Therefore, if she had to lie, cheat, or (possibly) steal to get the kind of job she wanted, then she would. And she’d be damn good at it too.

Ian’s uncertain eyes ran over his face before he shook his head. Then he grabbed the door handle of the slightly ajar door and opened it. “They await you, Ms. Shaw,” he said with a slight bow.

Felicity straightened her shoulders then strode toward the door. It was only after she passed through the door and heard it snap closed behind her that she realized something important about what butler Ian just said. That would be that he said “they.” Indeed, Felicity felt her bravado drop through the floor as she stood frozen and staring into the faces of Dominic Blackmoore, his mother Lady Blackmoore, and none other than the beautiful socialite Juliana Greenwich.

Felicity’s eyes wandered to Dominic and her breath caught. Yes, he really was as devastatingly handsome as she’d thought. He wore another suit but today he looked angry and flustered. His eyes were dark and burning with anger aimed straight at her, and though his hateful look made her pulse leap and her stomach twist into knots, she couldn’t help but admire him.

The man could seriously wear clothes. He had his suit jacket unbuttoned and spread out on either side of his chest as if he’d flung it open when he sat down. He wore a pearly white shirt underneath with black little buttons. The top two were undone showing off dark, golden skin. Even the way he leaned back in his seat with his long arms tossed over each of the arm rests screamed I own this with masculine perfection. His knees were bent, but spread and Felicity’s gaze wavered at the sight. For a moment all she could do was picture herself between those strong thighs, holding his cock, her low-lidded eyes locked on his as she licked the length of him.

A low growl snapped through the room.

Felicity jerked her gaze to Dominic’s just as everyone else in the room did. Had he really just growled? His eyes stared challengingly into hers—daring her to keep his gaze. That the same level of passion she’d witnessed yesterday still flickered there. The light gold around his eyes flared like a pulse and Felicity felt an answering pulse between her thighs. He might have been nasty to her yesterday but he still wanted her. That fact shocked her more than if he had walked up to her and informed her he was leaving his estate and bank accounts to her, then vanish in a puff of mysterious smoke.

Of course that didn’t happen.

But he did look at her like he wanted her naked, in his lap, right now. And boy did she want to be.

Vampire eyes shifted when aroused, but the older the vampire the more control they had to mask such a reaction. Either Dominic wasn’t as old as she’d heard or he’d really just had a flash of arousal blaze in his eyes.

“Ms. Shaw, won’t you please take a seat?” his mother asked with a polite smile and watchful eyes. Her voice cut the tension in the room like a hot knife through warm butter.

Juliana seemed oblivious to the whole deal, while his mother looked far more cunning with her clever golden brown eyes.

Felicity managed to walk to her seat across from the two Blackmoores and the lovely Juliana Greenwich without tripping and falling on her face. Score one for her.

Juliana looked much, much more beautiful in person than she did in magazines. Felicity could probably stare at her all day trying to figure out how she could arrest one’s gaze like she did. She had a thin, pert nose with lovely hollowed cheekbones, a gently pointed chin, light brown eyebrows, and a stunning pair of blue eyes. The color was so light it looked like a cloudless sky. Her eyes were lined by heavy dark brown lashes that only brought out the color and provided a lovely contrast to her light blonde hair. And she even had perfectly shaped lips with two peaks on top and a perfect bow on the bottom. Her hair was lush—a beautiful golden yellow like the perfect strand of wheat. It shined in the light and rested in curling waves down to her waist. Yes, down to her waist!

The paparazzi followed her for a reason and not because she had more money than the Monopoly guy, but because of how she looked. She looked perfect, and that was only her face. Her body matched her face in its stunning loveliness. Tall, elegant, refined, and with more class than Jackie-O, Julianna made lovely pictures. Pictures the rest of society without as much money and good looks stared longingly at and pretended to hate.

Really it wasn’t fair to the rest of the women in the world to have to compare to women like Julianna Greenwich. Not fair at all.

In fact, Felicity decided she might just hate her.

“Thank you for joining us tonight. I’m looking forward to hearing about your previous work experience and seeing some of your designs,” his mother said with a smile. She had the kind of polite smile that had been refined through years of having political friends and throwing strategic parties. Felicity suspected Lady Blackmoore was a master at hiding her true feelings.

A moment later, a soft knock sounded at the door and Ian shuffled in carrying a silver tray with a crystal decanter and four glasses. Felicity watched the blood-filled decanter with longing, her tongue watering. She hadn’t fed that morning because she was out of blood again, but she hoped to rectify that problem tonight. She’d get this job, get paid upfront, and buy some of her favorite blood—AB. Lots of it. Maybe she’d even buy crates of it she could stack up in her spare bedroom for safekeeping.

Felicity watched Lady Blackmoore sit at the edge of her seat as she efficiently poured four glasses of blood. She filled each of the glasses so that the blood stopped at exactly a quarter inch from the rim. The entire time Felicity watched Lady Blackmoore’s elegant movements, she could feel his eyes on her. She didn’t need to shift her gaze to know it was him. No one could look at her and make her feel heat from just looking. No one except Dominic Blackmoore.

Lady Blackmoore passed the crystal glasses one at a time and as Felicity took hers, her eyes betrayed her and swept to Dominic. What she saw made her freeze, made her gut clench, and her body respond in a flush of wet heat.

His low-hooded eyes were fixed on her with a burning fire of their own. Only this time it wasn’t in anger. It was pure sex. A look that said he was visually fucking her with his imagination right now. He snagged the glass from his mother, his eyes never leaving hers, and he brought it to his full sexy mouth and drank from it without ever taking his eyes off her.

They might as well be the only ones in the room. The air was so thick it felt like fog covered them. A sensual fragrance filled the air—musky, sweet, and raw. Dominic’s nostrils flared as he inhaled the same fragrance she did. His eyes closed in an expression she could only describe as pained ecstasy before they flung open to devour her.

Felicity jerked her gaze away, a bright red flush coating her cheeks. The blush shamed her even more because she didn’t know whether it was from his look or because his mother shot them both a cowing glance.

Felicity forced herself to pull her gaze away. She was supposed to be torturing him not the other way around and as it stood right now, the memory of this night and the palpable intensity in the room would never be forgotten.

“I’ve heard you have quite the eye for refined, large parties,” Lady Blackmoore said.

Felicity’s eyes wanted so badly to pull back to Dominic. To see what he was thinking and to see if he was still staring at her. A niggling doubt sprung. What if this was all some joke on his part? After all, his bruid was sitting in the same room as them. This could all be faked, his way to toy with her after their encounter yesterday.

“Yes, I do. Call it natural talent.” Felicity pulled her résumé out of her portfolio’s case and slid it across the dark mahogany table separating them. Lady Blackmoore took it and began reading. A thin black eyebrow rose in surprise.