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the sake of argument that I had been thinking about him—so what? It wasn’t like Ty and I had an actual relationship. I hadn’t seen or talked to him in a month. No phone calls. No e-mails. No text messages. Not even a measly comment on MySpace or Facebook. Nothing since our goodbye-sex marathon.
    I had absolutely no reason to feel like an über-slut because my heart was pounding and I was thinking that Ash had really terrific pecs. And kissable lips. And a gaze that promised the most wicked things.
    It wasn’t like I was committed to anyone, or even going steady.
    Rather, I was a single, vivacious vampire having a normal reaction to a member of the opposite sex.
    “What are you doing here?” Ash asked me.
    “It’s bingo night.” He grinned and heat flooded my cheeks and a few other places, as well. “Not that I’m here because I have nothing better to do than play a half-dozen cards on a Thursday night. Hardly. I’m here for work.” I sighed. “I need a hot Catholic girl.”
    “Don’t we all.” His eyes glittered hot and bright.
    Suddenly, I couldn’t think of anything to say. My heart pounded and my hormones chanted that old Rick James song, “Give It to Me Baby.”
    I know, right? Rick James is way over, but I wasn’t exactly thinking clearly.
    Truth be known, I wasn’t thinking at all.
    It was funny how the brain worked in times of extreme stress. How it was able to shut out all the self-doubt and second thoughts and send a great big just-do-it to the rest of the body. Just like that, anything seemed possible.
    A man could climb a fifty-foot tree to escape a charging bull. A woman could lift a three-thousand-pound car to save her crushed child. And die-hard romantic moi ? I could slide my arms around Ash’s neck and hump his brains out without an iota of remorse or a single, solitary thought for Ty.
    I could. If I’d wanted to.
    “If you’re looking for a woman,” I heard myself say as my body chanted me, me, me!, “I would be more than happy to hook you up with someone. Catholic. Hare Krishna. Born vamp. You name it.” I waved a DED card. “All you have to do is come in for a profile, hand over your credit card, and Auntie Lil will do the rest.”
    “Nice try, but I can find my own date.”
    “I hate to point this out, but it’s a beautiful night in the hottest city around, and you’re at bingo. ”
    “I’m not here scoping out women. I’m on a takedown.”
    Which explained the two men (Ash’s scrumptious brothers) wrestling with the slime machine a few feet away.
    “Nice job, by the way,” he told me.
    I shrugged. “You know me. I live to kick ass.”
    “I thought you lived to shop.”
    “When I’m not kicking ass.” I glanced down at my hand. The slime had dried to a sticky mess. “You wouldn’t happen to have a Kleenex or a wet wipe on you?”
    He patted the back pockets of his ultra-tight jeans. “Sorry. Look, you weren’t planning on sticking around here, were you?”
    “Maybe. Why?” Even as I asked the question, my mind raced with possibilities.
    “Because I was thinking that since you’re here and I’m here, maybe we could share a bingo card. And go for a drink afterward. And get to know each other. And do some primo mattress dancing.”
    “Because you’re in the way.”
    “I’d love to—” The words stumbled to a halt and the smile died on my face. “Excuse me?”
    His lips went from full and kissable to drawn and tight. His gaze hardened. “You compromised this apprehension.”
    “Hello? I helped stop a slobbering criminal.”
    “You gave him a way out.” He glanced past me as his brothers hauled Foamy to his feet. “You’re just damned lucky he didn’t take it.”
    “What are you talking about?” The stench of spoiled, rotten meat pinched my nose as the trio scooted past us toward the back door. The sound of gnashing teeth grated across my eardrums and a coldness prickled my skin.
    I stiffened and Ash’s gaze hardened even more. “You