Meg sighed. She had worked since the day she turned fifteen. No
 
 one had ever accused her of slacking off. Of course, she hadn’t had
 
 much of a choice. “I’m not asking him to do that. I’m not a princess.”
 
 “I know that. You know that. Teach him that. You’ll all be
 
 happier if you’re a fully functioning member of the team rather than a
 
 porcelain doll they take down and very gently make love to, but only
 
 after asking politely.” Dante shuddered as though the very thought
 
 made him ill. “You are the best thing that could have happened to
 
 him. Work on Cian first. He’s the openly passionate one. He’s the one
 
 who never wanted that polite bargain where he loved you from afar
 
 because he was worried his passion would be too much for you.”
 
 “Beck doesn’t love me,” Meg said. “He just met me.”
 
 Bound
 
 69
 
 “He won’t be able to help himself, and neither will you.” The
 
 vampire picked up a small satchel Meg had seen Cara fill. He settled
 
 it over her shoulder, giving her a sharp slap on the back. It moved her
 
 forward a little. “Be careful out there, and remember what I told you.”
 
 “And just what did you tell my mate, vampire?” Beck’s eyes were
 
 a glacial gray as he stood in the doorway.
 
 Meg froze, but Dante merely rolled his eyes. “It’s always Dante,
 
 or my cos, when he wants something. And when he’s pissed off he
 
 calls me vampire. He says it like it’s a bad thing. I’ll have you know
 
 that vampires are the most advanced of all the races. Come to my
 
 plane sometime, sweetheart, and I’ll show you. We’re launching a
 
 mission to test a deep space shuttle. Vamps in space. It’s going to be
 
 awesome.” Dante jauntily slapped his cousin on the back. “See you
 
 back at the village. I’ll give Cian your greeting, but I’ll keep my
 
 mouth shut about her. It’s better if she’s a surprise.”
 
 The vampire left, and Meg was alone with Beck. He’d had a