Sexiest Vampire Alive

“Because he wants something,” Gregori muttered.

“At least we have his support,” Roman said. “What about the other men?”

Gregori took a deep breath. “The Homeland Security guy was ordered to get rid of the video, but he doesn’t really trust us because I refused to give him a list of all the Vamps in the country.”

Angus winced. “Nay, we canna do that.”

“The CIA director wants to be our ally so he can use us as a weapon against their enemies,” Gregori continued. “The secretary of defense and national security advisor are suspicious and not readily inclined to trust us. General Bond of the Joint Chiefs of Staff would prefer to wipe all the vampires off the planet. That’s why I didn’t think we should remain at the safe house in D.C.”

A moment of silence settled in the room.

Roman sighed. “I guess it will take them a while to learn to trust us.”

Gregori nodded. “I tried the safe-and-harmless routine, but they were interpreting that as weak and worthless, and they only want us around if we’re useful. I had to prove we were worth saving, or they might agree with the general that it was better to just eliminate us.”

“So how much did you tell them?” Zoltan asked.

“Tell them?” Sean scoffed. “He showed them. He bent an iron rod, zipped around at vampire speed, teleported, and threatened to break the general’s neck.”

Everyone gasped.

Gregori shot Sean an annoyed look. “It was a demonstration of strength so they would respect us.” He adjusted his tie. “I believe it was an effective strategy.”

“Apparently so, since you weren’t arrested,” Emma said. “And the president agreed to help us.”

Gregori shrugged one shoulder. “He has an agenda. A humanitarian mission, he called it, that involves teleporting somewhere.”

“We can do that.” Angus leaned forward. “Did he say where?”

“No.” Gregori fiddled with his cuff links. “But I believe it involves taking his daughter.”

Angus sat back with a surprised expression.

“You mean Madison Tucker?” Olivia asked.

Gregori shook his head. “The oldest daughter. Abigail.” He was met with blank looks. “She’s not well-known.” But she was fascinating.

A small part of him was excited about seeing her again. He wanted to know what she was up to, why she was hiding, what made her tick. And how good she would feel in his arms. He winced. She’s the president’s daughter, you fool. A bigger part of him knew she represented sheer disaster. If the CIA knew what kind of thoughts he was having, they’d have a hit man assigned to him in a second.

“You don’t like her?” Emma asked.

He stiffened. “What?”

“You were scowling,” Emma said.

“Oh.” He shifted in his chair. “I’m . . . not happy with the . . . uh, situation.”

“Yeah, it’s a bad situation,” Sean agreed. “The president asked Gregori to introduce his daughters to the vampire world. He wants to see if Abigail can get along with us.”

Olivia’s eyes widened. “The president wants you to take his daughters out? You mean like a date?”

Gregori gritted his teeth. “It’s not a date. It’s a . . . diplomatic mission.”

Sean nodded. “Exactly. It’s serious business. The girls will arrive in Manhattan tomorrow with a Secret Service detail.”

Phineas snickered. “Can you handle two women, bro? Or do you need a little help with your date?”

Gregori jerked at his tie. “It’s not a date. It’s a damned babysitting job. The president made it clear. If the girls are harmed in any way, or just unhappy about how the evening goes, then the whole alliance will be canceled.”

Roman stiffened. “That seems harsh.”

Robby’s mouth twitched. “Luckily, Gregori is an expert at keeping lassies happy.”

Phineas gave him a thumbs-up. “You da man!”

“Are you guys crazy?” Sean growled. “If he lays a finger on them, we could all be screwed. I wanted to stop the president, but how could I tell him he was sending his daughters off with the most notorious womanizer in the vampire world?”

“Gee, thanks, Sean.” Gregori glared at him. “Like I was planning to ravish them both.” Only one. He slapped himself mentally. Don’t even think it!

“Where are you taking them?” Emma asked.

“Everlasting Night. It’s a vampire nightclub in SoHo that’s very popular right now. I’ll buy them a few drinks, let them dance a little and gawk at the Undead, then drop them off at their hotel. They’ll have two Secret Service guys with them the whole time. It should be easy enough.” Gregori shrugged. “It’s just a stupid babysitting job.”

Angus nodded. “Still, we canna afford to have something happen to the lassies while they’re in yer care. Phineas, I want you to go with them.”

“All right.” Phineas grinned.

Sean groaned. “What are you thinking? The future of Vamps around the world depends on this, and you’re subjecting those poor innocent girls to a playboy and the self-proclaimed Love Doctor?”

Phineas huffed. “Dude, I can be a perfect gentleman.”

“On what planet?” Sean growled.

Angus chuckled. “I believe we can trust Gregori and Phineas to make sure the lassies are happy with their evening.”

Emma smiled. “I agree. They can be very charming.”

“You hear that, bro?” Phineas grinned at Gregori. “We’re like Prince Charming.”

“More like toads,” Sean grumbled. “You’d better behave yourselves with the princesses.”

Olivia leaned close to her husband and whispered, “Maybe one of them will be smart enough to recognize a prince in disguise.”

“Like you did?” Robby squeezed her hand.

One of them was smart, all right, Gregori thought. Sharp and observant. She’d known he was different from the start. But she’d looked horrified when she’d learned the truth. When they shook hands, she pulled away from him so hard, she fell onto the couch.

He sighed. It was better that way. Better if she found him repulsive.

The meeting came to a close with Angus and Roman stressing the importance of his keeping the president’s daughters safe and happy. He strode to his office, needing to get away from everyone. But once he got there, he found no peace. He grabbed a stress ball off his desk and squeezed it as he paced back and forth.

Memories of Abigail Tucker kept sneaking into his thoughts. He had a feeling she suspected him of messing with the little dog. She didn’t trust him. And she didn’t want to be alone with him. He’d noticed how fast she’d coerced her sister into going on their night out.

What kind of mission did Abigail have in mind that it had to be done in secret? What was she up to? He tossed the stress ball on his desk and turned on his laptop so he could find out more information about her.

He paused halfway into typing her name. What was he doing? Feeding an obsession with her? He needed to stop thinking about her.

He closed the laptop, pulled out his Droid, and called Maggie.

“Hi, Sweetcakes.” He leaned back in his chair. “How’s the commercial going?”

Maggie groaned. “It’s not. Every time Simone moves, something bad happens.”

“It’s not my fault!” Simone’s voice shrieked in the distance.

Maggie sighed. “Gordon and I have stopped for the evening. We decided to rewrite the commercial in a way that keeps Simone as stationary as possible. Can you be here tomorrow night when we shoot it?”

He grabbed the stress ball. “I wish I could, Toots, but something’s come up.”

“Everyone here is still upset about the Vampire Apocalypse,” Maggie said. “The makeup girl keeps saying we’re doomed. Can you tell me if Roman has started on the plan yet?”

He squeezed the stress ball. “It’ll be all right, Maggie. I met with the president tonight.”