Chapter Four
The pale golden fingers of dawn crept through her window. Audrey stared out the window, still in bed.
It had been a week since the shifter and Dimitri had told her she had to choose one of them. In that time, there had been plenty of times when she felt like running away. But Sanjay had volunteered to give her an interview about what his life was like, and she couldn’t pass that up.
It surprised her that he was a big shot among the shifters. He wasn't an Alpha, per se, because he didn't have a pack. But when other shifters were nearby, they treated him like a celebrity. Getting an interview with him was a big break.
Not to be outdone, Dimitri had then arranged for her to interview three vampires and two shifters without mates, six human women looking for mates, and then a dozen vampires, shifters and humans who had already found their mates.
Unfortunately, every time they were alone, he kissed her and she forgot about asking for an interview from him. Not that they were alone much. Usually, whenever she wasn't in her room, both Sanjay and Dimitri were with her. And she hadn't been able to convince them she was wrong for them yet.
The sound of her cell phone ringing brought her out of her concentration. Audrey glanced at the caller ID and groaned. It was Tiana, her boss. This wasn't going to be pleasant.
Tiana was a nice enough person most times, but when it came to the latest story, she had no social filters. It was frustrating, and occasionally humiliating. How many times had Tiana encouraged her to get closer to her targets to get the best scoop? No doubt she was going to press her for more details about her relationships with Dimitri and Sanjay. Audrey wouldn't be surprised if it ended up on the front page of the paper.
"Hey, Tiana. Bit early isn't it?" Audrey greeted, trying to keep her voice neutral.
"You're up, I'm up. What's the problem?"
"Did you get the stuff I sent you yesterday?"
"I did. But I'm more interested in this note that you put in here." Tiana's voice sounded thrilled. "You have a Liger shifter and the vampire king competing for you? This is terrific news! You have to write down everything, I'll give you space for a short series about your experiences with the vampires. I love the stuff you've been sending me, but what we need is something more personal, you know? The voice of a woman finding herself torn between the sophisticated vampire and the pure lust of a shifter."
"Shifters aren't like that. Sanjay is just as sophisticated as Dimitri, and Dimitri can be just as lustful as Sanjay."
"Really? Spill."
The reporter ground her teeth. "That's my personal business."
"Audrey, darling, the public loves a good, old-fashioned love triangle. Write up your first meeting with the two of them and send it by tomorrow night. Don't leave out any of the sordid details."
Why did I have to mention Dimitri and Sanjay to her in the first place? You'd think that she was running a tabloid.
Writing like this wasn't going to help Audrey's plans for the future. There were enough snobs in the world that thought women couldn't write professional news. She wasn't going to give into the pressure to sensationalize what happened during the festival. Or disclose the personal details of her life. Her writing served a purpose, which was to debunk misinformation and help people who weren't given a voice to share their stories.
"Tiana, I—"
The door opened and Dimitri and Sanjay both entered. Audrey cursed.
"Don't you use that language at me," Tiana said. "You don't like the idea? Fine, you can stick with your exposé. But you could have just said it."
Audrey hurried out of bed and turned her back on the vampire and shifter. "No, it's not—Well, no I don't want to write like a gossip magazine, but I wasn't swearing at you, Tiana. I'm sorry. It's just that… they came in."
"They did?" Tiana's voice was thrilled again. "Let me talk to one of them! Have you gotten that interview with the king yet? I'm still waiting for the interview with your shifter. Oh, and did you ask him if he was sterile? Because most hybrids in the while are sterile. Make sure you get why they chose you."
"I have to go, Tiana."
"I understand. Just make sure you use protection."
Tiana hung up while Audrey spluttered protests. She hung up her phone and hid her face in her hands. "You two can just leave now."
Two sets of chuckles answered her, and Sanjay's thick arms wrapped around her. He lifted her easily. She found herself wishing she had worn a silk nightie rather than her flannel PJs.
"When you're embarrassed you smell like honeysuckle," Sanjay told her.
"The human my female was talking to had a good question, though, Beast." Dimitri walked up to them and pressed a kiss to Audrey's neck. "You're a hybrid, are you sterile?"
Audrey looked between the two of them, horrified. "You could hear what Tiana was saying?"
"Our hearing is much more attuned than humans," Sanjay said. "And fear not, my delectable American honeysuckle, I am quite fertile. I will be able to give you as many healthy, robust children as you desire."
Dimitri pulled her out of Sanjay's arms and nestled her against his chest. Despite herself, Audrey wrapped her legs around his hips. Sanjay didn't move away from them, instead brushing up close behind her. She liked the sensations of them both close to her like this.
The idea of all three of them together was becoming more pervasive in her mind. Until now, she had never considered having a threesome. At least not one for her sake. She had a previous boyfriend that tried to convince her to let one of his ex-girlfriends join them in bed but had dumped her before she could make up her mind either way.
If she asked for the vampire and shifter to do the whole ménage a trois thing, would they agree? Or would it be the thing that would finally convince them that she wasn't the girl for either of them?
The thought of being without them left her breathless. That was the goal, why did it make her feel like her heart was being ripped from her chest?
"Strong, healthy babies?" Dimitri said. He glanced at Sanjay. "I'll give you that one. But any child that you put in Audrey would likely rip her in half as she gives birth."
Audrey smacked his arm lightly. "They would not.
Sanjay smirked.
"Besides which, both of you are bigger than the average human, if I was going to have trouble with one of you, I'd have trouble with both. But I can't think about children right now."
Both men looked crestfallen. Dimitri curled her hair around his fingers. "You don't want children?"
"That's not what I said. I want children eventually. But I want to make sure I'm in a solid relationship before I have them." She looked away, a lump rising in her throat. "I don't want them to ever think they weren't wanted."
"You wouldn't have to worry about me, or either of us, not wanting our children," Dimitri said. "Children are highly valued among vampires, and shifters are always protective and devoted to their offspring."
"Well… thank you. But I still can't mate either of you." Audrey didn't want to continue on this line of conversation. It was getting too intimate. She was left feeling to vulnerable. "Tiana did have a good point about that other thing, though."
"About the protection?" Dimitri asked, his eyes lighting up. "I made sure condoms are provided in every room."
Audrey stared at him, her jaw hung loose.
Sanjay nuzzled the back of her neck, sending tingles down her spine. "Mmmmm. Honeysuckle."
"No!" She squirmed, trying to free herself, but they clasped her tighter. "I meant why the two of you chose me. There were hundreds of women there, and hundreds more women that would kill to have the chance with either of you. Why are you both so determined to have me?"
"I told you it was your scent that first drew me to you," Sanjay said. "But now that I've gotten to know you better, I admire your tenacity and determination."
She couldn’t deny that it made her insides vibrate with happiness to hear him say that. She turned to Dimitri. "And you?"
He didn't respond. But before Audrey could demand an answer, a scream echoed down the hallway. Both Sanjay and Dimitri's heads whipped around. The vampire king set Audrey down and headed for the door. "Stay here with her."
"I am not one of your subjects," Sanjay growled, going after him.
Audrey followed them both out, jogging to keep up with their long strides. A crowd was gathering at the window at the end of the hallway. Several more screams and the shifters and vampires there gathered their women into their arms and turned away from the window. Everybody melted aside to let Dimitri and Sanjay pass.
Both men stopped suddenly. Sanjay whirled, pulling Audrey into his arms and shielding her eyes. But not before she saw what the commotion was about. Just outside the window was a bronze statue of Dimitri.
A woman was impaled on the spikes of his crown.