Love at Stake (7 page)

Abbey threw her head back, closing her eyes to block out the world. Without her sight, every sensation was heightened. His light, teasing caresses forced a moan from her throat. His movements were slow, careful, as if he knew exactly how to reduce her to a puddle of need. And she had no complaints.

His lips trailed up her neck, pausing to kiss the tender skin above her pulse. Fangs raked over her throat, sending adrenaline spiking through her body.

“Don’t you dare,” she breathed.

He smiled against her skin. “I won’t,” he promised. “But God knows I want to.”

The knowledge that he was holding himself back for her only fanned her desire higher. Lucian wasn’t like any other lover she’d ever had. Danger accented every kiss and yet she trusted him not to hurt her. It might be a naive belief, but it didn’t change the fact that here and now, she’d risk his fangs for a chance to taste him once more.

Abbey threaded her fingers through his hair, feeling the silky strands fall across her palms. She dipped her head to capture his mouth hungrily. His touch was infuriatingly gently and she wanted more. The lust driving her demanded she push him back against the couch and rip the shirt from his body. She’d press her mouth to his chiseled chest. Trace the contours of his muscle with the tip of her tongue. Abbey nearly shook with a need stronger than anything she’d experienced before.

Because no man in her past even came close to Lucian. He had no competition.

Unable to help herself, she rocked against his erection. Her lover’s growl of pleasure filled her ears as she undulated against his hard body.

They’d be so good together. The sex would be explosive.

Ice water crashed over her at the thought. What was she doing? Any more of this and she was going to screw a vampire in his living room. Happily. Desperately.

“Stop,” she said even as her body protested her words.

“Never.” The husky cadence of his voice did nothing to calm the desire throbbing between her legs.

“Lucian.”

“Finally,” he said, his fingers rising to the buttons of her shirt. “I like my name on your lips.”

If he undid just a few more buttons she’d be enjoying his lips on a far different part of her anatomy.

“No,” she moaned. “We can’t.”

“On the contrary, I’m more than happy to prove we can.”

Abbey arched from the couch as he rubbed his thigh between her legs. Would it be so bad to spend one night making the best mistake of her life? It was only her self-respect that would be harmed and really, wasn’t it a fair trade?

But she remembered the smiling faces of her coworkers. Everyone was counting on her to see this project through. If she buckled now, she had no doubt Lucian would move on and forget her. She had to hold him off. Keep him interested in Fated Match while her clothes stayed firmly in place.

“I can’t sleep with you.”

“Trust me, darling, I have no intention of sleeping.”

“You know what I mean.” Flattening her palms against his chest, she pushed him back.

The man looking back at her was a far cry from the sophisticated man who’d gone out to dinner. His hair was messy, his clothing mussed, and most intriguing of all, his eyes wild. There was very little left of his tightly held control. Instead, the man pressed intimately against her was far more vampire than she’d ever seen.

“You want me,” he said, his voice rough. “You can’t hide from that now.”

“It changes nothing. You’re still a vampire.”

“I’m going to prove to you, darling, how very little that matters to you before our time is up.”

She swallowed hard. “Not tonight you’re not.”

His intense gaze studied her before inclining his head. “Soon.”

“Never.” She pushed off him, tugging her skirt back into place. She was reasonably sure her hair was a lost cause but would deal with that problem later.

Lucian came to his feet with easy grace. “You’re going to run away again, aren’t you?”

Abbey opened her mouth to refute the statement when she realized in that moment, he knew her better than she knew herself. “Yes.”

He nodded, unsurprised by her decision. Before she could snake by him, however, he tugged her back into his arms.

“Listen to me well, darling,” he said, bending to brush her ear with his lips. “Sooner or later, we will end up in bed, and when we do, I promise you’ll leave with no complaints.”

Abbey shivered at the heated vow she had no doubt he could fulfill.

“Not going to happen.” Even to her, the words sounded paper-thin.

With a knowing smile, he released her and stepped back.

Lucian made no move to stop her as she scooped up her purse and hurried past the barely touched wineglasses.

“Until tomorrow, Abbey,” he said when she reached the door.

She gave a shaky nod before ducking into the hall and practically sprinting for the elevator.

Abbey had wanted one taste of the forbidden and had succeeded.

Too bad now her only thought was how soon she could have it again.

Chapter Seven

If looks could kill, she’d be a goner. Well, she knew gorgon looks could kill but thankfully siren ones couldn’t.

Vivian appeared in Abbey’s office doorway ready to hide her body in the woods. And from what she knew of her boss, if the woman wanted her gone, no one would ever find any of her parts.

“Six nights in a row!” Vivian railed.

Abbey winced. “I know it looks bad.”

“Six!”

“But you told me to give Lucian whatever he asked for. Well, this is it.”

“We have bent over backward to set him up with the most talented, successful, beautiful women in our database and what does he do? He spends twenty minutes with them, if even, and then ends the night with you!”

Abbey tried to defend herself. “The selkie came close.”

“He barely made it ten minutes last night. Do you know how much groveling I’ve had to do, how many apologies I’ve had to make? At this rate, we’ll lose money comping all his rejects for free resubscriptions.”

“It’s not my fault.”

“It most certainly is. Make it plain to him that you are not up for candidacy here. He needs to focus on his own kind.”

She flinched at the reminder. “I don’t control him.”

Vivian smiled coldly. “Don’t you? You haven’t slept with him yet, have you?”

“None of your damn business,” Abbey declared, pushing from her seat.

“We have three more sure hits lined up for him, and if I hear you’ve replaced a single one, it will not end well for you.”

“Threatening me, Viv? Unwise given my company of late, don’t you think?”

Vivian’s eyes narrowed. “Redgrave is your only champion, and that will end as soon as he’s had his fill of you. Best remember that, Abbey.”

She stormed from the office without another word.

Slowly Abbey sank back in her seat. She knew better. Really she did. But having Lucian pass up cover models to hang out at a dive bar with her had been too tempting to miss. Every night it was the same. He’d spend a few minutes scrutinizing his date and then come looking for her, declaring that the perfect women lined up for him weren’t perfect enough. How was she supposed to turn down such a heady feeling?

She knew it worked counter to their purpose, but no man had ever showered her with the attention Lucian did. Hell, there were two messages in her in-box from Christian and she hadn’t even had time to think of the handsome wolf.

But she was living in someone else’s fairy tale and she knew it. Vivian was right. She was walking a fine line.

She needed to make it plain to Lucian they would never happen. The time was long past for that conversation.

It would put an end to the delicious flirting, the heated glances. The stolen kisses.

She closed her eyes. The vampire knew what he was doing, she’d give him that. Never in her life had she wanted anyone as much as she wanted him. Fangs or not, the man intoxicated her.

Just as he’d intended.

But Vivian was right. There was no such things as happily ever after with one of his kind, and she didn’t want to become one more name in a string of many. If they wound up in bed, she had no illusions. He would leave her with addicting memories, and she’d leave him with no memories at all. One human was much like the rest, after all.

She turned back to her computer, but work was the furthest thing from her mind. There were a couple of complaints to handle and a new client to meet, but they all paled in comparison to the person who filled her thoughts.

“Abbey?” Chloe stuck her head through the door. “Can I help?”

She snorted. “I doubt it.”

The witch crossed the threshold and planted herself in the chair opposite the desk. “Talk me through it.”

“Vivian wants me to sleep with Lucian so he’ll move on to women who are in his league.” As if the vampire needed that particular memo. He knew as well as Vivian did that he was only interested in the chase.

Chloe pulled on a long lock of hair as she considered Abbey’s words. “What do you want?”

Forbidden things.
But no matter what her body longed for, Lucian was not the man for her.

“I like him,” she said, admitting the damning fact aloud for the first time. “I like how I feel when he looks at me.”

Chloe’s eyes were understanding. “I don’t mean to keep harping on your human status, but you know what this is.”

She sighed. “Yeah.”

“Personally I think you’re a far better candidate for him than anyone we’ve been serving up.”

“But I’m not supernatural.” She said the words they were both thinking.

“A vampire of his stature has needs…”

“I know.” He needed someone as magical as he was, and that was one bill she’d never fit.

Chloe looked as upset as she felt. “I wish there was something comforting I could say.”

Her lips twisted. “I’m not talking about emotion, here, Chloe. This is all about sex, and I’d be a fool to fall under his spell.”

She shrugged. “Maybe, but what a way to fall.”

Abbey chewed her lip. “I’m ruining our chances, aren’t I?”

Chloe didn’t deny her words.

Hell.

“All right,” Abbey whispered. “I’ll end it.” Give him up and let him play his games with women from his own world.

“How?”

That was the million-dollar question. She could take herself out of the game. Offer Jessie or Chloe up in her place and tell Lucian their business was done. Unfortunately, she doubted he’d accept such an easy out. No, there was no avoiding the conversation that needed to take place.

“I’ll talk to him tonight,” she said. “If he comes to get me before the thirty-minute mark, of course.”

“He’ll come.”

Her heart jumped at the surety in Chloe’s voice. Yes, he’d come, thinking they were going to spend the evening together.

Where should she have this conversation? And when? Before his date? He might balk, refusing to see the woman they had set up with him tonight, and that would be disastrous for Fated Match’s reputation.

Afterward, then. But bars were so crowded and the street was too public.

Her place? She didn’t particularly want him to know where to find her outside of work hours.

Which left his place. Dangerous idea.

Alluring temptation.

“I’ll handle Lucian,” she said resolutely. “After tomorrow, I won’t be a problem anymore.”

Chloe sighed. “I’m sorry. I wish this could play out differently. It’s just who he is. In our society he’s—”

“The crème de la crème.”

“Yeah.”

And she was a university dropout. “I get it.”

“This doesn’t reflect on you,” Chloe said.

“The hell it doesn’t.”

“I mean, as a person.” Chloe’s hands twisted in her flowing skirt. “I might not have very many human friends, but I know a good one when I see her. You can’t take this personally. There are others in our world who will want more than your body.”

“Thanks, Chloe. I’ve got a few files to deal with if you wouldn’t mind.”

The witch nodded. “Let me know if I can help,” she said before leaving the room.

Abbey watched the door swing closed behind her. The click of the latch echoed through the small room.

One more night with Lucian. That was all she could have, and she had to make sure he understood that. Her fantasy romance was coming to an end and even though she knew she was dodging a bullet, she wished she could have played in his world just a little longer.

…

Abbey seemed distracted tonight. She’d been waiting when he’d arrived, treating him as professionally and courteously as always. She’d pushed a pink box across the desk for his inspection before laying out the file of his current date. Everything had gone as it had the last six nights. Except there was an unexpected tension in her. Her sentences were stilted and prosaic. Not his normal, vibrant Abbey.

The drive to the restaurant had been interminable. He’d turned on all the charm, but she’d seemed caught up in her own head. That he hadn’t been able to engage a woman’s interest was a hard blow to his ego.

They’d pulled up at the restaurant and proceeded as always. Abbey had made the introductions and stayed to smooth out any first-meeting tension. Once they’d been at ease, she’d moved to slip away.

Before she’d left, however, he reminded her. “Thirty minutes.”

The look she gave him was measured. “I’ll be there,” she replied before heading off.

He’d stared after her like a lovesick swain. Hell, she was wrapping him around her little finger. Six nights she’d eluded him, making him chase after her as he hadn’t pursued anyone in decades. Every night he swore he’d seduce her, and every night she evaded his pull. It was frustrating. Infuriating. And strangely exhilarating.

What a prize it would be to win her.

He listened to the were-lion with half an ear. The woman was charming but no match for Abbey’s quick wit. After ten minutes, he was ready to leap from his chair, but didn’t want to insult the sweet redhead before him.

One more insipid comment, however, and he’d pull out his own hair. Endless minutes marched past until he could make a decent getaway.

“My abject apologies,” he said to his doe-eyed date, “but something pressing has come up.”

“Work?” she asked.

He smiled instead of answering.
No,
he mused.
Definitely not work.

Leaving the were to her dinner, he charted the swiftest course to the bar.

Abbey was waiting. Legs crossed, hair tousled, drink finished.

“I hope I’m not too late,” he said.

She lifted her thick lashes to look at him. “No.”

“Shall we go get another drink?” The evening would be interminable torture, but it beat returning to the redheaded were.

But she shook her head. “We need to talk. Can we use your apartment?”

His gaze sharpened. “Talking” didn’t bode well, but getting her near a bed was worth any risk.

“Of course.”

He led her outside, noting the nervous way she puffed at her bangs. What had gotten into her tonight?

The drive to his apartment was over swiftly and he all but raced her to the elevator. Her nerves seemed to increase with the passing of each floor.

Get her inside,
he thought.
And distract her from whatever she wishes to discuss.

Arriving at his floor, he swept her into the hall. She was silent as he slid his keys into the lock and opened the door.

“Thank you,” she said as she entered. The first words they’d exchanged since the restaurant.

“Would you like a—”

“No,” she said, cutting him off. Her hands twisted in her pink skirt and he smiled at the gesture.

“We have to talk,” she said. “This is the last time I can wait for thirty minutes.”

“Too long?” he asked, deliberately misunderstanding her.

“The opposite. We shouldn’t be doing this. You need to concentrate on your dates and I need to do my job.”

He strolled toward her. “My dates.”

“You made a deal with Fated Match. I can’t be part of the reason we fail when you’re not putting your full effort into it.”

“The women I’ve been matched up with aren’t right,” he said with a shrug. “You are far more enjoyable to spend my time with.”

“But I shouldn’t be. I’m human. Hell, we both know this is just a game to amuse you and it’s not fair. Stop flirting with me. Stop coming to meet me.”

“Stop kissing you?” he asked, moving to her side.

Abbey wouldn’t meet his eyes, and he wondered if he’d ever seen someone so adorable.

“Yes,” she said.

“No.”

Her head snapped up. “This isn’t open for debate.”

How human of her. “Darling, just because you declare it so, doesn’t mean I have to agree.”

“Yet when you say jump, I have to ask how high?”

He smiled at the bite in her words.

“You are playing with me,” she said. “And I don’t like it.”

“Liar.” He rested his hands on her waist.

She swallowed hard before trying again. “You are not going to end up with a human. We both know that. Pursuing this is ludicrous.”

“I disagree. We both need closure before moving on.”

“I came here to tell you this is the end. Now that I’ve said my piece, we’re done.”

She tried to push past him but he caught her before she could get far.

“No,” he said. “You didn’t come here for that.”

Abbey looked at him sharply.

“You could have told me this anywhere.”

“Could not,” she denied. “This isn’t a conversation for a public forum.”

“You could have told me over the phone. Or in your office. Hell, you could have told me in the car. But you didn’t.”

She watched him, her big eyes fixed on his face. Triumph flared through him.

“You came here, Abbey, because you want closure too. These six days have put you as much on edge as I am.”

He tugged her into his arms. “So stay. If you want this ended, then spend the night with me.” Lucian ran his lips over her cheek. “Have one last adventure and I promise to be the perfect client.”

Her luminous eyes drank him in.

“Stay,” he repeated, knowing very well there was only one outcome tonight.

…

Abbey felt trapped. Lucian caught her with words she had no power to fight. He was so close, offering her everything she desired. If she were smart, she’d march out of this apartment right now.

Except her legs wouldn’t move.

Just being near him had her body pulsing with need. If she left, she had no doubt nothing would change. Lucian was right. The situation they were stuck in was addictive. The tension wouldn’t just disappear because she willed it.

Which left one other option. One delicious, scandalous option.

How she longed to agree. To spend the night in his arms. Lucian was the best mistake she’d ever make.

His interest would wane in the morning. Hell, if she were lucky, so would hers. They’d be able to work together professionally.

As long as she didn’t let her feelings become engaged.

Other women had one-night stands all the time. Why should she be any different? She knew a future was not an option with a vampire. But a single night…

That was hers for the taking.