My Vampire Billionaire Boss, page 10
Spencer: *giggle*
A moment later, the message disappeared.
Spencer removed a message.
Etienne: *smirk*
Spencer: I can't believe how silly I'm acting.
Etienne: Must be something in the air.
Spencer: Yeah. I might be coming down with something.
Etienne: If you're having trouble breathing and your heartbeat's irregular...
Spencer: I might be lovesick?
Spencer removed a message.
Etienne: I was going to suggest heartburn. But that could work, too.
Spencer left the group.
Etienne threw his head back with a laugh.
The rest of the afternoon was spent in a closed-door meeting with Domenico Moretti, and by the end of it, both men had successfully ironed out the conditions for an alliance between the old bloods and the packs under the Lyccan prince's leadership.
"I hear you've established the same alliance with the Souris as well?" Etienne asked.
"My sister-in-law, the current Panthera pack leader, also turned out to be the long-lost daughter of the Souris' royal family."
Etienne was incredulous. "You're one lucky motherfucker." While alliances were, of course, not easily broken, it was a different matter altogether when they were strengthened by filial ties.
"If you're in the lookout for a bride," Domenico drawled, " I do still have two younger sisters..." He paused. "Unless, of course, the rumors are true?"
Etienne grimaced. "So you've heard about it as well."
"The sound of hearts breaking over the news could be heard across the Everglades...or so my wife says."
Domenico's sardonic expression had Etienne fighting back a grin. From what he knew of the prince's mate, the words were exactly the kind the rather whimsical Misty would say.
"It is true then?"
Etienne didn't answer right away. It suddenly occurred to him that Misty, just like Spencer, was human, and - just like Spencer as well - happened to be a former employee of Domenico.
"How did you know?"
Domenico was puzzled. "How did I know what?"
"Misty," Etienne said stiffly.
"Ah." Domenico's lips pressed together. It used to be that people only sought his opinion on war and politics, but nowadays people had started seeking his opinion on relationship matters as well. And of course, he only had one person to blame for that.
Misty, my love, you never fail to cause trouble.
Turning back to Etienne, he said bluntly, "Before I give you any kind of advice, you should know that my reasons for marrying Misty in the first place were far from honorable. She had certain qualities that I found useful, and that was basically why I wanted her to be my wife and future queen."
When Etienne made no comment on this, Domenico continued, "She fell in love with me first, and while I didn't intend to return her feelings, it happened anyway."
"It happened?" Etienne's tone was skeptical. "How does something like that just happen?"
"There is no formula for it," Domenico said dryly, "if that's what you're hoping for. I can't tell you how, why, or when it happens, Hirsche. But one thing I can guarantee..." Domenico's green eyes darkened with remembered pain. "If you lose her..."
I almost did, Etienne remembered tensely. Although it almost seemed like an eternity ago, he still remembered with painful clarity the feel of his blood turning cold with fear when he came home to find Spencer gone and finding out that she had realized he had been lying to her.
"And you'd do anything to have your woman back..."
Domenico's words kept hauling out memories Etienne wished he could forget. He had always prided himself for his integrity, but when it came to losing Spencer, he always seemed to end up lying to her.
"You'll have your answer then."
Etienne's dark gaze swung sharply at the wolf prince, and a pair of green eyes stared back at him in quiet contemplation.
"Seems like you already had your answer for a while now," Domenico drawled. "Something was just holding you back from seeing it."
Chapter Eighteen
The only time Etienne remembered having his heart beat this hard and fast was when he was fucking. Yet here he was, heart racing like an adolescent boy's, and all because he had taken Torv's unsolicited advice and stopped on the way home to buy her flowers. It was cheesy as fuck, and if it didn't work, he was going to fucking rip the man's throat and let him bleed to death.
Torv was puzzled when his employer came out with a box rather than a bouquet. "Changed your mind about the flowers, did ya?"
"I have the box, don't I?"
He had heard about flowers in boxes, but they were usually imported roses sold individually. The box that the prince held in his hand, however...
Etienne saw the older man trying to take a peek and swiftly hid it behind his back. "Quit it," he said irritably. "It's a surprise for Spencer, and I'd prefer she was the one to see it first."
"It's really flowers?" Torv asked, unconvinced, when they were back inside the limousine.
"I took your advice to the letter, alright? There is no way Spencer won't understand my feelings---" Etienne could still feel himself freezing up at the word. "---once she sees this."
"If you say so."
"Have you forgotten I manage a billion-dollar company and rule among my kind?" Etienne was exasperated. "Why the hell are you acting like I'd mess up when I'm just buying flowers?"
"You're right." Torv was feeling sheepish now. "Probably just typical Caro paranoia," he admitted.
"Exactly. Now, will you get back to driving?"
"Your wish is my command, Your Highness."
Etienne didn't bother responding. The words were a blatant lie, anyway. Like Anderson, Torv had been with him for over a decade, and nowadays, his command was only their wish when it suited them to follow him.
The silence inside the limousine soothed the ragged edges of his nerves, and as soon as he closed his eyes and leaned back, images of Spencer flashed behind his eyelids.
Spencer.
The girl he loved.
And now that he had accepted his feelings, he realized that Domenico was right. Love was a stealthy son of a bitch, the way it fucking snuck up on people and made itself felt all of a sudden. He still couldn't pinpoint the hows and whens, but what became exceedingly clearer to him with every second that passed were all the instances love had been the driving force behind his words and actions.
She probably didn't know it, but he had actually only signed up for a fucking Facebook account when he learned it was the only social networking site she used. He had even hurriedly people to his network before adding her, not wanting Spencer to think she was the only person he wanted to talk to online.
Seemed fitting then, he mused absently, that Spencer had also chosen the same platform to make their relationship official.
And then there were all the times he sought her company when work or Caro matters were particularly frustrating. It had made a whole fucking world of difference to him, just seeing Spencer all riled up because of him. In those days, her bitchiness had made him want to strangle her. These days, it was still the same...and kiss her at the same time.
His thoughts drifted back to Luka's theory on the correlation between chemical compatibility and love, but this time the idea no longer bothered him. He hadn't realized it at that time, but he had a feeling the reason Luka's theory chafed on him so was because he had resented the possibility of Spencer being the person he had fallen in love with because he had been physiologically programmed to do so.
He was in love with Spencer because of all the things that made her the person she was. It was his choice and not a matter of destiny that he had fallen for her, and one day, Etienne was determined to prove this scientifically as well.
But for now, all thoughts of quantifiable formulas for love had to be set aside. He had his own love to take care of, and he could already feel himself tensing as he reached his apartment and asked Anderson where Spencer was.
"In the library, sir. She's been on the phone since dinner."
Etienne stiffened. "With whom?" Because if it was a fucking guy---
"Caylie Sonora, Your Highness."
Fuck.
Caylie...was Luka's fiancée. Caylie was the one person the normally reserved Luka told everything to. Caylie...had to know everything about sangferia, and since Spencer was no idiot...
Etienne was at the library in seconds, and the first thing he saw were the track marks of dried tears on Spencer's beautiful face.
Fuck, fuck, fuck!
Despair and regret shot through Etienne. Once again, Spencer had caught him lying before he could tell her the truth, and this time...this time, he wasn't sure at all if she had it in her to forgive him.
It had started with a phone call. Caylie Sonora, a Caro heiress, was on the phone, Anderson had told her while she was at the library, trying to get through another chapter on Caro history. And at the butler's assurance that Caylie was in good terms with his master, she had taken the call and was immediately greeted with a sweet, feminine voice from the other end.
Caylie, as it turned out, was quite the fun-loving chatterbox, and it had surprised Spencer to realize that this was also the same Caylie she often read about in society pages. Apparently, 'hiding in plain sight' was common practice among their kind, and why numerous celebrities and famous figures were of their race.
After that, what was supposed to be a short courtesy call with Caylie inviting Spencer to another party she was hosting ('I was supposed to meet you the other night, but you guys never showed up) turned into a Q&A session, with Caylie assuring her she was free to ask any questions about their race. Most other Caros are stuck-ups, Caylie had told her, so I'm your best bet as a reference person.
One thing led to another, and when they started swapping about each other's love stories, it was then Caylie unknowingly dropped a bombshell on Spencer. You got tested for sangferia, too, didn't you?
Sangferia, she had asked.
Virgin's blood, Caylie had translated. Etienne is sort of like the Elon Musk of our race, and he's the one who discovered about how a virgin's blood, if proven chemically compatible with a Caro male, could increase the latter's strength...
And that was when Spencer's heart had started to break.
"I'm sorry."
The tautly spoken words drew Spencer out of her reverie, and a gasp escaped her when she found Etienne already down on one knee in front of her. His beautiful face was harsh with regret, and it hurt to see him that way. But what hurt even more was how she couldn't stop thinking of the way he had kept lying to her.
"It was you," she said stiltedly. "Wasn't it?"
"Spencer---"
"That's why there were all those weird requirements for blood tests. Because you wanted to find a woman whose sangferia would be compatible with your blood. That was you. That night---" Oh God. It hit her all of a sudden, how humiliatingly stupid she might have seemed to him that night, to not know it was her own boss who had bought her virginity...
Etienne's chest nearly caved at the look of devastation on her face. "I'm sorry," he repeated hoarsely.
"Why didn't you tell me it was you?"
"I couldn't risk it," he said hollowly. "The survival of our race was at stake."
"And after? When you knew I did it because I was in love with you?"
"You already left me once when you found out I lied about not knowing how you felt about me---"
"So you lied to me again?" she asked bitterly.
"I'm sorry." It was all he could say, and he had to clench his fists against the urge to reach for her. "I was a fucking coward. All I could think about at that time was not hurting you and risk losing you again."
"God..." A painful laugh escaped her. "I was so silly. I thought...because you're what you are, I thought, the problems we'd have...it would be different from other couples. That we'd be worrying about vampire attacks, hiding the truth of your nature...but instead, every time we...it's because you lied to me, and it's such a cliché. Such a stupid, human thing---"
"It's not a matter of race," he cut in rawly. "I just fucked up. And I know. I knew from the start I should've told you. I planned to. But when I saw how much it hurt you to think about that night, it was why I asked you..."
She knew exactly what he was talking about.
Remembered that time when he had asked her about that night.
But it wasn't enough.
Chapter Nineteen
It was rare for any Caro to feel fear, even more so for one with Etienne's abilities. And yet, he knew what he felt, knew the only thing that kept his blood cold under his flesh was nothing else but fear.
And what he feared...was losing her.
The look on Spencer's face ripped him apart. He had never seen her in such fucking pain, and it killed him even more, knowing that there was little he could do about it.
"I need to go."
And the fear inside of him grew.
"I'm not going to tell anyone about you..." She jumped to her feet and started backing away from him. "I hope you know you can trust me about that---"
"Let's talk about this." Etienne could feel his entire body turning rigid as his whole world started to crash around him.
"There is nothing to talk about. You found out I'm in love with you, and obviously you were just l-lying about loving me back---"
"It wasn't a lie," he gritted out. "I am in love with you---"
"And you really expect me to believe that?" she cried out. "You lied to me again and again, and right now, I can't help f-feeling sick, when I think about that night, and how you must have l-laughed at me, not knowing it was you---"
He could feel himself whitening at the vile picture her words painted. "It wasn't like that at all," he gritted out forcefully. "If anything, that night made me realize how blind I was, not to have seen how beautiful you were. That's the truth. I swear, mi vavli---"
But this time, the words that used to fill her with pleasure made her stumble back in shame. "Don't call me that,' she whispered. "It doesn't...it doesn't make me...it makes me..."
She looked so damn breakable in front of him that he forced himself to nod. "Alright." Even as the urge to hold her became an increasingly frantic clamor inside of him, Etienne forced himself to keep still. Told himself that she clearly needed time---
But the moment she turned her back on him, agonizing, heartwrenching pain like he had never known before tore into him---
And in a burst of speed that had Spencer jerking and crying out in surprise, Etienne wrapped his arms around her from behind, and he couldn't make himself let her go even as she started to cry.
"Please."
He had never begged for someone before, but for her, he realized he could do it easily, and would do it endlessly if that was what she needed. Because Domenico had been right, he realized dully. When it came to the woman he loved, he would be willing to do anything to get her back.
"I love you, and it's the fucking truth, so please...please don't go."
But the words only had her crying harder.
"I can't. I'm sorry. It just hurts, just seeing you...hurts."
"I'm sorry---"
"I know," she whispered painfully. "But it just isn't enough. Just try...just try...try to imagine...how much courage it took me to sell my virginity that night, just to forget you. Only to find out that it was still you that night." And the way her voice cracked made Etienne's own heart crack.
"You tell me you're in love with me now, but I just can't believe that anymore. I just can't. All I can think about is that night. Of how I couldn't see anything in the darkness, and how I'd never know now if you were laughing at me that time---"
"It wasn't like that at all---"
"But how can I believe you now?" Spencer spun around his arms and struck his chest with her fists. "You destroyed my trust in you, Etienne. You destroyed it completely---" She tried hitting him again, but all energy had left her, and all she could do was cry. "You destroyed me."
And that was when Etienne understood something new about love.
"You d-destroyed me."
When you loved someone, you would do anything for her---
"It just hurts too much...just hurts being with you."
Even if it meant letting go.
Chapter Twenty
Spencer thought it would be easy to forget him. She had only known him for over two years, and their so-called relationship, which hadn't even lasted a month, had been mired in lies and deception. It should've been easy to forget him, and though she tried to convince herself of this each day she woke up, it never came true, and her heart hurt crazy bad every time she remembered him.
Torv had insisted on driving her back to her apartment that night, and she had been too tired to argue with him. Kiernan had been waiting for her by the door, and the way her roommate had immediately fussed over her said a lot.
How much do you know, she had forced herself to ask.
All he said was that he had hurt you, and that you had broken up.
She tried not to think about him, but it was impossible. Memories of their times together kept popping in her mind, and it always nearly drove Spencer to tears because all she could think about was the times he had made her smile. Instead of remembering the times he had lied and hurt her, her mind kept reminding her of the times that he had made love to her...and the times he had made her feel loved.
Two weeks had passed since their breakup when Spencer received a text from Caylie, asking if she had time to meet up. The younger girl was already at the cafe when she arrived, and she jumped to her feet upon seeing Spencer.
"Luka just told me you guys broke up," Caylie said in a small voice. "I'm so sorry, Spencer. I never meant to cause any trouble."
Spencer forced herself to smile. "It's fine."
"No, it's not," Caylie denied as they took their seats. "You and Etienne were happy together, and I ruined it."
"None of this is your fault," she said gently. "You weren't the one who lied to me."
