Black Burlesque

by L. C. Castillo

  We both eat and read the paper in silence. It’s early and I know we will be heading to the House on the Hill in an hour or so to meet the deliverymen and get things situated. Excitement blossoms inside of me, blocking out the apprehension and nervousness from last night’s conversation.

  I put the paper down and stare at him, waiting and willing for him to look up at me. Eventually he peels his eyes away from whatever he’s reading to look at me. He has a piece of bacon in his mouth.

  “Aren’t you excited?” I ask, expectantly.

  He smiles a crooked, sexy smile, and shrugs nonchalantly. But it gives him away. He’s thrilled, but he’s trying to downplay it. An excited giggle escapes me, and he stifles his laugh. His blue eyes twinkle.

  “What are you going to do with all this stuff?” I say gesturing to the big and spacious loft.

  “The movers have directions. They’ll be coming out soon to pack up what I want packed, and will send it over soon.”

  I take a long look around. “Won’t you miss it? Living here?”

  He looks at me for a moment, and ponders my question.

  “No. I won’t. Besides, I don’t think I’m going to sell. Might be I’ll let Benny use it as an artists loft or something,” he smiles and resumes reading his paper.

  Well, that will be music to Jordan’s ears. An artist’s loft? I’m sure he’ll want to use it as well.

  We clean up after breakfast and quickly dress in time to meet the movers at the house. Everything is cleaned up and polished when we enter. It no longer looks like a hazardous construction sight anymore. The wood floors are gleaming, the banisters are polished, all of the cabinets in the kitchen are painted and sealed, and the tubs and sinks have been re-glazed. The windows are all functioning, and the exterior of the home has been repainted a crisp and fresh white. Even though there is no furniture in the house yet, it is beginning to look like a home.

  Gil greets us at the door and wears a very proud look on his face as he enters and see’s my gleeful expression. Who knew all the ruff and gruff men who were working here just days before could clean a place up so well! I catch Gil’s eye, his chest is puffed out with pride.

  “Wow, Gil! This looks...amazing! Not only did you guys clean up, but the work is immaculate!”

  He grins and winks at me.

  I leave him and Vincent to talk as I go and explore the house. Now that everything is gleaming and fully restored, it’s very easy to see what a lovely home this will be. I make mental notes for each room, planning how I want the furniture laid out. Now that the landscaping has been trimmed back and the windows have all been fixed, there is light filtering in from everywhere. This home, filled with light, is the opposite of Vincent’s family home. Perhaps that’s why his loft has no curtains?

  I hear the distinct sound of trucks coming down the gravel of the driveway and can barely contain my delight. Vincent and I picked out so many gorgeous pieces of furniture. Some new, and some antiques. I rush out of the house and onto the porch where Vincent is already giving the movers their specific directions.

  I don’t normally like so much hustle and bustle, but this is all so exciting! Vincent is speaking with a tall, muscular man, similar in build as himself, while other men hurriedly begin sliding open their moving trucks. The man speaking to Vincent must be the man in charge. He has a thick black mustache hanging over his top lip, partially covering his bottom lip, too. He has a stern expression, but kind eyes. He seems fully absorbed in whatever Vincent is telling him.

  Vincent turns back and points in the direction of the house, and looks intent on his final directions to Mr. Mustache. He’s so in command, so in control, and so confident in himself. He’s not at all daunted by this enormous task. There must be at least six or seven men rushing back and forth from the trucks beginning to unload things and Vincent is standing in the middle of all the chaos as relaxed as can be.

  I lean my head against one of the columns of the great front porch; one foot kicked up on my heel. I’m in awe of him. I don’t know why exactly, but I am. Vincent slowly turns his head to meet my gaze, the look on his face tells me he is reading my mind, and a smug smile plays upon his gorgeous lips. I grin right back and we walk slowly towards each other, like magnets, ignoring all of the men moving back and forth around us, tuning out the sound of shouts and commands and find each other locked in a kiss.

  It’s nearly midnight when all is done and assembled. Most of the furniture is where it belongs. It turns out, Gil offered Vincent his help because he wanted to make sure his floors were safe from being scuffed and scratched. He hovered over the movers, making sure to shout at them if they so much as thought to drag a piece of furniture across the freshly sealed floors.

  I take one last walk around, still in my makeup and heels from tonight’s performance. Everything went well at the club. Everyone was back at ease and comfortable. Security has been amped up and there are cameras covering nearly every angle of the club. Vincent was unable to attend due to the fact that he had so much to do here at the new house. He called me with about a half dozen questions between sets. I guided him as best I could.

  He sent Lurch and Dwayne to drive me to and from. It was annoying, knowing they were there, but after a while I forgot all about them. They’re quite good at their job, and I’m sure Vincent told them to make sure to give me plenty of space. Kazumi was the only person who knew they were there for me, all of the other girls thought they were part of the new security team.

  I stand in the kitchen and grab a glass and fill it with water. The kitchen is completely organized and stocked. This was the one room I completely took charge of and made sure everything was where it needed to be before leaving to The Speak Easy. I love Vincent’s cooking, so the sooner the kitchen is ready to be used, the better!

  We walk through the house hand in hand, making sure things have been assembled properly, and all the furniture is accounted for and in the right room. It’s amazing how perfect everything is. This house, the furniture we chose, everything fits together seamlessly. Tomorrow Vincent and I will lay out the bedding in the guest rooms, roll out the rugs, install the curtain rods and hang curtains, and everything will be as it should be. Jordan, Benny and Kazumi are supposed to join us in the morning to help. I’m looking forward to seeing them.

  I haven’t seen Maggie in a while, I was thinking of inviting her over, too. I know how much she would love the house. But, I’m afraid that if I do, she’ll read too much into it. I’ll have to think of a good excuse to have her come pick me up one day so she can take a quick, and casual, look around.

  There is just one thing left unresolved, my conversation with Vincent about me moving into Kazumi’s small apartment above her ballet studio. Today has been so tiring that I can’t bear the thought of an argument. I just don’t know when will be a good time to bring it up.

  “I know it’s late, but do you want to go out for an espresso and a movie?” Vincent catches me by surprise, I was thinking about kicking my feet up and calling it a night. But, it would probably be best if we got out tonight, seeing as tomorrow will be another long day in the house. I still have my makeup on and I’m dressed, so why not?

  “Yeah. Sure. That’s a good idea. I bet if we don’t get out now, I might find something else to do, and I need a break!” I laugh and he takes my coat off the hook in the foyer. He walks over to me and gently places it over my shoulders.

  “I think there is a scary movie playing at midnight at the dollar theater. Is that good? Or will you have nightmares?” His smile is mocking, and I know he is playing, but my mind flashes back to my horrible nightmare from last night, and my stunning revelation that neither of us has mentioned.

  ` I shake off my negativity and plaster a fake smile on my face.

  “You’re my only nightmare, Vincent. I think I can handle a little scary movie.”

  He smirks and we walk out the door.

  As it turns out, the movie we watched will most likely give me nightmares tonig
ht. Most scary movies are too over the top, especially towards the end. This one, however, remained exciting and terrifying from beginning to end. The fact that it was based off of someone’s real life experience was what made it even more horrifying for me to watch.

  Vincent could not have been more pleased each time I jumped in my seat. Towards the end of the film, I watched through the cracks of my fingers. The espresso, and the movie have me feeling wide-awake and wired as we get back to the House on the Hill. The smell of the house is different now that the new furniture is in. It smells like pine, plastic, and orange wood polish. There’s even the faint smell of paint lingering even though we used low VOC paint.

  “Okay, so...I’m fairly certain that I will not be able to fall asleep any time soon. What do you say we make up the bed? But first, you need to turn on every single light. I can’t handle the dark right now,” I’m such a wuss.

  Vincent laughs loudly, but I am being completely serious. I don’t want to see a single dark corner or crevice in the house right now or I’ll see that evil witch from the movie. My imagination knows no bounds.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll keep you safe,” he murmurs against my lips.

  I smile inside and relax at the sound of his deep, luxurious voice. I can barely make out his face in the darkness of the house. He takes me firmly by the hand, kisses my knuckles, and we go upstairs, turning on every light in every room we pass.

  He’s sweet to oblige, I know how ridiculous I must seem to him at this moment, crouched behind him, hovering close, so close in fact, that I’ve bumped into him several times on the trip up the stairs.

  As we flick on the lights to the library at the top of the stairs I see boxes and boxes of books. Many were his grandfathers, some were his that he had in storage, and quite a few were left here by the previous owner. Vincent discovered them in the basement.

  “Vincent?”

  “Yes?” He mumbles sleepily.

  “Will you let me take over this room? I mean; will you let me go through all of the books and organize and shelve everything?” I love books and libraries; it will be a fun project for me.

  “Of course,” he looks back at me, a little surprised I think.

  I smile back at him. I look around once more before we head in the direction of Vincent’s bedroom. He decided to keep the huge, old desk that the previous owner left behind. I’m sure his great grand children found it too difficult and cumbersome to move out, I’m glad they left it behind. It’s meant for this majestic library.

  “Have you gone through the desk, Vincent?”

  He takes a deep breath. “No, I haven’t had the time. I believe they taped the key to the desk somewhere underneath. We’ll have to go through it I suppose, if they haven’t already done so before leaving me the key.” He clears his throat. “I’m glad you want to help with the library, Lenore. I’m thankful for all of your help with the house. I don’t know if I’ve told you that yet.”

  He smiles a peculiar smile. He has a mysterious and mischievous expression on his face. I cock my head to one side and regard him for a moment.

  “Well…you’re welcome. It’s the least I could do,” I mumble, embarrassed.

  What does he have up his sleeve?

  I’m thrilled by the possibility that perhaps the original owner left behind some clue as to who he was. Maybe a dairy, or calendar...or perhaps a cool artifact lives inside of that grand old desk.

  “Maybe we should look in the desk right now,” I muse and start leading Vincent into the library, he pulls me back.

  “No. Come on. Bed. I’m tired, and we have another long day ahead of us.”

  As soon as I hear Vincent say bed, it’s as though a wave crashes into me, a wave of exhaustion. I cover my mouth to stifle a yawn, and Vincent smiles.

  “See? Come on.” In one swift move he carries me off my feet and throws me over his shoulder. I’m too tired to fight him, so I let him carry me to his bedroom. Once there, I feel him shift his weight to kick off his shoes and flick on the light. I hadn’t realized my eyes were closed until Vincent puts me back down on my feet.

  “Whoa, easy there,” he whispers against my ear.

  My eyes flicker open. I feel unsteady on my feet.

  “Help me with the sheets.” He moves away from me and towards the pile of sheets and pillows on the beautiful brand new chaise lounge in the corner. It’s a lovely shade of pale yellow, soft suede, with a tufted back. I want to lie in it right now.

  “Hey, wake up, are you going to help?”

  I snap to attention, and Vincent smirks at me. He is always so amused at my expense. I walk over to where he’s standing and pick up a pillow and a pillowcase and move to slide the pillow into the sleeve. The sheets are a soft flannel, grey and cream-colored chevron pattern. I admire it for a moment, and then thrash it against the side of Vincent’s head.

  “Ah! What was that?!” He looks stunned and bewildered, but is sporting an enormous smile.

  “That’s for always looking so smug and amused at my expense!”

  He gives me a half-cocked smile and his smile vanishes. He looks threatening in an instant.

  Uh-oh.

  “Do you know what you just did?”

  I shake my head, my eyes wide.

  “You. Are. Going. To. Get. It.”

  I yelp out in fear and try to dodge him, but a pillow crashes into the back of my head and I let out a scream and laugh. I jump onto the bed and another pillow come flying, a small powder blue one. I manage to catch it clumsily as it smashes against my face with full force.

  “Well don’t hold back on my account!” I yell as I throw the pillow back at him with all my strength, it gets him right smack on the forehead. We double over in laughter.

  In the middle of all the pillows flying and crashing, butterflies explode inside of me. This is fun! I love times like this with Vincent. I spend so much time thinking, analyzing and worrying, that I forget how much I enjoy just being with him.

  The wind suddenly picks up and a window slams shut behind me. The sound of wind whistling through trees startles me and I sit and cross my legs, clutching a pillow to my chest. Vincent manages not to laugh, though I am certain he wants to. He walks over to the bedroom window and examines it.

  “Just needs a little tweak is all, I’ll fix it tomorrow,” he says reassuringly. I nod timidly.

  That damn movie has made me so jumpy.

  “With a new house, come new sounds; something to remember. Let me finish with the sheets, you can go and sit on the couch.”

  “It’s a chaise, and thank you, I will. No cheap shots, okay?”

  He smiles and finishes putting the bed together.

  “Geez, how many pillows do we need?” He says as he looks at the small collection before him. He looks daunted.

  I roll my eyes at him, “The small one’s are decorative. You can just put them there,” I say pointing with my foot to the old steam trunk at the foot of the bed.

  He furrows his brow and starts putting them in.

  “What’s the point of them exactly?”

  “Uh...to be decorative? Duh,” I mutter sarcastically, my eyes slowly closing.

  “Watch that tone or you’ll catch another pillow to the face, Miss O’Howell.”

  I peer open one eye and smile back at him and lean my head against the chaise as he finishes cleaning up our pillow mess.

  I doze off; I’m barely conscious as he scoops me up off the chaise and places me onto his bed. It’s warm, and comfortable. I snuggle up as he pulls the blankets over me. I don’t feel him get into bed with me, and despite my extreme paranoia after watching that scary movie; I’m too tired to open my eyes to see what he’s doing, or where he is.

  I wake to grey light drowning the room. First things first, curtains are going up in here. I like to wake naturally, when my body feels like it, not when the light infiltrates my sleep.

  When I get up I see that Vincent isn’t in bed with me. His side of the bed is rumpled, so he must ha
ve come to bed at some point last night. I must have been more tired than I thought. I glance at the small alarm clock next to the bed and see that it’s nine-thirty in the morning.

  I get up slowly and head to the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth. Apparently my toothbrush managed to unpack itself here, along with a makeup bag and a few brushes and pins for my hair. I’m glad he brought a few things over; I hadn’t thought to do so. I assumed we’d be spending one more night at the loft.

  I quickly French braid my hair and throw on some jeans, my Cons, and one of Vincent’s pull over sweaters. It’s big and warm, and matches the color of the sky. The house is cold, and despite the hour, the sky is pewter grey. It looks more like five in the morning. The big window on the opposite side of the room calls my name, and as I walk over to gaze out onto the immense property, I see Jordan’s car.

  They’re here!

  I bolt out the door and run down the stairs and into the kitchen where everyone is hanging out over coffee and bagels and fruit. I scowl. Jordan brought this from Uptown Cafe.

  “Good fucking morning, sunshine,” Jordan says between bites.

  Benny walks over and plants a sweet kiss on my cheek, and Kazumi looks like Kazumi, totally aloof to my annoyance with everyone.

  “Hi,” she smiles sweetly.

  “Why didn’t you wake me up?” I glare at Vincent. He walks over and hands me a hot cup of coffee. And despite my resistance, I give in and take it from him; I instantly feel my mood brighten. Something about the smell of coffee just makes me smile. He tilts my chin up and kisses me softly. I melt.

  “You were tired. You had a long day yesterday, thought I’d let you sleep in,” he says in his sweetest, most sultry voice. I blush, my annoyance forgotten.

  I sit and take the newspaper from Kazumi’s hands and sit across from her. She ignores me and picks up another section and continues reading.