He shrugged. “I don’t know. A few.”

“You need to see a doctor.”

“Honestly, I’m fine.”

“You keep saying that word, but I don’t think you know what it means.”

“Ivy—”

“Refusing to take care of your wounds doesn’t make you tough. It makes you stupid.” She looked at me for support. “Tell him he’s being an idiot.”

“After you change, you should head over to the medical ward to get the holes in your body plugged,” I told Drake. “Then we’ll head out.”

Ivy glared at me. “He can’t go on a mission in this condition.”

I looked at Drake. “Are you feeling dizzy?”

“No.”

“Feverish?”

“No.”

“Shivery?”

He smiled back. “No.”

“They’re just surface wounds,” I told Ivy.

The Legion wasn’t a warm and cushy place. We’d all had much worse injuries in training, but Ivy couldn’t see that right now. Her emotions were running too hot. How could anyone be so much in love with another person and not even realize it?

“Don’t worry. The doctors can heal him in a few seconds.” A sly smile curled my lips. “Or you could just let him drink your blood.”

Ivy scowled at me. “I don’t think either of you are taking this seriously.”

Drake snorted, and more blood permeated his shirt.

“Ok, that’s it!” Ivy pushed him toward the door. “To the medical ward. Now.”

He bowed his head and tried to look contrite.

“Meet me in the garage when you’re done,” I told them.

He shot me a silly smile. “Yes, sir.”

“If you salute me, heaven help me, I will refill all your favorite liquor bottles with cleaning alcohol while you’re gone,” I warned him.

He chuckled as Ivy pulled him by the hand into the hall. Chuckling a little myself, I went into my room to change.

Nero was waiting for me inside. I didn’t jump in surprise—this time—but my heart sure did.

“How did you get in here?”

Nero gave me an amused look. Right, stupid question. He’d been lord of this cosmopolitan castle for years. He knew his way around and could bypass any lock. He’d left Harker’s office after us, so I was amazed he’d beaten me back here. Then again, he had his mysterious ways of getting around.

“Why are you here?” I asked, my pulse finally slowing.

A slight smile touched his lips. “Does my presence agitate you?”

The look in his eyes was smoldering. A rush of heat flushed me, right down to my pinky toe, and my pulse sped back up. I was agitated all right, but not in that way. I tried to keep calm, even knowing it was futile. He could read my body and knew exactly what effect he had on me.

“Agitated?” I repeated, sliding my closet door open. “No, of course not.”

I grabbed a fresh change of clothes and a towel to dry myself off. I was still dripping from my unintended swim in the ocean. Nero just stood there, a silent menace. I wondered if he was going to stand there the whole time and watch me strip out of my soggy clothes.

“I’ve seen every part of you, touched every part, tasted every part.”

His words caressed me like a silk pillow kissing naked skin. Images of our passionate predawn tumble in the alley flashed through my head. Blushing, I stopped. I realized that I’d moved toward him, nearly touched him.

With a soft chuckle, he reached out to take my hand. He flipped it over and kissed the underside of my wrist. Then he bowed, his eyes never leaving mine, and proclaimed, “I’ll await you in your living room, my lady.”

He turned smoothly on his heel and left my bedroom, closing the door behind him. My heart jumped in my chest. I was simultaneously excited and disappointed by his actions.

I stripped quickly, drying myself off using a magic wind dryer. Then I changed into fresh clothes and headed into the living room. Nero was standing before the fireplace, looking over some of Ivy’s decorations that were set atop the mantlepiece.

“Your roommate has peculiar taste in tabletop ornaments,” he commented, holding up one of them. “I have traveled the Earth, been through heaven and hell, and I’ve never seen anything like this.”

“It’s an oversized teacup without a handle,” I told him.

“You can’t drink tea out of that. It’s made of straw,” he pointed out.

“It’s a metaphorical teacup.”

Nero looked at the object in his hand. “Your metaphorical teacup bears an uncanny resemblance to a moon charm.”

“A what?”

“A moon charm. It’s a kind of love charm.” He set it back on the mantlepiece.

I blinked in confusion. “Ivy doesn’t need love charms. She has more admirers than anyone on Earth. No, it’s a teacup. Or a candy bowl.”

Nero’s eyes panned across the room. My pulse jumped when I realized that he’d never been inside my apartment before. I really wished it would stop doing that.

Nero’s gaze shifted to the kitchen counter. “Pandora, you are wicked.”

I realized I’d just been fantasizing about throwing him down on that counter and having my way with him. And he’d heard my thoughts. What was wrong with me? My body reacted to him every time he was near, making me think things, want things. It was like I had no control over it whatsoever.

“It’s our bond, an effect of me marking you,” he told me. “That part of me inside of you draws you to me.”

Yeah, like I needed magic for that. I was drawn to him already. My blood hummed like the engine of a high-speed train whenever he was near.

“Will it diminish?” I asked him.

“You’ll get used to it.”

I didn’t fail to notice that he hadn’t really answered my question. Well, it was my fault for jumping into a relationship with an angel without asking about the consequences first.

“Are there any other side effects I should know about?” I asked.

“Nothing that should affect you now.”

Not now, but later? That was hardly comforting. What other side effects were waiting in my future? I decided I really didn’t want to know. I’d cross that bridge when I came to it.

“I marked you too. Why don’t you feel the same way about me?” I asked. “Why aren’t you out of control? Why aren’t you drawn to me?”

He stepped toward me. “I can assure you, I’m very much out of control.” His body towered over me, so close I could scarcely breathe. “I shouldn’t be alone with you, Leda. Not when we both have places to be. And,” he added, leaning in. “I’ve never been more drawn to you.” His voice was seductive, his words kissing my ear.

I reached for him, but he’d already stepped back.

“You look pretty firmly in control,” I commented, my heart thrumming in my ears.

His lips parted. “Oh, Leda, how very wrong you are. Right now, I am putting everything I have into blocking out the call of your blood, your body.” His gaze slid over me, burning me like a live wire. He took a deep breath and folded his hands together behind his back, as though he couldn’t trust them. “Your magic sings to me. And it’s only growing. Had you been an angel when you marked me, no amount of willpower would be enough to stop me from taking you now.”

I felt myself moving toward him.

“So, you see, you are stronger than you think,” he said. “An angel’s mark is powerful, especially a new mark. I’m surprised you are holding back.”

That might have had something to do with the number of times we’d had sex in the past two days. It was strange to remember how young our bond was. It felt like it was so much older, that it had penetrated deeper into my magic.

“You’re wrong,” I told him, also folding my hands together behind my back. “I’m not strong.”

Somehow, despite our nights of passion, I still wanted him. I needed to get my mind off of this, or we’d never leave this room. I grasped for distractions. He’d come here for a reason—a reason besides having sex with me. I could tell he was here about something else.

“What do you think of what happened in Harker’s office?” I asked. His reason for coming must have had something to do with that.