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He shook his head, leading me back toward the wings where we could watch the second half of the show. “Never mind that right now,” he said. “We’ll talk about it later. Tonight is your night.”
I wanted to argue that he seemed worried, but he turned me around as the curtain lifted again, and the remainder of the show began. Quickly, I forgot about the phone call, pride bursting through me as my cast outshone the first half of the show.
The whoops and cheers lasted a full five minutes after the last curtain call, and the guards had to ask the theatergoers to leave in the end. Nyx and I made our way out to the front to see them off, and everyone demanded to know the upcoming schedule.
“It will be posted on the website,” I laughed, answering the question for the fourth time in as many minutes. “But I believe we’ll be offering two shows a week.”
“I want to reserve a permanent box, in that case.”
“Me too!”
“I want one?—”
“You can arrange all that through the website also,” I informed them as the guards ushered them toward the doors. “It will be first-come-first-served, of course, and the balcony boxes will be at a membership premium.”
When the last audience member had finally cleared out, I collected the dancers from backstage and brought them to the ballroom for our first-ever cast party.
They were in awe of the splendor the minute they walked onto the marble floors.
“Wow!” one of the dancers gasped. “This sure is better than the crappy pub parties that Maximo’s throws.”
I chuckled and eyed Nyx.
“Oh! The king is here!” another one mumbled, curtseying clumsily.
“Pretend I’m just another admiring fan,” Nyx said, backing up in protest. “This party is for you, courtesy of Maren.”
“Thank you, Alpha!”
“No,” Nyx corrected her sharply. “Thank Maren. She’s the one who did everything.”
Embarrassed, the dancer looked at me. “Sorry… thanks, Maren. It’s been so much fun working with you.”
“You all did a wonderful job tonight,” I told them proudly. “I hope you’ll stay on with me as we grow this little company.”
“YES!” came the resounding answer, and I laughed, my heart swelling.
“I’m glad to hear that. Now eat, drink, enjoy yourselves.” I nodded to the DJ I’d hired, and he began to play a popular pop song as the faeries headed toward the extravagant buffet.
“You really did outdo yourself,” Nyx told me, pulling me onto the balcony adjacent to the ballroom. “Not that I had any doubt that you would.”
“Well, I literally couldn’t have done it without you,” I reminded him, placing my arms on his shoulders.
“I’m a little disappointed, though,” he admitted. “I had hoped to see you dance again.”
Flabbergasted, I stared at him. “Really?”
He appeared confused by my reaction. “Of course, really. Seeing you on stage has always turned me on.”
Heat burned through me at his confession, and I blushed, looking down. A part of me had thought he’d told me that to placate me when I’d asked his permission to dance in the show, but knowing that he meant it somehow made the compliment so much more real.
“I’m so proud of you, Maren,” he added. “I knew you could do it, but you really went above and beyond with this show.”
He brushed his mouth over mine, and a flurry of titters erupted behind us. I realized we had an audience. The dancers darted away from the open balcony door and back into the ballroom when they saw us looking.
I started to move out of his arms, but he held me close. “Where are you going?” he growled in my ear, sending more shivers through me.
“We should get back to our guests, shouldn’t we?”
