High Stakes (Vegas Vampires #1)(52)
Author: Erin McCarthy

Her heart about stopped and she fumbled with the chip in her hand, letting it fall to her plate."An accident? Is he okay? Was this another assassination attempt? I told him he needed to take that more seriously."

Seamus made a sound that was impolite, but Alexis wasn’t sure if it was directed at her or Ethan. "He’s fine. He just, well, uh, fell off his balcony and hit the sidewalk below. It’s getting a bit of news coverage because he refused medicaltreatment, even though he assured them he had a personal physician who could set his wrists. He claimed eccentric rich man and all of that, but anyway, he wants to see you."

"Then why didn’t he call me himself?" She wanted to hear he was okay, damn it. Between Brittany and Ethan, she was going go gray, no doubt about it. "And how the hell did he fall off his balcony? Did he sneeze and lose his balance?"

"He’s sleeping right now. But he said to wake him as soon as you got here. And he can explain what happened to you himself.

I’m just the secretary." Seamus spoke with more than a hint of annoyance and impatience.

"What is your problem with me?" she asked him, tired of catching his attitude, when she’d never done a thing to him.

"I don’t have a problem," he said coolly.

Yeah, sure, she believed him. "Thank you for the message. I’ll be there in half an hour."

Shoveling two bites of food into her mouth, she told Brittany , "Ethan had an accident. He’s fine, but he wants me to see him." Then she realized how anxious she appeared and tried to temper her reaction. "You know, it’s the least I could do after rejecting him and all."

Brittany raised an eyebrow. "Oh, Alex, just give it up. You are so gone for him."

She gave her sister her haughty courtroom glare. "I object."

Twenty minutes later, they were entering Ethan’s room with the key card he’d given Alexis. Brittany had insisted on coming with her, and Alexis was grateful. She kept having mental flashbacks to the night she’d found Ethan bleeding all over the floor. Seamus said he was fine, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t gross.

Brittany came along behind her as they headed toward his bedroom. The whole suite was hushed andstill, and it bugged Alexis that they’d just left him alone. Shouldn’t someone be sitting with him at least? Apparently it was every vampire forhimself , even the President.

Ethandsat straight up in his mahogany four-poster bed when they walked through the door, his eyes snapping open. "Alexis?"

Then he sniffed the air. "What the hell is that? I smell vampire. I smell the Frenchman. Why do you have another man all over you?" He sounded absolutely outraged.

The fall must have thrown his nose off. "What are you talking about?" She moved closer to the bed, kicking off her high heels and peeling off her suit jacket. He didn’t look injured beyond two very faint blackeyes, and a pasty tint to his flesh. Nor did he sound like he was in pain.

But-she still found herself touching his forehead. Crap, what was she doing? He wasn’t going to have a freaking fever. After the scene that morning, she’d expected to feel embarrassed, but instead she was just worried about him.

"What the hell happened, Ethan?" Alexis fought the urge to kiss him.

He didn’t look to be struggling with the same amorous feelings. His eyes shifted around her. " Brittany ? Come here," he demanded.

"Hey, that’s my sister you’re bossing around." Alexis glared at him.

Brittany just stepped forward, looking miserable."Hi, Ethan. I hope you’re feeling better." But her voice sounded small and guilty.

Alexis was getting a bad feeling.

"Take off your scarf, Brittany ."

Her sister sighed, than undid the knot. When the scarf fell away, two puncture wounds leaped out at them, tiny, but an angry red on Brittany ‘s fair skin.

Alexis gaped in shock.

"And your jacket."

Brittany was wearing a white jacket with a teal sleeveless she ll , and white cropped pants with sandals. She peeled her jacket off and there on both shoulders were more puncture wounds. "Uh " Alexis said, completely stunned. "You’ve mated with the Frenchman," Ethan said, looking very stern and foreboding.

Alexis didn’t know who the hell the Frenchman was, but he obviously wasn’t very popular.

"I’m not sure mating is exactly the right word," Brittany said, folding her jacket over her arm. "And I don’t see that it’s really any of your business."

Ethan gaped at Brittany . He couldn’t believe what he was hearing, seeing. "The Frenchman is banished, you know."

"But you let him stayhere, you let him continue his research."Because Ethan was an idiot, obviously. Jesus, Alexis was going to kill him. He’d let her sister get involved with a radical, eccentric vampire.

And Brittany may not realize what had happened between her and Atelier, but Ethan knew. Corbin had marked her. No other vampire could go near her without recognizing she belonged to Atelier.

Just like he had done with Alexis.

Vampires were territorial about their mortal lovers, especially when they loved them, like he did Alexis. But Brittany was an Im -pure and that complicated things.Immensely. Ethan wished Sea- mus’sdiscreet inquiries into who Brittany ‘s father could be would give them an answer, but so far, Seamus hadn’t been able to draw any conclusions, and it made Ethan nervous.Especially if she was involved with Atelier. "I do let him stay. But his views are not always popular with the majority. He is seen as a threat." Ethan turned to Alexis, who was just staring at them. He could smell alcohol on her breath and wondered what she’d been doing all day, what her mood was. "BB, it’s time you told Brittany .Unless Atelier already told her."

He looked at Brittany for confirmation, but she only looked puzzled and annoyed.

"Ethan " Alexis had a pleading to her voice he didn’t understand.

"Tell me what? What is going on? What does Corbin have to do with Alexis?"

"Who’s Corbin?" Alexis asked, sounding exasperated.

"The Frenchman," Ethan told her, wishing he could read her thoughts and send her his, so he could explain why it was important that Brittany have full knowledge about who she was.

"We sort of, you know " Brittany blushed. "He’s a scientist. He’s trying to find a way to reverse vampirism."

"You had sex with him?" Alexis yelled.

"So?" Brittany knotted the scarf around and around her finger, before letting it go. "You had sex with Ethan."

"You don’t know that!"

Ethan cleared his throat. Alexis whirled and pointed her finger at him. "You don’t say a damn word."