She felt the flush rise in her face when her skin pressed against his. “Trust me. I’m paying attention.”

His energy hummed under her fingers. Touching Baojia was like putting her hand over an electrical wire. His skin contained him, but just barely. It was as if power vibrated under her fingertips. Keeping her close, he moved into another position.

“Try this—no wait, I’ll demonstrate first.”

He pulled away and showed her another form, then moved back and helped her position herself correctly. They practiced for another hour like that. Natalie could tell he was a great teacher, but if he wanted her to learn self-defense, she had a feeling there were other, faster, methods.

“How long does it take to learn this?”

“The proper practice of tai chi takes years to master. But it is an excellent martial art.” He paused to let her get a drink. The slow practice had been unexpectedly tiring and her muscles already felt it. “You will be able to practice this your whole life.”

Her whole life? See, it was phrases like that she simply couldn’t brush off. Because her whole life and his were vastly different. Turning away from him, she stared at the fountain in the corner. “What the hell are we doing?”

She heard him, felt him, come to her side. She was starting to get used to the speed, but other things, like his complete stillness when he was unsure of a situation, still kind of freaked her out. He was still as a statue when she turned back to him.

“What do you mean? We’re practicing. You’re learning self-defense.”

She set the water bottle down on the bench and threw a towel around her neck to have something to hold on to. “You’re teaching me something that takes years to master.”

“Yes.”

She remained silent, waiting for him to speak. Surprisingly, she didn’t have to wait long.

“You’re under my aegis, Natalie.” His face was doing that whole closed-off thing it did. She couldn’t read him at all. “That means I am responsible for your safety.”

“Does it me>ing that an I belong to you in some weird vampire way?” He paused long enough for her to guess the answer. She felt her temper rise. “Dammit, Baojia, I’m not a… possession. I have a life of my own. Whatever we’re doing here doesn’t change that.”

He stepped closer and she saw the flash in his eyes. “You’re right. What we’re doing doesn’t change that. It changed the minute you walked into Ivan’s bar and became a human on his radar. Don’t think you can avoid this.”

“I’m not trying to avoid anything!”

“You’re trying to avoid the reality that you are the one who walked into this, Natalie. I didn’t pull you in. You walked in. And you can’t just walk out without consequences.”

Her stomach dropped. “Is that a threat?”

His eyes closed and he shook his head. “As if I would threaten you. As if… Natalie, I am the last person on earth who would ever hurt you. But you have to realize that others will. If I’m not there—”

“You weren’t here last night.” Her anger spiked. “You took off without me to go tail Rory, and you didn’t even tell me.”

She saw his fangs fall. “Is that what this is about? You’re pissed off that I went somewhere without you?”

“This is my story. I should be there if you’re going to—”

His control snapped. “It’s not a fucking story! It’s a deadly game that someone is playing with consequences you don’t even want to imagine. And you put yourself on the board. I tried—” He grabbed her shoulders. She thought about pushing him away, but didn’t. “I tried to keep you out of it, but I couldn’t. You wouldn’t let me. And now…” His hands softened and he took a calming breath. “You’re more than just an innocent bystander. You’re more than Dez’s friend. You’re…”

She stood, trembling with anger, but also with fear. Because he looked afraid. And if Baojia was afraid of anything, then it was something to take seriously. “I’m what?”

His hand left her shoulder and pressed against her chest right over her heart. It pounded at his touch.

“You’re so vulnerable. A thousand different things can kill you in the space of a heartbeat. I’m trying. I’m trying, but I would sincerely like to lock you in a padded room until I can kill every vampire who looks sideways at you. Maybe then we could have a rational conversation about this. Right now, all I can think of is all the ways you could be killed, and I wouldn’t be fast enough to save you.”

How could he be so frightening and so sweet, all at the same time? “A padded room?” she said hoarsely. “I’m not that nuts, George.”

Baojia pulled her into his arms and she let him. He pressed her against his chest and just held her. “You are completely nuts,” he said. “But for some reason, I like it.”

She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him back. “I’m getting attached to your overly protective, control-freak self, too.” Getting attached? She was half in love with him. It had happened so fast she was still reeling.

“I’m teaching you this because I need you to be alive, Natalie. Do you understand?”

She hugged him tighter and sighed. “But it takes years to learn.”

“I have time if you do.”

“I know.” She blinked back tears, hoping he couldn’t feel them on his skin. “I know you do.”