Love at Stake (3 page)

Chapter Three

“Three cheers for Abbey!”

Abbey accepted the congratulations with a smile. Everyone in the office had been floored when she’d returned with the news that Lucian, not Melissa, was joining Fated Match. She could have sworn she saw Vivian drooling at the prospect of having an elder as a member. Already their boss was in her office, calculating the projected increase in sales and what they would need to do to accommodate the influx. Life was looking good for the matchmaking agency.

She raised a glass of wine to her lips, thinking of the next month. Lucian’s account had been approved and online for two hours. Already her e-mail was flooded with more date requests than she could handle on her own.

“Abbey?” Vivian called, appearing in the reception room. “Can I borrow you for a minute?”

The other girls gave her understanding grins, and her friend Chloe, a witch matchmaker, reached out to take her wine.

With a wave to her colleagues, she followed Vivian down the short hall to her office. Vivian had claimed the largest space in the agency for her personal domain. Ostensibly that was to meet with top clients and help cultivate a good first impression. But Abbey knew the siren had a taste for luxury.

Vivian bypassed the casual sitting area with its comfortable armchairs and perfectly placed flower arrangements and headed for her desk instead. Abbey dropped into a hard-backed chair and waited for her boss to get to the point.

Vivian riffled through some folders in the filing cabinet behind her desk as she said, “Sorry to take you from the party but we have a lot of work to do.”

“I understand.”

“We only have a month to find Lucian’s match and that’s barely enough time. We need to weed through all the prospective women and select top candidates. Given the volume of people interested in him, I think we should take your advice and raise his rating cutoff. Say, 90 percent or above only. We need this to work.”

Abbey nodded. If the vampire had been searching for his mate as long as he claimed, they needed to utilize every advantage they had to find this woman.

“You mentioned that he needed grooming appointments. I’ve booked our usual salon and made arrangements at Armani and Gucci. Does that sound acceptable?”

“Perfect. He strikes me as a high-end label kind of guy.”

“Clarissa will meet him at the salon and help with the consultation. She can strategize a suggested wardrobe as well.”

Here we go
, she thought. “Uh, Lucian actually requested…well, me.”

Vivian paused, glancing back at her. “That’s not your job. You don’t have the training.”

“You and I know that, but he doesn’t care. He only wants to deal with me.”

Vivian dropped into her leather desk chair. “That is unacceptable.”

“You can tell him that.”

Her mouth pursed in an expression Abbey knew far too well. It was a bad sign. Her boss was pissed, and not only because she’d trolled Lucian’s profile and discovered his ban against sirens.

“You cannot screw this up for us.”

Abbey narrowed her eyes. “You know how much effort I put into my work. I want Lucian on our network as much as you do.”

“Putting a human in charge of one of the oldest vampires in the country is ridiculous.”

“You can brief me every time I go to meet him. You can set everything up as you like. I’ll just play the babysitter role.”

Fingernails tapped on the desktop. An even worse sign.

“Why did he request you?”

Abbey thought of the heated look in his eyes and shrugged. No way she was telling Vivian about her moments of weakness.

“Does he want you?”

She remained mute, although there was no hiding the heat she felt fill her cheeks.

A cold smile curved Vivian’s lips. “You will do anything he requests in the next few weeks. Do I make myself clear?”

She narrowed her eyes. Surely Vivian didn’t mean the command the way it had sounded.

“Vampires of his age are no stranger to playing games with humans. If that amuses him while he looks for his match, then you will encourage it. You will flirt, you will smile, and if he wants you in his bed, you’ll go there, too.”

“Like hell I will,” Abbey snarled. “I’m an employee, not a whore.”

“Lucian Redgrave is not only a high-profile client, he is a powerful member of the supernatural community. He practically runs New York. You will do whatever the hell he wants you to do.”

“I won’t.”

Vivian’s smile was far from sweet. “It’s not just me you need to worry about, honey. Vampires like the hunt, the chase. Once he’s had you, I very much doubt he’ll have further use for you. I’m sure we’ll be able to assign a VIP rep after your novelty has worn off. Humans. You’re such lovely playthings. But don’t mistake his interest as anything more than that.”

“He’s not like that,” she said before she could call back the revealing words.

Vivian snorted. “Of course he is. Play this out, Abbey, and get us that contract. Just don’t let your emotions get involved. I like you, really I do. Take my advice. This won’t end well for you if you don’t get smart about Lucian.”

Abbey fought the urge to drop her jaw.

“Dismissed,” Vivian said, turning to her computer monitor.

Abbey left the office feeling numb. She knew how relationships with supernaturals worked. Hell, she’d comforted sobbing humans calling in about dates gone bad all the time. Her lifespan was a blip in the timeline for Lucian. Not that she cared. No way she’d let herself get involved with him.

Ducking around the edge of the party, she slipped into her quiet office. Abbey collapsed on her chair and glanced at the profile she’d left open on the computer. Lucian stared back from the screen, a slight smile curving his lips as he posed for the camera. They’d found an old picture of him from an interview and uploaded it to his account.

She nibbled on her lower lip before quickly logging in to her account and navigating back to Lucian’s page. Her cursor hovered over the bright-red match button on the screen.

She didn’t do vampires. It wouldn’t matter what their match rating was. Besides, she doubted it would be higher than the 90 percent necessary to date him. Still, curiosity ate at her.

Holding her breath, she clicked the button and waited as the screen refreshed to display their compatibility rating.

Forty-seven percent.

The slight hope she’d refused to acknowledge died a quick death. Lucian Redgrave was far beyond her reach in all things. Perhaps Vivian was right. If she was stupid enough to fall any more in lust with him, he’d chew her up and spit her out.

If she was smart, she’d do her job and hold him at arm’s length. Despite Vivian’s warnings, Abbey didn’t believe refusing him would have any negative consequences. He wasn’t that sort of man.

But knowing how wrong they were for each other didn’t erase the memory of his lips on the back of her hand.

…

Lucian’s car pulled up to the address Abbey had sent him. Knowing he’d be moving in the human world, he’d gone a little more casual than he usually preferred. His cravat was still perfect, but he’d chosen a suit coat instead of his evening jacket and slacks instead of breeches. His lips curved as he thought of meeting his little matchmaker again. Would she appreciate his extra effort?

With a nod to his driver, he ducked out of the car and headed for the salon before him. With every step he felt his ever-present boredom lessen. This matchmaking business might be a sham, but spending a month in the human’s company was no chore. Women had changed since his time, but he found he liked Abbey’s backbone, her fire. She wouldn’t be easily won.

His fangs ached at the thought of her surrender. How sweet it would be. That was, if he could get her over her ridiculous ban against vampires.

He pushed through the glass door and stepped into a brand-new world. Mortals rushed by, scissors in hand. Bright lights lit large mirrors anchored before swiveling chairs, and hair dusted the white floor. For a moment he wondered if he had the right address.

“Mr. Redgrave,” a voice called. One he recognized instantly.

With a smile, he turned toward Abbey.

She was dressed professionally in a gray button-down dress with bright-blue buttons running from neck to hem, as if she couldn’t stand to be wearing only one color. The gray wasn’t right for her and he wondered if she’d chosen it on purpose. It didn’t matter if she had. The color choice wasn’t enough to halt his attraction.

Runaway strands of hair escaped the black clip she’d used to pin it back. His fingers itched to pull the clip from her head and see that cloud of curls bounce around her shoulders. Or better yet, spread out across his pillow.

He hadn’t felt such lust for a woman in decades. Not since Melissa’s mother.

Old, familiar pain stabbed through his heart as he thought of Claudette. Mortal though she may have been, she’d been stronger than anyone he’d ever met.

Seeing the tension in Abbey’s ramrod-straight back, the determination in her eyes, Lucian wondered if he’d stumbled onto another human of Claudette’s ilk. He rather liked the thought.

“Are you ready for your appointment?” she asked, stepping to his side.

“A pleasure to see you again, Abbey,” he said, ignoring her question. Humans. Always in such a rush.

Taking her hand in his, he brushed his mouth over her knuckles as he had when they’d last parted ways.

As he did, he noted the slight part of her lips, the quickening of her breath. No, she was not as immune to him as she liked to pretend.

Abbey cleared her throat and pulled her hand from his grasp. She puffed at her flyaway bangs and he bit back a smile at the nervous tell.

“We’ve got you all set up on the second floor,” she said, twisting her hand behind her back. “If you’ll follow me?”

She led him up glass steps to a small loft studio. A man and woman waited for them, gesturing for him to sit.

With a glance at Abbey, he slid into the salon chair. Immediately his head was assaulted and it was all he could do to bite back a growl.

“Such a travesty!” the man exclaimed, pulling his hair free from its careful queue. “My friend, this all needs to go. Short is what you need. Tasteful.”

Again he met Abbey’s gaze.

“Do it,” she said. “You want to update your look.”

He nodded, satisfied. “As you wish.”

As the hairdresser and his assistant flew into action, he wondered if he might regret his decision to modernize after all.

…

Abbey paced downstairs. She tried to read a magazine, but there was no relaxing when she was this close to Lucian.

Closing her eyes, she pictured the way he’d looked when he’d seen her. As though she was a treat he couldn’t wait to devour. She shivered at the thought. No one looked at her like that. Certainly not anyone she’d ever dated. Maybe Lucian was right and she should start dating the supernaturals at the agency. Lucian didn’t seem to mind her extra pounds. Perhaps if she targeted men from a different era, they’d be satisfied with her curvaceous figure.

She chewed a fingernail. It was worth a shot. Just yesterday she’d received an e-mail from a friendly werewolf. Maybe it was time to come out of her shell.

As she was musing over her lack of a love life, she almost missed Lucian’s arrival.

“What do you think, Abbey?”

She looked up and froze. Surely her mouth was hanging open but she couldn’t find the will to care.

Lucian had been tasty before, but the new cut took him to another level. Gone was the severe queue and in its place was a short cut that took advantage of the natural wave of his hair. A few stray pieces of hair fell over his forehead, giving him an appearance that was both boyish and wicked. She ached to brush the strands away from his mesmerizing eyes.

“Do I pass muster?”

She had to swallow twice before replying. “It’ll do.”

His grin was knowing. “You’ll turn my head with such compliments.”

“Ha. You know exactly the effect you have on others. I’m not feeding your ego.”

Lucian reached out to brush a thumb across her bottom lip. “Not even if I asked oh so politely?”

Her lips parted in a soundless gasp. His gaze dropped to her mouth and they stood frozen for what felt like an eternity.

Kiss me,
her foolish mind whispered.

Lucian leaned closer, as if hearing the silent plea. But right when she thought she’d get her wish, he straightened.

“Let me settle my accounts and we can continue on.”

He turned away and she was grateful he didn’t see her disappointment. It was for the best. She couldn’t get involved with him.

Or so she tried to tell herself a dozen times as they walked to the Armani store. When they reached their destination, half a dozen sales reps were on hand to whisk Lucian away. As soon as the store had learned how much Lucian intended to drop, their displeasure at staying open late vanished. Abbey smiled to herself. Lucian would probably take care of their sales quota for the week in a single evening.

She wandered through the designer store as the salespeople pushed Lucian into a changing room.

What would it be like to live in this world?
she wondered. It certainly wasn’t one she had access to. Abbey thought of her cozy apartment in the West Village. It was small but suited her needs. A smile came to her face as she imagined Lucian in the quaint little home. He’d be horrified. None of her furniture matched and that was exactly how she liked it. Every wall was a different color and few inches of the apartment were free of assorted knickknacks. She craved the chaos and the brightness. A vampire like Lucian, however, would want order and taste.

Yet another reason why they’d never work, she mused as she wandered over to the dress rack. She browsed until her fingers touched the silky material of the loveliest dress she’d ever seen.

It was a cocktail gown. It was simple for her tastes but far more elegant than anything she’d ever worn. The bloodred gown would hug her curves, and the one-shoulder design would highlight her long neck while hiding other sins. It was beautiful.

She glanced at the price tag and whistled. Beautiful and more than her rent.