Read The Vampire With the Dragon Tattoo (Love at Stake) for Free Online Page A

muttered.
    Dougal eyed Freemont’s plate, loaded down with five slices of cake. So he was doing like Tino and trying all the flavors.
    Grinning, Freemont set the plate on the desk. “I’m gonna make this cake my bitch.”
    Angus snorted. “While ye’re doing that, keep an eye on the monitors. I’ll leave in a few minutes to update Emma on what’s happening. I think everything’s going verra well.”
    Dougal wasn’t so sure about that. As he watched Leah walk down the corridor, he had a bad feeling she was one step away from full-fledged panic. Still, her head was held high and her back was straight. She was a courageous lass, showing fortitude as her safe world crumbled around her. She’d stood up to everyone in the lab, refusing to let them intimidate her. Her strength of character was impressive.
    “Gregori, ye should go to the party,” Angus continued. “Flirt with yer wife and show Dr. Chin how charming ye can be.”
    Gregori scoffed. “Is that an order?”
    “Is it too much for ye to handle?” Angus asked.
    “No.” Gregori gave him a wry look. “I’m always charming.”
    “Good. Show the doctor how harmless we are. Meek as lambs, as Dougal puts it.” Angus’s eyes narrowed on Dougal. “Ye should go with him. She might feel better knowing who was behind the camera.”
    Dougal winced. Each time she’d glanced at the camera with that defiant, reproachful look, his heart had squeezed in his chest. He knew in his soul that she had resented being observed while everything she held safe and secure had been stripped away from her.
    He’d been torn the entire time. Part of him had wanted to turn away and give her the privacy she deserved. But a larger part had kept him glued to the screen, hoping somehow that his presence would lend her strength, that he could lessen her pain by sharing it. He knew too well the pain of losing everything.
    He watched on the monitor as she crossed the foyer with Abby. He was still torn. His heart was thudding wildly at the thought of meeting her in person. She was the most intriguing woman he’d seen in centuries. But his mind was telling him to wait. She was hanging on by a thread. If it snapped, she would run and never come back. “I’m no’ sure she wants to meet any more Vamps for a while.”
    “I’ll call Abby and see what she thinks.” Gregori opened the office door. “Come on, Dougal. Let’s party.”
    “Remember,” Angus said, “we’re as meek as lambs.”
    “And randy as goats,” Gregori added with a laugh. He slapped Dougal on the back. “Let’s go.”

Chapter Four
    L eah was greatly relieved to see that all the adult partygoers had gravitated to the far side of the room. They were so focused on opening presents and watching the children that they barely gave her and Abby any notice.
    At the first refreshment table, she loaded cheese, crackers, and fruit onto a small plate while Abby poured two cups of punch. Popping a pineapple chunk into her mouth, she glanced warily at the crowd across the room. How many of them were vampires? And how on earth did vampires have babies? Did those pretty little children shoot fangs out on occasion and transform into bloodthirsty monsters?
    Mommy, I just killed the nanny. Can I have a cookie?
    With a shudder, her gaze shifted to the foyer. Maybe she should say she needed to go to the restroom, then she could sneak out the front door and call a cab. But it would take time for a cab to arrive. Could she slip past the guarded front gate, or would she have to climb the wall?
    Would they let her leave? She knew their big secret. And they claimed to need her help.
    “Here.” Abby passed her a cup of fruit punch.
    Leah took a sip. “Is it true? If I help you, I could save over a thousand lives?”
    Abby nodded. “We think so.” She drank some punch. “If you recall, there were three microscopes in the lab. The first one, the one you looked at, showed a blood sample from Gregori. The second one is from Roman’s