“Then do me a favor, either fire the woman or demand to be taught how to better your projection and vocal control.”
Heather frowned. “I’ll do better next time.”
“You’d better.” He grumbled and picked up his script. “Let’s work on Notes and Prima Dona.”
Pleased that she could finally take a break – she wasn’t in these scenes – Chloe went backstage and stretched out on the chipped wooden floor. Heather sat down next to her looking terribly unhappy.
On the other side of the curtain, the music began followed by Charlotta’s voice. Her shrieking soprano was like a fork scratching against a pan. Chloe winced and tried to refrain from covering her ears.
“I feel like such a failure. It’s been weeks and I still don’t seem to be improving. God I suck.” Heather took a big swig of her water emptying the bottle.
“Don’t talk like that Heather. You know as well as I do that you have gotten so much better.” Chloe squeezed her friend’s hand. “You just need to be more confident.”
“Yeah I know.” She said and kicked her empty water bottle sending it spinning out of sight. “It just isn’t fair. You make singing seem so easy. How can you be so perfect all the time?”
Chloe sighed. “It only seems that way because I’ve been singing since I was little. You just started this year. Give it time. And believe me, I’m far from perfect.”
“Oh come on! You’re totally Miss Perfect.” Heather said rolling her eyes. “Just once, I’d like to see you mess up. It’d make the rest of us feel not so worthless. I mean you’re always outshining the rest of us. You’re like some kind of energizer bunny, never faulting and just going and going. You’re always so perfect that none of us ever feel good enough when compared to you.”
“Everyone really feels that way?” Chloe asked drawing her legs up to her chest trying hard to hide her hurt. “It was never my intention to outshine anyone. It’s not like I am doing it on purpose.”
“Yeah I know.” Heather played with a loose button on her shirt. “It’s just we’re all a little jealous of you.”
Chloe looked down at her feet. “Would it help if I flubbed some of my lines?”
“It couldn’t hurt. But you shouldn’t.” Heather smiled apologetically. “Chloe, it’s not your fault we all feel so inadequate. I mean you’re been on Broadway. You’re a professional. Everyone, me included, should remember that.” Heather put her hand on Chloe’s shoulder. “We all need to try harder, again, me more than others.”
“Still I hate that you all think that way about me.” Maybe she should sabotage herself during her next scene. She couldn’t help being a perfectionist. Before joining the cast of The Magician Chloe hadn’t been so perfect. But once she was under the watchful eye of Earon, he’s all but forced her to never falter.
If she or the rest of the cast made a mistake they would repeat the scene over and over until everyone got it right. If it took all day, and at the end if you still couldn’t get it right, he’d send you packing. Earon wasn’t known for giving second chances. It was his show. He wanted it to be ideal.
“Actually… when I said ‘we’ what I meant was ‘me.’ I’m sorry I’ve just been feeling really jealous lately. Plus, Wilson’s been on my case all day. First it was my dancing. ’It’s too mechanical’ he said. Then it was my singing. You know what, just forget I said anything okay?” Heather bent her legs to sit cross-legged. “Tell me about the other night instead. You and Rhys being alone in the house and everything… What were you guys talking about?”
“Nothing.” Chloe pursed her lips.
“Nothing? My brain’s a bit foggy about that night, but I’m pretty sure it didn’t look like nothing when I walked in on you guys.”
“We were just talking.”
“About nothing?”
“Right,” Chloe said with a small smile.
Heather leaned in and studied Chloe’s face. Her closeness made Chloe uncomfortable. She blushed and pushed Heather away.
“You look awfully guilty for someone who was only talking about nothing. So are you and Ryther secretly getting it on or what?
“Can you keep your voice down?” Chloe hissed.
“I see you aren’t denying it? Just admit it. I know you’re into him. It’s written all over your face.”
Chloe groaned and hid her face against her knees. “So what if I am?” She turned her head to peak at Heather.
“So does he like you too?” Heather sat up on her knees. “Tell me everything!”
Chloe kept her face against her knees. The conversation was too embarrassing. “I’d like to keep my personal life private for the time being.”
“Oh come on!” Heather shook Chloe’s shoulder. “Have you guys done it? I bet he’s a real beast in the sack, isn’t he?”
Chloe scoffed and blushed an even darker shade of scarlet. “What are you saying?”
“Just wanted to know if he gave you a good ravaging. Come on, give me something. Please.” Heather pouted and shook Chloe’s shoulder again and again until Chloe swatted her off.
“We didn’t do anything.”
“What about before last night? You guys have known each other for a while. You two have never ever done the deed?”
Heather got uncomfortably close again as if daring Chloe not to smile. With her mind already back to that night two years ago, Chloe quickly broke. She turned her head away from Heather but she hadn’t been fast enough. Heather had seen her smile.
“Ah Ha! So you guys have done it! God, you’re so lucky. That man is super hot!”
Chloe touched her burning cheeks. “God this is so embarrassing.”
“Hey, we’re friends. Talking about sex between friends shouldn’t be embarrassing. So how was he?”
“You can’t expect me to answer that.” Chloe said while hiding her face in her hands.
“I sure do.”
Chloe flexed her fingers and peaked out at Heather. “Well I don’t want to discuss it.”
Heather rolled her eyes. “You’re such a prude.”
“Let’s change the subject. What are you going to do about Jett?”
Heather groaned and leaned back on her hands. “You know, I’m beginning to think it’s a lost cause. He never seems to want to be alone with me. The whole time at the club, he seemed more worried about where Ryther had dragged you off to.” She scoffed. “Maybe he has a thing for you.”
“That’s so not true.” Chloe said hurriedly. “We’re just friends.”
“Yeah, but still, something’s up. I mean why won’t he spend any time with me? Am I really that scary?” Heather sighed, ran a hand through her hair, and cursed.
Chloe wrapped her arm around her friend’s shoulder. “Of course not! You’re beautiful. If Jett can’t see that, then he is missing out. You know, I caught Simon staring at you a few times today. He’s pretty cute. Maybe you should ask him out.”
“Simon huh? You really think he’s interested in me?” Heather asked and looked around to make sure Simon wasn’t anywhere in earshot. “Maybe I could use him to make Jett jealous.”
Chloe shook her head. “That’s not what I meant.”
“But it is what I meant. I’m not ready to give up on Jett. But maybe if I were to flirt a little with Simon, then Jett might get jealous.”
Shaking her head again, Chloe looked at her friend while quietly wondering why Heather couldn’t come clean to Jett. Wouldn’t it be quicker and less messy in the long run?
****
Chloe sat on the creamy soft carpet in Bill’s living room digging through the multitudes of DVDs stored in the large mahogany entertainment center.
“When you said we were going out, I thought you were taking me to dinner at a restaurant, not bringing me here for pizza and a movie.”
She looked over at Rhys. He sat on Bill and Josie’s nice leather sofa, his phone against his ear as he ordered their dinner. He grinned at her and hung up the phone. “I wasn’t in the mood to go out. Besides it�
��s nice and quiet here. There won’t be any interruptions.” He sat his phone on the table. “Speaking of which, did your buddy ever calm down?”
“Eventually. She’s just going through a bad time now.”
“Because of whatshisface?”
“His name’s Jett. And yes, because of him.”
“That kid seems like an ass to me. I don’t much care for him.” Rhys held up his hands. “I know he’s your friend and all, but he just rubs me the wrong way.”
Chloe shrugged. “He’s just intense. I guess that can make him seem a bit stuck up. But he’s really pretty nice once you get to know him.”
“Well I still don’t like him and can’t say I’ll ever want to get to know him. Wilson can’t take a dump without Jett there to wipe his ass.”
Chloe tossed a DVD case at him, hitting him on the knee. “Can you please stop criticizing my friends?” She threw another DVD, this time he caught it. “And watch your mouth!”
Rhys tossed the DVDs next to Chloe. “Sorry.” He gave her an apologetic smile.
Chloe grabbed the DVDs and put them back in the drawer. “Whatever,” she said and turned away. “I don’t want to argue.”
Rhys knelt down onto the floor next to her. “Who says we were arguing?”
“Nobody. Just think of it as a warning.”
Rhys chuckled and Chloe turned back to dig through the drawer of videos. It had been a long time since she’d actually sat down to watch a movie.
“Are all these Bills?” She asked stacking a few on the floor next to her. “I can’t get over how many musicals he has.”
Rhys leaned over her and picked up a DVD case. “How about we watch Phantom?”
“We’ll watch that last.” Chloe grabbed the box from him and set it aside.
He furrowed his brow. “Last? How many movies are we watching?”
She met his gaze. “One or two.” Or at least until her body had calmed down. Ever since he’d picked her up, her body had been alive with electricity and those damn internal butterflies had been wreaking havoc on her stomach.
She couldn’t even look at Rhys without wanting to kiss him and do a lot more than that. The illogical part of her wanted to pretend that they’d never broken up. Her body was completely onboard with this.
Rhys studied her face for a moment. She prayed he couldn’t tell what she was thinking. “Alright kid, then a movie marathon it is.”
Nodding, Chloe continued to rummage through the films, silently arguing with herself. She was acting like an oversexed teenager. But it was impossible to stop the way she was feeling. This was what smokers probably felt like when they’d quit and then found that one last pack hidden in their drawer.
Rhys had been her first love. Her only love. Here he was sitting so close to her that her body was practically quivering with desire and the need to be back in his arms. She couldn’t allow herself to give in. She couldn’t be the one to make the first move. But boy, did she want to.
She opened the next drawer. If she told him what she was thinking and feeling, what would he do? Would he be shocked? Or was he feeling just as uncomfortable?
Chloe shivered when Rhys’s warm breath caressed her bare shoulder as he reached for another DVD. She was regretting having chosen to wear such a wide necked and short sweater dress. She should have worn something long and bulky. Maybe then she wouldn’t have felt so naked while sitting next to him on the floor.
“You okay?” Rhys asked and touched her shoulder.
“I’m fine.” Just you’re making me so completely and utterly nervous! Chloe tried to compose herself and picked up the next DVD. She was surprised to see that it was her favorite. “Let’s watch this first.”
Rhys took one look at the DVD box and groaned. “Hedwig really? Can’t we watch something else?”
She smiled. “But it’s my favorite.”
“I thought Phantom of the Opera was your favorite?”
“It is. But this one is my all time favorite.” She handed the DVD case to Rhys and gave him her best pouting face. “Please.”
Sighing, he gave in. “Alright. But you have to promise not to sing along.”
Chloe frowned. “Why? I thought you liked listening to me sing?”
“I do,” He said turning on the TV and DVD player. “I just don’t want to hear the words ‘I’ve got an angry inch’ come out of your pretty mouth.”
Laughing Chloe playfully punched his arm. “Fine, I promise I won’t sing that particular song.”
Rhys popped the DVD into the player and pulled Chloe up on the sofa. “Why do you even like this musical so much?”
“I just do.” Chloe tucked her feet up next to her as Rhys pressed the play button on the remote. It wasn’t just that she liked it, but that she was making them watch it now to help keep her mind off the sexy man sitting next to her.
****
Chloe grabbed her second piece of pizza and placed it on her plate. “You sure it’s okay if we eat in here? I mean everything is so expensive and nice. What if we spill something? I don’t want Josie’s pretty sofa to get ruined.”
Rhys swallowed a bite of pizza and took a sip of his beer. “It’s okay. What Josie doesn’t know, won’t kill her. Just try not to be a klutz.”
Chloe glared at him and sipped at her soda, her eyes moving back to the TV where the movie still played.
For a time Chloe was lost in the film enjoying the thoughtless pleasure of it. She even hummed along to a song or two. It was a nice distraction from the restless nervousness of her mind. However, the film did nothing to calm the electrifying sensation of Rhys’s closeness.
It only got worse once the pizza had been cleared away and the lamps were clicked off, the only light in the room coming from the flashing glow permeating from the large flat screen TV.
Chloe nervously clung to the knitted afghan that she’d thrown over her legs, while her body tingled as Rhys put his arm over her shoulder.
She knew she was acting like a virginal teenager alone with her crush anxiously anticipating his touch. She wasn’t even a virgin anymore, so why was she feeling like one? The expectation was almost too much to handle. When the ending credits began to roll, Chloe leapt from the sofa.
Grabbing the next film and popping it into the DVD player, Chloe took her time before heading back to the sofa. Her nervousness was not lost on Rhys who merely chuckled softly as she walked ever so slowly back to the sofa wasting more time by moving over to the window to peak behind the blinds and out over the lawn.
It was much too dark to see anything save for a patch of grass. But it was a good excuse to pull herself together and to stop acting so skittish. She was a grown woman, and shouldn’t let herself be overcome by nerves.
Just because they were alone watching movies in close proximity to each other didn’t mean that they were going to start making out. Chloe felt like smacking herself as she realized that was exactly what she’d been hoping for.
“So are you going to watch the film or just stand at the window all night?”
Chloe jerked her head out from behind the window blinds and glanced over at Rhys. He smirked and patted the sofa, as if he knew what was running through her mind.
“I’m coming,” Chloe said and ran her teeth over her bottom lip deciding if she should just be honest. It was probably better than acting the fool. “I’m just feeling a little nervous.”
Rhys sat forward, his brow furrowing. “Nervous about what?”
“Being here… alone… with you.” Chloe said and found that she couldn’t look him in the face. “I’m not even sure what this is. I mean are we a couple? Or are we friends who were once lovers?”
“What do you want to be?”
Chloe looked up. “I asked you first.”
“And I’m asking you second. What are you wanting Chloe?”
She wanted to smack him, that’s what she wanted. Why was he making this so hard on her? He was the man. He should be the one to make the first move. Wasn’t that univ
ersally known?
Chloe unconsciously gripped the bottom of her sweater dress and made sure it hadn’t ridden up. Her mind was a race track as possible answers sped around each trying to get to the finish line before the others. Should she just tell him she wanted him back, or should she play it coy and only hint at what she wanted?
She was afraid to tell him how she felt, but as she gazed into those stormy eyes that seemed to glow in the dim light of the TV, Chloe was afraid she’d make a bigger mess of things if she tried to play it cool. She should just tell the truth.
He sat there patiently waiting for her answer. She was sure that Rhys could see the inner struggle written on her face. Her emotions clouded her eyes and she scrunched up her eyebrows. She needed to stop being such a coward. Just tell him!
She was about to speak when Rhys got up off the sofa and approached her. When he grabbed her shoulders she almost cried out in surprise. All she could do was silently look up at his face in question.
“How do you feel about me now?” Rhys’s eyes bore into hers. There was lightning in them now, intense and ready to strike.
“I think you already know thanks to my drunken stupor.”
Rhys pulled her against him. “I forget. Tell me again.”
“I haven’t been able to get you out of my head these past few weeks.” She shyly met his gaze. His grey eyes were like deep waves pouring over her, drowning her. She had suddenly forgotten how to breathe. “Just kiss me already! Then maybe I can stop feeling so bloody nervous around you.” There, she’d said it. Now she just hoped he wouldn’t make her regret it.
Rhys grinned. “I can do that.”
Before the words had sunk into her brain, he was already pulling her up onto her toes and devouring her mouth, instantly awaking a fire deep inside her belly.
Chloe flung her arms around his neck and opened her mouth to him, the fire inside her deepening still. She could feel the heat moving lower making her tremble with need.
As he ran his tongue over her teeth, Chloe shuddered. Rhys grabbed her waist pulling her closer until she felt herself becoming lost in the taste of him. The feel of his body hot against hers was only driving her deeper into madness.
Her heart raced and she moaned as his tongue played sensual tricks inside her mouth.
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