Lois gave me a suspicious look, then continued the rest of the briefing. After she dismissed us, I made a quick stop at my house to grab a Go Bag and a week’s supply of blood for my stay at this Ruby Wozniak’s house. While I was there I traded my camo pants for dark washed jeans, a black shirt, and my favorite leather jacket. It was custom made to hide a myriad of weapons. Finally I let down my blonde hair, releasing it from the ponytail I favored and giving me a softer look.
Satisfied that I looked like a writer instead of a bodyguard, I drove one of Sapphic Security’s armored SUVs over to theStarfish stadium. It was located partway between Seattle and Tacoma, which meant I spent way more time than I wanted sitting on the I-5 waiting for traffic to move. By the time I got to the stadium, I was feeling annoyed.
Well, not annoyed exactly but kind of anxious. Or maybe expectant. For some reason, my inner vampire was super restless, and the closer we got to the administrative offices, the harder it was to keep her calm. Weird.
I found the office of the president. A sign read,Stanislaus Wozniak, Owner and Presidentin bold letters.The door was partway open, so I knocked on the door jamb and let myself in, rolling my eyes at the lack of security.
“Mr. Wozniak?” I called. “It’s Cassie Weatherby, I’m here for the interview.”
I smelled something enticing. It was a blend of lemon and something herbal. I inhaled deeply, taking the scent into my nose as I looked around.
An older man sat behind an enormous cherry wood desk. Stanislaus Wozniak, I assumed. But it was the person next to him that caught my attention.
Dressed in a tight tee shirt and long shorts, she was obviously an athlete based on her fit physique and the confident way she held herself. The woman was medium height, with narrow hips, small breasts, brown eyes, and long brown hair pulled up in ahigh ponytail. She was beautiful. I felt this almost magnetic pull towards her, something I’d never felt before.
I suppressed a groan. I was attracted to my client, that would make this job more complicated than I expected.
My vampire was going crazy, pushing inside me, trying to get out and get to the woman. What was that about? I took a deep breath, sternly ordering her to stand down so I could focus on my job.
“Cassie? Hi, I’m Ruby Wozniak.”
Her voice was husky, like the women who DJed on nighttime radio. My fanciful thoughts were interrupted by a roar deep inside me.
Mine,my vamp screamed.Mine!
Suddenly I understood why I felt so drawn to Ruby. My new client was my fated mate. Damn it. Lois was going to kill me.
Ruby
My mind raced as I watched my father cross the room to shake hands with my new bodyguard.
She was startlingly beautiful. A few inches taller than me, her lithe body was all muscle, except for those generous breasts peeking out from the top of her knit shirt, that is. She was pale, super pale, her perfect skin almost translucent. Her hair was dishwater blonde and a little wavy, hitting just past the top of her shoulders framing a face with plump pink lips, large brown eyes, and one eyebrow that quirked up higher than the other, giving her a sardonic look. The only imperfection was her nose, which was crooked and had a little bump at the bridge, like maybe it had been broken a time or two.
The instant I’d laid eyes on her I felt a jolt of awareness. This sensation like I knew her, even though I’d never seen her before today. And the strongest wave of lust I’d felt in my entire life.
Please God, let her be a lesbian.
Then I shook that thought off. She was here to do a job, and some crazy person was taking pictures of me and leaving weird little bears in my bed. A bear that had a camera, I’d learned later. I didn’t have time to lust after my bodyguard right now. The Starfish were trying to get into the playoffs, and I needed to focus on my game. And my safety.
“I am Stanislaus Wozniak,” my father said in his thick Polish accent that remained forty years after he’d moved to this country.
Dad played professional soccer for the Polish national team before he was lured to the U.S. with the offer of a massive contract and help paying for residency. He’d met my mother soon after moving here and became a citizen a few years later. After he retired, he’d worked tirelessly to bring professional women’s soccer to Seattle.
“It’s nice to meet you. Tell me about your job with the team.”
While she spoke, Cassie removed a little black wand from her computer bag. She held a finger to her lips, gesturing for us not to say anything. Dad caught on right away and started rambling about his job as President while Cassie methodically made herway through the room with the wand – checking for listening devices, I realized.
“Okay, we’re clear here, so let’s get down to business,” Cassie said briskly as she dropped the wand back into her bag. “First, your office door has a lock, use it. If I was a crazy stalker, I could have walked right in here and kidnapped your daughter. Maybe even killed her.”
My dad looked a little shook at that.
“I’m not totally helpless,” I protested, more out of pride than actual confidence in my skills at fighting off an attacker.
I mean, I’d taken a few self-defense classes, but I’d never actually had to use those techniques in real life.
Cassie gave me a look that clearly indicated that she was skeptical that I could, in fact, protect myself, but she didn’t comment.
“Let’s talk about our plan,” Cassie continued. “Lois said you all agreed on a cover story, correct?”
