Chapter 14
Scarlett
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Cheeks still burningfrom Kasen walking in on the tail end of me feeding from Malcolm, I wring the hem of my shirt and mumble, “Thanks,” as I take one of the coffees he returned with. Finding a seat at the kitchen table, I avoid eye contact, not sure why it’s bothering me so much.
Not like he doesn’t know what a vamp does. Or any illusions that Malcolm and I are sleeping together.Sitting up suddenly, my embarrassment falls away as I finally look at Kasen, tilting my head in contemplation.The man’s got shifter hearing. He fuckingknewand came in anyway.
Maybe... Malcolm’s not the only one open to certain ideas.
“So, love, I have a proposition for you.” Malcolm strides into the room freshly dressed in a dark suit that makes my mouth water, saving a squirming Kasen from my scrutiny.
“I do so love to be propositioned in the morning,” I tease, taking another sip of my coffee and savoring the way his eyes darken, a bolt of lust taunting me on the other side of the bond.
“I swear, you’re hornieraftersex than beforehand.” He clucks his tongue, kissing the top of my head and grabbing a coffee for himself. Leaning a hip against the counter, he gives me a playful smile. “You’re going to give me a complex.” Taking a drink, his eyes briefly flit to Kasen at the other side of the table before coming back to me. “I’m going to have to up my game, or get inventive, lest leave you unsatisfied.”
That brief glimpse, coupled with everything up to now, is enough to convince me I’m on the right track. Turning to Kasen, sitting so rigid that he might shatter, I lift a hand to hide my mouth from Malcolm and dramatically whisper, “I’m not crazy, right? He just called me a thirsty bitch. A-plus for the vamp pun, though.”
It works, a startled laugh making the high-strung man relax. “That or he’s just fishing for compliments. I hear the egos of rich men are pretty fragil- ow!” Rubbing his arm where Malcolm flicked a small energy ball, he scowls.
“It is not,” he defends, which only serves to send Kasen and me into a fit of laughter. Huffing, Malcolm adds, “And I don’t hear Scarlett complaining, either. If anything, I was pointing out what a good mood she’s in afterward, thank you very much.”
Still chuckling, I wipe at the corner of my eye, taking another drink when I’m not worried that I’ll choke on it. “Not in the slightest, don’t worry. Some people need a nap after, and some wind up wired. Add in that thing you do with your magic and it’s a shot of adrenaline to my system, so you only have yourself to blame.”
Kasen coughs into his fist. “See? Flattery goes straight to his head.”
Malcolm’s smile falls as he flips him off, but honestly... this is nice. Easy, and I could definitely get used to it. Before it can take a downward turn, I circle back to what started the conversation in the first place.
“So, what sort of proposition?”
Clearing his throat, Malcolm slips into business mode. “Do you still want a job?” Kasen and I both sit up a little straighter at his question, getting our full attention now. “You have experience with medical claims already, so I figured you could help analyze the grant program so that we could make it accessible to a broader range of people. If it were more of a streamlined application process, perhaps more claims centers would consider utilizing it as an option rather than chase people into debt. See where we could cut some corners to up the yearly allotted budget for the program, that sort of thing.”
His gaze is rapt on my face, searching for any indication of how I respond to the idea. “Theoretically, you should be able to do all of that in a work from home position. Emails, phone calls; there’s really no reason to see anyone in person. And if there are any hard copies of files you need, Kasen can run below as an intermediary.”
My stomach flips. “If I officially have a job with your company, then people here are going to see my name around and start talking.”
Kasen sheepishly interjects, “Rumor mill is already going on that front.” As Malcolm whips his head towards the poor guy, jaw ticking with anger, Kasen lifts his hands in surrender. “I didn’t say a word, Becky saw her name when sorting the mail. You can’t really have ‘Scarlett Drake’ on something in this building and not raise a few questions, let alone figure out whose office to send it to. So she looked up the employee directory, and nothing. We all know you’re an only child, so unless it was a cousin or something-” he shrugs “-people put two and two together. Months of power surges and a boss in a pissy mood, then suddenly the flares stop and he’s skipping around, mail being delivered with a strange woman’s name mixed with yours on it.”
Kasen sighs, running a hand through his short cropped hair. “The vampire aspect is still out of the equation, and the guys and I have made a point to remind everyone of the confidentiality clause in their contracts pertaining to anything and everything regarding what transpires within Drake Enterprises... and sort of spun that to include people on the premises and your personal business. We told them it would be formally announced at a later date, and anyone found spilling the beans to the press would be out on their ass before they could blink. Doesn’t stop the gossip from happeningwithinthe building, though.”
Malcolm hangs his head. “Shit.” Taking a second to collect his thoughts, he nods to himself. “Okay, this is actually a good thing. The bigger the mystery that surrounds her, the more people will dig into things they shouldn’t. So it’s an opportunity to control the environment and slowly bring people around to the idea that vampires are stillpeople. Seeing is believing, after all.”
Kasen cringes, but agrees. “Maybe we just risk the top floor to start it off, though. Pre-approved access only, like a trial run, with the people we trust the most. And if someone wants to go screaming to the masses, really, who would believe them anyway?”
Taking a deep breath, he bolsters himself up, and by the time he faces me, I can see exactly why Malcolm hired him on as security. “Maybe we can bring her down to your office tomorrow. Between me and your shielding abilities, she'll be safe; we’d never have attempted a trip out of the building if we didn’t believe that. I can't imagine anyone here would be suicidal enough to try and gothroughus to hurt her if they weren’t actively in danger, even if they were scared at first. Really, the biggest threat is word getting out too quickly and things getting out of hand so that we can’t control the spread of knowledge gradually.”
