He’d always been kind the few times their paths had crossed in Chicago. But he worked with the vampires.
Which meant she wasn’t prepared to fully trust him.
She sighed. What was she thinking?
She wasn’t prepared to trust anyone.
Period. End of story.
Still, when Levet moved aside to reveal the once-smooth box now covered with intricate markings, she couldn’t help but be impressed.
“How beautiful,” she murmured, moving forward to lean over the nightstand.
“Sally, wait,” Roke commanded.
Naturally she ignored him.
The man was way too fond of tossing out orders and expecting them to be obeyed.
Besides, the box belonged to her. It was her duty to discover the truth of its origins, no one else. Even if that meant putting herself in danger.
Whispering a soft spell, she studied the intricate carvings.
They were fascinating. Delicate swirls that were connected by various lines and dots that combined to make an exotic design that seemed to call to some part of her.
She frowned, disturbed by the sensation the markings were somehow familiar.
“They’re not magical,” she said.
“That doesn’t mean they’re not dangerous,” Roke snapped, clearly annoyed that she’d ignored his command.
She turned to send him a glare. “Thank you, Captain Obvious. I’m not stupid.”
The silver eyes seemed to glow in the gloom of the room, holding a power that was almost hypnotic.
“No, you’re impulsive, unpredictable, and a magnet for disaster,” he countered.
Magnet for disaster?
Why the . . . ass.
“Forgive me. I’m only thirty years old,” she mocked. “You can’t expect me to be a stodgy bore like someone who’s been around four or five centuries.”
Levet chuckled. “Oh, snap.”
Roke sent the gargoyle a warning glare. “Don’t you have somewhere else to be?”
“Non. Unless . . .” Levet tilted back his head, sniffing the air. “Is that shepherd’s pie I smell?”
“And sweet and sour pork, and spaghetti, oh, and apple pie,” Sally added. “I left them on the counter in the kitchen.”
“Ah. J’adore apple pie,” the gargoyle sighed, heading out of the room with a happy wiggle in his waddle.
Roke moved to stand beside her, the annoyance fading from his expression as he studied her with a piercing intensity.
She shifted uneasily, always more comfortable when they were sniping at each other.
They both understood the attraction that smoldered between them. And the danger that it could combust the second they lowered their guard.