Sucker Punch (First Fangs Club #3) - Kristen Painter Page 0,20

she was inside before he pulled away.

She walked to the penthouse elevator. Beside her, at the main elevator, stood a very large man. He was young and attractive, despite the amount of sweat covering him. He looked like he’d just come in from a run, based on how he was dressed. Somehow, the only smell coming off him was a hint of citrusy aftershave.

He glanced at her, then at the elevator she was standing in front of. “You must be the new governor.”

No alarms went off in her head, but it was odd to be recognized when she didn’t have a clue who he was. But then, most people in the building had to know a new resident had moved into the governor’s penthouse. He wasn’t a vampire, though. She knew that much. She kept her face blank. “I am.”

“Congrats on the job.”

“Thanks.” His elevator doors opened first, then hers arrived a second later.

They each stepped onto their respective cars, and that was that. She arrived at the penthouse seconds later, still wondering who he was. And what kind of creature he might be, since Artemis had told her pretty much everyone who lived in the building was some variety of supernatural.

The other thing that stuck in her head was how long it had been since she’d had any exercise. Running, especially, which had once been her go-to stress-burner.

She walked into the penthouse, her mind working. Charlie and Rixaline were in the living room, watching a movie and eating a giant plate of very gooey nachos. Lucky was lounging next to Rixaline. The nachos seemed to be all Rixaline’s. So was the movie. Charlie had a cup of tea on the coffee table next to a half-eaten blueberry muffin the size of a softball, and she was typing away on her phone.

Lucky meowed when he saw Donna. “Hi, big man. Still working, Charlie?”

She looked up. “Just answering an email. Which reminds me, some flowers came for you. They’re on the kitchen counter.” She got off the couch and came around to Donna’s side. “How’d it go?”

Donna pulled the vials out of her pocket. “Mission accomplished.”

“Four, huh?” Charlie smiled. “Way to go, boss.”

“Let’s call it a backup. Or future insurance.”

“Either way, good to have.” She took the vials. “Jerabeth’s hanging out downstairs, waiting. I’ll get these to her immediately.”

“Good. Hopefully, she can do what she needs to do in time.”

“She will.”

“Who are the flowers from?”

“I don’t know. The card is sealed.”

“Okay, I’ll have a look in a second. There’s a gym on the second floor, right?”

“Yes. And an indoor pool, a big Jacuzzi, a steam room, and a sauna. There’s a pair of racquetball courts too. But the pool is really great. It’s not just this big rectangle. They designed it to feel like you’re at a resort. I’m always surprised it doesn’t get used more, but most of the time you have it all to yourself.”

Donna had been planning to hit the gym and put some serious miles on one of the treadmills, but after hearing about the pool, she changed her mind. “You know what? I’m going to check it out. A swim might do me good. I feel like I have all this nervous energy that has no place to go right now. That might be just the thing. Unless I’m needed here?”

“We’re kind of on hold until Jerabeth works out this spell, so go enjoy! There are pool towels down there, but we have some beach towels in the hall linen closet too. Pierce is sleeping, but I could wake him up if you want company.”

“No, let him sleep. We all need to prepare for tomorrow as best we can.”

Donna went into the kitchen to see who’d sent her flowers. They were beautiful. White roses, pale pink hydrangeas, branches laden with red bittersweet berries, and lots of greenery. She plucked out the card and opened it. Blank.

That was odd. Had the florist forgotten to fill it out? She looked at the name of the shop on the envelope. It was local. Maybe Charlie could call them in the morning and see if they could correct the error. She leaned in to smell one of the roses, although she didn’t really need to lean. The bouquet was huge, just begging to be inhaled.

The flower’s perfume was incredibly strong. Interesting, too, with a spicy undertone. Maybe from the bittersweet. Her nose twitched like a sneeze was pending. She wiggled it and sniffed hard to get rid of the sensation.