He shot her a resentful glare from under thick lashes. “Have you any idea how repulsive it is for me to have to drink blood to survive?”
“The upside to that is the sorcerer subsequently made you a day-walker. You don’t have to sleep during the day and sunlight won’t kill or incapacitate you. You don’t even have to take your blood on the hoof, as it were. Finally, you will live an almost eternal lifespan. Wasn’t that what the two of you went searching for?”
Jonathan’s angry reply came quickly. “We didn’t search for this!” He indicated his supernaturally strong body. Opening his mouth, he pointed to his sharp fangs. “We wanted to live without the fear of death constantly hanging over us! We never wanted to become the harbingers of death, the monsters in a modern Fairytale. That’s what the sorcerer made us -- monsters -- unnatural, inhuman monsters. The downside is, regardless of all the things you listed as a plus, I can’t ever do the one thing that is most important to me. I can’t father a child. I can’t even fuck a woman without lusting for her blood, as well.” His words trailed off as he fisted his hands and visibly fought his anger.
M gazed at him, struck by his deep air of sorrow. He had no idea how beautiful he and his brother were, how Elementally magnetic. Her voice, when she spoke, was even and calm. She tried to put all the sincerity of her feelings in her words. “For that, I am truly sorry for you. If I could, I would reverse the spells that made your brother and you victims of this dual curse. Unfortunately, I cannot and the sorcerer is beyond our reach. He has retired to a galaxy in which I have no jurisdiction.”
A noise at the door announced Puck and Jason’s return before she could elaborate further on the sorcerer’s present whereabouts, and she turned to watch the wolf-turned-man approach her.
Dressed in casual gray slacks and a half-buttoned cream linen shirt, Jason Corelli sauntered into the office. Hands shoved deep in his pockets, a smile wreathing his face, deepening the dimple in his left cheek, he was handsome enough to take any female’s breath away.
From the top of his head covered in black silky curls to the bottoms of his slim, elegant feet, he was the identical image of his brother, yet M had no difficulty telling them apart. After a deep scrutiny, she finally realized what the difference was. The expression in Jason’s golden gaze differed from that of his elder brother. Both of the handsome, six feet four inch males might have been identical, but Jason’s eyes still held hope and warmth.
“Welcome back, Jason. Come join us and let’s get down to business.”
She hid a smile as Jason and Jonathan exchanged a look of silent communication. Then, in unison, they hitched the material at the knees of their slacks, sat down and crossed their legs. As if they’d rehearsed the practiced moves, each ended by leaning his right elbow on the arm of their chair and resting his chin on his palm.
M rocked back in her chair. “So, gentlemen… what business do you seek my help with?”
Jonathan shifted in his seat, his agitation betraying his uneasiness with the question. Jason smiled and nodded. “We were told you could find us a wife.”
M’s eyebrows rose. She was used to everything under the sun, but the twins managed to surprise her with their request. “A wife -- as in one -- for both of you?”
Jonathan stiffened, coming upright in his chair. “One, only. You are aware that we were once Siamese twins, joined at the back.”
“Yes, I am. Your file is complete and up-to-date.”
Jason touched his brother’s arm, his hand there and gone in a fleeting grip that imparted calmness, urged control. “All our lives, we’ve shared everything. We’re telepathic with each other and so close that if Jon is attracted to a woman, I find myself attracted, too. We’re not mirror twins, but exact duplicates. In fact, the sorcerer claimed we were one soul -- literally one person -- separated into two bodies.”
Jonathan took over the narrative. “The sorcerer said she was almost ready. All we know is that she’s supposed to end up here, and that means your agency can find her.”
“Yes!” Jason cut in. “We have a list of attributes we’d like her to have, if possible. We want a woman who will be good mother material. We don’t want a stick woman… she must have some flesh on her. We’d like her to be interested in our careers, what we do. Mostly, though, we want her to be big-hearted enough to accept both of us as her husbands.”
Jonathan again spoke. “She has to be adventurous, inquisitive -- someone who can take what and who we are in stride. Someone used to thinking outside the box of normalcy.”
When Jason reached out and touched his brother again, M realized he made a habit of it, as if they needed to be in contact every so often to remain centered.
“Jon cannot father a child, but I can. Any child I father will be both of ours. We want a woman who wouldn’t mind having her children call both of us father.”
M regarded both brothers from across her wide desk, hands clasped together resting on the marble top. “You don’t want much, do you?” She sighed. “Your circumstance is a little different from what we usually cater to.”
The brothers began protesting and she held up a hand, silencing their arguments. “I haven’t said we cannot do it. However, we have rules here on Chimera -- rules that must be obeyed even in situations like these, but we’ll get to those in a moment. First, let’s talk fees.
“Normally, for our standard fee, we offer a potential mate one week of discovery. Should a match occur, the applicant pays an agreed upon fee in barter or money. In your case, I feel we’ll need to modify our procedure somewhat.”
Jonathan leaned forward in his seat, his voice hard as he addressed the director. “Name your price. We’ll pay any amount.”
M rested her shoulders against the high back of her leather chair and rotated her neck, working out the kinks. “Oh, we have no need of money from you. Since there are two of you, your prospective bride will require two weeks in which to get to know you. Though the candidate chosen will be as compatible and congenial with both of you as possible, you may find yourselves not satisfied with our choice. In that case, the agreement is not binding.”
Puck interjected there, his voice earnest. “We have never had a client dissatisfied with our choice for them.”
“I am simply stating all the options and possibilities, Puck,” M soothed. “Speaking of which, a stipulation we insist on is your prospective bride must be told the entire truth of your existence before any wedding will be allowed to take place. If she rejects your suit, she must be allowed to return to the mainland without hindrance or threat. Should that be the case, we will, of course, reconfigure her memories.”
Jason fidgeted in his chair. This time, it was Jonathan who reached out to calm his brother. “If we must disclose everything to her, two weeks does not seem like a lot of time.”
“You’d be surprised how the air on Chimera fosters romance in a woman’s soul,” Puck drawled, looking at his sharp fingernails. “Love and flowers bloom in abundance around here.”
Jonathan thought about that. After a speaking glance exchanged with Jason, he nodded sharply. “We are in agreement, so far. You have yet to name a price.”
“We want you to take over management of all the restaurants on the island. This is the proposed contract.” She passed over a form in triplicate. “This version lists the price for the deluxe spouse package, which includes an automatic upgrade to the lifespan of the spouse.”
The brothers scooted closer to the desk and pored over the contract. Jason looked up. “That’s a long time. We’ll need to remain on Chimera until the contract is finished.”
M shrugged. “That’s the price for our service. Sign it only if you find it fair.”
“How badly do you want this, Jas?” Jonathan asked, quirking an eyebrow at his younger twin.
A sigh lifted Jason’s impressive chest. “The wolf calls more strongly every day. I need someone to help me regain my humanity. I want a mate as badly as you do… if not more. Go ahead and sign the damn t
hing. After all, we have forever.” He grinned. “We’ll have free room and board for the length of the contract.”
Nodding, Jonathan reached for the quill and signed his signature at the bottom. He passed the pen to Jason, who scribbled on the line beside his brother. Together, they slid the completed contract back to the director.
M smiled as she tucked the form into the flap of the twins’ portfolio and then flipped through several more pages of the men’s file before glancing back up at them.
She’d seen many males in her long life -- males representing the best of their races and species. In her opinion, the sheer masculine beauty of the Corelli brothers ranked them right near the top. There would be no problem supplying a mate for either one of them. The tricky part would be finding someone capable of loving both of them, equally.
M thrilled at the challenge. This was what she did… what she excelled at doing. Magic alone didn’t supply the mates needed. It took insight and intuition as well as a hefty dose of common sense. It took her unique talents and foresight. She couldn’t wait to get started.
“As I informed Puck earlier, the two of you have managed to anticipate your pre-cogged application date by several millennia. It may take us a little while to procure the best candidate for you. However, have no doubt we shall succeed. We are, after all, in the business of obtaining extraordinary mates for our extraordinary clients. We have never failed to deliver.”
Chapter Two
Michelle Rios turned the knob to her office door and almost strained her wrist as her shoulder and then the rest of her plus-sized body slammed into the still-closed solid wood panel.
“What the hell?” She glanced down, tried the knob again, unwilling to believe it wouldn’t open under her determined assault. “I so don’t have time for this! Garnette, my office door is locked… or stuck. Call maintenance and --” She broke off as the facts slowly percolated through the morning sludge that was her brain, pre-coffee.
Her secretary cringed and tried to slide under her desk.
“Don’t bother trying to hide. I know you had something to do with this door being locked.”
Straightening up from her ineffective slouch, Garnette lifted her chin and surreptitiously pressed the intercom button, summoning help. “I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about, Chelle. I didn’t lock your door.”
Michelle eyed her long-time secretary and friend with a suspicious glare. “Did you just press the intercom? Damn it to hell, you sent for the posse, didn’t you?”
Garnette’s blank expression conveyed the depth of her betrayal. Chelle slammed her packages down on the occasional table beside her office door, stalked over to the other woman’s desk and had to cross her arms to keep from choking the slighter woman. Her eyes narrowed into threatening slits. “Judas!”
The tip-tapping sound of two pairs of stiletto heels fast approaching on the ceramic tile flooring of the hallway drew Chelle’s resigned gaze toward the outer office door. Her shoulders slumped. “You told them! After I begged you to keep quiet, you had to blab! You yellow-bellied traitor, I am going to make you so sorry --!”
Garnette’s eyes teared up, but her mouth tightened. “You gave me no choice. We knew, left to your own devices, you’d ignore the doctor’s advice. And just look…” she flung out a hand, indicating her clearly present boss, “here you are.”
Ignoring the doctor gambit, Chelle went for the main point. “You work for me, damn it. You’re supposed to follow orders. I ordered you to keep your mouth shut.”
“Yeah, I work for you.” The secretary stood up and planted her fists on her bony hips. “Unlike my former employers, I actually like and care for you, so you’ll excuse me if I do all I can to make sure you don’t keel over with a sudden case of death.”
When Chelle grimaced and flinched back, Garnette’s voice softened. “Look at you, honey. Your clothes are hanging on you. The bags under your eyes could masquerade as airline carry-on luggage and judging by the tic pounding in your forehead, your blood pressure must still be sky-high.”
Do I really look that bad? Chelle risked a sneaky glance at the large ornate mirror decorating the office wall. Her shoulder length cinnamon-plum hair, held back with a simple tie, framed a face that would never launch ships. High cheekbones and a long wide nose balanced her full, pouty lips. Her dark tan complexion appeared sallow and her large, dark brown eyes looked bruised and haunted…
All right, so she did look bad, but that was just because she’d had a lousy weekend followed by the most hectic workweek since the company had launched Stellar Raiders II. “It isn’t like I had a heart attack or anything!”
Garnette refused to back down. “The doctor said your blood pressure was so high, you were one breath away from a massive stroke! A stroke could leave you alive in a dead body. A heart attack might actually be better for you. At least dead is not suffering and incapacitated, unable to do anything on your own.”
“Okay, maybe I’ve lost some much-needed-to-lose weight -- which is not a bad thing, by the way -- and yes, my eyes are bagging. I’ll give you that. However, I plan to take it easy today. I promise I won’t overdo.” She stopped and huffed, planted her hands on her ample hips when she saw her words were getting her nowhere. “Girlfriend, I can’t believe you’ve reduced me to begging for a chance to work!”
Garnette crossed her arms and straightened to her full five feet nothing height. “No way.”
Michelle’s expression hardened. “Okay, it’s on!”
Leaning one hand on the receptionist’s desk, she tugged off first one shoe and then the other, tossing them into the far corner. Putting up her fists, she began weaving and bobbing, moving her hips and shoulders in the classic Apollo Creed moves. “I appreciate why you feel you have to get in between me and my job, but you are gonna let me into my own office or you’re going down!”
Garnette raised her eyebrows, narrowed her eyes and brought her own scrawny fists up to her concave chest. “I’m ready to take you on where this is concerned.” Glancing over her boss and friend’s shoulder, she suddenly relaxed and let her hands fall to her sides. “But, I don’t think I’ll have to do that. Look behind you.” Pointing to the doorway, she gave her boss an oily grin and threw her an ‘I-bet-you-weren’t-ready-for-this’ look. “The cavalry has arrived.”
“Michelle Analise Rios! What do you think you’re doing?”
She froze. Oh, oh, I’m in trouble now. Jenna only uses that tone when she’s pissed beyond all get out. Clearing her throat and lowering her fists, Michelle turned to confront her two business partners and sometime friends standing in the open doorway. “I think I’m trying to get into my locked office. I think I just might whip both your asses for putting Garnette up to this. Don’t even imagine I don’t know who’s behind this asinine stunt.” She went over and jiggled the handle, frowning ferociously. “I have too much work to do to waste time playing with you three.”
“Good! Glad to hear that!” Roberta Wilson leaned against the door, her long blond hair pulled back in a no-nonsense ponytail. “Michelle, we are not playing. We’ve spoken to your doctor, and have decided to take his warnings about your health seriously.”
“Damn straight, we have!” Jenna agreed, scowling at her cousin. She straightened up, firmed her jaw and delivered the coup de grace. “In fact, I’ve called Mom and asked for her help. After I told her you were trying to kill yourself, she promised to get here on the afternoon train.”
Chelle gasped in outrage. She stared at the woman who was like a sister to her, angry disbelief burning within. “Jenalva Bernadette Rios, you’re a black-hearted bitch! How dare you sic Aunt Marnie on me? I can’t believe what you’ve done!”
Her cousin flipped a dark lock of hair out of her face, her expression stubbornly unrepentant. “Bobbie and I did what we had to do. This is your own fault. Since we figured there was very little chance of your listening to reason, we had no other choice than to bring out the big guns.”
Chelle g
roaned. “Aunt Marnie is going to move in with me! She’ll pinch my cheeks and tell me I need to regain my weight. Then, she’ll cook all kinds of fattening foods and force me to eat all of it. Oh, God! You realize she’ll call Uncle Geraldo every night and cry because she’s separated from her greatest love and can’t sleep?”
Garnette looked suitably impressed. “Damn! I’d definitely call pulling in Aunt Marnie bringing out the big guns, all right!”
Chelle nodded glumly. “That’s not the worst. You don’t know how bad Jenna’s parents are. They’re true lovebirds and never could stand to be apart from each other. Three days after Aunt Marnie arrives, Uncle Geraldo will show up on my doorstep with an overnight bag and Aunt Marnie’s stuffed teddy bear. They’ll disappear into my guest room and all I’ll hear for the rest of the night and the next two days is the bed springs squeaking and their groans and cries…” She broke off and glared around the room at the three women threatening her peace of mind.
“Do you know how embarrassing it is listening to your aunt and uncle in the guest room, sliding around on your cheap cotton percale sheets, making wild monkey love? Ugh, ugh, ugh!” She jabbed a finger toward the back of her throat with short choppy motions, using the popular sign for gagging. “There’s nothing worse than having the next best thing to your parents bopping like bunnies on the other side of thin walls, unless it’s knowing they’re having better sex than you’ve ever had in all your miserable, sorry life.”
Michelle’s bottom lip quivered before she could tighten it enough to stop the telltale sign. Maybe there was something to what that quack had been spouting. She did feel tired and easily upset. She was no crybaby, but she sure wanted to cry right this minute and that certainly was not like her usual hard-as-nails behavior.
A.O.E.M.: Dinner For Three Page 2
