“I don’t,” he said. I helped him to stand and as he moved, the torn cushions fell away and he was as nude as in the memory. It bothered me a little, because I’d put Noel in the protect category; no, let’s be honest, I thought of him as too innocent for me. I kept very serious eye contact as he swayed on his feet, holding on to my arm.

There was a muffled voice. “Noel heals slow, almost human-slow.” Travis dug enough of himself out from under torn clothes and unconscious vampires to get to his knees, and then stayed there for a moment. “Ow.” He touched his inner thigh and came away with dried blood. “What’s with all the vampire bites, and not to complain, but why don’t I feel worse with three bites on me?”

“Richard and I had eight apiece.”

Noel and Travis both looked at me with wide eyes, and I had that moment to think how young they were. In age they were only five or six years younger than me, but it’s not always about chronological age. They just both hit my radar as very inexperienced.

“You should both be dead,” Noel said, “with that much blood loss.”

“Not diplomatic,” Travis said, and used the back of the loveseat to get to his feet.

Noel looked uncomfortable and mumbled, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to . . .”

“It’s all right; we should have bled out.”

“Why didn’t we?” This from Nathaniel, who had wandered back to us. He’d had six bites of his own. “I had one night where I had this many vampires feed from me. I felt awful and was sick for over a day. But not only do I not feel sick, I feel good, better.”

“The Lover of Death kept trying to force the power into eating each other, killing each other. Jean-Claude kept the power going to sex and healing.”

“So it was meant to bleed us to death?” Nathaniel said.

I nodded, then winced, because whoever had bitten my neck hadn’t been gentle. Apparently the major healing had gone into the two werelions in front of me, because the bites still hurt. I had bandages on the inner-thigh ones to keep them from rubbing on my jeans.

Noel’s hand had moved from my wrist and I realized I’d been holding his hand for a little while, or he was holding mine. I had one of those moments where I debated: Did I let go of his hand or keep holding it? I’d had metaphysical sex with him and saved his life; how much hand holding did I owe him?

Nathaniel held out my phone to me. “I’ll keep looking for the gun and the last knife, but at least we found your phone.”

I took the phone, which gave me an excuse to stop holding Noel’s hand. Travis asked, “What are you looking for?” Nathaniel explained, and the two of them started searching the far side of the room. Noel stayed by me as if he didn’t know why, but he didn’t want to leave me, either. I didn’t know if he was afraid to leave my side, or if there was some metaphysical reason for it. I’d ask Jean-Claude later and hope he had an answer.

Noel stroked his fingers down my arm. “Is everything all right?”

I didn’t like that he kept touching me. It wasn’t that it felt bad, in fact it felt nice, but I did not need to have adopted another lion. I had too many lions already.

As if on cue, Haven came striding back into the room. He was nude, as all the wereanimals preferred to be, but he had his gun in its holster in one hand and a towel in the other. He was still rubbing at his short blue hair with it. Was he handsome? Yes. But all the muscles and being well-endowed didn’t make up for faults of character. Sometimes you’ve just got to say no.

Noel moved closer to me, and behind me. He wasn’t being subtle; he was hiding behind me. He touched me and I moved back, closing the small distance between us. He took that as the invitation it was and put his arm around my waist. I could feel him shaking, and even though he was nude, there was nothing sexy about it. He was terrified of the handsome man, and just the feel of Noel’s fear made Haven less handsome to me. Pretty is as pretty does, and what he’d done to Noel and Travis hadn’t been pretty.

Haven scowled at us. His blue eyes, made even bluer by the wet, richer blues of his hair, were instantly angry. “I thought I made myself clear, but I guess not. That’s okay, I can be more clear.”

My pulse and breathing rate sped. I could feel Noel’s heart pounding against my back. Travis came to stand near us; he wouldn’t hide behind me like Noel, but he came closer to me. I was the only other dominant in the room. The guards were either still unconscious or in the many showers and baths deeper underground.

I’d found the Browning but it had lead in it, not silver, which meant I could wound him, but I couldn’t kill him. I had one wrist sheath blade and the big knife. They were silver, but if I had to start using blades on Haven I had few illusions. I’d seen him fight and he was trained. His arm reach was nearly twice mine and his legs more than doubled my reach. He’d demonstrated his incredible speed in the spare room.

I heard Nathaniel moving things around behind me. He said, “I’ll find it.” He was looking for my other gun with the silver bullets because he’d done the same math that I had. He’d find it if he could.

“I can’t let you hurt them, Haven,” I said, and my voice was clear and even.

He threw the towel on the ground, and stood there nude and beautiful, and deadly. “I am Rex in this city, not you, Anita. You tried to mind-fuck me last night, and the sex is a-fucking-mazing when we have it, but even for that I won’t let you pussy-whip me. I can’t.”

“Then we have a problem,” I said. Noel hid his face against my hair. I knew in that moment that the only way he was hurting Noel was after hurting me first. With the decision my pulse and breathing slowed. I was at peace with my decision. I would take a beating before I let him hurt them again. Sometimes it’s not about winning; sometimes it’s just about doing the right thing even if it hurts.

“They said you hadn’t fucked them, but I knew they lied.”

“I protect a lot of people that I don’t fuck,” I said.

He shook his head. He kept his gun wrapped in its holster, but then he didn’t need a gun to hurt us. I had seconds to decide what I’d do next. If I shot him with lead, would he shoot me back with silver?

“Let go, Noel. I need room.”

Travis came and backed him up. I drew both the knives and let the gun and holster fall to the floor. I set my stance and held them both backward so the blades went along my arms. Once I’d thought knives were held out from the body like swords, but it depended on the blade and the type of fight.

He stopped moving forward, studying me. “What—I’m supposed to throw my gun away and come at you bare-handed?”

“Your reach is twice mine, and you’ll have claws, I won’t. I think the blades help make it a little more even.”

“Do you think I won’t hurt you? Do you think you’ve already cut off my balls? That I’m just another big house cat for your collection?”

“No, Haven, I think you will hurt me if you can.”

“Are they that good in bed? Are they better than me?”

“I’ve told you I hadn’t touched them before last night.”

“Lying bitch!”

“You’re good at fucking, Haven, but that’s not a good enough reason to like you.”

“What the fuck does that mean?”

“You almost killed the two of them last night; are you going to try to finish the job?”

“They’re male lions of my pride. If they can’t defend themselves, then they die. It’s the way the lions run their business.”

“Now who’s lying?” It was a woman’s voice from behind him: the short blond werelion. She was as nude as Haven. Her body was lean and muscled, small breasts high and tight to her body, the swell of hips as slender as the rest of her. It wasn’t the slender of starvation diets; it was weights and running and work that had honed her down. I knew it because though I had more curves, my body had the same look to it. Like we’d both carved ourselves down into something small and hard and dangerous.