Page 30 of The Silver Fox Vampire

“You’re being weird, Saul.”

“Just excited. C’mon.” He turned and bounded ahead through the busy office, shouting out that this was senior detective Clare Doyle and she’d say hi properly in a minute. Heads raised, and hands and claws gave the odd wave. She smiled and waved back, then hurried after Saul’s burly frame.

They reached the door of the big office, the one the boss always got, the one where Oliver Hale used to pace. It was the best office in the building by far, with sweeping views over Motham.

The partition was smoked glass, the door closed.

Saul smirked as he knocked on the glass.

A voice called out gruffly, “Enter.”

Clare’s heart stopped.

She knew that voice.

As Saul swung the door open, her heart suddenly started beating again, so loud and so large in her chest, it felt like it was pressing on her vocal cords. Prickles of horror and excitement sped over her skin as the tall, silver-haired male stood up from his desk.

And she stared into the midnight eyes of Oliver Hale.

Holyfuck.

This could not be happening, he had to be hallucinating.

Because there in the doorway stood the woman he’d fantasized about for the past three years.

The one human whose face haunted his dreams—except in his dreams, she was all soft yielding flesh in his arms.

She certainly didn’t look soft and yielding right now.

She was wearing a grey suit and a buttoned-up white blouse, her hair scraped away from her defined bone structure, and her fascinating green/gold eyes were huge with shock.

Worse than shock. More like horror.

Oh gods, it was so tempting to put his fist through the glass picture window, shift form and fly away.

But that was not how senior detectives behaved.

Pull yourself together, Hale.

“Guess who I found lurking in the office.” Saul roared with jovial laughter. The guy thought he’d performed a coup, bringing them together. Gods, if he only knew the truth. “Can you believe she’s come back on the same day as you?!”

With superhuman effort, Oliver managed to drawl, “Hello, Clare.”

He watched her throat bob as she swallowed, and thought she might turn and flee. Finally, she said in a high, reedy voice, “Hello, sir.”

Sir.Gods, that took him back. He felt a twitch in his cock, and the root of his fangs started to ache.

“What were the odds I’d get you both back here working, just like old times,” Saul continued excitedly, missing every fuckingnuance of what was going on. “When you both agreed to come back, I thought I’d keep it under wraps until today.”

“How touching,” Oliver drawled.

“Yeah, you and Clare are on secondment for three months.”

“What a coincidence.” Oliver willed himself not to scent her.

“Wow, yeah, totally,” Clare said in a voice more akin to a cheerleader than a police officer. In other circumstances, it would have amused him. But this was not other circumstances. This was fucking awful.

Clasping her hands, she turned to the orc. “I better get settled into my workspace. Great to see you again. Sir.” Her cheeks had turned blotchy white and pink, the tiny patch of skin at her neck also mottled.