Our relationship was too good to be true and I wondered again how I could find comfort with a vampire when I’d never been able to hold onto it with a witch. Or with Carmen. I thought, feeling the expression leave my face. "What?" Aiden said, more aware of my mood shift than if i had painted my face blue. I took a breath, hating myself for where my thoughts had gone. "Nothing." I smiled thinly. "Just thinking of how much I like being with you." "Oh." His bristly face creased into a worried smile. "What are you doing today?" I sat back, pulling my hands from his putting my sock feet to either side of his lap so he wouldn’t think I was drawing away. My eyes drifted to my shoulder bag and my checkbook. I wasn’t desperate for money, wonders of wonders since the calls for my services had dropped dramatically after the six o’ clock news last winter had featured me being dragged down the street on my ass by a demon. And because I was heeding Clay’s advice to take a few days off to mend, I knew I ought to spend the time in research, or balancing my bank account or cleaning my bathroom or doing something constructive. But then I met Aiden’s eyes and the only idea that came to me was…ah, not the least bit constructive at all. His eyes were not calm. There was the faintest rising of black in them, the faintest thinning of green. Gaze riveted to mine, he reached for one of my feet, bringing it onto his lap and started rubbing it. The intent behind his action strengthened when he sensed my pulse quickening and his massage took on a rythym that spoke of…possibilities. My breath came and went. There was no blood lust in his eyes, only a desire that made my gut tighten and a tingle strat at my demon scar. "I need to…do my laundry?" I said, arching my eyebrows. "Laundry." He never looked from me as his hands left my foot and started creeping upward. Moving, pressing, hinting. "That sounds like it involves water and soap. Mmmm. Could be slippery. And messy. I think I have a bar of soap somewhere. Want some help?" Uh-huh, I thought, my mind pinging over the possible ways he could "help" me and how I could get Ashley out of the church for a few hours.