TALL DARK AND HUNGRY Page 0,106

out of the taxi before he could protest. Terri half expected him to jump out of the car and chase her to insist she pay for the fare, but some angel must have been looking out for her--the cabbie re¬mained in his cab as she lifted her skirt and jogged lightly up the steps to the front of Kate's apartment building.

Terri didn't have the key, though. Bastien had it, because he had a pocket in his suit, whereas she didn't have a pocket anywhere on her outfit. The plan had been that, once the reception was over, they would come collect her things, and she would stay with him for this, her last night in New York. He had said they needed to talk, and that he had something to ask her once the wedding was over. Terri, in her heart of hearts, had hoped that talk had something to do with love and their future together. Now she knew it was about death and dying.

With nothing else for it, she buzzed the landlord's apartment, now grateful that Kate had introduced her to the couple. It was the wife who answered, and Terri quickly explained that she had rushed back to the apartment to get something she'd left behind, but had thoughtlessly left her key at the wedding recep¬tion. The woman said she'd be right down to let her in. Terri knew the landlady could have buzzed her in from her apartment, but she supposed the old woman wanted to be sure it was her. Whatever the case, Terri resigned herself to waiting impatiently.

"There he is."

Bastien followed his mother's gesture to a booth in the back of the bar. Vincent and Lady Barrow sat, heads together, talking.

"Hmm. I wonder if we made it in time," Bastien muttered.

"There's only one way to find out." Marguerite Argeneau strode forward, leaving her sons to follow as she wove through the crowded bar.

"Aunt Marguerite!" Vincent got to his feet at once when she stopped at the table. "What are you do..." His voice trailed off and his mouth tightened as he spotted Bastien and Etienne.

"I think Lady Barrow has to go to the ladies' room," Marguerite announced, focusing her pene¬trating silver-blue eyes on the woman.

Lady Barrow gave a laugh. "Actually, no, I don't."

Marguerite blinked in surprise, then turned a glance on her sons. "Bastien"--she gestured to the woman--"fix it."

Bastien was so surprised that his inestimable mother hadn't been able to control Lady Barrow's mind, as she had so obviously just tried to do, that it took him a minute before he tried to do so himself. And he found it impossible to even read her mind, let alone slip into it. After a moment, trying, as Lady Barrow watched them all with growing confusion, Bastien glanced to his mother and shook his head.

"Etienne?" Marguerite asked, and her youngest son tried as well, only to shake his head after a moment.

"You have an... interesting family, Vincent," Lady Barrow said politely, and he abruptly stood.

"Please excuse me for a moment, Kathryn. I need a word with them." He excused himself, then took his aunt's arm and led her away from the table. Bastien and Etienne followed. Once they were far enough away to not be overheard, he turned on them with irritation. "I wasn't going to bite her. God, you people act like I'm some rabid dog, likely to go gnaw¬ing on every neck that goes by."

"Well, we knew you had to feed, Vincent," Mar¬guerite said. Her tone had changed and become soothing.

"I did that at dinnertime. I came up to the bar for a quick bite, then nipped back." He grinned evilly; then winked.

"Well, then, what are you doing up here now?" Etienne asked.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" he asked in exasperation. "I'm talking to Kathryn. She's a fasci¬nating woman."

"You aren't going to bite her?" Bastien asked suspiciously.

"No, Bastien. I'm not going to bite her. I wouldn't go biting guests at Lucern's wedding."

"Well, how were we to know that?" Bastien snapped. "You bit my housekeeper."

"That was an emergency. I don't normally feed in my own home, or in the homes of relatives."

"You bit Chris, too," Bastien reminded him. "And that was after biting the housekeeper."

"I had barely sunk my teeth into Mrs. Houlihan when you guys interrupted. I was still weak. I couldn't hunt weak," he explained patiently. Then he added, "And, by the way, you're welcome."

"For what?" Bastien asked.

"For taking care of the housekeeper," he ex¬plained. "Meredith called upstairs one day, while