“Not even when I started dating Lucian did we get a rush like this,” Abbey said, not bothering to lift her head.
“That’s because your main squeeze didn’t want his vampires joining. Kieran has no control over what other packs do.”
The brunette sat up and fixed her with an evil eye. “At least we all knew what was coming. You didn’t even give us a heads up before this mob descended on us.”
“How was I to know what would happen? I only met a few members of Kieran’s pack last night.”
Abbey rolled her eyes. “Internet, cell phones, emails. You know wolves can’t keep a secret.”
“Hey,” Tasha said.
“Sorry,” Abbey said before she turned back to Chloe. “I don’t know how you managed to keep this to yourself for so long in the first place.”
“We were careful,” Chloe lied.
“I’ll get to the bottom of it when I meet him,” Jessica promised.
A hissed breath escaped her. “Dammit. I forgot to ask. Sorry, Jessie.”
The succubus arched a brow. “Slipped your mind, did it? Wonder what you two did when you got home.”
The other women laughed good-naturedly while Chloe’s cheeks heated.
“Sunday,” Jessica said, blowing on her coffee. “Tell your wolf he can either make a reservation or I’m showing up on his doorstep.”
“Sunday should work,” Chloe agreed. At least, for her. She’d have to talk Kieran into behaving civilly for an evening and not snapping at her like he’d done last night.
His dismissive expression rose in her mind’s eye. He’d looked at her like she was nothing. No one. Minutes after he’d had his tongue in her mouth. Was she really so dismissible?
“Chloe?” Abbey said.
The concern in her friend’s voice had her raising her head. All three of the women watched her with worried expressions.
“What?” she asked.
“It’s just…” Tasha started.
“You look sad,” Abbey put in.
“You never look sad,” Jessica finished.
She forced a smile to her lips. “It’s nothing,” she assured them. “Just a tiring day.”
None of them looked convinced.
“Do we have everything set for our mixer next week?” she asked instead, changing the topic with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer.
“Well, we did,” Tasha said. “If the intake numbers keep skyrocketing like this we may need to move it to a larger venue.”
“I’ll mention it to Vivian,” Chloe said as she made a mental note. “Abbey, I assume you’ve roped Lucian into coming?”
“You really think Vivian would let me leave this office without promising her favorite show pony would be in attendance?” Abbey rolled her eyes. “She made me clear his schedule months in advance. Melissa and Tarian will be there, too. Gotta keep our high profile matches in full view of our clients, after all.”
“Which I suppose means you’ll be bringing Kieran?” Tasha pointed out.
Chloe blinked. She’d been worried about Kieran meeting Jessica. The idea of him assisting her at a singles mixer was too ludicrous to imagine, but there was no denying his absence would raise eyebrows, especially with their other elite matches showing up. After all, he was supposed to love her. Lucian loathed prancing around Fated Match parties, but he did it with a smile because Abbey asked him to. If their relationship were real, Kieran would do the same.
“He’s very busy these days,” Chloe hedged.
Abbey snorted. “I’ll see your busy and raise you an elder. Lucian controls all the vamps on the east coast. You know how hard it is to get him to take a night off?”
“And we appreciate his dedication,” Vivian said, breezing into the break room. “I’ m sure Chloe will be able to convince Kieran. Now, ladies, there’s a waiting room full of clients.”
“Break over,” Jessica muttered.
Chloe downed the last sip of her coffee and set the cup in the sink. She was about to follow the other three women out when Vivian caught her arm.
They waited until they were alone before the siren closed the door.
“I take it this charade is live now.”
“Yes,” Chloe replied. “We met a few of his pack last night.”
“And in less than twenty-four hours we have this flood of clients. Excellent. This might not have been such a bad idea after all. Make sure Kieran is at the mixer. We need to milk his presence for all it’s worth before he’s gone.”
Inwardly Chloe winced, but under Vivian’s close stare she ensured her facial expression remained cool and calm.
“I’ll do my best. He’s not an easy man to control.”