"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?"

A knock sounded at the door, and the Secret Service agent cracked it open. "The meeting has started in the Oval Office. The president requests Miss Abigail's attendance."

"I'll be right there." She stood and picked up her portfolio. "It'll be fine, Mom."

Her mother sighed wearily. "I hope so."

She waved at Madison as she crossed the room. "See you later."

"Good luck." Madison eased up close to her and lowered her voice. "With everything."

Was she referring to Gregori? "Thank you." Thank you for not mentioning him to Mom.

With a smile, Madison patted her on the shoulder. "You've always worked so hard. You deserve to be happy."

So Madison approved? Abigail nodded and left the room.

Sure, she wanted to be happy, but could happiness be found with a vampire? She'd certainly felt happy in Gregori's arms last night, but what if that sensation proved to be fleeting? Could her happiness endure if it made her parents unhappy? What if her mother was right and Gregori's attraction to her faded away as she grew older? What if he expected her to become a vampire, too?

She shuddered. Kissing Gregori was one thing, but getting involved to the point that he'd want her to become a vampire, too - that was really frightening.

She should stop this now before she fell totally, irreversibly in love. Stop falling in love? A chill prickled the back of her neck.

It might already be too late.

Gregori stood when Abigail entered the Oval Office. His chest tightened, and he fought an urge to pull her into his arms. She was wearing a lab coat as if she'd just come from work, and she had a leather portfolio gripped in one hand.

"Good evening." He kept his face blank.

She glanced at him and nodded. "Gregori." She smiled slightly at her father and the CIA director, Nick Caprese. "I hope I didn't miss anything important."

"We're just getting started." Her father motioned to the couches, then sat in the chair at the head of the coffee table.

Gregori sat to the president's right and set his folder on the coffee table. Abigail took a seat on the couch across from him, next to Caprese. She must be trying to keep a distance from him. Hopefully that only signified she was trying to keep their relationship a secret. He didn't want to consider that she might be having second thoughts.

She laid her portfolio on the couch beside her, then shifted her gaze straight to her father.

"Gregori teleported straight to this office from New York," the president told her. "Very impressive. And he tells me you practiced teleporting with him last night and did extremely well."

She nodded. "Yes."

She was purposely trying not to look at him, Gregori thought. "I was just telling the president and Mr. Caprese about MacKay Security and Investigation."

"And I verified with the British prime minister that they have a good working relationship with Angus MacKay and his employees," Caprese said.

"Excellent." The president turned to Gregori. "So you were about to tell us about a plan you developed with Mr. MacKay?"

"Yes." Gregori opened his folder. "Angus and I selected the members for the team last night. We're calling it the A-Team. A for Abigail."

Her father smiled. "I like it."

Gregori glanced at Abigail. She was focused on his folder, her cheeks slightly flushed.

He picked up the paper on top. "This is a brief bio and photo for the team captain, J.L. Wang. He speaks fluent Mandarin and can blend in among the locals. He's been a vampire for two years. Before that, he was a FBI special agent stationed in Kansas City. For the past year, he's been head of security for the West Coast Coven, headquartered in San Francisco."

"Sounds good." The president scanned J.L.'s profile, then passed it on to Caprese, who glanced at it, then set it on the coffee table.

Abigail slid the paper closer to her so she could see it.

Gregori picked up the next profile. "The second vampire on the team is Russell Ryan Hankelburg. He was a major in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War. He's an expert in weaponry and survival techniques."

The president looked over his profile. "He was declared MIA in 1971. What happened to him?"

"He was discovered by some MacKay employees a year ago in a cave in northern Thailand," Gregori said. "We believe he was in a coma for thirty-nine years. Angus managed to revive him by transforming him. The minute he heard about this mission, he volunteered. He's eager to serve his country once again."

"Admirable." The president handed the profile to Caprese.

"So not only did he wake up Undead, but he lost thirty-nine years of his life?" Abigail asked. "That must have been traumatic."

Gregori shrugged. "He's a Marine. From what I hear, he adjusted quickly to all his new vampire capabilities."

Caprese scanned his profile, then set it on the table. "These two men appear to be excellent choices. I'll have to vet them, of course."

"Of course. As vampires, we won't be able to do much during the day." Gregori refrained from saying they were actually dead. It was a vulnerability they didn't want the government to know about. "We don't want to leave Abigail unprotected while we sleep, so we're bringing a few day guards."

He lifted the next profile. "This is Howard Barr. He was a defensive lineman for the Chicago Bears."

President Tucker took the paper and frowned. "I can see why you might need some humans, but why not take Josh and Charles?" He motioned to Charles, who stood by the door.

"Or some operatives from the Agency," Caprese offered. "They have experience in this sort of mission."

"Yes, but they're not going to have abilities like our day guards."

Caprese snorted. "I say we go with a few of my men. It'll show that you Vamps are willing to work with us."

Gregori winced. "I'm afraid we have to insist on our own guys."

"Why?" Caprese sat back. "What's so special about them? Do they crap golden eggs?"

"Something like that," Gregori muttered. He and Angus had debated this for an hour. The shifters expected the Vamps to keep their secret. But if Abigail traveled with them, she'd have to know. And if she knew, then her father should know. If he found out after the trip was over, he'd be understandably angry that they had withheld the information.

Gregori leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. "The information I'm about to tell you is top secret even in the vampire world. I'd like your word that it never leaves this room."

The president and CIA director exchanged looks, then nodded.

"There is another group of . . . people, supernatural like vampires, but different. They wish to remain secret for obvious reasons. I need your word that you will never attempt to hunt them down or harm them. They have trusted us to keep their secret, and it would be dishonorable for us to betray them in any way."

"You have my word," President Tucker said, then gave Caprese a pointed look. "If you can't keep a secret, leave the room now."

Caprese arched a brow. "I was quiet about vampires for six years. I can keep my mouth shut."

"All right, then." Gregori glanced at Abigail, whose face had turned pale. "Howard is a shifter." When he was met with blank looks, he explained further. "A shape shifter. He changes form at will."

She gasped. "You mean like a werewolf?"

"The majority of shifters are werewolves," Gregori admitted.

Caprese scoffed. "I don't believe it."

Abigail shook her head. "I don't see how it's physically possible."

Gregori gave her a pointed look. "There are a lot of things that can be possible." Like a relationship with me. Her cheeks blushed, so he assumed she'd understood his point. "If you need proof, I could bring Howard here and let him shift. He might rip the sofas in two, but - "

"Wait." The president lifted a hand. "If he turns into a beast, will my daughter be safe?"

"Yes." Gregori nodded. "He has complete control. And even in human form, he has super strength and speed and heightened senses. He can protect Abigail better than any human."

"He's a werewolf?" she asked him.

"Actually, he's a were-bear. A Kodiak bear. Nobody's going to mess with Howard."

She stared at him with a stunned expression.

"The second day guard is Rajiv." Gregori picked up the last profile.