Steal the Day (Thieves #2)(6)

“Well, I don’t get it,” said one of the non-vamps, a scruffy looking guy in his mid-twenties. I would bet he turned into some sort of canine. “She’s all right and I wouldn’t kick her out of bed or anything, but I don’t get the drool thing. Dude, you should wipe your chin.”

“You aren’t a vampire, Blake,” Daniel pointed out needlessly. “Think of a really hot alpha female. Would you do just about anything to mate with her?”

Blake’s eyes got heated for a moment. “Oh, yeah, especially when she’s in season.”

“More info than I needed!” I felt myself flush.

“I was just trying to give him a point of reference.” Daniel looked very amused at my embarrassment.

The last male smiled, an open, honest grin. He was the smallest man at the table, with a boyish physique that hadn’t quite filled out to the man he would inevitably become. He looked to be in his late teens, definitely the baby of the group. “Well, I’m a sad-sack human, and I would totally do you. I mean, if you would and if it didn’t mean my horrible death and stuff. I got to be honest, though. I wouldn’t be too flattered if I was you. I don’t have real high standards.”

“You have a human in here?” I stared at Daniel, waiting for a damn good explanation.

As I said, I’m usually the only human in a room. I survived because I’d been surrounded by powerful protectors my whole life. My father, Harry Wharton, was important in the supernatural world and Daniel, well, no one messed with Daniel. I now had the added protection of being considered the property of the Council. To the Council, I was an asset, a plaything to be coddled and protected and sheltered. No vampire would try to take me from my master. To do so would invite a duel, and Danny was far too badass to risk that. That being said, if Daniel wasn’t around, another vampire would be duty bound to provide the ass kicking. It was a testament to my hold on Danny that Michael and Alexander hadn’t tried to take out Dev. It was their instinct to protect what they considered vampire property. It generally meant I could go where I wanted and no one messed with me.

To be a human in our world was to be vulnerable. Without protection, most would never survive.

“Oh, my name’s Nathan,” the human, who would probably be dead soon because he hung out with vampires, said. “It’s totally cool. I know they’re vamps and Blake’s a shifter and you’re a companion. I grew up in this world. You’re totally the first companion I’ve ever seen. My brother and sister will never believe me.”

Michael laughed, and it was such a human sound. It was the sound men make when they’re f*cking with each other. “You grew up trying to destroy this world, dude.”

“He’s a freaking hunter?” I practically screamed the question. Daniel had brought a teenaged hunter into his gaming group?

“Ex-hunter,” Nathan corrected me. “I just kind of did it ‘cause it was the family business. Then I tried to hunt and kill Daniel here, and he convinced me I should probably take a different career path.”

I bet he had. The poor little boy had probably tried to come after the most powerful vampire the world had seen in millennia with a stake and a clove of garlic. It should have been a bloodbath that ended with little Nathan as a snack. But as Nathan continued his story, I learned that Daniel had chosen to take the idiot out for a pizza.

“That’s when Daniel got me a job at a comic book store,” Nathan concluded his tale. “I like it. It’s way more relaxing than hunting, and I get a twenty percent discount.”

The shifter, who in my experience shouldn’t be here either, pointed at me. “Hey, you look just like that club owner’s girlfriend. Not exactly, of course. She’s way hotter, but you look a lot like her. You know that guy who runs Ether?”

Michael was the only one who looked uncomfortable besides Daniel. The other three men were trying to decide if I was hotter than me.

“I don’t get that guy,” Blake said, shaking his head.

“What don’t you get?” I wanted to know because Dev didn’t seem to have any male friends. He spent all of his time with me or his half-demon butler. “He’s gorgeous, rich and successful. What else do you need?”

Justin shook his head. “I don’t get what women see in him. How much time does he spend getting his hair to do that? I know he looks all cool and shit, but he’s that guy who all the other guys think is a douche.”

Nathan pointed at Justin and nodded. “I know just the type. I hate that guy.”

I looked at Daniel, who was smiling under his hand but chose not to comment. “Gentlemen, I’m afraid my lovely wife and I have some business to deal with tonight. I’m going to have to call the game.”

As the boys got together their various pieces of equipment and decided on the next time they would meet, I watched Michael and Daniel exchange a look. I think Michael was trying to make sure his friend was okay.

Daniel showed his group to the door, and I walked down the hall to his bedroom. It was such a change from the way it had looked months ago when Daniel had first brought me here. While it wasn’t a wreck, there was a certain messiness that let a person know the space was lived in. And he’d added a bookshelf. I walked around the room picking up his clothes because they would lay there until I decided to do laundry. I couldn’t stand the thought that he was wearing something he’d picked up off the floor and sniffed to make sure it wasn’t too offensive.