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.Ruby stepped around the counter and moved closer to Zane.Like yesterday, like always, he wasdressed in blue jeans and a loose-fitting T-shirt.The T-shirt was a dark, dull green, today.It was al-mostas if he purposely dressed so as not to call attention to himself.It didn't work."You didn't come in hereto buy cookies," she said in a lowered voice."No.I still have a few left.""Just a few?""I told you, those cookies have been a bad influence." He looked at her with expressive, dark eyes."Butno, I didn't come here to buy anything but a cup of coffee.I wanted to check on you, make sure you'reokay."Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html"I'm fine," she said."You weren't fine this morning.""I'm sorry I called you in the middle of the night.I guess I freaked."He smiled again."A little.""I think someone spiked the punch, and the liquor went straight to my head.""Don't tell Hester," Zanesaid, a hint of teasing in his soothing voice."She'll surely hunt down the cretinwho dared to spike her Christmas punch."She was losing her mind.Other than that one small detail, her life was nicely settled.She had a routinethat suited her, and when she'd told Zane last night that she was not looking for a man, she hadn't beenexaggerating.Romance meant drama, and she didn't want any drama in her life at the moment.Maybeher life was bor-ing, but shelikedboring.It was easy.No one got hurt.The expression on Zane's face changed.The easy humor disap-peared."What are you doing fordinner?" he asked, taking her by surprise."What?" Ah, the snappy comeback."Dinner.I thought we could eat.Together.Food," he added when she remained silent.Ruby gathered her courage and said, "I'mkinda tired.I didn't sleep well last night."Again, that smile and the dimple."I know.""Sorry.""We still have to eat, and I won't stay late," he said."Promise."Stay?His invitation to eat was supposed to mean dinner atherhouse? Boy, did he have a lot to learnabout wooing women.That was what he was attempting to do, right? She hadn't been wooed in a longtime.She'd gotten really good at shutting down even the simplest advance long before it got to thewooing stage."I'm a lousy cook," she said."I can bake sinfully sweet and deca-dent treats you'll never eat, but I can'tcook a meal to save my life.""I'm a good cook, but mystove's on the fritz.I'll bring the food if you'll provide the stove, pots, plates,and silverware.""And dessert," she said, not sure she wanted to agree to his in-vitation until the words were out of hermouth.She still wasn't looking for a relationship, but she realized as she looked ahead that she didn'twant to be alone.Not tonight.Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.htmlThis was a very bad idea.He wasn't supposed to get involved with the woman, he was simply to watchand wait.But he wanted to get a look at the layout of her house, and he really wanted another look at 77ColletoreDi Anima.The Soul Collector.There were those who called the dark spirit that lived within the innocuous-looking statuetteIIGattoNero,the Black Cat, but the Brotherhood ofMadani preferred a more fitting name.Soul Collec-tor wasdefinitely fitting.Once upon a time the thing had had a name, he supposed, but as far as Zane or any of the Brotherhoodknew,that name had been lost sometime in the past three thousand years or so—give or take a century.Ifthe information that had been gathered by the Brother-hood during those centuries was correct, Ruby'swould be the last soulIIColletoreclaimed.She would be the ninth, and once her soul had been taken thedemon would live again.It would live for more than the few hours it normally enjoyed after taking a soul.The dark thing would walk the earth, immortal and indestructible and bringing an unimaginable darknessto an unprepared world.He couldn't allow that to happen.Zane wished he could convince himself that he was wrong and it was coincidence that someone hadgiven Ruby a cat knickknack, but the fact that the jade statue had made its way from his house to hers onits own made that theory impossible to swallow.Someone in this neighborhood—someone who wasaligned with The Order ofRunhura , no doubt—had left the cat under the tree for Ruby, specifically.Thejade piece had transported itself to Ruby's bedside table.No, he could not even wish to be wrong.The Brotherhood that was dedicated to stopping the darkness and the Order that worshipped thedemon had both existed since sometime long before a Brotherhood wizard had cursedIIColletoreto becaptured in stone.Three thousand years of sacrifice, of train-ing, of secret warfare, and it all came downto this place, this time, and this woman.Zane watched as Ruby set the places at the small, round kitchen table.She had a formal dining room,but had chosen to set out their plates here, in the warm, yellow kitchen.Maybe she was afraid eat-ing inthe dining room would make this feel like a date, and dat-ing was definitely not on her list of things to do.The kitchen was for neighbors and friends, and he could fit comfortably into that category.This would be so much easier if he didn't like her.Emotions were only going to get in the way, before allwas said and done.Still, whileIIColletorewasn't human, Zane most definitely was.He felt that humanitynow more than ever.Ruby tried to be tough, but she radiated a very feminine vulnerability that had creptbe-neath his skin and aroused his most primitive protective instincts [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]