"No," Vane said. "I'm sure he's okay. He's probably out enjoying himself tonight."
"You think so?"
He grinned wickedly. "Yes, I do."
She sighed. "I hope so. I'd hate to have anything bad happen to him."
He followed her to her apartment door. Bride opened it, then hesitated.
Vane dipped his head down to the crook of her neck where he inhaled her scent.
He rested his warm hands on her shoulders. "I want to be inside you again, Bride." He lifted his head up and cocked it in a way that reminded her of the wolf Vane. "Would you take me in?"
Bride was uncertain. She wanted him too, but what kind of relationship was this? She started laughing uncontrollably.
Vane frowned at her. "What's so funny?"
"I'm sorry, I just heard this horrible cliche in my head of 'Will you still respect me in the morning?'"
He looked baffled. "Humans don't respect each other after they have sex?"
"You know, when you say things like that, you sound like an alien from outer space."
"I feel like an alien from outer space. A lot."
What an odd thing for him to say. "How long did you live in that commune of yours?"
"All my life. Up until eight months ago."
"Oh, my God. Really?"
He nodded.
No wonder he didn't know how to date. She couldn't imagine living isolated from the world.
He brushed his hand over her shoulder. "Since then I've been staying with friends who own the Sanctuary bar on Ursulines. They've taught me a lot about how people behave, but Amanda said that you wouldn't appreciate my using the lines and moves that the men in the bar use to pick up the women they meet there."
Bride tried not to focus on how warm his hand was on her bare skin. How good his caress felt. It sent chills all the way through her, straight to her breasts, which hardened, aching for his touch. "Amanda who?"
"Hunter."
Bride started at the name. "Tabitha's twin sister?"
He nodded.
Good grief, what a small world. But if he knew Amanda, that was a relief.
Amanda, unlike her twin sister, wasn't a lunatic and didn't, as a rule, hang out with psychos. If Amanda had really helped Vane, then he was most likely safe.
"You said no one dated in your commune. What did you do when you found a woman you liked?"
He looked a bit frustrated. "'Like' doesn't have the same meaning where I come from as it does to you. We didn't really 'like' anyone. If you were attracted to someone, you slept together and then moved on. We didn't get our emotions tangled with our bodies the way you do."
"How is that possible? It's human nature."
Vane sighed. It might be human nature, but it wasn't animal nature. "We just thought differently."
She stiffened indignantly. "So you think nothing of sleeping with me and then moving on to the next woman?"