EXCERPT

Executive Decisions: By The Numbers
by Marteeka Karland
cover art by Reneé George
ISBN (13): 978-1-59596-776-3
Genre(s): Paranormal
Theme(s): Ménage, Vampires

What the hell had she agreed to? Zoe had been asking herself that question the entire flight. She shifted nervously in her first class seat, a glass of wine in her hand. She tried to drink it -- needed to drink it -- but her stomach rebelled.

The safety precautions in place would alert not only Executive Decisions, but the local authorities if she felt herself threatened. The contract she signed required her to get a physical, complete with blood work, and provided her with a guaranteed clean bill of health for anyone Executive Decisions sent to her for entertainment purposes. It also guaranteed that condoms would be used at all times, no exceptions.

All the arrangements had been made at the hotel to accommodate the extra visitor, and separate air travel to and from the area had been taken care of. If all went as Darius told her it would, she'd arrive approximately one hour before her escort. She should have plenty of time to prepare herself.

But could she really prepare herself to spend a couple of weeks alone with a stranger? It was a damned good thing she hadn't had time to really consider this, or she'd be headed to a beach side bungalow alone. She was scared, but also excited, and the latter emotion was really much stronger than the former.

It took her six hours to reach the Big Island of Hawaii and another half hour before she was in a taxi on the way from the airport to the beach house she'd rented. By the time she'd unpacked and freshened up, there was a knock at the front door.

Zoe's heart pounded inside her chest. This was it. She was about to meet the man she'd hired to be at her beck and call for the next two weeks.

She opened the door, a big smile plastered on her face.

And came face to face with not one, but two very familiar faces.

Dorian and Sebastian Collingsworth.

Son of a bitch.

It made her feel better when the two men she fantasized most about stood there just as dumbfounded as she was. She couldn't stop the question that popped out of her mouth.

"What the hell are you two doing here?" Neither man said anything for a moment. Identical looks of disbelief and confusion graced their faces. The men who had tormented her for the last ten years were finally silenced. And it hit her. "You guys are my escort -- err, $escorts -- aren't you? You're here to do my bidding."

All three of them looked at each other for several moments, the expression on the men's faces becoming disgruntled, and Zoe grinned until she couldn't help but laugh out loud until tears streaked down her face.

"Oh, God!" She laughed, wrapping her arms around her middle in her mirth, and sagged against the door facing. "You've got to be kidding." Dorian growled and stepped toward her, but Zoe was too lost in humor to be properly impressed. "There $is a god after all!" Zoe whooped and twirled in her delight. $Finally, she had them. She supposed she should be a little apprehensive, but she couldn't muster the effort. All she could concentrate on was how sweet her revenge would be.

"Witch," Dorian hissed. "You have no idea what you've gotten yourself into. How did you manage this anyway?"

Sebastian snorted. "It was Darius. I'd bet my life on it. The damned sprite set us up."

"Do we have to honor the damned contract? I mean, she can get out of it. Can we?"

"Sure." Sebastian crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the doorframe Zoe had vacated in her excitement. "We can back out. But if we do, we have to provide a legitimate reason, or we get canned. Somehow, I don't think 'because she's a witch' will work."

Zoe, still giggling, opened the door wide and invited them in. "Come on in, guys. Make yourselves at home."

When Dorian gave her a menacing look -- a look she'd seen too many times to count -- Sebastian thrust an arm out to block the other vampire's way.

"This isn't a game, Zoe. Yes, we're here to do your bidding, but we have ways of making $you do what $we want. No mind control. No funny stuff. Just pure sexual frustration. There are things we can do -- together and separate -- that will make you cream your panties. We are masters at seduction. This escort business is our way of snagging prey in the guise of kinky sex. After all these years, you know that. If you go through with this, if you don't call Darius right now and tell him you don't want as your escorts, we'll be as relentless with you as we are with every other woman we've ever served working for Executive Decisions. Our very lives depend on it."

Zoe narrowed her eyes, her anger starting to rise to the surface above her elation. "You mean you'll ignore my wishes? Are you telling me you refuse to let me call the shots like I was promised I'd be able to? There's no way I'll believe you can't find sustenance with someone else, even while you're here with me. Because, even though sex with the two of you might prove interesting, that's not what I'm after."

"No?" Dorian lowered his arm and leaned over until his face was inches from her own. "It will be. There's no woman we can't charm into our bed."

Zoe gulped, but stood her ground. Considering how very much she already wanted to be in their bed, she didn't doubt the truth of his words, but he sounded just a tad too cocky for her liking. "I've got news for you, big boy, none of your other clients knew you two as well as I do. If they did, it wouldn't have been so damned easy to get them to fuck you. More likely, you'd have met a horrible end a long time ago."

There was a moment of silence before Sebastian straightened, a smile teasing his mouth. "You do have a point, Zoe. Perhaps we should use that as a challenge. If we can manage to get into your bed, we can charm the pants off anyone."

She snorted. "Right. Whatever. I've got to finish unpacking. There's a master suite and one guest suite. You two can fight over the bed in the guest rooms as far as I'm concerned. And --" She looked at both of them, making sure she had their attention. Might as well nip this in the bud. "-- this is the last time you'll disrespect me for the next two weeks. What happens after we get home, I can't control. For the money I'm paying for this trip, this experience, you'll damned well treat me like the most important person in the world."