Her words ring in my ears, but I shake my head to rid myself of them. I enjoy my work most of the time. And tonight I definitely will.

I walk with purpose down the pavement to the front office, where I can see the girl through the glass window. She’s on her mobile. When she catches sight of me her eyes go wide and she quickly hangs up, smoothing her curls down. She greets me with a big smile and a heavy Southern accent.

“Hi there . . . Mr. Rowe, right? Everything okay?”

“Yes. Just Kaidan, please.” I swish damp hair from my eyes. I’m not really in the mood for a detailed seduction. I’d prefer to make this quick, so I delve into my bag of douchery. “I’m trying to give my sister some time to herself in the room. Our grandmother just passed, and she’s taking it hard.”

The girl puts a hand against her chest, and her aura fills with sadness. “Oh, bless her heart. And yours. I’m sorry about your grandma.”

I nod, looking sad, which isn’t hard since I’m feeling rather strange in general. I lean against the counter and wonder if Anna’s okay in the room. I do a quick auditory scan, but it’s quiet in there. I don’t see any demon whisperers about, doing their rounds for the Dukes.

“Hope I’m not bothering you . . .” I look at her name tag. “Vanessa.”

“Not at all!” she says brightly. “You can call me Nessa. It gets boring here, so I’m glad to have company. I work for my uncle. This place is kind of . . .” She sticks out her tongue and makes a face.

“A job is a job, right?” I lean against the counter, crossing my arms. I cringe against a bout of needling pain. “I’m glad to have some company right now, too. It’s been a rough week.”

We lock eyes and I hold her stare until her aura lights up, bright red, then I brazenly let my eyes drop to her lips, down to her chest, back up to her eyes. She is besotted, holding her breath, lust thumping through her. I let out a dry chuckle and run a hand through my hair. “What’s the most fun you’ve ever had here at work, Nessa?”

“Um . . .” She laughs nervously. “I don’t know.”

“Because I could really use some fun right now if you’re up for it.”

“I . . .” More nervous laughing. “I mean, what kind of . . .”

I’ve taken a huge gamble that I might overwhelm or frighten her, but so far she hasn’t run screaming. She’s nervous and excited, probably wondering if I mean what she thinks I mean. She licks her dry lips and glances over her shoulder at the small office with the door ajar.

“That your uncle’s office?” I ask.

“Yeah.” She grins.

I slowly walk around the front desk, our eyes locked, and her aura jumps with orange and red when I reach her.

She licks her lips again. “Just so we’re on the same page, Mr., I mean, Kaidan, what kind of fun are we, um . . .” I step closer as she babbles. “Talking about?”

“The kind that will take my mind off everything, and make you very happy,” I say in a low voice. I hold back the beast with all my energy and wait for her to give me the go.

“Oh,” she breathes. She tentatively touches my forearm, and lets her fingers travel down to my hand, where we join fingers.

My relief is palpable.

“Thank you,” I whisper. I bring my mouth down to hers, this lovely girl whose face I won’t remember after a week’s time. I’m hoping for that epic passion to hit me like it did in the hotel room, but it doesn’t. We’re moving toward the office door, groping and snogging as we go.

I kick the door closed behind us with my foot.

She moans as I lift her onto the desk. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

I silence her with my mouth, and focus. Though her hair is curly, not straight, and she doesn’t smell of pears, I let my need take over and I give her the best night of work she’s ever had.

An awful thought occurs as I walk back to the room.

Had Anna listened to my office romp?

Wait a bloody minute—who cares if she did? Perhaps it would do her some good. Stubborn girl. But still . . . I feel oddly off. I can’t put my finger on it, but the sex with Nessa didn’t offer me the satisfaction it should have. In fact, it left me feeling empty, like a husk, needing something more.

What I need now is a good night of sleep to shake off the rejection from Anna. She’s got my brain muddled is all. I knew she’d be a hard sell, but this is worse than I’d imagined. I hadn’t expected to sleep with her the first night, but I definitely hadn’t anticipated a firm stop sign when I’d barely reached second base. I’m accustomed to getting what I want.

I shake my head as I let myself in the room. Anna is quiet and still, but her breathing is too shallow. She’s still awake. I go to the bathroom to wash up and brush my teeth.

Then I strip naked and climb into bed. I prop a hand behind my head and wonder what the little nun is thinking about. I should go to sleep, but I can’t help but get under her skin one last time, the way she’s gotten under mine with her angel voodoo.

“Anna?” I’m not surprised when she doesn’t answer. “Did you at least enjoy your first kiss?”

She’s quiet a second more. “Just go to sleep, Kaidan.”

It’s not a “no,” which makes me smile in the dark. I learned a valuable lesson tonight about how to win over Anna. Tomorrow I’ll be on my A-game. I let out a deep breath and fall straight to sleep, semi-satisfied.