s what you’ll do to get it that has me worried.”
