Page 6

6

PAPER CUT

RUSSEL

In the grand tradition of middle management, I was the last member of my team left at the office. Not that I had a family or a life to go to. Besides, going home would be much more pleasant after sunset.

Anthony walked by my open door at seven and peered inside.

“I had an interesting call. We might get a new client out of it.”

He didn’t seem keen to come in, so I rose and stepped around my desk to talk with him face-to-face.

“I saw the notification pop up in my calendar. Who is it?”

“Helen Snyder and Pierce Black. Confidential, of course. They’ve heard of you and asked for you specifically. You’ll be meeting them at a hotel room three blocks down.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Interesting.” I’d dealt with show business royalty before, but Helen and Pierce were the golden couple. They had been stable for at least five years, and their image was spotless, which was no small feat. With Pierce being a vampire, they faced more public scrutiny than anybody else—there were still plenty of staunch conservatives on both sides who loved to watch interspecies relationships crash and burn, my own mother being Exhibit A. I was curious about what crisis Helen and Pierce might be facing. Huh . I could still get excited about my job sometimes. Who knew?

“Take Benedict Perkins. Due to his history, he has a…” Anthony fluttered his fingers in a nondescript gesture, apparently searching for a word. “…a special sensitivity that I think would be a good fit.”

Anthony’s cold tone irked me. I fumbled for something to say that wouldn’t come off as accusing him of callousness. “The unfortunate case of Eddie’s mother must have equipped a bright guy like him with valuable skills. I doubt he’d think the experience was worth it, though. It must have been awful seeing his world falling apart like that.”

Anthony blinked as if I’d spoken a different language. Empathy seemed a bit foreign to him—an idea he had to study in order to grasp the basic principles. But he seemed to like Eddie, which showed both good taste and sense. “He has always been professional. A remarkable young man.”

Yeah, Anthony either didn’t pick up on my careful reproach or chose to ignore it.

“He says you handpicked him for the team,” I said. “That’s unusual for a junior position.”

Anthony glanced around my office distractedly. “Are you leaving? Come with me, and we can talk. I’m already late for dinner.”

I grabbed my laptop and shoved it in my bag. “I don’t want to keep you.”

He waved off my remark as he walked down the hall toward the elevators. I hurried to catch up.

“Eddie applied for an internship,” he began, “but Frank would have dismissed him without giving him an interview. He only brought it up with me as an interesting anecdote because of the connection to Julia Perkins.”

“She’d already been sentenced by then?”

“Seven years. Deservedly, if you ask me. Such an extensive fraud scheme over so many years.” He tsked. “And if she hadn’t been greedy toward the end, she might have gotten away with it.”

“Why did you decide to take Eddie on? This is not my opinion, but I imagine some people would see him as a liability in this business.”

We stepped into the car, and Anthony pushed the lower garage button. I needed to get to the entrance level, but I wasn’t in any hurry. I could go with Anthony, then ride back up.

He glanced at me with a raised eyebrow. “Yes, he could be a liability. Or an extraordinary asset. A man with his background and inside knowledge of the elite but with nothing left to lose, highly motivated to work against the misfortune he’d been dealt… Such a man could bring a unique skill set to the firm. I got curious and checked the media coverage. After he fell from the highest one percent to the bottom, everyone expected him to be in pieces. But the way Eddie handled himself during his mother’s arrest and trial was outstanding. Despite the pressure he was under, his grades were impeccable, and he acquired glowing personal recommendations from several of his teachers. I met with him, and he left enough of an impression that I offered him the internship. He’s proven me right. I employed him without hesitation when his internship ended.”

“He’s that good?” I loved hearing the animated praise, especially from a cold man like Anthony. Eddie was a rare gem in more ways than one. I probably shouldn’t dig deeper to find out why I already felt protective about him.

“The boy has a brilliant mind, a stable moral compass, and the strongest professional ethics. It’s rare among his generation. He’s on his way to becoming the youngest senior strategist we’ve had. Bring him with you tomorrow and see for yourself.”

“I will.”

I wondered if Anthony knew about Eddie’s sexuality—not that it should matter, but someone from Anthony’s generation might still have an opinion. I was trying to think of a way to ask without outing Eddie when the elevator stopped. Anthony ducked out with a brusque goodbye and strode off.

I rode back up to the main reception and got out onto the street. The business district was full of people rushing home from work. As I walked, the human crowd parted for me instinctively. After sunset, the city gained contrast and rich colors. I tried to imagine how it seemed to human eyes, all washed out and gray. I’d seen paintings like that. To my eyes, darkness was never truly dark; it was when I could finally see clearly. I breathed with relief, soaking up the life of the falling night.

Here and there, I caught a pair of golden eyes and nodded in acknowledgment. The vampire population in this city was the largest in the country. It had its perks. The people here were used to us, and I could blend in more easily.

My mind kept circling back to Eddie. Beautiful, shy, brilliant Eddie.

For the past few days, I’d been watching him at work. The better I got to know him, the more I berated myself for wanting to feed from him. But like a wasp trapped behind a window, I kept hitting the same invisible barrier.

To the blood drinker in me, Eddie was the single most tempting prey. My instincts yelled at me to get closer, to coax, threaten, and seduce. I could corner him in my office or follow him home. I could sweet-talk him into offering me his throat. One little bite, and he’d melt against me.

My species spent the better part of the past millennium trying to find a peaceful way to cohabitate with humans. The law now equated a non-consensual vampire bite with sexual assault. But I didn’t need those reminders to know that seducing Eddie would be a heinous thing to do.

A part of me wished I had never tasted his blood. My hunger grew every day, though, and sooner or later, I would have to feed.

From someone else.

* * *

Eddie had compiled a folder on Helen Snyder and Pierce Black—their relationship history, current media presence, recent publicity—it was all there, comprehensive and to the point. He must have worked long into the night to pull that off.

I was familiar with Fowles it was awful. But I had to tell the truth. It was the…” One corner of his plush mouth lifted in a smirk. “…most sustainable approach.”

That clever little shit . “I’m sorry, Eddie. I didn’t mean to?—”

“You did mean to question my integrity because it annoyed you that I wasn’t completely aligned with you in the meeting and because I indirectly challenged your seniority in front of important clients. I shouldn’t have made suggestions to the clients without conferring with you first. I apologize.”

Fucking hell, he was amazing. Eddie was simply amazing. I exhaled, trying to keep my shit together for a few seconds longer. “You did great. They’re both in awe of you.”

I wanted to hide from his smile as if it were direct sunlight hitting my face. “Thanks,” he said softly. “It’ll be an interesting case, and I’m glad I get to work with you. I’ll learn a lot from you.”

At this point, I doubted he’d learn more from me than I was already learning from him.

“Let’s just hope Pierce won’t show up with a kid of his own during the campaign. That could get messy.”

I meant it more or less as a joke, but Eddie blinked, completely serious. “Oh Lord. They didn’t mention any female vampire lovers, but we should double-check.”

He scooped up a pile of papers, about to put them in a folder, but hissed and dropped them back on the desk. He held his pointer finger to his face and winced.

“Dammit.”

The scent of blood in the air assaulted me only a second later. Eddie’s blood. My body propelled forward before I made myself stop. All the demons in hell, that was powerful. I forced out an exhale and inhaled carefully, locking my muscles in place.

Eddie still studied his finger. Was he about to put it into his mouth? Why was that so fucking arousing?

“You okay?” I barely recognized my own voice.

Eddie jerked, his gaze snapping up. “Yeah. It’s just a paper cut.”

Don’t do it. Don’t do it. Don’t!

Oh hell.

“Can I?” I stretched out my hand toward him.

He hesitated, then showed me his finger. His eyebrows drew together, a little crease deepening between them.

Since I was tremendously stupid, I took his hand in both of mine. The cut was razor thin, with a few tiny red drops lining it like a string of pearls.

I couldn’t resist. I closed my lips over the wound and sucked it clean. Only a few particles of dust marred my treat. Then I licked the cut, and it closed.

I watched it heal. Eddie’s heart thundered in the silence, his breaths coming faster. The amount of venom I could get into him like this was negligible. It couldn’t affect him, but our touch was most intimate. Why hadn’t I let go of his hand yet?

I could taste his blood on my tongue. The most delicious flavor in the universe, just a tiny drop. A vicious tease and self-inflicted torture.

My own fault.

My stomach hurt with hunger, and I was hard in my pants. Eddie only had to glance lower, and he’d see it.

I could bite his wrist. It would only take a tenth of a second, and I could be eating my dinner with my hand on his cock. My fingers in his ass.

Horrified at myself, I let go of his hand and moved behind the desk.

“That was over the line. Please, forgive me.”

He stood there, gaping at me, then he looked at his finger and at me again.

“It’s gone,” he breathed. He inspected his hand, looking dazed. “Thank you. That’s kind of amazing.”

“It only works on small, superficial wounds.”

He nodded jerkily. “Sure. Okay. I… should go.”

“Yes. Thank you for today, Eddie. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Nodding again, he put the folder under his arm. “See you on Monday.”

“Yes. On Monday.”

He walked out of the room on unsteady feet and fumbled with the doorknob before closing the door.

I stumbled forward and sank into a chair. My erection throbbed.

God, I was so fucking hungry . I had to feed.

Rolling my tongue around in my mouth, I closed my eyes. Eddie’s unique flavor faded too quickly.

I should go to a club and eat properly. Hell, I should spend the weekend biting and fucking whoever was willing so I could face the temptation on Monday.

But I didn’t do anything even remotely sensible like that.

On my way home, I bought an overpriced bottle of Bordeaux. I drank the entire thing in the bathtub, alternatively refilling my glass and masturbating to the fantasies of Eddie naked on my desk, legs spread and throat exposed.