High Stakes (Vegas Vampires #1)(22)
Author: Erin McCarthy

Alexis wasn’t entirely sure why she wasn’t in hysterics, but she was grateful for that fact. "Have a lot of mortals discovered the truth about you?"

Leaning his back against the arm, and lifting a leg onto the couch, he shrugged."No, not really.Maybe two or three. I’ve told some. But mostly we blend."

She wished he’d blend his crotch into the couch so she wouldn’t have to look atit, all spread out at her like a forbidden fruit. It was a little hard to keep her eyes off inappropriate parts. If she looked at his chest, she pictured touching it. If she looked at his crotch, well, hell, she didn’t want to go there. If she looked at his legs, she imagined wrapping her own around them. And when she looked into his pale, cerulean blue eyes, she had an entire mental striptease choreographed in her head.

Either he was doing that vampire mind control thing that he swore he couldn’t do on her, or she was a sick bitch who thought vampires were sexy.

Why the hell couldn’t he be a werewolf? That wouldn’t have done a thing for her, she was positive. Fur had never gotten her going.

"So how old are you? And how do you blend if you have to sleep all day and suck blood all night?" Did he need three pints square a night, or did he have to graze on blood constantly, like a whale shark with plankton, or could he make it a whole week without touching the stuff?

Ethan gave her a look. "I don’t suck blood all night. And I was born in 1067, the son of a Norman lord and his new Anglo-Saxon wife."

Alexis swallowed, more freaked out than she cared to admit. "Wow.Dude. That’s seriously old. And you don’t look a day over thirty."

"Neither do you." He smiled, and nudged her leg with his foot.

"I am thirty."Which had seemed old until an hour ago. "So is nine hundred really like the new thirty then? Do you feel just as perky as ever?"

"Actually, I get stronger with age. We’re weak in our youth."

"You should have a millennium birthday party. That would be cool."

"Maybe I will. I hadn’t thought much about it. I’ve been busy with the campaign."

"Can I have a stiff drink now?" Alexis thought it was time for a bottle of gin, just to settle her stomach.

The doorbell rang. "I have a better idea.Dinner."

A minute later, he had her steak dinner in front of her, served with pea pods and roasted potatoes. It did smell good, but she felt rude eating in front of him. "Did you ever, um, eat?"

"No, I was waiting for your food to arrive."

"Go ahead. You must be dying since you lost all that blood." Without even trying, she managed to make him laugh. "No pun intended."

"If you’ll just excuse me, I’ll grab myself a drink then."

"Sure." Alexis chewed and sipped an ice water, her stomach making embarrassing noises as it embraced the beef enthusiastically.

She was surprised to see Ethan come back into the room empty-handed. "Where’s your drink?"

"I had a nip in the kitchen. I didn’t want to bother you. The sight and the smell, well, it can take some getting used to."

"I don’t think I’d mind. I mean, it’s not like you’re dragging a bellman in here and going at him like a mosquito. You’re just going to like suck it out of a bag, right? How often do you do that?" she asked around a mouthful of potatoes.

"I don’t suck it out of a bag. I drink it out of a glass when I am thirsty. Sometimes once a night, sometimes every other day, sometimes once aweek depending on my mood and what I’m doing."

"Does it taste different? I mean, do you prefer B positive over O?" Alexis wondered what her blood would taste like. Pepper steak?

Ethan snorted. "In nine hundred years, no one, not a single person, has asked me that."

"I have a curious mind. It makes me a good lawyer."

"Or just nosy."

"Bite me. I’m not nosy." Then she realized what she had said. "Not literally! No biting. It’s just an expression."

Ethan laughed. His finger swiped the corner of her lip, scaring the crap out of her.And sort of turning her on. But he only licked his finger. "You had some water dribbling down there."

Alexis felt her face heat. "Don’t lick me. That’s inappropriate."

"I didn’t lick you. I licked my finger, which touched you. I’m getting the feeling that I make you nervous. Is it because I’m a vampire?"

"I’m not nervous. But if I was, yes, it would be because you’re a vampire. You have to admit, that’s a little odd. I mean, I saw you bleeding like a stuck pig and here you are all cute and casual thirty minutes later." And now that her stomach was feeling much better, she was starting to think it would be a good idea to have some alone time.Far away from Ethan Carrick.

"I’m cute?" He looked pleased by that. "My mother always said I was angelic looking."

Alexis rolled her eyes. Apparently even after nine hundred years of life, men still needed their egos stroked. "Mothers are blinded by love. But you’re not ugly, I’ll give you that."

"Be still my heart."

"Hey, how come you’re blond and all your vamp friends have black hair? You don’t fit the raven-haired brooding image."

"Maybe not, but as I said, I’m angelic looking.Trustworthy. Having dark-haired cabinet members is a coincidence, but it does provide a nice contrast.Makes me stand out in the political crowd."

Alexis chewed on that as she chewed on a pea pod. She really should go back to her room. But Ethan was right. She was nosy. She had about three million questions for him.

But first things first."I’m going to scream if I have to wear this dress for another second. I’ve got to take it off."

"I have no problem with you taking it off. In fact, the thought rather pleases me." Ethan gave her a lecherous grin.

"Watch it, Carrick. I’m not some White House intern that’s easily excitable when a president strolls into the room."

"No? Good. I wouldn’t want you to be easy." He stood up-"But if you’d like, I could get you something to change into."

Wear Ethan’s clothes? That was a dangerous proposition. It wasn’t like her room was a million miles away. It was right next door. She could run over, change, run back.Which might not look so good. She might look a little too eager to be back in his company. Not to mention that the idea of putting a powerful vampire’s clothes next to her undersexed flesh had an enormous appeal.

"Thanks. That would be great."

Brittany would be so proud of her. She had utterly lost her mind and was acting on pure impulse.

"Finish your dinner and I’ll gograb something. The pants will be long, though, you’ll have to roll them up."