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I sighed, “I don’t know.” I shrugged, pursing my lips ruefully. “It’s confusing.”
“What is?”
“This,” I waved my hands helplessly, “thing between us. Like, when we’re together, the air practically crackles, you know?” I flicked her a kind of embarrassed glance.
“But…?”
“But…” I shook my head. “He’s dangerous? He’s my boss? I don’t want to be just another notch in his belt? Take your pick.”
Marci nodded her understanding. “So? What are you gonna do?”
“Fuck if I know. Play it by the ear?”
“I guess that’s all youcando. In any case, it’s nothing to lose sleep over. Put on your lipstick, fix a smile on your face, go out there and slay.”
I smiled. “Yes, madam.”
I squeezed her hand, grateful for her friendship. I hated that I was lying to her, but she couldn’t know the truth without compromising my operation. I did hope that once all this was over, we could remain friends. I wanted that, a surprising amount. It was rare for me to feel like I had made a real friend, and Marci gave me that feeling.
I put on my Stunna red lip paint, lined my eyes with kohl, and got to my feet. Kissing Marci on the cheek, I made my way out to the stage. Monique was just announcing the act before me. The statuesque drag queen, Cinnamon. I could already hear the frat boys cheering, calling out lewd things, and basically bringing down the tone of the club. I rolled my eyes, knowing no one would throwthemout for being unruly.
Money talks.
Cinnamon was not just a dancer. She was a singer, too. She could dance, strip, and sing Sam Smith without putting a single eyelash out of place.
“How will I know if he really loves me?”she crooned, and I swayed, loving the slow piano rendition of it as she slid to the ground in a split and then threw her bodice into the air, where it landed at the edge of the stage. One of the frat boys grabbed for it, but a bouncer got there first, smoothly slipping between him and the stage and pushing the bodice further away, much to his loud disappointment.
She finished to raucous applause, and then Monique was getting on stage, a smile on her face as she announced the next act. I couldn’t believe I was supposed to follow that. I was dressed like a flamenco dancer, all in red and gold, hoping everyone would be distracted by the glitz and glitter of my outfit and not notice how sluggish I was.
The first person I saw as I waltzed onto the stage was Alexei. He was sitting across the room on a raised dais, hands spread out on the back of the black leather seat, staring at me. By his side was a chick with the exact same platinum blonde hair that he had. I think she was the one I bumped into earlier.
I squirmed a bit inside, feeling as if I was being watched by a couple of Targaryens, complete with dragons, as two burly men stood behind them, alert and aware of everything happening around them. There were some other people sitting at their table, but those two stood out as if they were paintings come to life.
I took a deep breath and tried to ignore them as I began to dance. The frat boys were still crowded near the stage and just as loud as they were before. It was easy to ignore them because their presence wasn’t as compelling.
Suddenly I heard my name called. Myrealname. I almost stumbled, I was so startled. I knew it wasn’t Alexei who shouted my name because his lips hadn’t moved except to murmur to his companion now and then.
“Nora!” the person said again, and wolf whistled. They were throwing me off. My heart was racing. The way that they called my name… it was as if they knew me. I couldn’t afford to have my cover blown. Hands trembling slightly, I tried to finish my set without completely fumbling it.
In addition to being tired as hell, now I have to contend with this?
Sometimes I thought my grandmother’s God didn’t like me at all.
Finally, somehow, my set was done to a lot of cheers and a few jeers as I did not take it all off. Really, they were just pieces of string. There was nothing to complain about.
I quickly stepped off stage, meaning to go and change before anyone could stop me but the frat boys were blocking my way. Then I heard the voice again, calling my real name. “Nora! Hey, wait up.”
It was a bit embarrassing to think that someone from my real life was here, watching me. I almost didn’t want to know who it was. They grabbed onto my hand as I tried to hurry away, and they held onto it,fast. With a sigh, I turned around to see who had caught me, and my mouth dried up.
“Cole. What are you doing here?” I hissed.
He grinned drunkenly at me, leering a lot. “The question is, what areyoudoing here? Is the hospital not paying you enough? Are student loans kicking your ass? You should have asked for my help, baby. I’d have been glad to open my wallet.” His hands began to wander, fingers trailing along my left side. I sidled out of range.
“Stop. You need to go. This isn’t the place for you.”
“I need to go? Why? If you can be here, so can I. Speaking of, what the hell are you doing here? I always figured you for the uptight type. It’s always the quiet ones you gotta watch out for, huh?” He grinned salaciously at me, waggling his brows. He lowered his voice and leaned in, breathing alcohol in my face. “So, I take it you’re down to fuck, right?”
I was shaking my head even before he was done. “No, I’m not. Fuck off, Cole, and leave me alone.”
