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Not to mention that by giving up my shift, I’ve lost out on a couple of hundred dollars in tips. Grabbing my purse, I head home and flop into bed, growling the whole time.
The morning isn’t much better, and I spend most of the day Saturday just stewing and trying to get Jeanine to unclench her sphincter.
Pulling up in front of Petals, I’m just hoping that we’ve got a big crowd. The parking lot looks good, so Hello, Dolly! I’ve got a shot of not ending the week on a bad note . . . if I’m lucky.
I slip through the door without anyone noticing me, a plain-ish girl in oversized sweats and a hoodie that hides my face, helping me be invisible. Except to Logan, who’s on door security and does his job, giving me a quick once-over to make sure I’m allowed entry. I give him a small smile, but he returns his attention to the door, dismissing me without a word.
Backstage, I change, putting the last touches on my makeup and giving my hair and my girls one last poof as I cross my fingers for a good night. “Here’s to hoping we’ve got high-rollers who like fifties over fives.”
Looking over, I see Allie slipping into lingerie for her performance tonight and giving me a cockeyed grin. If you’d told me a few months ago that hanging around a bunch of half-naked, or sometimes fully naked, women wouldn’t make me bat an eye, I’d have laughed my butt off. I’m no prude, but it’s not like my real life has offered many opportunities for in-depth analysis of panty styles, grooming habits, and ways to highlight your best assets.
But these girls, the ones I call friends, are real and open. They’ve given me a lot of insight into men, some good and some bad, and most will be the first to give you a Cosmo-worthy tip when you have an unfortunate pimple or need a hair plucked from a spot you can’t quite reach.
“Hey, Allie, sorry I missed your call last night,” I reply, glad I get to wear real underwear as Allie fiddles with her four ounces of ‘stage costume.’ “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, I heard about what happened Thursday night from Dominick,” Allie says, straightening up. “I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You are, aren’t you?”
She looks at me, her brown eyes warm with concern, and I blush, nodding. “Yeah, totally fine. Just had to take care of something unexpectedly for a friend, so Sarah covered for me. I think it’s almost time for her next school loan payment, so she seemed glad to get the weekend shift.”
I feel guilty for not being completely honest, but I can’t exactly explain that I was working my other job as a reporter, no matter how good of friends we are. Allie’s too close to Dominick, and I’ve got to keep that screen between us. It sucks too, because honestly, I’d count Allie as one of my closest girlfriends. And she doesn’t even know my real name.
“Marco said Shane took you home.”
It’s a statement, not a question, but I treat it as one anyway. “Yeah, I was pretty shook up, so he drove me home. It was nice of him.”
I purposefully leave out that he spent the night and the awkward morning departure. Allie grins, shaking her bouncy curls and boobs at the same time. “Nice? I’m sure Shane would love to hear you describe him as nice. Because trust me, there isn’t a single nice thing about that man. He is bad . . . in the best way.”
Her voice goes all breathy at the end, and I’m struck with a twinge of jealousy. I cover that with a smirk and zing her back. “Hmm, sounds like someone has a crush. Better not let Dominick hear you talking like that.”
Allie flushes instantly, stammering and shaking her head. “No, no, no. Listen, Shane’s got the whole bad boy persona going on. Hard body, tattoos, you know.”
“He’s got tats?” I ask, surprised. I mean, I’m not that surprised, but I’ve never seen Shane in anything but his normal long-sleeved shirt. It makes me wonder when Allie saw him.
“Yeah, and before you ask, there was a night right before you started where Shane had to deal with three drunken frat boys. One of them got a handful of Shane’s shirt, and we all got an eyeful of some pretty impressive eye candy. Actually, that was the only damage Shane took.”
My pulse is hammering in my chest and I can’t help it. “Wish I could have seen that.”
Allie grins. “But you also know Shane. He’s a badass, to be sure, but he’s got that golden core to him. There’s a deep-seated decent streak about him. Dominick’s a different creature altogether. It’s not a façade with him. He actually is a bad guy.”
