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"Ye're thinking of her first."
"So?"
Connor gave him a sad look. "In yer line of business, that kind of thinking can get ye killed."
"I have sworn to protect her. I willna abandon her now." Angus strode toward the bar and grabbed a bottle of Type O from the fridge. He popped it into the microwave. "Ye want some?"
"Nay."
"Then we are done." Angus poured the synthetic blood into a glass. "Good night."
Connor didn't leave. "I realize ye're the boss, but ye've been like a brother to me, like a father to Ian."
Angus sipped from his glass. He'd been friends with Connor for too many years to stay angry for long. He felt the familiar twinge of guilt whenever Ian's name was mentioned, along with the first tug of sleepiness. The sun must be close to the horizon. "I always appreciate yer honesty, Connor." He looked at his old friend. "Do ye think it was wrong of me to transform Ian so young?"
Connor took a deep breath. "Ian would have died if ye hadna changed him. I think he's happy. As happy as any of us can be." He wandered to the door and paused with a hand on the doorknob. "Do ye love her?"
Angus set his glass down. "Aye, I do."
"Then we will do our best to keep her safe." He glanced at Angus with a sad expression. "To keep ye both safe."
Emma woke about two in the afternoon. After a quick shower, she dressed for the day. With a frown, she surveyed the soggy mountain of towels she'd used to soak up the lake on the bathroom floor. It appeared that today, her dangerous, action-packed life would include a trip to the Laundromat. She bagged up the towels and dragged them to the front door.
She heard voices in the hall, so she peered through the peephole. There was a young man standing by her door. He was tall and muscular, dressed in khaki pants and a navy Polo shirt. Two blond women were talking to him. Good heavens, it was the two bimbos who'd thought Austin was g*y. Lindsey and Tina. They were practically accosting the poor man in the hall. There was a thud as he backed up against the door.
Emma jerked the door open. The young man nearly fell in, but regained his balance.
"Poor baby." The taller blonde, Lindsey, grabbed his arm to steady him. "Let me help you."
"I'm fine." He tried to move away, but Lindsey dug her long pink fingernails into his arm.
Tina had pink streaks in her hair, presumably to match her pink mini-skirt and skimpy halter top. She squinted up at Emma. "You must be the celebrity that Phil is guarding."
"Phil?" Emma looked at the young man. Splendid. He was the one who had found her red underwear and given it to Connor.
Lindsey stroked his chest with her fingernails. "It's so awesome that you're a bodyguard. I bet you have like super stamina."
"I know, right?" Tina fluffed up her hair.
Phil gave Emma a hounded look. "Angus sent me to guard you today."
"All day long." Lindsey, dressed in tiny brown shorts and a turquoise cami, snuggled up close to Phil. "When do you get off work? Tina and I live just two doors down."
The shorter one wrinkled her nose while she regarded Emma. "I thought only rich and famous people needed bodyguards. Are you hiding here from the paparazzi?"
Emma shrugged one shoulder. "Something like that."
"Wow." Lindsey let go of Phil and stepped closer to Emma. "I bet you're like... filthy rich."
"And famous," Tina added. "Do I know you?"
Emma exchanged a confused look with Phil. "I don't think so. I don't know you."
Lindsey leaned close to her friend. "Did you hear the way she talks? She sounds kinda funny."
"I know, right?" Tina whispered back. "I don't think English is her native language."
Emma's mouth dropped open. Phil grimaced, shaking his head.
"I bet she's a foreign movie star," Lindsey whispered.
Tina gasped. "No! She's a foreign princess!"
"Excuse me," Emma said. "I'm right here. I can hear you."
The two blondes jumped.
Tina began speaking in a loud voice, enunciating her words very carefully. "Hello. My name is Tina. I am pleased to meet you." She curtsied.
"My name is Lindsey." The taller one made a wobbly curtsy. "Welcome to America."
"Thank you." Emma gave Phil a dubious look.
He stepped closer. "Would you mind if I guarded you inside?"
"No, that's fine. Come in." She opened the door wider, and he slipped inside.
"Good-bye, Phil," Lindsey called after him. "Remember to come see us after work."
"Good-bye, your royal highness." Tina curtsied again.
"Bye." Emma shut the door and flipped the locks.
"Thank you." Phil leaned against the wall and heaved a sigh of relief. "Those women have been pestering me for hours."
"You poor thing." Emma strode into the kitchen, smiling. She retrieved two bottles of water from the fridge and offered him one. "So what's a mortal guy like you doing working for vampires?"
He unscrewed the top off his bottle. "I'm working for the good Vamps, Miss Wallace. I'm honored that they trust me."
She sat at the breakfast table and motioned for him to join her. "How long have you worked for Angus?"
"Six years." Phil sat across from her. "I heard you killed four Malcontents, and now they want to kill you."
She shrugged one shoulder. "They don't know who I am, so I don't think I'm in as much danger as Angus believes. You really don't need to stick around if you don't want to."
"I always follow orders." He drank some water.
"Even with Lindsey and Tina waiting for you?"
He grimaced. "I'd rather face twenty Malcontents than those two dingbats from hell."
Emma laughed. "They are rather scary."
Phil nodded. "I'm supposed to stay by your side until you're safe at work this evening."
"Then you get to help me lug that down to the Laundromat." She pointed at the bulging garbage sack by the door.
Phil spent the rest of the day helping her do the laundry and grocery shopping. Emma shared a pizza with him at the local deli before they took the subway to Midtown. She wanted to ask a ton of questions about Angus and the vampire world, but Phil refused to discuss business in public.
He escorted her to the federal building where she worked. At the door, he handed her a card. "I wrote the number to Roman's townhouse on the back. Call us if you're in trouble."
"Thank you." She examined the card. It looked like the one Angus had given her. On the back, Phil had scribbled a phone number.
"If you call during the day, either Howard or I will answer," Phil continued. "If you call at night, you'll most likely get Ian."
"All right." Emma shook his hand. "It was nice to meet you, Phil. Thanks for helping with the laundry."
"Good night." He waited until she was safely in the building before he left.
The Stake-Out team's seven P.M. meeting dragged on for an hour as Sean tried to come up with a legitimate reason to shut down Romatech Industries. The fact that the company saved millions of human lives each year with their synthetic blood was lost on Sean. After seeing his daughter there, he'd become obsessed with destroying the place.
"Maybe we can get them on a health code violation," Garrett suggested. "Or tax evasion."
Sean pointed a finger at Emma. "Check on that."
"Yes, sir." She made a note on her legal pad. Maybe Angus was right, and Sean was wasting everyone's time. But if she brought up the subject of Casimir and the prospect of a global vampire war, Sean would wonder where she'd gotten her information. Instead of listening to her, he'd blacklist her like he had Austin.
"All right, dismissed," Sean finally announced. "Off to your assignments." He hurried from the office.
Emma assumed he was headed for his stake-out apartment across the street from Roman's townhouse. Alyssa was still gone, trying to locate covens in nearby towns. Alone in the office, Emma set to work on her assignment. The health department and IRS would be closed for the day, so she prepared some inquiries into Romatech Industries and faxed them to the correct offices. She would have to wait till tomorrow for a response.
She wandered about the office. Tension was building inside her. No doubt she was nervous about spending more time alone with Angus. She gazed out the window at the night sky and wondered what he was doing. Would he come to her apartment again? Would she be able to resist him?
