One word flooded Aleigh's mind as she regained consciousness. Ow. Her neck was throbbing with pain. Dang Daimons.

Aleigh jumped out of her restful position when she felt something cold being pressed against her neck, and smacked her head against another.

"Ouch", she cried as she heard a male voice echo her thoughts. Cracking an eye open, Aleigh saw a man sprawled out on the floor. His hand covered his face as he held his head in pain. Despite his obscured features, Aleigh could see his long blonde hair pulled back from the top and the darker sides of the shaved cut. A glint of silver flashed from his ear. As he removed hs hand from his head, Aleigh found herself staring into the black eyes of the man from the coffee shop.

And he was scowling at her. "What is the matter with you?" The deep baritone of his voice rang though her very soul. He wasn't angry, merely agitated at the fact that that she had caught him off guard. He stood up, walked over to her, and placed his hand on her forehead. "Are you alright?"

Something strange jumped in Aleigh's chest. His voice, so warm, rich…soothing, she could listen to it forever. The worst part was, it was familiar to her. Somewhere, sometime in her life Aleigh had heard that voice before. "I'm alright," she said. "You just startled me."

"Good." He shoved her back down. "Now settle down before you cause me anymore trouble."

Aleigh stared at him in disbelief. "I beg your pardon?"

The man smirked at her as he placed the cold rag back against her neck. "You can beg all you want, but it won't do you any good."

Closing her eyes Aleigh pulled away from him with a huff.

"Awww……come on now," he prompted. "I was only kidding."

Still, Aleigh ignored him.

"Ok then. Have it your way." He moved closer to her and placed the compress back against her neck.

After a few minutes of silence he heard her sigh, "thank you".

"For what?"

"Helping me. You did save my life."

He shrugged. "I was just passing by and saw a group of thugs needing a good beating." He saw he features fall slightly in disappointment. "You were a bonus."

Aleigh quirked a brow. "Oh, really?"

He flashed her a smile. "Yeah. Who wouldn't want to find a beautiful damsel in distress. It's like right out of a fairy tale."

"So…you weren't expecting to find me there?"

"Not really. Why?"

She shook her head. Any thoughts she had about him being a Dark-Hunter vanished. So what if he saved her life in the middle of the night. A Dark-Hunter would never rush into a pack of Daimons without knowing what was going on. This guy seemed too unconcerned, too nonchalant about what had happened. Besides, she had never met him and he didn't give off that deadly presence all of the others did. On top of that he had been in the Starbucks. By a window. In daylight! No Dark-Hunter, besides Ash, could stand, let alone sit in sunlight and not combust into flames. It was a feat the Dark-Hunters were cursed with ever since they made their deal with Artemis. And since Artemis was a goddess of the moon, her brother, Apollo, didn't really like to see them during his daylight hours.

"Why did you save me?"

"I already told you. I didn't mean to. I just got lucky."

"Uh-huh…"

"I'm serious."

"Okay, sure."

While the guy dressed and bandaged her neck, she finally took a look around. They were in a family room of some sort. She was lying on a lush, black leather sofa while he sat on a cherry coffee table with a glass center. The walls were w painted in a deep red that complemented on the dark hard wood floor. A thin rug, patterned in blues and reds lay beneath the coffee table. A tall entertainment shelf of rich mahogany laden with a 32" flat screen T.V. and a wide variety of gaming systems. Twin book shelves, made of the same dark wood, stood on both sides of the T.V. stand. Surprisingly they were actually full of books. At first glance the stranger didn't look like the type to move outside the computer world, with the consoles and all, but don't judge a book by it's cover! The kitchen was visible through an open wall and was full of stainless steel appliances. Off to the side, she saw a small hallway which she guessed led towards the bath and bed rooms.

"Where are we?"

"My apartment."

Well, that confirmed it. No Dark-Hunter lived in an apartment. They were too prone to Daimon attacks, which is why many of the Dark-Hunters owned so many houses. Since Daimons had to have an invitation in order to enter a house, Dark-Hunters and their squires had more safety in one. In apartments or hotels like so, Daimons had a little more freedom. They were public places, which allowed anyone to enter them. Including Daimons.

Her rescuer caught the blush running across her cheeks and smiled wickedly. "Would you like a tour?"

Aleigh shook her head vigorously, too embarrassed to speak.

Throwing back his head, the guy laughed. It was rich and deep, showing his good humor. "Since that pretty little blush of yours shows me you're too innocent to stay in a strangers home, how about I take you back to yours?"

Aleigh looked into his midnight depths. "How do I know you're not going to take me out into the middle of no-where and kill me?"

"Would I have saved you if I wanted to kill you?"

"If you wanted the pleasure of doing it yourself, then yes."

He sat back on his heels, seeming to anticipate the upcoming argument with relish. "I could have killed you while you were passed out on my couch."

"True. But then, what fun would that be? You could have just as easily killed me after you chased those Dai- those men off. Then you wouldn't have had the trouble of bringing me all the way back to your house, tending to my injury, and waiting for me to wake up. Besides, you risk too much killing me here. Someone could turn you in."

"Maybe I'm waiting for the right moment."

"Exactly. Which is why you're going to take me out of the way to kill me."

"I wouldn't have bothered with tending to you if I was going to kill you."

"If you wanted me to trust you, you would."

The guy shook his head at her. "Why would I need you to trust me?"

"Because you'd want me to go quietly. And what better way to lure a victim than to have them trust you?"

Silence fell between the two of them with the guy looking amused at her before laughing out loud. "You've thought a lot about this haven't you?"

Aleigh just shrugged.

"Well, it doesn't really matter how you look at it. If I wanted you dead, you already would be."

Raising her hands to her face, Aleigh feigned fright as she looked at him. "Oooo… I'm so scared."

Faster than she could blink, the guy jumped off he table and onto the couch, pinning her hands in his in the process. He straddled her waist, with one foot still on the floor for support. Hovering just mere inches above her ear, his warm breath tickled her skin in a way that hadn't been done in years. Chills ran down her spine with the close contact, and when he whispered, she was sure she shuddered. "Like I said, if I wanted to, you'd already be dead."

Aleigh trembled as he shifted his weight. Her blue eyes found his ebony ones boring into her with hunger. It frightened her. But more than that, it excited her. It was a look she hadn't seen in years. It was a feeling she hadn't felt in forever. And the fact that she felt it with this man was a little scary.

In a swift movement, he stood up and pulled her to her feet. Aleigh caught herself against his chest from the sudden movement. Her face flaming from embarrassment, she tore her hands away from him and spun away from him, refusing to look at him.

His laughter filled her ears. "Like I said, you're too innocent to stay here for a night. Come on." He threw a jacket over her shoulders and led her the way down to the garage. She was surprised to see him walk over to an electric blue Suzuki GSX-R600. Sitting on the bike, he took the helmet of the handlebars and handed it to her. "Can you out it on or do you need help?"

"I can do it." After spending years with Dark-Hunters who loved their bikes, fastening a helmet was something one tended to pick up. "What are you going to wear?"

He tapped his head with his knuckles. "People are always telling me I have a hard head, now's a good a time as any to test that theory."

"You're not funny."

"Sure I am. Besides, if one of us is going to survive, might as well save the cute one."

Aleigh was glad she had the helmet to hid her blush. He held his hand out to help her on the bike. Trying not to think about the way his hand dwarfed hers, or the way his back felt pressed against her, Aleigh locked her hands around his waist and held on tight.

He didn't live too far from her, about ten miles or so out of the way. After pulling into the driveway, he helped her off and took back the helmet.

"Thanks for the help," said Aleigh.

"No problem." He winked at her before putting the helmet on. "See you around." Wit that, he pulled out of the drive and into the night. Only when Aleigh reached her front door did she realize she didn't get his name.

Yay! Another chapter! wOOt