As always, thank you for reviews and adds to story alerts! I'm glad you're all enjoying this fic! I'm currently trying to wrap things up and have the rest of the story planned out so I'll try not to take too long to get the next chapter up. Till then, enjoy!

Disclaimer: Moonlight and characters don't belong to me; I'm simply a fan having fun with the characters.

"What do you mean she's with a client?" Beth exclaimed. "I was told she was expecting me!"

The petite, curly-haired brunette stared at Beth. "Who did you say you were?"

"Beth Turner."

The girl trailed a finger down an open book in front of her. "I'm sorry, Miss Turner, but your name's not here. Are you sure you have the right date?"

"Try looking for Buzzwire," Beth suggested.

She shook her head. "No Buzzwire either."

"What?!" Beth feigned surprise, blue eyes innocently wide. "But… my editor… she told me that all the details were taken care of and all I had to do was come in and interview Miss Thompson."

"Miss Thompson specifically told me that she was wrapping up an important sale and I was not to disturb her," the girl stated firmly.

Beth paced the room distraughtly. "What am I going to do now? What am I going to do, what am I going to do? Mo will kill me…" she muttered, making sure that at least some of what she said was audible. She whirled suddenly, to face the girl again. "Are you sure Miss Thompson can't see me?"

The girl, who had been regarding Beth uneasily, coughed. "She specifically told me not to disturb her," she repeated solemnly.

Beth walked up to the girl's desk and gripped the edge with both hands. "Can you please check with Miss Thompson? My editor is very serious about the stories she sends us out to cover… if I come back empty-handed, she'll have my head…"

The girl chewed her lips nervously, eyes flitting everywhere but to Beth's unwavering gaze. "I'll see what I can do," she mumbled finally, still not meeting Beth's gaze.

Beth straightened and let her hands fall from the desk's edge. "Thank you," she gushed, smiling sweetly.

"Miss Turner." Charlotte nodded in acknowledgement to Beth when she entered the office. "My assistant tells me you were quite eager to meet with me. May I ask what this interview is for?"

Beth smiled ruefully. "A story profiling the rising businesswomen of LA; it's just something that my editor suddenly felt we had to do. She said something about women empowerment…"

"Ah, I see. Please," she gestured to a chair, "Have a seat." She took a quick glance behind Beth. "No cameraman?"

"We're a few cameramen short this week… the ones that are available were assigned to other stories," Beth answered vaguely. "I was told to get the interview today and if necessary we would schedule another time to do some shooting."

"Hmm. You know, it's strange that no one has contacted me about this before."

"I'll take that up with my editor," Beth promised, flushing slightly. She shifted restlessly in her chair, feeling slightly disconcerted by the way Charlotte was looking at her.

She was further unnerved when Charlotte made no answer, but instead, continued to regard her for almost a full minute. When she did speak, Beth was thrown by her words. "Why… you're her."

"Excuse me?" Beth was sure she had heard wrong.

Charlotte linked her fingers together and leaned on them, never taking her eyes off Beth. "Do you, by chance, know a private investigator by the name of Mick St. John?"

Beth felt her heart accelerate. Mick had talked to Charlotte? And if so, what had they talked about that Charlotte would ask if she knew him? Unable to shake the feeling that there was something important she was missing, Beth decided to tread cautiously. "I've certainly heard of him…"

Charlotte smiled indulgently. "Come now, don't lie. His scent clings to you and yours to his."

Beth's eyes widened as understanding flooded her. "You're a vampire!" The words tumbled out of her mouth before she could think them through.

Charlotte's surprised expression mirrored Beth's. Then she laughed delightedly. "You know about us! Oh this is good, this is good. This is better than I had hoped for."

Beth could only stare at Charlotte, unable to share her pleasure. With a growing sense of apprehension, she wondered what she had done. Her only consolation was that Charlotte hadn't spoken ill of Mick, which, hopefully, meant she held no evil intentions towards him.

When her laughter had subsided, Charlotte returned her attention to Beth. "Do you love him?"

Beth was taken aback. "Who? Mick?"

"Yes, of course," she replied impatiently.

"I… I-I don't see how that's important…" In truth, she didn't know how to feel about Mick. She only knew that thinking of him sent her heart skittering out of control and her mind scattering into confusion. But whether or not that was love, she didn't know; it was something she had avoided thinking about too deeply because knowing the answer to whether she loved Mick or not meant knowing the answer to Josh's proposal.

"I like you," Charlotte said quietly, eyes filled with pity. "I have a gift for you. You can choose to take it or not; perhaps your choice will help you decide if what you feel toward him is indeed, love." But the look in her eyes told Beth that in her mind, she had already decided what Beth's feelings toward Mick were.

"Oh please, no," Beth protested weakly. "A gift is not necessary."

"Oh no, I insist." She leaned forward, eyes glinting. "Beth Turner, how would you like to live for eternity? To be immortal?"

Beth drew in a sharp breath and didn't breathe it back out. Her heart seemed to have stopped beating. "You mean…?"

Charlotte sat back, smiling in satisfaction. "I'm offering to turn you."