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He shrugged, enjoying the verbal sparring "I’ down, she shoved her papers into an untidy pile

"Unless you can talkthose huht in pleasure, hidden behind the shyness that had first stained her cheeks

"And why should I be talking you out of anything?" She grabbed what looked like a black leather-synth satchel and put the papers inside

"You’re nobody to me"

The cat didn’t like that The man didn’t either

"That wasn’t very nice"

She turned to shoot hi her satchel He could al serious or if he was teasing her That it took her that much focus, told him she hadn’t been teased ot to be shy

Now, she slapped her satchel closed and swung it over her shoulder Or tried to Zach slid it out of her hand and brought the strap over his head, settling it diagonally across his body

"Mr Quinn!" She looked like she wanted to bite hiled

"Nobody calls Uncle Zach that"

"Yeah, nobody does," Zach added "Co out" He nodded at the coat thrown carelessly over the back of Annie’s chair

"Don’t forget that It’s cold out" He began to walk to the door, knowing she’d have no choice but to follow

After a taut second, she did He heard her clothing rustle as she put the coat on over her stern gray pants and tailored white shirt, hishim with a fantasy slide show of the feminine softness he knew lurked underneath Pity it was all covered up now

"After you, Teach" Letting Bryan scamper a few feet ahead, he held the door open and watched Annie Kildaire walk toward hiht, but even that meant the injury had to have been horrendous Either that, or the ieons hadn’t been able to repair fully And there wasn’t eons couldn’t repair these days "What happened to your leg?" he asked once they were out in the hallway

She faltered for a second before her shoulders squared "There was a freak bullet-train derail was crushed so badly, it was prettyother thanpride in her, had the sense that she was bracing herself for a blow "They did a good job of reconstructing it Titanium?"

He could tell from her expression that that wasn’t the response she’d expected "No Sorew’ as I grew, so I only needed a couple of extra surgeries over the years"

"And now?"

"I shouldn’t need any work done on it unless I injure the leg in some way"

Zach knew that couldn’t be all of it "Still hurt?"

She hesitated "Sometimes" She indicated a corridor to their left "I want to an’s been picked up"

"JB, hold up" Knowing he could trust the boy not to dart outside, he followed Annie the short distance to the sick bay Looking over her shoulder, he saw the darkened interior "He’s gone"

She jumped "You walk like a cat!"

"I aain, so he let a lol rumble up from his chest

"See?"

Streaks of vibrant color stained her cheeks onceto e to nuzzle at her throat "You sood Can I taste you?" It was a half-serious question "Just a little?"

"Mr Quinn!" She took a step around hiht the tart bite of arousal in her scent Satisfied, he followed, on his best behavior now It wouldn’t do to scare Annie away Not when he planned to keep her

A moment later, they reached the front door, where Bryan aiting Zach pulled it open "Stay with me," he told his nephew The boy was leopard-fast, but he was still a boy So, and cars could hurt him as easily as they could a human or Psy child