But after just a week of living with Sarafina, his resistance had been worn to a nubbin.

Her constant presence—the subtle, sweet scent of her invading his nose at every turn, the sight of the nape of her neck when she twisted her hair up onto the top of her head, or the curve of her calf and her small bare foot when she sat in the recliner and rocked herself while she read a book. All of those tiny little things had added up. Now her presence in his apartment was all a tease to him—foreplay. It excited him. Like waving a steak in front of a starving tiger.

He’d had nothing but contempt for Jack McAllister when he’d begun sleeping with his charge, Mira Hoskins, way back when. And when Adam and Claire had fallen into bed while Adam had been helping to keep Claire safe from the Atrika a year and a half ago, Theo hadn’t been surprised, but he had been a little disgusted. He’d sworn both times that if he were Adam or Jack, he’d never follow the whim of his dick and nail the body he was supposed to be guarding.

Now here he was trying hard to think with his big head and ignore the little one.

“So what the hell is with all the extra energy?” queried Adam, rubbing a towel across the back of his neck. “You always fight hard, but that was exceptional.” He raised an eyebrow. “Sexual repression, maybe?”

“Shut up, Adam.”

“Yeah, well, if it is sexual repression, keep it away from me, all right? I don’t swing that way.”

Theo readjusted his grip on the blade. “I just wanted a good fight today, that’s all. Knew I’d get one from you.”

“Everything going okay with Sarafina? She seems like a really cool chick. Claire likes her a lot. Shouldn’t she be training with the copper blades by now?”

“She is training with the swords, but she’s doing it with Isabelle.” He paused. “Everyone likes Sarafina.”

He glanced at him. “You including yourself in there? I know you two got off to a rocky start. You know, what with you dragging her through the cornfield and all.”

Theo lifted the blade and examined the edge. “Yeah, things were rocky back when I thought she was a warlock. There was something suspicious about her.”

“Suspicious?” Adam shook his head and snorted out a laugh. “Yeah, well, she’s never looked like much of a warlock to me. An angel, maybe, not a warlock.”

“Sometimes people who look sweet and innocent really aren’t.”

“Yeah, true. Okay, got me there.” Adam glanced at him. “She’s kind of hot, too. Don’t you think so?”