I began to
relax a little. We didn’t make promises idly, and they were never empty ones. I took them at their word, and I sat back down at the vanity to finish up my eye makeup.
“I’m ordering pizza,” Aubree announced as she zipped up her jeans. “I’m starving.”
“Ugh, no thanks,” Peyton groaned as she sat down. “Not hungry.”
I rolled my eyes at my reflection. Over a month later and she still wasn’t over her stage fright.
“Ro? You want a veggie?” Aubree asked, lifting her phone to her ear.
“Yeah,” I said, finishing up my eyes and then starting on my lipstick. “But no tomatoes.”
“I remember, babe.”
Once I was done, Genesis took my spot, and I grabbed my bag so I could change. By the time we were all ready and had eaten dinner, it was almost time to take the stage. I grabbed a bottle of water, trying to hydrate as much as possible before I spent the next hour torturing my throat.
“Slay them tonight, ladies,” Harris said as he came into the room. “Also, the house is packed, and I’ve had to tighten security around the stage. Roanna, I don’t want you worrying about anyone trying to climb up onstage with you like last week.”
“I’m not worried,” I assured him, tossing the empty bottle into the recycling bin. For whatever reason, it was easy to talk to Harris. Maybe it was the tortured look I saw in his eyes every day, or that he never once looked at me or the other Blondes like we were sex dolls there for his enjoyment—which was something nearly every other man on the planet seemed to do. Perhaps it was just that he exuded this protectiveness that told me he would shield my soul sisters and me with his last breath while we were under his club’s roof. Either way, I didn’t stutter when I was around him. “My girls have my back.”
“Just a heads-up, my parents are here tonight. Once the show is over, come on upstairs and I’ll introduce you again.” Tipping up his chin, he left.
“Oh, no pressure,” London grumbled as she fluffed up her hair one last time. “Come hang out with a rock legend and his goddess wife.”
“She is hot,” Aubree agreed. “It’s those eyes, man.”
“I knew it wouldn’t be long before Harris was introducing me to his parents,” Peyton gushed from the couch. “Things are getting serious with us. Last week he even said he was thinking of extending our contract if we were up for that. It’s totally because he wants to keep me around. He’s scared it will ruin things between us if we don’t.”
“Good for you two,” Genesis told her with a tight smile, then rolled her eyes when Peyton turned her back.
We all knew Peyton was full of shit. There was nothing going on between those two. Harris had taken us to a few parties, helping us get an in with the right people. He was a decent guy, and he wanted to help us as much as possible, as per our contract. But he could barely tolerate Peyton.
I was a little worried about her, actually. The chick was delusional about her “relationship” with our boss. Unhinged, even. She was going to get hurt and ruin things for us if she wasn’t careful.
After changing out of our sweaty clothes and rehydrating, we climbed the stairs to do as Harris instructed. I was tired, not up for hanging out with anyone, least of all famous people. But this was part of the job and how we would get to where we needed to be.
The VIP floor seemed to be overflowing with people, some of them stopping to tell us how much they’d enjoyed our set. I stayed in the back of the group like always, not wanting to be pulled into conversation with anyone. Like they always did, my soul sisters drew the attention on to themselves whenever someone tried to speak to me, knowing how uncomfortable I was. I kept my head down, avoiding eye contact with everyone.
Finally, we reached the area in the back where Harris normally sat to entertain guests. An older version of him sat across from our boss, his hair pulled up into a man bun. The man might have been heading toward fifty, but he was still sexy as hell. Long and lean, with just a few strands of gray mixed in with his dark hair. Laugh lines around his eyes told me he had a happy life.
His hand was draped over the back of the couch, his fingers playing with his wife’s long, dark hair. Natalie Cutter was considerably younger than her husband, but the way she looked up at him spoke of how much she loved him. The woman was beautiful with her elfin facial features and blue-gray eyes that reminded me of her rocker brothers. She was the sister of two of the members of Demon’s Wings, but she was famous in her own right as one of Emmie Armstrong’s business partners.
Seeing us coming, Harris and his father stood. “Dad, you remember the Blonde Bombshells? Genesis, London, Aubree, and Roanna.” His eyes turned colder. “And Peyton.”
“Mr. Cutter,” Peyton cooed, shaking the man’s hand. “It’s so good to finally meet you and your wife.” She smiled adoringly down at Natalie. “I’ve been begging this guy to introduce us for weeks now.”
The rocker and his wife shared a look, amusement clearly on their faces. “Um, yeah, good to meet you too… Peyton, was it?” Devlin said, his dimples popping as he pulled his hand free.
“Yes. Peyton.” He started to sit, but Peyton slipped into his seat. “I would love to have lunch with you one day, Mrs. Cutter. Maybe you could tell me all about how Harris was as a boy.”
Natalie stood, shaking her head at the pest the chick was becoming. “Sorry. I have a busy schedule for the next few weeks.” She stood on tiptoe and kissed her stepson’s cheek. “Thanks for inviting us out tonight, sweetheart. But your sister has been blowing up my phone all evening, asking when we are going to pick her up from Shane’s house. Apparently, she’s had a disagreement with Violet and doesn’t want to spend the night, after all.”
“Let me guess.” Harris’s face tightened. “Luca and Lyric had something to do with it?”
Natalie forced a smile. “Probably.” Turning to us, she held out her hand, shaking each of ours, with the exception of Peyton’s. “Ladies, your show tonight was amazing. We really enjoyed ourselves, didn’t we, Dev?”
“Haven’t heard a set that tight in forever,” the rock god assured us before settling his gaze on me. “Girl, those lungs of yours are killer.”