Vote Then Read: Volume I
Page 120
Liam and I turn our heads quickly to face Stuart and his father. Both men are wearing obvious contempt as they continue to take jabs.
Stuart’s dad laughs. “I disagree, son. If he wants to throw away his empire for some temporary tail, he doesn’t deserve it.”
What an asshole!
I flash both men a glare, preparing to turn away and ignore them. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Liam’s fixed jaw and clenching fists. Damn it, this is the last thing we need.
I discreetly place my hand over his under the table. “It’s not worth it, Liam. Ignore them.”
Stuart Jr. smirks. “Yeah, Liam, you should probably take her advice. Since she seems to wear the pants in your little...” he waves his hand between Liam and me, “whatever it is.”
There are six other people at our table watching our exchange with avid interest. So are the three full tables within earshot.
Liam directs his attention to Stuart Sr. and grins smugly. “Now, Reed, there’s no need to be petty just because my third-quarter profits undoubtedly exceeded yours. I understand it must sting, knowing that my revenue growth is directly related to your loss, but that’s life, right? You fuck up, you pay the price. I’m sure both you and your son can relate. That said, we’re all professionals here so let’s act like it, shall we?”
Both Jr.’s and Sr.’s ears are red, their tell that they’re fuming. When neither one has a rebuttal, Liam squeezes my knee and redirects his attention to the man at the podium. I cross my legs to ease the sudden ache, strangely aroused from that whole conversation.
As if he’s reading my mind, Liam discreetly bumps his knee into mine and whispers, “Later.”
The entire time we’re listening to the keynote speaker, all I can think is later cannot get here soon enough.
20
Liam
I’ve been on autopilot throughout the entire day. Whenever Avery is brought up in conversation, or if I see her in passing in between workshops, the itch to be inside of her overrides any rational thought. My dick is doing all of the thinking for me which has never happened when business is on the line. It’s a good thing I can do this job in my sleep because people are eating out of my hands when I sing Avery’s praises.
As angry and panicked as she was about this whole mess, I’m strangely carefree. I am not a happy-go-lucky man in general, so I have no clue what this woman is doing to me. If anyone was going to affect me this way, I suppose I can’t be surprised that it’s a brilliant, gorgeous, firecracker like Avery.
I’ve grown a highly successful PR business from the ground up. I excel at public speaking, yet I’m terrified about making my acceptance speech tonight because so much is riding on it. I asked Avery to have faith in me that I’d dispel any nasty rumors, and I’ve done that for the most part during my interactions with key players today. But to tie it all together, I need everyone attending this conference to hear what I have to say about her, including her.
Especially her.
As I enter the ballroom for the final event of the conference, I immediately spot her standing in a corner, surveying the room. She smiles radiantly as I approach which gives me hope about what I’m about to do.
I prop myself against the wall next to her. “How’ve your meetings been today?”
“Good for the most part. I really enjoyed the workshop on how to leverage Instagram and work around their algorithms. I need to set up a training schedule for our social media team as soon as we get back.”
“Sounds good.” I have to make a concerted effort not to stare at her tits. “Are you still planning to meet up with your friend tonight?”
“Heather? Definitely. We’re heading to Blanc. She says she needs a wingwoman.”
I smile suggestively. “Ah, Blanc. Where it all began.”
She smirks. “Well, tonight will have a slightly different outcome on my end.”
I raise my eyebrow. “It’d better be an entirely different outcome on your end.”
Avery laughs. “Oh, really? And if it isn’t?”
I lean into her ear. “Did you miss the part where I claimed your ass last night? Literally and figuratively?”
She shakes her head in amusement. “Definitely didn’t miss that part.”
“Just remember that when you’re getting hit on tonight. Because we both know that’s going to happen.”
Her lips curve into a soft smile. “I’ll keep that in mind, Liam.”
I adjust my cufflinks. “I’m meeting up with Nick. Maybe we’ll head over there.”
“I never pegged you as a possessive guy, before. Oh, how wrong I was.”
I casually tuck my hands into my pockets. “You seem to bring out the caveman in me.”
Avery’s throaty laugh makes my dick perk up. “So I’m learning.”
I tap her shoulder with mine. “You get wet when I behave like a Neanderthal. You love it when I lose control.”
She side-eyes me. “Not when it results in you causing a scene in front of a bunch of our peers.”
“That’s been taken care of,” I say dismissively. “Has anyone bothered you today?”
Avery takes a moment to think about it. “Earlier in the day, some people were whispering here and there, but now that you mention it...no, they haven’t. What did you do?”
I grin. “You’ll see.”
21
Avery
“And our last honoree tonight, Liam Maxwell of Maxwell & Company. Get up here, Liam.”
I clap as Liam takes the stage and shakes the presenter’s hand. I glance around the room as he takes his place at the podium. Unsurprisingly, he’s commanding more attention than any of the previous honorees. He just has this presence about him that makes you pay attention.
“Thank you,” he says as the applause dies down. “Ten years ago, I was a cocky twenty-five-year-old punk with impossible dreams.” He smiles when the audience chuckles. “I had only been in PR two years at that point, but I was determined to become one of the big players. I started my firm with very little but quickly made big strides. I’ve been incredibly fortunate over the years to have employees that make me look good.”
More laughter.
Liam focuses his attention on me. “The past decade has been wonderful, but my world truly changed about eight months ago. That’s when I met Avery Jacobs.”
He nods in my direction, causing everyone’s eyes to follow. I can feel my face flushing, and there’s not much I can do to stop it.
He clears his throat. “I had been following her career for years, but I never had the pleasure of meeting her in person until that night. And what a night it was.” He smirks suggestively, making my face even hotter.
What the hell is he doing?
“I asked her to come out to L.A. and work for me,” he continues. “I don’t know what I did to become such a lucky bastard, but she accepted my offer. Since bringing Avery on board as my director, my profits have grown faster than the previous nine-and-a-half years. Anyone who knows Avery—which I think is a large majority of us—knows how truly talented she is in this field. I think it’s fair to say she has a unique skill set; a true ability to make anyone look good.” He grins. “Hell, she’s managed to do the impossible and tame me, so that’s gotta count for something, right?”
I slouch in my chair as more chuckles spread throughout the room.
Liam gestures to me. “As you can see, I’m embarrassing her so I should probably get to the point.” He holds up his award. “I’ve never been good at sharing, but I owe part of this recognition to her. She’s the best director I’ve ever had, and I’m honored to call her not only my partner in this business but also in life.”
What in the actual hell?
“If I’m lucky, there will be two Maxwells behind the Maxwell & Company brand one day.”
My mouth gapes. Did he just announce to this entire room that he wants to marry me?
“To Avery!” Liam says.
“To Avery!” my peers repeat.
My eyes widen. “Did that really just happen?”
“It did.” He smiles. “The question is, how do you feel about it?”
I bite my lip, thinking about it for a moment. “I have conditions.”
His eyes light up. “Is that so?”
“Yep,” I reply in a serious tone.
Liam releases me and sits back in his chair, not giving a damn that the entire room is invested in this conversation.
“First of all, you have to stop being such a possessive ass.”
He laughs. “I can work on that.”
I hold up two fingers. “Secondly, if you think that’s an acceptable proposal, you’re out of your damn mind.”
“Noted.” He nods as a grin spreads across his face.
“Third, if you ever figure out how to propose properly, I’m hyphenating my last name. You good with that?”
His hands cup my cheeks again. “Baby, I’m fucking great with that.”
As he slams his lips against mine again, I don’t even care that the room is erupting in applause. I kiss him back with everything I have, knowing without a doubt, that I’ll be happily kissing this man for the rest of my life.
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Also Available By Laura Lee
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♥Deal Makers (#3 Charlotte and Drew’s story)
Bedding the Billionaire Series (Interconnected standalones)
♥Public Relations
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Windsor Academy Series (Each installment must be read in order)
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♥Pixie Dust
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Acknowledgments
To my husband, Tad: You’re my biggest supporter, my best friend, and my partner in crime. I love you 3000.
To my children, Kaitlynn and Carter: Thank you for not fighting too much while I was locked away trying to meet this deadline. You two are my greatest gift even when you’re testing my sanity.
To my lovely betas Heather and Crystal: Thank you for being the first people to read Avery and Liam’s story. Your feedback was invaluable.
To all the seriously awesome bloggers in the book world: I appreciate you more than words can ever say, as a reader and a writer. Thank you for all you do to help others find new book boyfriends.
To my ARC team and Loungers: Thank you for being such awesome, hilarious, and supportive ladies. Keep those Chris Hemsworth pics and GIFs coming!
To my editor, Erin Potter: Thank you once again, for polishing my work and making the final product so much better!
To Julia, Marika, Heather, Sylvie, Elizabeth, Ceri, Krista, Brenda, Susannah, Molly, and Stephanie: I cherish our group chats more than words could ever say. I love how well our collective brains can turn a perfectly innocent conversation into something wildly inappropriate. You never fail to make me smile even when I’m in a funk. I’m honored to have you in my tribe. I threw some extra butt stuff into this story just for you. ;-)
Last but never least, to my readers: I love sharing all the random shit that comes out of my brain with you. It’s a privilege bringing stories into your life for a living.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Blood Laws
Copyright © 2017 Lexi C. Foss
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. This book may not be redistributed to others for commercial or noncommercial purposes.
Editing by: Outthink Editing, LLC
Plotting Consultant: Heart Full of Ink
Proofreading By: Barb Jack, Joy Di Biase-Giachino Katie Schmahl, & Laura Schoenfelder
Cover Design: Covers by Julie
Photography: Wander Aguiar Photography
Models: Thom Panto & Tiffany
Published by: Ninja Newt Publishing, LLC
Digital Edition
ISBN: 978-0-9985557-0-6
To my parents, for encouraging me to follow my dreams, and to Elaine, for believing in me…
Music Playlist
Blood Laws
Back in this Moment - Angelzoom
Bed of Lies - Matchbox Twenty
Beautiful Stranger - Rebecca St. James
Burn it to the Ground - Nickelback
Children of the Night - Blutengel
Fairyland - Angelzoom
I Know You Want Me - Pitbull
I Want You - Madonna
Life is Beautiful - Sixx:A.M.
No One Like You - Scorpions
Not Enough - Lacuna Coil
Pandoras Box - Solitary Experiments
Satisfy You - P. Diddy
Soultaker (Black Soul Remix) - Blutengel
Stay - Blutengel
Tonight (I’m Lovin’ You) - Enrique Iglesias
Was it a Dream? - 30 Seconds to Mars
Glossary
PRETERNATURAL BEINGS
Fledgling (noun): The child of a male Ichorian and a human female, who has not yet been reborn as a Hydraian; they do not typically possess supernatural or psychic gifts until their immortal rebirth.
Hydraian (noun): An immortal offspring of a male Ichorian and a human female, who possesses two supernatural or psychic gifts and does not require human blood to survive.
Ichorian (noun): An immortal being of unknown descent who possesses one supernatural or psychic gift and requires human blood to survive.
Immortal (noun): A general noun designating a being who does not age and is immune to natural human death.
Seraphim (noun): A being who belongs to the highest order of angelic hierarchy.
KEY TERMS
Arcadia: Notorious Ichorian club in New York City that also serves as the primary meeting location for the Ichorian government.
Blood Laws: A series of ordinances created by the Ichorian governing board in response to the Treaty of 1747.
Catastrophic Relief Foundation (CRF): A global humanitarian aid organization headquartered in New York City with a secret paramilitary unit designed to destroy rogue supernaturals.
Conclave: The Ichorian governing board.
Edict: A law or rule issued by the High Council of Seraph.
Elders: The original Hydraians who also serve as the Hydraian governing board.
Fated Line: Seraphim who can foresee the future.
High Council of Seraph: Seraphim governing board.
Nizari: Ancient Ichorian assassins who hunt and kill fledglings.
Nizari Poison:
A green substance notorious for killing fledglings and preventing their rebirth.
Sentinel: A soldier in the CRF unit designed to slaughter rogue immortal beings.
Treaty of 1747: An armistice between Hydraians and Ichorians to cease fire and live in their designated areas. Those who opt to cross these boundaries do so at their own risk.
The Beginning
“An unknown power is surfacing. She will possess the strength and will to destroy us all unless certain measures are put in place to curb her inclinations.”
—Prophetess Skye
Blood Laws
By order of the Ichorian Conclave, the below behaviors are expressly forbidden:
The intentional creation of fledgling immortals through procreation with mortal females.
Knowingly allowing fledgling immortals or Hydraians to exist on Ichorian soil.
Consorting with Hydraians in any capacity unless otherwise negotiated by birthright and rank.
Prologue
“Ready?” Astasiya’s angel friend asked, gesturing to the house before them.
She shook her head, not ready at all. He had told her these new people would be her parents. But she didn’t want new parents. She wanted her old ones back. Right now.