* * * * *
Alex sat at the gargantuan black conference table in one of the equally gigantic conference rooms of Stoked’s offices. He stifled a yawn and stretched his fingers over the stack of documents being tediously explained by one of the financial executives. Caro and Lenny had a lunch interview with the Stoked marketing team—a process he and Sherene had gone through yesterday—and when they returned there would be a combined meeting where they would all make their presentations.
The thought of the presentation didn’t make him nervous in the slightest, but the thought of seeing Caro again was making him nuts. He wondered if anyone would notice if he took a break.
Jack’s seat was empty. Maybe he’d had the same idea.
Alex turned to Sherene and muttered, “I gotta get out of here for a minute.” He quietly slipped out the door and, after noticing the conference room was closest to the staff lounge and its adjoining restroom, he decided to forego the long walk back to the executive suites and use the john off the lounge.
The lounge was deserted and as Alex walked past the microwaves the vague aroma of leftover chili filled his nostrils. Ugh. As a half-vamp he had a love-hate relationship with food, never knowing what was going go down smooth or what would turn his stomach. The coffee smelled beyond stale. One of the pots appeared to be scorching. He lifted it off the burner and ran some water in it at the sink.
And that’s when he heard the thumping coming from the bathroom that adjoined the lounge.
Damn. Either there was a plumber in there banging the pipes or someone was having some serious issues. Normally he would have left well enough alone and gone on down the hall to another restroom, but when the next thump was accompanied by a loud grunt, he thought he’d better do his civic duty and make sure that nobody was pulling an Elvis and keeling off a commode.
He gently pushed open the swinging door and peeked into the room. There were three stalls and near the far wall, the door to the largest stall had swung open. Through the opening he saw Lenny Gibbons, his hairy satyr ass a dead giveaway. Len jerked and gave a pained groan. Alex took a step forward, thinking Lenny was ill or maybe having nasty troubles with a plugged-up toilet.
As he got closer, Alex laughed out loud at his own stupidity. He’d failed to realize that Len was not alone. And it was now quite clear that instead of plunging the commode, Len was plunging his thick, rigid cock into a shapely male ass. Whoever was on the receiving end of Len’s attentions was holding on to the frame of the stall and with each thrust was banging it against the marble wall.
Len’s head came up. Apparently he’d heard his laughter.
Alex winked. “Hey, you guys might want to take it a little easy. I could hear you banging out in the lounge.”
“Oh fuck.” Len shut the door to the stall with a thud. There were sounds of mad fumbling and hushed whispers.
“Please don’t stop on account of me,” Alex called out. “I was just on my way out to use the other restroom.”
Alex turned to leave, still chuckling—and nearly plowed into Caro as he pushed open the door. She lost her balance and he reached out to hold her steady.
The door thunked closed behind him. He was momentarily speechless at the sight of her. She looked amazing. Her upswept hair and demure business suit were dramatic departures from the red-hot carnality of last night’s sex-tousled curls and cum-streaked flesh. His cock juiced at the memory. He ran his tongue over his canines and exhaled a slow breath.
“Caro…”
“Alex.”
Alex’s hands were creating havoc with her body. Yes, she was fully clothed, and yes, he was quite innocently supporting her shoulders after she’d nearly fallen on her ass. But none of that mattered to her Alex-starved nerve endings.
He must have been laughing at something, because sexy little laugh lines were still visible around his mouth and eyes. She shook her head, feeling more than a little hypnotized by his proximity. She tried to keep her voice calm and professional. “Umm, excuse me. I need to use the restroom. I think I’d prefer it if you didn’t join me.”
Alex appeared to remember something. “Wait! Ah…don’t go in there.”
“Why not? Is it just for men or something?”
“Uh, no. All the restrooms here are unisex I think.”
“Well, I’ve really got to go, so if you don’t mind…”
“Why don’t you let me show you the executive bathroom? I think you’ll be more comfortable there.”
Oh God. If he thought he was going to get her into another compromising position in the john, he could think again.
“I’m not in the mood for your games,” she said in a barely civil tone. “I’d like to use the facilities. Without your help.”
“I really think it would be better if you—”
“Goddamn it, Alex! I am not above kicking you. And I’ll do so if you do not get out of my fucking way. Now.”
“Okay, okay. No violence, please. But you may be sorry.” He stepped aside to let her through.
She got one step closer to the door before almost getting bowled over again, this time when Len came busting through in a rush. Alex had to reach out to steady her again.
“Lenny! I’ve been looking for you,” she said. “Where have you been? It’s time to get our stuff ready for the final portion of the meeting.”
Len didn’t respond. His cheeks had a suspiciously rosy cast and his gold-brown curls were more mussed than usual. His eyes kept flickering over to Alex.
Alex looked like he was trying very hard to maintain a straight expression.
“What’s going on?” If she didn’t know better she’d suspect immortal monkey business of the sexual variety. But she knew these two opposites just didn’t attract in that particular way. At least they never had before…
“Nothing’s going on,” said Len in an unnaturally loud voice. He had his hands on the door handle behind him, like he was holding it shut. “I was just taking a quick break before coming to help you out.”
“But why did it look like Alex was guarding the door just now?” She flexed her shoulders, trying to keep tension from immobilizing her muscles. “Come on, come on…I’ve got enough on my mind without trying to figure out what you two are up to.”
Alex rolled his eyes heavenward. Len began to stammer excuses just as the door swung open again. This time Caro was quick enough to take a step back. It was Merrell. The hot vamp receptionist. He rubbed a hand over his short black hair and shot them all a canine-baring grin before jauntily leaving the room.
Alex smiled at Len and Caro. “They have a very accommodating staff here, don’t you think?”
Len cleared his throat. Caro glared at both of them.
“Len, can I see you in private for a moment? Thanks for your help, Alex. We’ll see you at the final meeting, right?”
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world.” He bowed slightly and left.
Caro grabbed Len’s hand and dragged him into the bathroom.
She walked to the middle of the room and turned to face him. At least he had dropped the fake innocence and looked honest-to-God guilty.
“Goddamn it, Len. Couldn’t you have waited until after the presentation to fuck Merrell?”
Len closed his eyes and pressed his lips together in a flat line.
She should have guessed this would happen. Gay vamp males seemed to have a thing for Lenny—and he sure as shit had a thing for them. For one thing, Len was a satyr, and although he usually kept the more obvious indicators of his species under wraps—like his stubby horns and docked tail—when he wanted to, he could give off some pretty extreme “do me all night really, really hard” satyr sex vibes that a lot of folks found irresistible.
And then there were the tempting features that belonged to Len exclusively—wide-set acorn-brown eyes, broad cheekbones, a nose that could only be described as cute and thick, shoulder-length curls in a gorgeous blend of light brown, umber and gold.
There was a thump from the stall
behind her and Caro whirled around.
Jack came out of the stall.
What in the heck…?
He strode up to the mirror, looking a little too casual as he smoothed his lavender tie with a flick of his hand. “All set for the big show?” His smile was dimmer than usual.
Len stood there, still frozen. Caro answered stiltedly, “Um, yeah, thanks Jack.”
“Yes. Well. I’m looking forward to it.” He exited the room in a rather hasty fashion.
Caro slowly turned back to Len. “A three-way? With Merrell and Jack?
Lenny didn’t respond. He went to a sink and turned on the faucet, bending to splash water on his face.
“That is what you were doing, I presume?”
He caught her glance in the mirror when he stood up. He looked more sheepish than guilty, she decided. Which meant the sex must have been good.
“Yes, yes,” he said. “For God’s sake, yes! Things got a little carried away. Merrell lured me in here. He was totally hot for me. And then Jack walked in…turns out he likes to watch. He begged us to fuck. What could I do?”
“Lord, the restrooms in this place must have aphrodisiacs in the air freshener. It’s bad enough that one of us had to go all floozy and almost screw this deal. Do we really need to go through this again today? I assume that Alex walked in on you, right?”
Len was mashing a paper towel against his eyes, not answering.
“My God, please don’t tell me it was a four-way!” Caro’s voice verged on a wail.
“No, no, no. Merrell is a little, umm…shall we say, loud? Alex heard us from the lounge.”
“Oh Len,” Caro moaned. “Well, thank God for small favors. It could have been somebody else who walked in on you. Somebody less understanding about the pathetic urge to get off at a moment’s notice…”
“Sorry, sorry. A thousand times sorry.” Len threw the paper towel in the trash and put his hand over his heart.
Caro shook her head at him. “I’ve gotta pee. Which stall is safe?”
Len’s face got pink. “Oh for God’s sake, they’re all fine.”
She stood there looking at him, eyebrows raised.
“Well, take the first one if you’re going to be such a priss, then.”
Caro went into the first stall.
“So how did lunch go?” Len asked when she came back out. Caro and Len had been invited to a lunch meeting with some of the marketing team. At the time, she’d been baffled by Len’s request that she field the meeting without him. Now she realized he must have had…other plans.
“Okay, I guess. Jack’s second-in-command, Mike Powers, put subtle moves on me then asked me out to dinner.”
Len snorted. “Typical. What did you say?”
Caro shrugged as she approached the mirrors behind the sinks and pulled a cosmetics case out of her handbag. “I told him I thought we should wait and see how things went this evening.”
“Good thinking,” said Len.
She applied some lipstick. “So how were they?”
“What?”
“You know. Merrell. Jack. How were they?”
Len’s nut-brown eyes sparkled. “Merrell was better than I imagined. I didn’t have a chance to…sample Jack.”
“So Merrell’s as hot as he looks?”
Len chuckled. “In the parts I’ve checked out so far.”
“Well, it’s always better if these things end up being worth it. If you know what I mean.”
“And I do.”
“Okay.” She smoothed back a stray strand of hair. “I think I’m as ready as I’m ever gonna be. Shall we go see if they’re ready for us?”
“Let’s do it, you sexysmart thing, you.”
Caro gave him a quick hug and they went to kick some ass.
Chapter Six
The tremendous surge of adrenalin that had been pulsing through her system during the presentation eased and left Caro feeling exhausted but euphoric. After doing pitches to every type of client imaginable for four years, she was fairly solid about predicting success. And yeah, this pitch had gone amazingly well.
It helped that Alex and Sherene were so obviously enthusiastic about working with Party Mavens. Rumors that vampire products company VampedUp was raising a stink about Stoked horning in on the immortal demographic had Stoked executives eager to employ immortal expertise. Alex exuded confidence and charisma, and even though his own small company claimed no ties to his father’s entertainment empire, the King name reigned in the world of business.
The Stoked exec committee had gone into closed session to make a final decision and now the only thing left to do was wait. Caro and Len stood in Jack’s empty office trying to decide what to do.
Len was bouncing on Jack’s big leather desk chair like a little boy. “Oh man…nothing beats this feeling. We need to celebrate. Now.” He jumped out of the chair and came around the desk to grab her hands. “Come on. We’ll use Jack’s name at the Metro Club upstairs and have a few cocktails while we wait. Jack has your cell number, right?”
“Right. But you’re forgetting one small thing, Len. Your partner is a mere mortal who needs a modicum of rest.” Len’s enthusiasm was infectious, but nerves, little sleep and nearness to Alex were making her woozy. “Maybe I should go back to the hotel and try to grab a nap. Then we can do something to celebrate later.”
“But I wanted to go somewhere—”
Caro raised her hand to stop Lenny’s likely litany of clubs he wanted to check out. “And I also don’t want to get carried away celebrating until we hear final word that the executive committee approved us. The jinx factor is freaking me out here.”
“Oh, come on. You know we got it.” Len was swinging her hands back and forth. “We got it, we got it, we got it!”
Caro giggled. An excited Len was a dizzying thing.
“Hey, I’ve got an idea,” she said. “Why don’t you see if Merrell is about to get off work? Then you can take him upstairs for some cocktails. And I’ll go back to the hotel. As soon as I get word from Jack, I’ll call you and then maybe we can get some late dinner somewhere.”
Joy illuminated Len’s gamine features. He kissed her hands, her knuckles, her palms. “Doll face, you are the best friend anyone ever had. In all of history.”
“God, Len. You are so easy to please. And I bet Merrell will soon find out you’re just plain easy. Go find him and I’ll see you later.”
When he practically ran out the door, Caro grinned, happy that Lenny was so happy, hoping his happiness would last this time.
Vamps were often trouble for satyrs—many vamps considered the traditionally serving-class satyrs to be second-class immortal citizens. As she packed up her briefcase and headed toward the elevator, she wished Len would pick a nice mortal for a boyfriend every now and then. Someone who wouldn’t use ancient immortal cultural rules to hurt him.
* * * * *
“Alex?”
Caro sat up too quickly. Streaks of city lights peeked between the drapes of the hotel bedroom and she fell back onto the pillows, dizzily watching bands of red, yellow and orange cross the ceiling.
She’d been dreaming about Alex. An occurrence so common she didn’t stop to ponder it. As she drifted back into the dream, she let the sweetest of all lovers smooth her hair from her face, let him run his hand between the folds of her robe, opening it so he could caress her naked flesh with a gaze that spoke of heat and danger and love.
Her tattoo buzzed with the beat of their mutual hunger, calling on him to feed from her, to feed her own endless yearnings and her darkest desires. She felt his strong, cool fingers on the heated flesh of her thighs. Felt his hot mouth rub against her swollen nipples. His tongue tasted, his teeth nipped. A knowing fingertip smoothed slick moisture from inside her pussy, gently laving her labia and the quivering hood of her clit. Two long fingers entered her forcefully, deeply. Her breath rasped, short, sharp pants that echoed in the room.
“Alex!”
She pressed her wrist
against her heaving belly, consciousness suddenly pulling her away from the familiar, pleasurable dream. What woke her up? She’d wanted the dream to go on forever…
She heard a faint sound from the outer room and realized someone was knocking on the door to the suite. Blinking herself awake, she rose and padded through the living area to look out the peephole.
Alex. Oh God. He was actually here. After quickly cinching the belt of her robe and smoothing her hair, she opened the door.
He’d had his hands behind his back but now he brought them forward. He held a bottle of her favorite champagne. His smile was devastating as he handed her the bottle.
“I represent the congratulatory committee from Stoked. Congratulations, princess. We got the account.”
“Come in.” She cradled the cold bottle against her quivering belly and stepped back to let him into the room, hoping that Jack, Len, Merrell—anybody would be hiding behind him. She didn’t trust herself to be alone with Alex right now. Her body was still humming from her dream. She avoided his eyes, knowing he could probably see what she’d been thinking, knowing he could probably smell her need through her robe. She shut the door, quickly moving to set the bottle down on the coffee table.
Alex walked to the middle of the room, the dim light from the window partially illuminating his elegantly rumpled form. He’d taken off his coat and tie at some point and had rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt. A five o’clock shadow made his face look leaner, sexier. Caro blinked, trying to focus on what he’d said, trying to get her mind around the idea that she and Len were a success. But her thoughts were slogging through a muddle of drowsiness and an alarming desire to get closer to Alex.
“What happened to Jack?” She fiddled with the lapels of her robe, avoiding his eyes. “I thought he was supposed to call. I told Len I’d let him know when I got word…”
“Actually, Len already knows. I ran into him as he was leaving the office with Merrell. Jack is still tied up in meetings and I told him that I’d go find you guys to tell you the news. I didn’t realize you had left already.” He switched on the desk lamp and she looked up to see a circle of golden light softening the lines of his cheekbones and jaw, highlighting the full, moist curves of his mouth. The smile he gave her made her stomach dip. “I told Len to go ahead and…umm, have fun with Merrell and that I would come let you know the good news.”
Party Vamps Page 9