"Really? What year are you? I might know some of your classmates," I said eagerly. After all, alumni share a special bond.
"I graduated in 1875."
"Oh."
"Vampire," he reminded me.
"Yes, I know," I said, blushing profusely, the blood rushing to my cheeks.
Ross hissed, his fangs pressing lightly into his lower lip. "If you could refrain from doing that until our drinks arrive, I'd greatly appreciate it," Ross growled.
"Sorry, Mr. Rossi, I'm Irish. We can't much help it," I squeaked out, and attempted to hide my flaming face with my hands. Ugh, this meeting was NOT going well.
Fortunately, Maddy arrived at just that moment. Ross grabbed his drink from her tray and took a long draught. Apparently sensing the mood, Maddy plopped my wine in front of me and then hightailed it out of there. Wishing I could do the same, I took a longer than polite gulp to calm my nerves.
"My apologies, Corrie, I'm a little hungry."
"Uh, no worries," I said weakly.
"Anyway, I didn't mean to question your abilities. We could use some fresh blood on this account." I sincerely hoped he meant that metaphorically.
Taking a deep breath, I launched into the mini-speech I had prepared. "I have some great ideas to bolster your CSR initiative. First, I think it's imperative we overhaul your youth outreach campaign..."
Ross held up a long white hand, stopping me mid-speech. "In due time. We have something more pressing to deal with at the moment. A PR crisis, if you will."
I blinked. "With Mathison Corp.? I don't think we'll need to deal with that again until the drug reaches the trial phase. Besides, popular opinion's on your side."
Ross waved that away. "No, no that's merely a trifle. This is a far more sensitive issue we're dealing with. And it's sort of a...vampire-wide problem. The Rossis have offered to take the lead on this, but that's mostly because the other vampire families don't want to touch it. We've always believed in being prepared." He leaned in conspiratorially. "If you handle this well, Corrie, it will be very, very rewarding for you. But..." he paused.
"But?"
"If you screw this up - or break our confidentiality agreement - the consequences will be very, very dire. And I don't just mean for the vampire community."
"
"I graduated in 1875."
"Oh."
"Vampire," he reminded me.
"Yes, I know," I said, blushing profusely, the blood rushing to my cheeks.
Ross hissed, his fangs pressing lightly into his lower lip. "If you could refrain from doing that until our drinks arrive, I'd greatly appreciate it," Ross growled.
"Sorry, Mr. Rossi, I'm Irish. We can't much help it," I squeaked out, and attempted to hide my flaming face with my hands. Ugh, this meeting was NOT going well.
Fortunately, Maddy arrived at just that moment. Ross grabbed his drink from her tray and took a long draught. Apparently sensing the mood, Maddy plopped my wine in front of me and then hightailed it out of there. Wishing I could do the same, I took a longer than polite gulp to calm my nerves.
"My apologies, Corrie, I'm a little hungry."
"Uh, no worries," I said weakly.
"Anyway, I didn't mean to question your abilities. We could use some fresh blood on this account." I sincerely hoped he meant that metaphorically.
Taking a deep breath, I launched into the mini-speech I had prepared. "I have some great ideas to bolster your CSR initiative. First, I think it's imperative we overhaul your youth outreach campaign..."
Ross held up a long white hand, stopping me mid-speech. "In due time. We have something more pressing to deal with at the moment. A PR crisis, if you will."
I blinked. "With Mathison Corp.? I don't think we'll need to deal with that again until the drug reaches the trial phase. Besides, popular opinion's on your side."
Ross waved that away. "No, no that's merely a trifle. This is a far more sensitive issue we're dealing with. And it's sort of a...vampire-wide problem. The Rossis have offered to take the lead on this, but that's mostly because the other vampire families don't want to touch it. We've always believed in being prepared." He leaned in conspiratorially. "If you handle this well, Corrie, it will be very, very rewarding for you. But..." he paused.
"But?"
"If you screw this up - or break our confidentiality agreement - the consequences will be very, very dire. And I don't just mean for the vampire community."
"
