Sounding more distant she asked, “You turn into a bat, Mr. Vampire?”
Damn. Her open–mindedness impressed him. She showed genuine interest in knowing who and what they were. Ben controlled her mood, but her questions were her own. She had done nothing wrong and he had snapped at her. Raymond kept his tone in check and calmly responded, “Chihuahua actually.” Her confused expression was priceless to him. “No. Just kidding. We can’t shape shift.”
CHAPTER NINE
Dixon cleared his throat trying to resume the meeting. “Your duties, Captain, will be as a liaison between the Colony and the Secret Service, as well as other federal departments,” Dixon explained. “You will spend much time with the vampires. Helping them with blood issues, security access, new aliases and such. Your primary responsibility is to protect their secret of existence at all costs.”
She held up her hand. “Wait, you’re telling me we use vampires to protect government officials from threats. Are you talking about vampire threats or human threats?”
Dixon was the one who answered. “Both. In my tenure as Colony Director there have been 91 breeches to White House security. That is what has been publicly announced. In truth, there have been an additional 15 breaches – all vampires.”
“Fifteen. Fifteen breaches.” Alex let the words sink in. “How many vampires exist in the world?”
“Enough to warrant our special op team,” Raymond said. “We control our population so our existence can remain secret.” Raymond’s glanced over at Dixon as he was reminded of the Vampire Council’s denial of his turning. Raymond pushed the memory aside. “The threats committed by vampires have been a few dozen over the last century and a half. Not many. The human team does most of the security for the federal government and we’re backup in case of a vampire threat. At times, such as an anthrax scare, we’re used when chemical dangers exist for humans.”
Dixon removed his glasses and looked directly into the captain’s eyes. “Captain, I know this is a lot of information. I remember all too well sitting where you are right now.” He took a deep breath as he viewed her signed oath in his hands. “If you choose not to take the promotion your memories of this meeting can be wiped away. That decision will not negatively affect your career.”
“Immortality and mind games.” She peered down at the signed agreement. “I’m glad to see Hollywood does you justice.” Rubbing her brow she continued, “I’m fine. I can do this job … I just need a minute to think everything over.”
Dixon’s eyes did a classic ping–pong match as he scanned the room from Alex to the vamps and back. Silence filled the room as Alex rubbed her temple. “Take a week to ask Raymond and Ben questions. They’ll be happy to discuss everything about this job and about their vampire culture with you. If you do accept the position, your new assignment will be noted in the President’s Daily Briefing and I will remain on staff to help you transition.” He stood up. “Go grab some coffee and talk.”
“Alone?” Alex squeaked out. “You want me to be alone with them?” She moved one hand to touch her neck, or maybe she reached for the cross necklace she wore. Raymond wasn’t sure, but for someone who took the news that vampires walked among humans fairly well, Alex had now begun to panic.
“They won’t bite you.” Dixon paused, “No pun intended.”
“But you don’t want to come with us? What if I have questions they can’t answer? What if … I don’t know? What if I need something? Or …”
Dixon cut her off. “There’s nothing I know that they aren’t going to know. Go talk. Get familiar with one another and with the rest of the team so you can make an informed decision. This position is long–term, not something you take on for only a few months.”
“For starters, captain, call us Raymond and Ben. No need to be formal.” Ben said.
Alex visually sized the vamps up. “My first name is Alex. Please, feel free to use it.”
CHAPTER TEN
Raymond watched as Ben escorted the captain out of Dixon’s office. Just as he was about to follow, Dixon pulled Raymond aside.
“I hate that I even need to mention this,” Dixon said in a hushed tone, “but Alex is off–limits.”
Raymond turned so his back now faced the opened door giving them some privacy. “Off–limits?” he whispered back.
Dixon raised his eyebrow and repeated, “Off–limits. So make sure your son doesn’t go after her.”
Apprehension marred Raymond’s face. He hadn’t even thought of Sterling in this entire scenario. The first thing that boy would do is to make a play for her, and yes, he agreed, Alex was definitely off–limits to his son. He nodded to Dixon and stepped out of the office.
Once he reached the hallway, he picked up on a familiar scent. The smell of Irish Spring soap, crest toothpaste (the plaque reducer one), and Old Spice hung in the air. The scent remained strongest right outside the office, which could only mean one thing. He looked around and spied the pair – Matt and Brandon. God, those two were the thorn in his side more times than he wanted to count. He watched as the two men stood at the end of the hall, looking like they were having a meeting with the plants near the window. They couldn’t appear more out of place if you paid them. The fact that their scents were strong right outside Dixon’s office meant they had spent some time right outside the closed door. Spying, no doubt.
Raymond nodded over to Ben, who immediately caught sight of the two humans. “Please escort Alex to her desk so she can pick up her purse,” he directed Ben.
Once he was alone, Raymond walked slowly down the hallway in the opposite direction of the two spies. Using his sensitive vampire hearing, he eavesdropped on their conversation.
“… Looks like they got to the captain too,” Brandon said.
“Who? Who are ‘they’, Brandon? Nobody got to anyone. Dixon is one of the security directors for our division,” Matt replied.
“Don’t be so naive. Trust me; Mr. Teal Eyes is up to no–good.” Brandon rubbed his temple. “Do you have any more Advil?”
Matt sighed. “It's in my office. Let’s go get it before we’re late to our next meeting.”
Raymond kept walking slowly down the hallway. He knew when the two humans had turned down a corridor towards their own office, and out of earshot. This Brandon guy was more alert than the humans gave him credit for. Of course, his IQ scored much higher than the average humans as well, not that any of the humans would ever admit the fact. Overall, Brandon looked like a quirky idiot most of the time – which was to the Colony’s advantage. The fact that Raymond had a nickname of “Mr. Teal Eyes,” wasn’t good. The nickname meant Brandon was remembering him more and more. He didn’t want to have to silence Brandon, but would if needed. He turned on his heels and made a beeline to Alex’s office.
“Where is she?” he asked Ben once he arrived.
Ben nodded over to the ladies room. “I picked up something in her aura when we left Dixon’s office. Her aura went from all sorts of colors to sheer white,” Ben said, pitching his voice to the higher octave that only Raymond as a vampire would hear.
He responded in the same pitched volume. “Her thought patterns would have knocked me over if I wasn’t already sitting. She’s panicking. I think she has her emotions under control, but she’s terrified.”
“She took the news of our existence well — better than others have in the past. Did you pick up what spooked her?” Ben asked.
“Not really. She’s scared and I think her fear is more than of us being vampires.” Raymond sighed. “It’s hard to read panicked thought patterns. Nothing is ever clear at that point.” Fear and rage. The only two thought patterns that felt like reading shredded documents. “I could have touched her arm to get a better reading, but I didn’t want to scare her anymore than she already was.”
“Yeah, that would have been bad.” A brief pause in the conversation hung in the air, and then Ben broke the silence. “You know what else isn’t clear? Your aura is lit up like a Christmas tree.”
Raymond shook his head and shrugged his shoulders in response.
Ben narrowed his eyes in disbelief. “You’ve known me this long and you don’t think I can see what’s going on with your aura, Raymond? You normally have a gray professional aura with mood lining streaks of other colors. Today you are every color in the spectrum.”
“A lot on my mind I guess.”
“I’m only saying …”
Raymond eyes narrowed as he cut him off. “Your job is to read her aura, not mine. So stop it.” Raymond turned towards the bathroom once again to see if Alex was returning.
Ben studied Raymond. “I think we shouldn’t team up on her. You know, it's probably for the best if only one of us takes her out for coffee.”
“She’ll be fine. She’s open–minded, intelligent, sophisticated … I think she’ll do fine if we both spend the afternoon with her.”
Again, Ben studied Raymond.
“Quit reading my aura!” Raymond demanded.
“I think it's best if you take her out, Raymond. Besides, I have other business to attend to.”
“What business? I cleared your schedule for the day. I know you’re free.”
“Look. I don’t think we should gang up on her. Two–to–one is not a level playing field. You take her out. She seemed to like you and your choirboy looks and charm.” As Raymond smiled at that, Ben asked for the car keys. “Let her drive and be in control of where you go. That will calm her down. I’ll catch you at home later. You two should go enjoy a coffee together.”
*****
Alex needed a moment alone without the excess testosterone at her side. The empty bathroom seemed ideal for her panic attack, which she felt coming any second now. She splashed cold water on her face to pull her back to her senses. The water just made her face and shirt wet. She lived in la–la–land and would be heading out with two vampires, one on each arm.
She couldn’t shake the feeling that Raymond not only looked so familiar to her, but that she knew she had seen him before. She had spied his gorgeous body plenty of times, but somehow forgotten about him. She loathed mysteries and suspected vampire mind games at work. If she accepted the promotion, she assumed any mind control on her would end. Actually, she’d make sure of that. She didn’t want her mind mucked with, but part of her also didn’t want to forget Raymond.
Vampires exist. It was a sentence she never thought she’d say in her life, at least not without it being in jest. Were they all bloodsucking monsters? Were they civilized, but misunderstood? How many of them were there? She took a deep breath. What else existed that she did not know about? That question had her rethink her opinion of the National Inquirer and other salacious tabloids. Maybe there was more truth in those pages than she gave them credit for. Her heart was pounding, so she closed her eyes and counted to ten.
Immediately after she said ‘ten’ in her head, she thought about Raymond. Other than not being human, he exuded her ideal man. Majestic eyes, statuesque build, gorgeous smile, and overall rugged good looks sized him up as the overall perfect manly package to her. Toss in his patriotism and he had a noble quality about him.
She couldn’t stop thinking of his beautiful ivory skin, his dark hair, and piercing teal blue eyes. Gorgeous, simply gorgeous. His strong and lean body sent shivers down her spine, and she found his broad shoulders deliciously inviting.
Damn. She had to stop thinking of him in such a way. If she accepted the job she would work closely with him. Perhaps very closely. The idea excited and terrified her. She needed to keep a professional distance from him, and that wasn’t going to be easy. She couldn’t place it, but she knew Raymond. She had met him before somewhere. She couldn’t identify where she had met him, but there was some connection. She’d have to figure the mystery out.
While in the bathroom, she examined her face in the mirror. Fear left her face haggard looking. A cup of strong coffee sounded good. Her headache from earlier could be from lack of caffeine, or it could be from the excessively tight schoolmarm hairstyle she wore. She dug in her purse for a hairbrush. It rested next to the sharpened pencils she snatched from her desk as she grabbed her purse before escaping to the bathroom. She brushed her long hair out and the stroking relaxed her. She left her hair down, reapplied her lipstick, and headed out of the bathroom.
As she walked over to the waiting vampires, she scanned their huge body size. They were big men … er, vampires. She wondered how strong they were and where they were going for coffee. Was she really allowing herself to be alone with two men she knew nothing about? She noticed the two of them whispering and her heart skipped a beat, but not in a good way. She mustered her courage and forced her feet to continue towards them. They seemed nice enough in Dixon’s office. Maybe this outing wouldn’t be too bad after all. She did her best to smile back as she approached, what she hoped, were not bloodsucking monsters.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Raymond felt Alex’s thought patterns relax when he told her she would have only one escort for the day. He noticed she smiled when Ben excused himself and left the two of them alone in the hallway. He enjoyed watching her smile. Her emerald eyes twinkled when she did so.
She walked him to where her older model Volvo was parked. As she climbed in, and came into familiar surroundings, Raymond could feel her at a near peaceful calm. He captured her thought patterns, but she wasn’t actively thinking about what had spooked her … so he remained unsure of what had scared her. Of course, he could compel her or physically touch her, but that probably wasn’t the best way to start this professional relationship with his new director. Her fear was in check, at least for now, and that’s all that mattered.
“Where should we go?” she asked.
“Anywhere. Lady’s choice,” he replied, adjusting the seat all the way back. He tilted the seat as well and gave himself some extra headroom.
“Starbucks?” She suggested.
Her voice pitched higher than he thought seemed normal for her, so he scanned her mental patterns. “You okay?” He watched as she took a deep breath and told him she just wanted another hit of early morning caffeine. Raymond continued to feel her fear as she started to drive.
Naturally, since there’s a Starbucks on every corner, they found one quickly. The place smelled like ground roast and cinnamon when they walked through the door. “I love their pecan mocha latte and cinnamon buns. What do you like?”
Raymond heard her inhale deeply and enjoy the aroma of the place. But as she finished her last sentence her heart rate had sped up, and her stance turned more stoic. He softly replied, “I enjoy drinking coffee. It's one of the few foods that do have a taste. You assumed a blood exclusive diet?”
“That’s what Hollywood and my nightmares would have me believe,” she barely managed to squeak out.
“Relax. I won’t hurt you.” He listened to her heart beats slow down. “You dream of vampires?”
A blush came to her cheeks, and he realized it was more than her twinkling emerald eyes that captured his attention. She looked absolutely beautiful, and so damn flushed at the moment. Her loose hair framed her blushed cheeks. He started to reach out to her. He wanted to brush the hair from her face when she smiled, but she turned away from him.
“No. Sorry. Bad joke. I’m a bit nervous.” She glanced at the menu board on the wall. “Nothing else has a taste?”
What was he doing? He nearly touched her face – in a very intimate way. Oh sure, he could justify touching her if it meant saving her from being hit by a car, or even offer first aid if she were wounded, but that wasn’t the case here. He cleared his throat. “Everything has a taste. Most foods just taste like paste. Coffee is good and so is alcohol. A few other specific things taste good to me. But that’s all.”
She placed her order and spoke specifically ordering low–fat cream, a half shot of hazelnut, and a whiff of cinnamon. She obviously had a favorite from their varied menu selections. She then turned to Raymond. “What would you like?” she asked.
>
“Make it two,” he said to the hostess. Raymond didn’t care overall what coffee he drank, as long as it was coffee.
“Do you miss eating?” she whispered.
Raymond thought little of food any more, but the question mentally pulled forth a wonderful childhood memory. “My mother made these great honey cakes for special occasions. My father harvested honey from a nearby beehive. I can still remember the taste of those warm cakes. I’ve forgotten what most other foods taste like. So I guess I don’t miss food all that much.”
He watched as she reached into her purse, obviously to pay. He quickly touched her hand. “I’ll pay, Alex.” He handed some money to the cashier.
Alex’s hand felt warm and soft. Damn. He told himself he wasn’t going to touch her. He mentally cursed himself for such little restraint. If he were honest with himself, he felt grateful for the opportunity. He just didn’t want to think about that meant right now.
“Thanks,” Alex said.
She glanced down at the hand he touched. Raymond held no body warmth and he knew his touch felt cold. She obviously noticed. He carefully accepted the change from the cashier. After years of not touching humans he didn’t want to add another one to the tally today.
The time was mid morning and the place ran in a reasonably quiet atmosphere. He saw a table that offered some moderate privacy for their talk. Raymond let Alex lead the way and they situated themselves for a long stay at the place.
Deafening silence loomed over the two as Alex quietly sipped her coffee. Raymond enjoyed her delicate beauty. She sipped her coffee and carefully blotted her lips with a napkin, soiling it with her lipstick. She shifted in her seat and crossed her legs, that’s when he became aware he was staring at her. But it wasn’t just her physical appearance which attracted him. She seemed intelligent as well. The whole package was a turn on. This outing transpired into the closest thing to a date he had been on since … well he couldn’t even remember ever having a real date. Again he mentally reminded himself this was business. He wasn’t ready to start dating anyway, so it should be a moot point.
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