The Dark Secret of the CEO by Sofia de Orellana

“Don’t start dragging her into your antics,” Bart groans.

“Oh, don’t be such a sourpuss Bart,” chuckles Rebecca. “Baby Vamp’s got to learn every bit of it, doesn’t she? And this is by far one of the best parts of our new nature…”

“Still,” says Cata, looking a bit worried. “She’s barely learned how to feed herself, she’s a bit too young for this…”

“I’m not some clueless virgin, Cata,” I reassure her. “…But seriously? Arousal makes blood taste better?”

“So much better,” Cecily purrs.

“That guy’s blood was good, wasn’t it?” Rebecca smiles. “It’s a chemical reaction that makes the humans’ blood even better, and even attracts us vampires to them. It’s like a conditioned response, like some creatures are naturally attracted by some smells or pheromones of their partners or prey, we are attracted by the healthy, excited humans. You’ll find we’re less attracted to intoxicated or ill ones, because their blood is less filling for us.”Daily Latest update www.noveljar.com

Damn, that seems true. Thinking back, the guys from the bar were definitely excited by me, but the cheap alcohol they were intoxicated on helped minimise my thirst. I can’t help but lick my lips. Scott was a disgusting character, but his blood was the most delicious I’ve had since I transformed, and by far…

“You should have seen, back in the day,” chuckles Cecily. “There used to be some mean parties going on, with lots of sex and blood…”

“Your orgies almost got us in a lot of trouble is what you forget to mention,” hisses Bart, sitting next to me on the couch. “Or did you already forget Richard had to intervene before we got exposed?”Daily Latest update www.noveljar.com

Now, I’m curious what that’s about… Although from the grimaces Cecily and Rebecca make, I’ll take a guess that it is not the first time the duo of vampire ladies got in trouble. Perhaps that explains why they were so hands-off with me too. I probably wouldn’t have been able to get away if it had been Bart or Swithin watching me yesterday.

“Pleasantries aside, Darling, those pictures are quite amazing,” says Lancelot, staring at the screen of my laptop. “The lad took some good pictures but more than that, you do have some real talent!”

I can’t help but feel a little proud hearing his praise. It’s the first time in a while that I’ve worked, and been sincerely praised for what I did. For a while, everyone in the living room reviews the pictures with me, arguing about the best ones to keep for my book as a model. Scott the Bastard actually had time to take hundreds of shots before I bit him, so there are plenty to choose from, and everyone gets quite interested.

“You shouldn’t have let him take some in your panties,” groans Bart. “The man’s a pig.”

“Let’s just delete them,” nods Rebecca, suddenly taking the laptop from me.

Before I can argue, she quickly deletes the most “naked” pictures of me, and even argues about a couple more that Lancelot or Bart are speaking against. I have to admit, I’m a bit amused to see my hundreds of years-older siblings trying to protect the naive twenty-five years old I am. Or perhaps it’s their more conservative views speaking, but none of those pictures of me in underwear are nearly as racy as blood orgies…Daily Latest update www.noveljar.com

In the end, I’m left with a pretty impressive stack of about a hundred pictures that everyone agreed on, and Cecily sets herself next to me in the living room to start editing them. I have to admit, although I’ve seen that process a couple of times, I know literally nothing about photo editing, but it quickly proves to be more interesting than I thought. Rebecca has work to do so she leaves us to it, while Bart, uninterested, just starts playing on his phone at one end of the sofa, and Cata goes back to the kitchen, only coming back regularly to pour us some tea. To my surprise, Lancelot is surprisingly knowledgeable in photography and modelling as well.

“I did some work as a model, a while ago,” he explains. “Turns out there is a lot of money to be made even when you’re a bit of an aged wine…”

Cecily rolls her eyes.

us another story, Lance. If your ego

from my new body. I clearly remember taking those pictures just tonight, but the killer with her gorgeous red hair, lean body and burning stare in there still feels like a bit of a stranger to me. I tried to copy what I thought a model

“You don’t like them?”

realise Cecily’s caught on to my strange expression. I shake my

“No, they’re fine.”

scoffs. “I’m jealous of you right now, and that’s despite loving absolutely everything about myself. I’m never going to grow those inches nor have that body type, Hera. You should feel blessed with what you have. I don’t know how underappreciated you’ve been until now, but it’s about damn time you start to realise your talent. You can afford to be your own product. Most humans out there spend hundreds trying to be prettier, taller, thinner, or whatever is the decade’s trend. You are a beautiful piece of woman, Baby Vamp, so own it. You nailed that photoshoot and even got a bastard bleeding. Don’t you dare think this

wasn’t mine? Sure, the vampire glow-up helped, but it is still my body. It’s

a new me born from the ashes June left behind. Like… Yeah, like a butterfly out of its chrysalis. There’s no shame in being different. Some people go on diets, some people wear makeup or change their hair color. Some get fake tan, some bleach their teeth… I’m not so different. I’m just the next

“Thanks, Cecily.”

as touching as this was, can we go back to business? I’m only in picture five and

famous runways. Before I know it, we spend a good portion of the night talking about photoshoots, agencies, the history of the modelling industry, and everything I should know before trying to pass for a model. I’m enjoying this more than I thought, and before sunrise, I even get into some practice with Lance acting as my coach, telling me how to pose, ways to please the camera and all the basics of modelling. I don’t think I’ve learned this much from the few gigs I got back when I was an actress. The more we speak, actually, the more I realise I could have done

Cecily smiles after a little while. “I think we got something to work with right there. I’m just going to take some of these, post it on your instagram with a few hashtags, and

I

down the base, Hera. Moveover, it’s not like we’re really trying to sign you with an agency, we just need to make it look

some fake photoshoots you would have done with that agency Swithin will be

“The agency is ready.”

and Swithin just walked in, his tablet in his hands, showing us some website page of what looks like a really believable agency. He shows it to me, and sure enough, under their “signed

in case he has the idea

director?” I frown,

able to act the part if he ever gets too curious,” Swithin shrugs. “Officially,

the industry, with a small paragraph of achievements, most of those probably fake. I see he also listed Vivian, one of the Heartgraves I’ve yet to meet, as the Agency Public Relations Manager… Aside from those two, all the other people listed there are unknown, but I

and a long list of other management issues,” he explains. “Charles Williams already

“Already?” I exclaim.

see that bastard so

remember? We have a whole lot to do if we want to expose him and get your revenge, Baby Vamp, hence why we’re getting started and we have to act fast for absolutely everything. Cecily, how is her profile coming

she groans. “I can send you a few

She will go and get two framed for my office. I need to make Williams curious about

“Changed for what?”

ex-fiancé is landing in

advice, I pick a white turtleneck, a beige coat and leather pants with boots, a cap and glasses to hide my face. While getting ready, I can’t help but feel the nervousness rise. Charles is coming to England. The man who pushed me to my death, ruined my life and made it miserable for months is coming here. …What the fuck am I going to do? The rage surges again. I’d be able to kill him, I think. The mere thought of everything I have endured until now is driving me crazy. I stuff the cap on my head and the large glasses on my face, and run downstairs. I find not only Swithin but also Bart waiting for me. The first one added an elegant hat and a long coat, while Bart’s face is hidden under an oversized

coming?” I

“And since babysitting is my only option