"Thank you." She stepped outside.
While Charles circled the limo to the driver's seat, Gregori opened the back door for her. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"Yes." She tried not to blush as she climbed into the car.
He leaned over and whispered, "Take a look inside the box." He winked, then shut the door.
As Charles drove away, she peeked inside the plastic container. Inside there was a dried root wrapped in plastic. And a note.
She opened it and found a number scrawled at the top.
My dear Scholar,
Here's my cell phone number. If you're alone any time at night and wish to see me, call and I will come.And remember - with love, anything is possible.
She sighed. If only that were true.
She was falling in love with him. But it was still impossible.
Chapter Eighteen
The next evening, Abigail headed upstairs to the family floor so she could check on her mother. She and her sister had flown back to D.C. that morning, and she'd spent the rest of the day at the lab, gathering information for the meeting tonight with her father. And Gregori.
By George, that man can kiss. Prunella Culpepper had been right about that. She'd hardly slept a wink last night. Memories of kissing Gregori had filled her mind, and she'd relived the scene over and over, treasuring each detail she could recall and eventually imagining what could have happened if they hadn't been interrupted.
She tightened her grip on the handle of her leather portfolio. She'd have to act cool at the meeting with her father. Not stare at Gregori with red-hot cheeks. Her files were inside the portfolio, along with Gregori's note, safely stashed away in a zippered pocket. Could she work up the nerve to call him? She would need to be alone to do it. She couldn't let a Secret Service agent overhear her flirting with a vampire.
She hadn't found a moment alone since sunset. She'd worked late at the lab with some other scientists. An agent had picked her up and delivered her to the White House. Even now, as she made her way to the clinic, there were Black Suits stationed here and there, always watching. Always on alert for danger. And no doubt they considered Gregori a danger.
She knew she should keep a distance from him. It was the smart thing to do, and all her life, she'd always done the smart thing. But it was already too late. She'd stepped off a cliff and didn't know how to stop the fall. Wasn't sure she even wanted to stop.
Falling for Gregori was a crazy, irresponsible act. Totally out of character for her. And totally exciting. How strange that it took an Undead man to make her feel so alive.
She nodded at the female agent who stood by the clinic door. Inside, she could hear laughter - her mother's and Madison's.
She slipped inside. "Hello."
"Abigail!" Her mother waved her over. "We were just watching Madison's commercial. Come and see it."
"She already saw it live." Madison reached for the remote control. "But if you'd like to see it again?"
"Sure. I'd love to." Abigail hugged her mom and quickly looked her over. She looked tired with dark circles under her eyes. "Is Debra gone for the evening?"
"She's on her dinner break," Belinda said. She leaned close and whispered, "We're not supposed to talk about vampires when she's here. Top secret, you know."
Abigail nodded, noting the twinkle in her mother's eyes. All the recent excitement seemed to be invigorating her mother. Her sister, too. Madison had chattered nonstop all the way home about her new friends at the Digital Vampire Network. Maggie had given her a DVD of the pretend commercial she'd done with Phineas.
"It's starting!" Madison hushed them.
Abigail sat and watched her sister and Phineas. "It's really good." Thank God Maggie hadn't included the commercial she'd done with Gregori.
Belinda clapped her hands. "I love it. I'm so proud of you, Madison."
"And guess what?" Madison jumped to her feet, grinning. "Last night I auditioned for a mortal role on one of their soap operas. They usually have vampires play those roles because mortals don't know about DVN, but Gordon - he's the director - he said it doesn't work very well 'cause everyone can tell they have fangs. So there's a good chance that I could get on one of their shows and be a real actress!"
"Wow." Abigail glanced over at their mom, who looked more alarmed than happy. "That's really exciting, Maddie."
"I know!" Madison clasped her hands together with a dreamy look. "I could be a real star."
"I thought you said the commercial was pretend, just for fun," Belinda said. "I didn't realize you were serious about acting."
"I didn't realize I'd be so good!" Madison exclaimed.
"But what about art school?" Belinda asked.
Madison waved a dismissive hand. "I'm only going there 'cause I didn't know what to do with myself. I'm not all that good at art, you know. But Maggie said I show real potential for acting. And Gordon said I look fabulous in front of the camera."
"Yes, dear, you do," Belinda conceded, "but this is a vampire network."
Madison blinked. "So?"
Abigail winced inwardly with a sinking feeling.
"I'm delighted you were able to discover a new talent," Belinda continued. "But you need to develop it among your own kind. DVN is not the sort of environment you should be visiting every night."
Madison looked stunned. "Why not?"
"All this excitement lately over vampires - it's been great fun, but . . ." Belinda sighed. "It's a nice world to visit, but you don't want to live there."
Madison frowned. "You have something against vampires?"
"I'm sure some of them are very nice, but - let's be honest about this, Maddie. They're dead. I don't want you to get involved with any of them."
"But I wouldn't," Madison insisted. "I'm not attracted to any of them." Her gaze shifted to Abigail.
Please don't say anything, Abigail beseeched her with her eyes.
Madison's frown deepened. "I don't understand, Mom. It's not like you to be so . . . prejudiced."
"I don't mean to be rude. I just don't want you to form a relationship with any of them. Think about it. They can live for centuries, right? They would either tire of you after a few years, or they would insist on making you a vampire. How can I possibly condone that?"
Madison bit her lip and glanced at Abigail. "Some might think it's romantic."
Belinda scoffed. "Only in fiction. In reality, he would be killing you."
Abigail swallowed hard. Her mom was bringing up valid points. Even she had warned Madison several nights ago that falling for a vampire was sheer folly.
It was like that old saying her grandmother used to joke about. If you're going to fall in love, it might as well be with a rich man. And if she was going to fall in love, why couldn't she find a live man?
Her shoulders slumped. She needed to admit the truth. A relationship with Gregori was truly impossible. But how could she possibly find anyone as wonderful as him? He was everything she'd ever dreamed of. Except for the vampire part.
Madison stuck out her bottom lip. "I thought you would be happy for me. I really want the job at DVN."
Belinda sighed. "It would worry me too much for you to be around vampires."
Madison huffed. "But Abby's going to be around them when she goes to China!"
Abigail jerked up in her seat and shook her head.
"What?" Belinda gave her a shocked look. "You're doing what?"
Madison winced. "Sorry, Abby. I thought she knew."
Abigail shot her an annoyed look, then turned to her mother. "It's a research trip, that's all. Just a few days."
Belinda's eyes narrowed. "Is your research connected to me?"
"It'll be fine, Mom. The Vamps will only be there to protect me. They're super strong and fast. They have special abilities like superheroes."
"Yeah!" Madison nodded. "It'll be like traveling with Superman and the Justice League!"
Belinda frowned. "I don't think you should go."
"Mom - " Abigail started to say she was doing it for her, but that would only make her mother more opposed to the trip. "I need to do this."
Belinda's eyes shimmered with tears. "Sweetie, my health is my problem. You can't take responsibility for everything."
Abigail blinked to keep her eyes from misting up. "How can I live with myself if I don't try everything I can do?"