Savage Vandal (82 Street Vandals #1) - Heather Long Page 0,2
in my most soothing tone. “The weather did crazy things to the roads, and it was a bear to get here. I’ll be changed in ten.”
At six foot, Eric towered over me. A fact he always used to his advantage, when he wanted something. Weirdly, the guy running interference was even taller and broader, but the icy-hot chill rippling over my scalp and down my spine had been utterly absent, even when he’d been glaring at me.
Maybe after all these years, something inside me had finally broken.
“Who the fuck is this?” Eric demanded as he motioned to the theatre tech. “What the fuck is he doing here?”
Yes, totally paying for it later.
“My job.” The crunch of those two words echoed into the silence like he’d thrown them as punches. “Back up.” Gone was any glimmer of the kindness he’d shown me. Kindness? His voice had been all kinds of rough and husky, and I was calling it kindness? The guy didn’t take his gaze off Eric as he bodily invaded his space and forced Eric to either back up or have this guy touching him.
To my absolute shock, Eric retreated.
“Check the deadbolt,” the guy told me over his shoulder without looking at me. “I want to know it works.”
Instead of bristling at the order, I headed straight to the door as he forced Eric backwards and pulled the door closed behind him. I twisted the deadbolt, and the solid click of it driving in sent relief singing in my veins. Forehead against the wood, I let out a long breath, then tested the lock below.
“It works,” I said against the door.
A second later, a piece of paper slipped underneath and a key sat in the center. “All yours.”
“Thank you,” I said, scooping up the key lest someone snag the paper and drag the key back. Someone being Eric. The metal bit into my palm as I closed my fist. A scant second later, a heavy hand hammered on the door, and I jerked away from it.
“Five minutes, Emersyn. Don’t keep me waiting again.”
Yeah, I was going to pay for the tech’s attitude, but right now, I didn’t care. With the show on tonight, Eric would have to be careful where he left bruises. We had performances all week. Turning away, I caught sight of myself in the mirror and sighed.
The mottled bruising under my ribs showed where the tank dipped low. My arms, neck, and face were clear. So were my legs. After I stripped off the rest of the damp clothes, I eyed myself critically. The black, blue, purple, and green bruises littered my chest and torso. The ones on my side were made from hands, but they were bruises layered over bruises.
The venue had wanted me in the minimalist outfit. The first set of numbers called for my stomach to be bare.
That couldn’t happen. But I had the black one piece that was all mesh save for the circles to cover my nipples and a patch over my crotch. Even my ass would be visible through it, but the black would hide the bruises and titillate.
I rolled my eyes and then shook myself out of this negative headspace. I needed to focus. In a few hours, I would fly, riding the music, and the rest of the world would fall away.
At least for a little while.
If only the crash back to Earth didn’t hurt so damn much.
I put on the solid leotard for the practice run and tied my hair up in a messy knot before tucking the keychain onto a necklace and hiding it under my collar. Fortunately, I could lock it by hand before I left. My tech—wait, he wasn’t my anything. The tech was gone, as was Eric. The noise level had increased. More performers were coming down to grab food, drinks, and in some cases, smokes before they got ready.
That meant the stage would be available for my warmup.
Eric waited for me right in the center. His face was all hard angles and fierce in its beauty. The first time I met him, I’d half-fallen for his angelic looks. He could have stepped right out of a painting by Raphael or Michelangelo.
He was that perfect.
The cold eyes fixed on me as I strode toward him. Without me even having to say anything, the music started. Our bodies knew each other well, and when his fingers dug in brutally to my sides as he hoisted me up, my expression never changed.