Alpha Vampire Romance: Vampire’s Mate (Paranormal Shapeshifter Alpha Demon Vampire Romance) (Coming of Age Werewolf BBW Shifter Women’s Fiction Short Stories) (90 page)

As the taxi pulled in to my street, I couldn’t help but marvel at the difference – it was like Guy and I lived on different planets. He had more luxuries than I’d ever seen, and I had a basic, tiny one bedroom apartment. I wasn’t jealous exactly – after all I’d worked hard for all that I had – but I couldn’t help but wonder how long it would take me to be able to afford even a quarter of what Guy had.

As I stepped into my home, I let out a breath that I hadn’t even realized that I was holding. And that was the moment I checked my phone to spot a message from Dominic, which I listened to immediately.

“Marceline,” he snapped right away, sounding stressed. “We’ve already been offered another job, and I
really
need you to work it. Please call me back so I can give you the address.”

I let out a deep sigh as I considered this. I was shattered, I had coursework that needed to get done, and I really didn’t want to do this, but I needed the money badly to keep on top of things, so I couldn’t really turn it down.

I was already a little behind on bills this month, and if this job was right then it could really help me with that.

I rang him back, already planning on jumping straight into bed as soon as the phone call was done.

*****

Hugh

My plan had come together perfectly. Or more, my PA’s plan. There was a small gathering going on in my back garden, but I didn’t care about any of those people. None of this was for them. It was for her.
She
was here – the pretty waitress – and tonight she would be mine. I had no doubt about that.

I was aware that she’d likely slept with Guy the night before, but I wasn’t concentrating on that. This was more about me finally getting her. I could get past all of that, because as soon as she was with me I was sure she would like me better.

“Hey,” I called over to her as the music got turned up once more. “Come here.” I wasn’t going to give the opportunity for anyone else to get their hooks into her. Not again. The party had only just started to kick up a notch, and I felt like that was the perfect moment for me to make my move.

She tentatively stood by me, waiting for my instructions. I couldn’t help but smile at her, wanting her to relax.

“Enjoying the party?” I asked.

“Erm, sure,” she lied, clearly hating it because she was working. Of course she wasn’t enjoying herself – what had I been thinking asking that?

I changed the subject. “You look nice in the uniform,” I said. A blush filled her cheeks, which made her look cute, but somehow sexy at the same time. She really was beautiful! I couldn’t resist, so I leant in and whispered into her ear. “I’d like to see it on my bedroom floor.”

She squealed excitedly, before trying to calm herself down and return to being professional, so I took the opportunity to run a finger along her thigh. When she didn’t instantly pull away, I knew that I had a shot, which made me smile smugly to myself.

Her boss quickly called her away from me, but that no longer mattered. I’d secured it. Tonight she would be mine, I was certain of it. All was good. Now, I could relax and enjoy myself.

But I didn’t. Not really. I kept my gaze trained on her the entire time.

As the evening rolled on, and people began to leave my party, I knew that it was time to make my final move before she left too. I found her in the kitchen talking to another waitress. I indicated silently that she should follow me. She blushed brightly and snuck away, as if we were sharing a juicy secret. A clandestine affair.

The thought of that seemed to make it more exciting for her, and it did me too.

As soon as we got into a hallway where we were alone, I pulled her in for a kiss, not bothering to waste another second. I started off slow, tender and kind of romantic, but as soon as she started to respond, moving her body closer in to mine, I began to move faster and more passionately.

She felt great pressed against me – all petite and adorable – and I never wanted her to leave. But just as we were
really
getting into it, she jumped backwards as if she’d been shocked.

“I’m sorry, I…” she stammered, he hands waving about in a panic as she stepped backwards. “I can’t.”

“Why?” I snapped, feeling angry. I’d done all of this for her, I’d been so sure that it was going well, so what was the problem? Why was she rejecting me now, when we were so damn close?

“I just…”

And then I realized.

“It’s Guy, isn’t it?” I nodded before she even answered, of course it was. “It’s because of Guy.”

“How do you know about him?” she panted breathlessly, turning white with the realization that I knew what she’d done the night before.

“I saw you,” I answered simply, half shrugging one shoulder. It was bad enough that she’d slept with him, but did she have to like him too?

“Why him?” I couldn’t stop myself from asking. “Why not me?”

The guilty expression that filled her face, showed me that she didn’t
totally
want to reject me, which I struggled with a little.

But then, as if by magic, another genius idea filled my mind.

“Wait here,” I muttered. I stomped out into the garden, informing everyone that they needed to leave immediately. I was done with them now, they’d served their purpose.

Then, once I was alone in my garden, I pulled my phone out of my pocket and dialed an unexpected number…

*****

Guy

“Hello?” I asked in a confused voice, speaking to a man that I hadn’t for a while – Hugh Bounty.

It wasn’t that I didn’t like Hugh. I did, a lot, but things had become difficult for us over the years.

We’d been friends for a very long time. We were particularly close in business school, but when we’d both gone into the same industry to raise our billions, and things had started to become strained.

It was difficult to maintain a friendship when such a strong competition was in the equation.

We hadn’t fallen out or anything, it was just… different now. Both of us were equally successful, but we couldn’t quite get our old friendship back. We ran in the same circles, and were civil to one another, but I wasn’t sure that we could ever be
us
again. It was a shame, but I couldn’t see what could be done about it.

“Guy?” he said. He sounded a little distressed. “I need you to come over.”

“Why?” I asked, bemused. He never invited me to his home anymore – this was too out of the blue not to be something strange.

“Just come,” he begged. I sat in silence for a few moments, waiting for him to speak again. I wasn’t about to be tricked into something stupid. I needed at least
some
information before I agreed.

There was silence, but then he conceded.

“It’s Marceline.”

Those words sent shock racking through my body. How the hell did he know Marceline, and what was he doing with her?

And why did he need me?

“What do you mean?” I asked, running my fingers through my hair, totally and utterly stressed.

“Just come,” he repeated. This time, I didn’t hesitate. I simply got into the car and drove to his townhouse as fast as I could.

*****

Marceline

In that hallway, Hugh had asked me to stay, even though everyone else was leaving, and for some reason I had agreed. But I had no idea what we were doing here. We were just sitting, awkwardly looking at one another. He wouldn’t say anything to me, and it was getting a little weird.

“Can I…?” I started, moving out of my seat, but he quickly shot me down.

“Just wait,” he said, interrupting me. I shifted backwards once more, feeling like moving would be a huge mistake.

Luckily, at that moment, there was a knock at the door, breaking the tension that was heavy in the air. As he walked out of the room, I blew out some air, wondering what was about to happen next.

I wasn’t scared by all of the oddness, I was just confused. What was Hugh planning?

But then he stalked back into the room with Guy in tow, and my heart started to dance all over my whole body, the fear finally creeping in. Whatever I’d expected,
this
wasn’t it. Sure, I’d acted a bit out of character – sleeping with one man one night, and kissing another the next – but I hadn’t expected any comeuppance from it. Just a bit of guilt maybe.

Now, I was being confronted with the pair of them, in what was quickly becoming the most awkward moment of my entire life.

“Erm…” I was panicking now, wondering what I could say to make it alright.

“Now, Marceline,” Hugh started in a serious tone, as if he were about to begin a business meeting. “You like me – I know you do – and you like Guy too.”

“Errr…” What did he expect me to say to that? Humiliation radiated through me and I began to feel extremely uncomfortable. This was edging further and further away from normal, and I had no idea how to bring it back.

“We both like you a lot too; I think that much is obvious,” he continued, completely stunning me into silence.

They did? It was?

“So, it’s time that you choose.”

“Choose?” I gasped, throwing my hand over my mouth in surprise. “What do you mean?”

Could he possibly mean what I thought he did? He wanted me to choose which one of them I liked best? These two men were hot, wealthy businessmen who could have anyone in the entire world. Why did they seem to be fighting over
me
? I was just a plain Jane nobody, worth nothing!

What the hell was going on?

“I mean we don’t want this to become a fight,” Hugh clarified, trying to help me understand. “Let us know which one you like and that can be the end of it. We’ve known each other for a long time. Yes, we’ve had our ups and downs, but we’re adult enough to not fall out over this.” He sent Guy a look, who nodded curtly as a reply.

Hugh was saying all of this as if it was simple, and maybe it should have been. I knew that I should just say Guy – I did like him and we’d already had sex – but there was something about Hugh that intrigued me too, and I wasn’t sure that I was ready to dismiss him yet, either.

“I… I don’t know,” I finally admitted in a stammer, looking up at them both, hoping that one of them had a solution. Because I sure as hell didn’t. 

*****

Hugh

As soon as she said the words
I don’t know
, I knew I had to up my game. It meant that she was interested in me as much as Guy, and that was enough to excite me.

This may have started off as something of a competition in the beginning, but now it had become something more. Marceline wasn’t just any girl. I liked her a lot, and I was getting the feeling that Guy did too.

Okay, admittedly there was a part of me that did want to win over Guy, but I knew that if I did, I wouldn’t just use this woman and toss her aside. I wanted to date her, to wine her and dine her; I wanted her to be mine. I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her since I’d first laid eyes on her, and now I needed to act on that.

I stepped forward boldly, and kissed; wanting Guy to see that he didn’t totally have the upper hand over me. She stiffened up at first, but soon relaxed in my arms once more, melting into me the way she had in the hallway. As soon as she responded to me, I stepped back smugly. But Guy was not one to be pushed aside – I knew that about him He kissed her too, but ran his hands over her body at the same time, exploring her curves in a way that I hadn’t.

Marceline looked bewildered by all the attention, but also a little turned on. That flicker of excitement behind her eyes was all that I needed to continue. I stepped behind her as Guy continued to kiss her, and traced my fingers up the inside of her thighs, getting dangerously close to the outline of her underwear. She squealed and jumped at first, but she didn’t pull away…

*****

Guy

I had no idea what Hugh’s game plan was, but I was intrigued enough not to back down. As I kissed Marceline, enjoying the spark of familiarity between us, I sensed Hugh doing something to her too. I could feel his presence behind her, and her body squirm. Then she screeched, proving my theory and I couldn’t help but shoot him a
look
.

At first, I was all ready to yell and be indignant on her behalf when I noticed that he was touching her, but I quickly sensed her relaxing into it and enjoying it, so I took the opportunity to trail kisses and licks down her neck, wanting her to remember what I could offer her too.

I didn’t know what sort of woman Marceline was, but I found myself wanting to find out how far she was willing to go with all of this. My throbbing erection pressing against her leg was telling her that much! I knew that this was a little crazy, and totally out of character for me, but I was oddly turned on by it.

I was actually interested to see how far
I
was willing to go too!

I liked Marceline a whole lot, and I didn’t want to lose her to Hugh, but I couldn’t help feeling aroused by how much he was turning her on too. It was a conflicting, confusing emotion – but it had to be better than jealousy, which is probably what I should have been experiencing, so I decided just to go with it.