by K. K. Allen
But first, a shower.
After cleaning myself up, I threw on a baby-doll dress and heels. When I walked into that theater today, I wanted Jimmy to see how healthy I looked. I’d already covered up the bruises with a little makeup, knowing the sight of them would only make him question my readiness to get back out on that stage.
Sebastian said he had some business to take care of, so when I left my cabin, I headed straight for the stairs. A ridiculous smile was plastered on my face the entire way to the theater. I even started humming the opening show tune from Angst and Grace on my walk.
Even after everything I’d learned the day before, I felt great. Better than great. I’d always known Sebastian had a reputation, but it was nice to learn that there was far more to that story. While Sebastian had made mistakes, he wasn’t the only one to blame. And he’d been trying to move on from his past mistakes ever since.
With just one foot inside the door of my dressing room, I caught a pair of familiar eyes staring back at me in my vanity mirror’s reflection. I froze. The woman raised a brow in response. She was holding a makeup brush an inch from her face, far too comfortable in my chair.
Fire rushed through my veins, and I started shaking. “What are you doing here, Claudette?”
Her smile started at the corners of her mouth as her eyelids narrowed into slits. “Well, hello to you too.” She set the brush down and swiveled around in my chair. “You look well.” Her gaze dropped then drifted back up my body. “Better than expected, unfortunately.”
“Funny thing. I feel even better than I look.”
She laughed, her head falling backward for dramatic effect, and my insides rang with an anger I’d never known I was capable of.
I took a step forward. “You can leave now. I need to get ready.”
Claudette was still laughing, and an image of her and Sebastian flashed in my mind—him miserable by her side while she soaked up all the limelight before sneaking off with Dirk behind his back. I hated her—so intensely that a rush of fire blew through me.
“Is there a reason you’re in my dressing room, contaminating my makeup, Claudette? Or are you just reminiscing?”
Her laughter faded, and her expression morphed into a glare. “Actually…” She stood from her chair, calling attention to the tights and bralette she was wearing. They were the same ones I wore for the opening number. My eyes swept over her again, catching on a pair of glittering silver heels strapped to her feet. Someone must have replaced the pair I’d tossed in the trash. “You’re the one in my dressing room. And I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
Dread spread through me. “Excuse me?”
She swung back around with a sigh and caught my eyes in the mirror. “Don’t worry. I saved you a front-row balcony seat to the show.” She sat back down in my makeup chair and reached for the brush she’d been holding when I walked in. “Get out, Kai.”
Chapter 40
Sebastian
Preparations took longer than I’d planned, and I hadn’t had much time to begin with. I’d told Kai I had a meeting with Dirk, but I’d really spent the last two hours running around the ship, putting together a surprise that I hoped she would love. I think I was more nervous about her reaction than I’d ever been while playing for thousands of people in a huge arena. Time was up, though. I took one final look at my creation before I ran for the theater.
When I arrived backstage, Kai’s dressing room door was closed. Just as I held a hand up to knock, a backstage assistant with a headset spotted me.
His entire body practically sagged with relief, and he reached for my arm to drag me away. “Got him,” he said into the headset before addressing me. “You’re on in two. Let’s move.”
I tossed a look over my shoulder at Kai’s door, wishing I’d come even a minute sooner. I always wished Kai luck before the show. However, In the grand scheme of things, my not seeing her would only make what I had planned for later more exciting. I’d never been called a romantic before, but Kai would beg to differ after tonight. My smile couldn’t have been cheesier as I sat down at my piano and chugged a bottle of water.
“Hey, Bash,” said Gem. “Everything okay with Kai?”
I beamed and waved a hand in the air. “Don’t worry ’bout Kai, mate. She’s better than ever. And don’t tell me how well you blokes got on without me last night. I still have a massive ego.”
Gem let out what sounded like a nervous laugh. “Okay, then.” He nodded. “Glad to hear everything is okay.”
The other band members were all staring at me, and I was sure they thought I was nuts. After I’d missed the last night’s performance, they were probably stunned and confused. I gave them all a wave as I put my earpiece in and caught the show caller just as he was giving me my cue to begin.
My fingers immediately went for it, dancing across the keys, filling the theater with the opening notes of the pop-rock tune. The curtains opened, I turned my head toward the seats, and a smile lit my face. The lights in the first number were so bright that I couldn’t see past them. Everything seemed perfect.
The rhythm and pacing were fine, the audience was already getting into the opening number, the lighting looked great, and the chorus dancers were hitting their marks, from what I could see. But I couldn’t escape a heavy feeling in my chest telling me something was wrong.
It could have easily been the fact that I’d missed a performance the night before though I’d sworn to never do that again. But I shook that idea away almost as soon as it hit me. I felt zero guilt for spending that time with Kai instead of sitting behind the piano. The decision had come very easily, and nothing could have convinced me to make a different decision.
As I transitioned from that song into the next, I kept trying to get a glimpse below when I knew Kai would be dancing. I’d seen her perform many times during rehearsals, but it was different when the glare of the lights was practically blinding me. My eyes were forced in one direction—the crowd—not that I could actually see anyone.
At one moment during one of the final pieces, when Kai would dance a solo, the lights were trained on her instead of me. That was the one time I could get a good glimpse of everything—the stage and the crowd. My eyes moved over the theater. I loved making that intimate connection with the audience and always felt that it made them a part of the story instead of onlookers. It was a like a little zap of energy every time I caught someone’s gaze, like they were feeding me with their excitement at watching the show.
Then I felt that feeling deep in my gut, that swirling and clenching—a warning that something was very wrong. I was staring at the first row in the balcony section when my eyes caught a familiar woman with dark-brown hair and brilliant brown eyes—eyes that I’d stared into a hundred times while falling deeply in love. Realization hit me like lightning striking my chest.
What the fuck?
I did a double take and blinked a few times as I tried to process what I was seeing. It couldn’t be Kai. Kai was performing tonight. Wasn’t she? My heart sank.
Dread filled me like a ton of lead, soaking into my pores and my veins.
If Kai was in the balcony, then who the hell was dancing as Grace below me?
My heart took off, pounding double time, and I glanced down at the stage, trying to catch a glimpse of the cast. Jake was there, holding his hand out for Kai to take it. But clearly, Kai wasn’t the one who accepted it. Instead, long, slim nails slid into his, and I swallowed the acid that had pushed up my throat at the familiarity of that hand.
Claudette, the original Grace, was dancing as if she owned the stage. Never in my life had I been more certain that she did not. Once upon a time, I might have wanted to believe that Claudette was my Grace, but it had always been Kai even when I didn’t know she existed.
I looked toward the balcony again, hoping to meet Kai’s eyes. Maybe then I could figure out what the hell was going on. Had she opted out? Was she in pain? Maybe the doctor had cleared her too soon. But then why ha
dn’t she told me?
My mind raced as I remembered my evening before I’d run to the theater. I hadn’t stopped to check my phone because I didn’t even have it on me. The only person I ever contacted on that thing was Kai, and we were always together. I’d left my phone in my room.
My hands were still moving, playing a song I’d played thousands of times. I became a robot for the rest of the show, my mind still wandering as I tried to figure out what the hell was going on.
As soon as the show was over, I jogged down the steps, only to be greeted by a somber-looking Jimmy. “Jimmy? You okay?”
He didn’t acknowledge my question. Instead, he took in a deep breath and let it out, his eyes gripping mine. “Dirk wants to speak with you. He’s in his cabin.” Then Jimmy handed me an index card with Dirk’s room number on it and, without another word, walked away.
Dirk opened his cabin door and immediately stepped to the side to let me in, a stoic look on his face. With a sweeping gaze, I took in his room—well, “suite” was a better term for the spacious setup. He had a kitchenette, a full bar, a couch and television, a wide entrance to an even wider balcony, and a door that, I assumed, led to a bedroom.
“Interesting use of production budget,” I said.
After the door shut behind me, Dirk strolled by to a living area overlooking a curved window. “The crew cabins were all taken.”
By his tone, he didn’t see the irony of his purchase. A cabin like this averaged ten grand a week, yet he’d probably paid it off for the duration of the contract. Seven months, thirty-five weeks—three hundred fifty thousand dollars.
“Right” was all I managed to squeeze out, my fury compounding in my chest. “You wanted to see me?” I was eager to find Kai.
Dick reached for a cut-glass decanter filled with an amber liquor I guessed was a fancy brand of bourbon, and he lifted his eyebrows at me. “A drink first?”
I would normally decline any offer from the man, but something was telling me I would need the potent liquid. With a simple nod, I took a seat on the couch across from him while he poured then dropped three ice cubes into each glass.
When he handed my drink to me, I held it in my hands for a few seconds, inhaling the sweet and woodsy scent while Dirk sipped his slowly.
“It’s Bourbon Wood. One of the best modern Australian whiskies money can buy.” He winked and tipped his glass like we were old friends smoking cigars and shooting the shit.
I swirled the liquid gold in my mouth, well aware of the brand and the price tag attached. I didn’t need to take a sip to feel the burn. Dirk was doing a fine job of that himself.
“More well-spent production dollars, I presume.”
Dirk chuckled. “Lighten up, boy. Then again, I suppose that’s hard to do when your girlfriend just got the boot.”
A fire licked through me. “The boot? What are you talking about?”
He raised a brow. “She didn’t tell you?”
“Tell me what? I’ve been playing all night. I didn’t see Claudette was the one out there until nearly the end.”
Dirk nodded, a hint of a smirk pushing up his cheeks. “I suppose Kai’s packing her things now. I’m afraid we’ll be saying goodbye to your girlfriend tomorrow. She has potential, but she’s just not the right fit for us at this time.”
I slammed the glass down and stood, praying to God that the man was screwing with me. “You’re trying to rile me.”
Dirk shook his head. “I assure you this is all very real.”
I blew out a breath and shook my head. “That’s not your decision to make.”
“Actually,” Dirk said. “It is my decision to make. You promised to never skip out on a show, and if you did, the casting decisions were mine. We agreed.” He shrugged like I’d given him no choice. “Can you imagine if we didn’t have an understudy for you last night? We would have been especially screwed.”
“But I did,” I said through my teeth. My gut swirled with disgust at the man, who was purely evil. “And Kai had an accident. I wasn’t going to leave her.”
Dirk tossed back a swallow and set his glass down. “Completely understand. Which reminds me. How is Kai doing after her… accident?”
I narrowed my eyes, knowing full well Dirk didn’t give a shit about Kai’s well-being. “She’s doing great. Feeling better than ever. She was ready to perform tonight.”
“Is that right?” He mumbled the words like he was annoyed. “I heard her accident was caused by a panic attack? Is that right? That wouldn’t have anything to do with her late father, would it?”
My jaw dropped and practically hit the floor. “How would you know anything about her father?”
Dirk laughed, a deep, villainous chuckle that had me reeling. “Her friend Wayne was very forthcoming with information yesterday. I simply expressed my concern, and I got to learn all about young Kai and the tragic disappearance of her father. Such an event must be traumatizing for anyone. Especially for a woman who, twenty years later, accepted a position living at sea for seven months. Imagine my surprise when Wayne informed me that you had to convince her to come onboard.”
Rage roared in my chest. “I won’t deny any of that. But you can look at the medical crew’s notes to know that Kai slipped on rainwater after a wave crashed into the tender boat yesterday. She wasn’t suffering from a panic attack when she fell. Her history is none of your business.”
Dirk raised his brows. “Of course it’s my business. I employ the girl, don’t I? I have a right to know if she is facing issues that could impact her ability to perform. The last thing we need is some trauma victim triggered on stage if the weather gets a little rough.”
“The details of her past have nothing to do with the present. Kai will be just fine out there. The doctor cleared her this morning.”
Dirk held up a sheet of paper and held it toward me. I snatched it from his hands.
“He cleared her along with an amended note mentioning that the probability of another incident occurring is very likely, making her an unfit candidate for our production.”
My eyes drifted over the doctor’s note, which was dated this afternoon. “You son of a bitch.”
That gave Dirk a hefty chuckle. “I suppose you’ll be open to negotiations now? I’m sure we could make arrangements for Kai to stay on board…” He grinned during his pause. “If you’re willing to give up a few things.”
Heat exploded in my chest. “Like?”
“Like… your musical. Sign the production over to me, and Kai can stay. Otherwise, she disembarks in LA tomorrow. For good.”
Flames from the inferno inside me licked up my throat. “You motherfucker.”
“Just doing what I have to do. Just like I know you’ll do what you need to do. That is, if you truly care about the girl.” His eyes narrowed. “Do you, Bash?”
Did I care about Kai? Fuck yes.
Did I want to give up my musical to Dirk? Hell no.
Did I have a choice? For the first time since this shit show began, I had started to feel like my options were limited. The walls were closing in around me, and time was running out.
“Think about it.” Dirk was taunting me now, filling my mind with his final threat because he knew he’d won. “You sign the show over to me, and Dr. Franklin’s amended statement goes away. Kai keeps her lead role, and then you never have to deal with me—or Angst and Grace—again.”
None of it sat right.
“What about ticket sales?” I asked. “The cruise line knows that it was my name that sold out their cruise season. How are you going to explain that one?”
“Don’t have to. It’s not my fault Sebastian Chase doesn’t have the stomach for cruise ships.”
So that’s how he thought he could get away with it—faux publicity? And what choice did I have? If I didn’t sign, Dirk would definitely make good on his threat and let Kai go.
“And what about me?”
Dirk sat back as if he was about to be reasonable for once in his goddamn
life. “You’ll get exactly what you want—to be released of all ties with me. When we dock in LA tomorrow, you’re done. I don’t need you around, poisoning the crew with whatever stories you’d tell.” His eyes searched mine. “So what’s it going to be, Bash? Are you going to save yourself? Or Kai?”
My entire body shook as I let out a heavy breath. There was only one option left. “You win, Dirk. Kai stays. Angst and Grace is yours.”
Chapter 41
Kai
Over an hour after the show let out, I finally knocked on Wayne’s door. By the look on his face when he answered, he’d been expecting me.
“Where have you been?”
I shrugged. My eyes felt swollen from crying, and my heart was unbelievably heavy in my chest. I was tired and aching from yesterday’s accident. But I couldn’t sleep. I hadn’t even tried. Instead, I’d taken to the jogging trail, fully dressed, and tried to run off my broken heart.
“Just around.” I said miserably. After everything I’d been through to get here, to be on this ship in the middle of the Pacific, with Sebastian, how could it all just be… over?
Wayne’s face fell as he pulled me into his arms. “Sebastian’s been blowing me up, trying to find you. Where is your phone?”
Another tear fell from my eye as I swallowed against the lump in my throat. “Why? You saw him out there tonight. He’s never looked so happy. So alive.” I shook my head. “I can’t talk to him right now.”
Shane peered at me over his reading glasses. He was holding his Kindle, but he set it down to give me his full attention. “Don’t be that stupid girl who doesn’t talk to the guy before they figure out everything is just a big ol’ misunderstanding.”
I glared back at my best friend’s boyfriend. “I just got fired. Meanwhile, Sebastian was playing his heart out tonight, as if nothing had even happened. That’s not a misunderstanding. That’s life.”
