Sexiest Vampire Alive (21 page)

She nodded and dropped the ball into her raincoat pocket. “I think that would be the worst part of being a vampire—watching your mortal friends and family die.”

She grew quiet until they arrived at Laszlo’s laboratory. Laszlo invited them in with a shy smile.

“Amazing.” She looked around, her eyes wide. “Tell me what you’re working on.”

“Of course.” Laszlo launched into a long monologue that made no sense to Gregori at all, but Abigail was nodding and agreeing.

Laszlo was clearly delighted to have someone who understood what he was doing. Charles stood by the door, silent and watching. Gregori ended up standing nearby, silent and watching, too, because he couldn’t understand what the hell they were talking about. Whatever it was, it certainly had Laszlo excited for he was twirling the buttons on his new lab coat. Abigail seemed excited, too. She was talking fast, her hands were gesturing, her eyes gleaming.

Gregori sighed. He was doomed. She was way too smart for him. Way too alive for him. Way too forbidden for him.

She mentioned some plants she wanted to find in the Yunnan province of China, and one of Laszlo’s buttons popped off and bounced onto his black-topped table.

“Yes! Roman used a plant from that province when he invented the Stay-Awake drug.” Laszlo fiddled with another button. “The drug works, but it has the unfortunate side effect of aging the Vamp one year for every day he ingests it.”

“Amazing,” Abigail said for about the tenth time.

“Roman still has the plant in his lab,” Laszlo continued. “Perhaps you would like to examine it?”

“I would love that!”

“I’ve been working on the Stay-Awake formula to try to minimize the side effects, but it’s hard to find a Vamp who’s willing to test it. They don’t like taking a chance that they could age a year.”

Abigail gasped. “You test your formulas on your fellow vampires?”

Laszlo chuckled. “We don’t have any vampire mice. Besides, if a formula ends up making a vampire ill, it won’t last for very long. His body will automatically heal during his death-sleep—”

“Laszlo!” Gregori stepped behind Abigail and made a cutting motion across his neck.

“Death-sleep?” Abigail asked. “He’ll automatically heal?”

Laszlo’s eyes widened as he realized he’d said too much. “Oh, I—I meant—” He nervously plucked at a button.

“What he means is vampires have superior strength,” Gregori said. “We tend to heal more quickly than mortals. Of course we can still die. And if we lose a body part, we can’t regenerate. We have a Vamp friend who lost a hand in battle.”

“True.” Laszlo nodded. “Our healing abilities are quite limited. Shall I go find that plant for you?”

“Ah, yes, thank you.” Abigail watched as Laszlo scurried from the room.

“Let me show you my office.” Gregori grabbed her elbow and steered her out the door.

Charles frowned at them and followed.

“What did he mean by death-sleep?” she asked.

Gregori winced inwardly. Vamps would be in deep shit if the government knew how helpless and vulnerable they were during the day. How easy they were to kill. “It’s just a term we use to describe our sleep during the day. It’s a . . . very deep sleep.”

“So if you teleported me into China, you would have to sleep during the day?”

“Yes, but remember we can move super fast at night and teleport hundreds of miles. We can do more in one night than a mortal could do in a week. Besides, if you want to remain covert, you’re better off doing things at night.”

“I suppose that’s true.” She walked beside him, chewing her bottom lip. “What did he mean by automatically heal?”

Shit
. He should have never invited Abigail here. She was too smart, too quick at figuring out their most guarded secrets. “I told you, we tend to heal more quickly.”

She stopped abruptly. “Would you let me examine you?”

He gave her a slow, seductive smile, hoping it would distract her. “Do I get to strip?”

She blushed, but waved a dismissive hand. “I’m sure your anatomy is basically the same as a mortal man. What I need is a few tissue samples and some vials of your blood.”

His smile faded. “Scholar, I’ll take you anywhere you want in the world. I’ll protect you with my life.”

“I appreciate that, but right now, all I want is some blood.”

“I . . . can’t. I’m sorry.”

Her eyes narrowed. “If there’s some sort of special healing properties in your blood, I need to know. It might help my mother.”

He clenched his hands. This was what he had feared the most, what every vampire in the world feared, that mortals would not only learn that vampires existed, but that their blood could heal. “We can’t let you examine our blood.”

She gasped. “I’m right, aren’t I? Your blood has healing properties.” She touched his arm. “Please, this is for my mother.”

He shook his head. “Every Vamp in the world is trusting me to keep them safe. If mortals thought our blood could heal disease, they would hunt us down and drain us all dry. It would be mass murder.”

Her eyes filled with tears. “You would let my mother die?” She gripped his arm. “Just give me a little. I won’t tell anyone where I got it from. I can keep a secret.”

“Secrets have a way of getting out. Look how well the vampire secret was kept.”

She moved closer. “Gregori, please.”

He winced. She wasn’t going to let this go. “I’m sorry.”

She released his arm and stepped back. “I can force you. Give me a blood sample, or I’ll tell my father to break the alliance.”

A chill ran down his back. Without the alliance, Vamps could be in serious danger. But if he gave her a blood sample, they would be doomed. “Abby, don’t do this. Don’t push me.”

A tear rolled down her cheek. “You’re not giving me any choice.”

Shit
. There was only one way out of this mess. He hated to do it, but what choice did he have? Thousands of Vamps were counting on him.

Her words came back to torment him.
If someone messed with my mind, I’d want to kill him, too.

He squeezed his fists. He had no choice.

He shot a surge of mind control at Charles, and the agent slumped against the wall.
You will forget everything you heard since we left the foyer.

He grabbed Abigail by the shoulders. “Forgive me.”

She blinked. “For what?”

He hesitated. Why not? This might be his only chance. He kissed her.

She stiffened in surprise, then slowly relaxed as he poured his apology into the kiss. Her lips molded against his so soft and sweet.
Forgive me, Abby.

He broke the kiss and invaded her mind.

You will forget everything that has happened since we left the foyer.

Chapter Fifteen

A
bigail stumbled as a wave of dizziness swept over her.

Gregori caught her by the upper arms. “Are you all right?”

“I—” She rubbed her brow. “I think so.” Why on earth was she feeling faint? She never fainted. Correction, she’d fainted two nights ago when she saw Gregori floating on the ceiling. From the moment she’d met him, her life had gone haywire.

“When’s the last time you ate?” he asked, still holding her steady.

“I—” She searched her fuzzy mind. “I’m not sure.” Where was she? Oh, right, Romatech. She’d just witnessed a family drama and discovered that Sean Whelan was a vampire.

And something more . . . but she couldn’t quite put a finger on it. It was like trying to remember a person’s name when it was on the tip of your tongue. Somehow she knew it was important, but it flitted away and was gone.

She gazed up at Gregori, who was watching her carefully. His brow was furrowed with worry. His eyes . . . strange, he looked upset. And his mouth, there was something familiar about his mouth.

Her lips tingled, and she licked them.

He sucked in a breath of air, and his grip on her arms tightened.

“Miss Tucker, are you all right?” Charles asked.

She glanced at the Secret Service man, who was rubbing the back of his neck and frowning. “Yes, I—”

“Let’s go to the cafeteria,” Gregori interrupted. “I had a gourmet chef brought in. He’ll be terribly disappointed if you guys don’t stop by to eat.”

“Oh, that was very kind of you.” Abigail let him escort her down the hall. She resisted an urge to touch her mouth. Why did she feel like she’d been kissed?

Charles followed close behind.

The hallway was lined with windows on both sides, and the gardens outside were well lit. To the left, she spotted a basketball court.

“It’s a lovely facility,” she murmured. “I’d love to see one of the labs.”

“Of course,” Gregori said quietly.

“Do you actually produce synthetic blood here?”

“Yes.” He nodded. “We package synthetic blood intended for mortal use in plastic bags. We do that 24/7. At night, when the Vamp employees come in, they bottle synthetic blood and Fusion Cuisine for the Vamp population.”

“Do the mortals who work here know about Vamps?” Her gaze wandered once again to his mouth.

A pained expression crossed his face. “Most of them have no idea.” He opened some double doors and ushered her into the cafeteria.

It was a typical-looking employee cafeteria—rectangular-shaped tables and plastic chairs, but she liked the view of the basketball court and garden. “There’s no one here.”

“Most of the night shift are Vamps, so they don’t eat here,” Gregori explained. “Make yourselves comfortable. I’ll bring you some food.” He strode away to the kitchen.

She sat where she had a view of the garden. In the distance she could see a gazebo with some sort of flowering vine growing over it. Very pretty and romantic-looking. If she had enough courage, she’d ask for a tour. Just her and Gregori. And maybe he would kiss her.

She shook her head. Why was she so obsessed with kissing all of a sudden? It was ridiculous when she had so many important things to worry about. Like her mother. The trip to China. But she’d fallen asleep last night remembering the feel of his hands and mouth on her skin. He’d come so close to kissing her when they’d shot the commercial. And she had wanted it.

She touched her mouth. A kiss from a vampire. What folly.

Charles leaned over to whisper in her ear. “You had a moment of dizziness?”

She lowered her hand. “Yes.”

“So did I. Something’s not right.” He straightened, frowning as he surveyed the room.

It was definitely strange. It wasn’t like her to feel dizzy and weak. She’d had dinner with Madison at seven. She glanced at her watch. Ten forty-seven? She’d been at Romatech for forty-seven minutes?

“Hello!” a woman’s voice said behind her.

Abigail twisted in her chair to see a woman entering the cafeteria. Late sixties perhaps? Abigail estimated her age by the gray streaks in her dark hair and the thin lines on her face, but she was still a handsome woman. A very happy one, too, since she was smiling broadly. She was wearing expensive black pumps and a stylish suit that reminded Abigail of the way her mother used to dress on the campaign trail.

“How do you do?” She strode straight toward Abigail. “I’m delighted to meet you.”

Charles held up a hand to stop her. “Identification, please.”

The woman halted. “I didn’t bring my handbag.” She planted her hands on her hips with a huff. “Really, young man, do I look like some kind of terrorist to you?” Her eyes glimmered with humor as she looked him over. “On second thought, I might insist that you search me thoroughly.”

Charles gulped. “That won’t be necessary.”

Abigail smiled as she rose to her feet. Whoever this woman was, she liked her.

“Mom!” Gregori strode toward them, carrying a tray. “What are you doing here?”

“Is that any way to greet me?” She gave him a stern look. “I came to meet your date, of course.”

“She’s not a date,” Gregori gritted out between clenched teeth as he set the tray on the table.

Abigail’s smile widened. The emotions crossing Gregori’s face were priceless. Shock, horror, then mortification.

“What is this?” His mother inspected the two dishes on the tray.

“Lobster and asparagus risotto,” he mumbled, setting the dishes on the table. “One for each of my guests. I don’t recall inviting you.”

“Well, it smells lovely!” his mother exclaimed. “I’ll take one. Thank you.”

“Mom,” he muttered. “This is a business meeting.”

“I’d be delighted for you to stay,” Abigail said. It was just too much fun watching Gregori squirm.

“Aren’t you the sweetest thing?” She extended a hand. “I’m Radinka Holstein. Please call me Radinka.”

“I’m Abigail Tucker.”

“Don’t shake her—” Gregori groaned when Abigail shook his mother’s hand.

Radinka clasped her hand in both of hers and held tightly. Then she let go with a wide grin. “Yes, at last! She’s the—”