Single White Vampire (Argeneau #3)(52)

"I'm heading back now."

Lucern turned his attention to what was going on around him. Chris moved toward the door.

"Willing to brave those women again?" Kate teased.

Her friend grinned. "I have to talk to a couple of my authors. Besides, they weren't bothering me. Not with Lucern there. Maybe they will without him," he added with a wink. But as he opened the door, he was nearly run down.

Lucern gaped in horror as he suddenly found himself surrounded by a pack of excited, yammering women.

Every one of them was pushing and grabbing at him. Lucern backed away until he found himself up against a wall, but still they crowded forward, pressing against him, the sweet smell of their blood the only thing he could really concentrate on. He caught words and bits of phrases here and there, but none of it made sense.

"… just love your books…"

"… couldn't afford to attend the conference, but live here…"

"… waited around the lobby…"

"… recognized you from your picture at the back of the book…"

"… followed you to your room…"

"… just love you!"

"… please bite me. Turn me into a vampire…"

"… autograph my breasts?"

"Out!"

Lucern definitely heard and even understood Kate's shout. He also heard her next strident words: "A little of your special help wouldn't hurt here, Luc!"

Lucern smiled. He loved it when she called him Luc. Then understanding struck him. She wanted him to use his mind control to convince the women to leave. He only hoped he could focus enough to do so. Doing his best to ignore his hunger, Lucern tried to focus. He sent the message out to the women that they wanted to leave.

Kate and Chris both helped, each grabbing two women by an arm and urging them toward the door. Lucern dealt with the others by mind control, releasing their minds the moment the door was closed behind them.

"Geez," Chris muttered as he turned the lock. " 'Bite me?' 'Turn me into a vampire?' These women have to learn the difference between reality and fiction."

Lucern and Kate exchanged glances, but they said nothing as Chris moved to the door of his bedroom.

"I guess I'll slip out the door from my room. Hopefully, the women aren't watching that one. I'll stop at the front desk and have security men sent up to remove the women from the hall."

"Okay. Thanks." Kate waved him off. Both Lucern and she were silent as they waited for the sound of his door opening and closing.

Kate sighed when it came. She turned to Lucern with a determination that, even in his depleted state, he knew couldn't be good. Her first words didn't reassure him.

"I have a plan."



"What do you have in the bag?" Lucern asked with bewilderment as they left the hotel.

"Stuff," Kate answered a tad shortly. She wasn't pleased with him at the moment, because he hadn't immediately fallen in with her plan. He'd heard her out, a disbelieving expression on his face, then had tried to talk her out of it. He had done his best to convince her to let him simply go bite a couple of conference guests, thinking it a much more sensible plan, but she seemed offended he'd even consider it.

He'd briefly wondered whether her upset might be because she didn't like the idea of his indulging with another woman the delights he did with her, but then he'd tossed that thought aside. She already knew, thanks to walking in while he was trying to feed on Chris, that he needn't bother with such methods. He supposed she was just generally offended on behalf of mankind itself. Humans didn't mind slaughtering baby cows for veal, but seemed testy at the idea of being food themselves.

"If it's too heavy, I'd be happy to carry it—as I told you upstairs," Kate added through gritted teeth.

Lucern felt a smile threatening at her irritation. He forced it back at once. He rarely smiled. Chalking up his desire to do so now as just a symptom of his bloodless state, he shifted her bag to his other hand. The woman hadn't given it up easily. After more than an hour of arguing, Lucern had finally given in to her plan. Mostly because he was starved, she was stubborn, and it was the only way to get out of their room. He knew darn well she would hound him until he agreed.

Having relented and agreed to try her plan to garner him a one-stop meal, however, didn't mean Lucern had given up courtesy. When she'd produced her "bag of tricks," as she referred to it, he'd immediately insisted on carrying it. Kate seemed to see the move as some slight to her strength. She could carry her own bags, thank you very much. But he wouldn't let her.

Sheesh, Lucern thought. Modern women sure were a pain.

"Here we are," Kate announced, leading him to a taxi. She gave the driver an address as Lucern followed her in. Apparently, she had done her research. She obviously believed in being prepared—just like Bastien.

Despite the pain he was suffering, Lucern felt his lips twitch with amusement. He couldn't help it; Kate was just so delightfully cute.

It wasn't a long ride. When the taxi stopped and Lucern got out, it was to find they had been dropped in front of a restaurant, of all places. Luc stood staring at the building in bemusement as Kate followed him out.

"Kate, I think we're in the wrong place," he said as the taxi pulled away. "I don't see-—"