From Sir, With Love

by Rachell Nichole

  ***

  Leo’s face was flushed as he spilled his guts about the rehearsal from across her at the dinner table. He looked so animated. So engaged. This is what she’d been hoping to re-spark for him. The passion for his work. The thing he hadn’t had for many months. The thing he had to return to New York in order to pursue.

  “I’m so glad it went well,” she said, grabbing a slice of margarita pizza from the plate in front of her. Sitting here, with Charlotte and Leo, she couldn’t help but feel like Benson was with them. Watching over them. His little fucked up family. What would Benson think of the way she and Leo had wound up?

  “It really was incredible. It could have been a disaster. But the whole thing, all the steps, every word, the cues, it all came back, like I’d just memorized it all last week. And the rest of the cast is great. Professional, helpful. Quint watched from the front row, and after, he and I talked with Reg about how things could be tweaked for tonight’s performance. I mean the dry run wasn’t perfect. But I’m confident we can put on a damned good show tonight. I’m so glad you’ll both be there.”

  He was so talkative, Evangeline could barely get a word in. But she didn’t mind. She could listen to this kind of fire in his voice for hours.

  “This will be so weird,” Charlotte chimed in when Leo finally took a minute to scarf some pizza. “Seeing you on the stage.”

  Leo grinned at her around the slice of pizza in front of his face.

  “I’m really glad for you,” Evangeline said. This excitement from him was helping her not feel to obvious eating in public. It had taken her a lot to get back here, to invite him to dinner where she could eat around other people again. Now that she was here, she’d forgotten what the big deal was. She was so focused on Leo, on being here with him and Charlotte, that she didn’t care at all about eating here. She sipped her iced tea, washing down the pizza. She even reached for a chicken wing without prompting. After demolishing the chicken wing, she asked, “So, are you excited?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “Nervous?”

  “Yeah, a little. I’d be stupid not to be. But I get a little bit of jitters before every performance. It’s normal.” He shrugged. “I’m glad you’ll be in the audience. I’ve never had family in the audience.” Some of the exuberance faded from his face, and he sat back in his chair a little.

  God. Had he just said that? Evangeline reached over and squeezed his hand. “Well, now you will.”

  She knew their parents had always been absent, never around for the Hastings kids. Evangeline couldn’t imagine doing something like this and having no support. Having performed dozens or hundreds of times, never having the support of your family there with you... it sucked. Benson had never mentioned wanting to see his brother perform. And that was a damned shame.

  “So, tonight we will be there, and you’re going to be amazing,” Evangeline said. She released his hand and moved back in her own seat.

  He smiled at her and she took another sip of tea. “Now, you’ve got to get out of here, and so do we. We have shopping to do!”

  Leo grinned. “Oh, is that so?”

  Charlotte sighed. “Yes. I don’t want to wear jeans to the theater.”

  “Oh, Char. People wear jeans even to Broadway. I’m sure there will be people here in jeans or shorts and whatever.”

  “I’m sure, but I won’t be one of them.” Charlotte’s voice was icy.

  “Okay, then.” Leo flagged down the waiter and they paid the bill. “Enjoy your shopping trip, ladies.”

  They got up from the table, and Evangeline wrapped her arms around him. He sighed and hugged her back. “Thank you for this, minx,” he whispered.

  “I didn’t do anything. You’re the one doing this. And I’m really glad for you. Go knock ’em dead.” She gave him another squeeze, and then let him go.

  He grinned down at her. “Thanks.” He gave her a quick kiss, and then, they walked out of the restaurant, heading out. Leo left them outside the restaurant, heading toward the theater.

  “This way,” Evangeline said to Charlotte, leading her toward her favorite shop. They would find something lovely and inexpensive inside for the theater.

  “So, should I feel like a terrible sister that I’ve never seen him perform?”

  Evangeline chucked. “No.”

  “You sure? Because I feel terrible. Why wouldn’t I have gone out to see him? I knew where he was?”

  “Don’t do that to yourself. We have lives, we get busy, and...” it was mean to say, but she did it anyway, “Do you really think Pete would have let you go across the country?”

  “Good point.” Charlotte followed her into the store, and they spent a few minutes browsing quietly through the racks. Charlotte paused at a beautiful, but simple black dress, checked the tag, and kept looking.

  Evangeline tried hard not to notice, but she couldn’t help it. She remembered what it was like to see and want something you couldn’t have. But she wasn’t sure how to offer to help Charlotte buy it.

  She turned to another rack, pulling out a few choices. “How about one of these?”

  “Hello Charlotte.” A man to her side said.

  Evangeline glanced at Charlotte, and the other woman froze at the voice. Evangeline knew without turning around that she would find Pete behind her. She immediately put herself between Charlotte and that scum, spinning to face him. She set the dresses down on the top of the rack.

  “You’re leaving, right now. And I’m calling the cops.” Evangeline reached for her phone as she said it.

  Hopefully they would arrest him. He was violating the restraining order.

  Pete glared at her. “Charlotte, got enough attack dogs, yet? Between this one, your brother, and your lawyer, I guess I’ll be lucky if I don’t wind up dead in a ditch somewhere,” he sneered at Charlotte over Evangeline’s shoulder.

  No wonder Leo had hit him. It hadn’t been enough, apparently. “Maybe I’ll call in the other attack dog, then, if you’d prefer I not call the cops,” Evangeline threatened.

  Pete paled.

  Charlotte stepped forward. “No. Don’t. There’s no need.” Charlotte stood and stared at Pete, hard. “He’s leaving. And Pete?”

  He cocked his head.

  “You come near me again, and I’ll kill you myself. I won’t need any attack dogs.”

  The steel in her voice made Evangeline believe every word. Charlotte stepped around front of Evangeline, until she was right before Pete. She stood with one foot forward, one back, and used one artfully placed hand on Pete’s shoulder, to shove him back, hard. He stumbled, catching himself on a display, which he almost knocked over. He righted himself and glanced around. No one was there to see him flailing, unfortunately. But it was an image Evangeline would not soon forget. She imagined that would be the case for Charlotte too.

  “Now get out.”

  Charlotte stood and glared at him until he disappeared out the front of the store.

  Evangeline grinned and turned to Charlotte. “That was impressive.”

  “Then why the hell am I shaking so badly?”

  “Oh, sweetie.” Evangeline reached over and hugged Charlotte. “It’s just the adrenaline. Nothing to worry about.”

  Charlotte was shaking, but she returned the hug, and took a deep breath. “My brother’s been teaching me how to fight. How to... well, let’s just say I could make good on my threat to my ex-husband. During the day, while you’re at work, almost every single day, he rearranged one of the spare rooms upstairs into a sparring ring. And then he’d put it back before you got home.”

  Evangeline laughed. Of course he did. “Good!” She cleared her throat and stepped back. “Now, I say that show of force deserves a hell of a reward. It would make me so happy if you’d let me treat you to that dress you were eyeing back there.”

  Charlotte’s cheeks pinkened. “You noticed?”

  “I did. It was gorgeous.”

  “But it’s so expensive.”

  Evang
eline shrugged. “You paid Benson forty-five grand to fix up that house. This is literally the least I could do.”

  Charlotte grinned. “I mean, you’re letting me live there, rent-free.”

  “There’s no mortgage on the house. It was paid off years ago. It was small to begin with, since the house was in such disrepair when he bought it. He used some of your money to fix it up. So, we’re good. Honest.”

  “Ah, the days when I had ten grand in the bank and could get a loan for that kind of money,” she said wistfully. “Benson paid a good chunk of it back to me over the years. I forgot to mention that when I threatened to take the house.” She looked guilty as hell, her blue eyes downcast, her mouth pressed into a flat line.

  “That’s all right. I don’t mind. I know once he got situated at the house and the renovations were done, he saved money like it was his job. And once I was working, and we both had income, and pretty minor expenses, we were able to do some good with the overflow.”

  “I have a confession.”

  Evangeline laughed. “Well, let’s hear it.” The more they talked, the more time Evangeline spent getting to know the real Charlotte, the more she was so happy to have the opportunity. And the worse she felt that it had taken so many years, and Benson’s death, before they were able to form this bond. What would it have been like to spend the last twelve years with a sister-in-law like Charlotte? Sure, she and Benson had never married, but that didn’t make Charlotte any less of her family.

  “I really thought you were with Benson because you thought he was loaded. Big, hot-shot doctor, living in a mansion, that sort of thing. It was what he projected to the world. What we were taught by our parents to project to the world. Obviously, he was never poor, not anything close to it, but we didn’t have huge trust funds.” She shook her head. “I didn’t understand why someone twenty-plus years younger would be with him unless it was about the money. The security of an older, wealthy man. And I really hated that you had snagged him.”

  Evangeline wasn’t sure what to say to that. Sure, she’d known Benson had come from money. Knew that his parents had been loaded, gallivanting all over the world and flashing their money, but it had never really been about that. It had been about his being solid, and sweet, and everything she needed to get away from her toxic mother. “I can’t say as I really blame you, honestly.”

  “Well, I just wanted to say I’m sorry that I assumed you were with him for the wrong reasons. And that I thought you were a manipulative bitch.” The last was said in a whisper.

  Evangeline couldn’t help but laugh. “I forgive you. I always kind of thought you were a stone-cold bitch, so I apologize for that, too.”

  “God. I mean, you’re not wrong. I was, once.”

  “You’ll get back there. I know you will,” Evangeline said with a grin.

  “Hahaha. I don’t know that I want to do that.”

  “Well, you can if you want, or you can work on being someone else. But you’ll figure out who that is, in time.”

  Hopefully, Evangeline would be able to do the same.

  “I just can’t believe I have to start all over.” The sadness in those words made Evangeline’s heart clench.

  “I know it sucks. But you absolutely can do it. Especially if you let people help once in a while.”

  “Oh, like you do? You’re so good at that, right?”

  Evangeline laughed. “Touché. Now, let’s get you that dress and go see if your brother makes an ass of himself on the stage.”

  She had no doubt that wouldn’t be the case, but the image seemed to set Charlotte at ease, and she shook off the discomfort from the confrontation with Pete and nodded. “Yeah. Okay.”

  They bought the dress, and Charlotte changed before they headed over to the theater. The black floor-length gown looked amazing on her, and it made Evangeline so happy to see.

  They made their way to the theater and to their seats. The one on her left would remain empty, since its owner was now star of the show. It was surreal, to say the least, but as Evangeline sat, anticipation coiled tightly within her. She couldn’t wait to see Leo on the stage. To watch him. To hear him sing in a place with acoustics like this. She imagined it would sound even better than the night she’d discovered him in the media room belting it out.

  The show started, and she found herself instantly enthralled by the entire production. When Christine went into the dressing room, and Leo’s voice rang out with the Phantom’s first few lines, Evangeline’s breath caught in her throat. She watched, transfixed as his silhouette appeared in the mirror on stage, as the mirror opened, and he reached out to Christine. Even through the mask he wore, Evangeline could see his features.

  And then, he opened his mouth in the most haunting, beautiful voice she’d ever heard rang out through the theater. As he sang, she shivered, actual chills covering her body. She watched as Christine slowly, inexorably fell under the Phantom’s dark spell, and Evangeline couldn’t help but think it was the exact same way she’d fallen under Leo’s equally dark spell. Shit. Was she in love with Leo Hastings?

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Leo took a second bow, his face flushed, his heart pounding. As he stood, he caught Evangeline’s gaze on him in the middle of the standing ovation, clapping furiously, in the fourth row, dead center. Her face beamed at him, and he caught her gaze for a moment, before the small squeeze in his hand reminded him where he was.

  He raised his hands on either side of him, his co-stars clasped hands going up with him. The thunderous applause went straight to his head. God, he’d missed this. They all took a third bow, and then, they exited stage right. The rush running through his veins was almost too much. He wasn’t sure he could contain it all. The din backstage was chaos. Hugs, congratulations, and encouragement buoyed him from all sides. He couldn’t wait to get out of his costumery and find Evangeline. He thought the performance had been killer, but he wanted to hear what she thought.

  It took a while to get situated, to get back into street clothes. To get the stage makeup off. He texted her that he’d be a bit, and she’d just told him to take his time. She and Charlotte would hang in the lobby until they were told otherwise.

  “Hey, man, that was stellar,” Quint said, from the doorway of the dressing room.

  Leo grinned. “I’m glad you thought so. I almost can’t believe we were able to pull it off so seamlessly.” The run through earlier had gone well, but not as well as the live performance. Something about there being an audience had made his focus even more clear, had helped him feel utterly in sync with the rest of the cast, with the crew, and the orchestra.

  “Yeah. I’m impressed. A lesser man might be worried.” Quint grinned, holding his crutches under each arm, his casted leg held up from the floor.

  “You know you don’t have anything from me to worry about. I know this is a short-term gig. I’m just glad to be here.”

  Quint nodded. “We usually find somewhere to go hang out and chill and eat after a show. I figured you’d want to join?”

  Excitement and disappointment warred within him. Yes, he wanted to do that, but he also wanted to be home, with Evangeline.

  “Or, not. If you have somewhere to be,” Quint quickly added.

  Leo tossed the makeup remover cloth in the trash and stood. “I’d love to come. I’m going to catch up with my family out front real quick. Where are we headed?”

  “There’s a twenty-four-hour diner down the street. Called Josephine’s.”

  “God, that place is still there?” He hadn’t noticed when walking through town. “I haven’t been there since I was a kid.”

  “Oh, yeah, I forgot you’re from here, huh?”

  “Yeah, but I haven’t been back in more than ten years. There were so many changes to the downtown scene in the last decade. Like this theater. It used to be really shabby, and I think was even vacant for a while. I’m so glad it was revitalized.”

  Quint gave him an odd look.

  “What?”
/>   “Isn’t it your name on the donor board in the lobby?”

  “What?” Leo was shocked.

  “Yeah, man, top of the list. Hastings. I swear, I saw it out there. And I think it’s even in the program.”

  Leo shook his head. “Wow. Um, well, it wasn’t me. But I have a sneaking suspicion as to who it was.” Maybe this was why Reg said he recognized Leo’s name. It wasn’t Leo himself he knew of. It was the Hastings name.

  “Ah, I see. Sorry, man. Didn’t mean to plow right into that.” The other man gave him a sheepish grin.

  “Nah, it’s okay. I’m gonna catch up with my sister and...” Shit. What the hell did he even call Evangeline? His lover? His submissive? Minx? She wasn’t his girlfriend. “And stuff, and I’ll meet you guys at the diner in a bit. But don’t wait on me to order or anything. I’ll just get something when I get there.”

  “Yeah, sure. Sounds good, Hastings. See ya soon. And great job tonight, really.”

  “Thanks, that means a lot.”

  Leo held the door open for Quint to swing through it on his crutches, and then he made his way to the lobby.

  When he entered the spacious area, he spotted Evangeline right away. She was beside Charlotte in a silver cocktail dress, one that clung to her every curve. The curves he’d taken great pleasure in watching form. They had their backs to him, and he couldn’t help but admire the curve of his minx’s ass in that silver sheath. The lobby was mostly empty, and he made his way over without being stopped and recognized by any of the other patrons. That was one of the benefits of being in a mask and stage makeup to make him look disfigured – he wouldn’t be recognized as one of the actors.

  “Hey,” he said as he approached. Evangeline turned, grinning.

  “Hey, yourself.”

  Charlotte smiled. “That was highly impressive.”

  “Don’t sound so surprised,” he said dryly.

  He resisted the urge to yank Evangeline into his arms. He’d kissed her goodbye at the restaurant earlier. But he had to keep reminding himself they weren’t together like that. Much as he wanted that to not be the case.