I looked at Edward, raising my eyebrows. 'Who do you want to play with?'

'I don't know everyone they brought with them, but if I can't have Bobby Lee or Fredo, I'll take Lisandro. If they brought him, Socrates would be okay, too. I'd say Claudia, but she's not sure she likes me.'

'Claudia's never said she doesn't like you, at least not to me,' I said.

'She suspects I get you into more danger than I help you get out of.'

Nicky chimed in. 'I don't want Claudia. She's great in a fight, but she's not comfortable around me.'

'Why?' I asked.

'I'm a big, dominant male werelion; after what happened with your last lover who fit that description, she doesn't trust me.'

He very delicately hadn't said Haven's name, because he knew having to kill him had hurt me in ways that I was still discovering. Claudia had never liked Haven, and when the shit hit the fan she'd helped me kill him, after he shot Nathaniel and her and killed one of the other werelions. It had been a mess.

'Okay, I guess I can understand that,' I said, 'but I'd rather not use Lisandro.'

'He's good at the job,' Nicky said.

'Yeah, but he almost died last time he came out on a case. He's the only one on the list who's married and has kids. I'd rather not have to explain to his wife and kids why they're down one husband and father.'

'Lisandro knows the risks,' Nicky said.

Edward said, 'If you leave Lisandro home when it gets dangerous, then you've effectively ruined him as a guard.'

I sighed. 'Maybe, but humor me, okay?'

'If you're talking to me, just tell me what you want and I have to humor you, remember,' Nicky said.

'I remember, Nicky. I was talking to Ted.'

Edward said, 'Is Socrates in town?'

'Socrates is good,' I said.

'Yeah, but he doesn't trust me, makes it hard to work together.'

'Why doesn't he trust you?'

'I'm a bad guy and he's an ex-cop,' Nicky said.

'You're not a bad guy,' I said.

'Yes, I am, Anita.'

'We'll agree to disagree,' I said.

He gave that deep chuckling laugh. 'No, Socrates's cop sense goes crazy around me, and it should. I'm exactly what he thinks I am. I just don't hide it as good as Ted.'

I started to say, But Ted isn't a bad guy either, and then stopped myself. Bad and good were relative terms when it came to my best bud and to some of my lovers. I took a deep breath and let it go. It was a philosophical problem for another day.

'No, of the people they brought I'd prefer Lisandro or Domino. Pride would be okay, but he was raised and trained with Dev. He might have the same issue in a rough fight. Ethan is good, but I don't know if he can handle your job either,' Nicky said.

'Pride is here, really? Our other golden tiger guard hasn't ever come out on an away job,' I said.

'Apparently Claudia volunteered him and he didn't say no,' Nicky said.

'Who else?' I asked.

Edward came close and said, 'Anita, let Lisandro do his job.'

'I just remember how I felt when I thought we'd gotten him killed last time out. All I could think was I didn't want to tell his kids and his wife.'

'I have kids, and I'm Donna's husband except for a legal piece of paper, but you aren't leaving me home.'

I looked up into those blue eyes. He was saying something warm, but the eyes had bled to winter sky pale. I realized we were the last in the room, except for Hatfield. She wanted to ride with us, to learn the job the only way that seemed to work well, in the company of someone else who already knew how to do it. She was standing across the room, giving us privacy. Everyone else had taken their share of the addresses to check and left. Edward didn't have to pretend to be Ted when it was just me.

'Compromise,' I said. 'We bring Lisandro and Socrates. I'll talk to him about toning down his spider-sense about your thugginess.'

'You really think having Socrates along will keep Lisandro safe?' Edward asked.

I shrugged.

'You have to let him do his job, Anita.'

'No, no, I don't.' I looked at him.

He frowned at me. 'You can't be like this just because people are married and have kids. Your guards are going to have a life outside of their job, and that's going to include more kids eventually.'

'I know that,' I said, but I sounded defensive even to myself.

'Then stop letting your issues with your own childhood mess with Lisandro's ability to do his job,' Edward said.

'I don't know what you're talking about.'

'Anita,' he said, and just looked at me.

I wanted to pout, or get unreasonably angry, all things I'd done for years as a coping mechanism. 'Fine, but I still want a third guard to come with them.'

'Will you trust Nicky to pick the third guard?' Edward asked.

I sighed and then said, 'Yeah, sure.'

'Me, too,' he said.

I looked at him. 'Really?' I said, and didn't try to keep the surprise out of my face.

'Lisandro and who?' Nicky asked.