Christmas Captive - Isabella Starling Page 0,12

away, not even after years of doing this. You just get better at hiding them.”

We chatted easily, but both of us went quiet the moment the casting team walked back into the room. One of them, a tall man with blond hair, stopped and stared at me.

“You look familiar,” he muttered. “Do I know you?”

I looked up at him and a feeling of dread settled in the pit of my stomach. Fuck. He was one of the regulars at Le Cabaret. I could only pray he wouldn’t recognize me.

“No, I don’t think so,” I chirped.

“Strange,” he muttered. “I rarely forget a face.” He gave me an appreciative one-over before adding, “Especially one like yours.”

I flushed, looking away to hide my embarrassment. He kept staring at me until the group went into the theater, and he followed behind them.

In minutes, the woman who’d been calling out names reappeared.

“Kensington Waverly,” she called out, and the blonde stood up.

“Oh God.” She swallowed, pale with nervousness.

“You’ll be okay,” I smiled at her. “Good luck.”

“Thanks,” she whispered before disappearing into the room. Her audition took the longest. By the time the door opened again, I was an impatient mess, eager to get the casting call over with. I had a shift at Le Cabaret that night again, and I couldn’t miss it. Maybe this time, Skull wouldn’t take my money away from me.

I had twenty minutes left before I absolutely had to leave to make it to my shift on time before she reappeared, her face a blotchy red mess.

“Is everything okay?” I asked, furrowing my brows at the sight of her.

“No, it’s not!” she cried out.

“Amicia Romano,” the woman called out. “Come on, no dillydallying, we don’t have all day.”

I flushed. They didn’t care about my time, but their own was precious enough to rush me along.

I walked into the casting room where the casting committee was waiting. I greeted them, but no reply came from the group. There were two men and a woman there, and they all regarded me with bored looks. They were probably exhausted from their long day. I knew I wouldn’t impress them with my looks alone. Luckily for me, my dancing was the star of the show, and I just knew I was right for the role.

“Get into position,” the gray-haired woman sitting behind the long table mumbled, sounding bored. “Start the music.”

The woman who’d called me in sat down at the piano, stretching her fingers and starting to play. The familiar notes of Profokiev’s melody awoke something deep within me, and I got into the starting position, ready to impress.

As the melody changed to Juliet’s soliloquy, I began to dance. I twirled and twisted my body in tune with the music, managing to forget all about the people watching me as I made the dance my own.

I felt their eyes on me as I moved through the room. The man from Le Cabaret was making me nervous, but I tried not to let it show. Confidence, even when faked, could hide a multitude of sins.

I danced until I was out of breath, and the piano player slowed to a stop. I stopped in the fourth position and was shocked to hear two of the casting members clapping for me.

I looked up with a bright smile, my eyes fixing on the other man in the team, with a head of thick silver hair.

“That was…” The man’s eyes sparkled. “Unforgettable. You were absolutely fantastic. Magnificent.”

“Thank you,” I managed, fighting off the traitorous blush in my cheeks as I looked down, tucking a stray strand of hair behind my ear. “I’m so glad you enjoyed it.”

“It was breathtaking,” the grey-haired woman added with a tight-lipped smile. “I’m impressed. We certainly saved the best for last.”

I smiled before shifting my attention to the third man in the group, the one I was most nervous about, since he was the one who could possibly recognize me from Le Cabaret. He tapped his finger against his chin as he regarded me with a naughty look. Oh God. Had he recognized me?

“It was good,” he finally said, never taking his eyes off me. “Very good.”

“Thank you,” I whispered.

“We’ll be in touch,” he ended the conversation. “Expect a call soon.”

“Thank you so much.” I was giddy with excitement as I shook their hands and made my way out of the room. I expected to see Kensington there, but she was gone. I gathered my things before making my way out of the theater’s back exit.