The Geek Job (9 page)

However, his resident geek had not managed more than a few minutes of work, so intent was he on his misery.

Unacceptable, especially with summer fast approaching. Frederick had walked in darkness for nigh on three hundred years and he‘d grown damned tired of it. Anthony and his brilliant mind offered the first ray of non-burning light and hope since Frederick had succumbed to his curse.

Frederick could handle the teeth, the pale skin, the hunger for blood, and even the hunt to feed, but he damned well missed the hot kiss of sunlight on his face.
And now, because that damned she-wolf blew
him better than a practiced whore, my chance to day walk
is shriveling faster than a cock in ice cold water.

He‘d tried to reassure Anthony that Lexie indeed lived, but his geek just turned disbelieving eyes to him and said no human body could have born what she did. It occurred to Frederick to tell him that Lexie was as human as him, but somehow he expected that to meet with even more disbelief from his fact loving scientist.

It galled Frederick that he couldn‘t just mesmerize his pet geek, but playing with human minds was a dangerous endeavor, and a chance he just couldn‘t take.

Frederick growled and cursed—killed a few trespassers to blow off steam—but ultimately, he recognized there was only one solution to his dilemma and it arrived wearing skin tight leather on her sport bike. Frederick had to grudgingly admit her appeal. If he didn‘t treasure his life, or unlife as it was, he would have attempted to seduce her. However, life as a eunuch didn‘t appeal and wouldn‘t resolve his moping geek problem.

He‘d chomped down on his pride and called Lexington for help. Initially she‘d just hung up on him. Her brazenness made him see red and gave him a massive hard on. Defiant women were his weakness. Eventually, he got her on the phone and managed to spit out the terms for a new job.

She agreed for a high price, higher than her previous demands because, as she‘d told him on the phone, ―Anthony‘s going to be pissed, and I‘m really not into the drama.‖ But at ten thousand a day, even she couldn‘t refuse.

Frederick drummed his fingers as he waited for his manservant to bring her to him. She arrived in his office, filling his space with the rich scent of her blood and a musky perfume. A lovely she-wolf indeed, and such a shame she‘d probably rip his balls off if he told her. Haughty as she acted, Frederick had to restrain a snicker because regardless of her thoughts on him, she‘d actually made him cum quite a few times. While she‘d covered the camera in the hotel room, thus denying him a view of her naked body, he‘d enjoyed himself grandly listening to the sounds of her fucking Anthony. He‘d never expected her to be a screamer and he‘d shafted his cock numerous times to the exquisite music of her orgasms.

Lexington paid him no mind and strode over to his screens, staring down with a tight expression at Anthony, slumped on a stool. ―This is such a bad idea,‖ she murmured.

―Well, maybe next time I ask you to play the part of temporary girlfriend you could do so a little less enthusiastically,‖ Frederick replied dryly.

―The man is crushed by your loss.‖ And if he wasn‘t mistaken, the she-wolf appeared affected as well. How unexpected.

―Let‘s get a few things straight about this new job. I am here to protect Anthony this time, not fuck him. So you can forget about the naked entertainment. With the full moon fast approaching, be reminded that I will require red meat for both lunch and dinner, or I might start chewing on your staff. Also, you‘ll need to have Anthony put under lockdown starting at six p.m.

the day of the full moon as I won‘t be of any use until the following morning.‖

―I‘ve already spoken with the chef and he‘s put in an order for a few cows, so feeding you won‘t be an issue. As for the full moon, I‘ve got a special code already in place that will automatically shut the place down tighter than a nun‘s thighs.‖

―Do you ever take anything seriously?‖

she asked in an exasperated tone.

―Very, but I‘ve lived a long time and find humor helps pass the time. Now, please follow me, if you will, so we can get you started. After all, there‘s no time like the present to reunite lovers and watch the fireworks.‖

Lexie growled and Frederick chuckled.

Emotions would definitely run high in the next few moments, but it beat the depressing pallor of the past week.

Frederick led the way through his chateaux and underground tunnels to the building housing the lab and Anthony‘s apartments. He didn‘t warn his scientist of their impending arrival preferring instead to surprise him. The human had a strong, healthy heart. He could stand the shock of seeing his dead lover come back to life.

Lexington strode alongside him, her body tense. Frederick could sense both anticipation and trepidation rolling off her. What a pity his feeding involved blood and not emotions like the psychic vampires who fed off extreme feelings. But even if it wouldn‘t feed his dark hunger, he‘d greatly enjoy the live action drama.

He pressed his hand against console after console, each allowing them access deeper into the building.

―Quite the setup you‘ve got,‖ she remarked.

―Worth every penny if Anthony manages to reverse the curse of sunlight.‖

―Funny, I would have thought that not having to eat people for lunch and dinner would have been a higher priority.‖ She threw him a questioning glance.

Frederick shrugged. ―While eating from the source is more satisfying and fresh, blood is easily obtained, both the real and synthetic version. How much of a monster I choose to be is completely up to me. The sunlight factor, however, is deadly. Even the tiniest sliver of skin exposed to that brilliant beauty is enough to turn me into a puddle of steaming goo.‖

Lexington shuddered. ―Okay, I see your point. I still say, though, that Anthony knowing what you are, a real vampire, would help him.

How can he fully understand what he‘s curing otherwise?‖

Frederick clasped his hands behind his back as he walked the length of the last corridor before the lab. ―I‘m beginning to believe you might be correct. However, it is not something I can just dump on him. His fragile human psyche couldn‘t handle it.‖

―I think he‘s stronger than you give him credit for.‖

―And that is why you are going to tell him you are a werewolf?‖ Frederick stopped in front of the door and faced her with an arched brow.

The she-wolf, who feared nothing, actually fidgeted and dropped her gaze. ―Yeah, well, no. I hadn‘t actually planned to do that.‖ At Frederick‘s chuckle, her chin shot up and she attempted to defend her position. ―I mean, it‘s not like he needs to know what I am to fix me.‖

―But he will need to know if you are to become a couple.‖

Lexington scowled at him. ―We are not going to be a couple. Humans and wolves, while they can play, do not stay together.‖

Frederick shrugged. ―If you say so. But just so you know, if you do break him by accident, I could always turn him. He wouldn‘t be wolf, but he‘d be strong and able to heal.‖

―Don‘t you dare,‖ she growled.

Frederick flashed her a grin replete with fangs, then smacked his hand on the console which slid the door open and forestalled her rebuttal.

Anthony didn‘t even turn to see who‘d arrived. He sat hunched on a stool, staring at a screen full of squiggly lines.

―How‘s the work coming?‖ Frederick asked moving to stand beside him while Lexington hovered by the door.

Anthony shrugged.

Frederick peered at the screen and pretended he didn‘t know what he saw. ―Whose DNA is that?‖

―It was supposed to be Lexie‘s, but I must have contaminated the sample somehow because it keeps coming up twined with a secondary strand.‖

―Forget staring at a screen. Try turning around and saying hello to the real thing instead.‖

―What?‖ Anthony lifted his head as Frederick spun the stool.

Then he had to catch his resident geek as he fell off it in a dead faint.

―You asshole,‖ Lexie swore as she knelt down beside her prone geek.

―What? You had a better way of

announcing you‘d come to visit from the dead?‖

Frederick drawled, leaning back against the stainless steel counter. ―Why not kiss him and see if he awakes like a true sleeping beauty.‖

―Just get out and let me take care of this.‖

―By all means. Feel free to do so naked. I would dearly love a video to go with my soundtrack.‖ Frederick chuckled as he walked away, then cursed as she tripped him and he smashed to the floor. ―Evil bitch.‖

―Dead dick walking,‖ she retorted. She ignored the leaving vampire as Anthony stirred, his eyes blinking behind his large lenses. She knew when he saw her because they widened and he sucked in a breath.

―Lexie?‖ He reached a hand up to touch her face and she couldn‘t stop herself from leaning into his touch. He sat up and before she knew it, he‘d pulled her to him and latched his mouth to hers. Startled, she didn‘t immediately pull away, and that gave him a chance to ignite the heat she remembered all too well. Moisture pooled in her cleft, her nipples tightened and when he groaned against her mouth, she almost threw him on the floor to ravage and mark him.

With a soft cry, she broke the embrace and stood to move away. She heard the sound of him getting to his feet, then approaching. When he would have touched her, she sidled sideways, but turned to face him.

―Hello, Anthony.‖

―You‘re alive? But how? And shouldn‘t you still be in bed? What stupid hospital released you already?‖

He fired questions at her and she took a steadying breath to feed him the lie she‘d concocted. ―It wasn‘t as bad as it looked.‖ Feeble, but the best liars knew to keep it simple and to the point.

His brow creased. ―Not as bad as it looked? You had a hole in your freaking chest.‖

Lexie shrugged. ―Not the first one, either.

I heal fast. What can I say?‖

She could see a storm of questions in his eyes, but given her pat answers, he bit them back in favor of, ―Why are you here? How did you find me?‖

Finally, the moment of truth had arrived, in one respect anyway. ―Frederick called me.‖

―My employer? But how did he know where to find you?‖

―I do odd jobs for Frederick.‖ She could see the confusion on his face as his mind and heart refused to put the obvious together. She gritted her teeth as she spelled it out. ―I work for your boss. I just recently completed a job for him as a matter of fact.‖ She couldn‘t mistake the moment all the pieces fell into place—his face tightened and his blue eyes turned arctic cold.

―You were paid to be with me,‖ he spat.

―Paid to protect you, which I did,‖ she amended, her voice husky as she fought the choking tears at his obvious anger. She didn‘t understand her reaction. Why did she care the truth upset him?

―Paid to be a whore,‖ he yelled.

―If needed,‖ she cried back. ―My primary objective though was to keep you safe, which I did in case you‘ve forgotten. The rest ended up being a bonus.‖

He gaped at her. ―A bonus? You used me.

You made me believe you cared for me.‖

―No, I never led you to believe the weekend was anything other than two people having mutual fun.‖ The fact she‘d grown to care for him had been an unexpected snarl, but she kept that to herself.

―I don‘t believe this. Did you have a good laugh when you got home about the easy geek?‖

―I was a little too busy trying to recuperate from getting shot,‖ she snarled. ―And for your information, I would never have laughed at what we did. I didn‘t fake those orgasms, or were you too caught up in your own pleasure to notice?‖

Anthony moved to stand behind a counter, his hands fiddling with the equipment there. ―Fine. You enjoyed it. I enjoyed it. You survived and got paid. What are you doing here now?‖

―Frederick is concerned for your safety.

He‘s hired me to act as one of your bodyguards seeing as how some of the others had to be let go.‖

―No.‖ Anthony said the word flatly and refused to look at her.

―You don‘t have a choice.‖

He swung his head up and his gaze froze her. ―Why are you doing this? Are you enjoying torturing me? Just this morning, I thought the wonderful woman I‘d grown to care about had died. And then she shows up, very much alive and I find out everything I thought and felt was a lie.‖

―I do care for you, Anthony.‖

―Shut up. I don‘t want to hear your pity for the nerd who fell for your act.‖

Tears brimmed in her eyes. ―I didn‘t mean to hurt you. And of all the things I felt and still feel for you, pity was never one of them.‖

Anthony snorted and dropped his head again.

Lexie stood, indecision swamping her.

He‘d made it clear, he didn‘t want her around, but Frederick seemed very concerned about his safety.

Sure, she could step aside like Anthony wanted and let someone else take her place guarding him.

However, no one would guard him as well as her, and given how much he hated her now, she wouldn‘t have to worry about hurting him with her brand of affection. Much has her wolf howled in her mind, and despite the ache in her heart, his rejection of her was for the best, the safest thing for him.

God, I hate it when I don’t even believe the lies I
tell myself.

* * * *

Anthony‘s hands trembled as he tried to come to grips with the torrent of emotions swamping him. Anger at her subterfuge and a rare loss of control made him want to hurt her. She‘d made him think she liked him, but she‘d lied and played him for a fool. He‘d fallen for an act. His eyes burned at the shame of knowing she‘d never found him attractive, that she‘d seduced him as part of her plan to protect him.
How could I ever
have believed she did?
But even knowing she‘d fucked him because she‘d been paid, he couldn‘t forget she‘d almost died saving him. A part of him even dared believe that while she‘d beguiled him as part of her agenda, she‘d enjoyed their lovemaking, make that their fucking.
Love was never involved.

As if those emotions weren‘t enough to deal with, relief that she‘d survived also invaded him. He‘d suffered thinking she‘d died because of him. Despite her treachery, it made him glad to know she lived.