A Mate for York (The Program Book 1) Read online

Pulling her legs more firmly underneath herself, Dee looked her in the eye. “So, I have to say, you look a little nervous. You were really quiet during training and again earlier today.”

  “We signed waivers giving the vampires permission to monitor our every move, the risks were made clear. You can’t tell me you’re not a little bit scared as well.” Cassidy put her hands on the bed behind her and stretched back.

  Dee shrugged. “I guess I am a little afraid, but it only makes it that much more exciting. Vampires are just so intense, so gorgeous. After seeing the guys outside, I have to say, I’m starting to feel a little upset that I didn’t go for the actual program. I really wouldn’t mind going the whole hog. I’ve heard that when vampires marry, it’s for life.” Her eyes twinkled before taking on a faraway look. “It’s just so romantic.”

  Cassidy smiled, remembering what it was like before she’d met and married Sean. Before she’d found out what a lying, conniving asshole he really was. The young woman in front of her was pure innocence, she had yet to have her heart pulled out of her chest and stomped on. Cassidy found herself both envying and sympathizing with her.

  Dee played with the frayed edge of her denim shorts. “Do you think it’ll be as good as they say? I mean…” Her cheeks turned bright, bright red. “Surely it was an over exaggeration.” She didn’t wait for Cassidy’s response. “At least they have vampire women monitoring the camera feeds.” She looked down at her thighs and continued to pull on one of the frayed pieces. “Would you let them touch you? I mean, if you really liked one of them?”

  Cassidy swallowed hard. “I guess I’ve always been a bit old-fashioned. I kind of like to have dinner and a bit of dancing before I….actually come to think of it… I like to date a guy for a good couple of weeks before I’ll let them touch me like that. My only hope is that they were over exaggerating when they talked about the attraction.” There was a definite niggle inside of her. Chances were good that she was going to become aroused, she only hoped that it didn’t get so bad that she’d lose control. Cassidy shook her head. “No, I definitely won’t let anyone touch me.”

  The bed rocked as Dee repositioned herself, crossing her legs in front of her. Her toenails were bright pink. She chewed on her bottom lip for a few beats. “I had a boyfriend for two years, we recently broke up.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.” What the hell was she supposed to say to that? It seemed that Dee was one of those women that enjoyed telling her whole life story. Then again, maybe it was just this crazy situation that made her feel like confiding with someone and since they weren’t allowed their cell phones for the duration of the stay…that didn’t leave too many options.

  “Don’t be. I broke it off with him.” Dee smiled. “He was a really nice guy, I liked him very much, but he couldn’t make me…you know. I guess we weren’t very compatible sexually.” She scrunched up her face for a few moments, deep in thought. “Then again, he always seemed to enjoy himself immensely. All that grunting and groaning, the way his face would turn red and sweaty. It was gross. I would just kind of lay there for the two or three minutes that it lasted. Then he kind of tensed up and moaned and that would be the end of that.”

  Cassidy found herself nodding in agreement. She knew the drill and Dee’s description of sex was all too familiar. She’d only had one boyfriend before Sean and he was really useless. As it stood, Sean had only made her cum a handful of times during their four years of marriage. Men could be so selfish.

  The young lady chewed on her lip for a while before continuing. “I have experienced an orgasm.” She paused for a long while. “All by myself.” She giggled. “The thing is, I wouldn’t mind having one…another way I guess. I mean, I wouldn’t mind having one with someone else’s help…you know?” A deep flush crept up from the neckline of her shirt.

  “You are young,” Cassidy said. “There are guys out there… I’m sure.” Yeah right! She didn’t believe what she was saying herself, so how could she expect Dee to believe her. “What I’m trying to say is, at your age, there must be plenty of young men. You don’t have to let a vampire touch you to get off.”

  “How old are you then?” Dee lifted her brows and clasped her hands over her lap.

  “I’ll be thirty next month.” The big 30, she couldn’t believe it. A wave of sadness washed over her. By now she really had hoped to be settled down with the man of her dreams with at least two if not three children running around. The pain inside her only increased. So she gave herself a mental shake of the head and moved on. It was no use thinking along those lines. It just ended up hurting too damned much.

  “That’s still really young. I’m only five years younger than you, you know?” Dee smiled more widely. She really was sweet. Cassidy could not believe that so few years separated them. Had she really turned into such an old cynical woman in such a short time?

  “I don’t feel all that young,” Cassidy said. “But I guess I still am.” She smiled back at the young woman. This was a new beginning for her and she was going to embrace it. So what if she got a little horny. There was no way she was going to act on it.

  In three days time, she would be in a position to just start over. Then she’d start doing fun things again. Crazy things like swimming naked and watching the sunrise after staying up all night.

  Dee let out a deep breath. “I’m going to do it.” Her eyes were wide and sparkled with excitement. “I’m going to let one of them touch me. Live on the edge for once. I’m still young, still carefree.” She threw her head back and laughed like a mad woman. Cassidy found herself laughing softly as well.

  “I’m going to do it. I really am.” She spoke more to herself than to Cassidy. “If I don’t, I think that I’ll always regret it. You know what I mean?”

  Cassidy nodded. She knew exactly what Dee meant. Her being a part of this trial was much the same. If she hadn’t done this, she would’ve regretted it. She was glad she was here. Glad even that she’d let Dee into her room, because she felt a little bit better now about the whole thing.

  Chapter 4

  There were two closed doors side by side. One was marked A and the other B. Cassidy looked down at the document in her hand, already knowing what was written there. Her first appointment was at ten o’clock in room A. She was a few minutes early. There were three guards outside of each door. They looked much the same as the guards that were posted outside their building. Tall, built and cocky…as in literally. Every male vampire she had seen thus far was wearing leather pants and a leather shirt. The clothing fit like a second skin. Showing each and every sinewy muscle and bulge to perfection.

  She’d seen a couple of the vampire women as well and wow…just wow. It actually made her feel sorry for the human women who had signed up to become mates to these men. There was just no comparison. The only way to describe it was to take the most beautiful models with their tall, slender figures and flawless skin and make them even more attractive and then you had a vampire woman. They oozed sex appeal from every pore.

  There was a sound of hard footfalls behind her, Cassidy turned and watched as a forbidding specimen approached. His eyes were hard and there were frown lines on his forehead. “Good morning. I’m Gideon and this is my team. We are here to ensure your safety today.”

  Cassidy swallowed hard and nodded, not sure that she could trust her own voice. Crunch time. She sucked in a deep breath and told herself over and over that she could do this. There was no other choice. It’s not like she had a job to go back to.

  “Do not be afraid, even if there is the slightest suspicion, the three males stationed at the door will enter and retrieve you. We have practiced this and are able to do it in less than three seconds. Should you feel afraid, at any time say the word pumpkin and within three seconds, we will retrieve you. However, if we feel the need to retrieve you at any time, we will do so anyway. Do you understand?”

  “Pumpkin.” Even though her hands were shaking and her heart was racing, she still found herself smili
ng.

  The big vampire’s lip twitched. “We had to come up with something that you wouldn’t say in general conversation or in the throes of…” He looked to somewhere behind her before returning his gaze to hers. “Make sure you remember it and use it without hesitation.”

  She nodded. “Pumpkin, I won’t forget.”

  Some of the tension seemed to ease out of him. “I know that you have been informed that all of the rooms are monitored by closed-circuit televisions. Two of our females will watch the camera feeds during your session. I need to verbally inform you now that this was discussed in your training and that you have consented to this in your contractual agreement.” His dark eyes stayed locked with hers.

  She nodded.

  “I require your verbal response, please,” Gideon said.

  “I understand and yes…”

  Door B flew open with a crash. It was the blond woman who liked to chew gum. Tears were streaming down her cheeks. She looked completely distraught. Like she’d just witnessed a murder or something. “Oh my God.” She sobbed. “I can’t believe that just happened… Can’t believe it,” she wailed. She was wearing a summer dress.

  That’s when Cassidy noticed the two bleeding puncture wounds on her neck. The woman locked eyes with Gideon and sobbed even louder as she made her way towards them. “I need to leave.” Tears were streaming down her face.

  Gideon’s nostrils flared and she actually heard him sucking in a lungful of air.

  Cassidy opened her purse and reached inside, pulling out a wad of tissues. She handed one to the woman who nodded her head in thanks.

  After blowing her nose and pulling herself together somewhat, she continued. “I can’t do this.”

  Gideon folded his hands across his chest. “Allowing a male to ease you is no reason for embarrassment.”

  “How dare you?” She sniffed loudly. “I don’t want any of your filthy bloodsucker hands on me. I hate all of you but I couldn’t help myself.” She broke down crying again. “Oh god…”

  Gideon bristled, Cassidy could actually see the muscles beneath the leather shirt he was wearing bunch. He tensed his jaw for a few beats. “You lied. You stated on your questionnaire that you were not opposed to vampires. Not opposed to vampires and humans mating.”

  “So freaking sue me. I needed the money.” Her eyes were wild and blazing. No longer upset, Cassidy could see that the woman was pissed. “I don’t want any of your filthy hands on me…ever again. It’s not worth the money. I’m leaving right now.”

  “Sue you…?” Gideon snorted. “Actually,” His eyes darkened. “We may do just that. A female such as you deserves to be sued.” He motioned to the guard closest to them who grabbed the woman by the arm. “You are free to leave but you will hear from our lawyers.” His jaw was set. His eyes blazing. “You lied…committed fraud.” He shook his head looking disgusted.

  “Escort this female from the property,” Gideon growled. Low and deep. It sent shocks of fear racing through her body.

  “Get your hands off of me!” Blondie shouted as they began to walk away.

  Cassidy swallowed thickly. What the hell? Going through the door to room A didn’t seem like such an easy task anymore. Not that she’d ever considered it easy in the first place.

  Gideon smiled at her, flashing long ivory fangs that almost had her shrinking away. “Apologies. You may go inside now.” He gestured in the general direction of the building behind her. The one that housed room A and the vampire that would take blood from her.

  This was it.

  If she wasn’t in such a bind, she’d turn around and walk away right now.

  Cassidy was wearing another one of her work outfits, thick stockings, a blouse that was buttoned up right to her neck. Only this time she’d selected a thin knit sweater instead of the jacket. It was just too darned hot.

  Cassidy glanced down at her watch. It was already five minutes past ten. This whole incident had made her late.

  Swallowing hard, she walked over to the door and put her hand on the knob. Taking in a deep breath, she turned the knob and entered.

  There was a man…vampire standing on the far side of the room. He turned to face her and she struggled to draw breath.

  Holy hell!

  It really wasn’t fair. Why did the first vampire on her damned list have to be so good-looking?

  From across the room, she could see that his eyes were the color of a clear winter’s day. Crisp, bright blue. He was big, bigger than any of the guys she’d seen so far. His muscles had muscles. His hair was a dirty blond, cropped close to his scalp.

  Her only consolation was that he seemed just as at a loss for words as she was. She watched his Adam’s apple work. He clenched and unclenched his fists and licked his lips.

  “I’m Cassidy.” Her voice sounded shaky. Her whole body vibrated with both nervous tension and awareness.

  “York.” His voice was so deep, so rich, it almost had her falling to her knees and whimpering.

  They had been told that only the strongest of the elite warriors were accepted into the program. They had been pitted against one another in one on one battles until only ten remained. There was no doubt in her mind that the vampire standing in front of her was one of the best. She didn’t need to see an army of vampire warriors to know this to be true. He radiated raw energy and power. It was crazy, because some of the fear left her.

  Surely the opposite should be true? Yet, it was almost like her fears from the last couple of weeks and certainly the last few days suddenly subsided.

  “Where are my manners?” York said while walking towards her, his hand outstretched. His stunning blue eyes stayed locked with hers.

  It was only out of sheer habit that she lifted her hand as he drew closer. His much bigger, much warmer one enclosed hers in a firm grip. She could feel that his fingers were rough and calloused, causing shivers to race up and down her spine.

  York finally smiled and she realized that their hands were still clasped. Or rather, she was still holding on tightly to York’s hand.

  Without meaning to, Cassidy made a small squeaking noise and pulled her hand away. This was not some good-looking guy, he was potentially a killer. There was no way in hell she was going to drool over him.

  Not happening.

  It didn’t matter that his shoulders were impossibly broad. That his eyes held a mischievous twinkle. He wore faded jeans and a grey nondescript T-shirt. Both garments clung to him lovingly.

  No drooling.

  She could do this.

  “I can scent that you are a little afraid.” he said, his deep voice washed over her like mulled wine.

  “You can smell that?” Stupid question Cassidy. It had been part of the brief during the training session that vampires had greatly enhanced senses. Their sense of smell was so fantastic, that women wanting to join the program had to initially agree to go on birth control pills to prevent ovulation. Apparently, the scent of a woman during that part of her cycle could drive a vampire male insane.

  York nodded, his nostrils flared. “You had eggs and bacon for breakfast. Your shower gel scents of vanilla, your lotion is fruity and you’re not wearing any perfume.”

  “We were told not to wear any. They said that it can be a little overpowering for your senses.”

  He nodded. “We have half an hour…” He glanced at the watch on his wrist. “Make that twenty minutes. Can I get you something to drink?”

  Her mouth did feel a little dry but she doubted that something to drink would help. She nodded anyway.

  The room, just like her suite, was tastefully decorated in much the same way. It was a living room with a small kitchenette in the corner. York moved to what looked like a minibar and opened it, having to duck down quite low to take a look inside at the contents.

  “There is water, soda and juice…”

  “A juice would be great, thanks.” At least she was sounding a little more confident now, although the opposite was true. Allison said that if
she was in the least bit attracted to the vampire drinking from her, that her arousal would be that much worse. York had to be the most good-looking man she’d ever seen in her life. He’s not a man Cassidy, he’s a vampire. He has long sharp fangs that could rip you to shreds in an instant.

  Even knowing that, she couldn’t stop from noticing how great his ass looked in his jeans. How thick his thighs were, how his built stature was that much more accentuated by his narrow waist.

  “I’ve got orange, apple or fruit cocktail.”

  “Anything. Surprise me.” Why the hell had she said that? He didn’t even know her. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

  York glanced over his shoulder at her. A small, mischievous grin toyed with the corners of his mouth.

  Oh god!

  She thought of telling him that she hadn’t meant to sound flirtatious, but bit down on her tongue instead. With her luck, it would come out sounding all wrong and just make things worse.

  Ice chinked into a glass and there was a sound of a can opening. Grinning, York walked over and handed her the glass.

  “You didn’t mention tomato juice as an option.” It looked just like blood. Her stomach gave a little lurch at the thought of this man’s mouth on her neck…of his fangs piercing her skin. She also felt a heat low down in the pit of her stomach. Oh god, it was desire mixed in with fear. The thought of his mouth on her both terrified and excited her.

  “You said to surprise you, now drink up.” York gestured to the glass in her hand.

  Looking down at the beverage, she swallowed thickly feeling a fissure of fear. If he went into bloodlust she was a goner. Three seconds suddenly felt like a long time. She wondered if she would even be able to say the word pumpkin.

  At the thought of the ridiculous safe word, she choked out a laugh.

  York cocked his head. “What is it?”

  She shook her head. “Nothing.”

  York scrutinized her for a second and she could almost physically feel his eyes on her. Stroking her flesh in the softest, most tantalizing way. She had to suppress a shiver.