“See, Bones already told me that he’d screwed Belinda,” Cat went on to Annette in a falsely jovial tone. “But thank you for letting me know that you participated, too. I so needed that picture in my head.”

  Annette opened her mouth to speak, and then snapped it shut when Bones swerved to the shoulder of the highway and put the car in park. Then, he turned to face her, letting his gaze and his simmering fury spill over her.

  “I won’t tolerate such rudeness. Cat knew full well what you were implying, and I can’t imagine why you felt the need to throw such a thing up to her. You also know that it was eight years ago, before I met her, and I’ll thank you not to entertain yourself by sharing any further such recollections with her.”

  Surprise stamped on Annette’s features before shame covered them. Then, she bowed her head. “I apologize. Perhaps it was the long flight which made me forget myself.”

  Whatever had gotten into her, it wasn’t that. A mere handful of hours on a plane wouldn’t have caused Annette to forget herself that way. No, she’d deliberately baited Cat. Why? Had something happened during their brief interlude when they fetched Annette’s bags? Even if it had, this nonsense ended now.

  “Kitten, is that sufficient for you?”

  Cat gave Annette a measured look. “I can handle a little ménage à trois reminiscing, but for the record, you can forget about any repeats involving the three of us.”

  “Wouldn’t dream of it, darling,” Annette promised, sounding properly apologetic.

  Bones gave Annette a final, warning look before pulling back onto the road. Annette might not be used to him being in a monogamous relationship, let alone with a sexually sheltered woman, but he was, so she had to respect that. Oh, Cat knew he’d hardly been chaste before meeting her, but Bones didn’t need Annette telling Cat the full extent of his promiscuity. Some things were best left in the past.

  Most of the ride was over with when Annette finally broke the silence. “I meant to tell you that I found the loveliest bungalow in the city, Crispin. It’s privately owned and very secluded, so I shan’t be observed by anyone happening by, and it’s available tomorrow night.”

  Some of his anger drained away. Annette hadn’t “found” anything. She always stayed with him during formal vampire events, so this was a peace offering. An effective one, too, from the relief that flashed over Cat’s face. Perhaps it was best that they become acquainted from a distance.

  “Sounds lovely,” Bones said, giving Annette a brief smile. “Since our time will be short, here’s our plan for Ian.”

  He filled her in. She listened in silence until Bones told her about Tate, Juan, and Cooper’s parts in the setup.

  “Humans willingly walking into Ian’s clutches? Oh, Crispin, you must let me meet them! Can we have them for supper?”

  “She better mean to dinner with real food on the table,” Cat said under her breath.

  Annette’s laughter sparkled like champagne. “Of course. Can’t have me eating the bait, now can we?”

  Bones pulled up to the house, and then raised a brow at Cat.

  She shrugged. “It’s not a bad idea. Maybe meeting another non-threatening vampire will make them less jittery about this whole Army of Darkness thing with Ian.”

  Sometimes he forgot that he was the only vampire her men had met that hadn’t tried to eat them first. Their horizons should be broadened, especially since Don intended to have some of them turn into vampires themselves.

  “Very well,” Bones said as he gathered up Annette’s luggage. “If they agree, I’ll pick them up when I fetch Rodney later today. He’s our other houseguest tonight.”

  Cat brightened as she got out of the car. “Rodney the ghoul? Oh, I liked him. He didn’t get angry no matter how many times my mom insulted him.”

  A feat worthy of praise, indeed, Bones thought wryly.

  Cat led Annette into the house, stopping only to pet her cat. Annette offered to make tea while Bones put her bags in the guest room. By the time he was done, Annette was sitting at the table sipping from a steaming cup, and Cat was finishing a tall gin and tonic with a newly pensive expression on her face.

  “Um, does Rodney…I mean, because of the last time we met, I’d understand if he did, but just so I’m prepared…does he hate me?” Cat asked softly.

  Annette’s brows went up, but she pretended to be absorbed with her tea. Bones sat next to Cat, and took her glass so her hand was free for him to hold.

  “No, Rodney doesn’t hate you, Kitten. He was only angry at Don for threatening you, although we didn’t know who’d done it at the time. Now, as far as your mother,” Bones deliberately lightened his tone. “Well, she didn’t make a friend.”

  Cat’s laugh wasn’t full-throated, but that haunted look had left her eyes, at least. “She seldom does.”

  Bones squeezed her hand. “Actually, Rodney’s a bit unsettled about seeing you again for another reason altogether. He’s not sure if you’re upset with him over Danny.”

  “Danny?” she repeated in confusion. Then, her expression cleared. “Oh, right, his murder. That was more your doing than his, as we discussed before. Besides, Rodney’s coming to help.”

  Bones smiled. “That’s what I told him you’d say.”

  A finger teasingly jabbed him in the chest. “Think you know everything, huh?”

  He let his hands trail up to her arms, and then down to her back. “Not everything, but some things. For instance, I knew without a doubt that I’d fallen in love with you when we met. Then, I knew I’d do anything to make you feel the same way.”

  Annette’s teacup hit the table with a small bang. “I’ll take myself off to shower now.”

  With that, she beat a hasty retreat. Moments later, he heard the shower turn on, but he was more interested in how Cat’s heart had sped up as he let his hands wander.

  “You keep saying you fell in love with me right away, but you beat me unconscious that night,” she said in a breathier voice. “And you were so surly with me those first few weeks.”

  Bones’s laugh was filled with memory. “You demanded that duel between us, and you would’ve stomped me into submission if I’d shown you any weakness. Of course I didn’t let on how I felt. At the time, you hated the sight of me.”

  She leaned forward until her mouth brushed his neck. “I don’t hate you now,” she murmured, moist heat searing him as her tongue flicked out to touch his skin.

  He had her up in his arms before she could gasp. Then, her eyes widened as he took the stairs at a run.

  “I was teasing,” she protested. “We can’t. She’d hear us!”

  Bones pushed the door open with her body and shut it with one decisive sweep of his leg. Then, he dropped her onto the bed and covered her body with his.

  “I wasn’t teasing, and I don’t care.” Her clothes hit the floor as he pulled them off her, and his mouth chased away the last of her concerns. “We only have an hour before I have to leave. Let’s not waste it.”

  37

  “You’re late,” Rodney said two hours later.

  Bones couldn’t stifle his grin as he said, “Traffic.”

  Rodney laughed and slapped his back as he hugged Bones. “Most obvious lie you’ve ever told.”

  “It is,” Bones agreed.

  Rodney had five bags with him, but only one was his personal belongings. The rest contained weapons and other tactical necessities. Their confrontation with Ian was nigh, and Bones couldn’t leave anything to chance.

  “Have to make a stop on the way to the house,” Bones said once they were on the road. “We’re picking up a few of Cat’s blokes and having them for dinner.”

  Rodney’s brows went up. “As in…?”

  “Not that,” Bones said with a snort. “Though one might annoy me into it before too long. Still, Cat wants her men to have more contact with the undead that doesn’t involve knives.”

  “Smart,” Rodney commented. “Now, what are these guys like? I’ve read their dossiers, but that doesn’t tell me personality.”

  “Cooper is serious but fierce, Juan is sly and skilled, and Tate is brave but begging to be killed with how openly he’s in love with Cat,” Bones summarized.

  Rodney’s eyes widened. “No shit?”

  “I shit you not,” Bones said dryly. “She brushes it off as infatuation, but I can see it in his eyes. Only thing that makes him useful is that he’d die for her without a second thought.”

  Rodney gave him a shrewd look. “So, you’ll keep him around in order to do that, if she gets herself in a tough spot?”

  Bones lifted a shoulder in a half shrug. “She doesn’t want me killing him, so this is the next best thing.”

  Rodney grunted. “Some days, you’re a cold one, buddy.”

  “Some days?” Bones snorted. “You flatter me.”

  They drove in silence until they were nearly at the compound. Then, Rodney said, “It’ll be weird pulling up here instead of scouting it out from a distance. Are we going to have enough room for everyone? Or is Cat taking her own car?”

  “We’re only picking up the lads. Cat’s back at the house with Annette.”

  Rodney stared at him. “Tell me you’re kidding.”

  Bones turned off at the private exit that led to the compound. “No, why?”

  Rodney’s stare felt like it grew heavier. “You really left Cat and Annette alone together back at the house?”

  “Yes. Why?”

  Rodney let out a sharp laugh. “For a smart guy, you just did a very stupid thing.”

  Bones showed the identification that Don had made for him at the first guard station, then waited until they were waved through before replying. “Cat might have instinctive vampire jealousy, but she’d never attack Annette without reason.”

  Rodney grunted. “You think Annette won’t give her one?”

  The unusual derision in Rodney’s voice caused Bones to give him a sharp look. “What are you saying?”

  “I’m saying that Annette’s had you to herself for over two centuries—”

  “Hardly to herself,” Bones interjected.

  “She has in the only way that matters to her,” Rodney countered. “You and Annette might have had countless other lovers, but you always came back to each other. Now, you’re suddenly in love with another woman and monogamous. What makes you think Annette’s going to be okay with being permanently benched after all that time playing on the field?”

  Bones had followed enough American football to understand the reference, even if he disagreed with it. “You’re wrong. Annette was happy for me when I told her I’d found Cat.”

  Rodney said nothing as they were stopped by the second guard gate. After his credentials were verified and Bones pulled past it, the ghoul gave him a jaded look. “You’re the expert on women, even though you obviously have a blind spot when it comes to Annette. So, you saying a woman wouldn’t lie about how she really felt in order to stay close enough to her ex to sabotage his new relationship, especially if she thought there might still be chance between them?”

  A regular woman might, but Annette didn’t have a jealous bone in her body when it came to him, as she’d proved by their many, many ménages over the centuries. But then…Annette had antagonized Cat over Belinda, and that was within the first few minutes of meeting her. What might she do if Rodney was right, and she did harbor some unexpected jealousy when it came to Cat?

  “Perhaps I should hasten back,” Bones murmured.

  Rodney grunted again. “Yeah, you really should.”

  Ten minutes later, Tate gave Bones an aggravated look as Bones hustled him, Juan, and Cooper into the BMW. “Who set your ass on fire?”

  Rodney had, combined with neither Cat nor Annette answering their mobiles. He doubted they were too busy with feminine bonding to pick up, so Rodney’s warning might be true.

  “I left something on the stove,” Bones ground out.

  “I’m Rodney,” his mate said when Bones was too busy peeling out of the compound to bother with introductions. “Good to meet you guys.”

  The three humans exchanged a look. Then, Tate said, “I thought we were meeting a new vampire, Bones. Not a ghoul.”

  Rodney laughed as if Tate hadn’t spoken over him like he wasn’t even there. “You get to meet both, but I’m first.”

  “Hola, amigo,” Juan said, followed by an agreeable-enough “Hey, there,” from Cooper, but Tate still said nothing.

  “Save your surliness for me, Tate,” Bones snapped without looking away from the road. “Rodney’s a nice bloke, so show him some respect, or I’ll hurl you out of this window.”

  “No need for that,” Rodney said in a genial tone. “I bet Tate’s just shy. But, in case anyone’s wondering, no, I’m not gonna try to eat you. Ghouls only need that sort of food a few times a year, and I already had mine not too long ago.”

  “Murder or grave robbery?” Tate asked bluntly.

  Bones hit the brakes, intending to fulfill his threat, but Rodney laid a gentle hand on his arm.

  “Neither,” he said to Tate. “I own a chain of funeral homes, so my food comes to me, no murder or shovels required.”

  “Getting paid to eat. Smart,” Juan murmured in Spanish.

  “Isn’t it?” Rodney replied in the same language. Then, he switched back to English. “And Tate, don’t push Bones just because it’s fun. He’s been overprotective of me since he found me starving on the streets of Poland when I was only six.”

  “Don’t make allowances for me, Rodney,” Bones ground out.

  “He should know a little more about the man he hates,” Rodney went on in a genial tone. “You know how many people walked past me back then? Hundreds. Only Bones stopped, and he didn’t just feed me. He took me in, gave me a home, an education, and later, a choice of staying human or becoming undead. I chose ghoul over vampire because I love food too much to trade it for blood, and now, over a hundred and fifty years later, I just got my chef’s degree.”

  “Congratulations,” Tate said after a beat.

  Hardly the response Rodney deserved after sharing such a personal recollection, but at least it wasn’t more rudeness.

  “Thanks,” Rodney said. “I might even open a restaurant.”

  Tate snorted. “Your specials menu would sure be unique.”

  Rodney laughed again. “Not that kind of restaurant.”

  Juan and Cooper joined in the laughter. Even Tate let out a dry chuckle. Only Bones still felt tense, but for a different reason. Once more, Cat’s mobile went straight to voicemail.

  What was going on over there?

  Bones sped up while stretching his senses as far as they could go. It was like trying to focus on one face among a vast crowd; difficult, but not impossible if you concentrated. After several minutes, he thought he heard snatches of Cat’s voice even though he was still miles away from the house.

  “…we need to have a little talk, woman to skank…”

  Bloody. Hell.

  Bones sped up even more, until the streets blurred by. Now, he heard more snatches from Cat, and none of it was good.

  “…because Bones really does care for you…if you can handle being around him in a platonic way, I’ll deal with not slicing up your heart even though I really, really want to…”

  “What the hell?” Tate snapped as Bones whipped around a corner fast enough to throw the three men against each other.

  “Uh oh.” Rodney gave him a sympathetic look. “I was right?”

  “Seems so,” Bones bit out.

  “…get off, he’s almost here!” From Annette now, sounding nearly panicked. “Faith, he’ll be so cross with me!”

  No need to wonder who’d started this row, then. Annette had just admitted her culpability. Bones drove faster.

  Five minutes later, he pulled up to the house and flew out of the car as soon as it stopped. One yank on the front door later, and he was inside. Cat and Annette stood on either side of the living room. Cat’s arms were covered in scratches, the end tables and lamps were gone, glass crunched beneath his feet, and the scent of blood clung to both of them even though Cat stretched as though she were getting up from a long nap.

  “And that, Annette, is called Pilates,” she said in a terrible imitation of a jovial tone.

  “Very entertaining!” Annette said with equal fake cheer.

  Even if he couldn’t smell the darker emotions scalding Cat’s scent, one look in her eyes would have told him how badly things had gone. Her gaze was filled with pain, anger, and most infuriating of all, doubt. She hadn’t looked at him that way since they were newly dating, and she still wasn’t sure if he was secretly evil. Damn Annette for whatever she’d said to put that look back in Cat’s eyes, especially with how Annette dared to blink at him now as if she’d done nothing at all.

  “Why, Crispin, you’re back early-”

  “Save it,” he said as he walked over to Cat and plucked out the bloody silver knife she’d hidden in the back of her trousers. Then, he went to Annette and showed her the blade.

  “Unless Pilates has become downright lethal, I’d say you two were fighting, and fighting so loudly, in fact, that I could hear you from several miles away.”

  Annette’s face went ashen as he let his shields drop so she could feel his rage. Out of everyone in his life, he would have sworn that she wouldn’t betray him, yet it was clearer than the blood staining the blade in his hand that she had.

  “Rodney,” Cat suddenly said, rushing toward the ghoul as if he was a life raft and she was drowning. “Come in, come in!” she added to her men after giving Rodney a big hug.

  The three humans did, their wary gazes flicking to the broken pieces of furniture peeking out from beneath the drapes before landing on Cat and Annette. Bones didn’t bother to introduce her. He was still fighting his urge to shake Annette until she spilled every single word of whatever poison she’d said to Cat. Blimey, Cat was so upset that she wasn’t even screaming at either of them. That concerned him to no end.