Rapture's Edge

“You’re also loyal and strong and brave,” he said, very softly, the laughter gone from his voice. “You put other people’s needs ahead of your own. You’re disciplined, self-reliant, smarter than you give yourself credit for, and you’re the only beautiful woman I’ve ever met who isn’t vain.”

“Hmpf.” She lifted her chin and stared at the tall, sweeping form of the Eiffel Tower and thought about standing there with Demetrius on the platform overlooking the city, what seemed like a lifetime ago.

Alexi’s voice grew even softer. “When you’re not being evasive, you’re honest, though I suspect your evasion has less to do with wanting to deceive and more to do with wanting to protect something. And now that I’ve met your family—who I never knew existed, aside from Mel, before your phone call—I think that something is them. Which makes me think that in addition to being mysterious and sexy as hell… you’re honorable.”

Honorable. If there was one thing she truly wished to be, it was honorable. She wasn’t, but just hearing him say it made all her righteous indignation drain away as if a plug had been pulled. She shivered, and the sunlight reflected from a building across the river almost blinded her eyes. “Honor among thieves,” she murmured, “isn’t quite the same thing as Honor, capital H.”

“It says nothing against the ripeness of a spirit that it has a few worms.”

She turned and looked at him, brows lifted, and he shrugged. “Okay, I stole that from Nietzsche. But it’s true.”

“So now I have worms?”

His brown eyes were warm and soft as they gazed down at her. “You have wounds, but you don’t let them get in the way of doing what you think is right. I’ve been with a lot of women, Eliana, but you’re the only one I’ve ever admired. So, no, you’re not exactly the most positive person in the world, but you’re light years ahead of most everyone else I know in terms of character. Myself included.”

She blinked at him. She swallowed. She said, “You sure know how to pay a girl a compliment, slick.”

One golden brow cocked. “Really? Am I better at it than, say, your charmer Goth Godzilla Romeo who’s waiting downstairs in my garage to slit my throat even as we speak?”

Her face reddened. She wouldn’t even try to deny it; she knew D was lurking in the garage, where she’d sent him in an effort to calm him down and hopefully distract him from the mayhem plain on his face when he looked at Alexi.

“Is that why you didn’t want to see me anymore? Because of him?”

“No,” she admitted truthfully. “We weren’t together then.”

“But you are now,” he persisted.

She was taken aback. “No.”

He was clearly dubious at her refusal. “You sure you don’t want to think about that before you answer?”

“We’re not together. What would make you think that?”

“Because, mysterious, blue-haired, sword-wielding Butterfly,” he said gently, “you’re in love. It’s all over you both.”

She blanched, stiffened, and sucked in a breath, all at once. In love?

He said sourly, “Try not to look so hopeful—you’re giving me a complex, here.”

She sputtered, “I’m not—I’m not hopeful—I’m not—not anything—”

“Oh,” he interrupted flatly, “I did forget something. You have a tendency to reject the obvious even when it’s smacking you upside the head with a two-by-four. Also, you’re a terrible liar.”

“I’m not lying!”

“Okay then. Look me in the eyes and tell me you’re not in love with him.”

She was horrified. This was ridiculous. “Alexi!”

“If it’s true, it’ll be easy. Just do it.” He folded his arms across his chest and stared at her, waiting, not angry but not happy, either, just…patient.

“This is stupid.”

“No, this is my price for letting you stay here.”

“What!”

He lifted his shoulders.

“Alexi,” she said through gritted teeth, “don’t make me kick your ass all over this room.”

One corner of his mouth lifted. “Yeah. That’s what I thought.”

He gave her a swift kiss on the forehead, turned, and made his way to the door. Over his shoulder he said, “Think about this, Butterfly; Godzilla Romeo spanked you in front of a few hundred people and you let him live. If I’d have done that, I’d be lying in a shallow grave somewhere.” He paused just outside the doorway and looked back at her. “Right?”

“You suck.”

He laughed. “What are friends for, if they can’t call you out on your shit?”

“Lucky for me, I don’t have many friends,” she muttered, and his face grew soft.

“You don’t need a lot. Just a few really good ones.”

They stared at each other for a few seconds, and then she said, “You are a good friend, Alexi. This is”—she made a gesture to the room—“above and beyond. Thank you for what you’re doing.”

He smiled, devilishly charming. “I told you when you broke up with me that you’d come crawling back.”

“You did. Yes. And then you flaunted half the women in Paris in my face, which didn’t much make me feel like crawling.”

He had the decency to look chagrined. “Well, this is me trying to make amends here, lady, take it easy on me. And for the record, this wasn’t exactly how I pictured it, but for what it’s worth…I’m glad you’re here. You and all your crazy, black-eyed family. Who, incidentally, all speak Latin. What’s up with that?”

“Oh,” she said, smiling darkly, “that’s the least of it, slick. Do yourself a favor and don’t try and sneak up on any of them. You might wind up missing a limb or two.”

He shook his head slowly, amazed or bemused, she couldn’t tell.

“You’re going to tell me all about it later. Don’t think I’ve forgotten our deal.” His devilish smile made a reappearance. “And don’t think just because I’m playing nice and you’re in love with a seven-foot-tall, tattooed gorilla who wants to kill me that I’m going to give up trying to get you into bed.”

She pressed her lips together to hide her smile. “No, I didn’t think that.”

He nodded, satisfied. “Good. Your room’s across the hall. Take a shower, if you want, clean up. Then come downstairs; Smithers makes a mean holiday crepe.”

“Holiday? What holiday is it?”

“It’s Christmas, Butterfly. Don’t they have Christmas on your planet?”

Then with a mischievous wink, he was gone.

The shower turned out to be the best advice she’d had in ages.

She stood under the hot spray, letting the water relax the knotted muscles in her shoulders, letting the steam do its best to try to lull her worries away.

Not that it worked. No amount of hot water could wash away her kind of worries; no amount of scrubbing could get them unstuck.

Where was Silas right now? Where was her brother? What were the few who refused to leave the catacombs doing in her absence?

Was Demetrius, right at this moment, telling the Bellatorum where they were?

She pushed that thought aside, surprising herself at the vehemence with which her mind shouted a resounding No! Stupid. Stupid. Anything was possible, everything was, and to try to deny it was just stupid…but what Alexi had said kept echoing in her head, over and over.

You’re in love. It’s all over you both.

Because she’d grown to understand that life was as strange as it was unpredictable, it didn’t really surprise her when she heard the door to the bathroom open a few minutes later and close and a deep, tense voice growl,