Free Vamps And The City by Kerrelyn Sparks Page A

and drove to his apartment in Greenwich Village.
    He settled on the couch with a beer and a sandwich and began watching Darcy’s old reports. He’d expected it to be boring, but she made him smile and laugh with the crazy situations she got herself into. He was watching her attempt an interview with a pregnant hippo at the Bronx Zoo when he finally fell asleep.
    And dreamed of Darcy.
    When he woke, the television greeted him with static and snow. He turned the TV and VCR off, noticing the time. Six-forty in the evening. Crap. He’d be late to the seven o’clock nightly meeting. He called the office, but Sean surprised him by telling him to take a few days off.
    “Have you signed the contract yet?” Sean asked.
    “No sir. I’ll take care of that.” Austin hung up and dug through his papers ’til he located the contract from DVN. An odd paragraph caught his eye. Why not ask Darcy about it? After all, he knew where she would be tonight.
    The auditions at DVN were scheduled to begin at ten P.M., so Austin arrived at nine. He slid two stakes into an inside pocket of his jacket. That and the silver crucifix under his shirt would have to suffice for protection.
    He hesitated outside the entrance. The letters DVN glowed in neon over his head. Act normal, he warned himself. You don’t know vampires exist. You’re a dumb innocent. Yeah, and he felt like a sheep meandering into a lion’s den.
    He pushed open the door and entered. The lobby decor was dramatic, done in shades of black and red. A few men lounged in red leather chairs. They looked at him and sniffed. He strode toward the receptionist desk. The girl was well coordinated with the room, dressed in black with a red scarf around her neck. Even her hair was dyed black with bright red highlights. She was sharpening her red-painted nails with an emery board.
    “Good evening.”
    Without glancing up, she pointed at a clipboard. “If you’re here for the auditions, sign in,” she began with a nasal voice.
    “I’m here to see Darcy Newhart.”
    She looked up and sniffed. “What are you doing here?”
    “I need to see Darcy Newhart. It’s a business matter.” He showed her the brown envelope in his hand.
    “But you’re a—” She snapped her mouth shut, apparently realizing she shouldn’t admit that she wasn’t as alive as he was. “Uh, sure. Her office is down the hall. Fifth door on the right, just before you get to the recording studios.”
    “Thank you.” Austin proceeded down the hall, aware that every vampire in the lobby was staring at his back. He knocked on the door. No answer.
    “Miss Newhart?” He cracked the door. No one there, though the papers on her desk indicated she’d been there recently. He slipped inside and closed the door. It was a small office—no windows, old desk, old computer. The two chairs facing the desk looked like they’d been retired from an old hotel.
    His wandering gaze snagged on a large paper cup on her desk. It had an opaque plastic cover snapped on top with a straw stuck in the hole. He picked it up. It was almost empty. And icy cold. That was good. What vampire would want his blood cold? He lifted the cup to his nose and sniffed. Chocolate? There was another flavor he wasn’t sure of, but the chocolate was definitely there. He grinned. She had to be alive. Still, he should have a taste, just to be sure. He started to peel off the cover.
    The door opened. Darcy Newhart strode inside, then stopped short. Her mouth fell open. His did, too, and he didn’t even have the excuse of being surprised. But he’d forgotten how strongly she affected him. His physical reaction was immediate, causing his heart to race and his groin to swell.
    Her hair was loose about her shoulders. She was dressed in khaki slacks and a blue T-shirt that molded perfectly to her breasts. The shirt was devoid of any pithy sayings like Hot Babe, which would have been ridiculously redundant in her case.
    “Good evening.” He focused on her