a fine tension settled in the air between them, a shimmering web that connected them more forcibly than any physical touch.

"no doubt that is for the best," he murmured, his gaze reluctantly lifting to probe deep into her eyes.

"why?"

he flinched at her question. "amelia, we both know why."

of course they did. he was not a london gentleman in search of an on-the-shelf spinster. he was not even a gentleman in the general sense of the word. his only purpose was to ensure that the medallion was pro-tected. once he had dealt with mr. ramone, he would return to his people and she would be no more than it distant memory.

while she... she would be alone again with no one but william to fill her days.

a thought that was far more depressing than it should be.

she lowered her lashes to hide the grief that lanced through her heart.

"yes," she said softly.

his fingers tightened, all too easily able to sense the pain she sought to keep secret.

"oh, amelia, please do not be unhappy," he pleaded.

knowing that she was only adding to his burdens, she stepped back briskly and tilted her chin to a firm angle.

she did not need his pity. that was the last thing she desired.

"i am not unhappy," she lied bravely, "merely concerned. william and i cannot hide here forever."

although he could easily read her heart, sebastian thankfully followed her lead to less dangerous waters. folding his arms over his chest, he regarded her with a steady gaze.

"it will not be forever. i am certain it will all soon be behind you."

"how can you be so certain?"

"mr. ramone . . . drake, is notoriously vain. his pride will not allow him to remain without the medallion for long."

she grimaced at his explanation. "that is hardly reassuring, sebastian."

he smiled wryly, belatedly realizing that his words had hardly been designed to inspire comfort.

"do not fear. he might very well come to his senses and return to the veil. if he does not, and continues his pursuit of the medallion, then i will stop him."

a frown tugged at her brows at his unperturbed tone. "i do not like the thought of you placing yourself in danger."

"no more than i enjoy knowing that you are at risk," he pointed out softly.

"but who will protect you?"

he blinked, as if surprised by her concern. she felt a stab of impatience. for goodness' sake.

surely he must realize that she could not bear it if something happened to him?

"i assure you that i am well able to take care of myself."

she was not about to be so easily soothed. sebastian had been commanded to protect the medallion she did not doubt for a moment that he would sacrifice himself to fulfill that duty.

she settled her hands upon her hips, her expression stern.

"but you said yourself that this drake possesses powers that you do not have."

"true enough, but i was given a dagger blessed by the most powerful of vampires. if necessary, i will use it to destroy drake."

his features remained set in determined lines, but amelia did not miss the sudden darkening of his eyes. for the first time, she considered more than just the danger to sebastian.

"it would be difficult for you, would it not?" she demanded.

the elegant features tightened. "the most difficult thing i have ever done."

her expression softened in sympathy. "you were close to this vampire?"

there was a long pause before he shrugged his shoulder. "the relationships between vampires are rather different from those of humans. we are all of one family and connected by more than mere blood. when one of my brothers is lost it leaves a wound that cannot be healed."

"oh, sebastian." she closed the small space between them to lay her hand upon his arm. she could physically feel the dread that filled his heart. and the unmistakable sadness at the thought of harming a brother. "is there no other way?"

he drew in a deep breath. "who is to say? the future is not yet established. not even a vampire is capable of peering into such murky depths."

amelia sighed, well aware that his hope was fragile, indeed. "i am sorry, sebastian. i did not realize how very difficult all this must be for you."

a silence descended as he regarded her with an odd expression. "you are a most astonishing maiden, miss hadwell," he murmured.

she lifted her brows in confusion. "astonishing?"

"most mortals would be mindless with terror at the realization that they were surrounded by vampires. if they were capable of believing it at all."

a most ridiculous blush threatened to rise to her cheeks. she could only wish that she deserved the obvious admiration in the silver eyes.

"to be truthful, this has all happened so swiftly i have not had proper time to think clearly,"

she admitted with grudging honesty.

his hand gently brushed her face. "you are not even furious you were put at risk by being bonded with the medallion?"

"how could i be?" she offered an unconsciously wistful smile.

his fingers tightened. "what do you mean?"

"if not for the medallion, we should never have met."

"amelia..."

whatever he was about to say was interrupted as mrs. benson bustled back into the room, her attention so consumed with her duties that she did not even note the couple who were standing far too close for propriety.

"all right, then, be off with you," she muttered, flapping her hands in their direction. "i can't be making proper muffins with a crowded kitchen."

amelia sighed.

she could think of any number of things that she desired at this moment.

unfortunately, muffins were not one of them.

chapter eleven

amelia stood at the entrance to her brother's chamber. with her arms folded across her waist, she attempted to appear stern, but she could not prevent her lips from trembling with suppressed amusement.

tucked in his bed, william had his eyes tightly squeezed shut in an effort to convince her that he was soundly asleep. it was an effort that was bound to fail. not only did he ruin the effect by frequently opening one eye to determine if she were still there, but he had pulled the heavy blanket up to his chin.

on a night such as this, no one could desire to smother themselves in covers. thick, stifling heat had choked london for the past two days; long after the sun had set, the unpleasant warmth remained.

she suspected that poor william must be roasting beneath his blanket.

"already asleep, william?" she asked softly, crossing the room toward the bed.

the eyes squeezed tighter as william clutched the blanket higher.

"sleeping," he muttered.

"ah, that is too bad. i had thought perhaps you would like a story before bed."

his nose wrinkled as he considered the delightful treat. there were few things he preferred more than a thrilling story of knights and dragons before bed.

"sleeping," he retorted reluctantly.

she moved ever closer to the bed. "mmm. i suppose i can wait until tomorrow to tell you of sir william and the magic sword."

one eye popped open. "magic?"

"oh, yes. a very, very powerful magical sword. and a fortunate thing, too, since he had to defeat a wicked wizard."

the other eye opened as her brother wavered. "magic."

"of course, you probably aren't interested in how sir william rode upon the black dragon to attack the wizard's tower."

william wiggled, clearly torn between the danger of revealing his secret or missing the story of the brave knight.

at last he heaved a sigh. "no."

coming to a halt at the edge of the bed, she peered down at his decidedly guilty countenance.

"william, is it not too warm for such a heavy cover?"

he clutched the blanket even tighter. "no."

she swallowed the laughter that bubbled from within. "you are not, perchance, attempting to hide anything from me, are you?"

realizing his danger, william swiftly squeezed his eyes shut once again. "sleeping."

"is there something under those covers, william?"

in response, her brother offered a loud, entirely unconvincing snore.

on this occasion amelia could not suppress her gurgle of laughter. no one but william could brighten her mood with such ease.

well, perhaps there was one other, she conceded ruefully. but since sebastian had determinedly returned to his habit of careful avoidance, it did not seem to matter. he was little more than a shadow that lurked about the town house.

with an effort, amelia thrust aside the thought of the elusive gentleman. it was not his fault that she had ridiculously allowed her feelings to become so entangled. nor that he was destined to leave her heartbroken. he was simply doing what was necessary to protect his people.

at least she would always have william, she staunchly reassured herself. his love would always be with her. never faltering, never changing. it was a good deal more than many people could claim.

her smile returned as she gazed down at her brother, who continued to snore loudly. it was time to be done with this amusing charade.