Free Wicked Obsession by Cora Zane Page B

staff. Gisele told me you banned her from your room.”
    “Did she?” Her brows went up. “I suppose she also told you I found her playing dress up in my clothes? She was wearing my great-grandmother’s hairpins.”
    If the news surprised him, his expression didn’t show it. “I’ll investigate the matter, and if what you say is true, I’ll speak to her about it.”
    “You do that,” she said in a brittle voice. More than likely, Gisele had already fed him some reason for the locked door. How clever of her. From now on, she’d know to watch her back. “In the meantime, I’ll take care of my own suite.”
    “As you choose,” he grated, and picked up the silver blood cup from the table and sipped. “From now on, if you have a problem with one of my servants, you bring that issue to me and I will handle it.”
    Eleni lost all appetite for her breakfast. Julian’s droll arrogance was too much for her. If not for her probation, she would’ve had a few choice words to say to her new Biter.
    But really, what was the point of furthering the argument? The early evening was already ruined. He said he’d talk to Gisele, whatever that was worth.
    She pretended an interest in the croissant on her plate, but the first bite she took was like ashes in her mouth. She picked at her food because Julian watched her, but the moment his cell phone rang, she saw her doorway to freedom. The second he picked up his phone and answered it, Eleni daubed at her mouth with the edge of the napkin and stood up from the table. She didn’t wait to be excused, or bother to push her chair in. Why bother with niceties when he was already angry with her? She just wanted to be away from him, the sooner the better.
    Hurt, angry, and confused, she took her coffee with her and headed toward the doorway, aware that he watched her back as she strode out of the dining room. Let him look. Clearly, the loyalty lines had been drawn well before her arrival. What a fool she’d been to think a day in bed with him would have made any impression on him. But then maybe that was where she kept failing—by mistakenly thinking she could be something more to a vampire than a blood meal and a body to warm someone’s bed. The worst part of it was that she’d actually opened herself to the idea of being close to Julian—another failure on her part. One would think she’d have learned her lesson by now.
    If holding her at a distance was how Julian wished to pursue their relationship, she could go along with that. In fact, she should count it as a blessing. She was far less likely to get her heart broken if she gave up any idea of being loved, and simply took her duty at face value.
    Despite feeling like a grand fool, she squared her chin and started up the stairs to her room to setup her laptop and check her email. From now on, she’d make an effort to keep it light and impersonal with Julian. But even as she made that resolution, she wondered how she’d deal with Gisele if she ever found the woman in her room again.

Chapter Seven

    Julian strode into his office and slammed the door behind him. He headed straight to the bar across the room and took a bottle of the Sévigné special sang vin from the refrigerated wine cabinet. His lips compressed into a grim line as he took out a glass and a corkscrew and set about opening the bottle. He much preferred to drink hot, rich blood straight from the source, but as always, he would do as he must.
    The early evening was a total bust. If things had gone differently, he could have had his breakfast in bed— Eleni .
    He’d waken up wanting her. It annoyed him to no end, but it wasn’t so surprising, really. She was beautiful and willing, her skin as smooth and sweet as fresh cream. When he’d bitten her, her delicious blood had flowed into him like a potent liqueur. Just thinking about it made his heart pound and his body restless. He cursed himself for wanting her so strongly. Despite his anger, he craved her