emma_hillman_hired by Emma Hillman Page B

rumbling at all
the possibilities. She saw his face harden and moved on, to the table where
they always sat. The one at the back, where Drake took the chair closest to the
wall, and she sat across from him. The usual then.
    She took small sips of her coffee, knowing
she was prolonging her torture session and yet unable to stop. She could catch
glimpses of him behind her overlong bangs, and that was enough for her. He was
the most breathtaking man she’d ever met, maybe even more than their First Man.
Mind you, she hadn’t seen a single ugly person in the whole compound. She
wondered for a second whether turning Immortal made you beautiful, or if they
only picked models for their race. Who knew? She bit her lip and forced her gaze
away from his angular face and intense blue eyes.
    “How is it going?”
    She nearly spit out her mouthful of now
lukewarm coffee at his sudden question. “Wha-what? I mean, I’m fine. And you?”
    A flash of laughter brightened his gaze for a
second. “No, I meant the translation. How is it going? Do you need more books?
Dictionaries?”
    “Oh.” Of course, he hadn’t been asking about
her! Stupid! “It’s going okay. I don’t think I need any more reference
material.”
    “Fine.”
    She looked at him, but nothing else came. He
went back to what he did best: looking around and making sure no bad guys were
in the vicinity. She still wasn’t sure why he thought anyone would be
interested in her, but what did she know? She couldn’t even do her job properly
these days!
     
    * * * *
     
    All it had taken was his hand on the small of
her back. She hadn’t expected it, and she’d nearly come out of her skin at the
faint touch. It had lasted only a few seconds, just time for him to open the
door and usher her through, but it had been resonating through her body ever
since.
    Now every time she was in his presence, which
was all the damn time, she felt as if she was vibrating. A strange need was
blossoming deep in her core, a need unlike anything she had ever felt before.
It was as if her body was revolting against all those celibate years she’d made
it endure. It was crazy. It was damn inconvenient too. But all she could do was
look at him and yearn.
    By the fourth day, even he had realized
something was wrong. “What is happening?” he asked her that afternoon, his
shadow suddenly blocking all the light.
    She jerked back, her shoulders squaring
against the hard padding of the leather chair. “What do you mean?”
    “Why aren’t you working faster? I would have
thought you’d want to get out of here as soon as possible.”
    She licked her lips, her mind whirring as she
thought of a plausible excuse. “Huh, you pay me very well.”
    One eyebrow cocked. “You want me to believe
you’re working purposefully slow, so you can get more money?”
    She nodded.
    He laughed.
    She saw red. “Why don’t you believe me?”
    “I’m starting to know you, Jessica. So, give.
Why haven’t you translated more than the first paragraph? Is it too
complicated? Do you need help? What is it? You know how important this is to
our First Man and his Mate.”
    She felt her cheeks redden at his silent
accusation. She’d been berating herself as well, thank you very much. She knew
how much they counted on her and what her translation would reveal. So, how
come she was still lagging behind, her usual prowess now looking more and more
like an illusion? “I’m sorry.” Tears formed in her eyes, her head lowering in
order to hide them from him.
    “Don’t move.” She heard him say, and then he
was gone, the door shutting close behind him.
     
    * * * *
     
    “What did you do?”
    Drake stared at his First Man, the urge to
fight hardening his muscles as he stood there, unmoving. “I didn’t do
anything.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Yes.” A pause then, “No.”
    Jake’s eyebrows snapped together at his
Guardian’s unusually hesitant response. “What the hell does that mean?”
    “I told you about