Ripper (Hunter #1)(84)

She sighed. “It was probably inevitable. I was na?ve if I thought they would really listen to me. You know how young people are. They always know better. But I still don’t see why a vamp would kill these girls. For the most part, vampires are protective of the women who feed them. They might not love you, but they tend to be grateful. There’s always the bad apple, but even Alexander minds his manners for the most part. I try to properly match him. I try to find girls who won’t mind how rough he is.”

“A girl like Britney Miles?”

Stacy flushed. “Yeah, a girl like her. I said I wasn’t a monster…”

“If it hadn’t been for you, there might have been a lot of violence. The vampires weren’t going to go hungry. I’m not judging you.”

Her eyes narrowed as she took me in and made a decision about me. “You aren’t, are you? Most women do, you know.”

The man who had been carefully refilling our drinks reentered the small, intimate private dining room. He approached Stacy and whispered something in her ear.

“And where is the Councilman?” she asked.

“I believe he is still with Mr. Jacobs,” the young man explained solicitously. “I overheard them asking for a call to be set up in the conference room. I believe they are going to speak with the king about a business matter.”

Ruby-red fingernails drummed along the solid oak table. “That’s a problem. Well, please inform Mr. Sharpe that I need him to wait until such time as the Councilman can join us.”

The young man looked ill at the thought of having to relay the message to the vampire.

It seemed that Marcus’s meeting was going to give me an enormous amount of freedom. I likely should have been wary, but a confidence I’d never known had been flowing through my veins for hours. I was ready to take on anything. “I take it Alexander Sharpe is waiting to speak with me and Marcus is sadly preoccupied with business?”

“That would be the way of it,” Stacy agreed. “And Alexander won’t like waiting. If we take too long, he’ll feed and disappear and you’ll have to come back tomorrow night.”

“As it happens, I have plans for tomorrow night.” I didn’t have firm plans, but they involved being with Gray. If I had to work tomorrow night, I wanted it to be on something he could be by my side at. I also seriously doubted he would be patient enough to let me get all dressed up and spend a second night with Marcus. “So, I guess I’ll have to tackle Mr. Sharpe on my own.”

“Seriously?” Stacy stared at me like I’d grown two heads.

“Is he going to attack me right here? Are you putting me alone in a room with him?”

She shook her head. “No, he’s waiting in the lounge. There are at least twenty people in there, but it really is best if you have Marcus with you. You’re…”

“Going to be a hit with the vampire crowd?”

“Oh, yeah, you’re lovely and there’s something about you that will attract them like flies to honey,” she said simply. “I’ve been around them long enough to know. I can already see what Marcus sees in you. You know it’s been forever since he took a woman as his mistress. He’s absolutely the pickiest vampire I’ve ever met. Most vamps will do anything to keep a female with them, but Marcus prefers to be alone if he’s not truly engaged.”

“And what does Marcus like?” Though I was committed to Gray, I was still curious about my Italian escort.

She thought about it for a moment before answering. “He likes complicated women. He wants them lovely, of course, but mere beauty isn’t enough for him. I wouldn’t say he has a physical type, just lovely and complex. If you throw in a side of danger, Marcus will come panting.”

I stood up. “Well, I’m certainly complex. I’m also not particularly good at following orders. Please take me to Mr. Sharpe. I want to get this interview out of the way.”

“Are you sure? Marcus is likely to be mad.”

“I can handle him.” I knew something she didn’t. Marcus didn’t care about me the way she thought he did. He would probably be thrilled we could leave and he could get along with his evening. Now that it was clear I was happy with Gray, I was certain the vampire would lose any interest he had in me, if it had been there in the first place.

Perfect red lips tugged up in a smile, and Stacy Sears elegantly rose from her chair. “Then I suppose I can handle the fallout, as well. I like you, Kelsey. You aren’t at all what I thought you would be. Can I give you a small piece of advice about the Councilman?”

I shrugged. “Sure.”

“What I said to the girls goes for mistresses, too. He won’t ever marry you. A vampire always wants a companion. They’ll play around with humans, take good care of you and make you think they love you, but in the end, when a companion comes along, they’ll leave you.”

I felt for her. There was no way that bitterness hadn’t come from experience. I could put her mind at ease about one thing. “Then it’s a damn good thing I don’t love him.”

Stacy reached out and took my hand. “Make sure you keep it that way. Keep hold of my hand. The club is trapped. There are all sorts of strange magic in this place. If you’re not with a vampire, you need someone who lives here to guide you through or you’ll find yourself trapped. Once some dumbass vamp brought a human in and left her alone and it took us two days to find her.”